Cap on retail space
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With the recent talk of “reviewing” this cap by the government I was wondering what people thought of it? Personally I think its just yet another barrier this misguided government have invented thats unwittingly stifled competition and driven up prices.
To be honest I resent the gouger retailers being protected from the full rigours of competition which in effect is all that this cap does. Why should consumers be denied the opportunity to shop wherever they want, be it IKEA, B&Q or whoever, just because the self interest groups whinge about their profit margins?
I hope this stupid regulation is removed but somehow I’d say the miserable politicians won’t stand up to the self-interests as usual. Shop around my arse!
I hope the restriction stays in place. The cap is probably all that stands in the way of WalMart (for example) entry to Ireland. It has been my experience that huge stores squeeze out all the smaller stores which leads to less consumer choice and the death of local shopping. Mega stores also tend to be car based which leads to social exclusion as you need private transport to access the stores. City divides into haves and have nots, downtown and public transport become no go areas. This has all been well documented and I find it hard that any planning department would consider allowing the cap be removed.
Ikea is the one that is often used as an example, as they claim their business model is dependant on the large store size. And I accept there is a real need for better quality cheap furniture (as a walk down capel street area will show). However there are smaller Ikea stores in Netherlands and Germany that return a good profit, so I think Ikea are just being manipulative and their bluff should be called. They know they can split their stock into two – bathroom + kitchen / livingroom + and all other, and they have no real intention of going north of the border.
B & Q want to open dozens of new stores in Ireland as soon as the size restriction is lifted, they are a great business model but they will take a huge amount of money out of the country.
Everytime the plan for lifting the ban is mentioned the word “Ikea” also pops up – how sad and pathetic are we that we will change our spatial/planning guidelines on a national basis just to satiate our slavish devotion to some brandname?!? There has to better reasons for a change that could potentially turn the country into one vile suburban edge city.
Wallmart etc may offer cheap prices, but there comes a cost – the total crushing of all local business, and the redundancy of the town centre – and once this is accomplished – what’s there to stop the large retailer from jacking up the prices – where else you gonna shop???
We all laud the German retailers for their cheaper prices, but how much produce do they actually source in this country? It’s hardly a good thing to have only menial minimum-wage jobs as the only contribution to a country’s economy.
Dunnes et al may cost more – but provide secure pensionable jobs with benefits, and invest in our economy in other ways too.Which ties in nicely with the latest effort at rezoning the last farmland in North Dublin that’s anyway close to the population, for housing. Oops sorry I mean theme park.
We can import our factory farmed veg from the Dutch and Germans, not to mention airfreight from Kenya and Venezuela of course. And wonder what happened to Irish farming industry.
Spatial planning my arse.The ban should stay in place – there is more than enough ‘shopping experiences’ outside of Dublin city, and indeed around the country adding to congestion outside towns and car dependancy, also creating environmental problems.
And the best public transport in the world to these places is pointless, as people require cars to load up their purchases.
A plethora of such stores leads to the draining of resources from city & town centres.
It would appear that IKEA are the only ones that need the large retail space – under no circumstances should legislation be passed to satisfy a single private interest.Then again if IKEA agreed to a smaller premises, they’d still have hoards of cars going to it anyway…
But what Tesco propose – large out of town ‘experiences’ – under no circumstances should these be allowed in, there are more than enough brownfield sites in towns across the country to accomodate moderate stores.
Large developments out of town also leads to developers scrambling over each other to build more sprawling housing close to them.Originally posted by Graham Hickey
It would appear that IKEA are the only ones that need the large retail space – under no circumstances should legislation be passed to satisfy a single private interest.The change would not be to satisfy IKEA’s private interest but to meet the needs of Irish consumers. IKEA offer a level of quality, design and value that is not matched in Ireland today. Irish retailers and the Irish public would all benefit from seeing how things can be done.
WalMart, on the other hand, I don’t want to see for all the reasons you mentioned. Can we have one and not the other?
ikea could operate in stores under the cap limit, surely they’re just pushing their luck.
the idea that ikeas “quality, design and value” would somehow benefit irish businesses is ludicrous. hows about i show you how its done while i undermine your trade and run you into the ground? not the way forward methinks. i hope the government feels the same way
Originally posted by sw101
ikea could operate in stores under the cap limit, surely they’re just pushing their luck.I’d rather have an IKEA that stocked their full range, had plenty of display space and was comfortable to navigate.
the idea that ikeas “quality, design and value” would somehow benefit irish businesses is ludicrous.
