Harvey Norman Insults Ireland’s Famine Victims
Posted on Friday, November 28, 2008Gerry Harvey, executive chairman of Harvey Norman, is a prick.
Complaining about their shops’ trading difficulties in Ireland, Harvey had this to say: just imagine you opened in Ireland; you’d want to go and cut your throat. The potato famine, someone said, the return of the potato famine in Ireland
What a prick. How dare he compare the troubles of his sofa shop with the greatest catastrophe this land has ever known?
Does this fool know what he’s talking about? Would he go to Israel and compare his trading downturn to a Holocaust?
There was no potato famine in Ireland.
There was simply a Famine.
(Pic by C’est la Craic)
The term “potato famine” is a calculated insult to the million people who died of starvation in this country between 1841 and 1851. It’s also a calculated insult to the millions who suffered and died in the coffin ships to America, trying to escape the desolation. It’s an insult to the countless millions all over the world who are descended from the survivors of the greatest mass exodus in our history.
The fact that the people were dependent on a single crop for survival was not of their making. It was a direct result of incompetent, callous government from London. It was a result of endless greed on the part of those British aristocratic landlords who claimed this country as their own and who ruthlessly drove the small Irish farmers to abject poverty as they wrung every last penny of rent from them.
For some landlords, the catastrophe was a blessing. A means of driving smallholders off their land and into the grave or the emigrant ship.
It was an obscenity, and this prick, Gerry Harvey, ought to be ashamed of himself for likening the troubles of his sofa shop to such a calamity.
If you doubt the scale of the disaster, look at this table. These are the population figures for England and Ireland between 1831 and 1911. Look at the direction taken by the population figures for England and Wales from the start of the Great Famine in 1841. Compare them to what happened in Ireland.
| Census Year |
England & Wales (million) | Ireland (million) |
Ireland as percentage of total | Ireland compared to England and Wales (%) |
| 1831 | 13.9 | 7.7 | 36 | 55 |
| 1841 | 15.9 | 8.2 | 34 | 52 |
| 1851 | 17.9 | 6.6 | 27 | 37 |
| 1861 | 20.1 | 5.8 | 22 | 29 |
| 1871 | 22.7 | 5.4 | 19 | 24 |
| 1881 | 26 | 5.2 | 17 | 20 |
| 1891 | 29 | 4.7 | 14 | 16 |
| 1901 | 32.5 | 4.5 | 12 | 14 |
| 1911 | 36.1 | 4.4 | 11 | 12 |
Now, you might be aware that the rapacity of English absentee landlords in Ireland gave rise to a new concept which has since swept the world.
In 1880, when he raised rents and evicted poor tenants from their land, the estate agent of a British absentee landlord was left totally isolated by the refusal of farm workers, shopkeepers, businessmen and even the postman, to deal with him. He was ostracised and ultimately made helpless by his complete exclusion from society.
His name? Captain Charles Boycott.
I wonder how Gerry Harvey would feel if Australian and New Zealand descendants of Irish people were to boycott his shops?
____________________
references
Ireland’s Great Famine 1845-1849
Stumble it!
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November 28th, 2008
There was food in the country - it was exported, the potato crop was destroyed by blight, the landlords were catholic irish as well as british, and most people died from filthy living conditions which resulted in cholera and other such diseases not starvation. There was a much more severe famine in India, and they received far less help, meagre though it was from the British Government. So I think the famine thing has been over played in this country, especially by people who weren’t there. Other countries suffered appallingly during these times. The nasty British landlord business is overplayed.
November 28th, 2008
You’re missing the point. There was a famine in Ireland and mass death from starvation and associated disease. The Indian famine isn’t part of our history and it’s not what this post is about.
I have no interest in the religion of the landlords and I don’t know why you mention it, but the vast majority of them were English or Anglo-Irish, and that’s relevant because their detachment contributed to their indifference to the suffering.
When you say the famine is overplayed especially by people who weren’t there, are you saying you know people who were there?
And as you’re so sure it was less severe than we think, does that mean you were there?
Try to keep your eye on the ball. This is about Harvey Norman.
November 28th, 2008
Bock,
Harvey Norman is a prick. If his business was crap before in Ireland, imagine what it is going to be after these remarks. Basically he should now sod off home as his product stands no chance after these cracks.
