WITH Lidl looking set to double its number of stores in the county, here is a roundup of some of the newly-opened supermarkets across Oxfordshire and the food stores on the way.
German budget supermarket Lidl was revealed last week as the flagship store in a redevelopment of Abingdon's Fairacres Retail Park.
Full details about retail park scheme 10 years in the making
Both Aldi and M&S had previously been linked with the project, which was approved in 2016, but it was ultimately the German chain which came out on top.
Construction on the 1,700sqm shop is expected to start this autumn and be complete by the end of 2020/early 2021.
Plans to build a 2,100sqm Lidl store in Grove, meanwhile, have been opposed by Oxfordshire County Council over fears about traffic.
The scheme, which would include 128 parking spaces and is expected to create 40 new jobs, is due to be decided on March 14.
READ AGAIN: Lidl plan in jeopardy over traffic concerns
Last month two eagerly-awaited surpermarkets opened in the county.
Hundreds of shopppers braved the cold in Chipping Norton on January 30 at the opening of a new Marks and Spencer Foodhall.
Watch huge queues at M&S Foodhall opening
It forms part of Windmill Square Retail Park, with construction beginning last April on the store, which has created 44 jobs.
A Mountain Warehouse, Pets Corner and Costa Coffee are also located on site.
There was also more good news for Lidl fans last month as another store opened in the county, this time in Wallingford.
Residents had coveted a second supermarket to offer competition to Waitrose for years.
See a video tour of new Lidl store
In 2013, plans for a Morrisons collapsed but the German retailer stepped in to open at Hithercroft Road.
It joins current Oxfordshire branches in Oxford, Bicester and Witney - if both the Grove and Abingdon stores go ahead it will bring its total up to six across the county.
Finallly, mystery still surrounds what will happen at Oxford's Seacourt Retail Park after Homebase shut for good in December.
Full story- Councillors anbd residents 'in the dark' over retail park's future
M&S were seen as the flagship store of the second part of the redevelopment and were expected to fill three units, with the promotional brochure for Seacourt stating the unit as 'under offer' to the company.
But in August, the retail giant confirmed to the Oxford Mail it was pulling out of the project.
READ AGAIN: M&S reveals why it is abandoning huge new Oxford store
Does your area need a new supermarket, or is there too little choice where you live?
Or maybe you never use them at all and opt for online delivery. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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