Home improvement and garden retailer Bunnings officially opened its doors in Bicester on the 21st of December 2017.

On the site of the former Homebase on Launton Road, the new smaller format store is 36,700 square feet, which is approximately half the size of the largest Bunnings Warehouse store in Milton Keynes (90,000 square feet).

The new store, which is part of the ongoing pilot programme, promises customers lowest prices everyday across a wide range of home improvement and garden products from global market-leading brands.

Customers will also be able to choose from thousands of additional products via the Special Orders desk. Other services include paint mixing, key cutting, timber cutting and an in-store Hire Shop, providing tools for collection or home delivery.

Bunnings’ team members have already been busy ahead of today’s store opening, helping with projects in the Bicester area. These included restoring the front garden at Croughton Pre-School and renovating a memorial garden for pupils at Glory Farm P

rimary School.

Bicester Complex Manager, Nicola Dowling, said: “All our team members have worked really hard to get the store ready for opening and have undertaken many hours of training to make sure we have the expertise to help customers with home or garden projects.”

To celebrate the opening, Andy Gomarsall, former Rugby Union Player is joining a welcome breakfast for team members.

Mr Gomarsall said: “I’ve had a great time opening the store and celebrating with the team. Just like rugby, success is built on strong teamwork and it’s evident that everyone here is committed to making the store a hit.”

The store will host a weekend of events January 6-7 2018, where customers can enjoy a range of family activities including the famous Bunnings Sausage Sizzle, face-painting, balloon modelling and even join Paddington Bear for a meet and greet session (see in store for details).

Bunnings, the leading retailer of home improvement and garden products in Australia and New Zealand, acquired Homebase for £340million in February 2016 – and plans to invest a further £500million building a new Bunnings business in the UK and Ireland over a five-year plus timeframe.