RIP Feargal Quinn

Arghus · 25-04-2019 10:00pm

He must have been as sound as he seemed to be, because I've heard nothing but positive things about him from people who worked in SuperQuinn. And praise is hard earned in that line of work!

ToddyDoody · 25-04-2019 10:26pm

RIP Feargal. None of us live forever.

KaneToad · 25-04-2019 10:33pm

A gentleman and a very clever business man. Met him numerous times in his shops. He could be packing bags or handing out samples of bread. I knew several young people who got their first job from Superquinn and most of them got a personal welcome/pep talk from the man himself.

His public service in the Senad was above par too. I always remember him lobbying for abolishing the changing of the clocks.

Sympathies to his family.

goingnowhere · 25-04-2019 11:09pm

A legend in the retail business.

The fresh bread was always a treat, even in the horrible snow of 81 or 82 Knocklyon was still open.

I recall the glory days in Blackrock which was the biggest store, always immaculate and a decade ahead of its time. His son Eamon was the manager and both would appear on the floor as a matter of routine.

Crowning the customer is the guide to customer service. The service was always amazing and while prices were higher than the competition (Remember Super Crazy Prices?) Fergal had the distinction of one of the highest sales per square foot in the business. People will pay more for a better service. Constant innovation, the sausages, salad bars, loyalty program, hand held self scan.

Fergal always looked out for the little person on the way, a rare decent honest business man. His undoing possibly as he couldn't cut the deals to get into new developments (he built Blackrock himself).

He changed Irish life forever, introduced us to European foods, proper off licenses with proper wine, sophistication in the dark 70's and 80's.

highdef · 25-04-2019 11:24pm

neris wrote: »

They have a tri colour flying at 1/2 mast at the Cross.

Very nice to know. Not many will see it but those who respect it will. Worked at Sutton Cross from 95 to 99. Have some snippets of video from him in store back then. A true gentleman.

RIP.

road_high · 25-04-2019 11:33pm

Rip Fergal Quinn- I think it was a great loss to Irish consumers that your stores became crap Super Valus and not even on the same book as the SQ food, service and experience. My local one is truly awful now and I still miss the things I could get at SQ. Talk about destroying a great brand, I’d love to know how profitable the former stores are now. Not very I’d think, local one is never very busy with just one till open half the time

road_high · 25-04-2019 11:41pm

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Wonderful man, and never really sought publicity for his own sake, his business acumen and customer service philosophy did it for him.

The Super Valu shops AFAIK are franchised out. Our local one which replaced Superquinn has gone downhill a lot. Use Aldi far more now.

May he rest in peace.

They’re pretty terrible, my local one is awful. All the good staff were replaced with min wages halfwits as well. Aldi Lidl streets ahead and way cheaper. Bizarrely Dunnes have taken on a lot of the “posh” stuff SQ used to do. Musgraves seem to want to self destruct the business

ChikiChiki · 25-04-2019 11:45pm

Seems Ireland has lost someone remarkable today.

By my mother's account from when she worked in Superquinn he was an absolute gent. She is quite upset. Said he didn't do titles or have any grand notions of being above everyone , just wanted to be known by his first name and help everyone.

RIP Feargal.

SirChenjin · 25-04-2019 11:53pm

He had a passion for delivering customer service that was above and beyond the ordinary. I used to love Superquinn.

Never met the man personally, but really enjoying the personal memories that people are sharing here. He always came across well in public, including on the programme that he did for RTE.

A life well lived. May he rest in peace.

Pappacharlie · 25-04-2019 11:58pm

I worked in An Post at the time it went Semi-state. Fergal Quinn was the chairman of the board at that time. He was like a breath of fresh air in the organiation and he did oversee real change. On the day of the incorporation he came up with the 1p post where it cost 1p to post a letter. Met him once when he was head of the organisation and I a mere minion! He had that rare quality when he engaged with you that no one else mattered. A true gentleman and a genius. May he rest in peace.

dasdog · 26-04-2019 12:02am

goingnowhere wrote: »

He changed Irish life forever, introduced us to European foods, proper off licenses with proper wine, sophistication in the dark 70's and 80's.

