BLACK Sheep Coffee is opening a new shop in Festival Place, and Gazette readers are divided in opinion about the coffee chain coming to town.

The recent announcement that the coffee shop chain will be opening in the shopping centre in mid-September, with a 15-year lease for 3,678 sqft space, has got our readers talking.

It comes after Caffe Nero closed its doors earlier this month, a decision that many readers were unhappy with.

Here are some of our readers' thoughts they expressed online:

On Facebook, Mandy Jane Rawlings was optimistic: "On the positive side, it keeps people in work & u can’t beat the smell of lovely fresh coffee (sic)."

READ MORE: Black Sheep Coffee is opening in Basingstoke Festival Place

While Benji Eastment took a more pessimistic approach: "Cosmic... That'll bring the crowds in."

Alison Pinto would rather Festival Place brought in a wider variety of shops: "I would like a unit to be filled with a music shop, or a haberdashery, or a bike shop. We don't have any of those in the town centre. We have coffee shops aplenty."

A hint of sarcasm from Mark Josey: "Yes! More Coffee! It’s catching up with the record of most kebab shops, Nail Bars, Turkish Barbers and Vape outlets! Life’s never felt so good!"

SEE ALSO: Readers react to Caffé Nero closure in Festival Place

Sarah Hutchings felt similarly: "Another coffee shop woo hoo."

On our website, one comment said: "I was hoping for yet another barber shop. I feel let down."

While a reply to them joked: "In a sense, it is a baa baa shop."

What do you think about the opening of Black Sheep Coffee? Let us know in the comments below or join the discussion on Facebook.