NEWSAGENT Amjad Hussain is hoping thousands of Westgate Centre customers will boost his trade.

The 37-year-old has opened a new Globe News store in Castle Street, close to one of the entrances to the revamped £440m centre which opened in October.

The father-of-five also runs Tuck Shop newsagent in Holywell Street and Globe Newsmarket in Woodstock Road.

Mr Hussain said he had invested a ‘significant amount’ to open his latest store.

He added: “It’s a unit owned by the Westgate Centre and I applied last year and got the go-ahead.

“We have been open a couple of weeks now and footfall has been very steady.

“The store is in a good location near one of the main entrances for the Westgate Centre and I’m hoping lots of Westgate shoppers call in.

“I want footfall to be healthy at the Westgate because if there are lots of people shopping there that will be good for us.”

Mr Hussain said Globe Newsmarket opened about 15 years ago while Tuck Shop in Holywell Street opened about 10 years ago.

He also ran a Globe newsagent in New Inn Hall Street until he sold it three years ago and it now trades as Bonn Square News.

Mr Hussain, who lives in Oxford with wife Ruby, said a counter serving coffee and paninis would also bring in customers in Castle Street.

Construction workers are among regulars who call in for their breakfast.

Mr Hussain added: “As time goes on more people will become aware of us but it can take a little while before everyone realises we are here.

“It should be very busy - Castle Street and Norfolk Street is one of the main routes for buses.”

Mr Hussain declined to say how much he had invested in the unit.

He added: “It’s quite a large retail space but to be honest I would have liked even more room.”

A National Lottery machine will soon be installed to bring in more business.

Taxi drivers have been lobbying the county council to allow them to drop off passengers in Castle Street and Norfolk Street but the route is being reserved for buses.

City of Oxford Licensed Taxicab Association (COLTA), which represents drivers of the city’s 107 black cabs, has called on the council to lift the ban but at the moment it remains in place.

The ban was approved as part of the planning permission given by Oxford City Council in 2014.

A taxi rank created in Turn Again Lane alongside the new centre opened in April six months after the shopping complex opened.

Until then disabled passengers wanting to use the Westgate Centre had to travel across the city in mobility scooters after arriving at the taxi rank in Gloucester Green.

Mr Hussain added: “At the moment we get a lot of taxi drivers calling in because once they reach our shop they have to turn round - they can’t go any further.

“It does seem strange that taxis are not allowed to use Castle Street and Norfolk Street - they end up going into Paradise Street and then turning round.

“If the rules were changed they could drop passengers off closer to our shop and that could mean more customers.”

The newsagent is opposite an entrance to the Oxford Castle complex, where restaurants and Oxford Castle Unlocked are based.