Steamer opens two more – before going north

Steamer Trading is adding two more outlets to its southern-based chain of cookshops in the next couple of months – after which it will be heading north.

Due to open in the second week of September is the new Cambridge branch – representing the retailer’s first foray into Cambridgeshire.

It will occupy 2,000sq ft over two floors in a Grade II listed 1930s building. “We’ve knocked together two shops and opened the basement,” Steamer Trading’s managing director Ben Phillips told HousewaresLive.net.

Manager of the new store will be David Corby, moving from his role as manager of the Saffron Walden, Essex, branch.

“It will be a much higher turnover store and have a much wider range of products than Saffron Walden,” said Phillips.

The last week of October will see an outlet open in Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire. The 4,000sq ft shop is again arranged over two floors and is located in the town’s main shopping street. The manager of the business that previously occupied the premises, M&Co, has been taken on in the same role.

Said Phillips: “Bishops Stortford will have a very wide range of stock, in line with Horsham or Brighton, given the amount of space we’ve got there.”

The two new openings will take the total number of Steamer Trading shops to 23, but its next move will see the chain take its first steps towards a national presence.

“We have one more [shop] already signed up which will open up next year in the north,” Phillips told HousewaresLive.net. “We’re also hoping there’ll be one more open this year after Bishops Stortford – which again will be in the north.”

Meanwhile, the Brighton branch has recently undergone a major refurbishment, with more tableware, glassware and design-led ranges introduced.