Buying Irish?

DesignLady

I was wondering if the constant talk and growing impact of our recession has changed peoples attitudes on buying Irish? What I mean is that would a 'made in Ireland' logo (as rare as it is now) make a difference in your buying habits or does cost or convenience always win out.

I just seem to remember when I was much younger and no one had money that there were big campaigns to get people to buy Irish and support the economy. Are we beyond that now?

Honey-ec

DesignLady wrote: »

I was wondering if the constant talk and growing impact of our recession has changed peoples attitudes on buying Irish? What I mean is that would a 'made in Ireland' logo (as rare as it is now) make a difference in your buying habits or does cost or convenience always win out.

I just seem to remember when I was much younger and no one had money that there were big campaigns to get people to buy Irish and support the economy. Are we beyond that now?

Unfortunately, in a lot of cases buying Irish is a sure-fire way not to save money...

Colonel Sanders

as long as we are talking about items of comparable quality the price tag is the only thing that influences my decision.

In fact I travel north for a lot of my purchases (be they Irish made or otherwise) as they are cheaper than in the Republic

ongarite

TBH, people don't give a crap where things are made as long as it cheap.
We couldn't care if that €5 t-shirt was made by a one-legged leper being payed $1 a month in Mongolia as long as it cost €5.
And thats the truth.. IMO

gixerfixer

I go up to the North once a month now for most of my food stuff and household items. Get fruit and veg down here but that's about it. In my opinion i save about 200-250 a month shopping up North compared to down here and that's including the price of diesel up and back. I'll buy Irish when the prices move back to reality

Colonel Sanders

gixerfixer wrote: »

I go up to the North once a month now for most of my food stuff and household items. Get fruit and veg down here but that's about it. In my opinion i save about 200-250 a month shopping up North compared to down here and that's including the price of diesel up and back. I'll buy Irish when the prices move back to reality

my sentiments exactly

gixerfixer

ongarite wrote: »

TBH, people don't give a crap where things are made as long as it cheap.
We couldn't care if that €5 t-shirt was made by a one-legged leper being payed $1 a month in Mongolia as long as it cost €5.
And thats the truth.. IMO

Honest but true opinion. Most people will say that's disgusting blah blah etc...but they are the one's shopping in pennys or wearing nikes.

pseudonym1

The trend of localizing product supposedly follows recession! With consumer tendencies increasingly turning away from mass retailers and demand for organic produce a reversion to tradition and crafts is on the cards

I hope it will enhance Irish design and afford the opportunity to buy Irish.

ScouseMouse

I own a shop and this country is to bloody expensive to do anything in. I am currently selling imported coke which I am buying for 8 euro a case. Coke here is 11 euro a case.

Demi baguettes from a famous irish/french producer are nearly double the price of larger demis from an alternative company.

I go to asda in the UK and buy gillette blades for less than I can get them wholesale here.

I went to Costco in Liverpool and bought Yazoo milk drink and saved 3 euros per case of 8 units against the exact same case here.

I laugh when I hear the unions are demanding pay increases when I know companies are laying off big time (me included)

This country is fecked.

dotsman

I buy Irish where the quality/price is roughly in line with the competition (I don't mind a small difference). But if there's a huge difference - tough.

Cappoquin chickens ftw!

Hagar

Wait till IKEA comes in, everything made in China.

Kimbot

Ireland is a rip.
Was in Gran Canaria and 1 litre of Smirnoff Vodka was max €10.
Over here it is €34 for a litre!!

Guy:Incognito

gixerfixer wrote: »

I'll buy Irish when the prices move back to reality

Why do people expect to earn more but stuff should cost the same? Would everyone be happy to take a pay cut to lower prices?

jonny24ie wrote: »

Ireland is a rip.
Was in Gran Canaria and 1 litre of Smirnoff Vodka was max €10.
Over here it is €34 for a litre!!

Again, how much was the person selling it to you earning (I'll give you a hint, it was most likely a fraction of what you do) If you were on a local wage I doubt you think it was so much of a bargan.

superscouse wrote: »

. I am currently selling imported coke which I am buying for 8 euro a case. Coke here is 11 euro a case.
.

Do you sell it cheaper than other shops buyign Irish coke at €11 a case? (I've yet to find a shop that does)


Btw the foreign stuff is muck and I refuse to buy it, I leave shops when I cant get a proper bottle of coke, it tastes manky.

Kimbot

Stekelly wrote: »

Why do people expect to earn more but stuff should cost the same? Would everyone be happy to take a pay cut to lower prices?



Again, how much was the person selling it to you earning (I'll give you a hint, it was most likely a fraction of what you do) If you were on a local wage I doubt you think it was so much of a bargan.

I spoke to a few people working over there and even in the crummy jobs their wages were decent.

Blisterman

It's the Canary Islands. Not eithiopia.
Wages aren't that different.

Anyway, that's the governments fault, more than the shops. Too many taxes.

