The Takeover

With Arnotts being taken over by Selfridges, what does this mean for the Irish highstreet?As news broke yesterday that massive international department store group Selfridges has bought Arnotts we can’t help lament what was once a vibrant and colourful Irish shopping capitol filled with independent stores. Selfridges already own Brown Thomas and while we have all the love for them, we love the variety that Arnotts offers north of the Liffey. Will it just turn into something entirely different or does this investment mean things are going to be bigger and better? No matter what this means for Arnotts, the news got us thinking about all the Irish department stores that we have loved and sometimes lost.

Roches Stores

Knocking around since 1900, Roches was bought over by Debenhams in 2006. Properly old school, we remember it having groceries on the ground floor with THE BEST pick n’ mix station going. And the weekend hadn’t started until you met your nana in there for a sneaky treat on a Friday afternoon after school. CRYING ACTUAL TEARS HERE.