A new IKEA store is set to open in Greater Manchester today, offering residents the opportunity to create their ‘dream storage space’.

The Scandi addition will open in a new location on Tuesday March 21st and will be a smaller store than the huge Ashton-under-Lyne site., dedicated to kitchen and bedroom planning.

Customers can visit for home furnishing advice and expertise to help design their ideal space in their home, according to the retail giant.

The brand new IKEA Plan and Order Point will open in Stockport and is promised to be part of a ‘transformation’ by the brand to become more accessible and sustainable for customers in the North West. 

It will be located inside the Merseyway Shopping Centre and not as big as the standard Ikea store but expected to be packed with kitchen and wardrobe solutions, including oven and hob options, kitchen fronts, worktops and appliances.

There’s also a dedicated space to IKEA’s popular PAX wardrobe system with doors, interior organisers, and knobs and handles to help customers build their ‘dream storage solution’.

Michael Parker, Area Manager of IKEA UK, said: “Our investment in the North West is part of our long-term plan to transform our retail business, continuing to make it easier for people to enjoy what IKEA offers using a variety of convenient ways.

“The North West is a key region for us, being home to over seven million people, and also being the place that IKEA first opened a UK store, 35 years ago in Warrington.

“This new Plan and Order Point, along with one already open in Aintree, Merseyside, and another soon to open in Preston, will allow customers to get inspiration and expert advice in convenient locations closer to where they live.

“Together with our existing stores in Ashton-under-Lyne and Warrington, remote planning and different delivery and collection services, we’re enabling an IKEA that’s there for our customers, however they want to meet us.”

The new branch has been carefully designed based on insights of how the people of Greater Manchester ‘want their kitchens to be brought to life’, according to an Ikea spokesperson, who says residents show a preference for kitchens in traditional styles, often in a L-shape. 

Customers can book an appointment, free of charge, to start their design journey with one of IKEA’s planning specialists or use the in-store self-service tools to design their own solution. Staff will be on hand to help customers order products from the full IKEA range, for delivery direct to the customer’s home or nearest collection point.

Cllr Malcolm Allan, Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources at Stockport Council, said: “Whilst many high streets are in decline, businesses are seeing Stockport as a place that is growing and expanding, and a great place to be.

“That sort of recognition is something of an endorsement especially from an organisation of IKEA’s calibre and reputation. Our ambitious £1bn regeneration programme is attracting a diverse mix of businesses to the town and they will be followed by a wide range of customers who have increasing reasons to visit Stockport.”

The Plan & Order Point in Stockport follows the opening of a Plan & Order Point in Aintree, Liverpool in December, with plans to open a third in the Preston area, coming later in 2023.

Opening hours are Monday–Saturday 9am–6pm and Sunday 11am–5pm.

The Stockport store will be based at Merseyway Shopping Centre, Unit 82, Great Underbank, Stockport, SK1 1PD.

Appointments to consult with one of IKEA’s interior designers must be made in advance via the online booking system.

Aldi will close almost 900 stores next month in order to give staff a day off over Easter.

The budget supermarket has issued a message to all shoppers ahead of Easter weekend. The announcement will affect 890 supermarkets over the Easter Bank Holiday in April and customers have been given a warning of the change in advance.

The long Easter weekend begins on Good Friday April 7th and ends on Easter Monday 10th, giving many office workers and schools four days off. Aldi will be changing how most of its stores operate over this upcoming long weekend, as 890 of its supermarkets are set to close on Easter Sunday (April 9th) to give its staff a well-deserved day off.

Over the Easter weekend, Aldi stores in England and Wales will be open until 10pm on Good Friday and Easter Saturday. Stores will be closed on Easter Sunday, but will be open until 8pm on Easter Monday.

The opening times of some stores may vary, so shoppers should check the details for their local Aldi online before making the trip. Aldi has previously been praised for closing stores on Easter Sunday. 

Meanwhile, Aldi’s rival Tesco has also announced a major change ahead of the Easter period. For the first time ever, the grocery giant has changed its iconic logo.

The new logo rolled out across supermarkets, delivery vans and billboards from Monday March 20th, and shoppers who spot it are in with a chance of winning £1,000 to spend on whatever they want, says Tesco.

From March 20th until Wednesday march 29th, shoppers who spot the limited edition logos across any format can enter the competition for a chance to win £1000 by sharing an image of it on their Instagram grid or Twitter feed using the hashtag #CrackingEaster, or post a photo of it under the promotional post on the Tesco Facebook page.

The giveaway will see 100 lucky entrants win £1,000 to spend at Tesco, to help them enjoy Easter with family and friends.

Shoppers can visit Tesco stores from today to be in with a chance of winning.

Exciting new plans to launch a state-of-the-art snow leopard habitat at Chester Zoo have been released after being given the green light.

The North West’s hugely popular visitor attraction and animal conservation had its planning application given the rubber stamp by Cheshire West and Chester Council on Thursday March 16th. The zoo plans to build a new animal holding facility with on-show and off-show animal enclosures, and a public viewing area.

It will be situated at the eastern edge of the site in an existing enclosure. It currently houses a Blesbok habitat and Wetland Bird Nursery, which are being relocated to the Conservation Breeding and Management Area (CBMA), located on Caughall Road.

A statement submitted from Chester Zoo with the planning application read: “The plan is designed to enhance our position as one of the world’s best conservation, animal and leisure attractions between now and 2030.

“Building on the success of our ground-breaking islands habitats which first opened in 2015 to bring South East Asia to life in Cheshire, the remainder of the zoo will be sensitively transformed through the creation of large scale themed zones.

“As a leading tourist attraction, it is imperative that we continue to invest and improve our facilities for excellent education, animal welfare and visitor satisfaction. The snow leopard is an iconic species with significant public draw and should help drive visitation to the zoo during a period with no other major visitor developments taking place.

“The intention is to construct the enclosure on an existing animal habitat with no increase to staff numbers or traffic as part of this application.”

Highways officer Paul Parry requested a condition be added to the planning consent for full details of the phasing of the demolition and construction traffic for the development to be provided prior to the works.

He stated: “It is considered that the overall proposals would not give rise to such a significant increase in the level of typical daily zoo visitor traffic that would have an additional severe impact on the operation or safety of the local highway network.

“There will be construction traffic related to the build out period and this will result in construction vehicles using Caughall Road to access the site. Whilst this will have an impact on Caughall Road it is considered that, as it will be finite construction period, a refusal reason based on construction traffic impacts would not be robust grounds for a refusal.

“I would expect to see a Construction Traffic Management Plan in place to set out how such traffic and its impacts would be managed and mitigated for.

“I would expect such a plan to have control measures set out within it to avoid construction vehicle movements, including larger vehicles undertaking deliveries etc. at the school drop off and pick up periods for Acresfield Primary School.”