Guy:Incognito

jonny24ie wrote: »

I spoke to a few people working over there and even in the crummy jobs their wages were decent.

You'll have to be more specific than "decent". Our minimum wage is €8.65 iirc. Thats 25% higher than the Uk. I seriously doubt they are on even the UK wage.

EDIT. After a quick google it would seenm the Spanish minimum wage is $4.25 (€2.99 ish) http://news.yahoo.com/page/minimum_wage

DublinWriter

gixerfixer wrote: »

I go up to the North once a month now for most of my food stuff and household items. Get fruit and veg down here but that's about it. In my opinion i save about 200-250 a month shopping up North compared to down here and that's including the price of diesel up and back. I'll buy Irish when the prices move back to reality

Hear-hear.

I go up to Newry once a fortnight for the 'big-shop', mainly non-perishables.

I bulk-buy stuff like Diet Coke, about 20 2-litre bottles a trip as this alone pays for the Diesel. €1.25 per bottle compared to €1.99 even in Lidl.

I recently bought a Flymo mower for £79 in B&Q Newry, the same model was on sale for £189 in our nearest 4Home store.

Basically I only buy milk, bread and veggies in the ROI now, and even then I go to Aldi/Lidl.

We are way beyond the 'Guaranteed Irish' marque now. It's just a bad-hangover from the 1970's.

I think people here are slowly cottoning on to the reality of Rip-Off-Ireland. Anecdotally, I know a few of the people who work in our local rip off village Londis and they've told me that business has been way down in the past two months.

We are witnessing the early days of Irish consumers starting to vote with their feet en-massè. About time too.

dudara

Aren't the Canary Islands considered Duty-Free? Even if that doesn't have an impact, I know from being in Spain that taxes on alcohol are lower than here.

If a "Made in Ireland" item (as opposed to an item bought in Ireland) offers good value, then I'll buy it.

ScouseMouse

I was in tenerife and 7 of us went out for a nice meal for my birthday. Mostly three courses each, including drinks all round, set me back €105. With a twenty quid tip on top, it was well worth it.

A week later, I took my mum to Joels on the naas rd. Three adults and a child. €130. You could have knocked me over with a feather.

Joels has gone down a lot since it was bought over and the prices have gone up while portions have gone down.

Wont be going there again !!!

Honey-ec

superscouse wrote: »

I own a shop and this country is to bloody expensive to do anything in. I am currently selling imported coke which I am buying for 8 euro a case. Coke here is 11 euro a case.

Demi baguettes from a famous irish/french producer are nearly double the price of larger demis from an alternative company.

I go to asda in the UK and buy gillette blades for less than I can get them wholesale here.

I went to Costco in Liverpool and bought Yazoo milk drink and saved 3 euros per case of 8 units against the exact same case here.

I laugh when I hear the unions are demanding pay increases when I know companies are laying off big time (me included)

This country is fecked.

Bet you still sell them at the Irish market value, though.

ScouseMouse

Honey-ec wrote: »

Bet you still sell them at the Irish market value, though.

Actually I am not. I am selling them as a special price case deal and have dropped 1500 leaflets in the locality !

Guy:Incognito

superscouse wrote: »

Actually I am not. I am selling them as a special price case deal and have dropped 1500 leaflets in the locality !

Where is it sourced? Is it the arabic stuff?

I honestly wouldnt drink that if it was free. It's rank.

axer

superscouse wrote: »

I own a shop and this country is to bloody expensive to do anything in. I am currently selling imported coke which I am buying for 8 euro a case. Coke here is 11 euro a case.

I hope you are not selling that crappy coke with the arabic on the side of it. I bought one once and it was disgusting - very sweet. The next time I see it on sale in a shop I will be purchasing it again to mistakenly spill it all over the floor.

ejmaztec

I remember seeing a "Guaranteed Irish" logo on a bottle of orange squash and was wondering where the Irish orange groves are located.

Hagar

Sandy Row?

ejmaztec

Hagar wrote: »

Sandy Row?

7/10 for trying. :P

ruprect

Blisterman wrote: »

It's the Canary Islands. Not eithiopia.
Wages aren't that different.

Anyway, that's the governments fault, more than the shops. Too many taxes.

Canaries are duty free AFAIK. If you buy from say the UK, then you are usually contributing towards their economy, i.e. paying UK VAT.

When looking at say a cd you should compare the play.com price with HMV minus the 21% VAT. If every single person bought cds from play, then the gov would loose out on all that revenue, and simply increase other taxes to make up the shortfall. I wonder if they will revise the tax on certain items to take note of this. e.g. if they were to scrap VAT on cds & dvds and simply increase income tax they would get the same revenue, and then jobs would be saved in shops that otherwise could not compete. But I suppose it is not fair on people who have no interest in buying cds etc...

But you can see my point, online shopping has harmed some industries, people are still paying VAT in a lot of cases, but to other countries economies.

