No opening date set as yet, but the new Waitrose on the other side of the Creek is taking shape, and is expected to open 'some time in the summer'. It's the ground floor of the building on the south side of Greenwich Reach (or New Capital Quay or whatever its latest name is) - you can see it as you cross the Creek on the Creek Road lifting bridge.
At a reported 31,000sqft it will easily be the largest supermarket in Greenwich itself, much bigger than the 'local' versions of the other supermarkets, but only about two thirds the size of the Sainsbury's on Greenwich peninsula.
Personally I'm quite ambivalent about having a Waitrose nearby - I may well make the occasional trip for a few bottles of decent ale (still pretty much impossible to buy in Deptford) but I'll still be doing most of my shopping in Deptford High Street, which for me is still most convenient, fun and cheapest.
I'm not really bothered about what effect the Waitrose will have on the other supermarkets in the area, however I suspect the arrival of this new supermarket is likely to impact on some of the local, independent shops in quite a devastating way. Businesses such as Deli X on Deptford High Street, or Greenlands Health Food shop in Greenwich could be hit badly, until now having had little competition and being able to survive in their respective niches.
Let's hope with some canny business nous they can find a way to survive - I'm sure if Deli X had their daily specials menu on a board outside, for example, they might get more custom for the cafe which is tucked away at the back. Greenlands is an absolute gem, in my opinion - the range of different products they stock makes them rather like a mini Waitrose for groceries, and they do have the best humus known to man. I'll still be going there for the odds and sods I normally make the trip for, and will be keeping my fingers crossed they can find a way to survive.
9 comments:
Whole Foods cant be too far behind!
I'm sure the Waitrose will be popular and busy, but I think it will mainly attract people from Greenwich.
I think the physical location of the store and the fact that Waitrose attracts (and by inference repels) different types of shopper will leave the shops in Deptford, New Cross and Brockley relatively unaffected.
As Greenwich doesn't have it's own large supermarket close to the town centre already means the effect could be more dramatic there.
I haven't been to Greenlands before, but will check it out. Hopefully they keep a loyal customer base and continue to do well.
Having a Waitrose in deptford . . . deptford will be the envy of everybody in Brockley, they'll probably try and 'annex' us, again
I am so glad we are finally getting some decent food from Waitrose. And perhaps some 'better class' delicacies. I am so tired of that rotten smelly fish in the market. And that dodgy unrefrigerated milk. I'll still go to Sainsburys for wine, but now at last we can ignore that awful 'shopping centre' and its appalling Tesco in scurvy quays.
I like the idea that waitrose is opening up nearby - Just a short walk away.
Will still continue to shop on Deptford High Street every weekend but good to know I can head to Waitrose for nice wines and whatever fancy stuff they do :)
Yippee - some nice posh nosh for those special occasions.
I also hear on the grapevine that a meeting was due to go ahead last week for the re-design of the footbridge that goes across from Millennium Quay to New Capital Quay (Waitrose) with revised plans due early Feb.
Making it even easier for us to get hold of our never knowingly oversold items...oh no...I forgot..they don't offer that pledge on their their grocery items ;-)
I live close to Surrey Quays shopping centre, but I really hate it tbh, especially Tesco. I nip up to Deptford High Street for stuff, even if it does mean a
10 min bus trip. Waitrose is a pretty decent shop & may even bring punters from further afield to shop in Deptford generally. So a goood thing all round I think.
Opening date is 20th June 2013
I like Waitrose, the quality of even their 'essential' range far and away exceeds that of other supermarket's premium offerings. I also shop at Waitrose for some foodstuffs, but I am also a fan of Deptford market where for a £1 or less I can get huge bunches of fresh coriander and mint (half the amount at twice the price from Waitrose or any other supermarket). My fear is that the new Waitrose might lead to a ghettoisation of Deptford Market - that's not good.
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