Irish still flocking for shopping in New York

Despite recession, bargains drive shoppers

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The Finnerty family at Macy's.

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"All I know is they keep saying, ‘This is such a bargain, I can't leave it behind,' so when I hear those words I just switch off, hand over the wallet and keep the head down," laughs Knightly.

PEERING at sparkling jewelry was Co. Donegal native Sarah Coll. Coll, a foster mom of two, was in New York to celebrate her 50th birthday.

The birthday girl was joined by her sister-in-law Madge McFadden and her two daughters, Noreen and Agnes.

"I turned 50 this year so we all decided to come to New York to celebrate," Coll told the Irish Voice, while joking that she didn't have any lipstick on for a picture.

Coming to New York is a rare occurrence for Coll. Her last visit was seven years ago and she never envisioned herself back again.

"I was over the moon when the girls organized the trip," said Coll, while eyeing up a bracelet.

Coll admitted the only way she could afford to come back to the Big Apple was because she had dollars tucked away for a number of years.

"My husband and I were supposed to go to San Francisco five years ago but it fell through so I kept all the dollars from then, so that's my spending money," she said.

As for Noreen, an engineer with Donegal County Council, and Agnes, a student, they planned to shop till they dropped.

"We saved for this a long time," admits Agnes, who once lived in New York and hadn't been back since.

The Colls isters were on a mission to buy as much designer labels as possible.

"I just put away a Guess bag and wallet that's $180. At home you’d pay about 200 sterling for the bag alone," said Noreen.

Agnes, nodding her head in agreement, said she would be making a stop at the Tommy Hilfiger section of the store to purchase her designer labels too.

“Again, the price of Tommy Hilfiger here is so much cheaper than home, so that’s where we are heading next,” she said.

Coll and McFadden, although they had a list of presents they planned to purchase, was also looking forward to doing some sightseeing during their five-day vacation.

"We're also going up to Woodlawn (in the Bronx) to visit friends," said Coll.

HONEYMOONERS Andrea Sheehan and Paul O’Shea from Co. Cork were doing the laps of Macy’s on Friday.

They had just completed a Caribbean cruise and a few days in Las Vegas and were spending the remaining four days of their honeymoon in the Big Apple, mainly for a spot of shopping but also to see some Manhattan sights. 

It was the first time the pair had ever been to New York, and although they were more enamored with Las Vegas, they were enjoying their time in the city and enjoying the shopping bargains more than ever.

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