The Old Railway Line Garden Centre in Powys is bucking the national trend for job cuts and recruitment freeze by employing more staff this month.
The centre, which is building a 2,000sq m extension, has appointed 13 additional members of staff to man its new restaurant. The new-look garden centre will include a shop area as well as the restaurant, a farm shop, florist and furniture department, gifts and a Christmas department.

It is hoped that the development will be completed by the middle of next month, with an official opening scheduled for September 29.

Shop manager Katie Cleary said: "We have recruited 13 people to work in the new restaurant and they will start at the end of August. We needed more staff members to help us to continue the high standard of customer service we currently offer.

"We are thrilled that we are expanding in size. This will allow us to draw even more people in and continue to grow the business."

She added: "We don't want to disappoint anyone who comes to the garden centre and in order to be able to offer them more space to have a cuppa or a meal, a greater choice of gardening products and plants and to fit them all in, we needed to increase in size."