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Airport Cellars closing Majura Park store

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A second major business is closing its doors at Majura Park in the space of several months, with Jim Murphy set to follow Masters at the end of March.

The family owned and run liquor retailer will shut down Airport Cellars after 10 years of trading.

Store manager Robbie O'Dea said no jobs would be lost.

He said the business would continue to operate at Market Cellars in Fyshwick, Jim Murphy Express at Majura Park and online.

Mr O'Dea said the 1500 square-metre Airport Cellars site was too big for the firm's needs.

"When we went out there it was a bit of a gamble," he said.

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"We made it work and had a lot of success out there. We signed a 10-year lease and that lease was up in December.

"Reflecting back, it was too much space for us. It was impractical to have a store that size; there's a lot of stock you've got to carry to make it look full.

"We thought we're in a good position where we could move and we want to explore some other opportunities."

Mr O'Dea said the opening of the Majura Parkway in 2015 had caused a drop in trade.

"We lost the convenience shopper who was able to get to us easily on the way home," he said.

General manager Adrien Murphy said it had been a "very hard decision" to make.

Everything is going to be extremely cheap, especially towards the end of the month; we'll have to get rid of it one way or the other.

Airport Cellars general manager Robbie O'Dea

"Airport Cellars is a shop we are very proud of. We won liquor store of the year in 2015," he said.

"Majura Park was a new precinct when we opened our doors. It's a space that has served us well, and we would like to think we have played at least a small role in helping it grow into the popular centre it is today."

Mr Murphy said the business was considering potential new locations.

"We will be taking some time to assess options, but definitely plan to open at least one more store in the ACT," he said.

Meanwhile, customers can look forward to some good specials before the doors close at Airport Cellars.

"We are running some stock down," Mr O'Dea said.

"Everything is going to be extremely cheap, especially towards the end of the month; we'll have to get rid of it one way or the other.

"It's best off sold so we don't have to pack it all up and take it with us."

The Majura Park shopping precinct has 60,000 square metres of retail space.

The centre owners declined to comment on prospective tenants to replace Jim Murphy.

Other tenants include Aldi, Barbecues Galore, Big W and Toys R Us.

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