DIYWEEK.net

The group, which operates Klondyke and Strikes garden centres in the UK has saved the former Garden Centre Group site, which closed down before Christmas.
The announcement follows reports in December that Beverley's 60 employees had been handed redundancy notices when the Garden Centre Group decided not to renew its lease on the centre.

It was revealed that site owner Keygrowing was set to move another retail operator in, with rumours that Klondyke was in line to take over. However, this was not confirmed until today, as the outcome was dependent on gaining planning approval.

The leasehold acquisition of the centre at Woodmansey, Hull, Humberside, takes the Klondyke Group portfolio to 26, including centres in Edinburgh, Inverness, Anglesey, Leeds and Burton upon Trent. The group plans to fully refurbish the centre and reopen early next month.

The recruitment process for the new Klondyke centre is currently underway and the group explained that it had contacted and would be interviewing previous Beverley Garden Centre employees for positions at the site.

Commenting on the acquisition, Klondyke chief executive Bob Hewitt said: "'We are very pleased to acquire Beverley Garden Centre and are excited about the prospects for the future. It is a relatively new, purpose-built centre in a good location and we have secured a much-improved planning consent regarding the product range. The centre ceased trading at Christmas following a 'closing down' sale by The Garden Centre Group and will be fully refurbished prior to re-launch at the beginning of March."

Mr Hewitt revealed that the Klondyke Group has other exciting plans in the pipeline for the coming year. "This is an exciting time for the company. In addition to the acquisition of Beverley, we are currently progressing substantial redevelopment and refurbishment projects at High Legh and Inverness, both of which will be completed prior to spring trading. This follows the successful redevelopment of Northallerton, which was completed in 2011, and is in line with our on-going strategic aim to invest and upgrade key centres in the current estate. Finally the garden centre at Wilmslow will be rebuilt following the fire in 2011. We anticipate that the new centre will open late summer 2012."