Didn't they have pizza's as well that were made up at the deli counter and you took home in yellow polystyrene? My dad and me as assistant were sent out for the weekly shopping trip which was usually two places. Super Crazy Prices (Dundrum) which my dad loved cos it was cheap, and then Superquinn (Ballinteer) where my mam would insist we get certain foods such as sliced meats and cheese from. Always remember being intrigued by the pepper salami's just wondering what they tasted like.

seamus · 26-04-2019 12:03am

neris wrote: »

MUm used to be a regular at the shop in sutton and when he was in the store he knew all the customers by name

That was an old trick of his. When you scanned in a loyalty card and the checkout operator pressed the Subtotal button on the till, the customer's surname would appear on the screen. The operator was supposed to use that to be more personal.

Feargal used to come up, have a chat to the checkout operator, and then quietly ask them to press the Subtotal button. Then he'd turn to the customer and say, "Ah, Mrs Murphy, good to see you again!"

Absolute gentleman. As others say, treated all his staff with respect, even the stupid teenagers collecting the trollies and stacking the shelves. Never had any airs or graces about him, even the menial jobs were never below him.

Retail companies are definitely poorer since he left the business.

FixdePitchmark · 26-04-2019 12:28am

road_high wrote: »

They’re pretty terrible, my local one is awful. All the good staff were replaced with min wages halfwits as well. Aldi Lidl streets ahead and way cheaper. Bizarrely Dunnes have taken on a lot of the “posh” stuff SQ used to do. Musgraves seem to want to self destruct the business

Met Feargal with my mum a few times as a young kid - he had such charm - compared with the Dads off in the pub waiting for the mas with the trolleys.
Pushing trolley was the way shopping got home in those days.

Have to say he was a man of vision - top top quality food in fairly tough working class areas.

Super Value is a joke - load of kids working in the place who haven't a clue - went to the butcher counter one day - and kid basically was afraid of a customer.

Have to say - was in a Dunnes last week and they have completely transformed themselves. Streets ahead of super****evalue.

JupiterKid · 26-04-2019 12:33am

Sorry to hear of Fergal Quinn’s passing.

A true visionary, a beacon for entreprenuership and the SME sector in an era when Ireland was not a great place to do business, transformed the postal service and of course his Superquinn set the standard in retail for customer service and innovations which the rest followed.

And also a real gent, a dedicated Senator and an all round decent guy. Ireland is the poorer for his passing.

jippo nolan · 26-04-2019 12:57am

I was employed in one of his stores many years ago collecting trollies from the carpark,
I was pushing a trolley back to the collection point & one of the wheels was going, squeak———squeak———-squeak, he sacked me on the spot!
He said it should be going squeak squeak squeak!

poisonated · 26-04-2019 1:00am

McCrack wrote: »

He was a decent skin unlike that Mrs Heffernan aul bag

What did she do that makes you thinks this way?

Westernyelp · 26-04-2019 1:01am

Never met him

poisonated · 26-04-2019 1:10am

jippo nolan wrote: »

I was employed in one of his stores many years ago collecting trollies from the carpark,
I was pushing a trolley back to the collection point & one of the wheels was going, squeak———squeak———-squeak, he sacked me on the spot!
He said it should be going squeak squeak squeak!

Not....sure...if...that...is...a...joke

Odyssey 2005 · 26-04-2019 1:10am

I did work for him many,.many times. What an absolute gentleman he was. Ann his PA the same,a thorough lady.
I was heartbroken when I heard the news at lunchtime. Feel so sorry for Deniese and Gillianne.
He always treated me,and others with the utmost dignity. Like losing a family member.

Odyssey 2005 · 26-04-2019 1:11am

Westernyelp wrote: »

Never met him

You missed out...

Mean Laqueefa · 26-04-2019 3:12am

goingnowhere wrote: »

A legend in the retail business.

The fresh bread was always a treat, even in the horrible snow of 81 or 82 Knocklyon was still open.

I recall the glory days in Blackrock which was the biggest store, always immaculate and a decade ahead of its time. His son Eamon was the manager and both would appear on the floor as a matter of routine.

