“Real blow for staff and community” Three Belfast retailers close

The Belfast community is wrestling with deep disappointment following confirmation that three major retailers - The Warehouse, Noel Leeming, and Warehouse Stationery - are closing down.

Chris Lynch Media first reported on a “proposal” to close the stores and staff were given just a week to provide feedback on the closure proposal.

The Warehouse Group Chief Store Operations Officer Ian Carter told Chris Lynch Media “The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming in Belfast (Northwood Supa Centre) will close from 2 September, in line with the lease-end.”

First Union Regional Secretary Paul Watson said “staff at Northwood Warehouse and Warehouse Stationary are gutted senior management have decided to permanently close the stores, including Noel Leeming, despite well-reasoned submissions from the workers to keep trading in the Belfast area.

“The decision is considered short sighted with a sad impact on the local community.

Watson said First Union will be working with members to support them over coming weeks, but some staff are struggling.

While the First Union was committed to supporting the affected members in the upcoming weeks, Watson acknowledged the struggle faced by some staff.

“Although alternative jobs have been offered to all staff who want to move to other Warehouse stores, the initial feedback is the redeployment options are not ideal.

Staff who do not want to relocate will receive redundancy compensation negotiated by the Union."

An employee who had been part of The Warehouse since the store's inauguration 23 years ago lamented, “I’m out of here. It aint the company it used to be.”

The closures will affect 68 workers at The Warehouse and an estimated eight to ten and twelve employees at Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming, respectively.

Many of the employees, especially at The Warehouse, had committed over two decades to the store.