A hardware store has issued an apology after a member of staff 'blacked up' in a video promoting Black Friday bargains.

Smyths Homevalue in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford posted the clip on its Facebook page on Thursday evening and later removed it following online backlash.

In the ad, captioned 'Guess what we have for 'Black Friday'?', a man dressed in black with black paint all over his body walks around the store showing all the deals on offer.

Some viewers accused the shop of "poor judgement", describing the video as "racist".

The shop issued an apology on Friday evening, saying it never intended to insult anyone.

"We would like to sincerely apologise to anyone upset or offended by our recent video post," the statement said.

"While naive on our part, we in no way intended to impersonate or insult anyone based on their race. However, on reflection, we can see how it would be perceived that way and for that we are very sorry."

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Online Editors