Crowning the customer is the guide to customer service. The service was always amazing and while prices were higher than the competition (Remember Super Crazy Prices?) Fergal had the distinction of one of the highest sales per square foot in the business. People will pay more for a better service. Constant innovation, the sausages, salad bars, loyalty program, hand held self scan.

Fergal always looked out for the little person on the way, a rare decent honest business man. His undoing possibly as he couldn't cut the deals to get into new developments (he built Blackrock himself).

He changed Irish life forever, introduced us to European foods, proper off licenses with proper wine, sophistication in the dark 70's and 80's.

Crazy prizes reminds me soley of Janelle

The old steps up to Janelle are still there, my mam was mad for the Janelle bus cause A: it was donation based so 5p did into the empty ice cream box and B: Nothing ran the ballyboggan road bar that as they would stop wherever.

Thursday in Janelle in crazy prizes and them mad giant gorillas above the fruit section and into winterfell meat section and out onto the tills, saving the reciets for bar code battlers and back out onto the fountain and tiny sports shop.

Still big shop was superquinn all the way with mam, had to get the good meat, honestly shouldnt keep posting its making me nostalgic and sad

Yurt2 · 26-04-2019 3:37am

Pappacharlie wrote: »

I worked in An Post at the time it went Semi-state. Fergal Quinn was the chairman of the board at that time. He was like a breath of fresh air in the organiation and he did oversee real change. On the day of the incorporation he came up with the 1p post where it cost 1p to post a letter. Met him once when he was head of the organisation and I a mere minion! He had that rare quality when he engaged with you that no one else mattered. A true gentleman and a genius. May he rest in peace.

The sign of a decent man; when one treats those lower down the totem pole with respect when they don't have to. A lot of our 'captains of industry' could do with learning that quality.

I know his achievements are wider than this; but he gave the world the deliciousness of the Superquinn sausage - for that alone he deserves his prime-seat at the table of the great breakfast fry-up in the sky.

Strazdas · 26-04-2019 3:43am

He always came across as an absolute gentleman. Very kind and courteous....you could just tell it wasn't a front or an act

whisky_galore · 26-04-2019 4:11am

Yurt! wrote: »

The sign of a decent man; when one treats those lower down the totem pole with respect when they don't have to. A lot of our 'captains of industry' could do with learning that quality.

It's a shame there's so many unpleasant money grabbing cnuts in business now. Considerate business people seem to be the exception.

galvo_clare · 26-04-2019 5:41am

Only met him once when he was down in Clare for a TV show - his retail mentoring thing.
Had a coffee and a great chat with him. Lovely man.
My late aunt used to tell the story of meeting him in one of the SQ stores and she told him they didn’t stock the brand of dog food she normally bought. He whipped out a £5 voucher for her trouble and from then on, the dog food was always stocked.

gonker · 26-04-2019 6:46am

My Mam told me a story of herself and my dad going shopping in Super Quinn probably close to 50 years ago and getting to the checkout with a trolley full of shopping and she had forgotten her purse. My mam was mortified. Mr. Quinn was alerted he came over told her to take the shopping home and pay for the shopping the next week. Needless to say my mam and dad came back up to pay as soon as they got home and got the purse but she always remembered his kindness. RIP

begbysback · 26-04-2019 8:04am

Is this the man responsible for the tastiest sausages in the world?

Beechwoodspark · 26-04-2019 8:48am

After superquinn was sold to SuperValu the sausages remained on the shelves but I tasted quite a distinct difference to the original product.

Ppl told me I was imagining it and that it was the exact same recipe but I felt the quality had gone downhill.

Today in the Irish times it says that once superquinn was sold, they stopped making the sausages fresh in store and instead outsourced it to one of Larry Goodman’s factorys for production.

I bloody knew it. I miss the original superquinn sausage

Beechwoodspark · 26-04-2019 9:19am

I just cannot fathom why SuperValu bought superquinn then decided to scrap the entire brand. It took decades literally to build up that brand and its culture, reputation, etc.

Bad idea musgraves

road_high · 26-04-2019 10:41am

Beechwoodspark wrote: »

I just cannot fathom why SuperValu bought superquinn then decided to scrap the entire brand. It took decades literally to build up that brand and its culture, reputation, etc.

