CLONAKILTY said goodbye to one of its stalwart shops in the heart of the town which has served its stationery and newspaper needs for almost 56 years.

Paddy Meade Newsagents on Pearse Street closed its doors for the final time on Monday November 3rd.

It will be a sad and bittersweet occasion for Grace Meade who has been running the shop since 2010.

It was her parents Paddy and his wife Mary who first opened the shop on December 1st 1969 and since the news broke of the impending closure customers and well-wishers have been dropping in to say their goodbyes to Grace and the Meade family.

Speaking to The Southern Star, Grace said they will be open just one month short of 56 years and admitted it has been one of the biggest decisions she has ever made to close the family-owned business.

‘I guess it’s been coming a while and we could see changes happening and it was a combination of things. We stayed open during Covid and go through that but I definitely noticed changes during the summer of 2023,’ said Grace.

‘It just felt different and as costs went up footfall fell and people’s habits also changed too. With those rising costs, the margins then just weren’t there to cover those increases. It just came to a point where I had to make a decision which I made around August of this year.’

Having lived over the shop until 1994 Grace was always there to give a helping hand on the shop counter during both her school and college days.

‘I loved it then and still love it. I moved back to Clonakilty about 20 years ago with my husband Jimmy and then took over the running of the shop in 2010 from my dad Paddy who passed away in 2020.’

The mum of three said she will definitely miss meeting people, helping people and talking to people and her great staff too.

‘You watch children growing up and you’re there to see the differences when they would come in and out of the shop. My own children are very sad to see us closing the shop too as they’ve grown up with it and with their grandad, who they called Goggas. One of them had asked what would happen to all the sweets when we close and if they could bring them home!’

One thing she learnt from her late dad Paddy was to treat every customer the same.

‘That was his motto and it didn’t matter who you were.’

As she served another customer, who also wished her well, Grace said she will go ‘nice and quietly’ on Monday and will take one step at a time regarding her plans for the future.

Sadly, it’s the second shop on Pearse Street to close with Scully’s Butchers and Deli announcing recently that they are to close after 20 years.