Hardware and home goods store Gorham’s is to open on Sundays — and create nine new jobs to cover the extra hours.

Andrew Mackay, general manager of Gorham’s, said customers had requested for years that it open both days of the weekend.

He added: “We wanted them to know that we listened and their feedback was heard.

“As with everything else, our goal is to give customers the best possible shopping experience and by keeping our doors open seven days a week. It gives people more flexibility and greater options.”

The store will now be open on Sundays from 10am to 5pm.

Rod Farrington, a senior manager and shareholder at the Pembroke store, said: “In a market where jobs have been going away, not only have we never laid anyone off, we have actually added nine new positions for people interested in working at Gorham’s.”

He added that the extra day will allow the store, one of the first to install a major solar power-generating scheme, to use more of its self-generated electricity.

Mr Farrington said: “We are also creating more solar energy than anywhere else on the island and now that we are open on Sundays we’re able to utilise more of this green energy source rather than it going to waste.”

The store opened its doors on Sunday for the first time last week and Mr Farrington said the turnout was encouraging.

He added: “We have a lot of weekend warriors and the biggest complaint from them in the past is they start a project on Saturday and can’t finish it on Sunday because they get into it and find out they are missing something and are stuck waiting until Monday or the next week.

“By staying open seven days a week, this gives them some more options and so far the feedback we’ve received has been great.

“It’s very exciting. Many of our frequent customers just want something to do, be it gardening or starting a new home project, so if nothing else, this gives people an extra day to browse the items in the store and get inspired for their next challenge.

“People weren’t in a hurry — they were browsing and taking their time. It was interesting to see that.”

Mr Farrington said: “We wanted to have a little soft opening because there are so many things we had to get ready for. But it kind of went viral and we had a phenomenal turnout, far greater that we would ever have imagined and it went 100 per cent smoothly.”

He added: “We also have 89 people on staff and if you add another day to the week, we have their families to consider — that’s one reason we added nine new staff.”

He said that for the official launch of Sunday opening on Sunday, Gorham’s was offering 15 per cent off lawn and garden and a free herb or vegetable three-inch pot with every purchase of a plant or flower worth $9.99 or more from the store’s new plant nursery.

Mr Farrington added: “It will give us a chance to showcase our new nursery area.”

The store will be open every Sunday from now, except on holidays like Easter and for stocktaking twice a year.