They took the Leap and it’s paid off handsomely

WITH the June Bank Holiday weekend heralding the real beginning to the summer tourist season, the owners of the Old Mill Stores witnessed huge traffic flows past their premises last weekend.

“The roads were thronged, far more than last year,” Claire Keane observed of the stream toward the beaches and holiday homes of West Cork. “We recorded a major increase in our turnover, compared to the same weekend in 2012.” She credits the store’s new signage as part of the attraction, encouraging motorists to take a break from driving.

“It has certainly helped, and given that we are on the N71 between Roscarberry and Leap, about 50% of our trade comes from those impromptu stops by people who are taken by what they see,” she says. While the sunshine does increase the traffic on this well known tourist route, it is often those overcast or rainy days that yield the greater custom. “People are looking for things to do on those cloudy days, and we do better on the less glorious days. People will stop and browse for half an hour, and our modus operandi at The Old Mill Stores is to stock items that will not be found in other places.”