Cookstown neighbourhood store marks its 15th anniversary with local community
Finch’s SPAR Millburn in Cookstown recently celebrated 15 years as a SPAR store.
The store, which opened in 2006 and began trading as a SPAR in 2011, is owned and operated by the Finch family. Jonathan and Michelle Finch also own three other SPAR stores in Cookstown, Whitehead and Newry.
Over the years, the Finch family have made significant investments into the business, totalling £400,000 and enabling several refurbishments to bring top quality services and products to their local shoppers, providing local employment opportunities over the years.
Most recently in 2023, the store was transformed with a new deli counter serving hot breakfast and lunch to go, new refrigeration, flooring, lighting, self-checkouts and new fuel pumps, and expanding their Millburn team by 10.
The store has always been at the heart of the local community, supporting local schools and sports teams, as well as fundraising for a number of local charities. Over the years, the team has raised over £10,000 through events and initiatives including bake sales, raffles and tea mornings, with the whole team getting involved.
This year, the store has nominated Charis Cancer Care, a local cancer care centre based in Cookstown, as their main charity focus, supporting and sponsoring events in aid of the charity.
To celebrate their anniversary, the team held a fun day in August, inviting the local community to enjoy special lunch deals and exciting giveaways with prizes including a TV, Echo Dot, and a kettle and toaster set.
Michelle Finch, store owner, commented, “Our local community is central to everything we do and that is why we have made such significant investments over the years to expand our services and product offering for our shoppers. Our team decided that we wanted our anniversary to be about our community and celebrating with them. Our fun day was a great way to show our appreciation to our loyal shoppers and thank them for their support over the years. We look forward to many more successful years serving our local community from SPAR Millburn.”
Richard Ash, Sales Director at Henderson Group which owns the SPAR brand in Northern Ireland, added the store is such an integral part of their local community “and it’s great to see them celebrating alongside their shoppers. We wish them every success for years to come.”