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STORE PROFILE
Owning their shop in Ardee, Co. Louth for the past 20 years, retailers Brian and Jean Malone exemplify the Londis ‘Local like you’ ethos. After recently undergoing an extensive renovation, Gillian Hamill spoke to Jean Malone to learn more the project and its impact on the longstanding family business
Local like you! F
or an in-store design to be truly effective, it must combine striking visual elements with practical considerations that make the store easier to navigate with better flow throughout. That is exactly what experienced retailers Brian and Jean Malone feel has been delivered at Londis Ardee with their recent renovation.
Renovation “We have changed the position of the deli altogether to the back of the store,” Jean Malone tells ShelfLife. “We have much more room and the store is more open. It’s a better designed layout.” From the entrance, customers can now see right through the store to the impressive Bia Blas deli full of appetising options. The Malones also swapped their larger coffee stand with a more compact Bewley’s version, which still contains everything customers need and has the added advantage of freeing up more space in-store. Impressively, the Londis store traded throughout its eight-week renovation which began in June 2021 and was completed in six different phases. Initially, the refurb was delayed by over a year as a result of Covid, but once the Malones got their start date from contractors, it was full steam ahead. The
STORE PROFILE
Retailers: Brian and Jean Malone Address: Malone’s Londis, Dublin Road, Ardee, Co. Louth Staff: 16; eight full-time and eight part-time Opening hours: Monday – Friday: 6am-10pm ; Saturday - Sunday and Bank Holidays: 7am-10pm Malones had also decided to switch from their previous symbol group partners to working with Londis. “We felt the store just needed a good updating and freshening up,” Jean says. “We weren’t sure who to go with, but we just said we needed a change, and we opted for Londis. We’re very happy with the work they’ve done.” Indeed, the Malones say they have found Londis to be a great support across all areas of the business, and their retail development manager (RDM) Tommy Devlin is always on hand to help. As our readers will know, an extensive renovation of this nature involves plenty of early starts to clean the store before opening and so forth, alongside a flexible mindset to juggle all the various changes taking place. Fortunately, the Malones are now delighted
Jean and Brian Malone with their tight-knit team of staff
ShelfLife January 2022 | www.shelflife.ie
Retailers Jean and Brian Malone are delighted with their recent store renovation
with the end result which Jean says has garnered a multitude of positive feedback from shoppers: “Everybody says ‘Oh, it’s really nice, well done!” Another positive aspect of the store is its strong location, with “passing trade and repeat customers every day”. Jean adds that “there’s a lot of new faces coming in too; there’s a lot of new houses in the area and a lot of new people coming into Ardee from Dublin”.
Hardworking duo Like countless other retailers, particularly in recent weeks with the rapid surge of the Omicron variant, the Malones have previously experienced difficulties with staff needing to isolate due to ‘close contact’ restrictions. It has also proved difficult to attract new experienced staff in the current climate. The situation was easier during the summer months when students were eager to find work and fortunately, the store has now secured several strong new staff members, but nevertheless Jean concedes: “At one point it was really hard. We were putting in long days for a long while.” This is no doubt a point which many of our readers can identify with. Indeed, with no store manager, Brian and Jean are used to long hours and are the real
Londis Ardee has now been freshened up with a bright and airy feeling throughout the store
