Retailer Arnotts has completed its €500,000 reorganisation of its accessories and jewellery area on the ground floor of its Henry Street department store.

A 5,000sq ft jewellery hall opened this week with Irish family-owned Appleby Jewellers front and centre. “This was the last piece of the jigsaw for us, and we wanted to do it before the busy Christmas time,” Arnotts chief executive Nigel Blow told me.

“There’s no better partner for us than Applebys; we’ve been talking to each other for quite some time about this.”

Blow wanted to sharpen up the jewellery offering to complement other recent in-store changes. He said current trading is "all right" ahead of the Christmas period, which accounts for 40 per cent of annual turnover.
"We're ahead of last year. I wouldn't say the economy is improving. It just reflects areas where we have made improvements."