From beauty and books to toys and tech, there’s a huge selection of homegrown companies to choose from
The weeks ahead are going to be incredibly hard for Irish retailers who have been forced to close to contain the spread of Covid-19. They are going to be difficult for people too, as they try to get their ducks in a row for Christmas.
Online shopping is clearly part of the answer. But it comes with a caveat. As much as 70 per cent of Irish consumers’ online spending leaves the country as people shop with multinationals. But it doesn’t have to be that way – there are many local sites that need your support this month and next.
TOYS
A Dublin toyshop that has been making children and their parents happy for generations. Has grown a substantial online presence in recent years.
A super cute site with a large array of toys and scooters and all the rest.
A homegrown site that focuses on environmentally-friendly toys.
Familiar to many Munster-based people, this shop is now doing the business in a big way in the online space.
Just because it is one of the biggest toyshops on the island does not make it less Irish. It stocks large ranges of all toys and operates a handy click-and-collect service.
An ever-increasing range of environmentally-sound toys for all kids. Again, this is a site that eschews that easily-breakable plastic stuff on the market.
If you are looking for Lego or all manner of other toys, this Wexford shop might be able to help.
A gorgeous little shop on Galway’s Quay St that was always worth a browse in pre-Covid times. While the shop is on the small side, there are no space issues on the website. Plenty of wooden and traditional toys.
A beautiful shop based in Ennis, stuffed with the cutest of presents from Ireland and elsewhere. Definitely worth a visit, if only in a virtual sense.
A new kid on the block, this site was born out of the ashes of Mothercare Ireland and is the only Irish stockist of a wide range of developmental toys from the Early Learning Centre, making it an ideal starting point for parents of young children.
FOOD
“Finest traditionally-smoked wild Atlantic seafood” is this Connemara-based site’s boast. What they sell looks great and we were almost as impressed by the @OldSmoky Twitter handle.
Looking for Dublin honey? Then look no further than this site, which has a range of 100 per cent raw Irish honeys including heather, blossom and softset honey from different apiaries around Dublin and Wicklow.
A site which has the aim of creating “transparency around the food we eat. Weekly deliveries of locally sourced, organically grown produce, direct from small-scale farms in your community”.
A bakery beloved of Galway people for a long time, its online presence is being significantly expanded, which means more people across the country will be able to experience its delightful treats and hampers.
All Ireland Foods is a family business based in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, and its aim is “to encourage Irish food producers, growers, and cottage industries to sell and export their products online”. We like their motto: “If it’s not grown, raised or produced in Ireland, or caught on Irish-registered trawlers it will not be sold on our site.”
The Ardkeen Quality Food Store rarely goes unmentioned any time we ask people to recommend good places to shop local. The Waterford-based supermarket has moved into the online delivery space in a big way in recent times, and has widened its service to include nationwide delivery for just €6.95 per order.
We’ve not actually tasted the chocolate from the Burren but we do love the sound of it.
We love this site which brings farmers’ markets into a virtual world and a wider Irish market.
If you want smoked fish for a special occasion, you could run into Lidl or Aldi and get something cheap – or you could go direct to an Irish business and have it delivered to your door. Sure, it will cost a bit more but it will be a whole lot better.
This foodie heaven is another one that brings small producers to your front door – or at least to a collection point near you. A great idea that deserves support.
The name of the site gives it away. Achill Lamb delivered to your front door.
Full disclosure: this is Pricewatch’s local greengrocer and we have been shopping on the site almost since the start of the lockdown. We can’t sing its praises loudly enough if you’re lucky enough to live in its delivery area.
A dedicated gluten-free food business with its own range of sauces and seasonings made locally in Co Louth. They come in handy 100ml bottles, so will make for lovely gifts. The folk behind it also do classes and help people learn more about GF.
Not all potatoes are made equal, as a quick browse here will make very clear. Alongside the potato varieties you’ll not have heard of, they also do bundles of queens and broccoli which look lovely.
We don’t have enough space to include more of the wonderful Irish food businesses that have moved into the online space, but this site has a whole lot more of them.
If you are looking for wine, sweet treats, cheese and coffee, you can find it all here.
One of the finest butchers in Ireland, with a vast array of cuts from the high end to the everyday.
The fish folk have launched an online service with everything delivered in cooler boxes.
All the cheese, cured meats, crackers and other accoutrements you could want straight to your door.
Started out at the start of the pandemic delivering essentials to people not so keen on visiting shops and has grown in recent months into an online department store offering a delivery platform for many small Irish companies.
ART/GIFTS
A really excellent resource for anyone in the market for presents for themselves or others in the run-up to Christmas.
Gorgeous idea. These folk put together gift boxes with books, chocolate, fancy soaps and more, all of which is delivered to you or to someone you like a lot in a lovely scented box.
In the market for some homespun tweed? These folk will have you covered.
We’ll let this site speak for itself. “Like everyone right now we are muddling through and keeping a safe distance! We are keeping the online shop open for anyone looking to send a little gift or make their fridge or walls look a little brighter! Rest assured we are abiding by strict hygiene standards while doing this and delivering via the lovely staff at An Post. Stay safe everyone.”
