Smiggle set to launch in Preston’s St George’s Shopping Centre

Global stationery chain Smiggle is set to open in St George’s Shopping Centre later this month, creating eight new jobs in Preston.

The Australian retailer will welcome shoppers from Friday (May 19) and will be located on the shopping centre’s first floor next to Pandora.

Work to transform the unit, which previously housed the Original Art Shop before it relocated to a new gallery on the ground floor, is now underway. The opening will create eight new jobs in the city.

Smiggle – where a smile meets a giggle – has been a hit since arriving in the UK in 2014, with Preston one of many new Smiggle stores opening in 2017.

It specialises in original, fun and affordable stationery. Shoppers can choose from a whole host of funky products, focused on bold colour, quirky graphics, good value and innovation, including multi-coloured backpacks, eye-catching pencil cases, sparkly stationery, gadgets and gizmos, and lots of goodies to deck out desks.

John Cheston, managing director of Smiggle, said: “We’re thrilled to be opening a store here in Preston. There really is nothing like Smiggle anywhere else on the high street.

“It’s important for us to inject fun into everything we do – from product design to store design, we will always focus on delivering to our fans the most original and playful stationery possible.”

St George’s is already home to stationery brands Ryman Stationery and WHSmith, as well as Danish homeware and accessories chain Tiger.

Andrew Stringer, general manager of St George’s Shopping Centre, added: “Smiggle is a new brand for St George’s and one of a string of global retailers choosing to open up in Preston.

“We already have a strong mix of stationery retailers in the shopping centre and Smiggle strengthens this offer further, with a fun and quirky twist. The product range is great and I look forward to the store opening.”