The first Budgens concept store has opened in Hedge End, Hampshire, in a bid by Musgrave to recruit more retailers.

The 8,000 sq ft “stake in the ground” store is the fifth UK store for the Kavanagh Group in the UK, and its 16th within Musgrave.

The site has been developed with investment from Musgrave and Kavanagh Group to showcase category and pricing developments rolled out by Budgens in recent months.

“It’s a combination of all the good stuff that has been done in the brand all pooled under one roof,” said MD for Kavanagh Retailing UK Noel Kavanagh Jr.

There are 189 Budgens retailers in the UK and Musgrave hopes the concept store will help to recruit more retailers to the fascia and choose which elements they would to install in their own shop.

The store includes seasonal off-shelf produce displays, an in-store butcher and locally sourced products such as eggs, chutneys and jams. A ‘Catch of the Day’ stand sells fish on Friday that boasts a sea-to-store time of 36 hours. There is also a Subway concession with a seating area and free internet.

The store opened last week following an aggressive marketing campaign that targeted 15,000 households within an eight-minute radius with a leaflet that included information about the new fresh ranges and Budgens’ pricing initiative to match Tesco on 1,000 brands. The leaflet also included a voucher that offered £10 off a £30 spend.

“I felt that if people got in and shopped the whole store they’d sense good value for money,” said Kavanagh.

“The main comments from customers are that they’re very impressed with the fresh offering and Tesco price match.”