There is great buzz in Laois as a well-known business is expanding to open a new Abbeyleix branch.

Midland Hardware & Homeware Topline in Rathdowney have been working behind the scenes since 2022 to open a new hardware shop and garden centre in Abbeyleix's old De Vesci Arms Hotel.

With the 10,000sq foot business set to open in July of this year, the Leinster Express / Laois Live spoke with Midland Hardware's David Ryan on the mammoth development.

"Abbeyleix is a laid out plantation town, and the building dates back to the 1780's. In the early 1800's it was used as a Bianconi stop for carriages between Dublin and Limerick, there were quite a few in Laois at the time," Mr Ryan said.

"The building became a hotel and bar, most recently it operated as the De Vesci Arms hotel through the mid 20th Century. It operated for a few years until it was the Folkhouse pub. It has been derelict and abandoned since around 2001, and we bought it in 2022," the businessman explained.

Mr Ryan said that they saw great potential in Abbeyleix, and bought land behind the premises. Mr Ryan applied for planning permission to restore the building and open a new Midland Hardware branch.

"In May of 2025, Dunnes Building Services in Portarlington moved in. We have built a proper retail unit behind the old building, we have a portal frame with 10,000 square feet of retail space," he said.

As the premises is a protected building, Mr Ryan wished to do it justice and maintain the building's facade. 

"We have integrated the new shop with the old building, and we have four apartments and a town house going into the old building, along with a café/restaurant," he explained.

Pictured: The development underway, captured by Google Maps in 2025.

With a project of this size, a lot of thought and planning went into the process. The planning stages took three years, and Mr Ryan wished to thank Laois County Council and Abbeyleix locals for their consideration.

"We received little or no objection from people, the people of Abbeyleix have been a great support," Mr Ryan said.

"The Council and residents in the area demonstrated an enormous amount of goodwill towards the project. We'd love to give a particular shout out to the Abbeyleix Tidy Towns Committee, who have been amazing," he said.

Midland Hardware in Rathdowney has been a central fixture of the town, with many customers both locally and further afield. The premises had operated as a hardware shop for many years, with Mr Ryan purchasing the location in 1997.

The new Abbeyleix branch is expected to create up to 18 jobs locally, which the business is currently recruiting for.

Mr Ryan wished to give a particular thanks to the Dunne family, who ran a hardware shop in Abbeyleix for over 40 years.

"Abbeyleix has been served by Liam Dunne and his family for many years, as it so happens he has recently retired. The town will not be too long without a hardware shop, we aim to rectify this by the summer of 2026," he said.

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The new location will be a hardware store at its core, with plenty of DIY products for customers.

"We will have a strong paint section and a garden centre, we are very much catering towards householders as well as builders, there will be a lot of things for Abbeyleix homeowners here," Mr Ryan finished.

The new shop will provide ample parking for customers to the rear of the building, accessible through an entrance next to the Chinese restaurant.