Dobbies is set to open a new £8m store in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, in the autumn, creating 120 full-time and part-time jobs.
The 48,000sq ft Dobbies Garden World will include a farm food hall, restaurant, gift department and a visitor attraction of display gardens and labyrinth.

The environmentally-friendly garden centre will be built using natural construction materials including a timber frame that will recycle the rain and grey water from the site.

Chief executive James Barnes has said the new store, which will be built on a 13-acre site at Strawberry Hill on Saintfield Road, will use Northern Ireland suppliers as far as possible, with a horticultural buyer visiting the region next week to meet growers at a trade fair.

He commented: "We are excited to be delivering a new Dobbies Garden World for Lisburn and Northern Ireland. This project has been subject to very detailed and lengthy discussions with the Planning Service and we were delighted to finally receive a positive planning decision.

"The local support we received has been outstanding and we are truly grateful for it. This is a project of regional significance in Northern Ireland and we believe that the community and the economy will benefit greatly from the Garden World and the 120 jobs that will be created."

Recruitment has already begun for the store, which is the first to open in Northern Ireland. Dobbies currently has 25 stores across England and Scotland.