Rep. of Ireland or Northern Ireland for YOUR Christmas Shopping?

PeteK*

Which part of the country are you planning on doing your Xmas shopping?

collegemum

I have already been north and have gotten a good bit of christmas shopping. When you compare some of the prices you can fully understand why.
Here is an example:
A childs dress from Monsoon on the label - £47....€75 :eek: Monsoon were accepting Euro at a rate of €1 = £.95
A childs dress from Debenhams on the label - £37.....€57:(
Childs shoes from Debenhams - £13....€22.50

That is just 3 items out of the many i bought........ so i guess you can imagie i saved an absolute fortune not to mention the fact that 3 of us went up and filled the car to the brim......we must have saved close to €500 if not more between us. All for the sake of €20 petrol and a 1 hour drive.

Sure it took me 2 hours to get home from the RDS yesterday ......i couldve been to Newry and back

Skopzz

PeteK* wrote: »

Which part of the country are you planning on doing your Xmas shopping?

What do you mean by the 'south'? No such country

Skopzz

I will be doing my entire xmas shopping in Enniskillen and Dungannon. Prices for groceries are very high down here

I want to save money and shop around. That way, retailers down here will feel the pressure and drop their high prices

shamblertine

Skopzz wrote: »

I will be doing my entire xmas shopping in Enniskillen and Dungannon. Prices for groceries are very high down here

I want to save money and shop around. That way, retailers down here will feel the pressure and drop their high prices

Why go to Dungannon? Its useless for shopping, Omagh is much better.

shamblertine

Skopzz wrote: »

What do you mean by the 'south'? No such country

The OP doesn't recognise the illegal occupation of Northern Ireland by the British

Cicero

For Presents, it will be the South this year - vouchers, small gifts etc as I do feel that I should support local retailers in some way (I already do my weekly shop down here anyway so it's not like I'm not contributing anything to this economy)
...saying that, no way i'm paying ROI booze prices so all that money is going North for wine/spirits etc.

I think the Kilkenny Cat is a stroke of Genius- hope it works out for them http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?threadid=2055739827

hellboy99

Up north for me again this Xmas, I go up north every week and make big savings, I'd be stupid not to go.

PCPhoto

wheres the option in the poll for online shopping - some of us feckers are too damn busy/lazy to travel to the shops for a bargain (click...click... 2 grand saved compared to local prices...woo hoo !)

Cicero

collegemum wrote: »

I have already been north and have gotten a good bit of christmas shopping. When you compare some of the prices you can fully understand why.
Here is an example:
A childs dress from Monsoon on the label - £47....€75 :eek: Monsoon were accepting Euro at a rate of €1 = £.95
A childs dress from Debenhams on the label - £37.....€57:(
Childs shoes from Debenhams - £13....€22.50

That is just 3 items out of the many i bought........ so i guess you can imagie i saved an absolute fortune not to mention the fact that 3 of us went up and filled the car to the brim......we must have saved close to €500 if not more between us. All for the sake of €20 petrol and a 1 hour drive.

Sure it took me 2 hours to get home from the RDS yesterday ......i couldve been to Newry and back

Can't blame you..I'm limiting the type of present shopping I'm doing this year to things like vouchers coupled with books/small gifts, to give the economy a chance but if I had to buy those type of items, I'm afraid I'd be up there with you as it's a no-brainer:o

Cicero

PeteK* wrote: »

Which part of the country are you planning on doing your Xmas shopping?

Can we have a 'both' in the survey...please please,,,can we can we???

