Peel’s new Tesco superstore opened on Thursday morning, becoming the eighth Tesco outlet on the Isle of Man since the supermarket giant acquired Shoprite.

The Derby Road store closed on Saturday, June 29 and is one of nine former Shoprite outlets to become Tesco stores.

It’s opening hours are 7am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 8am to 8pm on Sunday.

In good news for Peel residents, the Tesco store now has an ATM available for 24/7 cash withdrawals.

Shoppers arrived early this morning to get the first look at the latest Tesco store

The smaller Shoprite in Michael Street became a Tesco earlier this year.

Eight of the nine new Tesco stores have now opened in Castletown, Douglas, Ramsey, Port Erin, Peel and Onchan.

Tesco’s purchase of Shoprite brought to an end 51 years of trading for the island supermarket chain which was launched in 1972 by the Nicholson family.

Until the sale was announced last October, Shoprite was the biggest independently owned food chain on the Isle of Man.

Tesco has been serving customers on the Isle of Man since 2000 when it opened its flagship store in Douglas.

The first refurbished Tesco store was the Tesco Express in Castletown which opened in February.

To mark the grand opening that took place on Thursday morning, Tesco donated £1,000 to Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch – a charity focused on conserving whales, dolphins, porpoises and basking sharks around the Isle of Man.

A spokesperson for the retailer said: ‘Supporting the local community is hugely important to Tesco and its colleagues, and the new stores will look to have an ongoing positive impact through the retailer’s community programmes - Tesco Stronger Starts and Community Food Connection – supporting charities and community groups across the island.

‘Over the last seven years, the supermarket’s customers in the Isle of Man have helped to nominate worthy recipients of grants totalling £217,504 for 109 groups and good causes through its blue token voting scheme, Stronger Starts.

‘Given the pressures on household budgets, Tesco remains committed to providing value now more than ever. With customers increasingly looking to save money on their food shop, customers will be able to take advantage of Clubcard Prices to ensure they are getting the best deals every time they shop.’

Store manager Anthony Teare added: ‘We’re really pleased to be opening our new Peel Superstore.

‘We want to play a key role supporting the local community and we’re encouraging groups and charities to sign up for our Stronger Starts and food donation programmes.’

Any local groups that would benefit from Tesco Stronger Starts funding are encouraged to apply here: https://tescostrongerstarts.org.uk/

The final Tesco store set to open in the island, the former Winerite site on Victoria Road, is due to open in the new year as a Tesco Express store.