Most depressing Dunnes in Ireland?

Iranoutofideas

The abandoned Dunnes beside Sarsfield bridge in Limerick looks like a Nazi gas chamber

chooey

Ashleaf one is awful

lukesmom

Navan

Alqua

I was just thinking about this thread today, and then I see it's been bumped! :eek: Surprised Ballina got so many thanks on page 1, it's not bad atall..

...__...

The Mill in Clondalkin is a good dunnes plenty of room to wander around. The only issue is till staff waffling to oul wans or each other and teh self service area should never have gone in. Why if you want to buy alcohol does the girl always disapear or leave you waiting ages to approve it.

Most depressing I think is Kilnamanagh just everything is so old but not as depressing as tesco in Clondalkin or Ballyfermot, Nothing says classy more than people taking food from the hot counter and sampling it standing there then putting half eaten stuff back on the shelf all while you try and meander around trolleys of stock abandoned at the ends of each aisle.

Buona Fortuna

Alqua wrote: »

I was just thinking about this thread today, and then I see it's been bumped! :eek: Surprised Ballina got so many thanks on page 1, it's not bad atall..

The car park is very handy

Lia_lia

Shakespeare's Sister wrote: »

. Also in Cork, North Main Street - the Cork equivalent of the Talbot Street one. Sheeeet-hole!

I always thought that one was a total ****hole, but I actually like it now! Mainly because it's always empty. So the quick shop gets done fast. And it's just down the road from me. Anything to avoid that horrible tesco on Paul Street, always jammers there! Since lidl is in town I only really go there now though...


Dunnes in my hometown (Killarney) just makes me incredibly nostalgic. It's exactly the same as it was since I was a kid..

Joe Doe

Some of their shopping baskets might need swabbed for small bacterial lifeforms.

On the plus side, the sell a good range of healthy food options.
The G'Mod-free/Gluten-free/Organic Pasta-Spaghetti range is even better than the real Italian stuff.

cloud493

Swords.

Muahahaha

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Just to Clarify Dunnes owns the crumlin shopping centre and has lease tescos their store, but Dunnes are waiting for the Tesco lease to run out and then kick Tescos out and re-develop the centre.
I actually like Dunnes grocery and wish they set up a grocery store in Lucan/Adamstown. Also the poshest Dunnes is Cornelscourt as Margeret Heffernan and other directors live around there,

So whats there at the moment, right now? Is it a Tesco that is in the 3 individual units in Crumlin ? I was in there about three months back just to use the ATM and could have sworn it was a Dunnes in the three units, I wasnt really paying attention though except to realise what a kip of a place it was.

Just on Dunnes managememnt and maybe some employees here might clarify- in my local Dunnes there seems to be a layer of management who are always there but then on the shop floor other managers/supervisors (dressed in suits but sometimes to be seen stacking shelves). This cohort seem to move about stores a lot as I'm certain I've seen them in a couple of other stores. When I say move stores I think what happens is they do two days here, a few here, then onto another store for a few, that sort of thing. I wonder is the bad morale on the floor part of this policy of shifting supervisors from store to store, like if they never really get to know the staff of a store and are only there for 2 days a week they're probably more likely to use shouting at staff as a way to get them to do what they want. Conversely if the staff know they're only there for 2 days a week it might mean they don't take the managers seriously either.

FloatingVoter

Muahahaha wrote: »

So whats there at the moment, right now? Is it a Tesco that is in the 3 individual units in Crumlin ? I was in there about three months back just to use the ATM and could have sworn it was a Dunnes in the three units, I wasnt really paying attention though except to realise what a kip of a place it was.

The three separate Dunnes (Clothes where the ATM is/ booze / grocery) are there. The main Tesco (all in one large store is around the corner from the front entrance. You could easily visit the centre and not notice it until you arrive on top of it.

da_shivsta

Has anyone mentioned the one in Galway - the Eyre Sq. shopping centre one? The centre itself is generally okay but the lack of windows really lets it down!!

Muahahaha

FloatingVoter wrote: »

The three separate Dunnes (Clothes where the ATM is/ booze / grocery) are there. The main Tesco (all in one large store is around the corner from the front entrance. You could easily visit the centre and not notice it until you arrive on top of it.

Ah right, thats why I was getting confused because I've only been in the Crumlin shopping centre three or four times and I never noticed a Tesco there at all !

