CPL News - Latest
-
Jervis in fashion with top retailers
Sep
28Next is to rent a second outlet, while two new international chains prepare to open in the centre, writes JACK FAGAN
TOP FASHION retailer Next is to open a second shop at the Jervis Centre in Dublin city centre where two other international fashion outlets are due to commence trading in the coming weeks.
Next was one of the first overseas tenants in the Jervis Centre when it opened for business 16 years ago. Its unit of 390sq m (4,200sq ft) fronting onto Mary Street has traded consistently well over the years and, when sportswear specialist Lifestyle Sports recently indicated that it would be availing of a break option in its lease, Next moved swiftly to rent that store as well. It has agreed an overall rent of €1.3 million for the two stores.
The former Lifestyle Sports unit extends to just over 1,300sq m (14,000sq ft) over ground and mezzanine levels. Lifestyle Sports, which was taken over last year by the Wexford-based Stafford family, had originally been paying rent of €650,000 for the Jervis Centre shop.
Next's expansion plans will coincide with the arrival of two high profile overseas traders, Los Angeles-based Forever 21 and the UK multiple New Look. It will be the first European store for Forever 21, which has 500 outlets worldwide and a turnover of more than $2.3 billion. The company is reported to be also moving into London this year, as well as cities such as Paris, Milan, Munich, Amsterdam, Vienna, Madrid and Barcelona.
Forever 21 will be in direct competition with Zara and H&M in providing a fast turnaround in high fashion trends for both women and men.
It will be paying a rent of €2.75 million for 6,503sq m (70,000sq ft) in the Jervis Centre and has set an opening date of November 15th.
New Look plans to use the Jervis Centre outlet as its flagship Irish store when it opens in the run-up to Christmas. It will be paying rent of €1.3 million for 3,716sq m (40,000sq ft), making it the largest of the chain's more than 1,000 stores worldwide.
New Look will trade at ground and basement levels in a part of the centre previously occupied by Arnotts Project. The balance of the space has been allocated to Forever 21. New Look is expected to commence trading in the last week of October.
Dara Cronin of Savills, who handled all the lettings, is currently quoting a rent of €200,000 for the only remaining vacant shop in the centre, which had been occupied by Jean Scene. It has an area of 148sq m (1,600sq ft) at first-floor level and a mezzanine of 102sq m (1,100sq ft).
The Jervis Centre has more than 60 retail units covering an 36,000sq m (387,500sq ft).
City planners have given permission for an extra 5,574sq m (60,000sq ft) of shopping space in what is now part of the car park and also at the top of the centre.
-
Fields jewellers to expand in Limerick
Sep
03Irish jewellers, Fields, today said that it is opening a new outlet in Limerick, creating ten new jobs.
This will be Fields' first store in Munster and it brings their total workforce count to 650 employees.
It also brings to 13 the number of Fields outlet locations in Ireland, with over 35 additional stores in the UK.
Over the next three years it is anticipated that further branches will be added to the Fields existing network of twelve Leinster-based stores.
Earlier this month, the company won a prestigious UK and Ireland Jewellery Award for 'Multiple Retailer of the Year' chosen following a very competitive process in Ireland and the UK involving all of the leading jewellers and incorporating rigorous mystery shopping and interviews.
This award adds to the previous 'Retail Company of the Year' accolade received in the Retail Excellence Ireland Awards.
"Even in these very challenging economic times, we are delighted to be breaking the trend and expanding our Irish business, creating 10 jobs in the Limerick community. Plans are well underway and store development is about to begin at The Crescent Centre. We are very proud of the role which Fields and our employees play in our communities and we look forward to the opening of our new and first Munster Store at The Crescent Centre, bringing an unrivalled shopping experience, product ranges and value. We have already received a great welcome to Limerick and we are excited about beginning the recruitment process," said Fields Chief Executive Noel Coyle.
-
34 Retail Units with jobs for 200
Aug
30THIRTY-four retail units creating full-time employment for over 200 and attracting an additional 1.5 million shoppers annually to Waterford is the hope of a Northern Ireland based company planning a multimillion Euro investment in the city.
