The Bradley Stoke Journal

The newly-opened Simpson’s Fish & Chips shop at Bradley Stoke’s Willow Brook Centre could be swamped by eager customers this Friday as a result of a “free fish & chips” offer being advertised on a local radio station.

Heart West Country (formerly GWR FM and Heart Bristol) is currently running a “competition” whereby anyone sending a text message to a specified number receives receives a “bounceback” with details of how to claim their single portion of free fish & chips.

Texts can be sent anytime until 4pm on Friday and the freebie must be claimed between 4pm and 6pm on Friday.

All entrants will also go into a draw to win the “perfect Friday night in”, which consists of a Blu Ray player and four Blu Ray discs plus (you’ve guessed it?) fish & chips for a family of four from Simspon’s.

The competition has already attracted the attention of seasoned bargain hunters after a message was posted in the forum of the popular MoneySavingExpert website.

Full details of the offer can be found here on the Heart West Country website.

Simpson’s Fish & Chips today (Sunday 18th)  became the latest outlet to open at Bradley Stoke’s Willow Brook shopping centre.

The family-owned chippy, which will compete head-on with Subway and KFC, is situated in Town Square unit 9 – next door to Ladbrokes.

The business opened it doors at 11:45 today, which will be the regular opening time on all seven days of the week. The shop will trade until 9:30pm Monday to Saturday and 6:30pm on Sundays.

The Bradley Stoke branch becomes the third in the group’s portfolio, following openings in Chepstow (January 2009) and Cheltenham (November 2009).

Owners Brian and Janette Simpson say they have been in the fish and chip trade for 34 years, perfecting their art in eleven different shops.

Janette told The Journal:

“Our ethos is simple, we want to provide the best fish and chips to our customers while maintaining cleanliness, great customer service and professionalism. We do not serve fast food, we serve great food, fast!”

The company says it has a policy of cooking fish to order, unless it’s very busy, to guarantee freshness. All the food is probed to make sure it’s at the correct temperature before being served.

Asked what the new shop will bring to Bradley Stoke, Mrs Simpson said:

We hope to provide a friendly and reliable local chippy that guarantees great food every time you return. It’s nice seeing our name next to big successful fast food chains and we hope we can keep up!

The company is running a ’20% off fish and chips’ promotion during its first week of trading. Look out for the special flyers being handed out in the Town Square.

More information and related links:

• More photos from the opening: album; slideshow (PicasaWeb)
• Takeaway Food Outlets in Bradley Stoke (The Journal)
• Phone numbers of shops at the Willow Brook Centre (The Journal)

The new Peacocks clothing store at Bradley Stoke’s Willow Brook Centre is to open on Thursday (3rd June).

Peacocks’ move to Bradley Stoke was first revealed in The Journal back in January when the budget fashion retailer began advertising for staff at a “Bradley Stoke, Bristol” location.

Official confirmation came in April, when a press release stated that 15 new jobs would be created at the 8,000 sq ft store.

The build up to the opening has been very low key but the store looked fully stocked and ready to go when the Journal’s reporter caught a glimpse through the doors on Monday night.

Willow Brook Centre Manager Scott Lahive told The Journal:

“Peacocks will make an exciting addition to the offer at the Willow Brook Centre, bringing the first fashion store to Bradley Stoke.”

Elsewhere in the Town Centre, fitting out of the new Simpsons Fish and Chips outlet in the Town Square (next to Ladbrokes) continues. Opening is currently said to be scheduled for the 3rd week in June.

A new takeaway outlet is set to open in Bradley Stoke’s Town Square in a few weeks time.

Posters advertising a Simpson’s Fish & Chips shop appeared on Town Square unit 9 (next to Ladbrokes) over the weekend and work has already started on fitting out.

Owner Brian Simpson, who currently has shops in Cheltenham and Chepstow, told The Journal that he hopes to open his new Bradley Stoke chippy in about five weeks time.

A small amount of seating for diners will be available inside the shop and Mr Simpson says he also has plans to provide table and chairs outside in the Town Square.

The likelihood of a further fast food outlet coming to the Willow Brook Centre was revealed by Centre Manager Scott Lahive in The Journal’s “one year on” interview last October.

The Centre has so far been unsuccessful in its quest to attract a  family-oriented “knife and fork” restaurant to Town Square.