MORE THAN 300 new and part-time jobs are to be created in Dublin’s Dundrum Town Centre.
The jobs will come with the arrival of a number of new companies in July and the expansion of others, and will bring the number of employees at the centre to almost 6,000.
US clothing company Hollister, part of the fashion giant Abercrombie Fitch Corporation, will open its first shop in the Republic on July 15th. The shop caters primarily for teenagers aged 14 to 18 at prices lower than its parent brand.
Popular Asian restaurant chain Wagamama, and a yet to be named family entertainment centre, are also due to open in the coming months.
Pink Beauty Emporium, which opened last year, is set to treble its current operations, while just six months after opening The Port House restaurant is going to double in size “due to overwhelming demand”.
Three Irish-owned companies, Bella Baby, Giddy Studios and Rainbow Ice Cream, have already opened at the centre this year.
In addition to the 300 new jobs, the centre is also advertising 41 vacant positions as part of its day-to-day recruitment drive.
Speaking at the announcement, Minister for Enterprise, Jobs and Innovation Richard Bruton said the development was “great news and a very welcome vote of confidence for the retail sector and the domestic economy generally at a very difficult time”.
“Dundrum is a world leader in terms of shopping experience and we can build our economy on that sort of excellence.
“If we are going to achieve growth and create jobs we must find ways of helping these parts of the economy grow out of the problems that have plagued them for too long.
“The most recent CSO retail figures give some small grounds for optimism, and I am determined to ensure that Government does everything it can to support the domestic economy and ensure that the very welcome announcement can be replicated across the country,” the Minister added.
Director of the centre Don Nugent said the news marked “some light at the end of the tunnel for the retail sector”.
“There’s a little more buoyancy in the customer market and we do see things turning positive.”
He said while Dundrum was not “recession-proof” there was a “resilient line-up of tenants and it is good that the tide is beginning to turn”.
