Welcome

On behalf of everyone in Retail Excellence Ireland, I would like to express our gratitude to our outgoing Chairman, Joe Barret, CEO of Applegreen. Joe’s leadership and dedication during his tenure as our Chairman was unwavering. His commitment to excellence and his visionary approach have been instrumental in shaping Retail Excellence into the successful and dynamic organisation that it is today. His leadership has been invaluable, and we are proud to have had the opportunity to work with such a visionary over his tenure.

As we settle into 2023 and I settle into the new role as chairperson, the retail landscape has not been predicable. The consumer sentiment index climbed to an eight-month high of 55.6 in February. The index was up from September’s 14-year low when higher energy cost worries and rising interest rates dragged down the outlook for household finances. However, it remained well below the 77.0 recorded in the February 2022. The Irish economy has again proven resilient and the worst fears from a year ago have not been realised. Needless to say, retailers are still facing rising costs and the tightness in the labour market has continued to provide its own unique challeneges and aspects of uncertainty.

Recently, we had the appointment of a new Minister for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Neil Richmond. We partook in a broad ranging discussion with the Minister in early March. We highlighted the challenges of a rising cost base, the green transition, attracting people to a career in retail, the rejuvenation of our town centres and the impact of the housing crisis on our industry. The Minister will join us for our Retail Retreat in May and we look forward to intorducing you to him then.

We are also delighted to share with you details of our upcoming Retail Retreat. This is an event not to be missed, as it presents a unique opportunity to learn and network with fellow retailers. Hosted by Sonya Lennon, the event will feature a lineup of inspiring speakers who will share their knowledge and experience of the industry, speakers like Sue Harris, E-Commerce Director for Screwfix and Chupi Sweetman, founder of the international success story Chupi Jewellery to name a few. More speakers to be announced over the coming weeks. We also look forward to bringing Ireland’s leading retailers together with our retail partners and suppliers in the exhibition centre. This year’s chosen location is in the Dublin Royal Convention Centre which is a fabulous new venue in Dublin City Centre beside the Radisson Hotel in Golden Lane.

As summer approaches, our shores will be adorned with tourist visitors from all over the world. In this edition of the Retail Times, we celebrate the success story of Irish tourism retailer, Carroll’s Irish GIfts. Colm Carroll, is the gentleman at the forefront of this success story, and after 40 years at the helm, his words of wisdom are insprinng and thought provoking. I hope you enjoy the read. Go

Editor Jennifer McShane

Retail Excellence Editor

Keelan Bourke

Duncan Graham

Creative Director Jane Matthews

REI hosts productive meeting with new Minister for Retail

Managing Director for Retail Excellence

Ireland, Duncan Graham, Board Member and Director of Arboretum, Fergal Doyle attended a positive meeting with the new Minister for Retail, Neale Richmond. Issues discussed included cost pressures, recruitment and retention, promoting a career in retail and further grants for the development of e-commerce . We are really looking forward to working with Minister Richmond and his team this year.