Do you have any odeas how many more years Dunnes have a lease on the three units ?

jill_valentine

FloatingVoter wrote: »

The three separate Dunnes (Clothes where the ATM is/ booze / grocery) are there. The main Tesco (all in one large store is around the corner from the front entrance. You could easily visit the centre and not notice it until you arrive on top of it.

There's also a unit in the "corner" as you go in that has a Dunnes sign over it, that they seem to use as some kind of... storage cave. Any time you go in, the grate is up so you can see trolleys and stuff scattered around in the dark in there.

It's kind of fascinating though, the other stores all seem to have been so long closed as to be artifacts. The old Hector Greys and the butcher and stuff, and whatever that shop with the black storefront, they all look like something you'd see open twenty or thirty years ago.

Snake Plisken

Muahahaha wrote: »

Ah right, thats why I was getting confused because I've only been in the Crumlin shopping centre three or four times and I never noticed a Tesco there at all !

Do you have any odeas how many more years Dunnes have a lease on the three units ?

Ok once more, Dunnes own the.full complex, they are waiting for the lease to expire on the Tesco store and will probably demolish the whole centre and build a new Dunnes superstore, if you notice in Tescos they never bothered upgrading the self service tills and I know the a Tesco staff are worried. Dunnes wouldn't renew the leases on the small shop units as they want them out, the only other unit open is the chemist.

JustAddWater

Finglas dunnes. A pure dive

hinault

Dunnes Stores in the Crumlin SC on the Crumlin Road.

Muahahaha

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Ok once more, Dunnes own the.full complex, they are waiting for the lease to expire on the Tesco store and will probably demolish the whole centre and build a new Dunnes superstore, if you notice in Tescos they never bothered upgrading the self service tills and I know the a Tesco staff are worried. Dunnes wouldn't renew the leases on the small shop units as they want them out, the only other unit open is the chemist.

Ok right, I hadnt realised it was Tesco who are renting with Dunnes owning. That seems like a bizarre decision by the management of Dunnes. Like I can understand them wanting to get Tesco out but why leave the rest of the units in the shopping centre empty and thus decrease the footfall to your own shop in the centre. The place is dead because nothing in it except for Dunnes is open (and Tesco if you can find it!). Like surely they know when Tescos lease is up so all they had to do was sign new leases with the smaller unit owners that expire the same date Tescos lease does and then you can call in the bulldozers, knock the entire shopping centre down and start again with something more up to date.

I don't see why Dunnes had to destroy the fabric of the shopping centre by closing all the shops. They could have achieved their objectives whilst collecting rent and increasing the footfall to their own shop within the centre. Maybe its a case of sticking the two fingers up at Tesco in that they asked to buy out their lease and Tesco refused so Dunnes is taking the attitude if Tesco won't move we'll destroy the footfall in the centre by closing all the shops down. If thats what has happened then it seems really short sighted.

Snake Plisken

Muahahaha wrote: »

Ok right, I hadnt realised it was Tesco who are renting with Dunnes owning. That seems like a bizarre decision by the management of Dunnes. Like I can understand them wanting to get Tesco out but why leave the rest of the units in the shopping centre empty and thus decrease the footfall to your own shop in the centre. The place is dead because nothing in it except for Dunnes is open (and Tesco if you can find it!). Like surely they know when Tescos lease is up so all they had to do was sign new leases with the smaller unit owners that expire the same date Tescos lease does and then you can call in the bulldozers, knock the entire shopping centre down and start again with something more up to date.

I don't see why Dunnes had to destroy the fabric of the shopping centre by closing all the shops. They could have achieved their objectives whilst collecting rent and increasing the footfall to their own shop within the centre. Maybe its a case of sticking the two fingers up at Tesco in that they asked to buy out their lease and Tesco refused so Dunnes is taking the attitude if Tesco won't move we'll destroy the footfall in the centre by closing all the shops down. If thats what has happened then it seems really short sighted.

Yeah you could be right, Dunnes take the hit to make the Tesco store lose money and maybe hand back the lease early. I don't think Dunnes owned the SC day 1, and they bought it and the leases at the height of the boom, with redevelopment in mind. Anyway it's just a terrible shopping centre now.

jill_valentine

Muahahaha wrote: »

Ok right, I hadnt realised it was Tesco who are renting with Dunnes owning. That seems like a bizarre decision by the management of Dunnes. Like I can understand them wanting to get Tesco out but why leave the rest of the units in the shopping centre empty and thus decrease the footfall to your own shop in the centre. The place is dead because nothing in it except for Dunnes is open (and Tesco if you can find it!). Like surely they know when Tescos lease is up so all they had to do was sign new leases with the smaller unit owners that expire the same date Tescos lease does and then you can call in the bulldozers, knock the entire shopping centre down and start again with something more up to date.