Parker Green International, which purchased the former Waterford Crystal Social and Sports Centre Pitch & Putt course and playing fields, is awaiting planning permission for a factory retail outlet to sell designer goods at a fraction of their original cost.
The mammoth project, which would have 8,435sqm gross floor space and space for more than 360 cars and four coaches is being promoted by Junction One Investment Ltd.
Planning permission was submitted to Waterford City Council in mid July and a decision is expected on September 9.
Unveiling their plans yesterday (Monday) it was announced that if given the green light 300 jobs would be created in the construction phase.
EIGHT SCREEN CINEMA
In addition to that, Parker Green is now proceeding with plans to build an eight-screen cinema on another part of the site. Planning permission was granted for the cinema along with retail stores, offices, a hotel and restraints, on appeal by An Bord Pleanála two years ago.
The cinema is to be built by David Flynn Construction, giving employment to 80 people. It will be operated by Omniplex who run 25 cinemas across Ireland, including facilities at the Parker Green International developments in Newry and Carlow.
With construction about to get underway Junction One Ltd. is keeping its fingers crossed that their application for planning permission for the factory retail outlet will get the nod from the city planning office.
Martin Quinn, Director of Junction One Investments Ltd., said it would fit in very well with city centre shopping, as it would attract much more shoppers to Waterford.
He added that experience at similar facilities elsewhere suggested it would become a major visitor attraction and dovetail with the multiagency ‘Destination Waterford’ initiative to develop and promote the city more widely in Ireland and overseas.
He didn’t believe that it would contravene the City Development Plan because it would be a discount facility, mainly selling items of clothing and footwear from a previous season.
QUALITY RETAIL
There were, he pointed out, similar developments in Killarney and Kildare Village.
“We look forward to applying our experiences in Northern Ireland to Waterford in conjunction with Parker Green International who have a track record of delivering quality retail and lifestyle developments in Ireland and overseas. The 34 stores at the Cork Road will accommodate recognisable brand names offering great value,” he said.“The completion of the final phase of the M9 Dublin-Waterford motorway next month and the existing N25 Waterford City Bypass, which opened late last year, make the site readily accessible to a wide catchment area. This makes it an ideal location for a development that will attract visitors to Waterford from right across the south of Ireland as well as appealing to overseas tourists while they’re in Ireland. While in Waterford, the visitors we attract can also discover the city’s other attractions which continue to be strengthened and which our facility will support.”
Dr Gerard O’Hare CBE, Group Managing Director, Parker Green International, said, “We’re delighted that Junction One have delivered a real vote of confidence by selecting Waterford as their next location for expansion and hugely excited about a scheme with tremendous potential to underpin Waterford’s designation as gateway to the southeast and an important tourism destination. The success of the outlet centre at Junction One since 2004 underlines the demand among Irish and international consumers for convenient and affordable access to brand names. In fact, this retail segment is proving particularly resilient during the recession.”
ECONOMIC DOWNTURN
Mr O’Hare said Waterford had not been immune to the impacts of the economic downturn but that Parker Green’s investment plans offered an opportunity to generate sustainable employment that would help lay the foundations for recovery as Waterford’s fight-back gathers pace.
Dr O’Hare, Ambassador for Corporate Responsibility in Northern Ireland and chairman of the Graduate Acceleration Programme (GAP) developed by Business in the Community in partnership with University of Ulster and Queen’s University Belfast, added, “We have already had exploratory discussions with training agencies to ensure a pool of skilled people can avail of the construction and retail employment opportunities to be created.”
In relation to the importance of Waterford’s city centre, he said, “As owners of a key site at the junction of High Street and Exchange Street, we are very aware of the need to protect the primacy of Waterford’s historic core.
Given this, we have put a lot of work in to developing a model that will complement and support rather than compete with and detract from the city centre offering which is being very much strengthened through the House of Waterford Crystal and Viking Triangle projects that play to Waterford’s strengths.” -
Sony beefs up PS3 consoles, announces Resistance 3
Aug
20Plenty of news from PlayStation at this year's Gamescom in Cologne as Sony announces two new models of the PS3 console: a 320GB version to replace the current 250GB and a 160GB to replace the original 120GB.
