It's 3 a.m. and you've just run out of, well, everything. Don't fret - 24-hour shopping has arrived, writes Róisín Ingle
Fluorescent light floods invitingly from the doorway of Tesco Clearwater in Finglas in Dublin, which, since Monday, has been open all hours. A chilly wind blows down the refrigeration section and as though on cue the PA system pipes out Roy Orbison's I Drove All Night. According to Tesco, 24-hour shopping is for life, not just for Christmas.
12.44 a.m:
Busy lads? Two of the seven security guards on duty smile and motion inside to the deserted shopping aisles on the fourth night of the pilot scheme for 24-hour shopping. Tesco has introduced the new opening hours with a view to extending it to other outlets across the city. The question is are they on to a good thing or are they off their trolleys? A good thing, say Johnny, Lee, Carol and Shelly who are on their way home from a funeral. "All the curry places are shut so there is nowhere to get something to eat," says Johnny. They buy some corned beef, tomatoes and bread before heading home. Elsewhere, a mother is gathering last-minute supplies for her daughter's debs, a taxi driver - the place is a magnet for them - is buying a sandwich, while a few insomniacs are here purely for the novelty value of not queuing for a till.
All-night shopping isn't exactly new to this country and anyone who has lived in the US has known the joy of picking up groceries when most sensible people are tucked up in bed. Since 2000, stores such as Tesco and Superquinn have run extended opening times during the Christmas period; 24-hour garages, 24-hour convenience stores and 24-hour fast food outlets have for years been an integral part of our retail life.
Cian Naughton of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce welcomes the new opening hours saying they "suit modern work practices. There is obviously a market for 24-hour grocery shopping or else Tesco wouldn't be opening the store." Green TD John Gormley doesn't agree with what he calls this "shop-till-you-drop" culture. "It's a reflection of how society has changed, but not for the better in my opinion," he says.
1.05 a.m:
Three giggling local women wander in and head straight for the dairy section. "We are mammies looking for milk for the babies bottle," says Clare Gaynor. "And we've been to the pub," confesses Ciara Boland. "Who else would go shopping in the middle of the night only mammies who have run out of the essentials?" The women think 24-hour shopping is "brilliant", mostly because when they run out of nappies or babyfood they end up paying extra for them at a 24-hour garage. This way they pay regular prices. "Although we feel a bit sorry for the workers," says Boland.
But, like many supermarkets, the store already operated around the clock before the pilot scheme was launched, with staff stacking shelves, unloading deliveries and stock taking through the night. Trade manager John Kelly explains that the new opening hours only require between 10-15 extra staff, who all get paid slightly more per hour for volunteering to work what are accurately described as "unsociable hours". "We've had a steady stream of people through the doors since we opened last Monday," says Kelly.
1:08 a.m:
Eileen Dennan from Ballymun steps through the automatic gates to get her weekly shop. "It feels very surreal," she says. "To be honest I was so broke I had to wait until midnight for my cash to come through."
Sheena Wyse from Strawberry Beds spent the night in a Dublin car-park watching one of the Fringe Festival theatre productions. "If I could spend an evening in a car-park, well why not a supermarket in the middle of the night?" she asks. A peek in her basket reveals some non-essential items - strawberry tarts - lurking alongside more practical purchases. "I got bleach as well," she protests. "I have a day off tomorrow so it means I can get up and clean the bathroom without having to go out to the shops. Actually that sounds very sad when I say it out loud."
1.30 a.m:
Staff member Vincent Behan sits looking bored at his till but says working nights suits him, as he wouldn't be sleeping anyway. "I usually stay up very late so I might as well work all night and sleep all day," he says. As a late-night person, he can see the attraction of extended opening hours.
"I've seen people come in at 4 a.m. for their weekly shop. If they came in at 4 p.m. it might be chaos," he says. The most common purchases in the early hours of the morning are bread, milk, butter, crisps and microwave meals.
Paul, from Blanchardstown, approaches the till with two bunches of flowers, a Happy Anniversary card and two litres of milk. "I just remembered it's my anniversary. I left her sleeping and snuck out to get these. At least it will stop me from being in the doghouse in the morning," he says. Paul would prefer not to be photographed and not to give his second name. "Can you imagine them down the pub? They'd be saying there's that eejit who bought his wife flowers in the middle of the night. I would never live it down," he says.
2.30 a.m:
There are more journalists here than customers so we decide to go shopping ourselves. It feels a bit like that film 28 Days Later, where most of the population has been wiped out and you find yourself alone in an empty supermarket.
3.32 a.m:
The 1980s classics have been swopped for Frank Sinatra, who is currently singing about how he gets no kick from champagne. And he wouldn't in a 24-hour supermarket, not at this time. Due to the licensing laws alcohol is the one thing you can't buy. This is a cause of concern to the two young men who suddenly appear at the doorway, walking menacingly towards the security men demanding drink. Within minutes they have aimed punches and kicks at the security staff and seconds later they are being held down fast on the floor, while the Garda are called. There are tense moments while the men threaten to "put a bullet" in the heads of their captors. The Garda arrive, handcuff the men and drive away again.
According to Tesco boss Dermot Breen, this is the first such incident in their three years experience with 24-hour shopping in Ireland. "While there will be people coming in from the pub or nightclubs we have pretty thorough security in place and we liaise with the Gardaí," he says. He says keeping the shop open is "not expensive" and that it won't require a huge amount of additional trade to make 24-hour shopping viable. For their part, other retailers such as Superquinn and Super Valu say they don't anticipate going 24 hours in the near future. If successful though, the Tesco scheme will be extended to larger urban stores.
4.20 a.m:
Des O'Connor, a taxi driver, comes to pick up a few messages. "It's brilliant," he says. "Great for the likes of us taxi-drivers and shift workers."
You and your shopping head for home. Somehow you feel sure you will dream about baked beans.