Doors close for a final time on family business near Limerick Cork border

A FAMILY-RUN business has shut its doors in Charleville, after being the go-to shop for fresh produce for more than two decades.

Brothers Paddy and Gerard Mortell have closed the doors of Farm Gate on the Main Street in Charleville for the final time.

When the Limerick Leader were in the town for this piece, customers could be seen coming up to the door, reading the hand-written sign and trying the door handle to gain access to the much-loved shop. This happened every few minutes, as what was clearly a very loyal customer base still had not come to grips with the news of the shop’s closure.

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It was very popular, and they were known for their quality Irish meat at the butcher counter, fresh vegetables and a cold deli.

Over the years, they would butcher meat for farmers who called in and they also reared their own chickens and turkeys.

Fianna Fáil Councillor Ian Doyle said that the shop has been part of life in the town for at least 20 years, under the ownership of the two brothers.

“It was an iconic part of the town and is a real loss,” he told the Limerick Leader.

Anne-Marie Egan of Horizon Designs, two doors up from Farm Gate, said that the shop closing is a real shame and that it will have a knock-on effect on neighbouring businesses.

“We are impacted, because we had loads of passing trade. Even today, there are no cars parked outside, because people were pulling in, they’d run in, get their groceries and then they’d see something in our window and come in and now there’s nobody.

“People used to park at Aldi, get their shopping and come over to Farm Gate for meat and vegetables, it’s sad to see it go and to see it empty and in darkness.”

She added that the two Mortell brothers were very generous and sponsored a lot of local events and clubs.

Mrs Egan stressed that rates are high and the Farm Gate shop was a big premises, so that is hard to contend with, but it will be a big loss to Charleville and will be greatly missed.

Farm Gate has been a feature of life in Charleville for a long time, as the brothers Paddy and Gerard took over the shop more than two decades ago, from a woman from Ballyhea who used to run it.

The Limerick Leader attempted to reach out to the owners for a comment.