Ann22

A mixture of both really. I looked in Debenhams for a party dress. Dresses around £60 were marked up to around €90. They give you a voucher for a tenner with every 50 spent too. I couldn't find anything I liked anyway so I ended up buying one for €25 in Dunnes in the republic.
I shop in Newry most weeks but do a small shop here every few weeks. I can throw loads of stuff in the trolley down there whereas when I'm home I have to nearly count what I'm buying..eg 7 different main meats for dinners or the little drinks for my son's lunches at school. £1.80 for 4 Fruices in Sainsburys, down here it's €2.99. Everything is cheaper down there. I bought something recently, I won't say what in case my oh reads this and it's part of his Xmas present. It was €25(I paid €27) in the Quays, here it would've cost me €94..It was on special down there though but still, huge saving.
I always do a fair bit of shopping in Boots here in town I have to say, the buy two get 3rd free is brilliant...and I have a club card so the points add up so I can treat myself to nice girly things:).

thebiglad

PCPhoto wrote: »

wheres the option in the poll for online shopping - some of us feckers are too damn busy/lazy to travel to the shops for a bargain (click...click... 2 grand saved compared to local prices...woo hoo !)

+1

Present shopping 90% complete via internet already

PeteK*

Skopzz wrote: »

What do you mean by the 'south'? No such country

I meant South of the Border.

Cicero wrote: »

Can we have a 'both' in the survey...please please,,,can we can we???

Pick where you'll do the majority?

lindtee

Agree with pcphoto and thebiglad, I've done pretty much all my Christmas shopping online (with the exception of a bargain laptop from pc world) The last few bits that i have to buy will be bought online also.

Why would I travel north when with a few clicks or some savvy bargain hunting in bricks and mortor shops I'm saving loads anyway

I've said before and I'll say it again, good value can be found in the republic. You just got to look.

efb

Amazon.co.uk via Cork with 21.5% VAT to pay the SW and PS Wage bill.

admiralofthefleet

ill get my drink up there but shop down here for everything else

soc

I'm not going to shop in the South... and can't be bothered to fight with the crowds in NI.

So, OH & I have decided to do our shopping online

There's quite a few online stores that offer goods at cheap prices, plus shipping at reasonable price.

With the over-inflated prices charged in Irish shops, there's no way I will bother my back-side to buy any goodies from an Irish shop.

MarysCross

I really like shopping in Newry it has everything I want shopping, restaurants and even a decent night out but the traffic is soo off putting.

I prefer (usually) to travel onto Armagh and Markethill. Parking, same shops really and no super market dodgems with everyone else!

Ally Dick

Why go to Newry ? Take a boat to Galway or Cork instead and buy up all the flood damaged stock

mcaul

collegemum wrote: »

I have already been north and have gotten a good bit of christmas shopping. When you compare some of the prices you can fully understand why.
Here is an example:
A childs dress from Monsoon on the label - £47....€75 :eek: Monsoon were accepting Euro at a rate of €1 = £.95
A childs dress from Debenhams on the label - £37.....€57:(
Childs shoes from Debenhams - £13....€22.50

Complaining about prices charged by UK retailers and then you go up north and hand your cash to the exact same retailers!!:eek:

Here's how UK multiples do their pricing. - They sit in a big office block in London, they take the UK retail price and multiply it by a rate of exchange that leaves no chance of loss.

Here's how an Irish owned business does their pricing - take landed cost of product (using REAL exchange rates) add retail margin, add vat. = Retail price and in most crcumstances 20% below UK multiples.

Check your local IRISH OWNED retailer - you'll be surprised at how similar the prices are to the UK and certainly not at a 1.60 exchange rate like certain UK multiples. But to say rip off Ireland and give UK multiples as an example is a farce!

A previous example I gave - halford 21" bosch wiper blades €15.49. Local IRISH owned motor factors €8.50 - same brand, same blade!

MarysCross

I largely agree on this point but the independent supermarket is a dieing breed unfortunately. You'll probably see Morrisons or the likes buying one of the Irish supermarkets in the next few years as well.

I would say though that the best value in the North is from non grocery independents anyway, besides that you actually get some customer service and appreciation for your custom.

Skopzz

mcaul wrote: »

Complaining about prices charged by UK retailers and then you go up north and hand your cash to the exact same retailers!!:eek:

Here's how UK multiples do their pricing. - They sit in a big office block in London, they take the UK retail price and multiply it by a rate of exchange that leaves no chance of loss.

