Welwyn Garden City, 24 January 2013: PayPoint has stepped in to help one of its retailers after his shop was affected by a family tragedy.

In June last year, Paisley shopkeeper Javaid Ali, was attacked in his shop, Sunshine Grocers on Green Road, Paisley, and sadly died two weeks later. A family man, married with three sons, Mr Ali had run his shop for four years.

His son, Abbas Ali, took over running the shop after the tragedy and approached PayPoint to let the company know what had happened.

“As soon as I became aware of the tragic event and the impact the shop’s closure during the police investigation had had on trading, I immediately sent one of our most senior retail experts to see what assistance we could offer,” said Seamus Smith, Managing Director of PayPoint UK & Ireland.

“Mr Ali is a fine example of a young man who has taken on responsibility for the family business in truly awful circumstances and I am delighted that we are able to help him financially, with this cheque for £1,000, on top of the expert retailing advice to help him get his shop back on its feet to continue serving the local community.

“The welfare of our retail partners is very important to us and I hope other suppliers will also feel the same way and offer their support.”

Mr Abbas Ali said: “What happened to my father has obviously been devastating for my family and me.  However, I took the decision to run the family business despite never expecting to do so and I was really pleased and humbled when Seamus personally phoned me the day after I had sent him a letter making him aware of what had happened in the shop.

“Seamus arranged for the rental fees we had paid for the terminal to be refunded promptly and offered to help me with the business.

“He also arranged for our PayPoint rep, Marie, to visit and provide excellent advice on what I could do to improve the shop.  I really appreciate the kind offer of £1,000 and it will really help me in sustaining our business for the future.  My experience with Paypoint over the last few months has shown me it's an organisation that really cares about its retailers and I know Seamus, Marie and PayPoint will provide further support in the future to help us grow further.”

ENDS