The 320GB model will retail at €349 in an exclusive PlayStation Move bundle while the160GB model will be marketed at the same price as its 120GB predecessor - €299.
These two new PS3 models with larger drives were amongst several new additions including the announcement of six new catch up TV channels.
Meanwhile the PlayStation Move has a confirmed release date of 15 September following the revelation that global sales of the S3 console reached 38 million units overall with 16 million sold in the SCEE region, representing tear on year growth of 57pc.
Back to the entertainment side of things: Sony's PS3 streaming music service VidZone has delivered nearly 500 million videos to users in the SCEE region to date and the forthcoming release of PlayTV Live Chat represents a community angle, which is being added to the PlayTV service.
And for UK PS3 owners the good news is that TV channel ITV is being added to the Catch Up TV service with TV3 added in Spain and Animax in Germany.
Some new games have been added to the PS3 line-up with LittleBigPlanet 2, Heavy Rain (the Move edition), DC Universe Online and InFamous 2 amongst the upcoming titles while Resistance 3 and Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One were both confirmed.
Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One will allow four players to team up as Ratchet, Clank, Quark or Dr Nefarious for the first time.
Some quick new on the PSP handheld games console: a new selection of games is set to launch soon within the Essentials range.
-
Jewellery sales hike a gem for retailers
Aug
13The decline in retail sales eased to 5%in the second quarter of the year compared with the same time last year, according to Retail Excellence Ireland (REI) which represents 8,500 stores nationwide.
The figure is disclosed in the organisation's examination of sales figures for second quarter two of the year.
But it said it was worrying that a month-on-month sales decline actually started to rise again in quarter two, reversing a trend of modified decline which had commenced in February and March.
REI chief executive officer, David Fitzsimons, said predictions made earlier this year about the imminent return of like-to-like growth in the retail industry may have proved to be overly optimistic.
"While it would be alarmist to describe the monthly pattern of rising decline as a 'double-dip', the figures proved that the market remained volatile."
The good news was that the overall decline in sales activity was an improvement on quarter one.
Some sectors actually experienced modest growth, with jewellery and footwear both recording sales spurts at various intervals, although this was not consistent throughout the period.
The grocery and pharmaceutical sectors remained under pressure on the back of aggressive price deflation and weakened sales.
Other positive findings coming out of the report were the fact that wage cost, and rent cost, as a percentage of sales, both decreased.
This proved the point that active intervention in these areas on the part of individual retailers was paying dividends.
"This same kind of intervention is now required by Government to improve consumer sentiment and reduce property costs," said Mr Fitzsimons. Some of the main findings from the Q2 2010 survey include: Like-for-like sales declined by 2.02% in April, 4.94% in May and 5.47% in June.
Jewellery was the strongest performing sector in the industry and the only one to record overall growth of 0.07%. Footwear also reported improved sales activity with growth of 3.48% in April and 0.34% in May. However, this growth was more than wiped out in June with a sales decline of 12.57%.
As with the past two quarters, menswear continued to be the worst performing retail sector in terms of sales, reporting a 9.37% drop compared with the same period in 2009.
The Grocery sector also continued on its downward trajectory, dropping 7.19% from Q2 2009 but still less than the 11.60% recorded in Q1 this year.
Rent cost as a percentage of sales began to modify in Q2 at 12.47% as opposed to 13.16% this time last year.
-
DAA to employ 500 to run Terminal 2
Aug
05Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey wrote to the DAA on Monday to confirm that he wanted the State-owned company to operate T2, and recruitment ads have been placed in national media today for 500 positions. The staff will be employed by a new DAA subsidiary called ASC and will be engaged in security, cleaning, customer service and passenger processing.
“The terms and conditions will be different from the terms and conditions in the existing terminal,” DAA chief executive
Declan Collier told the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport yesterday. “That has been agreed with staff and their representatives.”
