This month marks the first-year milestone for Grand Central; one of Birmingham’s most talked about developments in decades, which introduced a number of premium brands that the city had never played host to before including, Hobbs, Joules, Foyles, Neal’s Yard Remedies, and Tiger.
The £150 million development has brought a shopping and dining hub experience different to any other in the city. With the atrium located above the vibrant bustle of the New Street passenger concourse, Grand Central provides shoppers with a central destination connecting our bustling city to the rest of the UK.
Since launching last September, the shopping and dining hub has dominated the cityscape changing the architectural horizon of Birmingham due to its high-gloss mirrored exterior snaking its way from Southside to Stephenson Street. The shopping centre houses a diverse range of 67 shops and restaurants, including one of the biggest John Lewis stores in the UK where customers can even enjoy a range of treatments in its very own spa and beauty salon!
Grand Central has flourished since its launch with the people of Birmingham really embracing the new centre and the brands it has brought to the city.
Jonathan Cheetham, General Manager for Grand Central, said;
The brands are our fortune at Grand Central. We wanted to ensure that we chose the perfect retail and dining offering that would compliment the centre and deliver a unique and unforgettable shopping experience for all.
Lisa Williams, Head of Branch at John Lewis Birmingham, said;
It’s been an exciting year for the city of Birmingham and every one of our Partners here at John Lewis is proud to have been a part of the launch and growth of Grand Central.
Since opening our doors a year ago we’ve launched a number of brand new concepts including our &Beauty spa and salon, our Loved & Found fashion offer, as well as bringing a range of new brands to the city such as Joe & The Juice.
As we approach the birthday weekend, shops and restaurants inside Grand Central have shared some interesting insights into Birmingham shoppers over the last year.
- There’s no denying that our city is home to many a chocoholic as 16,120 Nutella crepes from Crepeaffaire have been purchased along with over 80,000 churros from Tapas Revolution.
- On the subject of food, it seems us Brummies’ have a huge sweet tooth with Gobstoppers selling 620KG of jelly beans since opening, and 12 tonnes of macaroons have been consumed at Cocomacs.
- Wether it’s a boozy beverage or the non-alcoholic kind, the people of Birmingham love a drink. Ed’s Easy Diner has sold 32,000 milkshakes in the past year, and the fizz lovers amongst us have drank 17,000 litres worth of fizz at the Fizz! bar.
- The welcomed addition of PAUL Bakery clearly took Grand Central by storm, as they’ve used 3.5 tonnes of flour over the year to produce their freshly made bread in store every day, which tastes as good as it smells!
- From business professionals to fitness fanatics, Birmingham shoppers need a variety of footwear to suit their fashion needs, so it’s no surprise that since the day Grand Central opened Jones Bootmaker has sold 31,620cm of shoe lace.
- Pho restaurant has revealed just how much Birmingham has embraced the national dish of Vietnam, Pho pronounced ‘fuh’, by having served enough rice noodles that if laid end to end, they would stretch from Grand Central in Birmingham to Grand Central Station New York!
- John Lewis love just how generous the people of Birmingham are as the last year has seen them sell enough gift wrap to cover up the Aston Expressway TEN times!