Member Article

New store has ‘grounded’ itself at Royal Quays

The Italian manufacturer of state-of-the-art coffee machines, Gaggia, has ‘steamed’ its way into Royal Quays, the outlet centre for Newcastle.

From automatic, manual and capsule, there are a host of options to choose from for discerning coffee drinkers in the region.

Store owner, Raj Beadle, said: “I have a real affinity with coffee. I actually started my career as an accountant but I am passionate about coffee and its phenomenal growth in popularity in recent years.

“This is now my fourth Gaggia store and we have identified three talented youngsters from the local area to work in the store. I am currently providing them with Barista training which is something we will look to also offer customers via an in-house course in the coming months.

“Gaggia is a very popular brand and I am delighted to open a store at Royal Quays. I have a very loyal customer base and people in the North East actually travel to my store in Castleford to get equipment for their machines, so now they do not have to travel as far.

“Within the store we offer taster coffees that customers can sample so they can select the correct coffee bean to take away with them. When purchasing a machine we also have a loyalty card enabling customers to receive free coffee within Gaggia stores and 10% off coffee and accessories.”

Royal Quays Centre Manager, Judith Ramshaw, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Gaggia to the centre, it is renowned as an excellent distributor of coffee machines and this is a new offering for our customers. We now live in a coffee culture so we know that it will be a great success!

“Gaggia is an interesting, niche addition to the centre at a time when the retail sector as a whole is driving forward at pace.”

Royal Quays has 50 stores which employ around 300 staff, making it an important employment hub for the North Tyneside area.

It is home to a number of top brands offering up to 60% off RRP such as, Nike Factory Store, Gap Outlet, Clarks, Next and Mountain Warehouse, along with a vast range of local, independent retailers specialising in areas such as sport, fashion, jewellery, music and electrical items.

As well as attracting famous brands, since it was opened in 1996, Royal Quays has achieved great success in assisting local retailers looking to get to the next stage of their development.

Packages include competitive and flexible rent agreements that can be linked to store performance as well as expert advice from the on-site management team on marketing, shop design, presentation and sales.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Royal Quays Outlet Centre .