Committed to value, choice and quality
Paddy Murney looks back on the developments and successes of 2022 for the brands and shares the focus for the year ahead.
“One of Musgrave’s key values is to build long term stable relationships, and that is exactly what we have with our retail partners and retailers. We’re committed to supporting them throughout their business journey. It is these partnerships that undoubtedly contribute to the success of our retail brands, which have experienced growth in 2022 and there is further expansion planned for 2023.”
INVESTMENT
Investing £14m in its store network in 2022, Musgrave welcomed the opening of a brand new 3,000 sq ft Centra store and forecourt on the Stewartstown Road in Belfast – the second store for retailers the Farrells.
“Our Business Development team is focused on growing our brands and is therefore continually seeking new opportunities for our retail partners. They identified this site and presented it to the Farrells as a lucrative opportunity to expand their business. We’re delighted to say that since opening, the store has exceeded expectations and sales are very strong.
“McGleenan’s Centra in Keady underwent a major £2m refurbishment and we welcomed six new Mace stores to our network. Our expansion is set to continue this year starting with two new competitor conversions to the Mace brand and one to Centra in Q1, as well as a brand new Centra store in the summer.”
AWARD WINS
The brands enjoyed success with award wins at both the prestigious UK-wide Retail Industry Awards and the Neighbourhood Retailer Awards.
“We were thrilled to attend these industry events with our retail partners. At the Retail Industry Awards in London, McGleenan’s Centra in Keady won Independent Retailer of the Year (Over 6,000 sq ft); Lusty’s Centra Larne picked up Drinks Retailer of the Year award and Peter Wilson, owner of SuperValu Portadown, was awarded Newcomer of the Year – all fantastic achievements.
“Closer to home, it was also great to see the Neighbourhood Retailer Awards return, celebrating the best in food retailing across Northern Ireland. Congratulations to McCool’s Centra Ballymena which won Neighbourhood Store of the Year Category 3; Moran’s Centra Coleraine which won Forecourt of the Year Category 1; and Ruairi McBride of Ivan Wilson Centra Limavady, who took home the Store Manager of the Year award.
“We were very pleased to welcome our retailers to our conference and Store of the Year Awards at the Slieve Donard Hotel for the first time since 2019, to recognise and celebrate their hard work and commitment, and we’re looking forward to the next event in May.
“While there will always be challenges to overcome in business, thanks to the incredible relationships we have with our retail partners and retailers, their hard work and dedication during what have undoubtedly been a testing few years, we’re confident in achieving continued success for our brands. We look forward to growing our network across Northern Ireland and offering our customers excellent value, choice and quality in our stores.”
TO READ PADDY’S INDUSTRY COMMENT IN THE 2023 NEIGHBOURHOOD RETAILER YEARBOOK AND MARKETING GUIDE, CLICK HERE
