Call for action after announcement that McKillen's Ballymena is to close after 100 years in the town
There have been calls for government action as a Ballymena store revealed it is to shut its doors after 100 years trading in the town.
McKillen’s on Church Street shared the news just days after a similar announcement was made regarding Wyse Byse – a retailer that has also had a long-standing presence on the shopping thoroughfare.
In a statement to the Ballymena Guardian McKillen’s, which sells fashion, shoes and giftware, pointed to increased overheads, online shopping and the demise of the high street as the contributing factors behind the decision.
Glyn Roberts, Chief Executive of Retail NI said the development was “extremely sad news” for the town. “A well-respected, family-owned independent retailer has been forced to close its doors after 100 years of service to Ballymena,” he added.
“With another long-standing local trader, Wyse Byse, also closing, this represents a double blow for Ballymena town centre. Despite this, I have every confidence that Ballymena town centre and its fantastic traders will bounce back.
“This must be a wake-up call to government at all levels to get its act together on the growing cost-of-doing-business crisis that is afflicting our high streets.
“Northern Ireland now has 25 percent of its high street buildings lying derelict – twice the UK average. We urgently need a joined-up approach between the Executive and local councils to address this problem before irreparable damage is done to our towns and cities.”
North Antrim MLA, Jim Allister said the news was “nothing short of a retail massacre for Church Street”, adding: “For 100 years, McKillen’s has stood as a pillar of Ballymena’s commercial life, but it has been driven to the brink by the toxic combination of punitive business rates and a high street left to rot.
"It is an absolute disgrace that while bureaucrats dither, the very backbone of our town is being dismantled. When family institutions that survived a century of upheaval are forced to surrender, it isn't just an economic shift, it is a systemic failure. If those in power do not wake up and address the crushing overheads strangling our traders, there will be no high street left to save. Ballymena deserves better than empty shopfronts and hollow promises.
“I pay tribute to the loyal workforce whose hard work and faces have defined this institution for generations.”