Debenhams at the Eagles Meadow shopping centre has now taken on a total of 50 people thanks to the Local Employment Partnership with the town’s branch of Job Centre Plus.
The shop reached the milestone after eight temporary staff employed during the pre-Christmas rush were given permanent positions.
Among the lucky 50 recruited since the store opened two and half years ago is Gareth Hughes, 28, who was out of work for four years before he was accepted for a two-week pre-employment course at Debenhams.
The first week included training and confidence building sessions and during the second week he spent four hours a day on the shop floor.
As the father of a two year old daughter, Charlotte, and another baby on the way, the timing couldn’t be better for Gareth, who works in the wedding gift department.
He said: “I wanted to provide for my family and being out of work and unable to find work was one of the worst points in my life.
“At the end of the two weeks I had an interview and they offered me a permanent contract.
“It was brilliant because we had been struggling to make ends meet on the dole money.
“It’s an amazing place to work, the people are great and the managers are brilliant. It’s the best place I have ever worked in. I am really happy.”
Equally delighted is Amber Lloyd, 23, who now works as a sales advisor for the Tripp Luggage concession at the store.
Amber really struggled to get a job after graduating from university with a first class honours degree in illustration.
She recalled: “I was looking to work, writing to employers and applying for jobs – anything really for a means to live. Job hunting became a job in itself, it was a nightmare.
“Coming to Debenhams has done me a load of good and helped my confidence because it can be very demoralising trying for jobs and not getting replies from people.
“It was one of the most difficult times in my life but now things are very different. I just feel like a different person. I feel a lot more confident now – it has changed me for the better.”
“It’s going really well. I’m going into my second year and Tripp Luggage is expanding a moving into a bigger space and I’ll have a back office which will make things more efficient.
“It’s all positive, full steam ahead. It’s really exciting because we will have more products coming in so it will be really good.
According to Debenhams Sales Manager Andy Ray, the partnership with Job Centre Plus has been extremely positive for them too.
He said: “It’s something we want to build on. Whatever we can do in terms of vacancies, we try and employ local people.
“We have around 120 people working at Debenhams and a substantial percentage of them have come via the Job Centre Plus route.
“They are people who have had difficulty finding a job and have been unemployed for six months or more.
“We give them pre-employment training which involves a two-week course which gives them a bit of experience on the shop floor.
“As part of the scheme, we took on about 15 temporary staff during the later part of last year to cater for the Christmas rush and we have kept on eight of them on.
“It’s great for them because they probably thought it was only a three month job but they have got a permanent job at the end of it.
“Everyone’s a winner. It’s really important to us that we get local people working and a bit of pride in Wrexham.
“There is a great deal of doom and gloom in the media but I think Eagles Meadow in general and Debenhams in particular had a really successful Christmas.
“I think that 2011 which has been designated the Year of Culture in Wrexham could be a fantastic year for the retailers and for the town as well.
“It seems to have given everybody a lift already, so long may it continue.
“There’s a real sense of optimism at Eagles Meadow and we are building year on year, contributing to the whole of the local economy.”
Eagles Meadow Manager Kevin Critchley added: “I would like congratulate Debenhams on an amazing achievement.
“We are proud of our record in creating more than 1,000 new retail jobs Wrexham since Eagles Meadow opened, helping to boost the town’s economic heartbeat.”
