Wren Kitchens store to create more than 20 new jobs at Inverness Shopping Park
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A PROMINENT unit at Inverness Shopping Park which has been lying empty for almost a year is set to be taken over by a major kitchen retailer.
Wren Kitchens is set to open its most northerly outlet in the former Mothercare premises – and it will create more than 20 jobs.
It plans to open its doors in September with a state-of-the-art virtual reality room.
Plans to double the size of the mezzanine floor at the former Mothercare superstore were approved by Highland Council this week, paving the way for Wren Kitchens to make a move on the site that has lain empty since February 2019.
Site owner and developer, the Hercules Unit Trust, who will invest more than £200,000 in the upgrade of the building, have been told by Highland Council planners to pay £10,800 towards infrastructure at the retail park.
Planners had initially asked for a planning gain of £127,692, but reduced the figure after a protracted negotiation with the developer.
A Wren Kitchens spokeswoman said: “A highly impressive Wren Kitchens showroom will open at Inverness retail park in Eastfield Way in September 2020.
“The former Mothercare unit will undergo a complete transformation with a top spec fit-out incorporating more than 30 kitchen displays in a variety of styles from edgy industrial to ultra-modern and charming traditional designs.
“The 12,913 sq ft showroom will have a new mezzanine floor which houses a virtual reality room to help bring kitchens to life as well as an exciting array of storage solutions, taps, sinks, worktops, handles and appliances.
“As the best place to work in the UK, and the UK’s number one kitchen retailer Wren Kitchens will be employing over 20 people including kitchen designers, managers, surveyors and information advisers.”
Wren has five Scottish stores including outlets in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.
