A former commuter-belt John Lewis department store that closed in 2020 after 140 years trading is to reopen on Saturday as a giant Poundland outlet.
The discount retailer will open its 600th clothing store next month in the Atria Watford Shopping Centre in the shell of the old John Lewis branch.
The 96,620 sq ft department store, which employed 382 people, was one of eight underperforming John Lewis branches closed in 2020, but has stood empty ever since.
The 11,000 sq ft Poundland will only occupy part of the empty space but will be around four times bigger than the current unit in Watford High Street. It is the first time a Poundland has opened in a former John Lewis.
Poundland’s Watford store manager Natalia Moroziuk said: “Eight new jobs will be created with all our existing colleagues transferring across, meaning we will have a team of 23 working there. “It is a very exciting time for us. Lots of our existing customers have been chatting to us telling us they are really looking forward to our move.”
She added: “Shoppers will be able to buy the popular Pepco clothing, homeware products, and a range of fresh and frozen food as well. “We will have an excellent choice of health and beauty products, household items, and lots of seasonal goods.”
The store had originally traded as Trewins when it opened in 1880, before being sold to Gordon Selfridge in 1918 and later bought by the John Lewis Partnership in 1940.
It remained as Trewin Brothers until 2001 when it was rebranded as a John Lewis.
In 2013 it became the first John Lewis store to incorporate a little Waitrose as part of a £2 million investment.
More than 13,000 people signed a petition to save the John Lewis store when the closure was announced. The town’s Liberal Democrat mayor, Peter Taylor, said at the time of the closure that it was “incredibly sad news for our town”.
