This month the doors of workhorse, Colm McCaughey’s Clogher-based shop will close for the final time.
Known locally as ‘Colm’s shop’ or ‘Colm’s Foodstores’, the “shop that sold everything” will regrettably permanently cease trading on Sunday, November 30 as the man himself prepares for retirement… if he can finally work out what that word means!
Forty-six years ago, Colm bought the rural Co Tyrone corner shop after selling off a successful chippy in Killashandra in County Cavan.
By that time he was father-of-three (Siobhan, Cormac and Annemarie) and the sale of his business afforded him the opportunity to move home and be closer to family and, as time went on, he and his wife, Mary went on to have a further three children (Eibhlín, Lisa and Catriona).
Speaking of those early days and the joy the store brought to their lives from day one, Colm’s daughter Eibhlín Darragh told Armagh I: “My older sister, Annemarie thought the shop was her birthday present as they had moved around her birthday!”
As if their hands weren’t full enough, Colm and Mary never missed a day at the busy little shop.
It sold “a little bit of everything”, with Eibhlín describing it by saying: “You don’t get shops like this anymore. You could buy groceries or hardware or coal or gas. It’s like an old-time shop.”
Since opening, Colm has consistently worked at least six days a week. In more recent years he also took to trading on a Sunday and when he introduced newspapers, his days began at 6am… with him switching the lights off around 8pm most evenings.
Colm and Mary outside their store in the 1990s
While it was primarily Colm’s responsibility to take care of the day-to-day running, he did have Mary on hand to help out. He employed a few part-time members of staff over the years and when the children all came of age, they also became a part of the fabric of the family business.
Added Eibhlín: “We all chipped in. Everybody had to do something! Even before school you would go up to help bring the veg up from the shed.”
Colm was always available to help his loyal customers. He would regularly deliver to those unable to call in in person and was known to call on neighbours to check if they needed anything. According to Eibhlín, he would help the community in any way possible.
In recent years, however, business has become increasingly difficult. A few years ago Mary had a bad fall in the shop resulting in a broken leg, and while she recovered well, her days working behind the counter sadly came to an end.
Running the shop as a one man band has been taking its toll on the now 79-year-old Colm with last year being particularly difficult.
Explained Eibhlín: “During the bad storm last winter there was no electric in Clogher for about a week. He stayed in the shop… freezing. There was no electric but he kept on going. It was just too hard doing it all himself. We have been saying for years, ‘It’s time daddy you need to retire’.”
Retiring won’t be easy for a man who has such an incredible work ethic and unwavering dedication to his business, said Eibhlín, who admits she doesn’t know “what he will do with himself”. But, Mary is eagerly coming to the rescue with a list of stuff she needs done!
Said Eibhlín: “The shop has always come first but he has a son in America and three daughters in England so hopefully they will get round everyone now!”
The closure of the business will be a huge loss to the community and a truly “sad day”, said Eibhlín.
But, in saying goodbye, it has allowed them all to reflect on their father’s passion and commitment to his community.
“He has worked so hard over the years. It’s just nice to recognise it,” she said. “He has worked so hard over the last 45 years and shouldn’t have to go quietly.”
With 15 grandchildren in the mix, we’re sure he will find plenty of ways to fill his time!
