CUSTOMERS visiting a new showroom at a York domestic appliance shop are being invited to bring some clothes along and get them washed and tumble dried.

And while they’re at it, they can get some cutlery cleaned in one of the dishwashers, and maybe cook some food in an oven.

Appliances in the Miele showroom, situated upstairs at Blackwell & Denton in Colliergate, have been plugged and plumbed in so that customers can check them out before committing to buying them.

Owner Chris Watson says he believes the shop is the first in the York area to offer such a service.

And he says the move is already proving popular, with one woman travelling 80 miles each way from near Newcastle to check out the washer and drier with a dressing gown and two large towels she had brought with her.

Mr Watson said Blackwell & Denton had been established for 48 years, and he had worked there for 22 years, buying the business three years ago.

He said it told a range of appliances from AEG to Zanussi.

He said he had invested a five-figure sum in the expansion into a former store room upstairs.