When considering the opportunities available to shoppers in Dublin, you may not necessarily think of the Village Green Shopping Centre in Tallaght as one of the go-to shopping centres. It may be time to think again.
In October 2017 the small-but-perfectly-formed Village Green had units that won awards at the South Dublin County Business Awards, held at the grandeur Citywest Hotel. Celine’s Gifts and Flowers and Molloy’s Liquor Store shared the award for Customer Service Retail, with Celine’s Gifts and Flowers also nominated for the Best Small Business award, all judged by the Dublin Chamber.
It’s acknowledgement that had been a long time in waiting for an up-and-coming pocket of commerce in the south of the city, with a host of retailers calling the bustling retail hub home. The stores themselves hold a smattering of events as varied as the stores themselves. Indeed, the Village Green plays host to more than just retail, with nights out catered for in the form of a restaurant, bar and state of the art card club.
Built in 1992 and stationed a stone’s throw from the Priory Church landmark in Tallaght Village, the Village Green is easily accessible and sits just a turn of the steering wheel from the N81 Tallaght bypass. Parking is free throughout the weekend, with midweek rates starting at €1 for 50 minutes.
What can I find at the Village Green?
There a huge range of units to take advantage of at the Village Green, ranging from pet stores to florists via hair stylists and mini-markets. This variety is a huge part of the Village Green’s charm and a wander through the retail centre offers the full spectrum of Irish commerce. High-street names might be absent here, but that gives the Village Green a sprinkling of authenticity often missing from some of the bigger shopping centres. What’s more, this sense of down-to-earth spirit allows for a community feel amongst the retailers, who are known to offer a range of events to entice their customer base.
Already mentioned as an award-winning boutique store that puts customer satisfaction at the forefront of everything they do, Celine’s Flowers & Gifts is one very much at the heart of the Village Green community, and is one of the centre’s flagship stores. Celine is the stores’ chief floral designer and proprietor and together with other friendly and down-to-earth ladies that run the store, they’re going strong in an industry that has been reduced to only 500 specialist stores in Ireland since the dawn of internet and supermarket floristry. With all the flowers having been flown in from the Netherlands, Celine’s is known for its quality and attention to detail.
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Owned by renowned poker personality JP McCann, the Village Green Card Club is a specialist poker-only card club that was opened in 2012. Five years on it is the epicentre of all things poker in the south of the city, with daily card schools and leagues taking place. All standards are catered for, from beginners to professionals, and the card room can cater for 135 players at any point. Poker and other casino-type games have seen a huge boom in recent years, which is partly down to the rise of options for mobile Apple and Android devices. The use of casino games in particular for slots games have utilised a real sense of nostalgia for users. According to Betway Insider with casino slot providers using psychology, branding and popular themes it has been cited as another factor for the increasing popularity of such pursuits UK and Ireland. Indeed, the online casino industry itself has seen a dramatic rise in interest, making the continued success of the Village Green Card Club an even more impressive achievement.
No self-respecting community hub in Ireland is complete without a cracking boozer, of course, and in this instance, that particular vacancy is expertly filled by Molloy’s. Sure, there is no shortage of pubs to choose from in Dublin, but Molloy’s pubs have a unique authenticity to them, and the Village Green offering is awash with charm, including a function room popular with Tallaght residents.
With a second store in central Dublin, Gosk8 is Ireland’s largest supplier of skateboarding, ice skating and scootering goods, making it a fun place to go with the kids, even if it does put mum and dad in danger of spending a pretty penny! Their attention to customer service is paramount, and an incisive knowledge of skate sports is enough to put even the most nervous first timer at ease.
What’s on at the Village Green?
Dublin has a thriving tourism industry beholden to the many great events and shows held across the city, and while the Village Green won’t be holding many rock concerts any time soon, they are famed for their own spin on special occasions to bring custom through the door.
JP’s Village Green Card Club brings regular footfall to the shopping centre through a host of tournaments, held on a weekly basis, with titles as high profile as the 2017 Cash Game Festival having been held there in recent weeks.
Much of the reasoning behind the recognition of Celine’s Flowers & Gift Shop’s customer service is not down only to their in-store care, but also their keen online presence and regular social media competitions, which have set a precedent other Village Green unitholders have followed. These competitions, which offer free bouquets or items from their increasingly popular gift shop, are held most often on their Facebook page, which has attracted almost 8,000 followers.
In keeping with the times of their youthful customer base, Gosk8 are another social-media savvy outlet. What’s more, they roll out regular offers and sales and have been known to play host to hugely popular summer skate meets throughout the city, all of which are advertised on their Facebook page. Their final meet of the 2017 summer, Troll Bowl, was held at Bushy Park in July, where over 100 skaters of varying abilities took part.
One of the most event-heavy members of the Village Green society are Molloy’s, who are one of the many Irish pubs going above and beyond to buck a downward trend that has seen as many as 950 pubs close every year across the country, including iconic pubs in Tallaght itself. This is down partly to its great offering of pub grub, their 26 large screens showing all the major sporting events and number of well-supported events, which include live music and weekly quiz nights. Drinks offers, including €15 buckets of beer, accompany these events perfectly.
