(Foireann Gaeltachta The Journal a chuir an scéal seo ar fáil. Tá leagan as Gaeilge anseo.) 

THE ICONIC GAELTACHT brand Standún have opened a new store in Birr, Co Offaly as they prepare to celebrate 80 years in business.

Máirtín Standún, an Irish speaker from Liverpool and his wife May Mulready, set up the business in 1946 in Spiddal, Co Galway to help serve the local community in Connemara.

The shop sold household items, fuel and whatever else the community needed. 

Speaking to The Journal, managing director of the company, Clíona Ní Standún, said that the business has grown massively since 1946.

“When my grandmother and grandfather were running the shop, they had a small little store in Spiddal and there was only one shop at that time,” she said.

“In 1973, my father took over the business, and he realised that there were more tourists coming to the country and he decided to cater to them and he started selling items like Arran jumpers.”

From 2010 onwards, Clíona and her sister Laragh Ní Standún started to manage the family business in Spiddal and in 2018, they decided to open a second location in Oughterard, Co Galway. 

They made the decision to focus on both tourists and the local community, with a mixture of both groups now coming to Standún. 

But as a Gaeltacht business, why did the sisters decide to open a shop in the midlands?

“Well, we were visiting shops and locations for a while,” Ní Standún said, “and this shop popped up on the main street in Birr.”

“It’s a heritage town and it was important for us to pick a location which would attract tourists, but which also has a strong local community. 

“We also realised that there isn’t anyone selling products from the Gaeltacht in the Midlands, and we loved the location.”

Ní Standún said there are challenges for the business during the winter when fewer people come to Connemara on holidays, but that “January and February are generally always quiet” for most businesses.

“It isn’t like it was when my dad was managing the shop and when he was depending on tourists coming in. The shop would have been closed for six months at that time,” she said. 

“Nowadays, I think it’s the norm for every business to be quiet after Christmas and I think we need that time to be able to get other things done.”

Though Irish is not spoken widely in Birr, Ní Standún says people who wish to practice their cúpla focal will be more than welcome. 

“There are many Irish language signs and items in the shop with Irish written on them. If I’m here, people are more than welcome to speak to me in Irish,” she said. 

Looking to the future, Ní Standún says that they would love to open more shops around the country, and that they are looking forward to celebrating 80 years in business next year.

“After Covid, I realised that there is more emphasis on Irish goods and that people wanted to support Irish businesses,” she said.

“We’re also reflecting on all the changes that have happened to the business since we started 80 years ago. There aren’t many businesses still around since then, and we’re very proud that we are. We’ll have to have a party in every shop to celebrate.”

The Journal’s Gaeltacht Initiative is supported by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.