Mart Site Sold

road_high

HughCassidy wrote: »

A lot of shops are after closing around the town I hope the people that can will do something about it.

There's been a huge shakeout of late. Rents and rates are too high, Kilkenny is under enormous pressure from newer and better retail choices within driving distance coupled with the growth in online retail.
Something drastic needs to be done to help small business in the town.

1984baby

road_high wrote: »

There's been a huge shakeout of late. Rents and rates are too high, Kilkenny is under enormous pressure from newer and better retail choices within driving distance coupled with the growth in online retail.
Something drastic needs to be done to help small business in the town.

I do not know how our rent prices compare to other parts of Ireland, but we have one of the lowest Commercial rates in the country.
The biggest problem I see is online shopping and customer loyalty. The amount of people who go into shops in kk and try items and then go straight off and purchase them online is ridiculous. They'd get it shipped from anywhere even if €1 was the saving and then they'd be the 1st to complain when shops close in the city. Not only are local businesses losing out on revenue but also the government is losing out on the VAT.

road_high

1984baby wrote: »

I do not know how our rent prices compare to other parts of Ireland, but we have one of the lowest Commercial rates in the country.
The biggest problem I see is online shopping and customer loyalty. The amount of people who go into shops in kk and try items and then go straight off and purchase them online is ridiculous. They'd get it shipped from anywhere even if €1 was the saving and then they'd be the 1st to complain when shops close in the city. Not only are local businesses losing out on revenue but also the government is losing out on the VAT.

There's not a lot in the middle of Kilkenny that makes say yes, I want to visit and shop there- like you have Hollister, A&F etc in Dublin that make me say precisely that.
I hear a few more shops have bitten the bullet in Market Cross- Mr. Simms and the Euroshop- in advance of Dealz, they can't compete and are leaving.
Also the Lloyds chemist is gone too. Place needs a drastic overall.

imacman

I heard that the market cross is going to demolish and combine all of those small empty stores on that side of the center into one big unit.

road_high

imacman wrote: »

I heard that the market cross is going to demolish and combine all of those small empty stores on that side of the center into one big unit.

Most sensible thing. I believe the market for smaller units is pretty limited. Small businesses can't afford the rent/rates, multiples can.

bamayang

You'd imagine Pennys could easily double their footprint if they could get the cafe, elverys, bookshop and shoe shop all as part of their unit.

road_high

bamayang wrote: »

You'd imagine Pennys could easily double their footprint if they could get the cafe, elverys, bookshop and shoe shop all as part of their unit.

The bookshop has been there since the place opened. So has the Café (as Bewleys) and would cost a lot to move/re-jig with catering equipment/kitchens. Shame Bewleys didn't stay, it's rubbish but could have a lot of potential. Food isn't great and overpriced.
The management of that place are not good and seem determined to push the place down-market. Back in the 90s/early 2000s that shopping centre was actually a really nice place with some great shops.
They've taken it down a few notches with a horrible cheap looking lino floor thing (instead of tiles) and garish 80s music on loop.

imacman

road_high wrote: »

The bookshop has been there since the place opened. So has the Café (as Bewleys) and would cost a lot to move/re-jig with catering equipment/kitchens. Shame Bewleys didn't stay, it's rubbish but could have a lot of potential. Food isn't great and overpriced.
The management of that place are not good and seem determined to push the place down-market. Back in the 90s/early 2000s that shopping centre was actually a really nice place with some great shops.
They've taken it down a few notches with a horrible cheap looking lino floor thing (instead of tiles) and garish 80s music on loop.

I agree the floors is terrible , the security guy in there told me they changed it because of the people were slipping on the tiles.They should just have roofed the place and made it indoors instead.Also Supervalu cant last much longer in there, its only got basket bit and pieces shoppers and Loughboy is open longer with easier free parking and exactly the same stock. Its long way from the store it was when Superquinn owned it.

holyhead

Their is a possibility, if Penneys don't go to the mart that they would have the means to go upstair into Supervalu should that close. The Mart move would surprise me as Penneys are usually in the town centre.

road_high

imacman wrote: »

I agree the floors is terrible , the security guy in there told me they changed it because of the people were slipping on the tiles.They should just have roofed the place and made it indoors instead.Also Supervalu cant last much longer in there, its only got basket bit and pieces shoppers and Loughboy is open longer with easier free parking and exactly the same stock. Its long way from the store it was when Superquinn owned it.

