Three branches affected but staff told it’s for winter only.
RENEWED fears that some Lisavaird Co-op branches could face closure have been expressed this week after revised opening hours were announced.
Staff confirmed to the Southern Star that winter opening hours are being implemented across the Reenascreena, Ballinascarthy and Rosscarbery branches starting this Saturday.
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Staff who spoke to us insisted there is an expectation to return to full hours come springtime.
However, customers fear the co-ops may not revert to their original opening hours, with one Reenascreena account holder warning it could be “the start of a slippery slope to full closure”.
The customer, who wished to remain anonymous, said the move was “another nail in the coffin for rural Ireland”.
The winter opening hours will see the Reenascreena and Rosscarbery branches reduce to a four-and-a-half-day work week while Ballinascarthy branch remains open Monday to Friday but will no longer open for a half day on Saturday as was the norm until now.
The customer who contacted us is concerned that if the hours are limited then “it will reduce the turnover and they’ll say then it’s not worth keeping”.
He added that even now, while the Reenascreena branch is a useful place to get the basic groceries, coal and fencing posts, the shop has been “very badly stocked there with a year or two”.
The news follows reports in the Southern Star earlier this year that the Reenascreena, Rosscarbery and Ardfield branches were mentioned for closure at a meeting of Lisavaird Co-operative Creamery Ltd.
At the time Lisavaird CEO Martin Dineen told this newspaper that “no decision has been made to close the three branches” but that the co-op is “continually assessing”.
“It’s just disappointing for the locals, because the locals kept the place going for the last 80 or 100 years, however long it’s open,” the Reenascreena customer said. “And now if you’re working nine to five, you just can’t go there.
“If it does close, most people around Reenascreena are nearer to [Drinagh Co-op in] Kilmeen than Lisavaird Central. So they will lose all the customers, maybe they don’t realise that, maybe they do.”
He wants to see the shop stay open and be better stocked, saying it serves as a hub for the community who have lost a number of services in recent years, including the post office that used to be in the co-op.
“Fellas meet there to chat for five minutes while you’re getting your provisions,” he said. “It’s just very convenient for people living around it, within a half mile or a mile or two miles.”
Lisavaird Co-op was contacted for comment, but no response was received at time of going to press.