Tipsy Mac

jonny24ie wrote: »

Ireland is a rip.
Was in Gran Canaria and 1 litre of Smirnoff Vodka was max €10.
Over here it is €34 for a litre!!

The Irish government is responsible for this, duty is €10 a bottle. Take thee North to Newry, 1 litre of Smirnoff is only €18.22, happy times

http://www.sainsburys.com/groceries/shopping/details/product_detail.jsp?bmUID=1221156041543&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_0_id=0&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_1_id=1&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_2_id=2534374320018174&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_3_id=2534374310892615&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_4_id=2534374310893377&NEW_NAVIGATOR%3C%3Elevel_5_id=1689949372073531

WiseMona

DesignLady wrote: »

I was wondering if the constant talk and growing impact of our recession has changed peoples attitudes on buying Irish? What I mean is that would a 'made in Ireland' logo (as rare as it is now) make a difference in your buying habits or does cost or convenience always win out.

I just seem to remember when I was much younger and no one had money that there were big campaigns to get people to buy Irish and support the economy. Are we beyond that now?

I buy Irish at every given opportunity. The recession has not just hit Ireland, it is resonating throughout the world. When I spend my hard earned cash, I am pumping it right back into the Irish economy in the hopes that we will bounce back by 2010. If each one of you did the same, you would do wonders for our own back yard instead of supporting the economy of other countries. Be proud, Buy Irish. Stop complaining, start doing.;)

Danno

Sure, support Irish where we are somewhat competitive. But what is the point in purchasing Irish stuff that costs twice the price of other stuff? It is Irish businesses that need to take the lead and cut the costs of their produce. The problem I see with it all is with businesses themselves who are reluctant to find cost savings within their own operations. They only knee-jerk react to tougher times by letting staff go, but if these businesses looked at how to save ESB, water, waste, recycling, pay more attention to prices paid for sub-contracted work, etc... and use these savings to pass on to their product gate price then the Irish consumer might be more inclined to purchase it.

Biggins

I try to buy Irish when I can. It don't help however that we are trying to rip off our own though.
I could name many Irish companies that are doing this. We all prob' could.
They, themselves are their own worst enemy.

We would all like to support our own in truth, they are not making it easy for us however.

WiseMona

Biggins wrote: »

I try to buy Irish when I can. It don't help however that we are trying to rip off our own though.
I could name many Irish companies that are doing this. We all prob' could.
They, themselves are their own worst enemy.

We would all like to support our own in truth, they are not making it easy for us however.

I have to ask......................if you do decide to cross the border or shop on line for a cheaper price (which we all do), do you still source Irish Products or are you driven just by the cost?
I agree with your statement on companies could do so much more than cutting labor costs...................it is knee jerk.
Although not easy, I still 'try to buy' Irish and encourage my work colleagues and neighbors to source and buy local as much as possible and practical. In this time of belt tightening everyone is looking for cheap - but there are still going to be "cheap Irish" if we just take a minute to look...............for example, Tesco (I know not an Irish shop) has IRISH chickens for 4 euros and a beautiful piece of Irish Beef (Rib roast) we cut 4 lovely steaks from it and still have enough for stew tomorrow for 13 euros. All I am asking guys, is to look a little longer in the grocery stores and read the lables.....................Buy Irish.........:D

Danno

I think the local farmers markets are the greatest oppertunity to help our own. For example I buy a small bag of potatoes in the shops for €2.50 upwards, yet the farmer sells it at the market for €1.50.

Ian Beale

Does everyone not realize that if something is imported and repacked in Ireland it can be classed as made in ireland

Hagar

A certain well known supermarket is quite blasé about labelling products from Northern Ireland as simply Ireland when distributing the products to it shops in the Republic. The same crowd brought in potatoes from the North without realising that the packaging was plastered with the Union Jack. They were sent back and shortly afterwards a fresh consignment of potatoes was received from the same supplier in neutral packaging and labelled as "Irish Potatoes".

WiseMona

Ian Beale wrote: »

Does everyone not realize that if something is imported and repacked in Ireland it can be classed as made in ireland

Read the labels. If it says 'packed' in Ireland then it is NOT an Irish product unless it states grown/made and packed in Ireland.

In 2009 we will see huge labeling laws go into effect where each product on the shelves will have an EU label that states country of origin. For now, just look for 'made in Ireland', 'grown in Ireland' ............

I agree about the farmers markets - but do not be fooled to much. ASK QUESTIONS when you dole out the cash. I went to a lovely Organic farm last night and there were serveral vendors selling Cheese/Honey/Olives (all of which were yummy) from The Netherlands/England/Germany. When I questioned the Olives from Germany they explained that it was a German packing company buying Italian Olives, packing them in Germany and selling throughout Europe. That was just way too many food miles for me. I could have found Irish honey at tesco:eek:. If you start asking vendors/shopkeepers etc. for IRISH product (keep in mind we are trying to support our own economy) eventually they will listen and give you what you ask for because you are giving them the money.;)