A NEW furniture store has opened its doors to customers in Basingstoke – and it received an official welcome.

DFS opened its 103rd store at the Brighton Hill Retail Park with a ribbon-cutting ceremony last Saturday morning.

Councillor Roger Gardiner, the Mayor of Basingstoke and Deane, performed the official opening honours before customers had the chance to look at the array of furniture goods on offer.

Timothy Ratke, general store manager, said that it took five weeks of hard work to get the store – which has created 15 jobs – ready for its opening.

It was previously occupied by JJB Sports until that closed in 2012.

As well as furniture like sofas and coffee tables, the 15,000 sq ft store contains a giant TV wall, which is used to show off the latest furniture trends.

Mr Ratke said: “We are very excited about the store opening, and it’s a big opportunity for us.

“Basingstoke is a beautiful town and it has got so much potential.

“There is a lot happening here, with lots of head offices and businesses.

“This store is not a small store, but it is not the largest store either.

“We have a presence in the larger cities and now the company are starting to infill areas where we feel we can attract more customers.”

More than 80 people responded to the company’s recruitment adverts to fill the full and part-time roles available, which cover sales, admin, housekeeping and driving.

And Mr Ratke said that more people could be employed, depending on the success of the store.

Employees from the DFS store, in Reading, were also there on the opening weekend to help make sure that everything ran smoothly. And also present was a representative from the British Heart Foundation – the company’s charity partner.

Cllr Gardiner said: “It’s good to see another store opening in Basingstoke, providing more employment here at the retail park.

“This is a good opportunity to be on a good retail park, so I think they should do very well, and I wish them all the best.”

The store will open from 9am to 8pm Mondays to Fridays, 9am to 6pm on Saturdays and 11am to 5pm on Sundays.