DISCOUNT retailer Poundland is opening a new store in Bournemouth town centre tomorrow.

The shop is moving into the unit previously used by fashion trader USC on Commercial Road and will create 28 jobs.

The chain has been a relative phenomenon since it was launched in 1990, launching more than 530 stores in the UK and Ireland while selling all its products at the same £1 price point.

Its outlet in Boscombe was previously the company’s only presence in the town.

Cllr Mike Greene, ward councillor for the town centre, said he welcomed the opening of the new store.

“One thing I hate to see anywhere is empty shops,” he added. “I think it’s fantastic when any shop opens up that local people can benefit from.”

Nigel Hedges, chair of the town centre management board, said no town centre can afford to have empty units, especially now they face such fierce competition from online retailers.

“Whether it is a pound store, 90p or 80p store, they all have an important part to play,” he added.

“If they are taking over one of our prime sites it must be welcomed as a display of confidence.”

The latest outlet is part of the company’s growth strategy of opening at least 60 every year.

Poundland’s trading director, Richard Lancaster, said: “We are delighted to bring our unique proposition to Bournemouth.

“Poundland offers amazing value on top branded products to over five million customers every week. The £1 price hasn’t changed since we opened our first store 24 years ago.”

A brief history of store

The first store was opened in Burton-upon-Trent in 1990 by David Dodd and Stephen Smith.

The duo were inspired by the idea of ‘price-point selling’ – a concept first used by Frank Winfield Woolworth in 1878, when he opened Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store in Utica, New York.

Poundland’s 100th store opened in 2003 and since then more than 430 further outlets have sprung up in high streets across the country.

This was despite a recession, which saw the demise of rivals such as Woolworths. In June 2010 Poundland was acquired by private equity firm Warburg Pincus and was launched on the London stock exchange in March this year.