Londis store profile: Brian

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!

For 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 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 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”.

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

Retailers Jean and Brian Malone are delighted with their recent store renovation

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

With modern new lighting and signage, the off-licence department at Londis Ardee makes a striking visual impression The Malones swapped their larger coffee stand with a more compact Bewley’s version, which still contains everything customers need

face of their business and an established part of their community. This is great for locals to see; to know that the hands-on owners are always present and can easily be contacted. “We work nearly seven days a week both of us,” Jean tells ShelfLife. “Brian might go for an odd game of golf but we’re always here. We’re used to it now. We still do 6am – 10pm every weekday; we used to do 6am – 11pm, but when Covid started we cut it back and we didn’t go back to it then.” This saves a valuable hour every day for the hardworking duo and has not impacted trade, with many people not venturing out as late as they used to pre-Covid.

Local focus

The Malones have also always strived to help local clubs and initiatives where possible. “The school is beside us here and at the GAA Club, the lads [in the family] are all members and we give sponsorship to local clubs around the town, they’d come in and look for sponsorship. We’ll always do our best to help out.”

Having run the shop for 20 years, Jean and Brian are well-known by many in the area. While Jean’s background is in accountancy, Brian’s family background was in retail also. At the time, 20 years ago, Jean explains, “they had a garage in the bottom of the town and he just felt it was time to move out on his own”. Although Jean originally did the books, she quickly realised that she would have to become a skilled multi-tasker in the retail game. “I just came in and did the books, but you had to do everything. When someone’s off, you have to come in and do what you have to do!” Flexibility, of course, is a central quality which every successful retailer has had to hone over the years, and Jean says she enjoys the varied nature of retail, as opposed to a more sedate office life. “We met a lot of nice people that have come in down through the years,” she says, “and you get to know them and that’s what I like, meeting different people, it’s quite interesting”.

Leaving a legacy

The couple have four children, three sons, Shane, Cathal and Lorcan, and a daughter Éilis. While they have all worked part-time in the store, their sons now work in different fields. Their youngest, Éilis, currently works in the store part-time and Jean is full of praise for how well she is able to turn her hand to all the different tasks involved. “Now I have a lassie, Éilis, she’s the youngest, in fifth year in school and she works in the store and she’s really good in here, she can do anything, she’s a great girl,” she says. In fact, she even jokes that perhaps this isn’t surprising, laughing as she exclaims: “Leave it to a woman!”

While we go on to have a conversation about the various challenges within retail currently, during which Jean pinpoints a number of topics affecting the industry, such as supply chain issues, inflation and the arrival of electric cars, we nevertheless get the feeling that the Malones are a steady pair of hands, well-equipped to get through every potential issue. As Jean says about the greater rolling out of electric vehicles in the coming years, there are a number of unknown quantities, “but sure that’s progress and you just have to go with it really!”

While she says they maybe would have considered buying another store in the past, at this stage they are happy to focus on one store and dedicate all their efforts to that. Jean says personally that “my plan would be to stay for a few years and maybe retire in another five years. That’s my plan but that could change!” she laughs. With an impressive new appearance to match their enduring work ethic, the retailer is certainly on track to leave an impressive legacy in Londis Ardee. ■