An enormous Korean supermarket, Oseyo, is ready to open the doors to shoppers in the Manchester Arndale tomorrow.
The 13,000 sq ft Asian superstore is Oseyo’s largest in the UK to date, taking over the old H&M site inside the city centre.
For its official launch tomorrow (Saturday 20 July), they’ll be giving away 500 free VIP tote bags to the first customers through the doors from 11am.
Each tote bag will be stuffed with the biggest, most popular and most viral products from across Korea.
The Manc has snuck in today for an early look at the new Oseyo Manchester store, and the huge space has been decorated beautifully with bright lights and curved natural wooden ceilings.
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As well as stocking some of the biggest Korean food brands, the new shop has a bakery section, Korean ice cups, cosmetics, ceramics, toys, stationery, and even a photobooth with two different themed rooms.
Oseyo, which translates as ‘Welcome’, is already a well-known name in Manchester, thanks to its successful Oxford Road store which opened in 2019.
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This new location is the largest Asian supermarket in the north, and five times the size of its existing location across town.
Oseyo Manchester has aisles packed with Korean food and drink. Credit: The Manc GroupOseyo stocks viral products like Pokemon soft drinks Credit: The Manc Group
Inside the massive new superstore, shoppers will find brands of noodles, dumplings, dried seaweed and veg, snacks, powder and mixes, sauces and spices, tea, rice and grains, plus drinks including Rice Wine and Soju in original and flavoured variations and non-alcoholic beverages.
You’ll be able to shop popular Korean brands like Bibigo Mandu Dumplings, Samyang Spicy Noodles, Melona Ice Pops (honeydew/ coconut & mango ice creams), KSD Rice Wine, Hitejinro Soju, Lotte Milkis, and Jongga Kimchi.
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There’ll also be a chilled and frozen section with exotic vegetables, Korean-style BBQ cuts, and prepared side dishes.
In the Korean bakery you’ll be able to buy everything from fresh Pandan Cake to viral mango pancakes, as well as Red Bean Buns (Dahn Paht Jjinppang), and Baked Custard Bread (Cream Pan).
Kewpie mayo in Oseyo Manchester. Credit: The Manc GroupThe photobooth at Oseyo. Credit: The Manc GroupPopular ice cups, where you buy the cup of ice then add your own soda, at Oseyo. Credit: The Manc Group
Another viral product available at the new Oseyo Manchester store will be Korean ice cups, where you purchase a cup of ice from the freezer then add in whatever flavoured drink you fancy.
Beyond the food, you’ll be able to pick up Cuckoo electric rice cookers, Korean cosmetics and facemasks, and Korean ceramics, including rice bowls, dipping bowls and dishes.
ARTBOX, famed Korean toy and stationery supplier, will also be stocked in one of the UK’s largest selections packed with everything from character goods, such as Sanrio and BT21, to homeware and kitchenware like blankets, chopsticks and mugs, plus K-pop themed socks.
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The superstore will have ‘Oseyo Snaps’, a Korean photobooth with viral customisable, editable and printable takeaway pictures available across two themes – Gangnam Nightclub and Hongdae Café.
Isaac Kweon from Oseyo said: “We’ve received lots of love and support with our existing store in Manchester. The Oseyo team is pulling out all the stops for this megastore in the Arndale, it will definitely be a must-visit destination for all Mancunians.
Oseyo in Manchester Arndale is the brand’s biggest UK store to date. Credit: The Manc GroupOseyo in Manchester Arndale opens tomorrow. Credit: The Manc Group
“Korean foods are in high demand, particularly with the rise of Asian cooking driven through the TikTok generation. In Manchester, there is certainly a demand for an Asian supermarket of this size. The variety of products within our Arndale store is unmatched.
“We anticipate trending foods including Korean ice cup drinks, mango pancakes, and famed, Samyang Carbonara Noodles, will pull in customers from across the North and beyond.”
David Allinson, Centre Director at Manchester Arndale, said: “We are really excited to welcome Oseyo to Manchester Arndale as we know it will be a major hit with our shoppers. We place great importance on creating an eclectic mix of shops and restaurants to cater for Manchester’s diverse tastes, so Oseyo is a great addition to our lineup.”
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Doors open at 11am on Saturday 20 July, with Oseyo management encouraging Mancunians to get down before 9am with customer queues expected out the doors for the store’s grand opening.
Stockport institution Yu & Me announces closure after 30+ years
Danny Jones
Stockport is preparing to say goodbye to one of its shopping veterans as the once-popular hardware store and discount retailer Yu & Me is closing after more than three decades.
