But within our county, people generally only consider Northampton as a decent place to shop.

However, Spree knows there are hidden gems out there, so for the next three weeks, we will be looking at three of our area's other potential shopping stop-offs – Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough.

This week Spree took to the streets of Corby to find out exactly what's on offer.


When you first walk towards the shops in Corby from the Oasis Retail Park, it looks so unappealing you immediately feel like turning round and getting straight back into your car.

The buildings have an oldness about them that doesn't fill you with confidence that you are going to have a good retail outing.

But if you persist and keep walking, you eventually come to an area with a bit more life.

There's a decent-sized Woolworths, a compact but nicely laid out Select, Game Station, The Works and a pretty big Peacocks, which stocks a good selection of clothing for men, women and children.

Spree could only see one shop which wasn't your typical High Street store, called Rev.

It's a womenswear store that draws you in with its colour co-ordinated sections and after a quick chat with the shop assistant, we discovered it's a one-off store in Northamptonshire, with the only other store being in Peterborough.

Despite this, Spree still felt Corby left a lot to be desired but then we walked into Willow Place, Corby's newest shopping addition, and everything changed.

Virtually all the buildings are new and glass fronted, with a big open square which looks very modern and encouraging.

There's a Boots and TJ Hughes on the left and right but Spree was more interested in Mark One, Burton and Dorothy Perkins that was gleaming at us across the square.

Spree generally finds Mark One to be a bit hit and miss when it comes to layout and stock but the Corby branch is excellent, with a wide selection of clothing and well organised.

Dorothy Perkins was also smart and easy to manoeuvre around with a decent-sized shoe section, and Burton was the same.

Along the stretch there is also a Jane Norman, which looks very modern and chic, as well as JD Sports, WH Smiths, New Look, Evans and a huge TK Maxx.

As we looked around, Spree really was impressed with Willow Place. There definitely seems to be a real effort being made by the stores to make Corby one of the top shopping places in the area.

And there's still potential for it to get even better with the recent news that Primark is planning to open a store in Willow Place.

Spree also spotted three other plots that were currently waiting to be filled and we think they would be perfect for stores like Warehouse, Republic, Topshop or Miss Selfridge.

But whatever stores take those plots, Willow Place is definitely the jewel in Corby's crown and the other shopping centres in the area had better watch out!