The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
New Ballyferriter shop opens to a warm welcome
THE opening of Ballyferriter’s new shop on Friday was welcomed with open arms by locals who have had to drive almost five miles to buy a litre of milk for the past three months.
The new shop in the centre of the village was opened by Nikki Ó Conchúir and her husband Colm from Curragraig who saw the opportunity to fill the void left by the closure in August of the Cat Dubh shop, followed within a week by the closure of the Long family’s Gala store, which left Ballyferriter shop-less.
Amid a steady stream of customers coming through the door on Monday, Nikki told The Kerryman that within days of the closure of Long’s shop, she and Colm put in an offer on the former Louis Mulcahy store in Ballyferriter which had been on the market for some time. Their offer was accepted and the deal was sealed the same day.
Nikki, who is originally from Liverpool, came to Dingle in 1999 and has lived for the past 11 years in Ballyferriter with Colm and their two children, Adam and Dylan. Although she worked for years in Moran’s petrol station shop in Dingle, Nikki has no previous experience of running a retail business but what she lacks in experience she makes up in enthusiasm and is confident that the business will succeed.
“Anybody in Dingle would say we’re mad to open a shop in Ballyferriter, but I can see that there’s very strong local demand and, after three months without a shop in the village, locals are delighted that we’ve opened and they’re giving us great support,” she said. “As well as that we’re on the Slea Head Drive, which brings a lot of traffic, and a lot of tourists stay in the area during the summer so there should be plenty of business.”
The proof of the pie is in the eating: after mass on Sunday the café area at the front of the shop was filled with locals enjoying a coffee and Nikki’s homemade scones. By Monday she found herself having to re-stock shelves and everybody coming through the door had a welcome and best wishes on their lips.