by Ríona Gillespie.
It’s no secret that businesses have taken a massive blow as a result of Covid-19 restrictions. All over Limerick and indeed across the country, shuttered shop fronts is an unfortunately common sight – many never to be opened again. However, the resilience of Irish businesses is ever-present. From click and collect services to home delivery, these businesses have adapted to the restricted retail world through online shopping platforms.
With Halloween behind us, Christmas is well and truly on the horizon. The upcoming festive season is the perfect time for all of us to support our own and shop local. Limerick is brimming with unique local retailers who are guaranteed to tick off each item on your Christmas gift list.
Books
Limerick has no shortage of great quality bookshops with many creating new online shops. These include:
Crescent Bookshop (Order on Facebook or crescentbookshop@gmail.com)
Quay Books (www.quaybooksstore.com )
O’Mahony’s Booksellers (www.omahonys.ie for delivery or collection)
Novel Ideas (book subscription and gift book service at www.novelideas.ie)
Jewellery
Andrea Mears Jewellery
Andrea works from her studio in Annacotty to create contemporary jewellery in silver and gold. Andrea’s designs are inspired by spirituality and our ancient past, yet are strikingly modern. To find out more, visit her Instagram page @andreamearsjewellery.
Handmade
Made in Limerick
Made in Limerick are an Arts and Crafts Co-operative selling gifts for every occasion – jewellery, ceramics, knitwear, linen/silk clothing, paintings, decorative glass, wood products, framed artworks and skincare products. All items are handmade to the highest quality right here in Limerick. You can browse through their Facebook store and collection is available between 11am – 2pm on Saturdays, or DM their page if any items need to be posted.
Clothing
Limerick is full of stunning boutiques and talented local milliners whose high-quality pieces speak for themselves.
AOIFE
One designer in particular, Aoife McNamara (AOIFE Ireland) stands out from the crowd with her fantastic statement pieces. Based in Adare, AOIFE describes themselves as a “luxury slow-fashion brand with a vision of empowering women through unique garments made consciously in Ireland and designed to last a lifetime of experiences”. This focus on sustainability makes an AOIFE Ireland piece the perfect gift for the eco-friendly fashionista in your life. Shop online at www.aoifeireland.com.
Aisling Maher
Also based in Adare is Irish Designer, Aisling Maher. Using freshwater pearls, crystals, feathers and veiling, Aisling creates elegant hats and headpieces, as well as other fashion accessories. Shop the collection at www.aislingmaher.com.
Fashion in Limerick would not be complete without the many wonderful boutiques and shops it offers. Here are some of my personal favourites:
- Earls and Pearls (order through Facebook)
- Lucy Erridge (lucyerridge.com)
- OneXu (onexuclothing.com)
- Spice Vintage (spicevintageonline.com)
- Scanlan’s Menswear (order through Instagram and Facebook)
- Leavy’s Shoes (leavysshoes.com)
- Whack Vintage (wwhackvintage.ie)
- Noel’s Menswear (noels.ie)
- Connolly Man (Click & Collect connollyman.com)
Toys
W.W. Doherty & Sons Ltd
W.W. Doherty & Sons Ltd are family-run agricultural Dealership based in Adare, Co. Limerick. In conjunction with the distribution of machinery, W.W Doherty & Sons sell everything a young (or old) farm lover could dream of – Outdoor Rolly ride-on toys, Go-karts, men’s overalls and workwear, children’s overalls, women’s casual wear and scale model toys. Shop online at www.wwdoherty.ie
Tots Amazing
For little ones, look no further than Tots Amazing. Based in Kilcornan, Co. Limerick, they have an extensive range of gifts and toys for babies and toddlers, as well as all the essentials. Tots Amazing offer delivery both nationwide and the UK (incl. Northern Ireland). Shop at www.totsamazing.ie
Vouchers
Treat someone you love to their favourite meal, a haircut, a hotel stay, gym membership or an experience through vouchers. Buying a voucher helps businesses to keep cashflow going through these challenging times.
Lean On Me
Lean On Me is an initiative devised by LiveableLimerick and a group of local volunteers to help local Limerick businesses. The initiative uses smart technology to connect customers who want to support their favourite local business. The new web portal www.leanonme.eu allows customers to pay for a voucher for their chosen local business which is collected at a later date after the business reopens. The initiative especially helps businesses that do not have the existing IT infrastructure to generate essential cashflow and sell vouchers online. Visit www.leanonme.eu for more.
For an extensive list of limerick businesses and their contact details, visit limerick.ie.
Stella Gordon 
Molly Cantwell 
Olivia O'Dwyer