BRAMPTON now has a greengrocers again, after Scottish firm Paterson’s opened its Brampton branch yesterday for the first time.

The town has been without a greengrocers since Fruits & Roots closed suddenly this summer, without any prior warning.

But now the Dumfries-based company Paterson’s is selling its local produce in Brampton after taking over the former Cranston’s premises on Front Street.

The unit, located in the centre of the town, had been standing empty for an extended period of time.

And in May of this year, Barclays bank closed its branch in the town centre.

But yesterday’s opening of Paterson’s Fruit and Veg marks a reversal in fortunes for retail in Brampton.

Paterson’s owners, Jayne Paterson and her husband Colin, have been hard at work readying the store for its first customers.

“We’re really excited about it opening,” Jayne told the Cumberland News before the store’s first day.

“It’s all coming together really nicely, and we can’t wait to get open now.”

Jayne said that she had received a lot of goodwill from the Brampton community.

“The people are lovely. Everybody’s stopping by the shop,” Jayne said.

“Everybody seems to be wishing us well and looking forward to us opening.

“We’ve had lots of support from Brampton and the local community.

“We’ve actually kept the windows sort of open so people can see in, because I think it’s nice for people walking past to see the progress of the shop, because it’s been transformed completely,” Jayne added.

Jayne said that it had taken a lot of work to prepare the shop for yesterday’s first opening.

“We’ve put in new walls, new floors, new ceiling, new everything,” Jayne said.

“We wanted to make sure that we got it right, and there was a lot of work to do.”

Despite all the work, Jayne said she had remained calm throughout the process.

“It’s not really been too stressful, we were well prepared and well planned.

“I’d rather it would be right to open, everything done and everything in place.”

The shop, Paterson’s Fruit & Veg, will be staffed by four new employees recruited from the local area.

Jayne explained that finding local staff was important to her, in order to make sure the shop stays in touch with the community.

The shop will be open Monday to Friday 8.30am until 5pm, and then on Saturday between 8am and 4pm.

Jayne and her husband Colin have a great deal of experience in the greengrocer trade. The couple have operate in Moffat for the past 25 years, and also have a unit in Gretna.

But their branch in Brampton is their first greengrocers south of the border.