New manager appointed to leading Mayo supermarket

Kavanagh's SuperValu in Castlebar has appointed a new manager who brings a wealth of experience to the role.

Mayo-native John Melvin previously worked with the Kavanagh Group and had been with Musgrave in Galway for the past 16 years.

SuperValu in Castlebar has long been at the centre of community life in Castlebar and John is keen to continue and grow that long tradition of support for local organisations.

“We’re going back to our grassroots to support the local community. We are active members of Castlebar Tidy Towns, who have really upped the ante in the national Tidy Towns drive," he said.

Castlebar, as an Autism-Friendly Town, has won an Inclusive Events Award at the 2024 Autism Friendly Town Awards.

"We sponsor several local charities, including Cancer Care West, Croí, and many others. We also support local school events and sports days.

"I have been living in Castlebar for over 20 years with my wife, Tina. We have three children who are all heavily involved in local sports clubs.

"They play football for Breaffy GAA, where we live, and are also members of Castlebar Town FC, Castlebar Athletics Club, and Castlebar Comets Basketball.” said John.

Through his work with Musgrave, John would have been at the forefront of some of the latest retail technologies in recent years and he aims to bring some of those innovative systems to SuperValu in Castlebar.

This will include an Automatic Ordering system that will aid both customers and staff and ensure the shelves are stocked with in-demand items.

“I want to bring some of that experience back to Castlebar,” said John.

He said SuperValu’s reputation as Ireland’s most ‘local’ supermarket chain is something which has always attracted him to the company and he is keen to foster that distinction.

“There is a different expectation when you go into a SuperValu. People expect that attention to detail and great customer service. Customers are happy to have that chat at the check-out while they are packing their bags.”

As well as the traditional shopping experience, online shopping and delivery has become a feature of SuperValu and phone orders from elderly customers are always welcomed and catered for.

SuperValu will continue to champion ‘Local Food Heroes’ on its shelves and promote and stock the finest Mayo and west of Ireland produce.

John is conscious that the cost of living has increased significantly for his customers and said the store will be rolling out a host of great offers.

“People are more price conscious than ever and we truly recognise that. We have the offers and there will be more to come.

"We are competitive against other retailers; and have bumper value with our rejuvenated Real Rewards programme.

"There is additional work going on there to make that programme more user-friendly. We will be bringing lots of great offers into our Castlebar store which will make us really competitive,” added John.