TEN YEARS ago this week, Superquinn’s Dundalk store opened amid much fanfare. Yesterday it closed its doors – a victim of the economic downturn and increased competition from across the Border.
The store had 200 staff with 27 alone working on the deli counter producing the fresh breads, cakes and confectionery which are one of Superquinn’s selling points. It was the anchor store for the Carroll Village shopping centre.
Crowd control was needed the first Christmas and for several Christmases after that, but the recession and a customer flight across the Border to towns like Newry sealed its fate.
Clearly, it is not the only local business suffering in Dundalk. There are already 10 shuttered units in the centre, one for every year of its existence.
Inside the store yesterday there were dozens of freshly baked loaves still on the shelf, but a notice said it was taking no more orders for special cakes as of Thursday. Notices, too, gave the 67 remaining staff information about dealing with their standing orders, their VHI contributions and the Superquinn credit union.
Announcing the closure last month, Superquinn chief executive Simon Burke said sales had declined by up to 25 per cent at the Dundalk shop in recent weeks because of cross-Border shopping accentuated by the growing currency differential.
In a notice posted outside the store, Mr Burke thanked people for their custom and told them their nearest Superquinn was in Swords 35 minutes away.
It is an invitation that is unlikely to be taken up by many local shoppers. Staff say the closure is as much about competition as it is about cross-Border shopping. There are three Dunnes Stores, two Tescos, two Aldis and a Lidl, with another one on the way, in a town of just 30,000 people.
“The penny has dropped that shopping in the North costs jobs,” said former employee Niall Gallagher, “but it is not all down to the North. Money is getting tight for everyone. Superquinn is a quality supermarket, but there is a perception that it costs more though I think we’re as competitive as anybody.”
Mr Gallagher and his wife Geraldine have both lost their jobs. They are one of three couples in the store in a workplace another member of staff said was like a “family”.
Yesterday morning all staff gathered in the coffee shop next door for breakfast at 7.30am.
Last night they held a farewell function at Oriel Park, the home of Dundalk Football Club.The club, which is at the heartbeat of the town’s identity, ironically announced its “Shop Dundalk” initiative to support local businesses last Thursday.
The Shop Dundalk logo will be displayed on the shirts for the forthcoming season.
Some Superquinn staff have been offered relocation to Dublin, others have been headhunted by the Dublin Airport Authority to work in the expanded Duty Free there, a commute most are only too happy to make in the present economic climate.
“There were three jobs in the Argus last week. There’s just nothing around,” said one member of staff who did not wish to be named.
“We feel that Superquinn ran down this store and never promoted it properly. This wouldn’t have happened if Feargal Quinn had still been in charge,” she added, saying that it only began to compete on promotions when it was too late.
“We were told before Christmas that management would fight like scrapyard dogs to keep it open and that it would still be open in 40 years’ time. We didn’t even last another four months.”
Mandate northeast regional organiser Harry O’Brien said workers had done all they could to keep the store open, accepting 20 redundancies in 2007 and offering flexibility.