IT will be a crack of dawn start for the Mayor of Wellington, Cllr Mark Lithgow, when he officially opens a new supermarket in the town for Lidl on Thursday.

Cllr Lithgow is due to cut a ribbon at the new store in Nynehead Road, off the Cades roundabout, about 15 minutes before shoppers are allowed in at 7 am.

The 22,500 sq ft supermarket, which is creating the equivalent of 23 full-time jobs, will open daily from 7 am to 10 pm except on Sundays when the hours will be restricted to between 10 am and 4 pm.

The opening comes nearly three years after Lidl submitted its planning application to build on the edge of town site, which had been allocated previously to be used for employment development.

The entrance from Nynehead Road will also serve as an access for housing and commercial units planned for land behind the store and for which a planning application is expected shortly.

The further development will include the site of the new Wellington Railway Station, which is due to be open by the spring of 2025.

Contractors were this week putting the finishing touches to a 100-plus space car park for the new store, including two electric vehicle charging points.

The supermarket will feature an in-store bakery and customer toilets with baby changing facilities.

Wellington Lidl supermarket
Will it be third time lucky for Lidl's Wellington opening sate? ( )

Lidl GB, which has more than 950 stores and 29,500 staff nationwide, is the fastest growing supermarket in the UK, with sales rising by an annual rate of 25.8 per cent, pushing its market share to 7.4 per cent.

It recently won more than a dozen Good Housekeeping Institute taste tests, including items from its Easter range, apple hot cross buns, lamb leg, and triple chocolate Easter egg.

Regional head of property Suzannah Clemo said: “We have received overwhelming support from the local community and are therefore thrilled to be opening the doors to our new store.

“With people continuing to tighten their belts, we are in the best possible position to help shoppers make big savings.

“Whether it is fresh produce, staple shopping list items, or a must-have product from the ‘Middle of Lidl’, customers can be sure that they will be getting the best value when they shop at Lidl.”

Independent analysis of shopping lists across the nation from fresh produce to branded items, conducted by The Grocer, found Lidl GB was £24.82 cheaper than the most expensive supermarket, while coming out cheapest for 21 items overall.

Lidl is part of the Schwarz retail group, one of Europe’s leading food retail organisations operating more than 12,000 stores with 360,000 employees globally.