Your table on the population says an enormous amount about the famines and then the emigration that followed until very recently - like 1993. Which is why it would have been good to bring it up to recent times. The 150 years of getting on the boat tell a tale most of which is not good for the people of this island.
As for some of your other comments of the causes of the famine I will prepare a 50,000 word essay to refute some of them and spam you with it. Either that or attempt to read it to the assembled crowd the next time I get to Thomond Park.
November 28th, 2008
Great post Bock and the bould Harvey should up anchor and piss off.
The term “potato famine” was introduced to give the impression that it was only the potato crop that failed and the benighted Irish hadn’t the wit to kill a cow for food.
November 28th, 2008
Aside from the astonishingly thoughtless comparison he makes between an Irish historical catastrophe and the fortunes of his retail business here, is Gerry Harvey unaware that there are places in the world right now, in 2008, where there is real starvation?
November 28th, 2008
well done bock ! i have to admit nothing makes my blood boil more than the phrase , potato famine ! it is the greatest insult to the intelligence of the Irish people , Irish people starved by the thousands because they couldn’t milk cows , or fish the rivers , in a famine the first thing that happens is
1 the rain stops
2 the vegetation dies
3 the animals die
4 the people die
Man being the top predator is the last to suffer , look at african famines , long before you see a distended belly on a child , you see the skeletons of thousands of dead cows ! in Ireland the ” famine” skipped the first 3 steps , and then set about killing Irish roman Catholics , funny that !!!
There was no famine !!!!!!
http://www.irishholocaust.org
November 28th, 2008
Recently a ‘leading’ German economist - Hans-Werner Sinn his name (Sinn = sense) - spake following nonsense: In view of the current animadversion on bankers, he compared contemporary bankers with the Jews in the early 30th in Germany.
Why would I mention this? You’d find such ignorant idiots (probably) everywhere.
Brilliant post this was, Bock. Chapeau!
November 28th, 2008
Only visited Harvey Norman once and found the PC section to be full of grossly overpriced and out of date machines about which the staff knew nothing. I am amazed they did not close long ago.
November 28th, 2008
i heard only yesterday, that harvey norman staff in ireland are working on commission only…no salary, maybe he is trying to create a re enactment of the famine….all hn stores nobody should go inside the doors
November 28th, 2008
“just imagine you opened in Ireland; you’d want to go and cut your throat”
You just did, Mr Harvey.
November 28th, 2008
No. I dont obviously know anyone living that witnessed the famine but I do have a great great uncle/grandfather or some ancestor’s diary of his journey to America on the coffin ship and his experiences (he survived and prospered by the way) . I must have a proper read of that sometime. I think Mr. Harvey’s comment were glib, typical Aussie ‘humour’. I don’t think he meant much harm by it. By the way… what’s the problem with the term potato famine??? How is that insulting? The potato crop was what people planted for the most part hence the devastation when the blight hit.
November 28th, 2008
@ elle walshe
i dont think you read my comment , you are prime example of whats wrong with the world today !you had an uncle who was on board a coffin ship , wrote about his experience and you haven’t read his diary ! wtf you ignorant arsehole , the term potato famine was concocted by the english press to cover up what was really happening in Ireland , A DELIBERATE POLICY OF MASS MURDER !!!!
know you the truth and the truth will set ye free .
http://WWW.IRISHHOLOCAUST.ORG
November 28th, 2008
fred (’wtf you ignorant asshole’, to quote you) . I read it when I was a child, and have forgotten the content. No need to resort to rude language. You’re still here aren’t you? Mass murder my foot! Get a grip. Your outburst is very amusing though. Most European countries had the same set up - the feudal system which thank God is gone. The rich never cared when the poor suffered. It wasn’t just Ireland that had this system.
November 29th, 2008
p.s. fred it wasn’t my uncle’s diary - that would make me over a hundred years old!
November 29th, 2008
Fred — Read the comments policy. If you personally abuse another commenter again your comments will be blocked.
I will not say this twice.
November 29th, 2008
one of the main causes of the famine was the introduction of a new strain of potato from south america. it yields were very high but it had no resistance to the potato blight. the same strain is still grown somewhere in the north,( not sure where just heard on a radio show) and is described as being bland and stodgy. if i remember rightly the corn laws and bad harvests in 1845 and 1847 were also major contributors. what always amazed me was, that for a country in a famine situation we exported an incredible amount of food.
