Specsavers announce new store in Armagh

The 2,000 sq. ft store will officially open in The Mall Shopping Centre on Monday, July 7 following a £650,000 investment from local store partners Colm Campbell and JP Rice who also own and run Specsavers Portadown and Craigavon stores.

It brings the total number of Specsavers optical stores across the region to 24.

The brand-new store has created twelve new roles for those in the local area, led by sisters, store manager Darina McArdle, and lead optometrist, Alanna McArdle.

Darina has worked in Specsavers Portadown for nine years, starting as an optical assistant in 2016, and has since worked her way up through the store to become manager.

Alanna began her career as an optical assistant with Specsavers 18 years ago in the Portadown store. Since then, she has progressed from a dispensing & contact lens optician to a qualified optometrist.

The store brings three testing rooms and a dedicated hearing room, catering for those in the Armagh community with audiology services on their doorstep.

The new store now ensures that eye tests, optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans, contact lens appointments and audiology appointments are all available in the local area, as well as introducing an ear wax removal clinic.

Darina says: “Being local to Armagh myself, it’s fantastic to bring our expertise in optical and audiology to the area. Our stores offer so much beyond just a standard eye test, including hospital grade OCT scanning and audiology services, and the demand for our expansion to Armagh was high.

“Our local community is so important to us and we’re looking forward to opening the new store, recognising familiar faces and getting to know our customers well. We will not only bring our services to the area, but also our support for our local community and we are eager to get involved as much as we can upon opening.”

Colm Campbell, ophthalmic director at Specsavers Craigavon, Portadown and Armagh, added: “The new store and investment in Armagh highlights our dedication to bring much needed care and expertise to local communities across the country.

"All of our stores are locally owned and run and pillars in their local area, often supporting local charities, community groups and sports teams and the new Armagh store will be no different. We can’t wait to see what the coming years bring for Specsavers Armagh.”