Location a great catch for new liquor store
A new liquor store has opened on North Shore Road, in Hamilton Parish.
Howzat, which is just around the corner from Shelly Bay, started welcoming customers on Wednesday.
Jack Lee, general manager, said: “We’ve had great feedback. Everybody has commented about our pricing and the convenience is a big thing.
“They feel it’s something in their neighbourhood that works.”
The store, which sells beer, wines and spirits and soft drinks, as well as snacks and tourist-related items like bags and sunglasses, is run by Mr Lee and mother Norma Cross.
Ms Cross and her son have a background in business, with Ms Cross launching Pure Water and still retaining an interest in DVD rental and computer equipment store Leisure Time on Queen Street. in Hamilton.
Ms Cross said: “This is a brand new venture. We’re also involved in a couple of businesses which are wholesale and tourist-based.
“Things have been really tight tourist-wise and we had the opportunity to expand our retail space so we decided this might be a good venture for us to provide these products and services to East End people at a price that is affordable.”
The new store is in the Jeffrey & Sons building at Shelly Bay, underneath the 24-hour gym.
Mr Lee added: “From a convenience standpoint, there is a market here. MarketPlace is not too far away, but it’s convenience and price.
“It’s a good location on the busy North Shore Road.”
Mr Lee said that the general economic situation of the island was a concern, but that he was convinced that the store would flourish.
He added: “The economy is a concern, but looking at the space, it just seemed to be a good location for a liquor store.
“If we provide the convenience and the price, that makes you stand out and the customers will come.
“I feel that we’re going to be successful or we wouldn’t have gone into it. Everything is risk and reward and we’re going to give it a go.”
Howzat — named after the traditional cricket fielder’s shout to umpires asking for a batsman to be declared out — is open from 10am to 9pm seven days a week.
