Tesco Baguley
Tesco Baguley is a Tesco Extra supermarket located on Altrincham Road in Baguley, Manchester. It has a large car park which can facilitate hundreds of vehicles at any given time.
In addition to the typical Tesco groceries, the supermarket and its grounds also features:
- F&F Clothing
- Tesco Cafe
- Tesco Mobile
- Tesco Pharmacy
- Tesco Travel Money
- Tesco Petrol Station
- InPost lockers
- Pod Point electric charging station
- Timpson
The west side of the car park was demolished in recent years and turned into a commercial unit. It's currently leased to KFC and homes KFC Baguley Tesco.
History
Before opening
Proposals to build a Tesco supermarket on the site of Timpson Shoe Warehouse, which adjoined Timpson House on Southmoor Road, can be traced as far back as 1987.[1]
The proposed Tesco store had promised to create at least 400 jobs for local residents, but a multitude of planning objections came from:[2]
- Local shopkeepers from areas such as Timperley and Northenden
- The North West Co-Operative Society
- At least two petrol companies
In response, the developers behind the proposed Tesco store dismissed these as "traders objecting to competition". The council's planning committee rejected Tesco's application in the first month or so of 1988, but the decision was ultimately down to the full Manchester City Council.[2] It's not known what happened next, but either the full council approved the plans, or Tesco successfully lodged an appeal.
On 15th May 1989 in Manchester, Tesco announced their £100 million expansion project across the north-west. As part of this, they confirmed that the building of Tesco Baguley was underway.[3]
Opening
Tesco Baguley opened in February 1990. Kevin Smith, the general manager of Tesco Sale who had worked for Tesco since 1973, was chosen to initially manage the new supermarket.[4] In the run up to the opening, Tesco advertised job vacancies for:[5]
- Wages clerk
- Staff receptionist
- Night team manager
- Checkout controller
- Skilled baker
- Semi-skilled baker
- Butchery cutter
- Fishmonger
- In-store maintenance
- Stock controller
- Pricing systems controller
- Departmental supervisors
Stagnant water issues
In early 2019, an issue with stagnant water caused an overwhelming bad smell in Tesco Baguley, which lasted a number of weeks. Staff were reportedly sent home with illness due to the smell, and customers took to social media to complain about how unbearable it was. Despite calls to close the supermarket, Tesco Baguley remained open and assured customers there was no risk of harm.
Manchester City Council found that stagnant water had gathered under the supermarket's floor. Remedial work was later carried out in February 2019 and the smell subsided.