The former Grangeway Shopping Centre in Preston Grange, North Shields, is said to be responsible for a little piece of retail history.
In the early 1960s, the national company which ran the centre, Allied Suppliers Ltd, was looking for a name for a new discount shopping store there. After a bit of head scratching, they decided to remove the ‘n’ from Preston and named the new store Presto.
It was an instant success and Presto stores would proliferate around the UK, with the brand becoming a household name for the nation’s shoppers. The new supermarkets would often open in newfangled '60s and '70s shopping centres. As well as at Preston Grange, they popped up in our region in new purpose-built centres in Newcastle's Eldon Square, Gateshead, Washington, Wallsend, Jarrow and elsewhere.
