HUNDREDS of people queued up to be the first to see inside a brand new home and garden store in Basingstoke.
The Range opened its doors to the public last Friday, when a ribbon was cut by Mayor of Basingstoke and Deane, Councillor Anne Court, who declared the superstore officially open, as those in the queue gave a round of applause.
The new store, off Reading Road on the Gastons Wood Industrial Estate, has 16 departments including an extensive Christmas shop and a cafe.
The Range team had been working hard to stack the shelves with a vast selection of products for customers to browse.
The new store has created around 80 jobs in the local area from warehouse staff and sales assistants to store and office managers.
During the first weekend of opening the celebrations continued with face painting for children and free craft demonstrations.
Chris Dawson, who owns and runs The Range, said: “Basingstoke is our 110th store so having so many people there to celebrate the opening was fantastic.
“I would like to thank all of the staff for their hard work in preparing for the opening and would like to welcome them to The Range team.”
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