When Andrea Arroyave first started selling jewellery on Moore St in October 2022, she remembers that she wore "like, three pairs of socks, like four layers between the top and the jacket and the rain jacket on top".
Coming from Ecuador, where the climate varies from cold and wet to incredibly hot, Andrea had a lot of adjusting to do in her first winter in Ireland. But when she forgot her gloves on one wintery day working at her jewellery stall at the market, another trader showed the kindness that has made Moore Street a beacon of warmth in Dublin.
"One of the traders, Lorraine, she shared with me, you know, the gloves that she had", Andrea recalls. "And she also brought me hot chicken soup."
"I like to say, well, Mary, Lorraine, all of them, they are like my Irish mamas here. It's nice because they do take care of me."
From long-standing and generational traders to diverse food stalls and artisan crafters, Welcome to Moore Street captures life on one of Ireland's most iconic streets, sharing the humour, challenges and stories of the diverse group of people who call it home.
The new three-part series peers into the lives of those working on one of Dublin's most iconic streets, at a particularly important time in its centuries-long history: facing both the proposed demolition of historically significant buildings associated with the 1916 Rising, and dwindling footfall, as shopping behaviours change and instances of antisocial behaviour threaten both shoppers and traders.
At its core, however, are the incredibly warm, hardy, savvy and ambitious traders. Featured in the show are people like Caroline Alwright, a fourth-generation fruit and veg seller, and Edizemi Onilenla, owner of Mama Shee's restaurant specialising in authentic Nigerian food.
For Andrea, her experience with Moore Street started when she and her Irish husband, Ruairí, moved near the area. Having met on Tinder in Andrea's native Ecuador, the pair married and settled around the corner from the vibrant market.
Passing the market on Culture Night in October 2022, Ruairí asked a seller about applying to be a trader, and the rest is history.
"Coming from Latin America, I love street markets", Andrea says. "So coming to Dublin and seeing [it] there, for me, was beautiful. You see the flowers, the fruits and everything. At some point was a woman still selling fish."
She recalls the early days of running her jewellery stall, navigating the market as a new trader among seasoned ones.
"The traditional traders at the beginning, you know, were a little bit— I don't know how to say this in English— but not trusting because it's hard work, you know, to be in the street", she says, adding that "probably they thought that we will not last there more than a week."
But last, she did. Despite seeing some ups and downs in terms of activity and support in recent years, Andrea says that the market seems to be experiencing another burst of energy, with more sellers like Mama Shee and Reiki Healer Amanda bringing something new to the market.
"I always like to say that you have flowers, fruit, and vegetables. You have the beautiful clothes, my jewellery, candles. So it's amazing that you can walk down and find a diversity of products in one street", Andrea says.
Still, traders feel there is more that should be done to protect them and entice shoppers to the market, especially in the dark months of winter. Adding more lights and creating social housing on the street are just two ideas that Andrea feels would bring life back to the historic market.
One project the trader community has proposed is a museum around no. 14-17 Moore Street, which are state-owned National Monuments in the care of the Office of Public Works, honouring its role in the 1916 Rising. It was here that the rebels fled to after the GPO was evacuated, and ultimately where they agreed to surrender.
"The street is my community, my friends are there, and everyone has a different view of the street. But I will say that what we agree more in general is that we want to keep it and keep it for the people, keep the stalls."
She adds: "Earlier on, I was talking with Mary after the interview. I walked down just to talk to her, how everything was. And she was saying, imagine to have here, she mentioned again, the museum and people selling souvenirs outside in one of the stalls, like the one that they have, and have you beside and someone with souvenirs and someone with fruit and the variety. That would be, you know, ideal."
Watch Welcome to Moore Street on Thursday 19 March, 10.15pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.
