What do you think of the Christmas stalls on Henry Street in Dublin?

Wheety

I personally hate them. Busiest time of the year and you have these awful stalls taking up half the street.

They sell tat. I think it looks bad on us that these stalls pop up selling such crap for the month of December. Other countries seem to have much better stalls selling local craft products.

These look like knock offs or visually similar packaging to well known brands.

Maybe it's because I work in the city centre and see them every day.

RayCon

They're traditional ...... y'know - that old tradition of selling fakes.

Red Kev

You'd better be careful.. "Man of de People" Joe Duffy is a big fan of them.

He had one of the sellers on one year, the guy admitted to working and drawing the dole, Joe's attitude was 'sure it's harmless, look what bankers took off us etc. etc'.

He also laid into the Guards and customs for checking for counterfeit stuff there. It's full of fake crap, but if that's what you want, then you know where to go.

The principle of having a load of stalls on Henry St selling stiff doesn't bother me, it's the brazen illegality of what they are doing that plsses me off.

Peregrine

Moved from AH to Dublin City. Please read their charter.

jimmii

I'm a retailer in the area and it drives me crazy. We'd get shut down in no time if we were trying to shift dodgy stuff like that but for some reason they are allowed to do it.

fleet_admiral

I think they should shift them to Grafton street next year, and see the proverbial really hit the fan:D

jimmii

fleet_admiral wrote: »

I think they should shift them to Grafton street next year, and see the proverbial really hit the fan:D

The scenes! It amazes me that Arnotts aren't on this like crazy its parked right outside their shop ripping off the exact brands they are selling. Maybe now its changed hands something might be done I can only imagine what would happen if similar was set up outside of Selfridges!

Arbiter of Good Taste

jimmii wrote: »

The scenes! It amazes me that Arnotts aren't on this like crazy its parked right outside their shop ripping off the exact brands they are selling. Maybe now its changed hands something might be done I can only imagine what would happen if similar was set up outside of Selfridges!

I suppose in most cases, the type of people who buy the fakes from the stalls wouldn't be buying the real thing in Arnotts anyway, and vice versa.

For the record, I hate thrm by the way. They're just tacky and dirty

newacc2015

I personally think they need to go. They seriously lower the tone of the street. I know they are traditionally etc. But since when is selling knock off aftershave and cheap one direction posters part of our heritage?

I would keep them if they were similar to the German style of stalls with decent food products and regional christmas ornaments. But they are selling anything you could find in a supermarket or a cheap car boot sale.

I wouldnt ban them, as it will only give support to the anti-everything crowd eg anti-water charges. Just have Revenue and Customs hounding them. Although they do a horrific job at stopping black market cigarettes being sold on Moore Street

skinnie

They're terrible. Even if you disregard the crappy fake crap they sell, the whole idea of "Let's decrease the room available on a crowded pedestrian street by 25% at the busiest time of year" is nonsensical.

I much prefer Henry St to Grafton St (only ever there if absolutely necessary) but come this time of year I avoid completely.

power pants

even though I have liked every single anti stall response on here, I actually like them. I detest the majority of the things they sell but I do like the feeling of xmas they bring due to their connotation of being there.

I do find it baffling though how they can sell knock off fake products and nobody cares. That's more a law enforcement issue though


There are craft stalls down at the IFSC area of town

Arbiter of Good Taste

power pants wrote: »

even though I have liked every single anti stall response on here, I actually like them. I detest the majority of the things they sell but I do like the feeling of xmas they bring due to their connotation of being there.

I do find it baffling though how they can sell knock off fake products and nobody cares. That's more a law enforcement issue though


There are craft stalls down at the IFSC area of town

The multinationals who own the trademarks spend millions a year trying to protect their IP. They will have guys visiting these types of stalls around the world identifying breach of trademark. Unfortunately if the police don't enforce there's nothing they can really do.

At least in other cities these sellers have the decency to pack up and run off when the police are in the vicinity. In Ireland they brazenly continue. the Gardai don't care

jimmii

I was walking by yesterday morning and there was a Guard at one of the stalls joking with one of the traders he was going round checking their permits didn't pay any attention to anything they were selling at all.

