A NEW Sainsbury's supermarket has opened its doors to shoppers in Colchester following months of anticipation, with customers already saying they "really like" it.
The Sainsbury's Local, measuring exactly 2,999 sq ft, is situated at the edge of the Kingswood Heath development, on the corner of Via Urbis Romanae and Whitmore Drive, in Mile End.
As well as boasting a tasty bakery and all the essential items shoppers can expect to find in Sainsbury's, inside the store there is also an Argos collection point and a Costa Hot Drink machine.
The fancy new site was officially unveiled at 9am on Friday following an orange ribbon cutting ceremony led by store manager Ellie Connolly.
The arrival of shop, the fourth in the city, has created 20 new jobs for residents, 16 of which trained in Colchester's other Sainsbury's stores before the launch.
Ellie said: "We started at the beginning of October and we completed around 100 interviews for about 20 vacancies, and I did that all between three to four weeks.
Following the opening ceremony, the supermarket soon became busy with customers eager to have a look at the new store.
One shopper, Marina, said she "really liked the inside of the store" and would now visit the site often to use the bakery - which offers fresh bread and pastries.
Marina also explained the international section at the back wall would mean she would venture back more regularly to buy "basics".
Vicki, meanwhile, a mother-of-three, explained how she decided to visit the new store after doing a main shop elsewhere.
She also praised the bakery and said living nearby, the new store could "possibly" become part of her routine.
Manager Ellie added she expects the supermarket to get particularly busy this afternoon after schools close.
"There is quite a lot of footfall through here. We are expecting it to get busy when the football home games are on," she said.
Ellie also revealed how councillor Martin Goss visited the store on Thursday, which alongside other Facebook community pages, helped create excitement.
"This may have helped the sales this morning, which have been really good," she added.
The new Sainsbury's car-park contains one electric vehicle charging point, two 'specialist' spaces, and 19 other parking bays, meaning there is a total of 22 spaces.
There are also ten spaces around the corner which are reserved for the new Bright Horizons nursery, which is expected to be completed in January.
Elsewhere in Colchester, Sainsbury's has large stores in Priory Walk and Western Approach, Stanway, as well as a convenience store in Layer Road.
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