Asda Downpatrick colleagues celebrate 50 years of service in the aisles
Two colleagues at Asda Downpatrick are celebrating a collective 50 years of service with the retailer.
Patrick Dobbin and Fintan O’Connor have each clocked up 25 years’ service at Asda Downpatrick.
In total, 20 Asda colleagues across Northern Ireland have received ‘Big Anniversary’ recognition for service up to 2023. When combined, this equates to a huge 590 years worked by colleagues, section leaders and managers from Asda’s 8 NI stores.
Congratulating the award recipients, Niall Keyes, Senior Director for Asda Northern Ireland, said: “Our colleagues really are the heartbeat of our stores.
“I was absolutely honoured to celebrate with colleagues of a combined nearly 600 years’ service in the room.
“The Big Asda Celebration event was a great opportunity to recognise some of our longest serving colleagues and I am so proud of them. I look forward to catching up with them all in store again soon.”
Asda Downpatrick colleague, Patrick Dobbin added: “Along with the rest of our team, I was delighted to attend the Big Anniversary celebration event.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to have some fun, congratulate each other, and reflect on all of the great memories we’ve shared over the years with Asda.”
On top of the long service recognition, colleagues at Asda Downpatrick have also been named as finalists in the Proud to be Asda Awards, a nationwide award ceremony taking place later this year.
Ciara Smith, General Store Manager at Asda Downpatrick, has been named as a finalist for Leader of the Year, and colleagues Linda Owens and Emma Kelly are in the running for the Acts of Heroism and Kindness Award.
Collectively, the Asda Downpatrick colleagues are in the running to win the Championing All Colleagues, One Team Award, for their resilience as a team in the aftermath of the Downpatrick flooding in 2023.
Ciara Smith, Asda Downpatrick General Store Manager said: “I couldn’t be prouder of our team at Asda Downpatrick, with so many finalists in the running for the Proud to be Asda Awards.
“It’s fantastic to get this far and the recognition for our hard work. It has really boosted our morale even further.
“I’m still amazed at how each and every colleague carried themselves during the toughest of challenges with such strength, and we really all came together as a team to help one another and our customers.
“And I’m honoured to be the leader of such a resilient and dedicated team.”