Bad idea musgraves

Was a terrible move. They won't admit it of course, but the ex SQ stores aren't doing well. They wanted to streamline the branding but destroyed a lot in the process. All SQ needed was soem updating and access to cheaper own brands. Instead they stripped the stores of all the unique features like a good bakery, deli, fresh fruit etc and replaced it with much lower Super Valu quality stuff and charged the same money- consumers aren't idiots and I've stopped going to my local one frequently. There's rarely more than one or two check outs open which says it all.

Odyssey 2005 · 26-04-2019 10:44am

road_high wrote: »

Was a terrible move. They won't admit it of course, but the ex SQ stores aren't doing well. They wanted to streamline the branding but destroyed a lot in the process. All SQ needed was soem updating and access to cheaper own brands. Instead they stripped the stores of all the unique features like a good bakery, deli, fresh fruit etc and replaced it with much lower Super Valu quality stuff and charged the same money- consumers aren't idiots and I've stopped going to my local one frequently. There's rarely more than one or two check outs open which says it all.

100%. They made a total horlicks of it.

road_high · 26-04-2019 10:46am

Odyssey 2005 wrote: »

100%. They made a total horlicks of it.

This is the Kilkenny one, not sure how the Dublin ones are doing. They had to close Carlow and clonmel as they were doing so badly

DublinWriter · 26-04-2019 10:51am

He was the first businessman in Europe to come up with the loyalty card scheme.

He also shook up P&T in the 80's - there was a three year waiting time for a domestic land-line at the time.

His book "Crowning the Customer" was recommended reading on the Harvard MBA course.

Odyssey 2005 · 26-04-2019 10:56am

road_high wrote: »

This is the Kilkenny one, not sure how the Dublin ones are doing. They had to close Carlow and clonmel as they were doing so badly

Yes I know. Market Cross is a disaster. Horrible shop. I can only imagine what FQ thought of what SV did to his brand. I brought groups from all over the world to tour the SQ shops,such was his worldwide fame !. That's some achievement for a man who only had a very small number of stores,. These would be huge enterprises with hundreds of stores !

vicwatson · 26-04-2019 11:48am

is_that_so wrote: »

He was actually one of the good guys and a very enthusiastic and energetic man. Always unfailingly polite too!

Might be. But not worthy of headline news by Rte.

road_high · 26-04-2019 12:18pm

Odyssey 2005 wrote: »

Yes I know. Market Cross is a disaster. Horrible shop. I can only imagine what FQ thought of what SV did to his brand. I brought groups from all over the world to tour the SQ shops,such was his worldwide fame !. That's some achievement for a man who only had a very small number of stores,. These would be huge enterprises with hundreds of stores !

I don’t know who advised them and is running the store now but it should be a lesson in taking a once blue chip store and brand, destroying it and running it into the ground. Was never in any of the other ones but I’d imagine it’s the same failing formula.

Allinall · 26-04-2019 12:23pm

vicwatson wrote: »

Might be. But not worthy of headline news by Rte.

Why not?

padd b1975 · 26-04-2019 12:38pm

road_high wrote: »

This is the Kilkenny one, not sure how the Dublin ones are doing. They had to close Carlow and clonmel as they were doing so badly

The Lucan one is doing OK for the moment, not the same as the old Superquinn though.
There only competition in the area was probably the worst Tesco in the country, but with a new one up and running in Liffey Valley they may begin to feel the pinch.

valoren · 26-04-2019 12:40pm

One word sums him up. Respect.

The man was the antithesis of the 'fumble in the greasy till' merchants that the retail sector seems to attract. A shrewd business man and a prime example of how having a stolid and steadfast reputation can benefit anyone involved in business. He was evidently one of those bosses you respected and as a consequence worked hard for. That's the ultimate for a business owner; loyalty from staff and customers. Quinn had that in spades. RIP.

....... · 26-04-2019 3:32pm

DublinWriter wrote: »

He was the first businessman in Europe to come up with the loyalty card scheme.

He also shook up P&T in the 80's - there was a three year waiting time for a domestic land-line at the time.

His book "Crowning the Customer" was recommended reading on the Harvard MBA course.

