SuperValu TidyTowns Regional Winner
We Spoke to Moriarty’s SuperValu Skerries former manager Dennis Hogan about winning the Dublin region finals of the SuperValu TidyTowns competition.
If picturesque Skerries wanted to mount a winning SuperValu TidyTowns campaign, the local SuperValu realised it needed to get down and dirty, don the rubber gloves and adopt a ‘hands on’ approach. Dennis Hogan, former manager of SuperValu Skerries, thought they had a good chance of winning this year so he decided to get in on ground level and do as much as he could.
“We decided to throw the weight of SuperValu behind the campaign from the get go”
Dennis has since moved on to manage SuperValu Palmerstown but he still lives in Skerries, the town he loves so well. He points out that Skerries had that essential ingredient necessary for waging a winning campaign – a thriving community spirit. “Everyone here knows each other and looks out for each other” he says. A community spirit makes it easier to rally people around a communal cause. In addition the town had experience and confidence as they had nearly won the gold last time round, losing out by a mere seven points.
Skerries just needed that extra push and Dennis realised that SuperValu could provide the heave over the line. “We decided to throw the weight of SuperValu behind the campaign from the get go” he explains. Liaising with the committee, Dennis and the SuperValu staff tackled pre-assigned tasks. “We would have 4 or 5 staff out on a Saturday as well as some part timers during the week picking up litter and washing graffiti off the walls”.
SuperValu’s role also set an example to other businesses in the town. It was one of their goals to get other businesses more actively involved and to support the competition as much as possible. While there was some initial reluctance, businesses came on board once it was pointed out that little things could mean a lot. They were given hanging baskets to put outside their premises and kept the pavement outside clean.
Skerries is blessed with a lot of green areas so cleaning these up and keeping them neat and tidy was key. In order to tackle this crucial task, the committee came up with an ‘Adopt a Patch’ programme. “We got a map of the town and we numbered all the green areas into sections. We then asked people to adopt a section” Dennis explains. A particular patch became the responsibility of an individual or group. “We had about 40 patches adopted in the ‘Adopt a Patch’ programme and I would say altogether there were over 100 volunteers maintaining them. So it took off very well” he says.
The SuperValu store itself became the HQ of the Skerries SuperValu TidyTowns campaign and that in itself was a boost to business as well as promoting the store’s community standing; something that SuperValu sees as vital part of its business philosophy. When people were finished picking up the litter, they would come back down to the store and have tea, coffee and scones.
While the committee’s dedication and experience from previous entries were vital, there was another key to success – local rivalry. “There is healthy competition between Skerries and towns such as Malahide and Swords” Dennis says. Apart from improving the look of the town, what did the competition do to help further foster community spirit? “There is definitely an increased sense of pride and togetherness because everyone knows they achieved something together” he tells us.
“SuperValu care greatly about the town and year after year more people get involved. The competition gets better and better”.
There is, however, no resting on laurels. If someone sees a litter spot or anything problematic, they can post it on the Skerries Facebook page and “a litter squad” will go out and tackle the eyesore. That’s the sort of spirit that should keep Skerries in the winning league. Dennis thinks they could take the prize again. “I don’t see why we shouldn’t win again. SuperValu care greatly about the town and year after year more people get involved. The competition gets better and better”.