New Holden’s store to open in Abbey Village

The Bolton Road shop, which will be inbetween Darwen and Chorley, is set to open in Spring.

Lucy Cort, who is managing director of Holdens alongside her dad Richard Cort, said she can’t wait to open the shop.

A new Holdens shop, renowned for its ice cream, is set to open in Abbey Village later this year (Image: Holdens & Co.)

She said: “We can’t wait for the new venture. Hopefully, it will be an exciting new chapter for the business.

“We’ve had the property for 12 months but had so many other projects going on and the hangover from Covid to deal with.”

Lucy said the property's location looked like the “perfect place” to open a fourth shop.

She said: “We were visting the area and we spotted that a house, that was originally a shop, was for sale.

“We had a look around the area and realised there weren’t many shops in the area.

“It looked like the perfect opportunity as it is just the type of village we typically like to open new shops.

“We also thought it would be a great fit for the area.”

Lucy said the shop will stock items typically found in a convenience store, such as bread and milk, along with more artisanal and deli items.

Wine, gift items and their famous ice cream, will also be sold.

Lucy said: “We would describe ourselves as a farm shop and deli.

“Will be selling a lot of deli products, fresh food, wine, staple items and beyond.

“We also hope to have some gift items. In the future we may even turn part of the shop into a florist but we will need to find our feet first.”

Since posting the update on social media, Lucy said the villagers have expressed excitement about the new venture.

She said: “Since posting the update on social media we have received a lot of positive feedback.

“Many people are excited and say they are looking forward to having the shop in the village.

“They were also curious about what we were going to be selling.

“We have our ideas about what we think we want to put in there and what the community would like.

“However, we are all ears and willing to adapt our products to what customers ask for.”