A business owner has expressed his gratitude towards a thoughtful glass repair company who offered to fix their windows at minimal cost.
Terri Murphy and husband David have three vintage clothing shops under their belts- The Big Smoke Vintage, Vintage Factory and Golly Gosh. The duo first began trading together 15 years ago and all three shops are tucked away in Temple Bar.
Like many business owners, Terri feared the worst upon hearing of the rioting in Dublin city centre on Thursday. He walked to work earlier than usual on Friday morning and realised The Big Smoke Vintage had been targeted by looters.
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Terri told Dublin Live: "I walked from O’Connell Street to Temple Bar and I just saw shop after shop was destroyed, the windows were gone and their stock was outside on the ground. When I came to our place I saw all the glass on the ground and they'd kicked the steel doors with such force that the hinges were snapped."
While looters failed to gain access to the shop itself, the glass from the windows had blown back into the premises. Terri was fearful that the windows would fall down on top of staff and quickly installed wooden panels to prevent further damage.
Luckily, repair company Rathmines Glass came to Terri's aid over the weekend. The company are kindly offering glass replacements to small businesses impacted by this week's destruction with no fitting charge.
Terri said staff were left worried about the financial toll of repairs prior to Rathmines Glass getting in touch. The shop remained closed for this year's Black Friday event out of safety concerns.
The 41-year-old admitted Temple Bar has been on a "slippery slope" in terms of escalating anti-social behaviour. He hopes that people can continue to shop in the city centre despite the understandable concerns brought on by recent events.
He added: "A day off isn't a day off anymore because you're constantly ringing staff, especially younger workers, to check they're OK when you're not there. This was the final nail in the coffin for us in a way but people have been incredibly kind."
Other vintage traders including Lucy's Lounge offered Terri and the team free coffees and assistance during their clean-up on Friday. The shop reopened on Saturday although the windows remain boarded up.
Terri expects that Rathmines Glass will carry out vital repairs for the shop on Tuesday. You can find out more about The Big Smoke Vintage on Instagram.
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