The tranquil fishing village of Carrigaholt on the Loop Head peninsula in west Clare has had a grocery shop open up after more than 18 months without one.
In the 1970s the village was home to up to seven groceries but the last of those closed in October 2024.
While Keane’s public house remains open, the shop which had been run by the family for 200 years ceased trading in a village which has a permanent population of 338 people, according to the most recent census.
The Carrigaholt Development Association identified the absence of a local shop as an issue that had to be addressed, and in recent weeks An Siopa Beag opened its doors in the same building as the post office in the village square.
Figures issued in 2025 by the Convenience Stores and Newsagents Association (CSNA) showed that up to 100 local shops close annually in Ireland with at least three outlets shutting their doors every fortnight.
Carrigaholt has bucked that trend however and is now home to a new volunteer-run shop, An Siopa Beag.
So how does an isolated Shannon Estuary village, without a shop, go about changing that and recruiting volunteers to give up their free time to staff it?
"I am a bit anxious about these modern tills that don’t like when they’re not told the right thing to do. But I am learning on the job and every day is a school day," Mary Keane, who is one of the volunteers, laughed.
On Friday, Mary, who is a retired Carrrigaholt National School principal, was on the 9-1pm shift.
"It’s a busy Friday, I can’t believe how busy it has become. People are so positive towards it. It's essential for the village," she said, adding that some teaching skills are transferrable to her new career as a volunteer shop assistant.
"It’s all about people skills and being patient. People are very patient and very understanding that we’re at the opening stage of this project," Mary noted.
Mags Keane and her husband Pakie had run Keane’s shop until it closed in October 2024, although their pub which is in the same building is still very much open.
The couple cited rising energy costs as an issue at the time while the Loop Head peninsula is an area of "terminal population decline", according to the CSO.
Mags is a member of Carrigaholt Development Association and feels that a community shop is well worth exploring.
"We're trying this out, hopefully it’ll work. We’re giving it a year. It’s a big higgedly piggedly volunteer wise at the moment but we’ll get there.
"We have to get all of the volunteers together. We’re at the very early stages and we were waiting for tills so that’s why we couldn’t training up before this and some of the volunteers are a bit nervous," she said.
Carrigaholt is home to a caravan park and many holiday homes which are frequented by many visitors during the summer months. Mags feels that the community shop will benefit tourists as well as locals.
"Yesterday I was out doing my garden and somebody passed and asked was there a shop? I was so happy to say 'yes, there’s a shop around the corner in the post office'. It’s lovely to see life back here again."
Simon Day is in charge of recruiting volunteers and won’t say no to anyone who has a few hours to spare.
"At the moment we’ve got about a dozen. I’m connected with Loop Head Rowing Club and there’s obviously the GAA club as well.
"We haven’t really scratched with those yet. If every member of those organisations came on board they would be doing an hour a week and that would be ample," he said as the shop and post office bustled with people dropping in.
The shop is small but is stocked with bread, milk and all essential groceries.
"I’ve said to people around here that we’re not expecting people to do their weekly shopping here but if everybody came in and bought two pints of milk and a loaf of bread every week then the shop would be more than sustainable," Simon added.
When Imelda Lynch entered An Siopa Beag she was accompanied by the aroma of bread which was just out of the oven. Imelda is the proprietor of The Long Dock restaurant in the village.
"I have a nice selection of brown bread which is really popular, I do a lovely traditional soda bread and I have potato cakes as well. They’re going really well.
"Everybody loves a bit of homemade bread. We’ve been doing it for years in the Long Dock. Way, way back my mother started a home-baking business and we worked from there," Imelda said, adding that An Siopa Beag was going very well.
"I’m very pleasantly surprised. The shop was needed and it’s getting great support."
Aideen Day is another member of Carrigaholt Development Association and is in charge of the money; getting it in and ensuring the economic viability of the community shop.
"I normally look after applying for grants. Clare County Council have been very supportive of us," Aideen said.
She is not just a money person though; Aideen has grown very attached to An Siopa Beag which is proof that it sometimes takes a village to run a shop.
"It’s small and perfectly formed. There’s a lovely sitting area outside and we have the view of the sea. It’s a wonderful little spot," Aideen commented as the mid-morning sun reflected on the Shannon Estuary.