November 29th, 2008
The failure of the potato crop was the proximate cause of the famine, not the root cause.
November 29th, 2008
Pardon me but I am a little bit fluttered, in our house we call him Hardly Normal. Who gives a shit and even though the history lesson might be beneficial, shit can’t any of ye stick to anything, ye seem to jump from topic to topic. Is there anyone out there who wants to resolve anything. Is the fact that you comment make it go away, SHANE GEOGHAN, INDIA, ( can’t really help there) Shannon, FAS, jesus lads, get a grip. Keyboard critics, change happens when you get off your arses and make it happen.. Doing a bit of editing here
regardless of the fluttering I will still feel the same way in the morning
November 29th, 2008
This is hillarious
I will make a point of shopping in Harvey Norman from now on.
Super A-Mart - you just lost a customer.
No-one was buying in Ireland anyway - we’ll keep supporting you in Australia!!
ha ha ha
November 29th, 2008
Gerry Harvey is a complete wanker, he was in the news a couple of weeks ago at this side of the world for his comments on why giving money to charity is a complete waste of time… in his own words “helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reason”.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/charity-a-waste-says-gerry-harvey/2008/11/20/1226770649462.html
fuckin tool
November 29th, 2008
TTT — I’m sure it would be hilarious to most empty-headed know-nothings.
November 29th, 2008
“change happens when you get off your arses and make a it happen”–kit bà n
I’ve been trying to say that here for some time. Ranting is fine, now and again: Fianna Fáil, the GardaÃ, County Councillors, RTE, Dublin-based media, Dublin, Dublin 4, Shannon, Travellers, drug pushers, gangs, etc etc etc. Sure. But without some constructive suggestions it gets a bit …
Look, we DO live in a democracy. Ireland is listed at the BOTTOM of the list of “failed states”. In other words we’re a stable country politically, without too many problems (CERTAINLY compared to many of the other 191 countries in the world) other than a looming recession — which might well curb rampant consumerism and too many high-flown expectations and taking-for-granted anyway. [I'm a member of 'Freecycle' and the amount of perfectly usable (expensive) items being given away for free because people have been "upgrading" is quite shocking to someone like me who was paying a mortgage in the 70s.]
It is possible to take action. It is possible to get involved — whether in politics directly or in pressure or activism groups of one sort or another. Keyboard ranting won’t do it. Not on its own.
I’ve never heard of IrishHolocaust.org and having read it, I’m not overly impressed. The notion of this “cover up” is hard to swallow. Plus, I know Cormac O Gráda and would stand by his scholarship any day of the week.
November 29th, 2008
Hi Bock!
What I was going to say has already been said by other posters , so I’ll just say ‘good post’ and leave it at that .
Thanks!
Sharon.
November 29th, 2008
Can’t wait for them to pull out. Surprised they came here in the first place, crap overpriced products, furniture only fit for the attic and above all, the most irritating adverts on radio in the history of broadcasting.
Go Harvey go fuck yourself.
November 29th, 2008
“Gerry Harvey … in his own words “helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reasonâ€.
One assumes that only the rich have some good reason to be allowed to survive. E.g. hedge fund managers.
November 29th, 2008
In 1845, the onset of the Great Irish Famine resulted in over 1,000,000 deaths. Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid declared his intention to send 10,000 sterling to Irish farmers but Queen Victoria requested that the Sultan send only 1,000 sterling, because she had sent only 2,000 sterling. The Sultan sent the 1,000 sterling but also secretly sent 3 ships full of food. The English courts tried to block the ships, but the food arrived at Drogheda harbour and was left there by Ottoman sailors.
The british courts tried to stop famine relief !
November 30th, 2008
Bock - I think we should ask Fas to bring back the famine relief schemes as Fas schemes and built high stone walls around every Harvey Norman store to prevent anybody getting in. If that works, they could offer their services to the Regeneration Agency in Limerick and built similar walls around the estates to sto the skobes getting out…a mere modification of what worked in 1840,,,
Nuts
November 30th, 2008
Did you hear about the Kerryman who was let go last week, after 20 years of sterling service to Fas, with no package or benefits. As the man walked out the door, he turned back with one last bitter look and said: “Is this all I get, after fiche bliain ag Fas?”
November 30th, 2008
@bock
Good post. A sane rant compared with where Fred was sending us. Your links are very interesting.
But a boycott coming from Limerick? You might have better proxied that through Mayo.
