We couldn’t be more delighted that the awards are coming back this October, giving us all a chance to meet up in person again and enjoy a bit of friendly rivalry.

All the big names in Northern Ireland’s independent retail sector will be gathering at the Crowne Plaza Belfast on October 28 for our star-studded awards, a major focal point for retailers, brand owners, service providers and top executives across the country.

Some of the key figures in retail are busy sprucing up their stores and giving them a spring clean all ready for the Neighbourhood Retailer Awards entry deadline of June 30, as they reveal in this month’s magazine.

We also have an in-depth feature on how Clearline Distribution – founded just six years ago by friends Richard Norris and David Lyttle – is fast gathering momentum with its innovative range of brands.

Neighbourhood Retailer also focuses on the human cost of the Post Office Horizon scandal with a feature on the harrowing stories revealed as the inquiry sat in Belfast earlier this month.

We have a special focus on the Musgrave Awards and the SPAR Fresh Foods supplier breakfast at the Balmoral Show, as well as a fascinating and inspiring Design and Fitout Special that reveals how a stunning design can drive footfall and basket spend in store.

And of course we have our fascinating store profiles, including Hamilton’s SPAR Castlederg – now the largest SPAR store in the UK following its refurbishment during the pandemic. Matt Montgomery talks Dungeons & Dragons and celebrity chefs as he celebrates his first year at the Secret Market in Holywood, while David McCrea reveals the challenges Dundela Pharmacy has faced over the past couple of years.

Read the May issue HERE.

The post The Gong is Back – find out all about the Neighbourhood Retailer Awards in our NEW May issue first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.

The retailer is delighted with the customer feedback on the refurbishment of his SPAR store in Castlederg.

“It’s really a legacy and the store will be there for a long time after me. It’s a fantastic state-of-the-art store,” he says.

“Every device you can mention is in it – we’ve got a very good security camera system in it, we’ve put in the Glory cash handling system front and back of the house, and two self-serve tills, five checkouts, three trolley serves, two quick serves and two self serve units.”

The refurb had been in the offing for a while as the store was starting to become tired and in need of enlargement, Charlie says.

“The first building was 6,000 ft so we decided if we redded everything out a bit we’d have a 6,000 sq foot shop and then we could put the hot food and the toilets and the storage at the back,” he says.

“Then we started to do the layout and we were like ‘Mmm, still a bit tight’ – so we got another 1,500 sq foot added on there. So now we were looking at a 7500 sq ft job.

“And then we decided, what I’d always wanted was a shop with a big porch. Most shop porches are dismal because whenever you get in you can’t even get a dry trolley – they sit out in the rain or somewhere – so I built this porch which is about 700 sq ft.

“I got a really nice porch built, all glass and stone cladding, and then I said to myself ‘I’m spending that much money that I need to make a really good job of this’, so I got in Whittaker and Watt to do the interior design side of it.

“They came in and did the interior design, they designed the ceiling and the lights and the fantasy wooden ceiling effect that we have.

“Then once we decided where everything was going they designed the areas around the hot food area, round the butcher area, the glass and the signage and they made a really first class job of the off licence. It’s all wood and different level lighting and the off licence is spectacular, to be honest.”

Ashley Lamont, director of Whittaker + Watt Architects, describes the challenges that they faced in the revamp.

“It was an existing building that was extended and it had difficulties in terms of opportunities in there. The existing roof was poorly insulated so we couldn’t take out the suspended ceiling tiles to open up the roof – we needed to keep a thermal barrier at ceiling level,” he says.

“And we actually developed this new technique with Dougan Contracts Ltd where we used a timber veneer on a suspended ceiling tile system and then created a psychological path around the shop using that material and framed it with the LED lighting in here.

“That really captures you at the entrance doors and makes all the customers turn left. Then you’re going down the promotional aisle, you’re going to the coffee, you’re going to your deli and the journey takes you on round to the butchery section to the off sales, the ice cream and checkouts. It really completes the whole shopping journey.”

For the full article, read the forthcoming May edition of Neighbourhood Retailer.

The post Designing the UK’s largest SPAR store – Hamilton’s SPAR Castlederg first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.