Tag Archives: Aldi

A decision on whether or not a discount supermarket can be built on the site of Ennistymon Mart is due to be made before St Patrick’s Day. Clare County Council received an application in the past week from John Spain Associates, on behalf of Aldi Stores, for a proposed shop with 82 car-parking spaces on the mart site at Church Hill and Circular Road. The site has been the subject of controversy in recent years, with local farmers fighting to keep the mart open. In December 2014, officers of the Ennistymon branch of Irish Farmers’ Association, in an unprecedented move in the county, resigned their positions. They took the decision to give up their roles in protest over the sale of the mart to Aldi and what they saw as a lack of support from Clare IFA on the matter. The branch committee members took the united action “to highlight our frustration with the IFA on their approach to the …

MORE than 160 outlets, including shops, pubs, post offices and banks, have closed in West Clare in the last 25 years. These approximate figures, which have been compiled by The Clare Champion, do not include additional outlets such as seasonal businesses in resort towns like Kilkee. The figures show that the region, from Ballynacally to Kilbaha and up to Miltown, has lost 102 shops and 53 public houses since 1989, while AIB has closed outlets in Kildysart and Kilkee. Ballynacally, Coolmeen, Cranny, Cross and Knock have lost their post offices in that period. In the last decade, Kilrush has lost eight pubs and a total of 53 businesses, including 19 in Moore Street alone. However, in the same period, 42 businesses have opened in the town. The breakdown of what has closed in West Clare towns and villages during that period include: Ballynacally, two shops, one post office. Lissycasey, two pubs, two shops; Kildysart, three pubs, two shops and AIB …

More than 30 Munster IFA livestock farmers staged a tractor protest outside the Aldi supermarket in Mitchelstown, County Cork earlier this Monday. At the protest, IFA president, Eddie Downey said livestock farmers are stepping up their campaign against the price and specification cuts imposed by retailers and factories. He said farmers feel betrayed by the unacceptable behaviour and lack of corporate responsibility on the part of the powerful retailers and meat factories to their farmer suppliers. Mr Downey warned all of the major retailers, including SuperValu, Dunnes, Tesco, Aldi and Lidl, and the factories that the anger and frustration of farmers is at boiling point and the unjustified price and specification cuts, which are severely damaging farmers and the Irish beef sector, must be reversed. “With beef prices in our main markets in the UK and across the EU stable and recovering, the current attack on prices led by the factories cannot be justified,” he said. The president pointed out …

By Dan Danaher THE development of an Aldi outlet in Ennistymon would result in job losses in local shops, a local supermarket manager has claimed. Supervalu manager, Jackie Crowe told a public meeting organised by Ennistymon IFA it would take 15 people to run a new Aldi store, which wouldn’t result in any new jobs as they would simply be displaced from Supervalu and small shops in the locality. She insisted the population in the Ennistymon catchment area is not big enough to support a large discount store and existing shops in the locality. At the meeting, which took place two days ahead of the announcement of the mart being sold, Ms Crowe  revealed the local Supervalu store paid out €1.4m in wages last year to 70 staff, as well as €400,000 to small independent producers in North Clare. She told the meeting Supervalu paid out  €17,000 in sponsorship to local clubs and charities. Since Supervalu moved to Church Street five years …

CLARE Marts has already sold Ennistymon Mart to discount supermarket, Aldi for a price tag believed to be in the region of €1.5m, despite strong opposition from the local IFA committee and local traders. Members of Ennistymon IFA staged a protest before a Clare Marts Board meeting in Ennis on Tuesday night, but the Clare Champion has learned Clare Marts is proceeding with the controversial deal. Clare Marts would not confirm the identity of the buyer or any of the terms and conditions, which it considers as “commercially sensitive information”. However, it is understood that the mart has been sold to Aldi subject to planning permission, which could take a number of years to secure. Aldi has also declined to comment on the deal. It is also expected that any planning application lodged by Aldi to Clare County Council will be vigorously opposed by some local traders and residents in the North Clare town. Fifteen sales have been held in …