'Support local jobs" call as businesses close

A plea to the people of Meath to shop local in order to protect jobs and businesses has been made in the wake of the closure of several businesses across the county in recent weeks and months. Last week alone, four businesses in Kells closed their doors and a number of businesses in Navan, Trim and throughout the county have closed in the last few weeks. The general state of the economy, as well as high rents and rates, are some of the reasons being put forward for the closure of so many businesses countywide, although some recent closures have also been for personal or family reasons. Kells Town Council cathaoirleach, Cllr Brian Curran, appealed to the people of Kells to 'think seriously before leaving the town to do business'. He urged people to shop locally and support local jobs. 'It is difficult to see shops close, and particularly local shops run by members of the community,' he said. Cllr Curran said he would spearhead a 'Save Our Shops" campaign and he urged local people to support local businesses in Kells. The president of Kells Chamber of Commerce, Jess Olohan, said it, too, was saddened to see a number of retailers closing down in the town. 'As a Chamber, we ask that our members contact us if there is any way in which we can assist them and we appeal to the people of Kells and the surrounding area to support businesses and jobs in Kells,' she said. Ms Olohan said the town has a wide choice of retail outlets and this was demonstrated by the choice of outlets in which the Kells Gift Vouchers are accepted. She said the gift vouchers scheme was aimed at encouraging people to shop in Kells. Meanwhile, there is also concern in Trim at the number of recent businesses closing in the town in the last few months. Trim Chamber president, Yvette Bloomfield, said she had been saddened to see a number of outlets closing but pointed out that three new businesses were due to start up in Trim in the next few weeks. 'People are struggling and we are urging people to shop local,' she said. Ms Bloomfield said there was already a great feeling of everyone looking atfer each other in Trim. She said that high rates and rents were a problem for local businesses. 'The rates are crippling people and they cannot be reduced and we have to pay water rates on top of that,' she said. She added that a lot of businessespeople had been hoping to have rents lowered, but while some landlords had been excellent, others weren"t. The president of Navan Chamber, Emily Coldrick, said that the economy was the biggest factor in businesses closing down. 'People aren"t spending, the banks aren"t able to facilitate short-term loans, rates are high and so are rents,' she said. She, too, encouraged the people of Navan to shop local in order to try and protect local jobs.