THE Comet store in Bradshawgate, Bolton is to close as part of the massive shake-up which has followed the Norweb Retail sale.

Norweb's out-of-town store on the Trinity Business Park near St Peter's Way will be re-branded to Comet within the next few months.

Norweb Retail, which has its headquarters in Manchester Road, Bolton, was sold by owners United Utilities last year to rival electrical group Comet, part of the Kingfisher Group.

After reviewing its operations Comet has decided to close 28 Norweb retail stores and transfer the business to the local Comet store. Another 26 Comet stores will close and transfer to Norweb premises which will now adopt the Comet name.

This is in addition to the closure of 51 Norweb shops in High Streets throughout the North-west.

These include those in Exchange Street, Bolton, Market Street, Atherton, Brackley Street, Farnworth, Dale Street, Radcliffe, Bradshawgate, Leigh and Market Street, Westhoughton.

The re-structuring, which also means the closure of the Norweb Bolton headquarters and its national distribution centre in Little Hulton, will lead to the loss of 1,200 jobs from a total Norweb workforce of about 2,800.

The Comet Superstore in Bradshawgate, Bolton was opened by former Liverpool and England soccer star Emlyn Hughes in December, 1986.

A Comet spokesperson said staff were going through a selection process and it was not known how many job losses there would be.

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