I wonder has Harvey any famine ancestors?
@nora
The “Irish Holocaust” site shows the danger of imposing ideology on evidenced-based research. This is precisely what the British did in the case of the Famine and which led to so many deaths.
Ó Gráda is renowned for his innovative use of evidence to flush out the facts, and he would be no friend of the British administration in any age. To see him quoted as part of a cover-up in this area says more about the author of the remark than about Ó Gráda.
I am amused at how Fogarty misuses statistics in order to inflate Famine deaths to surpass those of the Holocaust. I can understand the rationale of the RC church in equating abortion with murder, but to include the unconceived, and even the unconceived of, in the murder statistics is surely a gross misconception!
November 30th, 2008
It’s a pity that people like Fred exist to discredit a valid debate. The insanity of his population calculations defies belief. Clearly Fred is a paid-up member of the lunatic fringe.
November 30th, 2008
harvey norman advertising features a harsh foreign accent schreeching at their would-be irish customers to buy their merchandise as though we were subnormal beings. i’m not surprised that their business is going down the tubes. i would not shop there even if the goods were free
November 30th, 2008
‘Arvey Norman sounds like a geezer selling dodgy electrics off the back of a truck. I think the call to boycott his stores is pointless; even ‘Arvey admits himself that no one here is buying stuff from him.
@Benny, in Fred’s world, you’re then one infected by a ‘foreign’ ideology and ergo a “West brit, neo-unionist, neo-con, anti-republican agenda.” Anything that contradicts the nationalist dogma is labeled as such, ignorant of the amount of research historians put into their work. However his view would be supported by a surprising number of academics particularly in the English(fiction specialists) Departments in this country.
November 30th, 2008
If the Skibbereen Eagle can do it, so can I.
November 30th, 2008
I’d put nothing past ye, Bock. :)
November 30th, 2008
My god ! there are a lot of soupers and west brits posting here ! bock an co can any of you tell me how many Protestants starved to death or died of cholera in a workhouse between 1845 and 1848 ? not too many i’d bet ! no animals died ! just people ,Roman Catholics , and some of them because they wouldn’t take the soup ! we must be the only country that suffered genocide and go about defending the perpetrators ! in schools in new york state the events of the 1840’s are taught in ethics class as an example of genocide ! and lets not forget that the english have form here ! invasion siege rape and murder , cultural and religious persecution , slavery , penal laws ! the irish have suffered all of these ,why do people find it hard to believe that the english would deliberately starve people to death ? They did it in india !
Fuck harvey norman !
November 30th, 2008
Fred — Do not try to use this site to massage your paranoia or to insult other posters. You won’t get a platform for it. Your rabid, bigoted Catholic agenda insults the memory of those who died in the Famine, just as Harvey Norman did. You’re the same as Gerry Harvey.
Your comments will be moderated from now on and if you can’t show respect you won’t get in. It’s that simple.
Actually, on second thoughts, no. I’m sick of bombasts and bullies like you thinking they can shout everyone else down, so just shag off. You’re not getting in again.
November 30th, 2008
“Soupers and West Brits.” Yawn! The Irish should be grateful that so many “true Irish” are about, to guide us back onto the path of “true” Irish history.
Maybe the English injected all our spuds with blight. Who knows?
November 30th, 2008
Unfortunately, a post like this one always runs the risk of attracting obsessional nutters, like Fred.
December 1st, 2008
Coincidentally came across a contemporaneously published 1841 / 1851 census comparison for this bit of the country. In this townland - just a few hundred acres - the population was halved in ten years. The pre-famine population was about 220. The number of inhabited houses reduced by nearly 40%.
The current population of the townland is about 16, in six houses. Not much of a market for sofas.
December 1st, 2008
I was re-reading IrishHolocaust.org, and verified that I’d actually read this:
“Thus, Irelands priests, though well-fed, mostly preached “God’s Will” to their parishioners targeted for extinction. In refusing to provide the starvelings with Extreme Unction or Christian burial, Ireland’s hierarchy not only backed Britain’s contention that the Irish were sub-human, but that they lacked a soul and would not enter eternal life.”
http://www.irishholocaust.org/lisnabinniamemorial
I wasn’t aware that Irish priests at the time came from Mars. Silly me.
