19 January 2023 , 11:47
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Argos has announced plans to close all its stores in the Republic of Ireland by the end of June this year.
The retailer has 34 stores across Ireland and says it will be entering talks with around 580 workers to discuss their options.
Argos, which is owned by Sainsbury's Group, said its last stores will shut by June 24 2023.
Customers in Ireland will no longer be able to pay for orders through its website or place orders via its home delivery service after March 22.
Orders placed up to this date will continue to be fulfilled and customers will still be able to reserve products online and pay for them in-store.
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Its stores in Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales are unaffected by the announcement.
Argos said its stores will remain open to customers in the Republic of Ireland until June 24 2023Argos said it arrived at the decision to leave Ireland following a long period of "careful consideration" and a "thorough review" of its business and operations in the country.
The company said the investment required to develop and modernise the Irish part of its business was "not viable" and the money would be better invested in other parts of the company.
Argos said it would consult with staff and the trade union Mandate, and offer an "enhanced redundancy package" that goes "well beyond" its statutory obligations.
However, it did say a "small number" of staff will not be eligible for redundancy under Irish law and were set to receive a "one-off goodwill payment".
The company said it was also committed to a programme of wider support to staff over the coming months.
Andy McClelland, Operations Manager at Argos Ireland said: “We understand this is difficult news for our customers and colleagues. As with any major change to our business, we have not made this decision lightly and we are doing everything we can to support those impacted.
"On behalf of everyone at Argos, I would like to thank our colleagues, customers, suppliers and partners for their support to our business.”
The Mandate Trade Union expressed its disappointment at Argos’s decision to close all of its outlets in Ireland and said it would be "engaging intensively" with the company to get the "best deal possible" for workers who were being made redundant.
Mandate official Michael Meegan said: “Today is a difficult one for Argos’s staff here in Ireland as they get the news that the company will be closing down here.
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"Because Argos is shutting down its complete operation in Ireland this amounts to a collective redundancy which requires a 30-day consultation period and we know the company intends to honour that obligation to engage.
"We will be using this period to negotiate the best possible terms for those who are losing their jobs and we are expecting a constructive response from the company.
Argos said in a statement that there will be "no change" to its stores in the rest of the UK as its stores in Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales were "performing well".
Argos said it has over 1,000 "points of presence" across the UK which included 253 standalone stores and 422 Argos stores inside Sainsbury’s stores.
As well as this, there are Argos Click and Collect points inside over 400 other Sainsbury’s stores.
Full list of store closures:
- Carlow Argos
- Cavan Argos
- Caork Mahon Argos
- Cork Retail Park Argos
- Letterkenny Argos
- Blanchardstown West End Argos
- Dun Laoghaire Argos
- Dundrum Argos
- Ilac Centre (Dublin) Argos
- Liffey Valley Argos
- Omni Park (Dublin) Argos
- Rathfarnham Nutgrove Argos
- St. Stephens Green (Dublin) Argos
- Tallaght Argos
- Galway Argos
- Killarney Argos
- Trlee Argos
- Naas Argos
- Kilkenny Argos
- Portlaoise Argos
- Limerick Childers Road Argos
- Longford Argos
- Drogheda Argos
- Dundalk Retail Park Argos
- Castlebar Argos
- Ashbourne Retail Park Argos
- Navan Argos
- Tullamore Argos
- Athlone Argos
- Sligo Argos
- Clonmel Argos
- Waterford Argos
- Wexford Argos