Early opening date announced for Shrewsbury Primark store

Work on the store is now nearing completion and a grand opening will now take place on July 27 at 10am.

Previously the company had said that the 30,600sq ft shop - which has taken over nine units including Currys, JJB Sports, TK Maxx and Dorothy Perkins in the Charles Darwin shopping centre - would open in early autumn.

But work has progressed faster than anticipated and now the discount outlet will open two months ahead of schedule.

The new Primark is a first for Shrewsbury and will be spread across two floors in the shopping centre.

There will be men's, women's and children's departments as well as a shoe department and others dedicated to lingerie, beauty and homewares,

More than 140 full and part time jobs from retail assistants and supervisors on the sales floor, in the stockroom and cash offices, as well as in human resources and visual merchandising have been created.

Spokeswoman for the store Elizabeth Kittle said: "Primark is delighted to announce the opening of its new store in Shrewsbury on July 27 at 10am.

"The new store will have over 30,000sq ft of retail space and will feature the latest trends in women’s, men’s and children’s fashions including footwear, accessories as well as lingerie, beauty and homeware.

"The opening of the new store will create 140 new jobs.”

Guernsey-based UK Commercial Property Trust Limited, the company that owns the centre, announced last year it had appointed McLaughlin & Harvey as the main contractor for the project.

The company has given the shopping centre, which is also home to Marks & Spencer, Pandora, Top Shop and River Island, a facelift, with improvements to the ground floor areas and atrium.

Since work began last summer, McLaughlin & Harvey has undertaken a major refurbishment of the public areas of the shopping centre, including new floors, ceilings and lighting.

The fashion retailer had previously said that Shrewsbury provides an ‘ideal location’ for Primark as it is a popular destination for the business’s key demographics.

The only other Primark store in Shropshire is based in Telford town centre.