Grand Arcade (Wigan)

The Grand Arcade
Grand Arcade Shopping Centre, Wigan Town Centre
Location Wigan, Greater Manchester, England
Coordinates 53°32′51″N 2°37′45″W / 53.54750°N 2.62917°W / 53.54750; -2.62917
Opening date March 2007
Developer Modus
Owner Redefine International
No. of stores and services 43
No. of anchor tenants
Total retail floor area 439,000 sq ft (40,780 m2)
No. of floors 2
Parking Milgate Street 600 spaces, Crompton Street 250 spaces
Website Official website

The Grand Arcade is a covered shopping centre located in Wigan town centre. Built in 2007, it consists of more than 40 retailers gaining an annual footfall of 6.3 million people.[1] It is owned and operated by Redefine International, a property investment business. It currently extends to 439,000 sq ft (40,800 m2), with units varying in size. The centre also houses a bronze statue of George Formby designed by Manx artist Amanda Barton and unveiled in 2007.[2]

History

The construction of the mall started in 2005 at a cost of 120 million pounds. It was built on the former site of The Ritz and Wigan Casino, a nightclub which operated between 1973 and 1981 and was known widely for its northern soul music.[3] Before construction began on the site, evidence was found by Oxford Archaeology North that Wigan was a significant Roman site in the late first and second centuries AD.[4] These excavations revealed numerous artefacts, including a hearth, pottery pieces, and tiles. One significant discovery was a hypocaust, which was used as a heating system in a Roman bathhouse.[5] The hypocaust was restored and relocated to Concert Square, a communal area within Grand Arcade.[3]

Retail

The centre has three anchor stores: Debenhams, Marks & Spencer and TK Maxx. It has several other high street brands such as Boots and Waterstones. The Casino Café is themed on the historical Wigan Casino Social Club. In 2015 Clarks and New Look relocated their stores in Wigan to The Grand Arcade from The Galleries where they were previously based.[6]

Transport

The shopping centre is bounded by Standishgate, Crompton Street, Millgate and Riverway. Some shops have two entrances - one to the internal mall and one onto the high street. It has two multi-storey carparks on Milgate and Crompton Street with over 850 spaces combined.[7] Bus access can be gotten from the nearby Wigan bus station. Two train stations serve Wigan town centre, Wigan Wallgate and Wigan North Western.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 Grand Arcade – Wigan, redefineinternational.com, Retrieved on 28 May 2017
  2. ↑ Statue of Formby in place, Manchester Evening News, September 16, 2007
  3. 1 2 Grand Arcade History, www.grand-arcade.co.uk
  4. ↑ Oxford Archaeology North (2011) P2, Discovering Coccium: The Archaeology of Roman Wigan, Oxford Archaeology Ltd, ISBN 978-1-907686-03-0
  5. ↑ Wigan's Bathhouse Excavations, Wigan Archaeological Society, wiganarchsoc.co.uk, 2007
  6. ↑ Wigan's Grand Arcade welcomes New Look and Clarks, www.theretailbulletin.com, 16 February 2015
  7. ↑ Grand Arcade, www.visitnorthwest.com, Monday 1st May 2017
  8. ↑ Getting Here, www.grand-arcade.co.uk, Retrieved 28-05-17

The Grand Arcade website

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