It is one of the country’s worst kept secrets but Tesco is still trying to keep some parts of their proposals under wraps as they trial a new discount store with a launch in Chatteris.
Jack’s will be the first store of its kind by the retailer who is using part of the mothballed site where they once proposed a superstore with up to 250 jobs.
Since the company pulled back on opening it three years ago, part of the store has been rented out to Poundstretcher with the residual 26,500 sq ft of space left vacant.
Earlier this year we revealed Chatteris was to become a guinea pig for a new discount brand from Tesco to take on the likes of Lidl and Aldi.
Those reports are now confirmed with Jack’s, named after Jack Cohen who opened his first store in 1919 that later became Tesco.
Clive Black at Shore Capital told the BBC: “Jack’s, if we are correct, also represents Tesco firmly moving on, coming out of ‘fix’ mode and being more creative, innovative and ... on the front foot.”
Natalie Berg of NBK Retail: “It’s no easy feat to establish in a crowded and cut-throat market, but it’s now so competitive that retailers are being forced to think outside the box.
“The only way to compete with the discounters is by becoming one.”
Meanwhile the Chatteris ‘dome’ is expected to be unveiled at around 11am next Wednesday.
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