A brand-new EE ‘Experience’ store is opening its doors inside the Trafford Centre this week, and it looks pretty swanky.
The new store inside the massive Greater Manchester shopping centre is designed to “empower customers with the best connectivity and technology solutions”, according to EE, and will be showcasing a wide range of the latest connected technology – with everything from games consoles, to smart home devices up for grabs.
The innovative new retail concept is set to offer shoppers “a dynamic space to work, learn, game and play” once it opens its doors.
It’s literally being described as “futuristic”, which has definitely got us a bit intrigued.
A brand-new EE ‘Experience’ store is opening its doors inside the Trafford Centre this week / Credit: EE
Those who step foot inside the store will get the chance to explore a range of different so-called ‘experience zones’ and ‘room sets’, with each area carefully-curated to give customers “a taste of future connected living”.
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The experience zones in the Trafford Centre’s EE Experience store include a ‘Welcome Zone’ with all the latest product releases to try out, a ‘Base Camp’ with lots of comfy sofas to lounge on and sip on a complimentary tea or coffee while sampling the new tech, and a ‘Tech Live’ hub where you can spend some time trying before you buy.
The stand-out area has to be the new ‘Gaming Zone’ though, which will give shoppers the chance to discover the “latest and greatest in gaming” as it’s packed with the most up-to-date games and consoles available to play on.
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The innovative new retail concept will offer shoppers “a dynamic space to work, learn, game and play” / Credit: EE
Customers will also have the opportunity to visualise how EE’s range of connected technology could be used in their own homes as they explore the real-life room sets.
EE’s brand-new Experience store is throwing its doors open at the Trafford Centre tomorrow (21 September) at midday, with former Manchester City star and England International, Ellen White, doing the grand-opening honours – and said to be “really excited” about it too.
There’ll be gift bags for the first 100 customers, and lots of exclusive in-store deals, offers, and entertainment throughout the day too.
Featured Image – EE
Shopping
One of Manchester’s biggest vintage shops to close after a decade
Daisy Jackson
One of the biggest and best vintage shops in Manchester has announced its imminent closure.
Thrift Shop, which is part of the legendary Cow Vintage family, has said that the landlord of its store has ‘chosen not to renew our lease’.
The beloved vintage shop has been in its spot just off Piccadilly Gardens for a decade, with colourful rails stuffed with pre-loved denim, coats, dresses, accessories, and more.
Ahead of its closure this week, Thrift Shop has announced details of a major closing down sale, aiming to get rid of all its stock.
Initially touted as two for £10 on all thrift items, they’ve now slashed prices even further and are offering three items for £10.
That does exclude their ‘premium’ items, where you can snap up big labels like Carhartt and Levi’s.
Sharing the sad news of its closure online, Thrift Shop Manchester wrote: “We are gutted to announce the closure of beloved Manchester store.
Thrift Shop Manchester is throwing a huge closing down sale
“Last week we found out our landlord chose not to renew our lease after over ten years in this unit.
“To bid our farewell, we’re doing a MASSIVE closing down sale to get rid of all stock !!!! All Thrift items will be 2 for £10 until our last trading day on 30th May!!
“We’ve absolutely loved serving you for all these years, so long, farewell and, as always, get thrifty.”
In the comments, fellow independent retailer Thunder Egg – which just had to move out of its Oldham Street store (but is still in Afflecks) – commented: “So sorry to hear this, retail landlords in Manchester are absolutely in their sh*tbag era right now.”
Thrift Shop Manchester will close for good on Saturday 30 May.
Demolition and regeneration plans for former Manchester shopping centre to begin next month
Emily Sergeant
Plans to demolish and regenerate a former shopping centre in a Manchester suburb are set to kick off from next month.
Following planning approval at the end of 2025, major plans to transform the former Chorlton Cross Shopping Centre into a ‘thriving’ new destination to live and shop are set to commence with demolition in the next couple of weeks.
If you’re unfamiliar with the plans for the new Chorlton neighbourhood, they include 262 one, two, and three-bedroom apartments, all with access to outdoor space through balconies and gardens, 53 affordable homes – with 49 of them being available for social rent – and around 3,500 sq metres of public open space with fully walkable routes and outdoor seating areas.
A mix of flexible retail spaces, including a new ‘Makers Yard’ suitable for smaller start-up businesses will also be included, alongside new tree planting.
Phase one of the project will involve the dismantling the former shopping centre and neighbouring Graeme House buildings.
According to developers, the first step will be to close the precinct car park at the end of this month, before new hoardings are installed around the site to close the area off to pedestrians and vehicles for safety reasons.
The demolition work is expected to begin in mid-June, and be completed by August.
Where possible, materials from the existing buildings will be reused during construction of the new neighbourhood in a bid to help reduce the number of vehicles needed to remove materials from the site.
“Demolition marks another major milestone for the project, which will completely transform the former shopping centre,” commented Georgina Lynch, who is the managing director at Manchester-based developers, PJ Livesey.
“Our demolition contractor will carefully manage any issues throughout the work, and we will continue to stay in regular contact with local residents and businesses as the demolition progresses.”
Emily Sergeant -
20th September 2023 
