Mitchelstown businesses seeing spin off from Aldi Regional Distribution Centre
This week held the end of a long wait for Mitchelstown, as the eagerly anticipated Aldi Distribution Centre was opened, creating 160 jobs in the town.
Their three year expansion plan, which will see another 20 stores opened, will also create a further 300 jobs - bringing the jobs boost to almost 500.
Over the past few months, there have been a number of workers in the facility and some business people have said that they have already started to benefit from the additional people in the town.
Pat Tangney of The Firgrove Hotel said that they have already seen a great spin off for both food on a regular basis and with accommodation in both the hotel and The Clongibbon House while Aldi workers came to Mitchelstown for interviews or induction days.
"It's a welcome boost for the town and a vote of confidence. There is a lot of local employment from this, while others are renting in the town," he said.
David Myers of Maxol said that they are already seeing a lot of employees from the centre in the mornings and at lunch for their coffees, morning snacks and lunches. He said that this amount of jobs created will give the town a confidence boost and allow people to get away from the doom and gloom of the recession.
"It is things like this that will allow us to move on from the recession and have a little bit of optimism. It will also improve the housing and rental market here and Mitchelstown is ideally located for the centre," David told The Avondhu.
He added that when you look at the Aldi Distribution Centre, Dairygold and other employers within the town, it looks as if these job announcements could bring Mitchelstown back to its former glory, when it was a thriving town, buzzing with activity and life.
Chairman of the Mitchelstown Business Association, Mark Waldron said that he welcomes the news and hopes that the town will benefit from it.
"It's fantastic to see 160 jobs in the facility, albeit not all local but I hope that people won't just drive into work and then go home. I hope they will come into Mitchelstown, see what we have to offer and spend some of their hard earned money in the town, by visiting the grocery and retail shops to give them some new custom," he said.
The regional distribution centre is built on a 13 hectare site, and the 70 loading bays will serve stores in Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, Clare, Mayo, Galway, Kilkenny and Wexford.
Managing Directer Giles Hurley described the opening of this second distribution centre as a crucial step in the expansion plan.
Published:
Friday 6th September 9:43am
