99p store moves in at old Woolies

THE former Woolworths store in Tonbridge is vacant once again – but there could be a cheeky surprise for shoppers just around the corner.

Northamptonshire-based firm 99p Stores Ltd will be moving into the High Street unit in mid-February on a permanent lease.

Bosses have not ruled out bringing in the Cheeky Girls, who have opened several of their other stores, to make a headline-grabbing appearance for the grand opening.

Commercial director Hussein Lalani said: "We went for Tonbridge because we have a good presence in Kent anyway with our stores in Maidstone, so it fitted quite nicely.

"We're planning to open around Valentine's Day, which shows how much we like Tonbridge, and we'll be employing around 30 full-time people.

"Maybe we could bring the Cheeky Girls down to launch a new romantic perfume?"

The new store will replace One Pound and Less which shut on January 4 after its temporary lease came to an end.

It is the 57th ex-Woolworths shop it has taken over and its 127th store in England.

Mr Lalani added: "We'll start recruiting at the beginning of February through the local Job Centre.

"We'll probably also start work on the store around that time as well.

"It's good news for jobs and good we're keeping the site running.

"When you have a big site like the Woolies one closed then the surrounding businesses are hit too.

"I know the previous tenant was only a temporary lease but people shouldn't worry because we're on a full lease so we will be here to stay."

The firm has created about 2,000 jobs in the last 12 months as it has almost doubled in size, mainly due to the taking over of the old Woolworths stores.

What do you think? Have your say at www.thisiskent.co.uk/tonbridge