Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Recipe for success as new shop is unveiled by bakery
It was a moment to savour when one of Monklands’best-loved bakeries received the keys to its new premises.
The handover of the new Christie’s shop took place on Graham Street, Airdrie, courtesy of construction and property development firm Procast, who completed a £750,000 refurbishment of the building that is home to the award-winning bakery.
It means that the shop staff will move from the current premises at number 12 to number eight, and continue to serve their loyal customers from a shop that boasts a host of new features.
A special cake was baked for the big day as bakery owner Andrew Chisholm – whose business has another shop in Coatbridge – took control of the premises from site manager Scott Martin and North Lanarkshire councillor Ian Mcneil.
Procast business development director Carol Cameron said: “Christie’s is an iconic name in Airdrie and we were delighted to be involved with such a familiar name and brand.
“This project has seen new life breathed into an old building that, frankly, was in need of a bit of TLC – and the end result is really quite striking.
“We wish Christie’s all the best for the future in their new shop.”
The project was completed for North Lanarkshire Properties, which is an arm’s length organisation connected to North Lanarkshire Council, and it involved three phases, the last two of which commenced last October.
Works involved stripping out an existing Chinese restaurant and carrying out structural repairs to the properties above to form two new apartments as well as roof renovations and basement improvements.
On behalf of NLP, Chris Sullivan, North Lanarkshire Council strategic asset manager, said: “This is a significant step forward in the regeneration of the Graham Street building, with the successful relocation of Christie’s the baker allowing us to complete the structural and refurbishment works in August.
“This partnership project will see a prominent building within Airdrie town centre transformed to provide much-needed homes for council tenants and fully refurbished commercial facilities for existing and new businesses.
“This is one of a number of projects being delivered by the council and North Lanarkshire Properties, as part of our ambitious plans for town centres.”
Once Christie’s are established in their new premises, Procast, who are based in Strathaven, will carry out in-depth structural works, including installing new steel frame and timber floor systems, above and below, to enable completion of all the works.
Christie’s bakery owner Andrew Chisholm said: “We are very excited to say that our new-look Airdrie shop is open.
“There are several new features that we are delighted about, including a ‘walk-up window’, a main entrance with touch-free automatic door opening and a portable hearing loop.”