ShopLK, Letterkenny’s shop local initiative, has reached an amazing milestone of €5.7MILLION in sales!
2023 was another record-breaking year for the hugely successful gift card initiative, which brings money directly back into the local economy,
First established in 2004 by Letterkenny Chamber as a local shopping initiative, it has gone from strength to strength. Gift card sales have increased year on year with customers seeing a ShopLK Gift Card as the gift of choice for any season and as the best employee reward around and voucher sales in 2023 reached an unprecedented €5,740,277.
Commenting on the most recent achievement, Fionnuala Rabbitt, Chamber President said “Each year since our ShopLK gift cards were launched, we have been delighted with the increasing sales levels, however this increase of 41% is stunning and far exceeded all our expectations.
“We have seen corporate sales increase year after year as businesses increasingly chose the ShopLK Gift Card as a reward for their employees and each year we welcome new corporate customers from around the County recognising that employees use Letterkenny as their main retail centre.
“Corporate sales are only part of the success story. The office and the pop-up shop in The Courtyard Shopping centre were busier than ever right up to Christmas eve and throughout the year the support of Dress Me Ireland is invaluable to the scheme.”
Letterkenny Chamber announcing €5,740,277 in Shop LK Voucher Sales included are Jimmy Stafford, Ann Louise McClintock, Bernard Gallagher, Kevin Bradley, Letterkenny Milford Municipal District Mayor, Kristine Reynolds, Brian McCormick and Toni Forrester. Photo Clive Wasson
The ShopLK gift card is redeemable at over 250 member outlets, which gives customers endless choice and good value. ShopLK is all about supporting local shopping, sales of this level shows that the message has gotten through. Customers love the variety and the support it offers in their favourite outlets.”
As ShopLK gift cards are only redeemable in Letterkenny, this brings profit to the town and supports local jobs. Records show that at least one third of customers using the card, often spend up to 4 times the value so that could be a potential injection of up to €20m.
Toni Forrester Letterkenny Chamber CEO explains how that ShopLK Is more than just a gift card “ShopLK is about promoting Letterkenny as a retail destination and the commercial hub of the County. Being a ShopLK member gives businesses another promotional platform and encourages them to increase their own brand awareness and stand out in a competitive market.”
“We also pay thanks to the many businesses and customers who buy the cards in their thousands. By buying the ShopLK Gift cards they are benefitting the domestic economy directly and giving back not just to their employees but also to the local community.”
Acknowledging the support of Donegal County Council, Fionnuala Rabbitt said “The financial support that we have had from the Donegal County Council, Letterkenny Milford MD, has really enabled us to elevate ShopLK and engage more fully with businesses and with consumers. It has allowed us to promote Letterkenny across Donegal and the Northwest. We would like to thank Dress Me Ireland at The Courtyard Shopping Centre who also sell our ShopLK Gift Cards directly to the public. This has greatly benefitted the initiative, most especially during peak sales periods.”
Letterkenny Chamber could not run this highly successful initiative without the support of DSP Community Employment programme through which the Chamber is staffed. It is the frontline staff in the Chamber that provide the much-needed resources throughout the year to make ShopLK such a success and the support of the Department of Social Protection is very much appreciated.
