Tag: retail

Urban Outfitters buy Italian restaurant chain

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Urban Outfitters, best known for their clothing and homewares have bought an Italian restaurant chain. The retailer also known as UO, have made a bold move in diversifying their portfolio by purchasing the Vetri Family group of restaurants.

UO, which is based in Philadelphia has 2 Irish stores in Dundrum Town Centre and Temple Bar, Dublin 2. The price has not been released, but the sale was confirmed yesterday. Certain UO stores already have an in-store food offering with cafes, but the acquisition of a restaurant chain is an unusual move for the fashioned focussed retailer.

It is believed that Urban Outfitters will help expand the restaurants to a wider audience while the Vetri family focuses on the food.

Source: http://www.irishtimes.com/business/retail-and-services/urban-outfitters-buys-italian-restaurant-chain-1.2432208

My Journey Into Recruitment – Sarah Hurley

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Sarah Hurley oversees Head office and Buying roles. Below, Sarah takes us through how she got into recruitment.

What titles did you hold while working in Retail?

Trainee Buyer, Assistant Buyer, Senior Assistant Buyer, Junior Buyer.

 

How does it compare going from working in Retail to a Recruitment environment?

Coming from a buying perspective it’s not as fast paced and probably more service focused.

 

What was your favourite part about working in retail?

Developing product and analysing sales performance were my favourite.

 

What is your favourite aspect of working in Recruitment?

Keeping candidates and clients mutually happy.

 

Are you seeing any difference in applications over the last 12 months?

Perhaps more Ecommerce candidates are applying and also more Ecommerce jobs are being registered with us.

 

What do you favour most when a CV comes into your inbox? What must haves does a candidate need in order to be considered?

Keep it simple/ My ideal CV has a short personal profile that sums the candidate up and describes main objective for their career, followed by career summary, education, IT skills (computer programs and systems you can use well) and then any relevant interests. CV’s on Word are preferred as PDF’s can often at time be difficult to format if we need to.

What has been your most favoured candidate placement and why?

One candidate we worked with wanted to get into a trainee merchandiser role. She had great experience but was struggling with nerves at interview and her relevant skills and knowledge weren’t getting across. We spent time with her going through her CV, practising interview questions and any potential difficulties she might come across. Long story short – she got the job and we’re all delighted for her!

 

A young sales assistant aspires to be a Retail/Area Manager – Buyer/Senior Buyer. Describe what they should do in 4 sentences?

If the company they work for has a head office here in Ireland then it would make sense to see if they offer any entry level buying or merchandising schemes depending on which function you wish to get into. For any head office roles, it is pretty imperative to gain some office experience so you can brush up on your IT skills and work in a fast paced environment.

130 Jobs saved at Best Menswear

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Best Menswear will exit examinership on Friday, November 13th. 130 retail jobs have been saved after the approval of the examiners scheme in court. Best fell into examinership in July of this year as part of the fallout from the Clerys closure. Best are one of many concessions who are owed money by OCS Operations Ltd which ran the department store. The figure is approximated of being between €1.5 – €2million.

Best said that the closure of their Clerys concession placed an enormous strain on company cash flow. Almost all Best Menswear stores will continue to trade and no indications have been given about store closures. Best have stores in pinnacle retail centres including Dundrum Town Centre, Liffey Valley, Blanchardstown and Swords.

MD of Best, David Jones said ‘We are delighted to be set to successfully exit examinership on Friday. The process has facilitated Best Menswear reaching agreements with our creditors and, together with the adoption of a range of cost control measures, we now look forward to a bright future’.

Selfridges have bought Arnotts department store

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

UK Group Selfridges have acquired Arnotts department store for an undisclosed fee. Founded in 1843, the iconic retail store that resides on Henry Street North Dublin, is now under the ownership of Canadian businessman Galen Weston and his wife Hilary.

Arnotts is Ireland’s largest department store and its sale has been under intense speculation for a number of months. Weston also boasts Brown Thomas amongst his retail portfolio, as well as a number of International department stores.

The sale is part of a wider agreement which saw an agreement Fitzwilliam Finance Partners between and Wittington Canada. The former was set up in 2011 by Irish lawyer and developer Noel Smyth, whose intention was to acquire the debts associated with Arnotts debt. Wittington Canada is the holding company for the Weston group. The purchase of these loans by Wittington Canada from Fitzwilliam Finance Partners was cleared by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission in August, clearing the way for the acquisition.

