The store opened at 9am sharp yesterday to an eager crowd of about 100 Tamworth shoppers.

Its 1100-square-metre store fills the old House shop space and some of the now-closed Franklins supermarket space, the remainder of which will be home to discounted supermarket franchise Aldi, which opens in just under two weeks’ time.

Hype about the hi-fi giant had been around since the July announcement to bring the traditionally metropolitan retail offering to the bush.

It’s the second of the city’s three new retail openings this month, just in time for the Christmas shopping rush.

JB Hi-Fi stocks everything from DVDs and CDs to big-screen televisions, cameras, phones, accessories and computers.

The store has a team of about 40 staff, 37 of which are from the local community.

It is believed to be the third NSW store based in a regional centre for the popular chain, with stores at the coastal towns of Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour.

JB Hi-Fi northern NSW regional manager Paul Dresens, who was in town to help the store’s launch, said it would be a retail hub for many North West and New England shoppers.

He said it stocked the biggest range of country music CDs and DVDs out of all the national stores, because of the city’s affiliation with the industry and the annual Country Music Festival.

Mr Dresens says JB Hi-Fi is a very big supporter of the country music brand and he expects the store to be popular with festivalgoers in January, as well as visitors throughout the year.

Tomorrow, Australian country music artist Lee Kernaghan will make a special appearance at the Tamworth store, followed by fellow artist Troy Cassar-Daley on Tuesday, December 4. Yesterday’s opening followed the Coles supermarket opening earlier this week at the revamped Southgate Shopping Centre. On Wednesday, November 28, the Aldi food store and liquor outlet will open next to JB Hi-Fi. It is understood the stores will adjust their trading hours accordingly to take advantage of each other’s shoppers.