Moores of Coleraine celebrates 100 years at the heart of fashion, family, and the local community
100 Years of STYLE & SERVICE
leaving Ruby a widow with three young children, including a newborn. It was rare in the 1920s for women to run businesses, rarer still with a young family to raise, but Ruby was undeterred. From sourcing stock in Belfast’s warehouses (always tackling the stairs early while her legs were “still fresh”) to managing the daily running of the shop, her grit set the tone for what Moores would become. Following World War II, her son, John, joined the business. Among his early coups was acquiring surplus Air Force silk parachutes and turning them into skirts sold by mail order. One ad in The Times generated such an overwhelming response that, as family lore tells it, they could hardly open the door for the volume of post. Coleraine’s retail landscape shifted in the 1960s
IT’S NOT EVERY DAY a department store turns 100, but then again, there’s nothing everyday about Moores of Coleraine. As department stores across the UK face an uncertain future, Moores stands tall, proudly marking a century of family, fashion and fierce determination this September. Still trading from its original Church Street location, Moores is far more than just a store, it’s a symbol of Coleraine’s resilience, style and spirit. The story began in September 1925, when John Moore, a trained draper from Lisnaskea, relocated to Coleraine and purchased a modest drapery shop, William Simon. With his wife Ruby (Rebecca), he renamed the business JW Moore & Co and moved in above the store at 9 Church Street. Just two years later, John tragically passed away,
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