Ravenside Retail Park

Chesterfield’s brand-new M&S store opens at Ravenside Retail Park

Local people have been supported to secure jobs at the new Marks and Spencer store in Chesterfield, as part of a partnership project with Chesterfield Borough Council.

Located in Ravenside Retail Park, the store is designed with customers and local families at heart with a fresh, market-style Foodhall and a spacious Clothing, Home and Beauty Department, and over 400 car parking spaces.

At 46,000 sqft. the new store marks a big investment for M&S in Chesterfield, with over 100 new recruits joining the current team to welcome customers through the doors.

On the store’s official opening day, (Wednesday, 30th November) the M&S Chesterfield team gathered at the store entrance at 10am with Store Manager, Matt Corker, who was joined by guest of honor, Percy Pig, to cut the ribbon and declare the store officially open.

The opening day was also marked with a live broadcast from North Derbyshire Radio, who hosted the Breakfast and Daytime shows from the shop floor – interviewing colleagues and customers and getting a first-look at all the exciting new features.

Soaking up the opening day celebrations, Store Manager Matt Corker, who has worked at M&S for over 25 years, is exceptionally proud of the new store and his amazing team of of over 200 colleagues.

Matt said: “We’re thrilled to open our brand-new store in Chesterfield today. The last few weeks have been spent putting the finishing touches to our new store and I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone in the team who has worked so hard to make sure everything is ready for our big opening day.”

“The store is an exciting investment in the future of M&S in Chesterfield and I can’t wait for our customers to explore all the new features that the store has to offer. As well as bringing our existing M&S Chesterfield team across to the new store, we’re proud to introduce over 100 new recruits to M&S Chesterfield, who can’t wait to meet everyone. With an amazing new, fresh-market feel Foodhall and a Clothing, Home & Beauty department which is the perfect place to shop your M&S favourites, we really do have the best of M&S here in Chesterfield for everyone to enjoy!”

While acknowledging that it’s disappointing to lose the household name from its central location on the high street – Chesterfield Borough Council has welcomed the firm’s commitment to its future in the borough.

Local people were supported to apply for roles at the new store at a recent recruitment event led by the council.

Councillor Kate Sarvent, cabinet member for town centres and visitor economy, said: “The opening of this new Marks and Spencer store at Ravenside Retail Park represents a significant investment in our borough.

“Whilst we understand that the move is disappointing for our high street, the company’s decision to remain within our town demonstrates the confidence that this national retailer has in Chesterfield’s future.

“It has also created more than 100 new jobs, and we’ve been working closely with the company to support local people to benefit from these new employment opportunities.”

The council does not own the building which has now been vacated by Marks and Spencer, but is continuing to work with the landlord to explore alternative uses for this key town centre building,

Councillor Sarvent added: “While we have no direct control over the former Marks and Spencer building, we will do all we can to explore and support positive new uses for this central site in our town centre.

“We’re also making significant investments in this area to ensure we can create a modern, vibrant visitor destination which builds confidence in the town – including our ambitious ‘Revitalising the Heart of Chesterfield’ town centre regeneration plans which are moving forward after we secured nearly £20m from the Government’s levelling up fund.”

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Marks and Spencer confirms expansion into larger Chesterfield store

Retail giant Marks and Spencer has committed further to its future in Chesterfield, by announcing plans to expand into a larger premises in the town.

The company has officially announced it will be moving to the former Debenhams store on the Ravenside Retail Park, which is a purpose built unit. It means M&S will be expanding its range of food, clothing and homeware to shoppers in Chesterfield.

Craig Baldock, Regional Manager for M&S said: “We’re excited to announce our plans to open a brand new, larger M&S store at Ravenside Retail Park, which will offer local customers in Chesterfield a much bigger range of M&S products across our Foodhall and Clothing & Home departments. The new store will be finished and open to customers later this year.

“We believe this is the right decision to ensure we can deliver the very best M&S offer for customers in Chesterfield and the wider local area. We will keep the community updated as the works progress.

“Shopping habits are changing, so we’re rotating our store estate and this investment in Chesterfield is part of our work to ensure we have the right stores to offer our customers a brilliant shopping experience.”

Councillor Kate Sarvent, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for town centres and visitor economy, said: “Marks and Spencer moving to Ravenside Retail Park represents a significant investment in our borough, creating more jobs and demonstrating confidence in the growth of the local economy. A new, expanded M&S store will mean they can offer a wider range of products and have a modern store that is fit for the future.

“Whilst the move is disappointing for our high street, we are making significant investments in this area to ensure we can create a modern, vibrant visitor destination which builds confidence in the town – including our ambitious town centre regeneration plans which are moving forward after we secured nearly £20m from the Government’s levelling up fund.

“The council does not own the building currently occupied by Marks and Spencer but we will work with them and the landlord to explore alternative uses for this key town centre building.”

The move is the latest in a line of new openings and expansions into the town, such as Rebel Menswear, Boba Shack and Pizza Pi.

To find out more about the fantastic range of independent retailers and nationally recognised brands in our town, go to: https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/visiting/shopping/

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Work starts to improve traffic flow around Ravenside Retail Park

A new £270,000 project to improve traffic flow, road safety and access for cyclists, pedestrians and buses has started at the A619/Park Road junction in Chesterfield.

New low-energy, intelligent traffic lights will be installed to automatically monitor and adjust timings to minimise delays at the busy junction which provides access to the popular Ravenside Retail Park.

To help encourage cycling and walking, a new Toucan crossing will be installed at the crossing on Park Road, with wider footways to provide space for pedestrians and cyclists. The Toucan crossing will automatically detect cyclists and alert the traffic lights to change to reduce waiting times.

As part of the scheme, any local buses running late will be automatically prioritised with a green light to make up lost time, increasing the convenience of travelling by bus.

New LED (light emitting diode) streetlights will also be installed on the approaches to the junction to reduce energy costs and improve visibility for all road users.

To help reduce delays as far as possible during the works, engineers are trialling the use of a new high-tech temporary traffic light system, which is being used for the first time in the county. The system mirrors the way the junction’s permanent lights normally work to keep disruption to a minimum.

Derbyshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways Assets and Transport, Councillor Kewal Singh Athwal said:“We are using the very latest technology to bring state-of-the-art traffic solutions to this busy junction in Chesterfield.

“The new traffic lights and pedestrian crossings we install will interact with each other to maximise traffic flow for all road users, improving road safety and reducing delays and greenhouse gas emissions.

“We recognise the improvements will lead to some short-term delays while the works are being carried out which is why we are trialling the new high-tech temporary traffic lights to try to keep these delays to a minimum.

“I’d like to thank local road users for their patience during these improvements which are one part of our £50m package to make Derbyshire a safer, more connected county for everyone.”

 

Site preparation works will start on Monday 28 March, with the construction works beginning on Wednesday 30 March. The roadworks will be in place from 8am to 4pm. Local road users are encouraged to allow extra time for their journeys.

 

 

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