Clery's O'Connell Street is gone

whiskeyman

delahuntv wrote: »

Rule number 1 - kids will NEVER shop where their mother's shop - and that applies at all age levels.

Nonsense statement.

Arnotts, BTs, Dunnes, Pennys and M&S will tell you otherwise.

I've only been in once in the past 10 years because I simply have had no need.
I'd mostly shop in Dundrum, or when In town would have Grafton St area or may venture up towards Arnotts / Jervis.

the_syco

whiskeyman wrote: »

Arnotts, BTs, Dunnes, Pennys and M&S will tell you otherwise.

I've only been in once in the past 10 years because I simply have had no need.
I'd mostly shop in Dundrum, or when In town would have Grafton St area or may venture up towards Arnotts / Jervis.

IMO, it not being on Henrys or Grafton Street didn't help it. The only reason you'd go near Clerys is if you were going to Clerys.

I also wonder if they ever owned the store, or were they still renting it?

delahuntv

whiskeyman wrote: »

Nonsense statement.

Arnotts, BTs, Dunnes, Pennys and M&S will tell you otherwise.

I've only been in once in the past 10 years because I simply have had no need.
I'd mostly shop in Dundrum, or when In town would have Grafton St area or may venture up towards Arnotts / Jervis.

Retail all over the world goes by that phrase. Doesn't mean you don't get them, but you target your main market and do that as best as possible.

Clerys themselves and the product they sold targeted a 55+ age group. The concessions went for a lower age group. Neither did eitehr job well, hence no affinity with the store from either age group.

Arnotts primary target is 24-55
M&S target 30+ age group (no teenager will admit that M&S is their favourite store)
Pennys sell on a discount price, but main target is 15-44.
Dunnes very much 25-55 age group (parents with kids)

Judging by your stated preferences, I'd say ABC1 male, 30-39 age group.

InTheTrees

delahuntv wrote: »

This has nothign to do with labour laws. The store was losing €2 MILLION a year.

Huh??

I was referring to the reasons why the employees got 30 mins notice that the place was closing and that they were laid off.

??

delahuntv

InTheTrees wrote: »

Huh??

I was referring to the reasons why the employees got 30 mins notice that the place was closing and that they were laid off.

??

But in a liquidation very specific rules have to be adhered to.

But i do agree that the owners should have done it in a different manner and at least had the decency to face the workers. But once liquidator was appointed there was no other way to do it.

IMO the previous owners Gordon Bros, could have even put 500k into a special fund for the workers from the sale price of the building - this would have been the decent thing to do.

dpe

Arnotts owns Boyers, not Clerys.

dpe

delahuntv wrote: »

But in a liquidation very specific rules have to be adhered to.

But i do agree that the owners should have done it in a different manner and at least had the decency to face the workers. But once liquidator was appointed there was no other way to do it.

IMO the previous owners Gordon Bros, could have even put 500k into a special fund for the workers from the sale price of the building - this would have been the decent thing to do.

Actually in Gordon Bros' defence, they could have written off Clerys after the fire and water damage that gutted the place a couple of years ago, but they did spend the cash to redevelop the site (which surprised quite a few people). Now, they're fairly pragmatic VC's who are known as "flippers" (buy, add value, get out in 2-3 years) so something was always likely to happen to Clerys around this time, so its not that surprising this has happened. They did give the place a fair crack of the whip.

Being dispassionate about it; they were doomed to fail. Clery's sold almost nothing that Arnotts doesn't sell (usually with a bigger range) and in area with almost no retail footfall. Department stores need an "ecosystem" of other stores to make them into a retail destination (its a symbiotic thing; shopping malls usually have one or two dept stores as anchor tenants, but they also need a good roster of specialist stores to create a destination). Arnotts just about has enough around it on Henry Street (and it really is just about, the area lacks enough restaurants and social spaces really), but Clerys had almost nothing.

What the whole area really needs (and I mean the O'Connell Street and Henry Street areas) is more specialist retail, fewer fast food and convenience stores, and a park or plaza that actually attracted families. Oh, and get rid of the druggies. Like it or not, most modern European cities don't have mobs of druggies and drunks roaming about the middle of town.

Stheno

According to the Irish Times they are still selling vouchers on their website!

gaiscioch

Duckjob wrote: »

Would *love* a place in Dublin like the English Market. Its a place I always go to when I'm in Cork. However, I would expect there would be uproar from the Moore St traders though.

What's the difference between that English market and what were the Iveagh Market and Mother Redcap's market in Dublin? (both of which are currently being redeveloped into a joint new market)

delahuntv

Stheno wrote: »

According to the Irish Times they are still selling vouchers on their website!

Journalistic standards these days are quite poor - even in the IT.

The second a liquidator is appointed they are in charge and everythign else freezes, so whilst the website allowed for the purchase, it would have been refunded as the company in effect stopped operating at 4.00pm on Friday and all bank accounts were frozen.

If the journalist had checked with one of her business editors she would have been able to find this out.

But then why ruin a tabloid headline? - even if it was the IT.

Atlantic Dawn

When and where will the current stock be sold off?

bert911

Rumour Apple opening store next year

dpe

bert911 wrote: »

Rumour Apple opening store next year

Why on Earth would Apple open a store there? And its too big anyway. If they open an Apple store in Dublin it will be on Grafton Street or in Dundrum. Go and look at the locations of their stores in other countries.

jimmii

dpe wrote: »

Why on Earth would Apple open a store there? And its too big anyway. If they open an Apple store in Dublin it will be on Grafton Street or in Dundrum. Go and look at the locations of their stores in other countries.

