After 33 years in business in Portlaoise, Kathleen Carroll of the Wool Shop in Bull Lane, is retiring.
Having started out in Laois Shopping Centre, Kathleen who lives in Glenside, moved across to Bull Lane and built up a thriving small enterprise, said to be one of the longest established wool shops in the country.
“Before that I worked part-time in the Singer shop in Portlaoise,” said Kathleen who was taught knitting by her mother.
“She had 12 children so didn’t have time to do much knitting herself. My granny also had a great interest in knitting. I do a small bit of crochet and I like sewing.”
Kathleen would love to have studied home economics but didn’t get the opportunity. She worked in the telephone exchange before having to leave due to the marriage bar.
Stocking a vast selection of wool and haberdashery, Kathleen’s shop has been the go-to premises for a whole range of items from knitting needles and crochet hooks to material, buttons, embroidery, patterns and felt.
She is the agent for all makes of sewing machines, doing sales and repairs and selling parts. She also offers a handknit to order service for baby wear, First Communion cardigans, and aran sweaters.
“People have travelled from all over the country to the shop and I exhibited at Tullamore Agricultural Show on a few occasions,” she said. With celebrities such as Taylor Swift making aran sweaters covetable again, Kathleen has witnessed a renewed interest in handknits, crochet and sewing.
“Since Covid, a lot of people have returned to handmade pieces. And it’s not just older people.
“The schools are doing quite a bit of work in this area and YouTube is a great place for people to get ideas. More people want to put their own stamp on what they wear rather than wear a ‘uniform’ and they are also making their own curtains and doing their own alterations as that has become expensive,” Kathleen said.
She recalls her son urgently requesting a Bob Marley cap on a weekend home from UCD and happily, it was ready to take back with him.
“There are lots of classes now, including in Portlaoise library on Wednesday mornings and O’Gorman’s pub on Monday evenings. I used to have a lady come into the shop to give classes,” Kathleen said.
While there is a small element of competition from supermarkets, Kathleen said that they don’t offer personal service and advice. “I’m at it long enough to be able to give advice. They are not a big threat.”
Since Kathleen announced her retirement plans, she has been inundated with messages from customers who are sad to see her go. “I’ll definitely miss the shop. I will miss the camaraderie, meeting people and having people drop in to say hello. I have made some great friends through the shop.”
There has been some interest from people interested in taking over the shop and Kathleen would love to see that happen.
“There is great potential for a personalised service in t-shirts and hats as well as baby blankets. I would be more than delighted to drop in for a half day or so to give advice to the person taking over if needed,” she said.
At 75 years of age, she is keen to spend more time with her eight grandchildren and to travel.
“My older son, Glyn, is in Singapore, working in investments, and I get over to see him and his family twice a year. My other son, Raymond, is in Maynooth and works for Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, and my daughter, Edel, is a physiotherapist with the HSE in Kildare.”
The plan is to bid adieu to the Wool Shop on the weekend of December 7 and there’s no doubt that Kathleen and her independent shop will be missed from the streetscape of Portlaoise.
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