ALDI for Callan - again!!

There appears to be no news at the moment, unless of course our now infamous objectors have seen some wisdom and have withdrawn whatever objection they had.
Somehow I doubt these few stalwarts of the past have the integrity to realise the rest of the world want's to move on.
I am sad to have to go to Clonmel to buy our christmas fare, I would dearly love to spend the money in Callan, but our one and only supermarket is just not up to it.
We have no other shops, my exceptions are our Baker, almost a national treasure our billy, the butcher and of course florist come greengrocer Joe, yes they provide a service that no supermarket can hope to attain and we should patronise them.
I would not criticise our Supermarket it does the best it can in the space it occupies, though at sometime it is going to need up-grading.
Aldi will bring a modern 21st century shopping experience and don't expect the same standard of staff customer relationship, discounter's are there for one purpose to sell, food is their business and they know how to tempt you. Just look at their christmas catalogue.
So once more a plea, we love Callan as much as you but we want to get Callan as a place to visit not avoid.
Please, please give our town a chance

Dear Bloopy
Nice one, however, I do most day's, but as you are aware, we do not have a toy shop, we do not have a book shop, we do not have an optician, we don't have a camera shop, you cannot buy organic chicken or portions thereof, we cannot buy fresh fish, though Supervalu do sell a brilliant Irish Kipper, would recommend it. they also do free range and organic eggs at a reasonable price.
One cannot get Angus Beef. I would not rate the ice cream available.
Then we come to prices, which are very important to an awful lot of people as well as myself.
As much as I enjoy Billy Keogh's bread it is not cheap, there again one has to look to see what the quality of other bread is, okay so some supermarkets sell bread from over the border at very cheap prices, with two or three children one needs as much help as possible and the same goes for vegetables they might not necessarily be Irish.
If you can afford to buy in Callan do so, but I do not blame anyone for going to either Kilkenny or clonmel.
So dear bloopy perhaps this puts your mind at rest, it is certainly quicker for us to go to Clonmel than Kilkenny from south of Callan.
One other point, tourist's flock to the little villages in the UK and elsewhere, they do not want to see massive sheds for a supermarket,
take a good look at Callan, nobody but nobody wants to see Bridge Street it is a disgrace, it looks like Ireland in the fifties. Okay so Aldi might not bring architectural quality but at least we won't have another derelict site looking us in the face, what it will do is show Callan moving forward to the future with confidence.
Thank you and kind regards, Foxy

Your posts are a joy to read now Foxy, with the new layout.

Hindsight is a great thing. I must confess that when the original application for Tesco to come to Callan, I was opposed to the idea.
The basis of my arguement was that Tesco had decimated so many villages in the UK.
The traditional village shop had almost died out, that was the last thing we wanted to happen to Callan.
What shops we have cannot compete not only on price but also the inability to offer a realistic choice.
Despite these short comings I am sure, none of us would like to see
any more shops disappear from our small town.
Aldi announced last night they would absorb the 2% hike in VAT. One assumes permanently but the announcement didn't go that far. Any saving is welcome.
Another confession, yesterday we went to Tesco in Clonmel, not specifically for saving on groceries and the like.
However, we did enjoy having an almost unlimited choice, there were of course special offers, there was also a lot of goods the same price as Supervalu, no doubt we might have found some higher.
There are those amongst us who continually knock Supervalu, please don't
it is only a small shop, and despite that they do try to stock as much as possible
I know from experience there are many items I cannot get in Aldi, and will have to go to Supervalu.
By the way, I hope none of our objectors shop in either Kilkenny, Carlow or Clonmel, no, of course they wouldn't. Happy shopping foxy

Hello
I have been looking for any sign of our protester's having a change of mind.
Perhaps over the Christmas they might well have a change of heart, I do hope so.
To be honest the change regarding the size of new supermarkets could well be a deciding factor for who comes to Callan. I think people are so fed up with this little band of spoilsports they would at this stage support any of the main stream player's.
I want to shop in Callan, I want to be able to buy all the groceries I need, when I want them. Trying to do Christmas shopping in a store that does not carry all the lines is a pain, not their fault it just is not big enough.
We want a supermarket that gives value for money, we had one that was dearer than a corner shop, thank goodness it has gone.
Who ever comes I will support Supervalu as well, there is room for two maybe three shops. Remember Callan can only grow, and will the "Ostriches" take their heads out of the sand.
Callan jobs for Callan people should be our prime mover.
Merry Christmas and thank you for reading the comments.

