A sports giant will open in Ashford within a matter of weeks – more than six months after Mothercare shut its doors.

Bosses at the JD Sports firm will open their new store in County Square next to Superdrug on Saturday, October 14.

They will take over the vacant Mothercare shop, which was closed in March after more than 40 years in the town.

Cllr Graham Galpin, portfolio holder for the town centre, welcomed the new arrival.

“It is a nationally recognised name and without doubt there will be a market for it here,” he said.

“County Square needs shops with a secure, long-term tenure and they couldn’t do better than JD Sports.

“We will afford them as much assistance as is practicable and are pleased for everybody concerned.”

Mothercare embarked on a plan to close a quarter of its 170 shops in 2014, shutting its Ashford store – which also included an Early Learning Centre – six months ago.

All staff at the shop lost their jobs, with the business focusing on out-of-town retail stores and online services rather than town centre locations.

"County Square needs shops with a secure, long-term tenure and they couldn’t do better than JD Sports..." - Cllr Graham Galpin

Cllr Galpin, of Barrow Hill Terrace, thinks JD Sports – which is expected to create between 15 and 20 jobs – will prove popular.

“With the population growing as quickly as it is, there are more people living in the town and more customers,” he added.

“It is all happening in Ashford at the moment and people want to be here – including national chains.

“We are always very pleased to see new chains coming into the town – any business coming in is a good thing.”

JD Sports cemented its reputation as the UK’s biggest-listed sporting goods retailer in November last year when it bought outdoor stores group Go Outdoors for £112.3 million.

JD also owns the Blacks, Millets, Ultimate Outdoors and Tiso brands.

The sports group – which started fitting out its Ashford store at the end of August – already has branches around Kent, including stores in Maidstone, Canterbury and Bluewater.