Buckley's SuperValu strengthens its GAA links
April 30, 2010For many years now, Buckley's SuperValu has been one of the Westmeath GAA minor board's foremost supporters, providing sponsorship for competitions ranging from the under 16 football championship to the under 12 hurling league.
And the retailer's links with the GAA have been reinforced by the announcement in February of a new three-year All-Ireland football championship partnership between SuperValu and the Association.
Speaking at the sponsorship launch in Croke Park which was attended by Buckley's SuperValu proprietors Jimmy and Anne Buckley, SuperValu managing director Donal Horgan said: "SuperValu is immensely proud of its Irish heritage, so today it gives me great pleasure to announce the brand's sponsorship of the GAA football championship.
"As with the GAA, our retail partners in Westmeath and across the country have a long and distinguished history of being at the heart of building thriving and vibrant local communities. Today is a very proud day for us as we bring together in true partnership two of Ireland's most community focused organisations.
"The GAA is a natural fit with our brand and our SuperValu partners in Westmeath have a proud tradition with the GAA. Our organisations share common values through focusing our approach on relationships, honesty, hard work, achievement and, of course, community identity.
He added: "The GAA football championship is not just about winning games. It is about our heritage. It is what makes us uniquely Irish, gives us our sense of 'pride in place' and pride in our county colours. In the years ahead, SuperValu and its retail partners look forward to building our partnership and bringing it to life locally in our stores across all 32 counties, including our Westmeath stores."
Welcoming the announcement, GAA president Christy Cooney said: "This is a major boost to the Association and we are delighted to officially welcome SuperValu on board as official sponsors of the GAA. The arrangement is an excellent fit in so many ways. Just as we are proud of our GAA network, SuperValu and its retail partners are justifiably proud of their presence across Ireland.
"SuperValu's commitment to Irish produce, and the communities it serves across the island, is testament to the importance that they place on community life, and we are happy to align ourselves with a company that shares so many of our values.
"I am sure this alliance will enthuse many members of the company's vast retail network, many of whom are already GAA members and supporters. We wish them every success with this venture and look forward to a long-lasting and fruitful partnership."
Buckley's SuperValu, who have outlets in Mullingar, Moate and Birr, have been sponsoring Westmeath GAA underage competitions since 2000. They have also provided sponsorship to a host of local clubs, including Mullingar Shamrocks, St. Loman's and St. Oliver Plunkett's. Buckley's flagship Mullingar store is familiar to all Westmeath supporters as it's just a short walk away from Cusack Park.
"A lot of our best customers are people involved with the GAA. We would generally get a lot of extra business when there's a game on in Cusack Park," Buckley's Mullingar store manager David Murphy explains.
"We have received great support from the GAA community down the years and we see our sponsorship of underage competitions as a way of giving something back. Many of our staff are members or are followers of the GAA, so the links are quite strong," the Dublin native adds.
The Buckley's are one of Mullingar's oldest and most respected families. When Jimmy's parents Matt and Elizabeth (who is affectionately known as 'Ma') opened a small grocery shop in 1949 next door to where the soon-to-be reopened Texas Department Store is now located, they could never have envisaged the huge growth Buckley's has experienced since then.
In 1997, Buckley's moved to its present location on Austin Friar's Street, which is built on the graveyard of an Augustine Friary that dates back to the 12th century. The move coincided with Buckley's coming under the SuperValu banner. This impressive 18,000 sq ft premises, which incorporates a bookshop called 'First Chapter', is arguably Mullingar's busiest retail grocery outlet, with hundreds of customers filing through its doors between 7.30am and 10pm every day of the week. As well as providing the usual supermarket services, Buckley's SuperValu is a National Lottery agent and also offers an ATM service to its customers.
To the side of the supermarket is the three-star Austin Friar Hotel which is also owned by the Buckley family. This was recently reopened under new management.
In 2003, Buckley's extended their interest to Moate and Birr. The 6,000 sq ft Moate store, which was previously Dolan's SuperValu, is managed by Jimmy and Anne's daughter Lisa, while Rory Cronin is manager of the 10,000 sq ft Birr store, which underwent a complete refit last year.
In 2005, Buckley's opened a new Centra outlet at Millmount, Mullingar. Formerly O'Driscoll's, Buckley's Centra forms the centrepiece of a busy shopping centre which also incorporates a filling station, butcher shop, hairdressing salon and tyre repair shop, and caters for the Millmount, Newtown and Ballinderry areas, which have experienced a population boom in the past decade. Centra, which like SuperValu is part of the Musgrave Group, was recently confirmed as one of the title sponsors of the GAA All-Ireland hurling championship.
Between the four stores, 170 are employed. Jimmy and Anne Buckley are parents to four girls - Lisa, Niamh, Susan and Anne-Marie.
Buckley's SuperValu prides itself on its fresh produce, excellent service and commitment to local jobs.
"The big focus here is on fresh food, quality and customer service," David says.
"All our fresh meat, fruit and vegetables are locally sourced and can be traced back to the farm where they were produced. Unlike many other big supermarkets, we are Irish-owned and have an excellent relationship with our customers. We're on first-name terms with a lot of them and that's why they keep coming back to us.
"We are also committed to the local community in terms of employment. In Mullingar alone, we employ 120 staff which makes us one of the town's larger employers."
While 2010 has started poorly for the Westmeath senior footballers and hurlers, David is hoping their fortunes will improve come the championship.
"Hopefully things will come right for both teams. The footballers are in heavy transition at the moment, but the success of the under 21s shows there is plenty of talent coming through the ranks and that can only bode well for the future," he concludes. Tweet
