Topaz and McDonald’s to serve up 230 jobs in Carlow and Fermoy
Fuel and convenience retailer Topaz is to create 230 jobs in conjunction with McDonald’s, across two Motorway Service Areas in Carlow and Fermoy.
The sites will be located on the M8 Cork/Dublin Road in Fermoy and the M9 Dublin/Waterford Road at Rathcrogue, Co Carlow.
Topaz said an additional 100 jobs will be created across both sites during the construction phase.
The Fermoy development will be in direct conjunction with local developer JR Oronco and is due to open in Autumn 2017.
Topaz Junction 5, M9, Co Carlow is due to open in March 2017.
The overall Topaz investment in the construction of both of the new service stations will be €14 million, which will both feature McDonald’s restaurants, representing a €2 million investment by the restaurant chain and bringing the total investment to €16 million.
The service areas have been positioned on the Dublin to Cork and Dublin to Waterford routes to best serve motorists making the long journey between cities.
Topaz said both service areas will be “state-of-the-art” and feature a varied retail and food court offering, to include Topaz’s healthy ‘food on the go’ offer – Re.Store. Its latest Mexican offering Cantina, a McDonald’s restaurant, and extensive self-service customer refreshment facilities will also be present.
There will be a large indoor seating area, as well as external picnic and seating areas for the summer months.
Once opened, the service areas will be in operation 24 hours a day, with more than 140 parking spaces at each station, including truck parking, and coach parking.
Niall Anderton MD of Topaz said: “The Dublin to Cork and Dublin to Waterford routes are two of the busiest routes in Ireland, and we are excited to announce this development of two new full-service stations to serve Irish motorists.
“The development represents a very significant investment by Topaz, and we are also delighted to be able to bring a large number of jobs to both Cork and Carlow. Featuring our game-changing Re.Store shop and Deli concept along with our Mexican taqueria Cantina, we are continuing to bring an unparalleled customer experience to Irish motorists.
“The announcement is a key milestone in the continued expansion of our retail network and we have no doubt it will be a tremendous benefit and service to commuters, tourists, locals, and passers-by.”
Nigel McGuire, director of property and supply chain, McDonald’s, added: “At McDonald’s we are delighted to be bringing our world-class food offering to drivers along Ireland’s busy motorway network. Our focus is on retail expansion, to meet customer demand in new locations. We are committed to delivering a great experience in every McDonald’s; our new restaurants will demonstrate our continued innovation to meet changing customer needs and desires, through our menu, dining facilities and our people. ”
The investment follows a €1.2million site redevelopment by Topaz at Dublin Port in partnership with Dublin Port Company late last year.
In the past 24 months, Topaz has invested €36.1million in its retail network with investment going towards the development of its Re.Store brand, the upgrade and rebrand of the recently acquired Esso network, and the development of major Topaz sites at City Avenue in Dublin and Ballysimon in Limerick.
