This is when Hartlepool's new Lidl is set to open

The new supermarket on Teesbay Retail Park will start trading on Thursday, November 1, and customers are invited to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8am.

The new store forms part of the company’s ongoing expansion and regeneration plans in the UK and has created up to 40 new jobs for the local community.

The store has a 1,325m² sales area and features facilities such as an in-store bakery, longer-style tills with dual packing, customer toilets, baby changing and ample parking for both cars and bicycles.Lidl UK’s regional head of property, David Murphy, said: “We would like to thank all those who have played a part in bringing this new Lidl store to Hartlepool.

"It is great for us to be able to create more jobs and investment opportunities in the area, and we can’t wait to start serving our multi-award winning products to the local community.”

Permission to build the store was granted by granted by planning officers at Hartlepool Borough Council last year and construction on the new store has taken seven months.

Lidl worked with construction firm Tolent Construction to build the store, with work starting back in April.

The new store is near to Halfords, The Range and Home Bargains.

The company has a store portfolio of 700, and plans to open up to 50 new supermarkets a year as part of its growth plans.

The latest results from Kantar Worldpanel – which deals in consumer knowledge and insights – show that Lidl is making a 16.3% increase in sales year-on-year, and has a market share of 5.1%.

More than two thirds of its products are British sourced and range from fruit and vegetables to wines.