The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Online stores are killing Tralee shops
INTERNET SHOPPING NOT PARKING IS THE MAIN THREAT TO TOWN’S SHOPS
TRADERS in Tralee have identified online shopping as the single biggest threat to their survival.
While a perceived lack of parking in the town centre and competition from Manor West retail park are often cited as reasons for the decline in town centre business many traders say the real problem lies with online retailers.
Plans to remove 66 parking spaces in Tralee town centre – to facilitate the restoration of two way traffic on Denny Street – were met with a furious response from some shop owners who said a reduction in parking would have a potentially catastrophic impact on their businesses.
Though parking is an issue several prominent shop owners in the town told The Kerryman this week that the biggest threat is much harder to manage.
One leading figure in Tralee’s retail sector – who has run one of the town’s best known shops for over 20 years – said the annual increase in online shopping is placing many businesses in jeopardy.
“Parking is an issue of course – we’d all like to see much more parking in the town and to see parking charges dropped – but the real issue is the internet,” he said.
“It’s almost impossible to beat the prices in online shops. All you can do is offer better personal service but there’s a problem there too. More people are shopping online so they don’t come into the shops and you can’t provide them with that quality service. It’s a total catch 22,” he said.
“People often ask me why the town centre is so quite and I just ask them when they last bought something online. Usually they have no answer,” he said.
“You can do something about parking but when it comes to online shopping you’ve just got to try and convince people to support their town.”
The enormous level of online shopping in Tralee was highlighted further by the decision of a leading courier operator to add extra services between its main depot and Tralee to deal with the huge volume of parcels coming to local shoppers from online stores.