Keeping the tradition going
November 30, 2009Mol an óige agus tiocfaidh si. Every GAA man and woman in Meath will be hoping that the old Irish phrase proves true when today's children become tomorrow's heroes on the field.
Last year, the Royal minor footballers gave us a glimpse of what's, hopefully, to come for the future when they captured the Leinster Championship crown and progressed on to an All-Ireland semi-final, where they were beaten by eventual winners Tyrone. It was a tough defeat to take, as most semi-finals usually are, but you can be sure that many of the players that were on the losing side at Croke Park that day will be back again in a Meath jersey determined and hungry for more success.
Since 2005, SuperValu stores have been lending a helping hand towards the Meath juvenile board by financially backing club league and championship competitions in the county.
"We've been involved with the Meath juvenile board for a couple of years now and we hope that continue with the sponsorship for years to come," said local SuperValu Regional Manager, Eoghan Jones.
"The way we see it at SuperValu, is that it's giving something back to the communities and a way of saying 'thank you' to some of our customers."
Ashbourne native Eoghan Jones has been working with SuperValu for the past year-and-a-half and has been involved in the retail business for some time now since finishing college. Jones' position as Regional Manager with the company he currently works for sees him covering 20 stores around the north Leinster area, four of which are based within the borders of Co. Meath.
"There are eight SuperValu stores in Meath and between two Regional Managers in the area we would cover four each. There are between 500 and 600 staff employed in our region and my role involves supporting the stores in the area," he explained.
Since the company's establishment in Ireland in the early 1980s, SuperValu stores have been springing up all throughout the county, with branches in Oldcastle, Kells, Trim, Ashbourne, Dunshauglin, Ratoath and two in Navan. Many of these areas are GAA strongholds, so it's little wonder why the decision was taken by the retail outfit to go down the road they did when it came to offering sponsorship for an organisation.
It's not only in Meath that this supermarket chain off the generosity if sponsorship towards GAA boards and clubs. All across Ireland, SuperValu help out where they - even in these tough economic times, where businesses in the retail sector have had to up their game as much as any.
"Business is challenging at the moment," admitted Jones. "But we are confident that we can continue to supply our customers with a good service, great value whilst still remaining loyal to our local and Irish suppliers.
In September, SuperValu announced that it would be making a further 30 million euro investment to deliver more long-term price cuts to consumers.
A month prior to that announcement, an additional 1,000 everyday products and brands across all ranges were reduced significantly in all eight independently owned SuperValu stores in Meath.
This is being delivered without sacrificing SuperValu's commitment to Irish suppliers and Irish jobs and will see the value of SuperValu's price reductions and offers top 230 million euro in 2009, with over 3,000 permanent price cuts in-store so far this year. For consumers, this means a real saving of almost 70 euro on their average shop at SuperValu since the beginning of the year.
Almost every company in the country has had to cut their prices, to some extent, to offer their customers a more attractive trade in the last two or three years and SuperValu has been no exception to that.
However, it still doesn't prevent their local stores from helping out the Dunshauglin and Simonstown clubs even today, and have the company is always considering the possibility of further expansion within the Royal County.
"We're always looking for opportunities to develop at SuperValu," said Jones. "Areas to expand our business in are always something that we would are considering."
Another community-related sponsorship for children which SuperValu helps to fund is the 'Kids in Action' programme.
Since starting three years ago, over 80 per cent of primary schools in Ireland registered for 'Kids in Action', and last year alone Irish schools received 1.2 million euro worth of free sports equipment, bringing the total value of equipment donated by SuperValu shoppers to 3.5 million euro since the programme began in 2006.
Through the Kids in Action programme, SuperValu is committed to the health and wellbeing of young Irish children. On a local level, the company's retail partners are committed to building vibrant communities, and all you need to get involved in this year's programme is to simply contact your local SuperValu store.
Each local store owner's involvement in 'Kids in Action' at a community level is a fantastic opportunity to reward loyal shoppers while at the same time investing in the future of their local area. Encouraging adults and children to eat healthily is also an important part of 'Kids in Action'.
The involvement with the 'Kid in Action' programme nationwide and the Meath juvenile board, highlights SuperValu's enthusiasm to focus on the future of Irish children. Jones, for one, is keen that his company help keep the tradition of helping to send kids down the right path going.
"I would be quite adamant that anything we do, sponsorship-wise, with Meath GAA would be at underage level. Underage would be a key focus of sponsorship for us." said Jones
"We need to get kids out playing and make sure they carry on the great tradition that is the GAA. With the X-Box and these kind of things nowadays, it's not as easy to get kids out and playing anymore.
"We have to make sure and keep the tradition of the GAA going and that's why SuperValu look to the juvenile section before anything else," he added.
Now, coming into a fresh decade, you can be sure that SuperValu will be doing all they can to continue their deals with Meath GAA and 'Kids in Action' to help secure the futures of the next generation. Tweet
