A BEAUTY retailer has taken over a shop at Trentham Gardens vacated by pottery store Emma Bridgewater.

L'Occitane En Provence will open tomorrow with a champagne reception.

It comes two weeks after directors at Hanley-based Emma Bridgewater decided to shut the store in order to focus efforts on its busy factory shop.

Staff from the branch, which opened in 2007, have transferred to Hanley. L'Occitane is creating two full-time jobs as well as several part-time roles.

Trentham Gardens operator St Modwen stirred up a storm of protest earlier this year when it announced plans to introduce a charge for walking around the attraction's lake, something many visitors liked to combine with a visit to its shopping village.

But company founder Emma Bridgewater said staff hadn't noticed a marked difference in trade since the charge came into force in May.

She said: "I love Trentham Gardens, but I don't think it was a good place for our kind of retail operation.

"There are all kinds of things that do well there, like the shops which sell things to help families enjoy their walks.

"When Trentham Gardens opened I thought, here's a very nice venture and I still feel that – I love going for walks round there.

"To be honest we didn't notice a difference when they started charging to walk round the lake. I can't say we would have ever made it work, but I'm glad we gave it a try and I very much wish the operation well."

Emma Bridgewater employs more than 120 people at its Lichfield Street factory in Hanley and has outlets in London and Edinburgh, as well as the gift and factory shops at Hanley.

Every piece of the firm's pottery is handmade at Lichfield Street and the retro designs have proved a huge hit.

Last month Sentinel Business reported she had been commissioned by oven-maker Aga to create a limited edition version of its iconic cooker, decorated with her trademark polka dot design.

Emma, below, whose husband Matthew Rice is also a director at the company, said: "There was probably the equivalent of about one-and-a-half full-time jobs at Trentham, but the staff there used to do shifts at the factory shop in Hanley as well.

"Things are going fantastically well there. We've expanded the floorspace by 1,000 square feet and headcount is up 40 per cent, so we've more than absorbed the staff from Trentham.

"The demand there is marvellous and we've got a fantastic management team bedded in now so it's all very exciting.

"We're a proper factory shop in the old-fashioned sense and I think people really do appreciate that."

Mike Herbert, regional director at St Modwen, said he is looking forward to L'Occitane's arrival at Trentham.

He said: "We are delighted to have added such a prestigious international retailer to the mix at the shopping village.

"The shopping village and garden centre has continued to trade very successfully with an overall improvement in turnover this year.

"The unique location of the shopping village within the Trentham Estate and Gardens has made it a growing specialist destination for those looking to shop and experience the wider attractions at the estate.

"Being located as part of a major visitor destination in the current climate is our retailers' greatest asset."

L'Occitane franchisee Clair Hunter said: "We're delighted to be bringing such a prestigious brand to Trentham Gardens."

Customers who buy two products tomorrow will receive a free full-size shower gel.