Local independent retailers are really struggling
Do people on the street realise how dire the situation is for many?
Welcome to the Armagh I newsletter, which drops into your inbox every Tuesday and Friday morning. We’ve taken a big step towards the 8,000 mark over the last few days so please feel free to share this newsletter – and if you haven’t already, sign up below…
Who knew self-checkouts would be such a pain point – or topic of ferocious debate!! We’ve seen 100 new subscribers join our newsletter list since Tuesday; a very hearty welcome to you all. We can’t promise nuggets of unrivalled debate every time but we’ll try. Next up, Stormont, eh?…joking!
Following on from Tuesday’s newsletter, Sainsbury’s got in touch with a response. It read:
“We have slightly increased the number of self-checkouts at our Armagh store so that we can meet customer demand for this service. We continue to offer manned checkouts for our customers who wish to use them. We apologised to this customer after a checkout was unavailable for a brief time and reassured her that this would not happen again.”
The newsletter came out on a day we reported the sad closure of two small independent shops in Portadown. It’s another blow for the high street. And that particular story prompted one Lurgan business owner to get in touch and further emphasise how bad it’s getting for local, independent businesses.
Sinead McMahon, who has run the Danaan Crafts shop on William Street for nine years, says only for her online presence, her bricks and mortar store "probably would have collapsed by now". There was one day last week she didn’t make a sale; the next day she took home £7. She sent us a video of William Street at 3pm on Tuesday. Empty. Not a sinner!
She had plenty to say on the matter – it’s well worth checking out what she had to say here.
Headlines…
🏥 Southern Trust says three ‘catastrophic’ Covid outbreaks claimed lives of 15 patients
💉Alarm as syringes and needles found discarded on Lurgan street
👩🏼⚕️ Junior doctors across Northern Ireland to be balloted on industrial action over pay
🏥 Emergency surgery to be permanently removed from Daisy Hill, Trust confirms
⚖️ Co Armagh man admits to brutal killing of Nathan Gibson in Craigavon
📸 In Pictures: Office opening of new St Joseph’s High School in Crossmaglen
🍺 Restaurant, brewery and glamping plans for 200-year-old former Caledon Arms Hotel
👻 Armagh Observatory and Planetarium announce series of spooky Halloween events
👮🏻Police renew appeal into Crossmaglen murder bid as latest man arrested freed on bail
⚖️ Teen accused of ‘predatory exploitation’ rape of woman refused bail
🚫 ‘Racism not welcome in Poyntzpass’ says resident after eggs thrown at house
⚖️ Co Armagh man admits biting solicitor on the head
📸 In Pictures: Royal School Armagh’s annual speech night
⚖️ Teacher to stand trial over alleged inappropriate relationship with pupil
🚫 Police clocked 140mph trying to catch Ferrari driver racing to dying mother in hospital
🔨 Man and woman left ‘extremely shaken’ after masked gang smash up house in Portadown
⚖️Lurgan troll posted animated image of Natalie McNally days after murder to ‘lighten the mood’
Armagh Jobs…
✅ McElmeel Mobility Services are recruiting for a number of positions including Assistant Store Person, Vehicle Fitters and Marketing Executive. See a full list of vacancies here.
✅ Cross Refrigeration require a Cad/BIM Technician reporting to Project Director.
✅ Fairlawns Nursing Home require a Senior Care Assistant for Night Duty.
✅ Armagh Credit Union are recruiting for a Clerical Officer.
✅ Clearway Group Portadown require an HGV Mechanic and Welder/Fabricator.
✅ Armagh City Hotel require a Fitness and Leisure Club Supervisor.
🛎️ If you have a job and want to advertise it 40,000 daily users on www.armaghjobs.com, www.armaghi.com, as well as almost 8,000 people on this newsletter and our 100,000 social media followers, get in touch.
Notice Board…
🎶 Spires of Faith and Hope | Friday September 29 | 7.30pm | Celebrating 150 years at St. Patrick's Cathedral ROI, Armagh with an Evening of Music from Eílis Fox featuring St. Patrick's Cathedral Choir and special guest Catherine Grimley Hughes. Tickets can be purchased at the Parish Office or via Ticket Source here https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/spiresoffaithandhope2023
🌼 Daisy Dander | Gosford Forest Park | Saturday, September 30 at 2PM | Tickets and more info here.
❤️Community Health and Wellbeing Event | Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon PCSP in partnership with SDACT Connections | October 5, 2023 | 6pm - 9pm | Armagh City Hotel. Throughout the complimentary evening, there will be a large number of organisations who will be promoting health and wellbeing as well as advice on alcohol and drugs and improving your mental health. On arrival, there will be a light supper. Guest Speaker Domhnall Nugent from ‘Let’s Face It’ will deliver an inspiring talk in which he'll discuss his own personal experiences with drugs and alcohol and the steps he took that helped him to overcome his addiction. If you would like to attend, please RSVP via email to aisling.gillespie@armaghbanbridgecraigavon.gov.uk by Thursday September 28, 2023.
❓Table Quiz in aid of Tearfund | Friday, October 6 | 7pm | Thomas Street Methodist Church Hall, Portadown. Teams of six welcome. Minimum donation: £5 per person, children under 11 free. Refreshments available. Contact Steven Wright on 07982 216197 for further information.
🎗️Free Bowel Cancer Community Support Event | Radisson Blu Hotel, The Gasworks, Belfast | Saturday October 14 | 9.30am - 3.30pm | Bowel Cancer UK will be holding a free community support event for people affected by bowel cancer in Belfast. It’s an opportunity to meet others going through similar experiences and hear from expert speakers about the disease. Registration for the event closes Monday 2 October. To find out more about this event and register to attend please visit: https://www.bowelcanceruk.org.uk/belfast-event/
Want to include a free event listing to almost 8,000 of our newsletter readers? Get in touch by simply replying to this email or, if you haven’t received this via your inbox, email us at info@armaghi.com.
In regard to retail trade in general, people only have souch financial resources, irrespective of budget or wealth, the retail trade gives the impression that this is everlasting the reality is that any individual or community has a finite amount to spend, so spreading this between high street shops large retail outlets, or retail parks or on line shopping, clearly shows that, use a metaphor, slices of the pie are limited. Shoppers wishing to avoid debt, or credit (same thing), are prioritizing their means, resultant if which is that the example of craft shops will be low priority.
Not wishing to appear callous but the writing is on the wall, or on the closing down signs across windows. The same issues can be applied to pubs, restaurant bars and hotels etc. People are reducing expenditure, prioritizing the important things and trying to weather the economic turmoil, so the issue of footfall etc is simple, but no doubt a hard point to swallow.