BRITEROME, a longstanding hardware store which has been a staple in Bangor since 1930, is set to permanently close its doors next month.
David McCready, who has run the shop and served as a beacon of knowledge for the community for over 40 years, said he is ‘looking forward’ to retiring but will ‘miss the craic’ from customers new and old.
The closure will mark the end of an era for Briterome’s legacy after almost a century of calling Bangor centre it’s home.
First opened by the Peacock family, Briterome’s life story began at the top of High Street in 1930. Ownership was passed on through the years to the Ritchie and Stevenson families before David took on the shop, which was then situated on Market Street.
Reflecting on the store’s journey before settling at 1-3 Hamilton Road, David said: “I started off on Market Street, and then I bought out what was Miller’s paint shop, beside where the Spectator used to be, which is part of Asda now. Then I moved it back to Market Street for a short period and I built over here – and here it is – it’s been on this site for over 20 years.”
He said he had been toying with the idea of retiring ‘for the last three years’, having put the shop on the market two years ago.
Now purchased by developers, David confirmed the business won’t be carried on in its current form, adding to Bangor’s growing list of retail losses in recent years.
“The mistake I made is ‘I am Briterome’… people are coming in for advice all the time. Probably 60% of my customers come in asking ‘how do I do this David?’, so there will be a void there.
“It’s going to be redeveloped and I’m sorry it’s not going to be a hardware shop. It’s going to be sorely missed on the streets of Bangor, and North Down I reckon.”
David said throughout the decades, his main highlight has been ‘the customers and the craic’ and that he will ‘miss the social aspect’ of seeing both loyal and new customers coming through the door.
“It has been constant banter and craic. It’s never been taken desperately seriously, we’ve all enjoyed it a lot.”
He acknowledged that the business hasn’t been without its challenges over the years, citing Brexit and the pandemic as tough hurdles for all local brick and mortar businesses to overcome.
“It’s been challenging on occasions, because Bangor has gone up and down and there have been difficult times.”
He recounted the impact the Covid-19 outbreak had on the shop in 2020.
“Covid changed everything, I mean it changed the world,” he said.
“Prior to Covid, the business world was so different. We had far more fun because we used to be in local wholesaler shows. All the retailers would get together, we’d compare notes probably twice, three times a year and it was brilliant, it was far better for socialising, but there’s very few of us left now.”
During the national lockdown, Briterhome was classed as an essential service and permitted to remain open to the public, which saw David continue to serve the local community while accustoming to new norms.
He said: “During Covid, I locked everybody outside and nobody got across that threshold for over a year, but I was still serving everybody at the door, running backwards and forwards to get people what they needed.”
David added that Brexit brought a new wave of challenges for the business: “I lost probably 40% of my suppliers after Brexit, because of the paperwork that was involved from their end as well as ours.”
When discussing the contrasts between physical and online shops, he said the experience you get when visiting a store like Briterome is hard to beat.
“The digital age is one thing – yes it’s a lot easier for people to buy on the internet – but what you get in here is experience and knowledge which you don’t get elsewhere. It’s completely different.”
As he looks towards a well-deserved break after working six days a week for four decades, David said he’s keen to relax and catch-up on his list of things to do that he hasn’t had a chance to tackle yet.
“I haven’t finished building my house which I started 40 years ago. I just haven’t had the time. When you work six days a week, you don’t get a lot done.
“I’m going to rest initially, and we will have a couple of holidays, but I’ll have a couple of quiet evenings first.”
With the retirement sale now live in the shop, David said he has no final date planned but is aiming to close up by mid-May.
Briterome is operating normal opening hours until then.
