New Gateshead Poundland to open on 29 March – with existing store retained for now
Site of Poundland, Trinity Square, Gateshead (2 March 2014)
One of the eight new Poundland stores scheduled to open by the end of March is the long-awaited branch at Gateshead’s Trinity Square development, which Poundland’s new stores page is reporting will open on Saturday 29 March.
It’s been widely assumed that the Trinity Square store launch would result in the closure of the existing High Street store, just around the corner in the former Woolworths premises. Poundland has traded from there since September 2010, after the property had sat empty for nearly two years following Woolworths’ demise.
Former Woolworths (now Poundland), Gateshead (5 Jan 2014)
However, the curious reference to the Trinity Square Poundland being “our 2nd Gateshead store” made me wonder whether the existing branch would, in fact, be staying open alongside the new one.
After a bit of investigation, it appears that that is indeed the case – at least for now. A member of staff in the store told me that the plan is for the existing shop to stay open for “a couple of months”, but that “nothing is confirmed”. This would explain, I suppose, why there hasn’t appeared to be any marketing for the High Street unit in commercial property circles, despite the fact that the Trinity Square store has been on the cards for the best part of a year.
Former Woolworths, Gateshead (12 Mar 2010)
Longer term, it’s hard to imagine that Poundland will keep both stores on in such close proximity to each other, particularly given that the current store rarely feels thronged. Still, in the short term, it’s a shop unit that won’t be sitting empty – which has to be welcome – even if it keeps us guessing about who might, ultimately, take over one of Gateshead town centre’s biggest retail premises.
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just heard the Post Office is moving to Jackson News on Jackson Street, Menswear store announcement is imminent, and a new cafe soon to be announced in Trinity Square!
Hammersmith has two Poundland stores less than two minutes walk apart, one in the Kings Mall, and one in King St, practically opposite the entrance to the mall.
The King St store opened first and I assumed when the Mall store opened that it would close, but but both have now been running side by side for quite some time now.
could the reference to second Gateshead store not be a reference to a store at the metro centre which is listed as Gateshead Metro Centre on the store listings?
That’s partly why I checked – but apparently not.
Similar situation in Nuneaton where in 2012 Poundland opened up in the former Marks and Spencers store (a very large store at that) but have retained (and still open now) the other much smaller store just a short distance away.