Spring is Here !

Everyone's feeling better with brighter, warmer days. For much of January and early February trade was slow and we started shutting at 6pm and opening later at 10am. This saved a bit of money, but now people are around more and we will stay till 7pm on weekdays.

A lift is currently being installed in the shop, thanks to the generosity and foresight of the landlords. This will make the upstairs much more accessible - we now have more stock upstairs and have cleared a section for classes - yoga, growing your own and homeopathy at home - hopefully the beginning of a continuous programme.

BONZO

A big-footed, big-hearted cat of the world. When Ecoshop arrived at the Meridian in February 2008, this fellow was down on his luck, emaciated and nervous, with two protruding teeth, living out of bins near the car park.

Gradually he made friends with us all and thrived on Denes Salmon catfood. A visit to the Enda the vet told us that he had suffered a broken jaw and it had set crooked - hence the problem with the teeth. Enda took one tooth out to ease the problem. Bonzo was very shaken by this visit to the vet and had trouble keeping clean the next few days, so Joanna and I gave him a bath in warm water in an 'Urba' recycling bin. Most cats would be very angry and upset at this but afterwards he just sat nearby, shook hinself and then tucked into the waiting meal.

Gradually he made himself more at home and became a bit of a celebrity. All the staff doted on him and vied for the pleasure of feeding him, when he would show his gratitude with big head rubs. However, we all knew in our heart of hearts this could not continue and this feline idyll came to an abrupt end when the health inspector marched into the shop and told us what we already knew. He had to go . Food sold on the premises. And go soon.

And so he did - and there was nowhere else to go except my house, to join Misty the daughter of the Glen of the Downs shop cat and Sammy who was handed over to me in the carpark of the original shop.

So this is Bonzo now, getting used to domestic life, but not always quite sure of the etiquette. Five times since he moved two months ago he has walked back to the shop - a mile away - across a busy main road. Each time he is greeted ecstatically by the staff and I am called to drive him home in his 'limo'. Again, Bonzo shows extraordinary aplomb, riding on the front seat with his two front paws on the dashboard. What style. What trust.

Watch this space for more !

Who's 21 Today ?

Joanna was 21 on January 2nd 2009. That's Joanna on the left . Then Marilyn in the middle, suffering from a cold after her Christmas trip home to a freezing Paris. On the right is Lourdes, looking forward to a trip home to Spain next week. The cake was chocolate with strawberries on top.

Back Again !

Back again, having mislaid the password and other excuses like moving the shop.

Finally on our feet and having a re-shelve next week - now we can see how we should have done it in the first place.... !

LOTS of changes - so a run down of the staff:

LOURDES (full-time) - deep and fiery Spanish lady of awesome efficiency and dedication. She is the day-to-day manager. Cycles to work.

JOANNA (full-time)a super-charged young lady from Poland with brilliant fashion ideas every single morning - never looks the same twice. Incredibly hard-working and good humoured. Does our book-keeping after a full day on the counter...amazing. In love with BONZO (see below)

MARILYN (full-time). From a French retailing background - lending the whole operation an air of suave je ne sais quoi . Meticulous worker and fine sense of humour.

MARTHA (part-time). Patient and gracious. Great knowledge of alternative health . Also deeply in love with BONZO in addition to her dog Sammy.

SONJA (part-time) Back from maternity leave with a baby brother for Robin.

BRYONY (part-time) - with us since she was student, now working on PR during the week and Saturdays on the counter.

BONZO (full-time) Just look at the picture...!

Year's End

We had a very good year which encompassed increased turnover and many changes.
Helen, our Manager, decided to work nearer home in Wexford and left in October. Her hard work and enthusiasm contributed greatly to the effectiveness of our work, and she is missed.

Destiny intervened, as so often it does, and along came a fine Spanish Lady by the name of Lourdes who is now shouldering much of the day-to-day responsibility for the smooth running the shop. Meanwhile, our quiet and dedicated Angela has proved herself a star through many very busy and difficult days, a rock of calmness and commonsense.
Another new asset to the enterprise is John, our storeman, who has straightened out the chaos that was the 'back end' of the shop. John will play a key role in our forthcoming move - or we will never find anything again!

Our part-timers have also gone on to pastures new - Adrienne to devote more time to her healing practice and Sonja to await a second baby due at the beginning of February. We wish them both well and hope to see Sonja back in the Summer.

Autumn Update

So much happened & in the pipeline!

STAFF

*Naomi started training in horticulute at Glasnevin so has left us ! Miss her hugely.

*Adrienne has joined us part time in the mornings, wisely balancing us with her home commitments.

* We are delighted to welcome back Bryony after her adventures and good works in South America. Also balancing her commitments, so part-time.

*Two new people in the pipeline - one to work as storesperson alias chaos-buster; the other to replace Naomi full time and be Helen's No.2.

ME

Daughter Katy complains I never mention my children so here's a recent pic of the two of us !

The lads, Noel & Chris (twins) who are 21 are camera-shy ! Both in college - Noel doing Business Studies at Trinity, Dublin, and Chris doing a music degree at DIT, Dublin, specialising in the piano and music education.

SHOP

Lots of excellent new products - recycled glassware, handmade wooden toys and organic cotton baby and toddler clothes, amongst the many.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Fierce activity as we lay foundations for a new website, work on improving some features on the current one, prepare an e-mailing list (let us know via contact@ecoshop.ie if you want to be on it!), and search for a new location for the shop premises, as the lease expires soon ! This has been a massive challenge and we hope it will be resolved very soon and we will be sure to tell everyone where we are moving to and it won't be till after Christmas !

SO MANY !

So many more things in the shop ! So many things happened ! So many terrific people calling to the shop everyday making it all incredibly rewarding ! It's impossible to keep this blog up-to-date !

Some of the new products:
Tierra Negra cookware from South America - the only truly organic pottery in the world, it is self-glazing, black and gorgeous. It's even practical and will go any stove and in the microwave and dishwasher.
Ecolution clothes - stylish, made from Hemp in Romania. Some interesting colours. Well finished. We like them and hope you do too ! Will try to get them up on the web asap.
Megaman lightbulbs - these are for the serious savers - lasting light years beyond even 'normal' long life bulbs and coming in a full range of standard, spots, candles, etc.
Frozen foods made their debut today - organic of course. Vegetables, pizzas, gluten-free pies, vegetarian burgers - mostly continental - and we are counting the minutes till the arrival of Tipperary Organic Ice Cream ! We are adding organic chicken and probably other organic meat - depending on what the customers want. There will also be frozen ready-dinners (yes I know we're supposed to slow down and take all day to cook...but sometimes !) These are local French chef's Thierry's 'Le Paysan' range.
Earthmaker Continuous Cycle Composter - dont ask me to explain it here! Go to the website
http://www.ecoshop.ie/products.asp?cat=127&pg=3
Solar garden lights & water features - added to the range, so the website needs updating again ! Heeeeelp !

BLOOM Garden Show June 1st to 4th in the Phoenix Park, Dublin.
This is the first show we have done for a while - just because it looked particularly good - it's billed as the Irish 'Chelsea Show' and as well as show gardens, lots of seminars etc. there is an artisan food section. A great event to look forward to. We've started preparing. Stand G11 is where it's all happening for us. It's in the main Pavilion.

That's all for now - crick in the neck from bending over the laptop most of the day.
Feedback/input welcome !