Anyway, I’ve been doing some Maths. If the area of Ireland is 32,599 square miles, and that website is claiming that 5.16 million Irish were buried in mass graves, I calculate that that would mean 19,549 bodies per square yard all over Ireland. We’d be knee deep in bones every time someone tried to build something, or dig their garden.
Wasn’t it very well covered up?
(That’s not to take anything from what Conan Drumm said above)
December 1st, 2008
Nora, that’s interesting what you say about the priests. I don’t wish to church bash, the last time I went to church (ahem.. Christmas eve last year), I went to St. John’s cathedral, and the priest talked about how the good people of Limerick paid money during the famine years to build/repair (I can’t remember which) the cathedral. I nearly fell off my seat! Imagine taking money from poor starving people. Sorry I know it’s off point. Maybe Harvey Norman could join the priesthood! He’d gone on well there by the sounds of it, and he could sell his couches to all the parochial houses in Ireland.
December 1st, 2008
“Maybe Harvey Norman could join the priesthood! ”
That’s a great suggestion, Elle. And Mr Harvey would (supposedly) have to sign up to celibacy too. ;)
December 1st, 2008
(I wonder is there a record of any Irish priest dying in the famine …)
December 1st, 2008
Ugh. Maths is backwards!
December 1st, 2008
Elle — A lot of churches were built during the famine years. Don’t feel the slightest bit reticent about bashing any church. Crowd of thieving, child-abusing bastards.
Nora — Not only your maths, but your arithmetic. Anyway, I’d guess that there were a lot more than 5 million people buried in Ireland over the thousands of years people have lived here.
December 1st, 2008
True, but not all by the British in the space of five years.
December 1st, 2008
Certainly not. It was unfortunate that a nutcase like Fred tried to hijack this post, but he’s behind us now, where he should be.
December 1st, 2008
The British regime was so brutal it was prepared to send one million of its own men to certain death in the trenches of WW I.
This wasn’t about nationality, it was about class and the famine was no different.
The one difference with the famine is, that there are thousands queuing up to play the victim over something that might have happened to an ancestor of theirs 150 years ago, whilst not really giving a toss about the suffering all around us today.
December 1st, 2008
I agree with you that it was a class issue, but if you think this is about playing the victim because of some ancestor, then you miss the point completely.
The Famine was a catastrophe that happened to a nation, and it shapes what we all are to this very day.
December 2nd, 2008
Hi Bock,
I wrote a letter on this to the Irish Independent who didn’t publish it. It was short, witty and to the point, like all my letters but it wasn’t published.
I am sure the huge advertising budget of Harvey Norman’s had nothing to do with it.
In conclusion and to paraphrase Harvey Norman,
Fuck Off, Harvey, Fuck Off!
December 2nd, 2008
The Irish Echo asked Mr Harvey to respond to the backlash over his comments.
“I would have thought that the Irish sense of humour would be well able for that,’’ he said. “…It doesn’t say much about a people when they can’t take something like that on the chin and get on with it. The Irish situation right now is very, very bad. Something is going to blow over there.â€
Just thought you should know.
December 5th, 2008
Like every “billionaire” gerry harvey spoke out of turn yes - I don’t agree with what he said either but head office did issue an apology (sorry but dont have a link to it). As for yer comments on staff not getting paid anything except commission - we get basic wage and whatever we sell (obv depends on product and whether a sale is on) we get a small commission for. Not wanting to go off topic - but alot of stores i’ve been to (before i started in H.N.) did that - overpriced and staff know nothing - can name a few but not gonna resort to that. took me 3 months to get a replacement laptop from one cos they didn’t want to give it to me despite trying to fix it several times - only to give me a “cheaper” laptop and “charge” it as over 1.5k on the reciept cos it was done through credit.
So gonna say to ye what I’ve been advised to say to customers who ask me about Harveys comments - I’ve no idea (which admit i don”t know what he said fully) and if you want to contact head office in dublin, they’ll be the ones to contact. Also, as he said - he has too much invested here to pull back. It is bad everywhere - not just in harveys.
Yes the famine was horrible and changed Ireland for centuries that followed - millions died/emigrated - but has anyone looked at whats happening around the world now? millions dying from starvation/hiv/and war. You telling me that many of us “care” about those starving/dying by the thousands while we prepare for christmas - over eat, over buy, waste food/money and buy gifts that will no doubt be left in a corner? That irriates me more then anything - people giving out about why don’t people send money/food to the poor when we waste so much ourselves? No doubt ye’ll complain about my comments - ur welcome to ur thoughts as am i! I deal with customers day in day out - If I am selling something I give as much information as I can - if I’m not sure, I ask. I’d rather have happy customers then loads of commission - that’s the truth. you may not believe me but up to you. sorry for going off topic a little. Yes, for the record I am Irish - and proud to be Irish.
