Oseyo, the largest Asian retailer in the UK, has confirmed it will be opening a huge new store in Manchester city centre.
The massive Korean supermarket chain, which already has a popular site on Manchester’s Oxford Road, has just signed a new 15-year lease for a 12,580 sq ft unit in the Manchester Arndale shopping centre.
It is known for selling a vast range of Korean and Asian foods such as Korea Fried Chicken, Kimchi Flavoured Dumplings, and corn dogs, as well as toys, stationery, houseware, and electronics.
Products span ready-to-cook meals, sauces and spices, instant pots of ramen, various styles of kimchi, a vast selection of noodles, rice, and grains, plus powders, Asian snacks, seaweed, frozen food, teas and coffees.
Endless varieties of ramyun. / Image: Oseyo
Cute cans of bubble milk tea at Oseyo. / Image: Oseyo
Elsewhere, customers can browse a large selection of soft drinks and alcoholic beverages like soju, as well as shop for K-pop gifts and Korean beauty products.
First launched in 2015 with a small shop on London’s Tottenham Court Road, today Oseyo has multiple stores across the UK with eight London sites, a Cambridge store and, soon, two in Manchester.
Its name, translated from Korean, loosely means ‘Welcome’ – a message that is at the heart of the brand.
Isaac Kweon, Operations Coordinator at Oseyo, said: “Our new store in Manchester Arndale is our largest and most ambitious project so far in our journey, and we are excited to bring to the people of Manchester a truly global and refined shopping experience.
“With an ever growing range of exclusive products which we directly produce or import with partner brands in Korea, we aim to provide for our customers a unique experience found nowhere else.”
Image: Oseyo
Image: Oseyo
Image: Oseyo
Steve Gray, Head of European Retail Asset Management at Global Mutual, added: “We’re very excited to welcome Oseyo to Manchester Arndale as we continue to enhance our varied offer. We place great importance on creating a mix that caters to the city’s diverse taste and we are certain Oseyo will fit the bill.
“With such exciting leasing activity taking place it’s clear there is continued demand for well-placed retail units, and we are delighted to see confidence in Manchester Arndale’s long-term performance; we hope to share more exciting news soon.”
Featured image – Oseyo
News
Castlefield Viaduct ‘sky park’ receives £2.75m funding towards major extension
Emily Sergeant
The National Trust has today announced an exciting development in the transformation of Manchester’s Castlefield Viaduct.
The New York-inspired elevated urban park on the giant Grade II-listed Victorian viaduct in the heart of the city centre officially opened to the public back in July 2022, and has been an escape from the hustle and bustle of city life ever since… but now, it’s time for the next phase of the journey, and a significant proportion of the funding needed for this project has been secured.
National Highway’s Historical Railways Estate Team, working in partnership with the National Trust has committed £2.4 million to fund a significant part of the structural and foundation work for ‘Phase 2’ of the project.
The funding will go towards increasing the scale of the current ‘sky park’ experience and turning it into a nature-rich through route, including the addition of The WaterAid Garden – a gold medal-winning garden from last year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
Other supporters and funders are now being urged to donate to cover the remaining amount needed to ‘green up’ the extension.
As it stands, current visitors to the viaduct can walk through a series of spaces and gardens before coming to an untouched and overgrown section of the structure beyond a glass wall, and it’s this untouched section where the Phase 2 transformation will take place to extend the viaduct experience for visitors from 150-metres to more than 350-metres.
The current state of the site at Castlefield Viaduct that’s set to be transformed as part of Phase 2 / Credit: Paul Harris (via National Trust)
Plans include winding paths through planted areas to encourage people to take time out from the busy city below and connect with nature.
A second entry and exit point will also be added to the west side of Mancunian Way via a lift and stairway, turning it into a through route for the very-first time, and making it more accessible for people with limited mobility.
A longer-term masterplan could see the viaduct join up to other areas of the city, increasing access towards Salford and Trafford, and taking the benefits way beyond the physical structure of the viaduct in Castlefield.
The CGIs of how the space on the viaduct will look once it has been transformed / Credit: Twelve Architects (via National Trust)
“This funding is brilliant news for Castlefield – a hugely inspiring project to bring nature and green space to communities across Manchester,” commented Hilary McGrady, who is the Director-General of the National Trust.
“Its popularity over the past few years demonstrates how residents and visitors to the city value access to the outdoors and experiencing nature up-close in an innovative industrial heritage setting.
“This is something we want to continue and do more and more of in the years to come, and that is why this funding is so important.
“Our aim over the next 10 years is to ensure more people have access to nature particularly in our towns and cities, and to bring nature to people’s doorsteps wherever they live.”
Featured Image – Paul Harris (via National Trust)
News
‘Eyesore’ Northern Quarter car park to be redeveloped as ambitious new neighbourhood
Emily Sergeant
An underused multi-storey car park in the heart of the city centre is set to be sold and redeveloped as an ‘ambitious’ new neighbourhood.
The ‘eyesore’ car park situated in Manchester’s iconic Northern Quarter will be transformed into what Manchester City Council is hoping will become a green and sustainable neighbourhood set to complement the ‘unique and independent’ ethos of the area.
It comes after developers CBRE were appointed by the Council last year to market the Church Street site for disposal, ahead of seeking formal planning permission.
The new scheme will deliver more than 300 new homes – including 60 affordable homes – alongside new commercial opportunities and high-quality public spaces.
A before and proposed after of Church Street Car Park / Credit: Manchester City Council
It’s expected that the development will respect the heritage and architecture of the historic city centre neighbourhood and help to enhance the wider area, all while improving a car park site that has long fallen out of favour.
The new neighbourhood will also feature four new public squares and green spaces, along with opportunities for pedestrianising the surrounding streets as part of the public realm.
As mentioned, commercial space is also part of the plans, as the ground floor of the building will offer a mix of smaller, more affordable units to ensure local independent businesses can access the neighbourhood, alongside units for food and beverage outlets.
“For too long, the Church Street car park has been an eyesore and a barrier to the ongoing success of the Northern Quarter,” commented Cllr Bev Craig, who is the Leader of Manchester City Council.
“We want to bring forward a world-class development that has the potential to completely transform this part of the neighbourhood, together with the newest city centre public squares and green spaces.”
The final legal negotiations will conclude over the summer, and it’s expected that a public consultation will then take place to inform a future planning application.
Georgina Pellant -
26th July 2023 
