Penneys O’Connell Street revamped in €5m ‘commitment to bricks and mortar’

Penneys has invested €5 million in a refurbishment of its O’Connell Street store as part of a “commitment to bricks and mortar” which it hopes will boost sales.

The “key, anchor store” O’Connell Street location, which is one of the brand’s 10 busiest stores, underwent a 16-week refurbishment.

In addition to the aesthetic changes, 16 new self-service checkouts have been added while the store’s Nails studio has undergone a revamp and there is an extra 1,217 sq ft of floor space to its home department.

The Dublin store employs 250 people with around 90 working in the store on a given day.

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The refurbishment is part of an ongoing €250 million investment programme into Ireland by Primark with further store redevelopments planned in the coming months at stores in Portlaoise, Limerick, and Ennis.

Penneys operates 38 stores in the State, in 21 different counties, and recently invested €10 million in refurbishing its first store on Mary Street.

Penney's O'Connell Street: Doors open to the public at the official relaunch of the flagship store in Dublin
Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill — Penney's O'Connell Street: Doors open to the public at the official relaunch of the flagship store in Dublin Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill

Penneys staff Michelle McDermott and Angela Fleming attend the official relaunch of the O'Connell Street store in Dublin. Photograph: Dara Mac Donaill

Penney's O'Connell Street: Staff attend the official relaunch of the flagship store in Dublin
Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill — Penney's O'Connell Street: Staff attend the official relaunch of the flagship store in Dublin Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill

“People are voting with their feet, we are really pleased with the performance of the store to date,” said Penneys area manager Andrew Murray, noting that footfall at the O’Connell Street shop had increased since the commencement of the works which have opened up the store to more natural light.

The majority of the refurbishment work took place at night, by a team of 70 contractors from Bennett Construction, while the shop remained open for customers during the day.

Sales in Ireland are “improved”, he said, “but we could definitely do with a blast of good sunshine which is always the key determinant of our summer, but we are confident that sales are definitely on target”.

Primark which trades as Penneys in Ireland, revised down its sales outlook for 2025 in January having reported a 6 per cent drop in like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland.

Primark’s parent company, Associated British Foods, reported a 10 per cent fall in first-half profit in April, expecting a “challenging” period of trading in the rest of the year.

While the company is trialing a click and collect model in the UK, Mr Murray said the brand is committed to “bricks and mortar stores in all of the markets we trade in”.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Emma Blain, who cut the ribbon to reopen the store, said O’Connell Street is “the beating heart of Dublin’s city centre” and the “iconic brand” of Penneys is at the centre of that heartbeat.

She said the investment into the refurbishment of the store was a “vote of confidence in O’Connell Street, in Dublin city and its people”.

“Penneys is more than just a shop to Dubliners, it is a beloved institution and a real success story for our city,” the Lord Mayor said.