British-listed retailer Poundland is planning to open an additional 11 Dealz discount stores in Ireland over the next 15 months.
Chief executive Jim McCarthy said yesterday that this would create 250 to 300 new jobs at the company and involve an investment of about €1.75 million, bringing to 41 the number of Dealz shops the company has opened here since its launch in Blanchardstown and Portlaoise in September 2011.
It employs 750 staff in the Republic and has invested €8.3 million in its store network to date.
Of the new stores, Mr McCarthy said the “majority” would be outside Dublin.
He said the company is generating €50 million in annual revenues and sees continued growth opportunities here for some time to come.
“We think we can do more stores than that and we have a few years of growth left in Ireland,” he said, adding that the company is attracting 250,000 shoppers to its stores here every week.
Dealz opened its 30th shop in Galway Shopping Centre yesterday.
It comprises 9,000 sq ft of retail space and employs 30 staff.
“We had a great reaction in the first few hours of trading there; it was very encouraging,” he said.
Dealz guarantees to sell 97 per cent of its product at €1.49 – Poundland stores in the UK sell at £1 an item. It carries a large range of branded items across 17 different categories and is proving popular with consumers.
