Lucille Pestre meets young Polish entrepreneur Thomasz Chmielewski, who recently opened a Polish deli with a friend in central Dublin
Inside Dublin’s Moore Street Mall shopping centre, a once empty shop unit is now a hive of activity. Behind the counter of their delicatessen franchise, Thom-asz Chmielewski, 25, and 29-year-old Radoslaw Bal – two Polish men who became friends after arriving in Ireland several years ago – are busy serving their customers with enthusiasm.
Trading for just a few weeks, their new business is a success story born from the recession.
“Today everything is so expensive because of the recession. So we want that people can find and buy cheaper food in our shop,” explains Chmielewski, who studied food technology in Poland.
Outside the shop, a notice that reads ‘recession busters’ is an obvious testament to that.
Turning the business from an idea into reality was not as difficult as they first imagined. “Opening a business in Ireland, I mean concerning the administration part, is not really hard,” says Chmielewski. “There’s much more paperwork to do in Poland.”
He is quick to add, however, that getting together the equipment for the premises, such as the fridges, proved a bit more difficult.
At their shop – part of the Polish chain Mróz, which means ‘freezing’ – one can find many different kinds of fresh meat, sausages, ham and cheeses, not to mention a selection of frozen fish, eggs, tea and coffee.
All products are from Poland, catering to ‘traditional Polish tastes’, as the window display proudly boasts.
But Chmielewski insists: “We’ve really opened this shop for everybody. My customers are Polish, Irish people: they come from different countries.”
The duo appreciate the experience they’ve gained at being their own bosses.
“I worked for several years for other people, now it’s different,” says Chmielewski, who previously worked on construction at Dublin Airport. His partner Bal, meanwhile, was previously employed at a water treatment centre.
Running a shop together marks a big change, but it’s one they’re both happy with.
“I like speaking with my customers, see them enter in my shop with a big smile,” says Chmielewski. “I like to see people very happy.”
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