Kind of like on Moore Street,where units were rented out with it being made clear that there was a cut off to start redevelopment.

Does seem like cutting off their nose to spite their face.

I was in there earlier and I almost stopped to take photos, it's the land that time forgot. Surreal.

chooey

That's interesting to read about crumlin sc. I didn't realise that dunnes owned it. It's a depressing place, I remember going there weekly with my granny when all the units were full and the place would be jammed.

playedalive

Muahahaha wrote: »

Just on Dunnes managememnt and maybe some employees here might clarify- in my local Dunnes there seems to be a layer of management who are always there but then on the shop floor other managers/supervisors (dressed in suits but sometimes to be seen stacking shelves). This cohort seem to move about stores a lot as I'm certain I've seen them in a couple of other stores. When I say move stores I think what happens is they do two days here, a few here, then onto another store for a few, that sort of thing. I wonder is the bad morale on the floor part of this policy of shifting supervisors from store to store, like if they never really get to know the staff of a store and are only there for 2 days a week they're probably more likely to use shouting at staff as a way to get them to do what they want. Conversely if the staff know they're only there for 2 days a week it might mean they don't take the managers seriously either.

Oh yeah, there are general managers who work in different stores during the week. In my experience, they have always been nice and say what they need to say with the upmost respect.

When I am giving my grievances about Dunnes Management, I'm not talking about the Departmental managers for different sections (Homewares, Ladieswear, Lingerie). The Department managers, imo, were always fair and if they needed to pick you up on something you did wrong for example, they would do it in a discreet way. Leaving you with a bit of dignity. I'm talking about the store management level, particularly in my last store, they had no qualms about shouting at you in front of staff or customers. My colleagues would have more grips with overall store management It was really annoying for me when it happened as I was doing my darn best and would get slated like that. Like I can understand how much pressure they are under (particularly if your store is a frequent to inspection by the CEO and cronies from Head Office) but basic respect should be adhered to no matter how low you are in the "staff hierarchy" (so to speak). It really does bring a low staff morale to the place.

nlgbbbblth

Chain_reaction wrote: »

The Dunnes in Enniscorthy before they opened the new one.

I hope someone else remembers that... The one in St.Stephen's green was like Harrod's food hall compared to this horror of a grocery section.

Dunnes at Enniscorthy: the grimmest shop of all time.

We'd end up there a couple of times a year. Hellish - both grocery and clothes part.

dublinman1990

I have to say that the general look and feel of Dunnes Stores is very poor to even browse in a lot of their stores.

I feel very sorry for the lower paid staff of Dunnes and what they have to go through while the employees work there when I shop in there sometimes. I have not seen any disputes between staff and management of any sort when I did have a look or buy stuff from there. I know for a fact now that I would probably sh**e my knickers in sheer nervousness to be even offered a job with that kip of a firm.

The amount of stores that I have seen by going to them and seeing them on Google Maps and other websites would tell you a lot about the business in areas around the country in which they serve a lot of negative aspects in their local community. The serious failings in it's customer service reputation also has to be addressed to make it in line for retail in the 21st century.

Surely, Dunnes do some good when they employ people to work in their stores. However, they should not define themselves with that technique alone. The management's respect primarily to their employees and customers is also paramount to making their stores a success. In order to that, the senior managers of those stores that are failing reputation wise have to literally pull up their socks in a big way to vastly improve the morale of the people around them. They have to reform their ways of working otherwise the stores legacy could possibly crumble even further to the point of extinction.

I would like to know how much do the senior managers get paid every year if they are doing a 50 to 60 hour week to see if the amount of abuse to staff and customers really pays off. I know of one manager who works in Dublin who is seemingly paid very handsomely and who drives around in a plush volkswagen passat all of the time I see her. So I am just wondering if the pay levels are that attractive enough for potential management roles to work there.

I would like to know how much income Dunnes Stores generate each year for the past five years to see it is profit driven or a loss making company.

Mars Bar

da_shivsta wrote: »

Has anyone mentioned the one in Galway - the Eyre Sq. shopping centre one? The centre itself is generally okay but the lack of windows really lets it down!!

