KITCHENWARE retailer Lakeland has unveied its new-look flagship store in Windermere after spending £1m on the refit.

The shop in Thwaites Lane was officially unveiled on Friday by Malcolm King, the firm’s longest-serving employee who has worked there for almost 45 years.

Half a million people visit the 12,200 sq ft store, which carries more than 1,500 items and a state-of-the-art kitchen where customers can watch product demonstrations.

Director of retail Bob Granger explained that all of the business’ 69 stores were due to be modernised.

He said: “Lakeland is continuing to undertake an extensive refit programme, with many of our stores up and down the country being modernised and improved with our customers in mind every step of the way.

“We’ve incorporated customer feedback and the latest technology into our new-look Windermere store and it’s incredibly exciting to be opening our doors after 12 months of planning and five months on site.

“We hope our customers will love the new shopping experience as much as we do.”

Throughout the renovation 3,500 slate tiles were laid throughout the store, using more than 10 tonnes of tile adhesive as well as three kilometres of data cabling and two kilometres of lighting cables.