Here's how an Irish owned business does their pricing - take landed cost of product (using REAL exchange rates) add retail margin, add vat. = Retail price and in most crcumstances 20% below UK multiples.

Check your local IRISH OWNED retailer - you'll be surprised at how similar the prices are to the UK and certainly not at a 1.60 exchange rate like certain UK multiples. But to say rip off Ireland and give UK multiples as an example is a farce!

A previous example I gave - halford 21" bosch wiper blades €15.49. Local IRISH owned motor factors €8.50 - same brand, same blade!

The irish retail margin is too high.

The retailers need to reduce their prices to single digit margins. If this happens, they will sell more items in the long term and make better profits from this. Otherwise, continue charging well into the double margins (driving customers away to the north for their grocery shopping) and experience the consequences.

mikemac

Don't own a car, don't live close to the border so most of my shopping will be done online

herya

Here in Dublin and some online. We don't overeat for Christmas, buy reasonable presents and can't be bothered to travel anywhere for this. A couple of drinks from an off-licence or some pints in a pub and we're sorted.

TheInquisitor

Skopzz wrote: »

The irish retail margin is too high.

The retailers need to reduce their prices to single digit margins. If this happens, they will sell more items in the long term and make better profits from this. Otherwise, continue charging well into the double margins (driving customers away to the north for their grocery shopping) and experience the consequences.

Single digit margins?? Do you have any idea how much it costs to run a business? Rent, Rates, Wages, Normal bills, VAT, Taxes!!!?

Woolworths in the UK went bust operating on a 33% margin. Your honestly saying if they dropped their margin to 9% that their sales would have increased 350%-400%?

Skopzz

TheInquisitor wrote: »

Single digit margins?? Do you have any idea how much it costs to run a business? Rent, Rates, Wages, Normal bills, VAT, Taxes!!!?

Woolworths in the UK went bust operating on a 33% margin. Your honestly saying if they dropped their margin to 9% that their sales would have increased 350%-400%?

Thats right, single digit margins... Lower prices encourage more spending, higher prices don't.

Consumer demand increases when prices are lowered. Once this happens, you focus on sustaining that capacity level. You order in more stock and the more that sells, the more you profit.

Price inflation is to be avoided unless you want more people doing their christmas and grocery shopping in the north.

mcaul

Skopzz wrote: »

Thats right, single digit margins... Lower prices encourage more spending, higher prices don't.

Consumer demand increases when prices are lowered. Once this happens, you focus on sustaining that capacity level. You order in more stock and the more that sells, the more you profit.

Price inflation is to be avoided unless you want more people doing their christmas and grocery shopping in the north.

no retailer in the world works on single digit margins before costs.

however most retailers work on achieving 6% - 7% net margin after costs. Currently i doubt if any independent retailer in Ireland is achieving anything like this. - I know I'll be happy to break even this year after getting substantial rent reductions, cutting my salary to what i need for mortgage & food, and by watching every variable cost possible.

But I know that next year or the year after I'll be back to a reasonable income and hopefully back making a 5% profit.

And my prices like many other INDEPENDENT irish retailers can be compared very favourably with any UK store.

hellboy99

mcaul wrote: »

And my prices like many other INDEPENDENT irish retailers can be compared very favourably with any UK store.

Examples ?

Skopzz

mcaul wrote: »

But I know that next year or the year after I'll be back to a reasonable income and hopefully back making a 5% profit.

You don't get it, do you? Consumers spending habits are changing FOREVER.... Plus the added benefit of cross border shopping to save more money.

You seem to have the perception that 'I'll put up me prices again' - WRONG ANSWER. It will have the opposite effect, I guarantee you.

gaz wac

All South for me, couldnt be bothered to go North and dont trust this interweb stuff , anyway, no recession in our house, best year of my life as reguards to out goings !!