Yeah I was gonna say that one just because it's always fairly empty and the dressing rooms are shocking. Otherwise, the store is actually nice and tends to be clean.

The Terryland one is grand I find and the Briarhill one...tis okay.

The clothes section of the Clondalkin one. Sheesh, I could be happy and then it'll be like I'm Fr. Kevin in Fr. Ted at the back of the bus as the depression just washes over him again.

Capt'n Midnight

Snake Plisken wrote: »

I actually like Dunnes grocery and wish they set up a grocery store in Lucan/Adamstown.

Not too likely with Tesco / Supervalue / Lidl already in Lucan.

The nearest Dunnes grocery is in Clondalkin, and to get there you'd have to pass by the Lidl/Aldi on Fonthill and even then there's a Tesco , Lidl and Aldi in Clondalkin too. It might also be easier to go to the SuperValue Aldi in Palmestown.

TBH I just can't see the niche in the area that Dunnes could fill.

Joe Doe

Probably symptomatic of typical static higher management or family type owned larger businesses, happy just to plough on, hope for the best.

Likely would benefit with injection of one of those executive powered retail wizards, a wake up call via 'secret boss' type TV show and then full re-brand, market-re-penetration strategy and universal roadmap conformance. Throw in a dash of stock issues to staff, niche sidelines ranges etc etc...

evolving_doors

chooey wrote: »

That's interesting to read about crumlin sc. I didn't realise that dunnes owned it. It's a depressing place, I remember going there weekly with my granny when all the units were full and the place would be jammed.

Hold on a sec, I thought it was tescos owned the gaffe and dunnes were holding out from leaving to give tescos free reign to redevelop.

jill_valentine

There are two competing theories in the thread -

a) Dunnes owns the centre and is waiting for Tesco to finish their lease and leave, with the intention of redeveloping everything, hence the time capsule effect.

b) Tesco owns the centre and Dunnes is staying on as long as possible as a boxblocking manouvre, to prevent Tesco having a monopoly.

evolving_doors

Joe Doe wrote: »

Probably symptomatic of typical static higher management or family type owned larger businesses, happy just to plough on, hope for the best.

That's the Cheapest option, so they should stick with it.

Joe Doe wrote: »

Likely would benefit with injection of one of those executive powered retail wizards,

Costs money! and admitting that they want to 'upmarket their brand' when in fact they deliver exactly what the customers want for the price they want. I think the sums and graphs have all been done for Dunnes stores.. no point in going 'down' to lidl/aldi level, and defo. no point in trying to 'upmarket' themselves to M&S/Superquinn level (look at what happened to Superquinn BTW.. too flippin expensive to compete with their posh brands .. their customer base of dotty grannies is shrinking.)

Joe Doe wrote: »

a wake up call via 'secret boss' type TV show and then full re-brand,

Then they'd be admitting they're crap and want to change ,.... when in actual fact they might be quite happy to stick to the middle ground they're already on.
They did a dunnes own brand (like all the rest of em) so that's that taken care of. To my mind Dunnes are very similar to Pennys.. they are what they are, and any dickying around with trying to appeal to a new market would only alienate their current clients.

Joe Doe wrote: »

market-re-penetration strategy

they are what they are, and any dickying around with trying to appeal to a new market would only alienate their current clients. If it ain't broke , don;t fix it.

Joe Doe wrote: »

and universal roadmap conformance.

Is that like a Synergy Implimentation Strategy combined with Blue Sky Thinking.. going forward.

Joe Doe wrote: »

Throw in a dash of stock issues to staff,

Costs money, staff turnover is probably massive at floor level so no point in incentivising minimum wagers with stocks... higher level mngmt. folk are probably using experience to feic off elsewhere anyway.. why keep em around and start to pay more with wage increases when they can just train in the next manager and keep pottering along

Joe Doe wrote: »

niche sidelines ranges etc etc...

Taken care of with 'Simply Better' 'luxury' brand stuff .. just like all the other supermarkets are doing.


I dunno , personally I think Dunnes does what it should be doing. Trying to upmarket themselves is a loosing game. Ya sure, some of the stores could do with a bit of modernising/demolition .. but I'd say that once they get the footfall then who gives a damm about aesthetics.

Actually I think their Irish meat is farrrrr superior to slimey tescos stuff any day of the weak. Their veg are that bit 'fresher' too (IMO!)