Kokoro, a “Japanese sushi and hot food” chain with dozens of branches across the country, will open on St George’s Street on the former site of Mooch, a stationery shop which closed in July.
Workmen put up boards outside the shop today, January 13, as they began the transformation of the space, which will include a kitchen and a small seating area.
One worker told the Chronicle he believes the work will last approximately seven weeks.
READ MORE: Mooch Winchester closes after brief spell near high street
Work began on the old Mooch unit today, January 13 (Image: Sebastian Haw) When Mooch closed last year, one member of staff said: “It’s the second time I’ve been made redundant in 18 months. When you work full time it’s hard to look for another job.
“It’s a shame because we felt like we were just establishing our customer base.”
Mooch moved into the same unit which had been occupied for over a decade by Paperchase at the end of July 2023.
SEE ALSO: Mooch: Stationery and gift shop in Winchester to close
When asked about the closure, one customer, Christina Petridou, 42, said: “Definitely around here there have been a lot of shops coming and going. A lot of the stuff that’s sold here, you can get in other shops on the high street in Winchester, it’s not like they sell specific things here that you can’t get anywhere else.
“We’ve got a lot of things like phone shops opening and about 5,000 bubble tea shops, so I don’t know what they’re going to end up doing. I just hope it’s something that does well and closes some of the gaps that we’ve got in the market at the moment.”
The arrival of Kokoro comes as the Eartian zero waste shop announced its closure in Parchment Street,