Oadby (847): Opening

Opened on 21st October 2010 as a replacement for Waitrose Evington, the new branch at Oadby brought a refreshed outlook to customers and Partners with its 60 seat cafe.

With all the experience of the 70 Evington Partners that helped to open Oadby, it was primed for success from opening. The ribbon was cut by local schoolchildren and the Archbishop of York made a special appearance to help.

Branch Manager Ian Fraser told The Gazette “The Evington Partners’ experience has really helped us and they seem to be settling in well. We’ve had some fantastically positive customer comments and are looking forward to serving not just customers from Leicester city but also those living in the rural areas close by.”

The site – a few furlongs away from Leicester racecourse – was formerly occupied by a plastics factory that supplied the noses for Red Nose Day.

It was reported at the time in Waitrose’s in-house magazine, the Waitrose Chronicle that they expected that the new 24,600 sq ft branch would attract shoppers who had been going to Evington over the past 40 years, but Oadby established itself in the more immediate community. At the time it was supporting Age Concern, a children’s hospice and a wildlife trust in the local area, as well as sponsoring the 2010 Christmas lights switch-on.

Waitrose announced the closure of their Oadby branch on 18th July 2019, with its final operational day as 3rd November 2019. The branch was acquired by Lidl.

Address: 36 Harborough Rd, Oadby, Leicester LE2 4LA