Bargain food store at old Woolies
A former Woolworths store in Wolverhampton is to be transformed into a discount grocery and frozen food store, creating 10 jobs, it was announced today.
The High Street landmark has been taken over by Wolverhampton-based Discount Foods. It will be the chain's sixth shop in the region. Managing director Anton Taylor said today: "The loss of Woolworths was sad news but this is a great building in a great location and it would be a shame to see it go unused any longer. Discount Foods has long wanted to set up a base in Wednesfield.
"This is a lovely, spacious shop surrounded by plenty of houses so it meets our needs perfectly."
The four-year-old firm already has stores in Salop Street, Wolverhampton, as well as in Dudley, Rugeley, Cannock and Droitwich.
It will open its new store on December 1 with four full-time workers and six part-time. Opening times will be 9am-5.30pm, Monday to Friday and 10am-4pm on Saturdays.
Mr Taylor, who founded West Midland shop Poundfreeze, which had eight branches round the region before he sold the company to Iceland in 2004, added: "Business is going well and it's good to be expanding, especially in the current financial crisis.
"The store does exactly what it says on the tin really – offer bargain groceries and frozen foods."
The Woolworths chain became one of the most high-profile casualties of the recession when its shops across the country were closed down last December and January.
The former Woolworths in Dudley Street, Wolverhampton, is still empty but the branch in Walsall is now TJ Hughes and the Blackheath shop is Heron Foods.
