Second Graduation Ceremony for the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision Programme held

Retail Ireland, the Ibec group that represents the retail industry, today hosted the second graduation ceremony of the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision at the Athlone Springs Hotel. 

The event celebrated 66 apprentices graduating from the programme, with over 200 guests also attending, including workplace mentors, tutors, along with friends and family of graduates. The guest of honour Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English T.D. Minister English delivered the keynote address, where he welcomed the success of the programme and stressed the key role the graduates will play in the future of retail.

Newly appointed Chair of the Consortium Steering Group which oversees the programme and Capability Manager at Boots Edel Duffy, stressed the enhanced career potential of graduates. “I see the changes the programme makes on those that come through it – mainly in terms of confidence, capability, resilience, and general performance. It prepares you for supervising and managing in the modern retail environment. Within Boots, we have promoted graduates from the programme into management positions and they are thriving. This apprenticeship programme has been instrumental in their career progression.”