Rushmere Shopping has announced the arrival of the retail arm of mobile phone company O2 and NI fashion jeweller Karine & Co. to the Craigavon centre.

Karine & Co. opened its doors recently to Rushmere customers and will be followed by O2 in the next few weeks.

Over 20 new jobs will be created across the two new tenants.

The arrival of the two new stores now means that the centre is home to nearly 70 of the UK and Ireland’s most recognisable high street retailers and is set to provide shoppers with even more choice across leading brands.

Martin Walsh Manager of Rushmere Shopping Centre said: “The arrival of these two well known brands will be a positive addition to the scheme and we continue to provide our customers with the one of the widest retail offerings in Northern Ireland.

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"We are optimistic that consumer confidence is slowly returning after a period of uncertainty and that Rushmere can offer something for everyone as we move into the Autumn season. If we continue to see solid trading we are on course to exceed our goal of attracting nearly 9 million visitors this year to the centre and wider retail park area."

Locally based Karine Trabelsi, Director of Karine & Co. explained that their new store at Rushmere is something that the company has been working towards for some time.

“We have been waiting for about 6 years to secure a standalone unit in Rushmere. This will be the seventh store we have opened in 7 years and because we originate from Portadown, we have always wanted to expand our growing business to the scheme here.

"Now that the opportunity has finally arrived, we will be including our full range of brands and also adding an upmarket giftware selection to our range. The top brands that we will be stocking will include Carousel, Swatch and Storm, as well as own branded jewellery which has proven very popular to date."

Savills acted for the Landlord Central Craigavon Limited, owner of Rushmere Shopping Centre.

(GK/KMcA)