Penneys glad to see queue again
»»Bargain hunters shell out thousands in post-lockdown blitz »»Public queue from 3am at Dublin flagship store on Mary Street
KNICKERS, false lashes and fluffy socks were the top three items that had women queuing from as early as 3am for the reopening of Penneys stores yesterday.
Thousands of shoppers flocked to the fashion giant splashing the cash on anything they could grab hold of and on average spending between €200 to €300.
The Mary Street flagship store in Dublin was forced to open at 8.45am – almost two hours early – after gardai advised management the volume of people joining the line was increasing.
At that point hundreds of shoppers had already formed a queue which ran the full length of the store and back on to Parnell Street.
Eager fashion lovers of the budget retailer began arriving from the early hours on Mary Street, wanting to get first choice of summer stock.
A total of 16 stores opened across the country while the remaining 20 within shopping centres will welcome
back customers on Monday in line with Government guidelines.
Beauty bars, fitting rooms, toilets and cafes remained shut while extra security and gardai were on hand to help with crowd control.
Buzzing with excitement, Louise Mcnally and Saoirse Monaghan from the city centre hauled large shopping bags from the store after spending nearly two hours inside.
Louise said: “We’ve been here since about 7.30am and we’ll probably be back on Monday once I check the funds. It was amazing. I spent €330, we all spent around the same and I couldn’t even tell you what I bought. I got a shock when I got to the till.
“I felt safe inside, there was Perspex up and plenty of signs. I wasn’t anxious at all about going back shopping, I couldn’t wait to get in.”
Saoirse applauded staff who she said reminded people to keep their distance and she admired the politeness of security workers managing the queues.
For Chantelle Warborton and her sisters Brooke and Ella from Dublin it was set to be a tough task getting home with all of their brown bags filled to the brim.
Chantelle said her siblings splashed out “mad money”, adding: “I spent €148 and bought stuff for myself, my baby who is eight months, my sisters and my mother.
“We went in for pyjamas and underwear. But the girls spent mad money, my sister Gemma spent around €350. I’ve found it hard being in lockdown because the baby is growing so fast so we haven’t been able to get her stuff.”
Natalie Farrell was another mum in the queue with her 11-week-old son Gerry.
She was joined by her daughters Nicole and Adriana and they were ready to tackle the baby section.
Natalie said: “I’m going to buy whatever I can. I need the babygrows.
“I had him on March 16. It was horrible, my husband was allowed in he was born but then he had to go. It has been tough with a newborn baby at home.”
Ruby Cooke from Tallaght was at the back of the queue with her mum Stephanie who both found lockdown “horrible”.
The 11-year-old was hoping to spend her mother’s money on fluffy socks and face masks while they treated themselves to new pyjamas.
Stephanie said: “We don’t mind queueing at all, it’ll be worth it when we get in. I need a few clothes to get rid of the winter wardrobe and pick up some summer tops and flip flops.”
False lashes and pyjamas were flying off the shelves and staff were seen restocking them as quickly as possible.
Chloe Nolan told how the accessories section was also wiped out as shoppers grabbed hairbands and bobbles.
The 22-year-old hair stylist and influencer originally from Co Carlow planned to showuntil
case her purchases to her followers last night after spending €333 in just 45 minutes inside the store.
Ciara and Catherine Maher from Lucan told the Irish Mirror they noticed people were becoming complacent since the country began reopening.
Ciara said: “We love Penneys because it’s cheap and cheerful and a lot of the clothes fit so well.
“I would be a tiny bit anxious about shopping but I think once people comply with social distancing it’s fine.
“I think some people think because the country is opening back up people think everything is back to normal.
“It doesn’t bother me going into the store. We actually had masks and were going to wear them but we forgot them at home.
“We’re finding more and more people are becoming very complacent while out and about especially when everything began to open up.”
Despite the advice from health officials to wear masks while shopping and on public transport, the majority of people queuing to get into Penneys ignored the warning.
One or two wore face coverings and staff inside the stores also used masks.
However, videos and images posted on social media caused outrage among listeners of Joe Duffy’s Liveline.
One said: “I was disgusted when I saw videos of people just grouping together with very few masks.”