Customers of a new homeware store in Leamington Spa have raved about the place since it opened a few days ago. Søstrene Grene, dubbed 'Little Ikea', launched a shop at Royal Priors Shopping Centre last week as part of the Danish brand's grand plans to expand its presence in the UK.
The duo behind the retailer's UK operations branded the launch 'fantastic' and said staff had received plenty of 'great feedback' from shoppers. And that would certainly appear to be the case judging by social media comments about Søstrene Grene's first store in Warwickshire.
Emma Irlam said: "Lovely shop and staff. Been in twice already. Nice items and really great to have somewhere to buy crafting supplies." "Enjoyed the experience of your store and both members of staff I spoke to were very helpful," Susan Glassborrow said. "Will definitely revisit."
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Sue Stubbe visited the shop with her daughter on Monday and was 'so impressed by the products, shop layout and happy, helpful staff'. Checkout was easy and friendly," she said. "We shall return often."
Julia Ward was also left excited, saying: "Had a quick glance and thought it was really great. Will definitely be buying as I thought the prices were very fair."
But not everyone was enamoured. One miffed shopper 'wasn’t impressed' amid claims she had to pay 32p for a plastic carrier bag and was not told about the charge before completing her transaction. "Whilst I queued not one till operator mentioned the price to the customer and just added this to their bill," she said.
"Also, prices are a bit misleading when they say 'start from' unless you check first. Gift boxes are quite expensive imo. Some good bits and pieces but customer service needs improving and some happy faces would be great!"
Founded in Denmark in 1973 by husband and wife Inger Grene and Knud Cresten Vaupell Olsen, Søstrene Grene sells homeware and furniture designed in typical minimalist Scandinavian style - a little like its larger Swedish cousin. The company employs a 'trademark labyrinth layout' for its shops in a bid to 'create a more interesting and free-flowing shopping experience'.
Instead of operating in large out-of-town retail parks, Søstrene Grene has earmarked smaller stores on or linked to the high street. The Leamington store will offer new drops weekly on interiors, craft and hobby items and lifestyle products and will also stock kitchen and bathroom accessories, gifts, stationary, children's items and toys.
Norma Jacob and Richard Power run Søstrene Grene stores across the south of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Norma said: "We are so thrilled with the turnout at the Grand Opening of our new Leamington Spa store. It was fantastic to meet local residents and see them enjoy the in-store experience."
Richard said the store's 'affordable prices' had gone down well with punters adding 'we look forward to seeing continued success in the new store as we approach Christmas.'
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