A NEW shop with fittings made from hemp, re-cycled yoghurt pots and railway sleepers has been opened in Evesham.

The new Body Shop store, in the Riverside Centre, is one of the most environmentally up-to-date stores in the Body Shop empire.

Described as a "re-energised" store, it incorporates reclaimed oak floors and display blocks, open ceilings to optimise the flow of natural light into the store and easy access for wheelchairs and pushchairs.

Franchisee, Sylvia Peak, said she was excited and proud to be one of the first stores to incorporate the new store design, which will be replicated in major Body Shop stores throughout Britain in the next few months to celebrate the company's 25th anniversary.

"We're celebrating 25-years of a great experiment," said Ms Peak.

"An experiment which proved you can build a huge global enterprise and still challenge, campaign, trade honourably, give back to your community and have a great time while you're doing it."

She said the shop's doormat was made out of re-cycled railway sleepers, the tills and demonstration units were made from hemp and the till tops and merchandisers were made from re-cycled yoghurt pots.

Anita Roddick opened her first Body Shop in Brighton in 1976 and the chain went onto become one of the biggest retail successes of the 1980s and 1990s.

There are now more than 1,800 stores in 50 countries.

Recently, there have been stories in the press that Ms Roddick is considering selling her majority share in the business.