By Natalee Kerr
The nation-wide closure of iconic retailer Dimmeys has “shocked” employees at its central Geelong store.
The company informed staff about the Little Malop St store’s closure last Friday, a veteran employee told the Indy yesterday.
“We had no indication that the business would be closing,” said the staff member, who declined to be identified.
“It’s been operating for so long … it’s really sad that it has gotten to this stage.”
The discount department store publicly announced its closure in a social media post on Tuesday, attracting more than 2000 comments including many expressions of disappointment.
“After 166 years one of Australia’s oldest retailers is closing down,” the post read.
Famous for its advertisements featuring AFL great Robert DiPierdomenico, Dimmeys has 31 outlets across Australia, with more than half in Victoria, according to its website.
Dimmeys has been trading in Geelong since 1989, with the Little Malop St store operating for the last eight years.
The employee said central Geelong businesses were facing a tough retail market due to parking “problems”.
“Town used to be so thriving, there were so many people around,” they said.
“But now we’ve got Waurn Ponds and Leopold (shopping centres) that offer free parking, whereas here you can only find an hour or two hour park.”
A final closing date has yet been determined, according to the employee.
The closure would impact 11 staff members at the Geelong store, another employee said.
“I’m jobless now,” they said.
“And it’s at the time of Christmas when it’s all family time and I’m sitting here like ‘I don’t have a job’.
“Hopefully we survive for another two to three months so it gives us enough time to look for other work.”
Dimmeys stores in the Victoria’s central-west were “doing alright” but regional stores like Geelong had “very less customers”, the employee said.
“There are not enough customers, especially on this road.”
The franchise began its ‘closing down sale’ on Wednesday offering customers 30 per cent off store-wide.