Someone asked me yesterday why I was promoting Aldi, I wrote back that it was not Aldi, it was the freedom of choice,
Aldi might, well is the motivation, but it might just as well been Lidl, Tesco or even Eurospar.
The people of Callan should not be made to shop elsewhere by a few, not misinformed, they think they are right, people, who probably go to Clonmel, Kilkenny or Waterford to shop.
As I said, if you are not on the bread line the cost of driving to these places is of little consequence.
These groups or individuals have forced families to spend money they can bearly afford to have a choice of where they shop, and to a degree we are talking prices.
The German discounter's are acknowledged to be cheaper than Supervalu and Dunnes and to a point Tesco.
It is not only price, but both Aldi and Lidl offer discounts on a variety of household goods, clothes, toy's etc.
If you have no alternative but to shop in Callan, there is no comparison with the supermarket.
This is not about winning or losing, it is about the freedom of choice.
How many other towns the same size as Callan has such limited shopping facilities?
We need Supervalu, and it should be offering a much better service in this day and age, it has quality staff, retailing jewels if you like, who look after the customer but we still need an alternative.
I guess it is nearly the time of year to put away the computer and sit back and relax with family and friends, so until 2012 enjoy the break and do take care. God bless you all. Foxy

Happy New Year to all, yes even you if you are an objector.
I have been scanning the "Boards" to see if our friends have decided to detract from their course of action, denying the people of Callan an alternative to Supervalu.
I am afraid no such luck, so it rather looks we will have to wait to mid February for a result. By that time will Aldi have given up?
We no doubt think our Supervalu staff are the best in the county, what happens when more and more people go to Kilkenny or Clonmel to do the weekly shop. Do convenience stores need that many staff?
The grocery price war will intensify this year, that is a certainty, both Lidl and Aldi offer significant savings on day to day items.
What these people are missing is if you go elsewhere for some things one invariably buys most of the items you need for the week, so instead of popping into Supervalu you stock up.
Come on, think Callan people, Callan jobs, Callans future, forget your prejudice.
As always Foxy

Now that Callan has been by-passed there is virtually no passing trade, therefore most of the shops rely on those who either work in Callan or shop in Callan.
We have three cafe's and a couple of pubs for the want of a better word, all of them would near enough know who was coming in.
Now, I am not suggesting Aldi in Callan would make a great deal of difference to the amount of trade in the town, however it increases the possibility of more trade for these shop-keeper's.
Wherever we go shopping, we invariably pop in for a coffee and a scone or similar, also one looks in the windows of shops nearby, I've lost count of the times we have arrived home we items we had no intention of buying before we went out.
You might say what has this to do with Aldi? A great deal, any new business will invest in footfall count's, how many people walk past a shop and the peak's and low's. If you have ever been to the saturday market in Callan you will be amazed how quiet it can be, then busy and then nothing.
Aldi will bring in people from not only Callan who go elsewhere at the moment, but also shoppers from villages which are not necessarily that close to Callan, you only have to look at a map to see the possibilities.
Some of the shops take great care with their window displays, window dressing an art in itself.
Perhaps it would encourage those who can't be bothered to sit up and take notice, the introduction of more people could well encourage more business to the town, vacant shops no longer an eyesore.
Hopefully our objectors are taking all this in to account and will say let's do it together, Callan for the present and the future, the past we can do nothing about, what a boost if the younger generation say those people certainly had some vision back in 2012.
Well to all take great care and many thanks Foxy:cool:

Every morning I switch on the computer and hope there is a message which says "we have withdrawn our objection", not much hope.
I was told when the council passed the planning permission there was little hope of Aldi being built, The objectors had made sure Tesco would not come and would do the same for Aldi, equally if Lidl makes an attempt such efforts will be twarted.
There comes a time when one has to ask the ultimate question, why are you objecting to these stores coming.
If they are in the wrong places where would you put them?
In my opinion we live in a democratic country, okay it is not perfect but we are ruled on the basis of majority opinion, this also applies to local government as well.
Now our local elected folk decided that these stortes could have planning permission, suddenly up pop's this non elected body, operating through companies so that no one can point a finger at them, objecting to improvements to our town.
So much so these stores are forced to go to the higher planning authority,
so it appears majority rule does not apply, we are in fact being led by a dictatorship in Callan.
These objectors must have quite a lot to gain by such actions.
So what has happened to our elected representative who apart from an initial disappointment appears to have had little or nothing to say about the matter.
If you look around Callan at the new estates which has bought new blood to the town and in many ways improved things, not sure what things but as far as I can see not one little bit has been done to the infrastructure, we do not have a shopping centre, oop's we have some new pavements which took so long to do people thought the workers were permanent in Callan.
Our supermarket appears not to have spent any money updating the store, how many years is it they took over, if it is left much longer we might claim it is a relic of the dickensian era.
Despite this I will say it again the staff in Supervalu are brilliant, they deserve a medal for their help and humour, no one can compete with them.
Think about our town, our Callan our jobs, they all depend on the expansion of the shopping facilities, which the "Dictators" are denying to each and every one.
Callan should be famous, especially on the tourist trail, it isn't so what have we about Coco Cola, not a thing ,is there some sort of memorial to the originators, you know the answer to that one, now what about James Hoban, there is a memorial in Cuffesgrange, I have yet to see a tourist bus there, and of course Edmund Rice he has esxcaped across the by-pass so no mention.
Where did these people go to school, Callan? So why can't we claim they are ours and have some statues, perhaps the Coco cola company might just provide some funds, and it seems the American President was kept well away from Callan despite poor old James designing the White House.
It is Sunday so perhaps you will aloow a little lightness into the thread.
Have a good week and do take extra care regards Foxy:cool:

foxcoverteddy wrote: »

Every morning I switch on the computer and hope there is a message which says "we have withdrawn our objection", not much hope.

