Omagh Halfords closing due to ‘rising costs’

By Callum McGuigan

The Halfords store in Omagh is set to close in just over a week’s time, with the loss of eight jobs.

The retailer, which specialises in motoring, cycling and leisure products, is shutting its premises in the Great Northern Retail Park on Friday, June 16.

A spokesperson for the store said that it was closing due to the “rising costs” of keeping the site.

They said, “Usually Halfords would have a ten-year lease for the property but because of Covid they only renewed it for three.”

The spokesperson added that there were no plans to move to another premises in Omagh.

Colm Broderick, president of the Omagh Chamber of Commerce, said, “It is a shame for the landlords of the Great Northern Retail Park to lose such a high-profile tenant as it seems the footfall for the park has increased with the new Costa Coffee site emerging, but hopefully the park will find another tenant soon.”

Local councillor, Stephen Donnelly, said “This is deeply disappointing news for the local economy here in Omagh, and for the many customers who frequented Halfords for their needs. My thoughts are primarily with the workers who are impacted by this closure and hope every support that can be made available will be.

“This underlines more than ever the importance of driving forward the regeneration of Omagh and the creation of a healthy environment to build and sustain businesses and job creation going forward.”