Aisle be Yours...

On this grey and miserable Monday morning, we all need a little pick me up. So here's a story we fell in love with last week, as we helped our client Asda celebrate Valentine's Day ...

Aisle be Yours…

“The Secret of a happy marriage- Respect and Genuine Love”

Having launched a search to find the longest married couple in the local area, Asda Coleraine was delighted to welcome Robert and Margaret, known as Ivy, Kirkpatrick into the store to tell their story. 

As regular customers in Asda Coleraine, every Tuesday since it opened in 2005, Robert and Ivy are well known to the store’s colleagues who delighted in celebrating their love with gifts including flowers, champagne and a shopping voucher. 

Married for 62 years, and having met several years before that, Robert and Ivy have lived in the centre of Coleraine since the 1960s. However, their love story began in London, when Robert spotted Ivy working in the Maypole Grocery Store.

“My brother also worked in the store,” said Robert, “so I asked him to find out if she liked the look of me and if she was interested in a date. Luckily she was, and we had our first date at the local picture house.”  

The romance went on to blossom from that moment and today the diamond couple have nine children, 25 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.  Robert says, “We have a great system – Ivy does all the birthday cards and presents, and I look after Christmas!”

The couple describe their greatest adventure as an exciting trip to California around 15 years ago. Staying with friends they took in the sights around Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs describing it as “a wonderful trip they’ll never forget.”

The couple were invited into Asda Coleraine on Valentine’s Day to receive their gifts from general store manager Roy Warke and community life champion Sheila Palmer. On receiving the news from Asda that they had been recognised as Coleraine’s longest married couple, Robert said he was “delighted and it was a lovely surprise.”

Roy Warke said, “It’s been wonderful to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Robert and Ivy as their love truly has stood the test of time. As regular customers to the store we’re all inspired by their story, and it’s particularly fantastic, and fitting, to hear that they met in a grocery store! We wish the couple many more happy years together.”

Finally, on the secret of such a long and happy marriage, Robert had a simple message saying, “It’s all based around respect. Respect and genuine love.”