The DAA said the new positions were in addition to 400 jobs that would be created in retail and catering outlets at T2. In the Dáil yesterday, in response to a question from Fine Gael deputy Fergus O’Dowd, Mr Dempsey ruled out the sale of the DAA as a means of generating money for the exchequer. “I have not had any discussions with the Minister for Finance with regard to selling off any of the assets of the Dublin Airport Authority, nor do I have any plans in that regard,” the Minister said.
He added that the “wider national interest” could not be “guaranteed” if DAA was privately owned. Mr Collier told the Oireachtas committee that the volcanic ash crisis cost the DAA €9 million in “lost revenue” as 5,000 flights were cancelled in April and May. DAA’s passenger traffic declined by 13 per cent last year due to the impact of the recession.
He added that the “wider national interest” could not be “guaranteed” if DAA was privately owned. Mr Collier told the Oireachtas committee that the volcanic ash crisis cost the DAA €9 million in “lost revenue” as 5,000 flights were cancelled in April and May. DAA’s passenger traffic declined by 13 per cent last year due to the impact of the recession.
Mr Collier said current trading remained “difficult” but he expected “renewed modest growth from next year”. Mr Collier’s remuneration of €568,100 was criticised at the committee hearing yesterday, particularly his €50,900 bonus in a year when the airport manager made a loss of €37.9 million.
The DAA boss said the bonus was performance-related, but declined to specify what targets he had met to merit the payment. However, he indicated that his remuneration would be reduced this year. “I’ve taken a 26 per cent cut in remuneration and I will be taking a further cut this year.” He said “just over 100 people” out of a workforce of 3,200 in DAA were eligible for bonus payments annually.
Mr Collier was asked about Shannon airport and the autonomy of its management to make Mr Collier was asked about Shannon airport and the autonomy of its management to make decisions locally.
He said Shannon had an “agreed” budget of €95 million a year, which its management was responsible for spending. “There’s no question of them having to seek permission from the DAA to buy a box of biros. “They have very significant autonomy over their affairs. There is no dead-hand approach that is portrayed sometimes in the media and in the regions.” He said the DAA had invested €370 million in Cork airport and €230 million in Shannon in recent years. -
Irish Retail Rents Down 47% From Peak
Aug
05
According to CBRE's Dublin Retail MarketView publication, the first six months of 2010 continued to be difficult for Irish retailers, although there are signs that the worst is behind the sector. CBRE said that Irish high street rents are down as much as 47% from the peak of the cycle to Q2 2010, to €5,250 per square metre.The survey found that of the 146 ground-level shops on Grafton Street and the pedestrianised areas of Henry/Mary Street, only nine are currently vacant. In square footage terms, Grafton Street's ground-floor vacancy rate stood at approximately 3.2% in Q2 2010 while Henry/Mary Street's vacancy rate stood at approximately 5.8%. When combined, ground-level vacancy on Dublin's high streets amounts to 5%, and this rate is set to fall in the near future as Forever 21 take up their new store fronting onto Mary Street in the Jervis Centre and a number of new retailers are due to start trading on Henry Street.
CBRE said in the report that "Consumer confidence has rebounded off its all-time lows a year ago and consumer spending habits have started a tentative recovery". In addition, CBRE said its footfall counts on Dublin's major shopping streets have remained stable throughout the recession, a further indication of how cautious Irish shoppers have become.
CB Richard Ellis say that while overall demand for retail space remains low in Dublin, there are some big-name requirements and encouraging recent lettings to both domestic and international retailers.
According to CB Richard Ellis, Ireland currently ranks in 32nd place globally in terms of international retailer presence. Ireland can be expected to rise in this ranking, say CB Richard Ellis, as there is both the capacity for more international brands in Ireland and the favorable terms are offer should prove attractive to expanding international retailers.
