Forty people will lose their jobs in Cork.

Argos has announced that the company will close all of its Irish stores and operations at the end of June resulting in mass redundancies for staff in the Republic of Ireland.

The catalogue retailer sells toys, tech, and electronics with two outlets in Cork City-located in Blackpool Shopping Centre and Mahon Point Shopping Centre.

The announcement comes after the company undertook a lengthy evaluation of its operations in Ireland which led to the decision not to spend on developing and modernising its Irish branches saying that “the money would be better invested in other parts of its business”.

The latest statement only applies to Argos stores in the Republic of Ireland. Argos will continue operations in Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales, where it has over 1,000 stores.

Although the company could not give the exact number of people who work in stores in Blackpool and Mahon, it is understood that approximately  15 to 20 people are employed in each outlet.

Andy McClelland, Argos Ireland Operations Manager, said: “We understand this is difficult news for our customers and colleagues. As with any major change to our business, we have not made this decision lightly and we are doing everything we can to support those impacted.”

Argos stores will remain open to customers in the Republic of Ireland until June 24^th 2023, except in cases where the lease expires before this date.