Yea agree re the super valu- it’s terribly ran though, poor enough in terms of stock and value and not a patch on SQ. The opening hours are also dire. Closes at 7.00pm most evenings which these days isn’t at the races.
I sometimes shop between there and tesco in Carlow and it’s noticeably more expensive- grocery shoppers in Kilkenny are getting a very poor deal thanks to lack of real competition.

madmaggie

One time I used to love strolling around Kilkenny, now I go to McDonough Junction if I want Dunnes, Boots, etc, and no further. I did like the Penneys in Market Cross, but since Penneys in Carlow relocated to the old SuperQuinn , it is much more spacious and well laid out. The one in Kilkenny feels cramped. I could never understand why Market Cross wasn't roofed over from the start. It's sad to see the family run businesses closing, and High Street turning into another street of chain stores.

1984baby

road_high wrote: »

Yea agree re the super valu- it’s terribly ran though, poor enough in terms of stock and value and not a patch on SQ. The opening hours are also dire. Closes at 7.00pm most evenings which these days isn’t at the races.
I sometimes shop between there and tesco in Carlow and it’s noticeably more expensive- grocery shoppers in Kilkenny are getting a very poor deal thanks to lack of real competition.

"grocery shoppers in Kilkenny are getting a very poor deal thanks to lack of real competition"
What are you on about??? We have 2 Aldi, 2Lidl, 2Dunnes and 2 Supervalu's in the city alone. Aldi and Lidl are the cheapest supermarkets in Ireland according to the latest surveys.

road_high

1984baby wrote: »

"grocery shoppers in Kilkenny are getting a very poor deal thanks to lack of real competition"
What are you on about??? We have 2 Aldi, 2Lidl, 2Dunnes and 2 Supervalu's in the city alone. Aldi and Lidl are the cheapest supermarkets in Ireland according to the latest surveys.

And what if you don’t want Aldi or lidl? I regularly shop in Carlow or Portlaoise in tesco as the choice and value isn’t comparable in Kilkenny. Competition is lacking in Kilkenny with the result it’s more expensive

bertie4evr

road_high wrote: »

And what if you don’t want Aldi or lidl? I regularly shop in Carlow or Portlaoise in tesco as the choice and value isn’t comparable in Kilkenny. Competition is lacking in Kilkenny with the result it’s more expensive

Four out of five supermarkets is "lacking"? I've never found Tesco to be much cheaper than Dunnes to be honest anyway.

HughCassidy

road_high wrote: »

And what if you don’t want Aldi or lidl? I regularly shop in Carlow or Portlaoise in tesco as the choice and value isn’t comparable in Kilkenny. Competition is lacking in Kilkenny with the result it’s more expensive

Does the likes of Tesco support local produced products like super value, Spar Newpark shopping centre etc .As regards Tesco if you like that sort of shop fair enough I like my butchers, green grocers,bits pieces shop.

road_high

bertie4evr wrote: »

Four out of five supermarkets is "lacking"? I've never found Tesco to be much cheaper than Dunnes to be honest anyway.

No M&S, no Iceland, no major local owned store. Yes, definitely lacking and I don't do some grocery shopping elsewhere for the laugh- I do it because it's a better experience than what Kilkenny offers. If you don't agree and are happy with having less choice than elsewhere then that's your prerogative and choice

road_high

Was down in Market cross a few days ago and they are fitting out the Dealz/Pepco shop- Penney's must have gotten over their objection!
Will do a roaring trade there.

duffman13

road_high wrote: »

Was down in Market cross a few days ago and they are fitting out the Dealz/Pepco shop- Penney's must have gotten over their objection!
Will do a roaring trade there.

They are hoping to open relatively quickly by all accounts, construction guy said 2 weeks is the usual for out of a dealz store however apparently there is a bit of work in flipping the unit.

Dealz and a combination of poor planning killed Naas town centre and tbh Kilkenny is going the same road very quickly.

road_high

duffman13 wrote: »

They are hoping to open relatively quickly by all accounts, construction guy said 2 weeks is the usual for out of a dealz store however apparently there is a bit of work in flipping the unit.

Dealz and a combination of poor planning killed Naas town centre and tbh Kilkenny is going the same road very quickly.