Always a lovely place to buy a present – for yourself or someone else – and the site was looking lovely last week draped in all sorts of autumnal colours. The site is promising free and fast delivery on orders over €49.
We will hand over to the site to describe itself. “Caboose is the first online marketplace in Ireland that gathers the best Irish artisan producers together in one place. We make it easy for everyone to shop fresh ingredients, incredible flavours and rare recipes. We are proud supporters of independent producers, connecting them with food lovers. Come join our thriving Caboose community!”
If you are in the market for Irish produced candles that smell lovely and look even nicer then you won’t go wrong with these people.
Galway-based shop which is selling a range of working-from-home furniture as well as natty stuff you might need for your home when you are not working. The site also has a commitment to the environment, and the designs focus on usability and extended use, while the company uses sustainable materials and finishes on all of its products and will even plant a tree when every piece is sold.
Pricewatch has long been a fan of this Dublin shop when in need of a fun and funky last-minute stocking filler. The website is also fantastic.
Cogs the Brain Shop has a physical presence in the Stephen’s Green Centre in Dublin, and an excellent site for games and toys that children will love.
Irish-based, with more than 25 Irish suppliers offering lifestyle products including shampoo bars, safety razors, natural skincare and a whole lot more.
This Waterford business was only born in March, and all the soy candles are handmade using sustainable and natural ingredients at the owner’s kitchen table.
Described by its owners as “a one-stop-gift-for-me shop based in Galway . . . stuff that’s a little bit different from the usual fare”. Clothes, candles, ceramics, jewellery and a whole lot more besides.
A lovely site selling lovely things and well worth a look for anyone in the market for a present for someone they care about.
Clothes, shoes, homewares, kids’ stuff and a whole lot more. The site’s ethos is to provide “a range of timeless products that steer clear from trends, instead offering functionality, good design and longevity” and to support “the wealth of talent in Ireland’s thriving design scene”.
Irish Family design studio creating (the hint is in the name) slate tableware and personalised gifts.
A site which prides itself on promoting the “work of Ireland’s most exciting designer makers”. It has both an online presence and a bricks-and-mortar shop in Dublin.
There is a limit to the number of sites we can feature here. There is a whole lot more to be found here.
A new online store working with more than 40 makers and designers, with a big focus on local design. You will find tasty food, gifts, homewares and lifestyle items.
Artists fill the gallery with fresh concepts in print, using both traditional and contemporary techniques. The site stocks ceramics, textiles, jewellery and street art “in strange and wonderful forms”, with the owners saying they are “always working with the artists to create exciting new designs”.
Ailish from Sí Jewellery custom makes jewellery, tie bars, pocket watches and more with images and quotes. She can also make ashes and hair-infused memorial pieces.
This is the home of personalised and original pre-printed word art by Susan Brambell. The idea is brilliant. You provide her with a list of words and she makes them into a shape of your choice. The result is a lovely, personalised text art gift. There are also pre-done options if you’re lost for words.
“Indulge yourself or delight a loved one with our individually crafted gifts, made to inspire and charm. Handmade with love by over 100 passionate and creative Irish makers and designers.” That is how this site describes itself and we can’t do any better than that.
In their own words, the people behind this site are “purveyors of unique studio handcrafts and jewellery. Everything we sell is designed and fully handmade by artisans living and working in Ireland”.
This is an online platform stuffed with novel gift ideas and well worth a visit.
If you are in the market for something special for someone you care about you won’t go wrong with this acclaimed jeweller.
A Dublin-based site which specialises in gifts for mums and babies. They tell Pricewatch that lots of their stockists are also small independent Irish businesses.
A small but beautiful range of hand-thrown ceramics made by Etaoin O’Reilly, with jugs, diffusers, cups and Christmas decorations.
All manner of gifts handmade and using sustainable Irish wood.
A design-led independent home and giftware store with a strong emphasis on sustainability.
Sustainably designed and screen-printed lifestyle products and accessories made by hand in Dublin by Liz Walsh. There’s free shipping on all orders over €50.
A gorgeous online platform containing stock from more than 30 local businesses, with everything from kitchenware to kids toys. Everything is eco-friendly and ethically sourced.
Multi-award-winning jewellery brand, with all the pieces handmade from a studio in the southeast.
This is not an Irish website but there are loads of Irish people selling on the platform. Here’s how you find them. You search for what you want and when the results come up you can apply a “shop location” filter which allows you to see only sellers based in this country.
Some very brightly coloured and unusual jewellery as well as the odd mug, turbans, head scarves and loads of lovely cards.
Gorgeous site on the west coast selling lovely things that will bring a smile to anyone’s face, unless they are super grumpy, like.
A site which acts as a platform for design and contemporary Irish homeware. “Inspired by urban living and street art.”
This site “aims to be among the world’s best places to find clever and distinctive wall art of universal and Irish interest. We particularly like the classic posters advertising Ireland’s National Cemetery – and not just because it features loads of popes but, thankfully, not this one yet. There are also posters and prints of dear old Dublin sayings created by “international and Irish letter-crafters”.
