Caroline Brennan spent 21 years working at Carphone Warehouse, Navan.

The ‘end of era’ for staff after Carphone Warehouse closure

A DEDCIATED staff member who has spent 21 years working in the Navan branch of The Carphone Warehouse says the shock closure of the store is “the end of an era.”

Manager Caroline Brennan who has been with the company since it opened its doors on Kennedy Road in 2000 was informed of the news along with six other staff members on Wednesday morning and although she admits shedding tears she says she will leave with “many happy memories.”

There was widespread shock at the announcement that Irish Carphone Warehouse business was to close resulting in more than 480 job losses nationwide.

Carphone Warehouse said its 69 standalone and 12 outlets within a store will all close. The company had outlets in Navan, Ashbourne and Drogheda.

The Navan woman has paid tribute to the many teams of staff and customers over the years. She said:

“It has been a great 21 years. I opened the shop in March 2000 and now I’m closing it in April 2021. I started as a consultant thinking I was only to stay for two years and I’m still here 21 years later and had my four children while working here so I have many happy memories.

“I haven’t been able to stop crying and I’m still feeling a bit numb but it’s fine I’m going to spend some time at home with my kids and I’ll decide what to do in the future. We have all already had job offers which is brilliant.

“I’d love to thank all of the customers I’ve dealt with throughout the years, I’m so grateful for all of their business and hopefully we will cross paths again somewhere in our lives.

“I have so much respect and admiration for every member of my team that has ever worked for me over the years. The current team have done so much for me over the last year since I came back from maternity leave and since I have come back we have been dealing with Covid and they have been so patient and so kind.”

The mum of four described some highlights of her 21 years in the store. She said:

“We built up such a huge amount of business customers, we teamed up with and fundraised for mountains of charities throughout the years like So Sad, Focus Ireland, Pieta House and The Simon Community and it just went to show that we were willing to do anything to help anybody in our community here in Navan.

“My stand out moment was in 2016 when we won the best store in Ireland and England it just showed that my head office and the people who had looked into the awards had seen what we did for our customers and helping the community.

“My highlight would definitely be winning that award and having that trophy leaving the shop, I know it is going to take me a lot further in my life. It means a lot to be named the best store in Ireland and England because at that time when we were named that there were 520 Carphone Warehouse stores in the UK and 82 here.

“I want to thank my team Jana Tokosova assistant manager and customer consultants Ian O'Beirne, Graham Dempsey Danielle Crowe, Abii Jones and Leona Brady.

“I have the most admiration for this company I can’t say a bad word about them and I wish Dixons Carphone all of the best.”

In a statement on its website, the company said the move was part of a broader transformation of its parent business Dixons Carphone.

"Customers are changing the way they buy mobile devices and connectivity, replacing their handsets less often and buying them separately or as part of more flexible bundles," it said.

The company said staff had worked hard to make Carphone Warehouse Ireland a success and had been the driving force behind its well-earned reputation for excellent customer service and support.

"This difficult decision is no reflection on their commitment, dedication, and professionalism," it said.

"Footfall in our Carphone Warehouse stores is down significantly, and we don’t expect many customers to sign new contracts with us during this time; our stores will therefore close immediately. We’ll continue to help our customers via our central customer support team and will also ask some colleagues to provide operational support over the coming days."