Guernsey-based retailer Alliance is opening a new store on the ground floor of a building at The Crusher Site at Braye Harbour at 7.30am on Tuesday 6 October.
It said that the store would create 10 new jobs and provide island residents with access to Iceland’s range of frozen, fresh and grocery products for the first time.
Alliance said it was its second attempt to move into Alderney, with its first attempt a few years ago being scuppered when the island’s States refused it permission for an off-licence on the premises.
It first opened in Jersey in 2014, where it now has four shops, two branded as Alliance and two as Iceland.
‘As a local Channel Islands independent retailer, Alderney is a natural fit for us as a location for a new store,’ said Supermarket Alliance Ltd chief operating officer Keiran Poole.
‘We’ve also had strong demand from Alderney residents who regularly travel to our Guernsey stores, with dozens of customers specifically asking us to open a store on the island.’
Stock will be shipped to the island from Alliance’s UK suppliers via Channel Seaways, but the company said it was also looking at a possible second weekly delivery from the Guernsey warehouse.
‘This should help strengthen availability, particularly for fresh and perishable products, and give us greater flexibility in keeping stock levels consistent,’ said Mr Poole.
Alderney is already served by Le Cocq’s Stores in the nearby Cutting, just a matter of metres away from the new store, and at the back of St Anne’s town, as well as the Farm Shop and its associated harbour area Jean’s Stores.
There have always been concerns about higher prices for basic foodstuffs in Alderney. The island expects a cargo shipment at the beginning of every week and many households base their shopping habits around that.
Islanders spoken to by the Guernsey Press appeared to be low-key about the new arrival, but some welcomed a wider range of options and said that a wider range of freezer meals would potentially reduce the reliance on a weekly shop and that competition could be good news for shoppers.
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