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What’s particularly frustrating for businesses in the town is when people come in looking for sponsorship, who have never stepped foot in the shop previously.

The chairman of Mitchelstown Business Association has this week spoken out on behalf of his own business, as well as many other retailers in the town who have recently voiced their opinions to him, about the amount of sponsorship that businesses are being approached for, so as to support events and charities. Mark Waldron, proprietor of Mark’s Fruit and Veg Shop in the town, says that so many requests for sponsorship come to ‘our doors that we can’t support everyone’.

“I’ve supported the local schools dozens of times over my five and a half years in business in Mitchelstown, but many of the parents have never come in here to support me as much as I’d like them to. They go to the big foreign multi-nationals or elsewhere, such as the market on a Thursday, to buy their fruit and vegetables.”

WORKS BOTH WAYS

At the same time Mark fully says he fully appreciates that people are entitled to spend their money wherever they wish. “We just wish they would support us more. Believe it our not, I could be asked in my shop for sponsorship up to 10 times a week. It’s no exaggeration. Most are charities. I can’t possibly support them all but for those that I do, I give out €10 vouchers. I actually have 10 such vouchers given out in the last month for local events.”

Mark points out that what’s particularly frustrating for businesses in the town is when people come in looking for sponsorship, who have never stepped foot in the shop previously. Then in other instances, when they are given sponsorship, they might never return again or maybe not until a few months time, when looking for sponsorship once again.

“Speaking from a personal level, I try to keep it local. I’ve been asked by people I might only see in my shop once a year for sponsorship. In such a case I still might give depending on what the cause is but it’s very frustrating. Retailers in Mitchelstown who give sponsorship need and deserve to be given something back. Most people are fantastic but others are not. Many come to us because the big foreign multinationals for example won’t give them an answer or would be slow to fork out. When I give and I know it’s a similar story for other businesses, it breaks our hearts not to see the recipients in our shop again once they’ve got what they came for.”

NOTHING DIFFERENT IN FERMOY

Meanwhile in Fermoy, Michael Hanley of Hanley's Newsagents, who has been a business owner for over 40 years in Pearse Square, has been a long-time benefactor to the volunteer side of the town.

“The problem that I have with, however, it is it’s gone too far, any town can have 40 or 50 clubs and organisations; we seem to have 100 of them. Because of the amount of organisations that are out there, it’s a never ending trail through the doors looking for sponsorship for this, that or the other.”

The prevailing economic climate of the past few years has also hit local businesses’ ability to support clubs and organisations, and Mr Hanley added. “Because nearly all of them are voluntary, they are all obviously in need of dire funding. The problem that business people have is that it’s easy to sponsor financially when times are good.

“But the experience that is currently in vogue because of a most dreadful recession and the combination of the flood works in Fermoy – these have hit the business community very sharply and it’s harder to sponsor in the current climate.”

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

Mr Hanley also praised the work local clubs and organisations do, particularly in promoting a healthy way of life. He also called on the Government to do more to fund these volunteer groups.

“They are a healthy way to look at life; they do an awful lot of good work in the town. It’s good to see people doing these things, but ideally there should be a Government fund provided through the local authority system that genuine projects can be supported, which would be a help to clubs and organisations. It shouldn’t be all left to us as a business community,” he added.

Ideally, where local businesses sponsor local clubs and organisations, their sponsorship should be reciprocated through support by the public and a commitment to shopping locally. But with the recent recession, a growing move away from town centre shopping and an increasingly large presence of local clubs and associations, is that balance of sponsorship and support being met?

Vice-Chairperson of the Fermoy Business Action Group and local business owner, Noel McCarthy, said he believes that 90 per cent of the people who ask for sponsorship ‘give a return in some way or another’. He said he believes that there is a responsibility on committee members of local clubs and organisations to get the message out to other members, to support the businesses who support them.

“Overall, speaking for myself personally, I’m happy to support any event locally. I’m a great supporter of supporting local events and groups in the area. But that must come back to us as well.

“There needs to be more emphasis on getting the message out there to members that it was the local businesses in Fermoy who provided donations, and their members should be asked to support them in any way possible during the year.”

He added: “In Fermoy we’re very lucky to have great facilities with all the different clubs, and all the people who give their free time to these clubs are the heroes. But at the same time, when they come to businesses looking for support, the must get the message back to their members to support the businesses in return.”

LOSS OF BUSINESS IN GALBALLY

Meanwhile, in Galbally, Willie Barry who operated his butcher shop at Hedigan's Corner for 11 years, closed his doors for the final time last week. He told The Avondhu that things started to go downhill in a noticeable way since last September, especially with all the red tape that is stifling small businesses.

“I had a unique situation with the shop as I ran a small abattoir out the back. However, increases in the cost of overheads, water rates and electricity were a big factor in my decision to close. Also foreign multinationals and the bigger supermarkets have done a lot of damage to small businesses like mine. Over the years the local people in Galbally have been fantastic and I’ve had some very loyal customers. However there’s no denying that people are prepared to travel now to the foreign multinationals in Tipperary Town, Clonmel and Mitchelstown. There isn’t the same support and loyalty shown towards the smaller local businesses as was the situation in the past. This is especially true among younger shoppers.”

The Cappawhite native, who has been a butcher since 1975, will certainly be missed in Galbally as the village is now without a butcher shop.

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