Milestone celebration for Nenagh store

A Milestone achievement for a landmark Nenagh store is taking place this month as John Slattery & Co Ltd celebrates 80 years in business.

The iconic Nenagh premises with its national award-winning shopfront cuts a distinctive presence on the town’s main street. Its traditional style in many ways pays homage to the Nenagh its founder John Slattery grew up in a century ago.

Born in 1907, John worked across the street from the present day Slatterys in a shop that many Nenagh folk will fondly remember, Robinsons clothiers. He joined Robinsons in 1926 and worked there for 20 years before taking the brave decision to strike out on his own.

John made the first of what became several acquisitions on Pearse St in 1945. He bought the old Commercial Club at Nos 69-70 for the sum of £500. He opened his own shop there on May 10, 1946, running it with his sister Elizabeth and a staff of two or three.

Interestingly – and a testament to the great spirit of unity in Nenagh at the time – many of his former colleagues in Robinsons came across the street to spend their lunch break working in Slatterys. John was joined in running the business by his wife Catherine in 1950.

EXPANSION

A year later, John expanded to No 74 Pearse St, which was previously Jones’ victuallers. In 1959 he purchased No 72, formerly Willie Slattery’s hardware store.

Further expansion followed in 1962 when No 68 – Willie Ryan’s radio shop and before that Harty’s hardware – became part of the Slattery premises.

His sons Tom and Stephen joined the business in 1972 and 1981 respectively. Stephen’s wife Mary joined in 1985. They incorporated another shop, Pearls Boutique in 1987. They tastefully refurbished the Slatterys shopfront in 1992 with the Bord Fáilte-Tidy Towns award-winning design rendered by local builders Margle. A final acquisition was made as recently as 2004, when the neighbouring former RTV Rentals property became part of the modern Slatterys store.

The store has over the years grown to meet the needs of Nenagh and nationwide customers – and has exported furniture and carpets to Europe, including England, Belgium and Italy – renowned for its wide-ranging stock of hallmark fashions and home interiors.

Together, Tom, Stephen and Mary have to this day proudly continued the legacy founded by John Slattery 80 years ago. It is worth noting that theirs is one of the oldest family-run businesses in Nenagh.

INSTORE CELEBRATION

The 80th anniversary of Slatterys will be celebrated instore this Saturday, May 30. There will be discounts across the full range of stock, including formal and casual fashions for ladies, gents, and teenagers; clothing; accessories; bedroom and sitting room furniture; carpets and flooring; curtains and soft furnishings.

A real sense of occasion is promised, and Tom, Stephen and Mary hope to be joined on the day by as many friends, customers and former staff members as possible.

They would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the highly-valued contribution of all of their many staff past and present over the decades. Equally, they would like to acknowledge all of their suppliers, in particular Holroyd & Jones – one of the first suppliers that John Slattery dealt with in 1947, and still suppliers to this day.

The proprietors would especially like to thank Slatterys’ many customers for their loyalty, support and indeed friendship over those years.