Clarke"s Toymaster, Cavan wins national award

Clarke"s Toymaster in Cavan has been named the best independent toy shop in Ireland (North and South). The industry award was recently presented by the Toy Retailers Association and the British Toy and Hobby Association at a gala dinner at Indigo2 at the O2 in East London. It recognises Clarke"s for the range of toys it carries, the presentation of toys and store layout, store staff, customer services and the level of promotions and special offers available. The award follows a number of in-store initiatives by Clarke"s Toymaster including a price promise, guaranteeing to match the price on any product bought cheaper elsewhere, including north of the border. Speaking to the Anglo-Celt, Francis Clarke, the store owner, said he was surprised and delighted to get the award - after just five years in business at the 8,000 sq. ft. store in Lakeside Retail Park, Cavan. 'I wasn"t expecting to win it. I was a bit shocked and wasn"t even going to go to the dinner but we are delighted as it recognises all the hard work and effort that"s been put into the store and by the staff,' said Mr. Clarke. Mr. Clarke told the Anglo-Celt that business is 'pretty tough at the moment' due to a number of factors including the strength of sterling, cross-border shopping and the downturn in the economy. However, Toymaster Cavan is responding by increasing its product range, implementing the price promise and running a number of initiatives such as savings clubs. Last Christmas, some 1,000 customers participated in a Christmas saving club with Toymaster saving an average of €400 each to be spent in the store just before Christmas. The savings club is available all year around but is particularly popular in preparing for the Christmas shopping. New outdoor section From April, Toymaster will be opening a new outdoor store upstairs at its Cavan premises, adding a further 3,000 sq. ft. to its total retail space. The space will be dedicated to large, bulky toys, mainly outdoor toys including bicycles, Berg Go Karts, swings, slides and trampolines. Over the last year, Toymaster Cavan, which employs 12 staff members, has significantly increased its nursery department. 'It"s an excellent nursery store, the nursery range is as good as there is for miles around and the staff are all trained in the various travel systems and the fitting of car seats,' remarked Mr. Clarke. As well as traditional toys, Toymaster Cavan stocks all the biggest toy brands including Hasbro, Mattel, Bandai and a full electronic toy range including computers for the pre-schoolers such as V-Tech right up to games consoles such as Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii.