Centra Dame Street in Dublin has been named the best Centra in Ireland, scooping the Store of the Year award for 2020. The store received the much-coveted accolade at the Centra National Conference, which took place at the Great Southern Hotel, Killarney. Centra Dame Street also won the High Convenience award at the Centra event.
Store owners Paul Thornton and Ger Thornton received the awards from Martin Kelleher, Managing Director of Centra, Dan Curtin, Centra Sales Director and JF Michel, Account Director of Three Business, competition sponsors.
As part of the competitive process, retail consultant Dr Alan Collins audited Centra stores throughout Ireland, with each participating store assessed for its range, quality, customer service, hygiene, service offering and local community involvement.
Receiving the awards, the Thorntons paid tribute to the team at Centra in Dame Street and acknowledged that their enthusiasm and dedication were determining factors in the Dublin store being selected as 2020 Centra Store of the Year and High Convenience Store of the Year.
“It is a great honour to accept these awards on behalf of all our hard-working and dedicated staff members at Centra Dame Street. Receiving this recognition would not have happened without our team and it is great to see their efforts rewarded. They are a super team of professionals who constantly strive for the best service, healthy convenience offering and value of money to our customers,” they said.
Commenting on the double award winners, competition judge Dr Alan Collins said: “You can sense passion as soon as you step foot in the door at Centra Dame Street. There’s something about the store that makes it so special. Perhaps it is how it is always a delight to engage with owners who are passionate about their stores, colleagues, customers and communities, which is in abundance at the Dublin store. It is the type of store everybody should have and want in their communities. Congratulations to everyone at Centra Dame Street on this great achievement”.
Dan Curtin, Sales Director, Centra, commended all Centra retailers for their contribution to redefining convenience shopping. “Centra stores, such as Centra Dame Street, are perfect examples of independent retailers working hard in their local communities to ensure their customers have the best experience in their store. They provide choice, value and excellent service within their locality on a daily basis. Congratulations to the team at Centra Dame Street, who have gone above and beyond to achieve top class standards right across the store.”
With a total of 473 stores, Centra employs almost 11,000 people and serves over three million customers per week. Centra invests more than €240 million in local communities per annum, which is the equivalent of €4.5 million per week through a combination of payments to local suppliers, acquisition of local business services, wages, charitable donations and local sponsorships.
