Former Dragons’ Den Ireland winner to create dozens of new jobs in Newry

Clever Closet, which has established itself as the UK and Ireland’s leading provider of under stairs storage, has announced plans to open a new base in Newry.

CEO Paul Jacob said he is delighted to announce the plans.

“This is the next natural step in our expansion across the UK and we hope that we can offer a smarter solution to storage in the homes of people in Northern Ireland,” he said.

Our customized storage units are specifically designed to tackle this 21st Century living problem, by optimizing the storage space available, while integrating these clever units seamlessly within the design of the home environment.

“The days of excessive shelving, unattractive hanging space and overflowing shoe cupboards are over.”

The company provides under stairs storage solutions which help to maximize often inaccessible space and is the sister company of Smart Storage, which surged in popularity after appearing on the RTÉ One TV show.

It was created by the former construction engineer in 2011 in a bid to address family storage problems at home and provide smart, affordable home storage units.

A year later he secured investment in the 2012 TV series following a successful pitch to Dragons Norah Casey, Gavin Duffy, Niall O’Farrell and Sean O’Sullivan.

Ms Casey snapped up the chance to become a shareholder which led to the firm’s expansion across the British Isles.

The latest move by Clever Closet is part of the company’s broader strategy to serve the UK’s 11.5 million semi-detached homes.

The new base will create up to 25 jobs in a range of areas including operations, administration, sales, business development and their expert fitters as well as training and development across all areas.

Sales manager Ciara Reel said: “It is exciting to be part of this significant next step in Clever Closet’s journey by extending our brand to have a branch in Northern Ireland.

“As well as helping the people of Northern Ireland with the lack of storage in their homes, it is excellent to be able to invest in the skills development of the Northern Ireland workforce with the creation of new jobs at the Newry branch.

“We are excited to see what the future holds in this new chapter.”