CLOTHES
We have to say we love the socks from this Galway-based company. Really high quality and really inventive to boot. The company have also moved into the face mask space in recent months and we particularly like their mask which says, simply, “howya”.
Boxer shorts for boys with the word “buachaill” on them? An-mhaith ar fad.
From jocks to socks, this site has some wonderful-looking seamless socks made from bamboo.
HappiClose is an Irish company which makes children’s clothes that are easy to fit and fasten. “Special baby-soft Velcro is used for fastening. These clothes are highly adaptive, being particularly suitable for children who are difficult to dress,” the site says.
Socks of Ireland? Yes, they’re a thing now and the world is a better place for that.
Very cool scarves and jumpers and – more recently – masks.
A collection of high-quality, ethically made childrenswear and lifestyle products from independent Irish brands.
Ethically made T-shirts and hoodies. Oh, and sunglasses made out of recycled skateboards – what’s not to love about that?
With hundreds of thousands of Irish people relying on the GAA to keep them sane during the winter lockdown, the hurling, football and camogie championships are likely to be more popular this year than ever. What better way to capture the hearts and minds of the smallest of fans than with GAA-themed babywear!
We could have put this shop into almost any category, really. Not an Irish-owned shop anymore, but it still sells a lot of Irish-made products. And at the time of writing – last Wednesday October 14th – it was still having a sale.
Can there be a Pricewatch reader who has not heard of this website? We have certainly plugged the T-shirt (and more recently mask) people enough. And they deserve it.
An old-school tailor in a brave new world. If you are looking for fancy clobber or cufflinks or bags, you will find it here.
This boutique has – in its own words –“an outfit for every occasion. We offer a great selection of stylish occasion wear for weddings, christenings, communions and confirmations from leading Irish designers including Fee G and Caroline Kilkenny. Other dressy wear ranges include Chiara Boni La Petite Robe and Stop Staring dresses”.
If you are looking for a place to buy and to sell fancy clobber, you need look no further.
A boutique that stocks all sorts of “eco-chic” for women and children, from fairtrade and sustainable fashion labels that you will struggle to find elsewhere.
This site explains what it is better than we could: “Empowering apparel and gifts celebrating wild Irish women and an Ghaeilge. Designed, embroidered and printed in the hills of Donegal. Each range supports a different rape crisis, pro-choice or LGBTQ+ organisation.”
BOOKS
Ranelagh-based bookshop offers a click-and-collect service as well as a book postage services. It can also deliver within 2km of the shop.
No visit to Galway is complete without a browse in Charlie Byrne’s. This is the city’s largest and most lovely independent bookshop, with new and second-hand books on sale. Browsing online is not the same but it is still a thing of wonder. And the money stays in Ireland.
Just Books describes itself as “a unique and charming bookshop located in the heart of Mullingar. We offer customers the personal touch and that’s what makes us stand apart from other bookshops. We deliver books across Ireland. If you don’t see what you are looking for, simply contact us and we will try our very best to get it for you”. Just one reason why shopping local is so much better than the alternatives.
We have long loved the books in this collection. They are full of love and warmth and while they may have been born out of great sadness, they have also given a huge amount of joy to parents and children everywhere and to children’s charities across the country.
Easons is the bookshop where millions of Irish people spanning three centuries have learned to love books and its site is well worth a look.
This is a year that most of us will never forget but – fingers crossed – 2021 will be less memorable. You will find all kinds of diaries here and they are all quite lovely.
More than 50,000 second-hand books at €2 or less, with free delivery on orders of more than €20. They have other books that cost more than that too. Lots and lots of them.
Kenny’s celebrates its 80th birthday this year and has the longest-running online bookshop in the world – take that Amazon. It often matches the big boys when it comes to price and beats them when it comes to quality.
Lovely bookshop run by lovely people in Dublin and Dalkey.
SKINCARE
A lovely range of magnesium deodorant sprays which are scented with natural coconut and vanilla oils. We are promised chemical-free products which don’t stain.
Natural, clean skincare and home fragrance free from synthetics. They are also vegan-friendly and sustainably made by hand in Ireland.
Could there be a better time to be in the soap business, when everyone is washing their hands with more vigour than Howard Hughes in a septic tank? This Clare-based family business offers an ethical and environmentally friendly alternative to mainstream options.
TECH
When it comes to tech, there isn’t a lot made in Ireland, but at least by shopping with a local retailer, you are contributing to the local economy. This site is promising next-day delivery on an impressive range of kit.
Family-run business with as wide a range of camera equipment as you will find almost anywhere. Offers click-and-collect and delivery service across Ireland.
It is very easy to look to the big players if you are in the market for white goods, but there are a lot of local retailers in the space too, and many of them have pretty polished online offerings, such as Heavins. When we were on the site last week there was an impressive-looking sale.
If you are in the market for some high-end tech then these guys are definitely worth a look.
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Article from https://www.irishtimes.com/news/consumer/one-hundred-irish-retailers-for-all-your-online-christmas-shopping-1.4386351?mode=amp