Why? This is the whole theory behind competitive markets. Irish businesses either compete with IKEA on these points, find some other competitve advantage (e.g. bespoke furniture) or get out of the business.
I have visited perhaps every furniture store in Dublin and Navan over the last year and it has been a miserable experience (there have been odd pockets of excellence, however). I have previously lived in several countries with IKEA stores and there is no comparison. As consumers, we are just hurting ourselves by not allowing a company operating to IKEA’s standards to locate here.
I think that Irish people need to wise up to the benefits of design, then the shops will begin to notice. As for IKEA, they do offer mass produced flatpack ‘designed’ goods, but I have heard that the quality has suffered recently.
Habitat is owned by IKEA – go buy something overpirced there if so desperate to experience IKEA.
The single notion of changing our laws to allow one shop to come to Ireland is so… words escape me. That single act would do more to hurt our reputation abroad than any “Paddy” joke. Why is the solution up to us to find? If IKEA want to come here so bad – why don’t THEY find a compromise. McDonalds don’t have the same menu world wide – they accommodate the country they’re in, not force them to change their laws.
Originally posted by Aierlan
I’d rather have an IKEA that stocked their full range, had plenty of display space and was comfortable to navigate,………………..I have visited perhaps every furniture store in Dublin and Navan over the last year and it has been a miserable experience …………………… As consumers, we are just hurting ourselves by not allowing a company operating to IKEA’s standards to locate here.go back there then. if you’re willing to sacrifice irish produce and labor for a bit of cheap tat then you’re clearly not thinking of the spirit of the irish. my solution would be for irelands workforce of competent and quality driven individuals (not Iarnrod Eireann employees) being put to use producing quality flat packed well designed furniture here, then flood the dutch and german markets and make them all feel bad about themselves, and unemployed, then watch them all flood over here to buy our quality produce and cry because we’re so good. this is a rambling arguement because the whole thread is a bit directionless. IKEA want to come here on there own terms and fuck with our lifestyle as much as anything else. i like going to every crappy shop on capel street looking for that perfect hand-honed piece for my gaff. i dont want some stern yet smiling kraut telling me which of his 3500 tables is my favourite. balls to that. heres to village shops and overpriced wobbly stools. we have to make a little stand here not to surrender ourselves to european ideals because it suits them, and them alone.
eh, no.
we’re all consumers and as a majority we would opt for the giant showroom of tat. thereby undermining the wee cobbled together spots where originality means something (hemp store capel street for example, that place gets sold from stoner to stoner every few months, when it was the fair trade shop i got a stunning handmade walnut presentation case for a song, one of a kind and forever mine).
when this happens continually the smaller shops get pushed out and people who run these businesses either opt toward dole queues or get jobs in mr. giant retail 10,000sq m shop. thereby redistributing basic wages or social welfare while money gets pumped straight out of the country. where are we then? we could go to ikea or habitat for our stuff, depending on how posh we are and our skills with a screwdriver. not a choice i’d be happy making
but not everybody wants twee pine furniture – which seems to be the mass produced Irish stuff.
Learn to love Europe – it’s not that bad
These arguments are very similar to what went on in Britain a few years ago with the “save the highstreet” campaigns. Guess what? The highstreet died. If you find the pleasurable drive to Liffey Valley, and the ‘soulful’ day browsing the many varied indigenous shops there an ideal day out – then let IKEA run amok here – cos that’s they way things are going to be… I think I prefer the concept of comparison shopping in town.
It’s a question of LA versus San Francisco.its not an issue of whether or not we accept europe. thats been done and done in the 70’s or so i’ve been told about in history books. its about rejecting corporate statutes and demands, their gain is our loss. maybe not architects who would love to specify 300 identical chairs which could then be picked up by mr. van man from a town-sized shop outside tallaght, but working class people and the country and its economy as whole.
my point is this, and you’re welcome to disagree. i dont believe ikea should be allowed to dictate terms to the irish government. what they are doing is effectively extorting privileges and exemptions by convincing people we will be losing out by their abcense. i believe we would be losing out as a country if we allow their presence under their terms
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