The day has come - the long-awaited new John Lewis store opened in Cheltenham this morning (18 October).

Branch Manager, Martin Bundy, led a countdown to the moment along with a small selection of the 300 strong workforce as eager customers queued up outside the front doors.

Mr Bundy said: "Today marks a really special occasion for my Partners and I here at John Lewis & Partners Cheltenham. So much hard work has gone into creating this stunning new shop and I now can't wait to bring it all to life."

At 115,000 square foot, the store is bringing its own take on the modern department store.

But not everything is rosy on the retail front in Cheltenham with a question mark hanging over House of Fraser owned Cavendish House.

The new £23m John Lewis which lies on the site of the former Beechwood shopping centre is bound to draw customers away from the town's oldest department store.

John Lewis want a slice of all the action with a state-of-the-art beauty hall, nail and brow bars, style studios, bureau de change all the way to electricals and white goods, home design and food outlets. What does this mean for the rest of the high street?

Whilst personal and private shopping experiences are great - we also need to support our hardworking, smaller independent businesses in Gloucestershire. They are the backbone of the retail sector and under huge pressure from the online giants like Amazon.

Who will be the winners and who will be the losers?

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