Teesside’s newest Starbucks drive-thru opened its doors last week, just in time for its newest cohort of baristas to serve up their annual Christmas gingerbread lattes.
Opening on Friday 29th November, the 1,840 sq ft outlet at Thornaby Teesside Estate – which was built by estate owner, UK Land Estates and will be operated by Soul Foods Group – will serve up dozens of new jobs for the local area.
Starbucks, which launched in the UK in 1998, announced ambitious plans earlier this year to open 100 new stores across the country throughout 2024. The chain has already opened a number of new outlets in the North East as a result of this investment drive, with the new Teesside Estate site the latest to be added to its portfolio.
Soul Foods Group is a leading family-owned multi-brand franchise operator, working with household names like Starbucks, KFC, and Taco Bell, with an expanding portfolio of stores across the UK. It is committed to ‘providing exceptional customer experiences and contributing positively to the communities they serve.’
The new store follows a £5million investment by UK Land Estates into the development of numerous retail and industrial units at the business park over the past 12 months.
Delivering over 43,000sq ft of workspace, the investment has seen Park Electrical Distributors, Power Plastics and Lookers invest in the 300-acre business park, with Starbucks the latest to join its growing list of tenants.
Tim Witty, development director at UK Land Estates, said: “We are delighted to see the new Starbucks drive-thru at Teesside Estate finally open its doors.
“We have invested millions of pounds into delivering several new, high-quality retail and industrial developments at the business park over recent years, including this unit.
“It will really improve the offering of the site, giving local people and employees more options for eating out while attracting even more people to the estate.
“We are sure it will prove a really welcome addition to the business park and I’m sure I speak for everyone involved in the project when I say how delighted we are with the result now that it is finally open.”