Hootanany

fleet_admiral wrote: »

I think they should shift them to Grafton street next year, and see the proverbial really hit the fan:D

And they sell the same stuff

ProudDUB

I don't mind the fact that they are there. I think they add to the colour and atmosphere of the street on the day, even if the traders aren't as dainty and delicate as a bunch of aul wans selling their knitting.

I do agree with other posters that it is terribly unfair, that such a massive blind eye is turned to the dodgy provenance of so much of the goods. The VAT man and the Guards would come down on regular shops like a ton of bricks, if their stock was of the back of a van variety.

Agree the quality of what they sell is utter rubbish. I think the only thing I have ever bought from a stall, was a bit of purple tinsel & that was probably 10 years ago. I'd love to see the likes of the NCAD and other colleges that teach art and design and craft wares, jewelry etc etc be involved in market stalls on places on Henry St, or where ever this years Xmas market is. Give students a chance to display and sell their wares. Or get the various artists guilds involved...pottery makers, silversmiths, crocheters, knitters etc etc. Give the people who make things with their hands, that are actually worthwhile buying, a shot at making a few bob. Or give charities a chance to sell items made by their own members & the profits go to a very good cause.

Get rid of all these knock off Michael Kors handbags and Selection Boxes - 3 fer a fiver - that fell off the back of a van in 2007.

But that would probably entail some creative, joined up thinking that is sadly lacking in our glorious little banana republic.

cson

They've been selling the last of the Paco Rabanne for years now :pac:

Cienciano

They're one of the reasons I avoid that street at christmas. Tattiest stalls, you'd get better in a car boot sale. "Tradition" should not be a reason to keep shíte like this

Hootanany

I think it's about a grand for a stall license now.DDC making a few quid for there Christmas party.

power pants

tbf some of the battery operated toys like the barking / walking dog is still going strong after 3 years. Wasnt my child's main xmas present btw

whiskeyman

Where else would I get my rappin' paper, foive for a euro!
They're the closest cultural thing we have to European Christmas markets.

Maybe in years to come, zee Germans will have 'Irish Style Christmas Markets' lining the coblestoned city squares of Frankfurt and Munich... with Hans and Heinz selling the finest knock-off products in their best Dublin accents...

power pants

it really is something to be able to sell knock off wrapping paper. do they do it on purpose to make it rip after folding it? Surely the cost of knock off wrapping paper and authentic wrapping paper cant be that big a margin to stock it to the public

jimmii

power pants wrote: »

it really is something to be able to sell knock off wrapping paper. do they do it on purpose to make it rip after folding it? Surely the cost of knock off wrapping paper and authentic wrapping paper cant be that big a margin to stock it to the public

The good quality paper is surprisingly expensive!

ProudDUB

jimmii wrote: »

The good quality paper is surprisingly expensive!

It's not though. You can find good paper at very reasonable prices, if you know where to shop. And it's even more reasonable if you buy it at 75% off in the January sales. ðŸ˜

power pants

even wrapping paper in smyths is fairly cheap tbf

jimmii

ProudDUB wrote: »

It's not though. You can find good paper at very reasonable prices, if you know where to shop. And it's even more reasonable if you buy it at 75% off in the January sales. ðŸ˜

It actually is but its not the sort of thing you find on those stalls I own a gift retailer so I know exactly how much it all costs. We do a range of paper that is €3.50 a sheet and is incredibly popular I've even seen some of it online being sold as a "print" for €20! Couldn't believe it when I found that!

jimmii

power pants wrote: »

even wrapping paper in smyths is fairly cheap tbf

Thats not the good quality stuff though thats just the same as they have on the stalls really.