You can't compare Naas and Kilkenny- what happened there was a combination of dismal parking, choking traffic, closure of large stores in the town like Superquinn, M&S and at the same time a massive Tesco store (with free, convenient parking) opened on the Monread road sapping further business out of the town centre.
Dealz is one of the few worthwhile stores in Naas town centre so not sure how it killed it?

duffman13

road_high wrote: »

You can't compare Naas and Kilkenny- what happened there was a combination of dismal parking, choking traffic, closure of large stores in the town like Superquinn, M&S and at the same time a massive Tesco store (with free, convenient parking) opened on the Monread road sapping further business out of the town centre.
Dealz is one of the few worthwhile stores in Naas town centre so not sure how it killed it?

See how the next 12 months go, I dont see Supervalu sticking around in Market Cross, your right about Monread tbf but Dealz led to a lot of the smaller shops closing in the town centre. I like Dealz but it's going to take business from already strained retailers. Argos were looking at moving out of the high street last year until the Sainsburys deal went through. I can see them moving out next year when the lease is up for renewal.

Discount retailers dominate a lot of towns in the UK and Ireland is following suit. Variation is key but Kilkenny is never going to get the likes of a Marks and Spencers or the like that may attract more people to the high street.

Btw I welcome Dealz as it's great to have them in town in such a big unit but I'd also be wary. Superdrug will be good but it's just an expansion on the likes of what Boots and McCauleys are offering aswell.

PaulKK

duffman13 wrote: »

Argos were looking at moving out of the high street last year until the Sainsburys deal went through. I can see them moving out next year when the lease is up for renewal.

I can see Argos moving up beside Woodies alright. Just like Sherwood's, it doesn't make sense for shops that sell bulky items to be in the city center.

I think it's a real pity a lot of these chain stores are taking over. While it is nice to see the mall back in use again, in it's day it had a variety of different shops in there, jewlers, shoes, camping, music, and an resteraunt back in the day. Now it's a UK chain store of something that we are already saturated with - sports shops.

Its nice to see units not being left idle but it's hard to celebrate another sport shop, chemist or "pound shop" type place opening and removing one more little piece of character from the city center.

madmaggie

^^^^

I never understood why Argos was in the High Street. Down in Market Yard would have been better, parking wise. I remember bringing things down The Butter Slip before the Carlow branch opened. So handy in Carlow, you can park outside the door. I really hope Kilkenny does not go down the cheap and nasty route of pound shops, fast food outlets, betting shops, etc. The city has great character, it would be a shame to lose that in it's main street.

BoroMan32

road_high wrote: »

Was down in Market cross a few days ago and they are fitting out the Dealz/Pepco shop- Penney's must have gotten over their objection!
Will do a roaring trade there.

Opening on Saturday.



NEW STORE ALERT �� Come and visit us at the grand opening of our new Kilkenny store on 14th April at 10am. Our first 500 customers each get a golden ticket which contains prizes!

road_high

madmaggie wrote: »

^^^^

I never understood why Argos was in the High Street. Down in Market Yard would have been better, parking wise. I remember bringing things down The Butter Slip before the Carlow branch opened. So handy in Carlow, you can park outside the door. I really hope Kilkenny does not go down the cheap and nasty route of pound shops, fast food outlets, betting shops, etc. The city has great character, it would be a shame to lose that in it's main street.

They sell a lot of non bulky small items. As I understand, bye-laws in Kilkenny used forbid the sale of non-bulky items outside the centre core of town. Not sure if this is still the case, but a lot of the reason why Kilkenny didn't see much in the way of out of town shopping.
Bulky items being furniture, large electrical, DIY/Gardening goods.

Fortyjocks

Saw a sign up outside the new cinema site during the week saying it would be opening in 2019, thought it might have been ready to go later this year!

imacman

9 months is a reasonable build time, I imagine they will push to have it open for Christmas. Great to see it finally underway

toe_knee

Kitting out a cinema is takes a hell of a long time. The amount of equipment and specialist gear needed

road_high

I see Lifestyle sports are opening at Macdonagh? Looks like the old Goods Shed place beside the credit Union...are they moving from place on High st?

toe_knee

road_high wrote: »

I see Lifestyle sports are opening at Macdonagh? Looks like the old Goods Shed place beside the credit Union...are they moving from place on High st?

Seen a planning application gone in for a canopy between the Goods Shed and MacDonagh.

Wonder will they move

imacman

Some nice architects pictures of the new cinema here , it look really great
http://steelandroofingsystems.ie/srs-project-win/
Some good technical information and pics of the enormous steel work going into the cinema here
https://www.steelconstruction.info/Kilkenny_cinema