Centra on Donegall Square West in Belfast and Centra in Culcavy, have officially relaunched following investments totalling £1million to refurbish the stores.
In Belfast, the busy city centre store close to the city hall, which is run by experienced retailer Peter Jez and supports 17 jobs, has been totally transformed following a £530,000 refurbishment to offer customers a modern new layout and more seamless shopping experience.
Meanwhile the Musgrave Northern Ireland owned Centra in Culcavy, which celebrates 20 years serving the local community next February and employs 26 people, has seen significant changes following a £470,000 revamp.
Both stores now feature an increased range with new hot delis and fresh sandwich and salad bars, plus ‘grab and go’ hot food counters. In the Donegall Square West store, coffee lovers can now enjoy iced coffee and oat milk options at the popular Frank and Honest coffee dock, while the stores both offer a digital loyalty app so shoppers can get a free coffee after earning ten digital stamps.
Commenting at the launch of the Donegall Square West store, owner Peter Jez said:
“We’re thrilled to reveal the transformation of our Centra store right in the heart of Belfast. This transformation offers city centre workers and shoppers a brighter, more convenient experience, packed with quality, choice, good value and great service. Known for our excellent food-to-go options, we’ve made sure the new store delivers even more of what our customers love – fresh, tasty choice, ready when they are.”
David Higgins, Retail Sales Director for Musgrave NI, which owns the Centra brand, added:
“Congratulations to our independent retail partner Peter on the newly refreshed store – a lot of work has gone into the transformation and it’s clear to see customers are impressed with the changes. It’s a real asset to the city centre, offering the height of convenience at great value. I’d like to wish Peter and his team all the best with the new look store and look forward to working with him into the future.
“We’re also delighted to invest in our Centra Culcavy store, which reflects our commitment to the area and to continuing to serve the community with a one-stop shop, giving our customers an enhanced shopping experience for many years to come.”
Centra is also committed to supporting local suppliers, with Musgrave NI spending more than £240m on local food and drink annually, working with more than 3,000 local farmers, over 250 local suppliers and stocking over 6,000 local products across its stores, including the Good Food Locally Sourced range of meal solutions.
Supporting Musgrave’s ambition of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040, the stores have been refitted with energy saving technology to make operations more efficient and reduce our carbon footprint. This includes energy efficient LED lighting, top-grade energy efficient freezers and refrigeration, as well as electronic shelf edge labels which reduce paper usage.
The stores also support Centra’s charity partner Action Cancer, a local charity which delivers life-saving breast screening, health checks and skin cancer detection services to communities across Northern Ireland on its mobile detection unit the Big Bus.
