Veritas, Ireland’s leading religious publisher and retailer of religious goods, has closed its iconic flagship Abbey Street store in Dublin city centre. The Dublin store, which opened its doors in 1928, closed them for the last time at midday today.
Last year, the religious publisher announced it was closing down, impacting around 80 jobs. In a statement, a spokesperson for Veritas, which is owned by the Irish Catholic Bishops, said the company had seen “a significant and sustained downturn” in its business in recent years and that a restructuring process would not “mitigate the challenges that exist or sufficiently improve the commercial prospects of the business.”
Headquartered in Dublin, the company, founded in 1899, was once a popular fixture in the city centre. On Friday, some customers paid a visit to the shop for the last time, with others shopping for clearance bargains. For decades, the Abbey Street store was a popular location for religious books, gifts for Christenings, Weddings and First Holy Communions, children’s books, prayers, cards, statutes, and other items.
The bishops said the closure was “a great loss to the Church in Ireland.”
In a statement last year, the Catholic bishops said: “We understand that Veritas has made this very difficult decision following a number of years of challenging trading conditions, but today’s announcement brings especially sad news for Veritas employees as well as the many customers and friends of Veritas throughout the country and beyond.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those who are directly impacted by today’s announcement.”
Today’s closure means that only its Newry store remains open, whilst a closing down sale on the religious retailer’s website is ongoing, with the prices of over 3,000 books knocked down by 70 or 90 per cent. The company previously operated seven stores across Ireland, but said the closures came amid a “significant and sustained” downturn in business which was unlikely to recover.
All seven stores are to wind down operations by the end of the year, along with the company’s Dublin warehouse.
“We are immensely grateful for your loyal support over the years,” Veritas said, thanking people for “being part of our journey.”
