Watch as hundreds of shoppers descend on opening of new Bargain Clearance Centre in Washington in hope of bagging a bargain

Hundreds of shoppers descended on Washington’s new Bargain Clearance Centre this morning (May 3) in the hope of grabbing some great deals as the “bigger and better” store opened its doors to the public.

As well as grabbing a bargain, shoppers were entered for a raffle to win vouchers to spend at the store with the first customer through the door winning the golden ticket of £100 to spend.

That prize went to Eddie English, from Oxclose, who had been queuing since 5am in readiness for the doors to open.

Eddie, 62, said: “I was ordered by my wife to make sure I was first in the queue and it’s great to get the £100 worth of vouchers.

“I used to go to the old shop in Albany and you always get good bargains. This new store is much bigger and better and you can now use proper trollies.

“I’m really impressed with what I can see.”

While the site may have changed, the underlying principle of saving customers money remains the same, with the emphasis on bringing the best possible prices through the purchase of end of line stock and products from companies going through liquidation.

Customers shopping at the Clearance Centre were able to purchase a whole range of products including gym equipment, DIY equipment, furniture, children’s toys, garden furniture and pet supplies.

The store has also branched out to now include soft drinks, confectionary, tinned food and cleaning products and shoppers were certainly impressed with what they saw.

Paul Adamson, 45, from Houghton-le-Spring, said: “I used to go to the old store in Albany but this is a lot bigger and better and there are some great bargains to be had compared to prices at traditional outlets.

“We are interested in getting some garden furniture which is a lot cheaper - around £100 less - compared to on the high street.”

Fellow shopper Youmas Choudhry, 45, feels the new Bargain Clearance Centre is even more important in the current economic climate.

Youmas, from Sunderland, said: “With the cost of living crisis at the moment this shop is really useful and there should be more shops like this.

“There seems to be more variety of stock and the access is much better. I’ve been getting some drinks, cleaning products and shoe laces.”

Customers were particularly impressed with the location of the new site at Armstrong Industrial Estate.

Claire Charlton, also from Houghton-le-Spring, said: “I think the new store is great. It’s easy to get to and there are things for young and old and I think it’s going to be a big success.

“The parking at the old store wasn’t great but this is much better. I used to get some good bargains at the old store.”

Customers have been travelling from far and wide for the opening of the new store, including Steven Thurgood from Kenton in Newcastle.

Steven, 59, said: “There’s a lot more room and some really good bargains. I’ve been getting myself some tooth brushes, car wash and surface cleaner.”

David Fenwick, 55, travelled from Willington, near Spennymoor, in the hope of bagging himself a bargain.

He said: “There are a lot more bargains to be had here than in the old store.”

To celebrate the opening of the new store, across the duration of the bank holiday weekend, customers can barter for prices on home goods as part of the ‘make us an offer’ initiative.

On Saturday and Sunday there’s also going to be a bouncy castle for children to enjoy as well as a special visit from Paw Patrol, Peter Rabbit and Stitch, who will be giving out sweets, and there will also be a food van on site.

Following the opening, co-owner Lee Taylor, 49, said: “It’s great to be open today and I’m glad and relieved that we’ve eventually got the store opened.

“The response from customers has been absolutely brilliant. We’ve had people queuing out of the door since we opened and we’ve already had a few hundred customers in so far.”

The new store is located at 27 Elswick Road on Armstrong Industrial Estate in Washington.