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PENNEYS HAPPY RETURN
How Irish love affair with Penneys began as 250k snap up shop appointments and slots up for €100 online
Updated: 12 May 2021, 16:38
THE nation’s obsession with Penneys was reignited this week - as shops opened by appointent only for loyal customers.
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Garfield Weston s son Galen and his wife Hilary who were at the opening of the first Penneys storeCredit: Getty Images - Getty
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Police look on as a major blaze engulfs Primark s Belfast store in August 2018Credit: PA:Press Association
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Primark s Arthur Ryan and Paul Marchant at Madrid shop opening in 2014Credit: Reuters
And after 250,000 eager shoppers snapped up bookings, appointment slots were even spotted for sale online on Done Deal and Facebook Marketplace for up to €100.
Marianne from Normal People was dressed out of The Harlequin store. Her tea dresses and that memorable velvet blazer everyone coveted watching the TV show were sourced from the famous vintage clothing store on Dublin’s Castle Market.
However, when retail finally reopens again, Fiona Smyth will not be opening the doors of the famous shop she opened with her mother, Susan, a quarter of a century ago.
Instead, she is moving out of bricks and mortar and switching her business model.
After pivoting to online during lockdown, Fiona has decided to stick to that retail landscape.
“Lockdown put too much pressure on the business and we could not afford to keep paying the rent at the same rate we were paying. It just wasn’t sustainable long term,” said Fiona, who now hopes to reach a global market with her online business.
Is Amazon.ie On The Way?
Listen to this episode
It will allow retailers to bypass issues caused by Brexit in servicing the Irish market.
There are also reports that Amazon is in talks about the possibility of locating a distribution facility and other infrastructure at Shannon Airport.
Could we soon see the launch of an Amazon.ie website?
Tech journalist Andy O Donoghue, fashion and retail consultant Eddie Shanahan and Joan Henry, chief economist and head of research at Knight Frank, joined us to discuss what this would mean for Irish retail.
Is Amazon.ie On The Way? 00:00:00 / 00:00:00
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The main hall at the RDS would traditionally be packed the third week of January as more than 1,100 international buyers converge on Dublin to place orders with Irish craftspeople and designers worth millions of euro.
Virtual is certainly different from the annual catch-up and coffees at the RDS. While there might not be the ambient scent of candles, or the faint whiff of turf burning on a souvenirs stand, business is continuing almost round the clock for five days with buyers logging in globally from 17 countries.