Not too many years ago, back when the Celtic Tiger was still purring away and things were good, very few of us paid much attention to what we spent on lunch each day. Back then, there wasn’t a cloud on the economic horizon, so why worry that you’re paying the better part of a tenner for a sandwich?
Circumstances have changed in a big way over the last couple of years, and so have consumer attitudes. People no longer have the money to be as flaithiúlach on their lunch breaks, and some shops around Dublin are cashing in on these trends.
The budget option
Griffin’s Londis was one of the first businesses to take advantage of the growing consumer demand for budget lunch options. This chain of convenience stores created somewhat of a stir last year when they dramatically reduced the price of some of their sandwiches, cutting the cost of a chicken fillet roll to less then €2. Considering that most convenience stores were selling the same item for between four and five euro, Griffin’s Londis was onto a winner.
Séamus Griffin operates nineteen Londis outlets in the greater Dublin area, so when he started to slash prices, his competitors had no option but to react. The effects of the ensuing price war are still in evidence in the shops around Dublin city centre today.
Take, for example, Westmoreland Street. Westmoreland Street is home to one of Griffin’s largest stores. While prices have risen a small amount since the height of the sandwich wars, but there are still some very good deals on offer. Londis continue to run their ‘Weekly Madness’ offer, heavily discounting one particular sandwich each week - this week it’s a ham baguette with two fillings for €1.97. A customer can add wedges to their order for an extra 70c, three sausage rolls for an extra 80c, or five chicken wings for an extra 90c - not too bad at all.
Situated almost directly across the road from Londis on Westmoreland Street, Spar has been obliged to reduce their prices accordingly. So now, in this particular outlet of Spar, a chicken fillet roll with two fillings will cost the customer only €1.99. The ‘Sandwich of the Day’ costs only €2.89, soup and a sandwich is only €4.00, and two 500ml bottles of a number of different soft drinks are only €2.
These lower prices have been great for competition and for the consumer, but the effect seems to have been limited to relatively small area of the city. How do these prices compare to your local convenience store? Let us know if you’ve found any good lunchtime deals in your area.
Tags: cheap lunches, Eating out, money saving tips
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