Now we've got Home Bargains, here are the shops Watford people want next
But with the Waterfields Way store now here - and many having queued from early on Saturday (August 9) to welcome it - thoughts turned to what else the town might be lacking on the retail front.
New Lidls and and one Aldi are on their way, so we asked Watford Observer readers what they want to see open in the town.
We received a range of responses.
The most common answer was IKEA, with the Swedish giant one of the biggest brands not to have a presence in Watford.
One commenter said: "IKEA please, so I don't have to get three buses to the one in Wembley."
While the aforementioned store is the nearest fully-fledged IKEA, a smaller "rapid rollout" shop recently opened in Harlow, perhaps providing a future blueprint for Watford.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, many shoppers still pine for the return of John Lewis, which closed its Harlequin store in 2022.
Its unit has been divided up, with Choice taking over part of the building, while Flip Out has opened in its basement. Dunelm, Peacocks and Poundland are also among those to have taken up residence.
Going back even further, one nostalgia-fuelled suggestion called for the return of Woolworths.
Another common suggestion was frozen food chain Farmfoods, which has more than 300 stores nationwide but is yet to grace Watford.
Others wanted to see Iceland reopen after its closure in 2023. Its unit has sat vacant since, but is set to be filled by Aldi later this year.
When similar questions have been asked previously, there have been mentions of a Chinese restaurant, more nightlife and demand for Thai and Vietnamese cuisines.
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