Following the complete refurbishment of its Dublin and Cork department stores, the Brown Thomas group is now undertaking similar work in Limerick. With a total bill of about £5.5 million, this job has been spread over two years in order to minimise disruption to trading; the store's new look will finally be finished at the end of next year. Unlike the Cork outlet, however, which kept its old name of Cash's until being officially rechristened Brown Thomas in March, 1998, Limerick's department store has already lost its old name of Todd's and now carries the Brown Thomas logo. While there were some mutterings in Cork over the disappearance of the familiar Cash's nomenclature, no such objections appear to have been heard in Limerick.

There are a number of other elements distinguishing this makeover from its predecessors. In Dublin, the department store moved sites across Grafton Street while in Cork the overhaul included adding some 20,000 sq ft of retail space to the premises. The Limerick building, however, remains the same size - more than 76,000 sq ft in part because there simply is no room for expansion on the O'Connell Street site. In addition, whereas both Dublin and Cork were given strong signature colours in their new interior design - red and dark blue respectively - this is not the case with Limerick. According to Bill Simpson, Brown Thomas's group design director, "this is very much a makeover rather than a demolition and rebuild job". Escalators and lifts, for example, have been retained in their original positions and much of the original glazing of external windows also remains unchanged.

While the Dublin and Cork buildings are fine old structures, the Limerick store dates only from the 1950s and has little obvious charm. But it holds a certain appeal for local people, many of whom objected to plans to remove the front canopy which, rather like Clery's clock in Dublin, has served as a landmark meeting place for generations. Brown Thomas has, therefore, retained the white canopy, although the section above the building's main entrance is now made of curving glass. Beneath this, the shopfront surround has been clad in limestone and new entrance doors have also been introduced. Internally, the first area to benefit from refurbishment was the ground floor cosmetics hall where work concluded last May. Brands such as Chanel, Lancaster and Shiseido now have space there and, says Bill Simpson, "we've focused a lot on self-selection and fewer counters; it's less intimidating and more user-friendly. There are a lot of areas where the customer can play and experiment. Staff had to be retrained, but they've found they are now getting a lot more add-on sales."

Within the next fortnight, work ought to be completed on the first floor women's fashion department. Again, names new to the Limerick store are to be introduced such as Kookai, Max Mara and Marella, as well as Irish designers Paul Costelloe and Louise Kennedy. There is also a new lingerie department on this floor. "There's no change in the amount of space," explains Mr Simpson, "but the whole layout has been completely changed; we've created a series of rooms instead of the old-style open-plan department store. Each space has its own character and identity." Other sections either finished or due to be completed in the near future include footwear, jewellery, accessories and menswear. The last of these now occupies the site on O'Connell Street formerly taken by A Wear which, in turn, has moved around the corner to William Street where Todd's menswear used to be found.

With an expected completion date of mid-November, the new department will have the largest selection of Hugo Boss clothing outside Dublin, promises Bill Simpson, together with such popular labels as Ralph Lauren, Gant, French Connection and Paul Smith Jeans. When this section of the store opens for trading, work on the refurbishment will cease, "so that we can make some money over Christmas and then start back in the New Year".

The plans for next year include the overhaul of the homeware departments on the lower ground and second floor and the opening of a new restaurant. Details on the design of all these sections of the building have yet to be confirmed. As with the two previous stores, the architectural firm employed in Limerick is Douglas Wallace but its approach is slightly different in the latest revamp. Not only is there no signature colour but the entire spectrum of tones has changed.

THE menswear department will have an oak floor but other parts of the store are carpeted in shades of mushroom. Instead of the offwhite walls and blonde woods seen in both Dublin and Cork, Limerick's Brown Thomas features pure white and a return to darker woods which have become more fashionable among retailers in the late 1990s. In addition, the interior fit-outs include a great deal of stainless steel and glass shelving to give a sense of light and space. Although the Limerick store's size may not have changed, little else is being allowed to remain the same during this two-year programme.