AN opening date has been announced for a new gym and sports shop that will be based in Cwmbran’s former House of Frazer department store.
The £4.1 million makeover of the former House of Fraser store in Gwent Square, the public space at the heart of the shopping centre, has been seen as a major part of the redevelopment of the town centre.
Fashion retailer JD Sports already has a unit in Gwent Square but is moving to the former House of Frazer store, that closed following the department store’s demise, and will open a JD Gym on the first floor.
A statement from the company has confirmed the new store and gym will open in July.
It said it will provide it with more than 4,900 square foot of retail space on the ground floor – more than double its current unit at the popular shopping destination.
Upstairs, members will have access to a massive 25,000 square foot of gym space which will be open 24 hours a day for seven days a week.
JD has said the gym will create 20 new jobs.
Alun Peacock, chief executive officer at JD Gyms Group, said: “JD Gyms is delighted to be part of this development and Cwmbran is an outstanding location for us. We are excited to be opening our newest facility here and promise to bring a world-class gym to Gwent Square.”
Adam Martin, director at LCP, part of M Core, which manages the shopping centre that is now branded M Cwmbran, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome both JD and JD Gyms to our M Cwmbran scheme this summer. It’s been a transformative year at M Cwmbran and these new additions will complement and evolve the scheme’s retail and leisure offering even further.”
Torfaen Borough Council put up £2.5m in Welsh Government funding in 2023 towards the project to redevelop the former House of Frazer store that closed in June 2022.
The private owners of the Cwmbran Centre, L&C Investments, were required to provide £1.5m which was 38 per cent of the total investment.
Planning permission was confirmed in November 2023.
When the overhaul of the empty three-storey former department store in Gwent Square was agreed in spring 2023 it was said a new fashion shop and gym would “act as a catalyst for attracting new high quality retailers to the town”.
The store was considered the flagship site that was central to development of the new town when it opened as the David Evans department store in the 1960s. Redevelopment has been intended to give other “key partners” confidence to invest in future phases of development of the main square that is also home to the six-storey Gwent House office block and the Congress Theatre.