Life – it’s who I am’

Lifetime’s work: Eugene has been running his shop for over 40 years

SINCE opening his traditional newsagent’s shop in Ballymena, Co Antrim back in 1979, Eugene has seen it become established as a vital part of the local community.

“The shop is my life – it’s who I am,” says Eugene, 63. “As a kid I had a Sunday newspaper round, and I’d also help out in the newsagent’s – I loved it.

“After leaving school I worked in a menswear shop for a while, then decided to set up Diamond’s Newsagent.

“Ever since then I’ve always remained open seven days a week, except for two months at the start of lockdown. As a diabetic, I was in the high risk category so I reluctantly closed, but reopened as soon as I thought it was safe to do so.

“It has a traditional corner-shop atmosphere – the sort of place where regular customers drop in to buy lottery tickets and scratchcards along with their newspapers and magazines, often stopping for a chat.

“I signed up as a retailer for the National Lottery soon after it was launched, and it has undoubtedly been a major asset for my business, bringing more people into the shop.”

But there are other ways in which The National Lottery helps people in local communities too. Everyone who has ever bought a ticket has contributed to the £42 billion that The National Lottery has given to good causes since the first draw more than two-and-a-half decades ago.

“We’ve been officially credited with selling tickets that have raised more than £1 million for good causes,” says Eugene. “And some of our customers have had substantial wins too!”