WATCH: Carrick-on-Suir shop owners open up on reversing their town's 'bleak future'

"I'd like to see people giving the town a little more support. I can see a bleak future for Carrick looking into the future", concludes Tucker O'Connell - a fruit trader in Carrick-on-Suir for over thirty years.

Filmed by Stephen Cahill, one third comedy trio Fupin Eejits, 'The Local' features four small shop keepers discussing the difficulties in running the traditional Irish corner store against the might of multinationals.

"I'm from south Kilkenny and shop regularly in Carrick. I've always been of the belief that it's a beautiful town that doesn't get the attention nor credit it deserves", confesses Stephen when talking to Beat 102-103. "There was an anger coming from the town's shops - voices that needed a platform."

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The Local

As Stephen explains, Carrick is just one example of a national issue that we are all partly to blame for; one that is addressed throughout the documentary.

"It's all very well getting a discount lawnmower on your weekly shop, but when you look for something back from these companies - such as sponsorship for a charity event - these brands are nowhere to be seen.

"It's the local fruit & veg store, the lotto shop, these are the businesses that help the local community", Stephen says. "How can we expect local shops to give something back when we're support them less and less in the first place?"

"The four shopkeepers I chatted to were not people who refused to move with the times," concluded Stephen. Prices at John Farrell's store are more then a match for big brand discount stores, while Paul O'Sullivan's internet cafe doubles as a coffee stop, repair workshop and launderette."

Stephen hopes his documentary will be viewed by the town's council, who will in turn seek to resolve "long standing issues" such as parking restrictions, charges, and a falling footfall.

Convinced? We'll leave the final word to shopkeeper Piece O'Loughlin: "To be local you must shop local."