Arnotts chief executive Ray Hernan will step down as chief executive to “pursue new opportunities” with Selfridges appointing Donald McDonald as managing director of the business. Mr Weston said of the sale “Our family has been a significant investor in Irish retailing and the wider economy since we acquired Brown Thomas in 1971.”

 

Aldi to launch music streaming service to rival Spotify

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Discount Grocery Retailer Aldi will launch a music streaming service on the German market. Collaborating with Napster, ‘Aldi Life Musik’ will have unlimited access to Napsters extensive music library for €7.99 a month.

The new music service which launches today (September 24th) is a paid only service, with no free option. The service is the first of its kind on the German market and features 34 million songs, ready to go playlists, radio stations and audiobooks. Music streaming revenue in Germany rose by 87% for in the first half of this year, versus last year.

Greggs is coming to Ireland

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

A powerhouse throughout the UK, Greggs have announced they will open their first Irish store in The Republic. Most known for their expansive fresh offerings of pastries, sandwiches, sausage rolls, breads and snacks, Greggs will open in a Dublin Applegreen Service Station.

Greggs have more stores in the UK than fast food giant McDonalds, typifying its popularity amongst British consumers. Recently a Greggs opened on the M2 at a service station close to Belfast.

Source: http://www.thejournal.ie/greggs-ireland-new-menu-pastries-2333397-Sep2015/

Lloyds pharmacy’s to buy McCauley Chemists

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Llyoyds pharmacy, which formerly operated as Doc Morris looks set to buy out the McCauley Chemist group across Ireland. A report by the Sunday Times suggests, Lloyds pharmacy will looks to strengthen their Irish operations by buying 28 stores that McCauley operate nationwide.

Again, according to reports, the takeover is believed to be worth around €40 – €50 million and are in an advanced stage of talks. Lloyds currently have 93 stores across the country and are already the largest pharmacy group in Ireland.

Source: http://www.thejournal.ie/lloyds-mccauleys-2329159-Sep2015/

Primark in the USA | 1 Day to go

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Primark is one of our favourite Retailers in Excel Recruitment. As well as recruiting for them, we adore the fashion and value for money concepts that spreads through a range of divisions. Their leap towards beauty, with salons in selected stores saw them establish themselves as one of the most innovative and progressive retailers. Their opening in Boston on September 10th will see them make retail history. We trawled through Instagram with the #PrimarkUSA hashtag to bring you the most exciting photos as they prepare to launch. Best of luck from everyone in Excel Recruitment.

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All images found under the #primarkusa hashtag with a total of 368 images.

Instagram Sources: @primark, @lj.preston, @birdy.fashion, @jaynebibby, @its_justme_j, @diwali2512, @wendug,

Musgrave get the clear for €57 million deal to sell UK division

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Irish Retail giant Musgrave have received regulatory clearance to sell its UK operations. It is believed that the deal will be worth around €57 million and will be sold to a rival UK wholesale giant Booker. Musgraves, which is based in Cork operate the Budgens and Londis brands and have close to 1800 across the UK.

Booker is the UK’s biggest cash and carry operator and the deal have been cleared by the Competitions and Market Authority. It will be sold on a cash free and debt free basis. The acquisition is set to be complete in and around September 14th.

Musgrave currently own and operate the Supervalu brand in Ireland. In a statement, Musgraves said ‘’ “Musgrave Group today noted the decision of the UK Competition and Markets Authority to approve the sale of Musgrave GB to Booker Group PLC. Musgrave Group will now move to complete the transaction with Booker.”

Booker commented “We are pleased that the acquisition of Londis and Budgens has been cleared by the CMA. This will help strengthen our support for independent retailers throughout Great Britain.”

Source: http://www.independent.ie/business/supervalu-owner-musgrave-gets-green-light-for-57m-deal-to-sell-uk-division-31498934.html

‘Toys R Us’ pick sites for their Irish Sites

Posted on | by Aisling Rafferty

Toys R Us have leased units at Westend Retail Park in Blanchardstown, Dublin and Parkway Retail Park in Limerick. With more than 1,500 stores across 33 countries and more than 50 retail outlets across the UK, this is the Toy Retailers first venture in the Republic.

Annual rent is believed to be €325,000 in Dublin for a 10,000 sq. ft unit and €200,000 in Limerick for 17,800 sq ft unit. Altogether, Toys R Us plan to open 10 stores across Ireland. Westend Retail Park was developed and run by the Cosgrave Group until it was sold along with other high-value property assets by Nama.

Source: http://www.irishtimes.com/business/commercial-property/toys-r-us-leases-shops-in-dublin-and-limerick-1.2328313