Just a heads-up Foxy, they are very unlikely to post that here in case you think they were

It was mentioned this morning that we are critical of the management of supervalu in Callan, whoever came up with that analysis of what we are saying is completely wrong.
The truth is the two lads who own Supervalu are doing a splendid job, given the size of the shop one cannot expect any more from them. Yes it is looking dated, and one cannot always get what you want.
One only has to ask and they will do their best to get it.
The staff, we praise on a regular basis, it is more like meeting old friends than going shopping.
Do you realise how much we depend on Supervalu? Where would we shop, so my plea is please keep supporting Supervalu with or without Aldi.
Whilst I am a strong supporter of the supermarket, we do have a few unique shops, Joe Lyons, Farrells, Murphy the butcher and Ray Hackett and of course Billy Keogh.
If any one of them was forced to close Callan would be a much poorer place, it is no good saying do you remember in a few years time.
These businesses need your support again with or without Aldi.
Of course we have a problem "The Dictators", instead of encouraging growth in shopping they are doing the exact opposite, you cannot tell people they can't do anything, by stopping stores coming to Callan people will go to wherever they are, Kilkenny, Clonmel, Carrick on Suir.
The latest credit union report makes very grim reading there are people who cannot now make ends meet, other's who are just surviving, it shows that Tesco now has the lion's share of bulk shopping, a massive 38% followed by Dunnes with only 20%, Lidl and Aldi come next and then supervalu.
One of the stores says 100% Irish owned, what about we sell more Irish sourced goods than anyone else. we should be producing more of our own food, remember Irish sugar?
There is a possibility that we will not get Aldi so what happens to the site, apparently it cannot be used for a supermarket after a rejection, however what about Macdonalds or Supermac, parking in Kilkenny is not good and the Clonmel store is in the main st, it would be brilliant for the younger people, encourage passing trade to stop in the town.
Though me thinks we might have more trouble with the "Dictators".
Actually nobody does a milk shake like Macdonalds see you there.
As always regards Foxy

Apparently the date which will decide whether or not Aldi will come to Callan is February 24.
You are probably as surprised as I am writing this post, well I read part of a report prepared by one of the companies objecting to Aldi, in which they were encouraging shoppers to go to the small retailer's as the money would stop in Ireland that was spent on groceries.
There was no mention from whom did the small retailer obtain their stock, they glossed over "Cash and Carry", equally they managed to ignore how much of the produce would be Irish.
At a time where we are struggling to make ends meet, they are suggesting it is perhaps patriotic to spend an extra 20 or 30% on groceries that probably have not originated in Ireland.
You only need walk round the German discounters to see goods displaying the Irish flag, fresh Irish vegetables, quality meats and dairy products and of course biscuits and bread etc.
The shelves are well stocked, and what you want is readily available, anyone working does not want to have to go here there and everywhere for odd items.
As you know I try to support Supervalu in Callan, sometimes it is difficult when they don't bother to restock items that have run out, what do you do, go elsewhere.
Aldi or Lidl would make management realise they are not the only shop on the planet and hopefully there would be better control of sell by dates.
Take care and once again thanks, Foxy

The thought of Aldi or whoever coming to Callan does tend to diminish the problems we have in Callan.
We have one supermarket which we badly need to keep, in fact it is essential, apart from the financial commitment of the two owner's, we need to support the shop for the sake of the staff as well.
It is easy to criticise any supermarket, yes even the german discounter's but before you rush off to Kilkenny or Clonmel think what it is costing you to travel and in Kilkenny parking.
Any money saved by not going would no doubt mitigate items that may be dearer in Supervalu, most of all think jobs, Callan jobs.
I was thinking that our two owner's would no doubt support Aldi coming, as they would MacDonalds, who wouldn't.
All businesses need people, customer's you and I.
On friday afternoon I was doing a little shopping and was very sad to see the car park half empty and very few customer's, why?
What is achieved trying to get in and out of both market yard and cross very little, frustration perhaps.
As for the objector's don't ruin our town we didn't ask you and we don't won't you.
We want our town, note our town not yours, to prosper, you are succeeding in running people away, no one is thanking you for that.
We can support Supervalu and Aldi, and somebody take a hint Macdonalds.
Have a nice day, enjoy. Thanks as always and take care. Foxy

Someone said the objectors cannot back down as they would lose face.
Sorry, but I think Callan and Callan people come before saving face.
If anything my worry would centre around the number of jobs Aldi would create, we need them and the quicker the better, it may not be that many but any opportunity must be welcome for our people.
Apart from the jobs in Callan, Aldi as you know are great buyer's of Irish made food, as is Lidl, and their participation helps the economy.
Some Irish companies tend to ignore the fact that a lot of their produce comes from the UK, but there is a serious amount of trade between the two countries, so it is a give and take situation.
However it is a great shame we do not encourage ex-pats to support the old country, Buy Irish, why not.
I check the site out for any indication of work commencing, though I do know we have to wait until the end of February, wishful thinking perhaps.
Well as always thanks a million regards Foxy:cool: