The organisation representing 2,000 retailers has called on the Government to urgently outline a major rescue package for the retail industry.
Retail Excellence said that the future of hundreds of small businesses depends on concrete financial proposals from the Government.
It said a rescue package for the reopening of the industry must include a detailed arbitration plan for the looming commercial rent crisis, the reintroduction of significant restart and online grants and a lengthy extension of the rates waiver.
Duncan Graham, Managing Director of Retail Excellence, said this was the least that the industry deserved after being closed for eight months of the last 13.
"It is critically important that the Government outline a rescue plan for the retail industry," Mr Graham said.
"Retail employees account for over 10% of the entire Irish workforce, so there is clearly an economic imperative to ensure hundreds of businesses do not go to the wall as we begin to emerge from the pandemic in the coming months," he said.
Mr Graham said that it was not enough to expect retailers to reopen their doors next month without significant State support.
"If the Government believes that retailers can just pick up where they left off, it is sorely mistaken. A comprehensive rescue package on rents, grants and waivers is a pre-requisite for businesses that have suffered numerous body-blows since March last year," he stated.
The Retail Excellence boss also said that the Government needed to outline its plan for town centres in the wake of the pandemic