The beloved bits and bobs shop catered to virtually everyone’s needs, selling everything from homeware and DIY to garden furniture and toys, as well countless other essentials and random nicknacks, serving generations of Stopfordian families to earn a legendary local reputation.
However, the “handyman’s paradise” – which has also been described as everything from “Aladdin’s Cave” and a “gold mine”, to the place you go for “everything you didn’t know you needed” – is now set to shut down for good at the start of the new year.
Announcing the closure on social media, owner Warner Yu confirmed that 5 January will be their final day of business.
Credit: Warner Yu (via Facebook)Credit: AEW Architects via SMBC planning
The shop, located on Buxton Road in Great Moor, is set to be part of the expansion plans laid out for the Co-op situated next door, with the building set to be demolished and redeveloped from the ground up following a recent planning application.
Writing in the post shared on Boxing Day, Yu said: “Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a great new year, All the best to all our wonderful Customers.
“Sorry but we will be closing down on the 5th of January 2025 as our lease has finally run out. ‘The Great Yu and Me Sale’ is now on until then. Wish you all the best and thank you for everything.”
The comments were flooded with love, support and sadness, with one person writing. “Oh no this isn’t what I wanted to read. What will I do without you guys? My heart is broken, at least your dad will be able to relax, he is a wonderful man – end of a special era.”
Another said in a lengthy response: Really awful to do this to Yu & Me honestly. Big companies like Co-op shouldn’t have [the] power to get rid of someone else’s business like this. If anything, they should at least build them their own space since… You know, it’s been there around 30/40 years. Pretty awful thing for them to do to Yu & Me, I hope they can find somewhere nearby to continue on honestly…”
One person even shared a somewhat tongue-in-cheek but still heartfelt tribute song, bidding farewell to the no-nonsense odds-and-ends institution.
Although it is obviously sad news, the number of people sharing memories of going in with their parents, grandparents, or even taking their own children in there over the years is touching to read.
Pulling funds from three different Yu & Me shops across Greater Manchester at the time, he said: “Money is no good to us when we die and we are lucky that we are not born in such places. Some customers may have only donated pennies but all together it’s raised a lot of money. One day these people may help us.”
As a Stopfordian born and bred myself, I can only thank the Yu family for their years of service and for being the only place nearby to find last-minute spray paint for my year 11 art project. Yu will be missed.
Featured Images — Google Maps/Warner Yu (via Facebook)/Peter Barr (via Geograph)
Shopping
‘You owe me an apology’ – shoppers share scenes of ‘chaos’ in the Trafford Centre on Boxing Day
Daisy Jackson
Another year, another chaotic Boxing Day in the Trafford Centre…
While many of us choose to spend our Boxing Days in our pyjamas eating cold turkey, or visiting the relatives we’ve not had chance to see yet this Christmas, for some it’s the chance to dive head-first into the shops.
Many big retailers slash their prices straight after Christmas, offering bargain-hunters a chance to scoop up clothes, electricals, beauty and more for less.
While Black Friday may have overtaken in terms of discounts and scale in recent years, there’s still something about the Boxing Day sales that lures people out of hibernation and into the shops
Yesterday, things looked like they were going to be off to a quiet start at Trafford Centre, with only a few hardy shoppers in the shopping centre before anything was even open.
People have shared a video of a long queue forming outside Lush from 7.30am, but otherwise it looked like things were going to be calm.
Silly thought.
Unfortunately I work in Trafford centre and witnessed this at 7:30am. People queueing for Lush!
By mid-afternoon, videos started to emerge that showed the Trafford Centre packed with Boxing Day shoppers.
Some people shared videos of products scattered along floors and displays, with large queues outside popular shops like Sephora and JD.
One person wrote: “My claustrophobia said no.”
Another said: “Whoever said go Trafford Centre on Boxing Day you owe me an apology. Actual chaos.”
Someone else said: “I work in jd there, bad day in the office.”
Inside the Trafford Centre on Boxing Day 2024
Other people reported having to park on the pavement because the Trafford Centre parking was so full (this is definitely an exaggeration and you should never ever park on the pavements), and someone even said they saw a fight break out.
One smart person said: “Went at 8am absolutely no one there in and out got exactly what I needed.”
It honestly all looks not too bonkers compared to some years, but we all love a moan, eh?
Would you ever brave the Trafford Centre on Boxing Day?
Daisy Jackson -
19th July 2024 
