Updated 4.05pm
NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE power of the retweet: That’s the message one retailer is sending out this weekend.
Gerard Maguire, a retailer who owns a wine shop on the Glasthule Road in Sandycove, took to Twitter on March 11th to reveal that Dun Laoighre-Rathdown County Council was apparently considering implementing a new tax on traders in the area.
Maguire decided to use Sixty Four Wine’s sandwich board to campaign against the proposed charges on outdoor tables and chairs, and with a little help from Twitter the whole thing really took off.
A couple of retweets and just a little over a week later, Sixty Four Wine’s sandwich board had some very good news for its fans.
The shop thanked all those who had supported the campaign on Facebook and Twitter, arguing that their support had been invaluable.
However Dun Laoighre-Rathdown County Council told DailyEdge.ie that an annual licence fee of €50 will still apply.
A representative for the council said:
All street furniture should be declared, inclucing A boards, planters, fruit stalls and tables and chairs (up to and including no more than two tables and a seating provision for up to 4 persons). A higher fee will be charged to businesses above this threshold.
They said that the decision to implement a threshold for the number of tables and chairs was made following consultation with local business people, not because of any social media campaign.
Meanwhile, Sixty Four Wine says there are no hard feelings between the shop and DLRCC, and the sandwich board has decided to flex its political muscles elsewhere.
First published 1.30pm
