Store of the Year goes to McElhinney’s of Donegal

McElhinney’s of Donegal scooped the Store of the Year title at the 2011 Retail Awards held by Retail Excellence Ireland in Galway at the weekend.

In business since 1971, McElhinney’s of Donegal is one of Ireland’s largest department stores, with over 90,000 sq ft of retail space.

Over 600 retailers entered this year’s awards. All store entrants were visited by a mystery shopper, with those meeting demanding service and standards criteria making it to the Top 100 Stores.

A team of store assessors visited each of the Top 100 Stores, selecting the Top 50 stores and then the final Top 30. The winning stores were selected based on the reports data gathered and a review of store photography and in-store video recoding evidence.

“The very high standard of service, customer engagement, display and levels of investment among Irish retailers made choosing this year’s winners particularly difficult,” said David Fitzsimons, chief executive, Retail Excellence Ireland.

 “High standards are particularly important given the very severe challenges currently facing Ireland’s retail industry. September represented the 34th month of consecutive decline in retail sales. Retailers are closing and retail jobs are being lost at record rates. Over 55,000 retail jobs have been lost in the past three years.”

Image Caption: Left to right - Kevin Jephson, chairman of Retail Excellence Ireland presents the National Store of the Year Award to Eileen and John McElhinney, McElhinney's of Donegal, with Miriam O'Callaghan.