The Kids Are Very Alright

Vicky, Niamh & Trish FRI17JAN26

t’s a mournful mantra we hear again and again at GG HQ, that banshee wail for a shop, a cinema, a chipper, that’s no longer with us…

You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone…

The irony being, of course, if that shop, cinema or chipper was making a profit back then, it wouldn’t have closed.

With online squeezing small businesses out of existence around the world, it’s more important than ever to support your local chancer. And our annual Top Of The Shops is designed as a reminder of just what we have here in Greystones.

And it’s a celebration of not only the shop itself but those who work behind the counter, making your day that little bit easier and, hey, sunnier.

Staff members like the bould Katie Bradshaw at Insomnia, the ever-helpful, always-happy Paul Condren at SuperValu, or your friendly neighbourhood drug dealers, David Dodd, plus our three-time retiree champ, Fiona Roche, crowned in 2021, 2022 and alongside the Dodd fella, 2023 before stepping out of the race. In 2024, it was Vicky and her little wooden toy shop, Dlulukaloo, a worthy and extremely delighted winner, whilst in 2025, it was the double-whammy of Lorient Gift and Brooke & Shoals.

Having handed in her badge after three wins, Fiona Roche’s old buddy David Dodd almost made it a trio of trophies too this year, but in the end we had another tie, the most votes went neck-and-neck with two wonderful kids emporiums, the towering bookshop Halfway Up The Stairs and returning sustainable toy shop champs Dlulukaloo.

Congrats to both Vicky and Trish on the much deserved wins, and a big, big thanks to Niamh O’Leary and AIB Greystones for keeping this important award on the road.

You can find out more about Dlulukaloo here and Halfway Up The Stairs here, and about AIB Greystones right over here.