AROUND 75 new jobs are being created in Saltash with the arrival of B&M Homestore in the town.

The discount retailer will be trading from the former Focus DIY store, next to Waitrose on the Tamar View Industrial Estate, and is due to open on November 1.

The company has been working with the local jobcentre and Working Links to recruit within Saltash, said director Robin Arora.

The Saltash store and garden centre will focus primarily on paint, soft furnishings, homewares and gardening goods. B&M has grown from a chain of 20 stores six years ago to its current network of 355 branches throughout the UK.

Operations director Carl Allen said: 'We have been waiting for an opportunity in Saltash for three years and are delighted to have secured this site.'

Saltash Chamber of Commerce chairman Bill Cotton said: 'While we always welcome job creation, we wouldn't like this to be at the expense of local retailers in Fore Street.

'Saltash does already have a discount store in the town centre.'