Sometimes when we look at a old picture of the heart of Galway City and notice something that is there no longer, we strain to remember when exactly that change took place. There are many time-stamped prompts to help us. Maybe it is the sight of cars on Shop Street, some pulled up to collect heavy goods from the likes of O’Connor TV or Naughtons. Or books from O’Gormans. Or the sight of Una Taaffe, shawled up to greet the morning.
The joy of a treacle cake and a coffee in Griffins has also been lost to this generation. Maybe it’s the sign that hung above Moons; the Woolworth store in Eyre Square, the various name changes of the Great Southern. The ownership of McCambridges had changed just recently. All reminders of a changing face of the city that was a source of fascination for us all in times past.
These businesses were constant presences, relics of auld decency. Firm fixtures in the choppy waters on which trying to keep a business afloat through recessions and wars and pandemics was a constant challenge.
These changes happened right under our eyes every day. Just as they will tomorrow, and the next and the next. The city centre evolved and continues to evolve. From the window in the office where I write this, the skyline of the city changes daily with the addition of Bonham Quay.
I am prompted of this topic this week because of the cessation of trading of another doyen of city centre retailing, Colleran’s Butchers.
On their social media pages this week came the shocking and sad news.
“We regret to inform you that Collerans Butchers Galway Ltd has ceased trading with immediate effect. As a lot of our customers were aware, we were working through a change of ownership.
The change of ownership did not occur due to a lack of agreement with one of the shareholders. We are heartbroken that we never got the opportunity. Thank you to all of our loyal customers who we have loved serving throughout the years, and of course for always having the craic with us.”
The business at Mainguard Street was first established in 1935. After almost 90 years of service and quality, it is a big loss to the local quality food environment.
When it comes to the face of retail in all our towns and villages, nothing surprises too much after all of the trauma of the past few years. The way we live, the way we shopped, the way we have used city centres all altered irretrievably by the forced confinement of the pandemic.
Nowhere is this more noticeable than in the streets of our city, where many windows lie shuttered, blinds down, doors closed. Cafes, restaurants that were once full of life, now just vacant retail.
I don’t know about you, but lines of trainer shops and vaping shops offering you a thousand different flavours of how to poison yourself don’t rock my boat when it comes to seeing character in the streets of our towns and villages. There is a different feeling about how I view Galway’s physical landscape now. The world has changed. I chuckle when I see our headquarters in Eyre Square sandwiched between a vinyl record store and a physical bank. Three more time-stamped businesses meeting the challenges of a rebirth, perhaps.
Our cities need a kick of imagination to make them full of life again. New welcoming and living spaces for a new generation. Let us all play our part.
