With one trader stating that there can be anything up to 50 stalls on any given Thursday at Mitchelstown market, the general consensus amongst those we spoke to is that the locals are fantastic, business is down, rubbish is a problem and that cars parked in traders pitches when they arrive in the morning needs to be addressed.

Bookseller John Moore from Limerick comes to Mitchelstown market every week. April 2nd was good for business but the following one was poor despite the spectacular sunshine.

“Overall the market in Mitchelstown is hit and miss. It’s just like everywhere else. I also trade in Limerick and Kilkee. Last week Mitchelstown was better than Limerick. I have my own regulars. I’m 46 years of age and am, all my life, coming here. The people here are great as are the traders. I’d know most of them.”

All traders pointed to the fact that occasionally a car can be found parked in their pitch when they arrive early on Thursday mornings. This involves either having to wait for the owner to move the car or having to work around the situation.

“Kilkee market, unlike Mitchelstown, is permit based which means that a car will be towed. The one in Limerick is also good as the council men will move the cars.”

John has stopped traveling to the market in Tipperary as, in his view, the permit is too expensive and the sales just aren’t there.

“If they make Mitchelstown a permit market and start charging for each bay, it will finish it in my view.”

A female who has been trading at Mitchelstown for many years agreed that having permits would ruin the market although ‘it would have the benefit of getting rid of a lot of the second hand items’.

“There’s too much car boot sale stuff. This can be sold at low prices but the problem occurs when people expect us to sell quality items at these second hand prices also. We just can’t do that with the quality stuff.”

One trader stated that he was seriously considering quitting Mitchelstown altogether after being there for just over two years.

“We travel from Newcastlewest and are here by 5.30am to set up on our spot. We’ve made a loss for five weeks on the trot. One day in January I made €4. Some days I just make €30. A lot of people think that we make a lot more and can knock down the price of items and give a bargain but it’s not feasible all the time. In markets with a permit, you can expect to get the price you ask for.”

A trader that attends the market in Ballysimon, Limerick thinks it’s better organised than the one in Mitchelstown as stalls selling quality items are grouped together in a zone as are the ones selling second hand items. He felt that in Mitchelstown, stalls were just 'bunched together'.

“The markets where you are charged to trade are better as you are allocated a space. The problem of course is that if they started charging in Mitchelstown, in time we could be overcharged.”

Another trader who has been coming to Mitchelstown for 30 years and whose grandfather is listed in the 1911 census as a street trader, agrees that business is down and the issue of cars being parked in traders’ pitches can be a real problem. However, that age old issue of rubbish is a particular concern for stall owners.

“There’s a lot of litter on the square on a Thursday morning when we arrive in the form of chip bags, pizza boxes and cans. It’s not our fault, but we tend to get the blame. We end up clearing it up. We also clear up before leaving and always take our rubbish home.”

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