Four Hughes & Hughes stores have re-opened and another two are set to follow in the coming weeks, saving around 60 jobs.
In an exclusive interview Chief Executive Derek Hughes tells Irish Publishing News about the firm’s strategy, its relationship with suppliers and its intention to honour former customers’ gift and loyalty cards.
Sivota Ltd, a company set up by Pierce Moloney who owns the Bus Stop newsagent chain, is the new owner of Hughes and Hughes.
[pullquote]Four Hughes & Hughes stores have re-opened and another two are set to follow in the coming weeks, saving around 60 jobs[/pullquote]
In an interview, conducted by email, Mr Hughes said that the ‘Strategy going forward is less centralised without central distribution with store managers having a much stronger input into buying. The range will be more local and the focus will on our strengths customer service and knowledgeable committed staff.’
Mr Hughes said that Andrew Waters will be responsible for central buying in the new company – a role he held before Hughes & Hughes entered receivership.
‘The range will be more local and the focus will on our strengths customer service and knowledgeable committed Staff,’ Mr Hughes said.
[pullquote]The range will be more local and the focus will on our strengths customer service and knowledgeable committed Staff[/pullquote]
Mr Hughes said he has received positive reaction from many of their partners in the book industry saying that reaction from ‘suppliers has being extremely positive and any suppliers we have met or spoken with all are very pleased to supply again.’
The bookseller said ‘suppliers are conscious that a monopoly is not good for anyone.’
Mr Hughes has been pleased by customer reaction, which he says ‘has being extremely positive’ with many expressing ‘genuine delight we are back’.
He said the Hughes & Hughes ‘brand has stood up very well as customers and the public understood that the downturn has been so severe and with high rents and upward only reviews bookshops and many retailers could not survive unless rents came down to match the new business environment.’
Mr Hughes highlighted their intention ‘to honour all the Hughes & Hughes gift & loyalty cards, which will be costly but we realise not to do so would damage the brand.’
[pullquote]Mr Hughes highlighted their intention ‘to honour all the Hughes & Hughes gift & loyalty cards, which will be costly but we realise not to do so would damage the brand[/pullquote]
He said this action ‘is key to our customer commitment and ensuring we will go forward with our customers goodwill.’ Although there are some problems around data protection Mr Hughes said ‘customers have to sign a waiver allowing us to reactivate the card.’
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7 Comments
Any word on which two shops are to re-open in the next few weeks?
I should hope that if H&H’s “focus will [be] on our strengths customer service” that they will indeed “honour all the Hughes & Hughes gift & loyalty cards”!
To the untrained eye (mine) there is little difference between ‘old’ H&H and the ‘new’ incarnation. Same staff, management, buyers. Same stock (so far…)
“Strategy going forward is less centralised without central distribution with store managers having a much stronger input into buying.” So basically the plan is to attempt what strong, successful independents have been doing for years: provide a tailored service for their customers, along with a bestsellers, a range of eclectic titles and some locally produced, local interest books? Maybe I lack imagination, but I just can’t picture a chain bookshop carrying this off.
Looking forward to being proven wrong!
Personally, though, I would rather spend my euros supporting a locally-run indie bookshop – the one that has reliably provided me with interesting titles for years, never closed its doors and always patiently listened to my demanding orders for obscure titles! But that’s just me…
Hello Inky. we know for sure that one of the two is St Stephens Green!
“always patiently listened to my demanding orders for obscure titles”
Have we met, inky? You sound like my kind of reader!
I’m curious to see if the many who voiced such sadness when Hughes & Hughes closed will now back those sentiments with handing over their hard-earned cash. Good to see an initial positive response from the trade, I hope their optimism proves justified.
We haven’t met…yet! I’m based in the west so Charlie Byrnes and Dubray in Galway and Scéal Eile in Ennis are my regular haunts – looking forward to visiting Raven and Gutter next time I head east. I’ve heard great things :)
If they’d listened to staff in the first place and not gone centralised and spent 600k on an unnecessary new epos system, maybe they wouldn’t have had a rubbish product range for 2 years and forced the ‘knowledgeable, committed staff’ to take massive pay cuts and ultimately lose their jobs. Don’t be under the illusion that rents were the only issue here. Also I’d rather not here that Derek Hughes has saved 60 jobs. Someone else would have taken these more profitable stores with the duty of undertaking to keep staff. Hughes & Hughes fights on – yay! Now stop the former employees having to beg for their redundancy off Deloitte and wait a further 8 – 9 months for their pittance. Best of luck Derek Hughes!
Fantastic news for all concerned. Change will, of course, be a process. It’s unfair to expect a vast difference between the ‘old H&H and it’s new incarnation’ immediately. However, it’s a well-known fact that Hughes & Hughes employs some of the best and most passionate career booksellers in the Irish trade. Such people were always Derek Hughes’ greatest asset and the fact that so many familiar faces have remained loyal to the company is a testament to the professional confidence that surrounds this latest endeavour. With 100% customer commitment (something that was always assured in even the darkest days) and increased input in the buying process from talented managers at store level the chain has the capacity to rival the very best of the indies. Here’s to the success of this exciting new chapter. A welcome return indeed.
I wonder which Hughes & Hughes store lalibraia (above) manages. It is easy to cite professional confidence as a reason for remaining with the company but I think it has more to do with the lack of other jobs within the trade. Take that from a former loyal and passionate bookseller from Hughes & Hughes who never got so much as a goodbye, thanks or kiss my arse from Derek Hughes.