He used to go to America (and bring staff there) to look at how they were doing things in the service industry and what could be applied to Ireland.

And he treated the staff so well, he inspired a huge amount of staff loyalty, people would stay working for him for YEARS and go above and beyond for him, because he treated them well in return.

Its a stark contrast to where I currently work where the owner would literally not buy the staff ice creams when approached and asked to do so in the height of last summer.

road_high · 26-04-2019 7:40pm

valoren wrote: »

One word sums him up. Respect.

The man was the antithesis of the 'fumble in the greasy till' merchants that the retail sector seems to attract. A shrewd business man and a prime example of how having a stolid and steadfast reputation can benefit anyone involved in business. He was evidently one of those bosses you respected and as a consequence worked hard for. That's the ultimate for a business owner; loyalty from staff and customers. Quinn had that in spades. RIP.

I remember the one in Blanchardstown being a really good store, brilliant deli and fresh food counters. Assume that’s all destroyed now too

Amberjack · 26-04-2019 8:00pm

There’s a book of condolences at SV Sutton now and as a previous poster said the flag is at half mast.
I met him many times, was in his house and knew the family personally, all very well brought up and very down to earth.
Such a wonderful man and a testament to him that there’s nothing but praise for him here and lovely stories of his generosity and little touches that people remember. He was a true gentleman.

Archeron · 26-04-2019 8:11pm

When I was a kid my mum used to bring us to northside shopping center (the great great one) and the supermarkets were superquinn and Dunnes. The memory still today was that Dunnes somehow always had washing powder scattered over the fresh fruit section, and superquinns had the nicest cakes and breads on earth and really nice staff.

Was in the northside supevalu recently and in fairness it's still a nice shop. Still got nice bread and staff are cool. They still make the gur cakes you could knock a donkey out with too.

kravmaga · 26-04-2019 8:15pm

begbysback wrote: »

Did he own quinnsworth?

No, never. SUPERQUINN Supermarkets he used to own until 2005.

Your getting mixed up, Quinnsworth was taken over by Tesco in 1996

Quinnsworth was previously called 5 Star, showing my age here lol

McCrack · 26-04-2019 8:17pm

As a young lad Id pass one of his stores and I'd an interest in cars and was always impressed by his car.. S class Mercedes which were rare and very expensive then and one time he happened to see me admiring it and offered to show me it inside and a lift home!

As everyone has said he was a very genuine and decent man that treated people well and with respect

Rip

elperello · 26-04-2019 9:24pm

TESCO took a full page ad in the Irish Times Business Supplement today.

(A photo of FQ with the text below)

Feargal Quinn 1936-2019

Leader. Legend. Gentleman.

With deepest sympathy from all of us at Tesco.

jos28 · 26-04-2019 9:58pm

Does anyone remember the Superquinn Creche in Sutton ? I remember my eldest used to go in to it. The kids who went also got invited to a birthday party once a year. Got loadsa goodies and Feargal called in to chat to them. Yet another great idea from the great man.

sdanseo · 26-04-2019 10:01pm

I still miss Superquinn even though I'm barely 30. Never appreciated it much until now I'm doing all my own shopping. Albeit if you shopped for everything there you'd be broke fast.

SuperValu just doesn't compare. They gutted all the old shops and installed jigsaw flooring and made everything so brightly red and yellow that it hurts the eyes and resembles a playground.

Mean Laqueefa · 26-04-2019 10:06pm

jos28 wrote: »

Does anyone remember the Superquinn Creche in Sutton ? I remember my eldest used to go in to it. The kids who went also got invited to a birthday party once a year. Got loadsa goodies and Feargal called in to chat to them. Yet another great idea from the great man.

I remember the one in Finglas, little triangular thing like dairly lee shaped and my mam booting my little brother into it while i ran around with the knorr soup packet box back the front over my head pretending to be Robocop and ''helping'' with the shopping.

Bleedin great idea's he had, simpler times

beertons · 26-04-2019 10:11pm

I remember the creche in SQ in Naas. It was deadly.

Have a vague recollection of meeting Charlie Haughey outside it one day with my mam. I don't think the two of them liked each other though.

RIP Feargal Quinn

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