purplekitty

I was only walking through the city on Thursday in the afternoon and there wasn't even 90% of the stalls open that I would be used to seeing even during the normal year (non Christmas time stalls).
I love the normal 'wrapping paaaaaper, fiiiiiiiive for a euuuuuuuuuuro!.
But there was NONE of it this year. Just one poor bastard selling paco raban 'one million' outside the Jervis. Pure knock off merchant
I am very nostalgic about the stall sellers, especially around Christmas

jimmii

purplekitty wrote: »

I was only walking through the city on Thursday in the afternoon and there wasn't even 90% of the stalls open that I would be used to seeing even during the normal year (non Christmas time stalls).
I love the normal 'wrapping paaaaaper, fiiiiiiiive for a euuuuuuuuuuro!.
But there was NONE of it this year. Just one poor bastard selling paco raban 'one million' outside the Jervis. Pure knock off merchant
I am very nostalgic about the stall sellers, especially around Christmas

lol yeh I saw that too! It did seem like he might not be aware he was the only one left though didn't seem to be in the best shape at the time!

ProudDUB

jimmii wrote: »

It actually is but its not the sort of thing you find on those stalls I own a gift retailer so I know exactly how much it all costs. We do a range of paper that is €3.50 a sheet and is incredibly popular I've even seen some of it online being sold as a "print" for €20! Couldn't believe it when I found that!

I know what you mean. The paper they sell on the stalls is muck. I've never used the rolls, but the sheets are utter rubbish. You'd put your fingers thru the paper, the minute you go to wrap something. And God help you if you are wrapping a box with sharp corners. :mad:

What I meant was that you can get decent quality paper, at very reasonable prices, in places other than specialty gift shops, traditional stationers like Easons, or the "posher" shops like Marks & Spencers, Debenhams etc. I've gotten some great paper in Dunnes, Pennys, Dealz and the two euro shops.

If you do want some of the really good stuff, go back in after Xmas & you can pick up heavily discounted rolls of plain silver and gold paper & shiny red and green paper that is not overtly Christmassy. It not only does for the following Chrimbo, it works just as well for birthday prezzies through out the year. So its a win win...

Edit: It's a win win for me and my wallet, but I can see why an independent retailer might not be jumping for joy at that set up, so sorry....:o

jimmii

ProudDUB wrote: »

I know what you mean. The paper they sell on the stalls is muck. I've never used the rolls, but the sheets are utter rubbish. You'd put your fingers thru the paper, the minute you go to wrap something. And God help you if you are wrapping a box with sharp corners. :mad:

What I meant was that you can get decent quality paper, at very reasonable prices, in places other than specialty gift shops, traditional stationers like Easons, or the "posher" shops like Marks & Spencers, Debenhams etc. I've gotten some great paper in Dunnes, Pennys, Dealz and the two euro shops. If you go back in after Xmas, you can pick up heavily discounted rolls of plain silver and gold paper & shiny red and green paper that is not overtly Christmassy. It not only does for the following Chrimbo, it works just as well for birthday prezzies through out the year. So its a win win !

Yeh its amazing that it lasts all the way to the stalls with it being so thin! Some of it you can see whats wrapped up under it which kind of defeats the purpose a bit! But I guess at 10m for a euro or whatever it is then its not that surprising!

fiachr_a

Two separate bagpipers busking in/off Grafton Street last night. Give me Henry St any time.

cgcsb

As long as they declare their income and are tax compliant I'm fine with it. Regarding rip off brands, who actually is bothered by that. The buyer knows its fake and buys it anyway. The money goes to the retailer and whoever made it instead of georgio Armani or Calvin Klien or some other massive corporation that abuses child labourers in Bangladesh.

jimmii

cgcsb wrote: »

As long as they declare their income and are tax compliant I'm fine with it. Regarding rip off brands, who actually is bothered by that. The buyer knows its fake and buys it anyway. The money goes to the retailer and whoever made it instead of georgio Armani or Calvin Klien or some other massive corporation that abuses child labourers in Bangladesh.

I am guessing that the manufacturers producing knock offs probably don't have the best working standards either in fairness.

Arbiter of Good Taste

cgcsb wrote: »

As long as they declare their income and are tax compliant I'm fine with it. Regarding rip off brands, who actually is bothered by that. The buyer knows its fake and buys it anyway. The money goes to the retailer and whoever made it instead of georgio Armani or Calvin Klien or some other massive corporation that abuses child labourers in Bangladesh.

You're right. Why give you hard earned money to big corporations when you can fund organised crime instead?

Muahahaha

Does anyone know how long the traders have been set up the way they are at Xmas? I can't remember them being there in the 1990s but maybe they were?

Agree with others that it is tacky, DCC really shouldn't be issuing permits for stalls that are going to sell tat and knock offs.

johnsheridan

I think they add a lot of atmosphere, although the street can get very crowded. I was only saying to myself the other day anyway: do they all have permits?!

ProudDUB

cgcsb wrote: »

As long as they declare their income and are tax compliant I'm fine with it. Regarding rip off brands, who actually is bothered by that. The buyer knows its fake and buys it anyway. The money goes to the retailer and whoever made it instead of georgio Armani or Calvin Klien or some other massive corporation that abuses child labourers in Bangladesh.

What? :eek:

Who on earth do you think makes the knock off handbags? People who work 4 hour days, earning €100 per hour, sitting in beautifully air conditioned premises, with handmaidens near by to administer back rubs & massages, if they feel the slightest twinge of tiredness? Where do I sign up for that gig? :rolleyes:

At least the large corporations pay taxes & rates & usually have unions to keep an eye on working practices. So do the retailers that sell their products. It is far from being a perfect working environment, especially if you work for the likes of Dunnes. But it's a damm sight less shady than the world of black market counterfeits & knock offs.

Greenmachine

One of the days during the week there was 3 guards walking up Henry street towards the spire. I saw them move from one stall to the next, as I was walking towards them. One of the stall holders between myself and them took his permit roll it up his sleeve and walk off leaving the stall as was, so what ever guards were out that day must have been doing more than checking permits. By the stall holder taking the permit and scarpering I am guessing the stock could not be tied to him.

Ol' Donie

fleet_admiral wrote: »

I think they should shift them to Grafton street next year, and see the proverbial really hit the fan:D

That would be hilarious!

OleRodrigo

Sweatshops in Bangladesh (or wherever they happen to be), do offer better opportunities to workers than they would have ordinarily once the company signs up to codes of practice regarding local labour laws. 77% of Bangladeshis earn less than $2 per day, which is the international poverty standard. 43% earn less than $1.25, while sweatshop workers, who number about 4 million, earn on average more than $2. Not a lot from an Irish perspective, but better than they might do otherwise (source: here)

I agree there should be more collaboration with crafts people to provide quality goods but that would probably jack up prices unless it was subsidized. It tends to be mentioned at this time each year, our city administrators would do well to take a trip to Germany and see how they do their xmas markets. Some of their practices could be easily integrated with our own ' traditional ' versions to the benefit of everyone. However, that sounds too much like a good idea for it to happen. Somebody would take issue, stick a spanner in the works or have a whinge to Joe.

SMJSF

I hate them, they should either be done away with, or moved to Moore street with the regular stalls and dodgy shops.

They shouldn't be up on Henry street. It causes more "person congestion" and take up too much room. And the bloody shouting shouldn't be allowed either! The "staawwburys taw eura"(strawberries two Euro) is bad enough!!

They are an utter nuisance!!

ProudDUB

Greenmachine wrote: »

One of the days during the week there was 3 guards walking up Henry street towards the spire. I saw them move from one stall to the next, as I was walking towards them. One of the stall holders between myself and them took his permit roll it up his sleeve and walk off leaving the stall as was, so what ever guards were out that day must have been doing more than checking permits. By the stall holder taking the permit and scarpering I am guessing the stock could not be tied to him.

With the amount of serious stuff that the boys in blue should be focusing on, its a bit of a waste of policing resources isn't it? How 'bout letting them handle the drug dealers and the skangers that make life so unpleasant for the rest of us. Let some of the Corpo desk jockeys in their nice warm offices, get their hands dirty for a change. Regular patrols & inspections by the street trader licensing authorities. If you can't prove that your merchandise is legit and was acquired by legitimate means, it is confiscated on the spot. So is your trading license. Leave the Guards alone to do the more serious stuff.

Hootanany

SMJSF wrote: »

I hate them, they should either be done away with, or moved to Moore street with the regular stalls and dodgy shops.

They shouldn't be up on Henry street. It causes more "person congestion" and take up too much room. And the bloody shouting shouldn't be allowed either! The "staawwburys taw eura"(strawberries two Euro) is bad enough!!

They are an utter nuisance!!

Arrrrr heeeeer

andekwarhola

Lowering the tone of Henry street. Who'd have thought it.

Greenmachine

ProudDUB wrote: »

With the amount of serious stuff that the boys in blue should be focusing on, its a bit of a waste of policing resources isn't it? How 'bout letting them handle the drug dealers and the skangers that make life so unpleasant for the rest of us. Let some of the Corpo desk jockeys in their nice warm offices, get their hands dirty for a change. Regular patrols & inspections by the street trader licensing authorities. If you can't prove that your merchandise is legit and was acquired by legitimate means, it is confiscated on the spot. So is your trading license. Leave the Guards alone to do the more serious stuff.

I am sure even what I saw was token enforcement at best, but the fella on this stall might have been on probation or something or have priors etc. You could say the same thing about parking violations etc, pretty soon the only things people would be done for would be rape, murder and armed robberies.
If we have laws they should be enforced else why have them.

Fukuyama

ProudDUB wrote: »

With the amount of serious stuff that the boys in blue should be focusing on, its a bit of a waste of policing resources isn't it? How 'bout letting them handle the drug dealers and the skangers that make life so unpleasant for the rest of us. Let some of the Corpo desk jockeys in their nice warm offices, get their hands dirty for a change. Regular patrols & inspections by the street trader licensing authorities. If you can't prove that your merchandise is legit and was acquired by legitimate means, it is confiscated on the spot. So is your trading license. Leave the Guards alone to do the more serious stuff.

You'd need the guards anyways. You can't install a water meter without gardaí to protect workers... imagine trying to confiscate a traders stock!!:eek:

Agree with other posters. An application window should open up in Sept/Oct for Dublin-based merchants, crafts people etc...Jewelry, wallets, art, stocking fillers etc...Maybe even approach some other groups/religions to get them involved as, lets be honest, a falafel stand is probably more Christmassy than a knock off pair of CK boxers anyways.

This might even help solve some of the other issues in the area. In my opinion the tacky shops and stalls attract an element into the area which can make the place a bit intimidating to tourists who might not be familiar with some of the locals' erm... customs.

I do feel for legit traders in the area too like jimmi. Pay rent, rates, tax etc... only to have a stand set up around the corner selling tat and, if anything, make regular customers want to leave the area.

asteroids over berlin

Was stupid enough to buy some Mach 3 blades off them back in the day, the next day I proudly displayed a beautiful mixture of bog roll and blood on my face and neck. Good move - not!

harry Bailey esq

I like them, great for buyin decorations,never buy cosmetics from them though, red faces all round.

jippo nolan

newacc2015 wrote: »

I personally think they need to go. They seriously lower the tone of the street. I know they are traditionally etc. But since when is selling knock off aftershave and cheap one direction posters part of our heritage?

I would keep them if they were similar to the German style of stalls with decent food products and regional christmas ornaments. But they are selling anything you could find in a supermarket or a cheap car boot sale.

I wouldnt ban them, as it will only give support to the anti-everything crowd eg anti-water charges. Just have Revenue and Customs hounding them. Although they do a horrific job at stopping black market cigarettes being sold on Moore Street

But, where would you get the last of the "Cheeky Charly's" ?

super_furry

People will whinge about anything.

Lux23

If they stuck to selling calendars and wrapping paper they wouldn't bother but some of the stuff they sell are unsafe. The little yapping dogs have parts that fall off easily and could choke a small child.