Anyways, thanks bock for posting the links, will have a look at it properly tomorrow on day off.
December 5th, 2008
“You telling me that many of us “care” about those starving/dying by the thousands while we prepare for christmas - over eat, over buy, waste food/money and buy gifts that will no doubt be left in a corner? That irriates me more then anything”–Draco
I’m with you there. Between the excesses we buy (and the surplus we throw out) in the so-called developed ‘West’, we could set up the poor countries no bother at all. Assuming we could bypass corrupt leaders in some of these countries.
But how are they trying to fix the economic crisis? They want us to buy more. Tighten our belts now and they tell us economies will tank. Spend, spend, spend, is what the ‘Western’ Governments want. It’s all mad, if you ask me.
December 6th, 2008
Nora - Yes, there are records of priests dying in the famine.
December 7th, 2008
Draco, How did Ireland survive before HN came here? Answer - Quite well thankyou. And we will survive quite well after he has gone back to where he came from.
P.S.
All large stores like HN and the one u purchased your laptop from are Useless.
Staff know nothing and couldn’t care less. Only small, family run businesses really care about their customers and know about the products they sell. e.g. How much do you know about the products that you personally sell - I’d place a large bet that you know very little apart from the price of them.
Simple rule of thumb in business - The larger the business the poorer the after sales service.
Remember:
Irish People are no fools and don’t fall for Advertising Garbage from ejits who think they know it all.
December 7th, 2008
Re the so called famine.
As previous commentors stated - there wasn’t a famine in Ireland.
The word Famine means according to Wikipedia: A famine is a widespread shortage of food.
Since food was so plentiful at this time that it was being exported there obviously wasn’t a shortage.
At this time not only were millions of Irish peasants leaving the shores of Ireland for the Americas but millions of Scottish peasants were doing the same and for the exact same reasons - i.e. the landlords and Ruleing elites wanted rid of them once and for all. They were seen as a hindrance.
Please remember - and never forget:
There was another race of Beautiful People who suffered as a direct result of the mass exodus of Irish and Scottish peasants (and other Europeans also), they were the Native Peoples of the Americas. They were slaughtered to make way for our ancestors - another genocide perpetrated on millions of innocent men, women and children.
And to this day they live in subjugation in reservations (self imposed) closed off from the outside world in a desperate attempt at trying to preserve what’s left of their race and not unlike the beautiful Palestinian Peoples who are suffering at the hands of the Europeans who are using a ficticious book to vindicate their genocidal treatment of them.
December 7th, 2008
James - I’m not claiming to know everything - I am saying that if I don’t know something - be it is it faux/real leather - category of leather, what’s in the ticking of a mattress etc That I’ll go find out! I make sure to look it up - even contacting reps for the various companies we get our products from. So lay your bets away - I aim to have as much information for my customers - I’d rather a happy custmers then loads as I’ve previously stated - so no doubt depite this I’ll prob be demoted cos I’m not reaching high enough targets for sales. Which would you rather? someone who is actively trying to give you all accurate information or someone telling u just enough to get a sale? I’d rather the information thanks - I even test colleagues knowledge and check them out. But you entitled to believe what you want. I tell the truth as much as possible - I always believe if u lie, it’ll come back and bite u on the butt! so I don’t. Remember you don’t know me nor do i know you. I am telling you this is what I do, whether or not you choose to believe me is up to you.
I NEVER claimed we didn’t “survive” before HN arrived hear my dear - please reread what I said. No doubt well survive if he chose to pull out - but I don’t blantently go around saying hope such a such company closes - I wouldn’t wish anyone to be unemployed esp at christmas. As I said before, if you wish to complain to hN headquarters bout various rmarks/problems you’ve had, contact head office. I’m not the central customer service personnel, I’m only a staff member. I am there to help with problems/get you information. As for your remark bout knowing only the prices - funnily enough no I don’t know off by heart I double check tags cos we have offers/prices lower on floor for some products then on system. As a result I gave 4 customers over a sale weekend very good prices - lol I admitted I was wrong but stood by my prices - admitted it to a not very amused manager but my customers were happy thats more important to me. Life goes on, I’m only human.