According to Cormac Kennedy, director of Retail Agency at CB Richard Ellis: “Conditions in the retail market remain challenging, but we're encouraged by the amount of interest from international retailers who are looking to expand into Ireland. While there will likely be more casualties of the recession in retail, we feel that recent figures on consumer spending and retail sales are encouraging and we expect there to be a modest acceleration in activity in the coming months. Vacancy on Dublin's high street is set to decline in the immediate future, but might increase in the medium-term as a number of occupiers are currently on short leases.” -
McElhinney Fashions in Athboy re-opens
Aug
05
McElhinney Fashions of Athboy will re-open on Monday July 26th 2010 under a new concession agreement that involves two of Irelands most established fashion families, the Barrons and the Sweeneys.
The famous Irish retail landmark will continue to trade as it has for the past 73 years and to provide its renowned wide range of day wear and special occasion labels to its customers nationwide. McElhinney Fashions will continue to be run day to day by the McElhinneys with the assistance of the Flairline Group. The 56 staff who lost their jobs last month will return to work when the store re-opens next week.
“We have given a commitment to Mary and Neal Sweeney, daughter and grandson of founder Molly McElhinney who started the business back in 1937 to restore McElhinney Fashions to its former glory” said Robert Barron of Flairline “and we look forward to making good on that promise”. The ledgendary McElhinney team and the Flairline Group look forward to welcoming both new and exsiting customers into the store. The re-opening will co-incide with a monster sale on Monday July 26th @ 9.30 am before the arrival of new autumn / winter 2010 lines.
Flairline, the Irish fashion company who runs the Richard Alan, Pamela Scott, Ashley Reeves and Lisa Perkins fashion outlets nationwide will assist and contribute to the management of the famous store providing backroom support and retail expertise to the McElhinney team. Flairline have 23 stores operating in Ireland and the company is owned and run by the Barron family. Flairline also operates a fashion distrubution business to approx 300 Irish boutique retailers in Fashion City M50 Business Park Dublin 24.
Founder Sean Barron, who established the group in 1970 remains at the helm and he is joined in the boardroom by his four sons John, Richard,Robert and Scott. McElhinney Fashions had closed in early June owing to difficulties in financing its way through the economic downturn.
“I’m delighted to embrace this new partnership with The Flairline Group to provide our customers with the excellent service and quality brands they have come to expect of McElhinneys of Athboy" said Neal Sweeney.
-
Irish consumer confidence at high level
Aug
04Consumer confidence in Ireland has reached its highest point in three years.
According to the latest Consumer Confidence Monitor results, Irish consumers are positive about wages and spending.
The results of the survey show that 22% of respondents feel that the country will be better off this year, compared with just 9% of those surveyed in March.
More than half of the respondents expected their income to be either the same as it is now, or higher, over the next year.
The survey, which is called the Behaviour and Attitudes Consumer Confidence Tracker, surveyed 1,008 adults.
However, the highest level of positivity was shown by respondents in the Dublin area, with a third of those believing the economy will have improved within the next 12 months.
Just 13% of those surveyed in the Munster region felt positive about the economy in the next 12 months.
Munster respondents showed the lowest level of positivity. The results of the survey were released as the latest consumer review by Retail Excellence Ireland was published.
The Irish Retail Industry Performance Review for the second quarter, carried out by Retail Excellence Ireland, shows that the month-on-month sales decline actually started to rise again, reversing the trends seen in February and March. -
McElhinney Fashions in Athboy re-opens
Jul
26McElhinney Fashions of Athboy will re-open on Monday July 26th 2010 under a new concession agreement that involves two of
“We have given a commitment to Mary and Neal Sweeney, daughter and grandson of founder Molly McElhinney who started the business back in 1937 to restore McElhinney Fashions to its former glory” said Robert Barron of Flairline “and we look forward to making good on that promise”.
The ledgendary McElhinney team and the Flairline Group look forward to welcoming both new and exsiting customers into the store. The re-opening will co-incide with a monster sale on Monday July 26th @ 9.30 am before the arrival of new autumn / winter 2010 lines.
Flairline have 23 stores operating in
Founder Sean Barron, who established the group in 1970 remains at the helm and he is joined in the boardroom by his four sons John, Richard, Robert and Scott.
“I’m delighted to embrace this new partnership with The Flairline Group to provide our customers with the excellent service and quality brands they have come to expect of McElhinneys of Athboy" said Neal Sweeney.
