Sixty jobs to be created as M&S opens new food store in Peterborough

The interior of a typical M&S Food Hall.

Marks & Spencer is opening a 10,000 sq ft Food Hall in unit 20 at the Serpentine Green Shopping Centre, in Hampton.

The store will include a 52-seater cafe and will open on January 31 at 10am.

It will offer M&S’s Click & Collect service and will be serviced by Serpentine Green’s 2,150 space free car park.

The Food Hall's completion means M&S will have three stores in Peterborough with one in the Queensgate Shopping Centre and the other at the Brotherhood Retail Park, in Lincoln Road.

The new store has been created as part of a £7 million revamp of the northern end of Serpentine Green that is intended to transform the appearance of the 319,000 sq ft centre, which attracts about 5.5 million visitors a year.

Work is also expected to start soon on a £45 million refurbishment of the southern end of the 20-year-old centre and which could create 257 jobs.

New store manager Sami Musallam, who has worked for M&S for 10 years after joining as a seasonal worker, said: "The community has been eagerly awaiting the new store and we can’t wait to open our doors in a few short weeks.

"Our Food Hall will complement the existing M&S stores in Peterborough, providing a key shopping destination in the region with M&S’s food offering.

“Once open we’ll be working hard to become an integral part of the community, ensuring we offer fantastic customer service and putti our customers at the heart of everything that we do.

"We can’t wait to welcome our first shoppers through the doors January 31.”

He said the Food Hall would offer M&S’s latest additions to its Eat Well health range, featuring a collection of Asian-inspired vegetarian and vegan dishes.

For those on the move, the store will feature a new lunch offering which includes veggie breads.

Multi-million pound revamp for a Peterborough’s Serpentine Green shopping centre Peterborough shopping centre poised for £45 million modernisation