High street feels the heat as swap-shop mentality takes hold

MONEY might be tight, the country may be on the brink of a bailout, but ordinary people are still buying, selling and swapping almost €1 billion worth of goods in the “economy of the streets”.

According to the Buy and Sell index, an astonishing €948 million of goods was traded in its magazine and website last year.

To date this year, a staggering €800m worth of goods and services have been bought and sold, providing a strong indicator of what is really happening on the streets of Ireland. Total spend on Buy and Sell has jumped by more than 20% in the past year.