Agreed. Unless its part of some large plan with a few other places there is almost zero chance Apple go in there.

Kalman

[I]Clerys still selling vouchers on website despite closure
Department store’s website allows purchase of gift cards that will not be honoured

Cash deposits

Clerys was accepting large cash deposits for household goods just days before the closure, with some reports suggesting a customer had handed over in the region of €5,000 last week.
[/I]

Faith+1

dpe wrote: »

Why on Earth would Apple open a store there? And its too big anyway. If they open an Apple store in Dublin it will be on Grafton Street or in Dundrum. Go and look at the locations of their stores in other countries.

Very true. Almost reminds me of Timberland when they opened in Blanch shopping centre. It was a lovely shop with fantastic products for sale but was definitely serving the wrong demographic.

It closed quite soon after.

Simon2015

Another Rumour I heard is that they are going to turn the Clerys building into a Methadone clinic.

jimmii

Simon2015 wrote: »

Another Rumour I heard is that they are going to turn the Clerys building into a Methadone clinic.

Sounds a lot more likely than an Apple Store. I wouldn't be surprised if Starbucks felt they needed a bigger presence in the area and decided to turn it into the world biggest Starbucks.

Vomit

jimmii wrote: »

Sounds a lot more likely than an Apple Store. I wouldn't be surprised if Starbucks felt they needed a bigger presence in the area and decided to turn it into the world biggest Starbucks.

Or combine both for, like, the Applebucks Store, which would be like totes amazing like!

Hootanany

dpe wrote: »

Why on Earth would Apple open a store there? And its too big anyway. If they open an Apple store in Dublin it will be on Grafton Street or in Dundrum. Go and look at the locations of their stores in other countries.

Thats a bit racist Northside euro is the same as southside euro not nice to diss northside people.

Faith+1

Hootanany wrote: »

Thats a bit racist Northside euro is the same as southside euro not nice to diss northside people.

It is the same however Southside people tend to have a lot more!

L1011

Hootanany wrote: »

Thats a bit racist Northside euro is the same as southside euro not nice to diss northside people.

Its not racist, its realistic.

Apple does not place stores anywhere other than "premium" shopping centres and core shopping streets.

Clery's location is neither.

moc moc a moc

Hootanany wrote: »

Thats a bit racist Northside euro is the same as southside euro not nice to diss northside people.

Northsiders are not a separate race you lunatic

delahuntv

bert911 wrote: »

Rumour Apple opening store next year

No and yes.

There's no rumour, but the most likely plan is they will create a premium shopping mall on the ground floor with large 4000 sq ft + footplates. This will allow 15-18 stores operate from the ground floor retail area and with Luas running front and back of the store, it would be a very attractive location for many international names.

At present there are at least 20 large international retailers (including apple) wantign to locate in Dublin. Problem is lack of large ground floor space in the Grafton st - Henry street retail axis.

Office will be on the first floor and a hotel is mooted for 3rd & 4th floors with rooftop restaurant and bar.

If all goes to plan, the retail element will be open for Christmas next year.

delahuntv

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

When and where will the current stock be sold off?

ah jaysus - wait til after the wake!!!

jimmii

Faith+1 wrote: »

It is the same however Southside people tend to have a lot more!

Funnily enough on average shoppers spend more when they go to Henry St than they do when they go to Grafton St.

dpe

Hootanany wrote: »

Thats a bit racist Northside euro is the same as southside euro not nice to diss northside people.

Hardly "racist". Its just demographics. And I have no axe to grind, I live on the northside.

Eugene Norman

Talk of northside and south side in a city centre is nonsense.

I think an Apple Store would suit o'connell street more than grafton street, as it's the better street potentially. Architecturally nicer and wider. The buildings are fine, it's just a matter of policing better.

Eugene Norman

jimmii wrote: »

Funnily enough on average shoppers spend more when they go to Henry St than they do when they go to Grafton St.

Yeah, so Henry St to south O'Connell street could be a pretty good cachement area.

dpe

delahuntv wrote: »

No and yes.

There's no rumour, but the most likely plan is they will create a premium shopping mall on the ground floor with large 4000 sq ft + footplates. This will allow 15-18 stores operate from the ground floor retail area and with Luas running front and back of the store, it would be a very attractive location for many international names.

At present there are at least 20 large international retailers (including apple) wantign to locate in Dublin. Problem is lack of large ground floor space in the Grafton st - Henry street retail axis.

Office will be on the first floor and a hotel is mooted for 3rd & 4th floors with rooftop restaurant and bar.

If all goes to plan, the retail element will be open for Christmas next year.

Its not big enough. If you divide it up its still not going to have enough in it to divert people from Henry St/Grafton St. Especially if they're going to take space a way for a hotel.

No matter which way you cut it, O'Connell Street is "off-prime" from a retailer perspective; I was wandering down there yesterday and once you take away the food and convenience stores you're down to three shoe shops, a run-down Penneys (although maybe their purchase of the Independent building will change that), two pharmacies, Easons and Ann Summers. Without forced rezoning, which Dublin City Council can't do, either financially or probably legally, restructuring the Clerys building isn't going to give enough extra retail to make the street a shopping destination. Its probably better off as a hotel to be honest.