As for all large stores - yes it is unfortunately true for some though their are a few who will have more range then smaller family run business - even Dunnes stores which started out for the people turned into a commercial leach - i worked for them and would regularly tell customers not to buy stuff I knew the other staff members/managers thought to sell despite its bad dates etc. Some smaller family run businesses are better yes - but are being pushed ut of the market cos of the larger ones. Not saing its right but we as consumers have made our market this way - we demand more and more products at cheaper costs - larger stores can do this cos they buy in bigger bulk for 10+ stores etc whereas family run businesses more then likely have one or two shops.
“Remember: Irish People are no fools and don’t fall for Advertising Garbage from ejits who think they know it all.” - did I or anyone else here claim we Irish are fools ??? your trying to put words in my mouth - I never said that nor would I. Ads are there to give info - be it upcoming sales, special offers etc, not to make people into fools. the consumer is in charge - not the companies - we the consumers control them - cos without us (talking in general not as a hn employee) they wouldnt be here. remember that. I shop around - just cos i work in hn doesn’t necessarily mean i buy there. I research what i want - simple as that. if i find better prices/deals eslewhere then i go - simple as that. You telling me u buy in just tesco/dunnes and nowhere else? (just an example) most buy meat in butchers, groceries in supermarkets - be they the giants tesco or dunnes or the cheaper ones like aldi and lidl. again we are the ones controlling the market.
sorry for going off topic. but i dont like people trying to put words in my mouth when i have not said/claimed anything. I agree with some points, not all. but won’t insult u for it. i’m giving my opinion. all to our own, dont try force me to urs
December 8th, 2008
Harvey Norman should think on before making statements on the famine and would do well to rethink his business without that annoying Aussie on his ad’s
I’ve been in business a long time and my customers come first and I’ve never missed a deadline, I bought a bed on the 9th of November Waterford branch was told to collect it as they needed the space went down to collect it it was’nt there now it’s 8th of December still no sign and my kid who wants it for Christmas now wont get one, go Harvey go! think about that Harvey and you might go somewhere in Ireland customer comes first! and the famine made us stronger.
December 8th, 2008
unfortunately all of us are guilty of mouthing off without thinking before we speak. not defending him, just admitting i do it too.
emmet - mind me asking which bed? i know one of them is delayed from suppliers but they shouldn’t have rang you to “collect” when its not there. i know a few of the people in that store. by any chance is it the car bed?
December 8th, 2008
No not the car bed, getting a refund but have to drive back down to do this which is annoying, maybe I’ve just had a bad experience,but the staff were courteous so I’m not knocking them just pointing out that it’s important that for people in business in Ireland at the moment to give the highest level of service in order to survive
December 15th, 2008
hey, this harvey norman buisiness, certinly got some feathers fluttering, and blood pumping, but realy who gives a sh@it about some cobber whos intelect is well below a little joeys,and who would blame everybody and anything, for his companys shortcomings in Ireland,he also said I taught the Irish have a sense of humore, well we do, but unfortunley for Gerry and his like,its a bit more sophisticated then your avarage Gerry Harvey,
December 18th, 2008
In simple terms (ones that even Harvey might understand)
It is insulting for Harvey to compare his economic success or otherwise to a major human tragedy
It is insulting for Harvey to say we have no sense of humour when he makes such crass comparisons
His lack of success in Ireland may be more to do with a lack of business acumen
- http://www.harveynorman.ie fully reflects their incompetence “Our new catalogue will be available here soon”
- “we will not be beaten on price” is a joke - everything is overpriced (have bought several items there but only after receiving a 25-30% reduction by quoting competitors prices
- after returning a piece of furniture damaging by mould I was sent a replacement - also damaged by mould - they eventually gave a refund after admitting that their whole stock of that item was damaged.
Blanket advertising is fine for a business - if it delivers on it’s promises - if it doesn’t then customers object to being treated as fools !
December 31st, 2008
i was looking at the harvey norman website for a fridge freezer then read the comments he made about the famine im off to powercity or anywhere but not harvey norman
December 31st, 2008
That’s the spirit!
January 3rd, 2009
Has anyone heard Harvey Norman ads of late? He’s sounding increasingly desperate…..