New chain to open first store in former Didcot Woolworths (From Oxford Mail)

New chain to open first store in former Didcot Woolworths

3:12pm Wednesday 7th October 2009 in News By Liam Sloan

A NEW national high street chain has chosen Didcot’s empty Woolworths store to open its first shop.

Alworths, dubbed the “Son-of-Woolworths” by industry experts, will open on November 5, run by ex-Woolworths executives, managed by the shop’s former boss Helen Benson, and staffed by many former employees.

Civic leaders said the chain’s choice of Didcot for its first store was a huge boost for the town.

It will employ 35 staff, rising to 50 leading up to Christmas.

Alworths will stock similar products to its predecessor, including toys, homeware, stationery, garden products and pick ‘n’ mix sweets.

The chain wants to open 22 stores in empty Woolworths stores across the UK within a year, but boss Andy Latham has chosen Didcot to launch the new company.

'We chose Didcot primarily because it was a very good store in the Woolworths days. I hope it will be good for Alworths'

Andy Latham

Mr Latham, 44, who started work as a Saturday boy at Woolworths’ Redhill store in Surrey 25 years ago, is a former head of stores at the national chain, which went into administration after running into financial problems last November.

By January 6, all of the 100-year-old chain’s 807 stores across the country had closed.

He said: “We chose Didcot primarily because it was a very good store in the Woolworths days. I hope it will be good for Alworths.

“We want to be a little department store on the local high street or in market towns with a very good range of products at value prices.”

He said Woolworths had failed because it was too big to cope with changing customer needs and could not adapt to new markets.

“I was emotional when Woolworths closed,” he added.

“There was a huge effect on a lot of people, and when I look back on it I think about all the friends and colleagues who lost their jobs.

“At the same time, it was an opportunity for something new.

“The key thing to the vision isn’t just to be a son of Woolworths.

“This is about fundamentally understanding there is still a gap in the market and catering for that in a new improved way.

“Customers will see a much less cluttered store and new ranges and lines introduced on a more frequent basis.”

He said that unlike Woolworths, the new store would engage with the local community, joining the chamber of commerce and promoting the town.

Jeanette Howse, of Didcot Chamber of Commerce, said: “We’re delighted a company is going into the empty store – and for a national chain to choose Didcot out of everywhere in the country is brilliant. A lot of people miss Woolworths and this will be good for the community.”