Manchester

Inside Manchester’s coolest corner shop as General Stores FINALLY opens at Kampus

It's been a long time coming.

Daisy Jackson - 9th November 2023

It’s been a difficult year for the General Stores brand, with half of its estate forced to close – but there is light on the horizon, in the form of a new shop at Kampus.

The Manchester-born business has built a reputation for building the city’s coolest corner shops, where your usual essentials rub shoulders with local suppliers.

Along the way, that’s included Ancoats General Store, Stretford Food Hall, and the now-closed Sale Food Hall.

Its newest site has been five long years in the making, and is finally now open in the garden neighbourhood of Kampus.

With black and stainless steel fixtures, concrete floors, and bright strips of lighting, it’s way more futuristic than your average corner shop.

Inside, you’ll find a Green and Grounded plant shop selling lush houseplants, and Bohee Cafe, with cakes, bakes, and coffees.

There are freshly-made sandwiches to go from Sndwch, and beers from local breweries like Shindigger and Cloudwater in the fridges.

Upstairs is an enormous mezzanine level that will be used for events, from yoga to wine tastings.

Speaking of the opening on their social media channels, General Stores said: “Kampus General Store has been 5 years in the making. We are so grateful for the opportunity and patience by all involved to bring this project to fruition…a warm Thank You to them.

“Our business has been through a tough time recently resulting in the closure of half of our estate.

“Making tough decisions and facing into pressure points hasn’t been easy and the daily focus continues to be around staying positive and moving forward.

“With that being said, it is exciting to be delivering another store with new twists and more opportunity for collaborations than ever before!”

General Stores joins other local food and drink businesses at Kampus including Nell’s, Great North Pie Co, and Beeswing.

This week, the area also welcomed the festive pop-up Bar Hutte for the first time, with karaoke cabins, winter drinks and live music.

Read more

• The complete guide to the restaurant and bars at Kampus, Manchester’s foodie hotspot
• Bar Hutte’s legendary karaoke Christmas cabins expand with SECOND Manchester site
• There is an eight-course pie tasting menu coming to a much-loved Stockport bar

Featured image: The Manc Group