PLANS BY Sainsbury’s to invest a further £50 million in Northern Ireland could be set to deliver a major jobs boost for the North.
The British supermarket giant wants to open a second store in Derry, and it has confirmed it also intends to buy one of the Co-operative’s existing stores in Carrickfergus. The supermarket group operates 10 stores in the North and will open another new store in west Belfast next month.
Sainsbury’s, which employs more than 2,500 people in the North, said it has not finalised the exact number of new jobs that may be created as a result of the new investment. However it has pledged to offer the Co-op’s existing workforce an opportunity to join the new Sainsbury’s team in Carrickfergus and it believes there may also be the potential for further job creation.
Chris Templeton, head of property development at Sainsbury’s, said it wants to develop a new flagship store in Derry, subject to planning permission being secured.
The store will be located at Crescent Link, a new mixed-use site under development in the Waterside area of Derry. Mr Templeton said the company’s stores in the North were trading well despite the difficult economic climate.Sainsbury’s has also applied for planning permission to develop a store in Balloo, Bangor, Co Down.
Meanwhile, the appointment of an administrator to one of the UK’s biggest leisure operators could spell trouble for several well-known clubs and pubs in Belfast.
BDO Stoy Hayward business restructuring partners Shay Bannon, Dermot Power and Tracey Pye have been appointed joint administrators of Premium Bars and Restaurants Plc and all of its subsidiaries. The company operated 48 outlets throughout the UK and Ireland.
