O'Briens Sandwich Bar in Examinership

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Raskolnikov

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I'm sure that they will find a buyer, but I imagine that the organisation will have to shrink given the current climate.

What do people think though? I have to say, I won't lament the collapse of O'Briens. I remember getting a sandwich there one time and getting charged €1 to get it toasted :mad: Subway will toast your sub for nothing for cryin' out loud!
 
i agree,they were way to pricey..got away with it during the boom years...but not these days!
 
I never really used them but I still hate that things come to this. They were one of the great Irish business success stories. Their brand is still very valuable so I would imagine they will come out of this stronger. No better man than Brody Sweeney to turn things around. They do need to look at their whole product offering though.
 
sunny said:
i never really used them but i still hate that things come to this. They were one of the great irish business success stories. Their brand is still very valuable so i would imagine they will come out of this stronger. No better man than brody sweeney to turn things around. They do need to look at their whole product offering though.
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+1
 
nice sandwiches but too pricey. you could spend the guts of 10 euro there for a sandwich and coffee. Mind you, eating out is too pricey in any case over here.
 
My local branch of O'Brien's has already transmogrified to a coffee bar/deli. Did wonder what was happening.
 
I love the coffee in O'Briens. But the prices really need to be adjusted which I am sure they find hard to do when the landlords won't budge on the rent.

€3.50 for a large cappucino (take-away) is a bit pricey!
 
It is time for O'Briens Irish Sandwiches to get the Irish back. I used to love O'Briens when they first came out, but have found down the years the standards have dropped and sometimes it is very hard to get the staff to understand you at all and there are some branches that I would not go to at all.

With the boom in Celtic Tiger, they lost it and now should start again. Also agree at a euro to toast a sandwich it is too much
 
There are 3 sandwich shops near my job and 1 of them is O'Briens. I've been into it once and it is absolutely, totally overpriced. I paid 5.50e or so for a toasted something or other. Fair enough if thats what you want to pay but it seems that people are not longer willing to.
 
I've always found their sambo selection very basic and choice of ingredients very limited. Sambos are also overpriced, the staff also seems to change very often in the branch near me which in my opinion makes it hard to create any sort of bond.

There's better places around here that have a more varied choice of ingredients with a more continental feel. I always think of boring brennans bread sanwiches with coleslaw and ham when I think of O'Briens.
 
Completely over priced.

Irish people realised that a ham sandwitch were overpriced.

A Wake upcall for many retailers.
 
The problem is with the UK end of the operation apparantly as they have been making a loss there for the past three years. There are approx twice as many units there as in Ireland and there were guarantees given by O'Briens for the leases most if not all were in prime rental areas with high rent and when some Franchisee's couldn't meet the lease payments it had to be covered as per the guarantees given.
 
gillarosa said:
The problem is with the UK end of the operation apparantly as they have been making a loss there for the past three years. There are approx twice as many units there as in Ireland and there were guarantees given by O'Briens for the leases most if not all were in prime rental areas with high rent and when some Franchisee's couldn't meet the lease payments it had to be covered as per the guarantees given.
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The UK business went into administration a few weeks ago. The Irish business has been loss making for the past two years and as you say, the company found itself tied into leases for non-performing stores and closed stores.

Somebody mentioned above that this is a wake up fall for retailers. I think more importantly it should be a wake up call to landlords in this Country especially in Dublin. The problem is that people invested in commercial property at very low yields during the bubble and probably can't afford to see rents drop but something has to give before the High Street disappears. Upward only rent reviews for example have to end.
 
My local O'Briens advertises a 'special' take away coffee for €2.50 where as the coffee shop accross the road sells it at €1.70 and always has....crazy....I used to love O'Briens and would be sad to see it go but it never moved with the times...think i'll go get a coffee now..:)
 
I refuse to pay a fortune for a ham and cheese sandwich which consists of a slap of butter, 2 ends off a tomatoe and a tiny square of edam with more holes in it than cheese!! I haven't been there in years.

Gerry Ryan did that test on his show, what is the most expensive sandwich in ireland. The found out but can't remember the name of place on Fitzwilliam street. It was a chicken wrap worth €9.95. The woman on his show said she nearly fell when the assistant, who was very embarrassed, asked her for the cash. Extortion.
 
Overpriced and under-tasty. Irish, Japanese, Indian...it doesn't matter. If your business model sucks, you'll end up bust!

However, I just went to Donnybrook Fair there for the last time...€5.15 for a roll. The mark-up on these is astounding!
 
I think the problem with O'Briens is that thay never offered anything you wouldn't make yourself with a little bit of forethought and their premises were bland and soulless for eating in. The most exotic offering was the chicken tikka which looks and tastes like plain chicken with "a bit of sauce". It stands to reasons that this limited level of fare will be the first to suffer in a downturn. I think people are still willing to pay for something good but won't hand their hard-earned cash any more for this kind of rubbish any more.

As for the coffee, you can good stuff in petrol stations without having to pay 3.50.

Other places like Munchies, Mortons etc may not be any cheaper but you get a lot more variety for your buck.
 
Caveat said:
Do you think so?

I've never bought anything from O'Briens/Subway etc but I would have easily expected €3.50 or thereabouts TBH.
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Really? 3.50 for a take-away drink?

I think that is extremely expensive. Even if it's very large.

It just shows how different opinions there are out there.

I would expect to pay 1.00-1.50 max for a take-away drink.


Then again, I also feel that some commercial rents need to fall by 50-90%.
 
Raskolnikov said:
What do people think though? I have to say, I won't lament the collapse of O'Briens. I remember getting a sandwich there one time and getting charged €1 to get it toasted :mad: Subway will toast your sub for nothing for cryin' out loud!
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Subway in the UK have re-priced their rolls and now charge more for toasting! If it hasn't already been introduced here, I'm sure it's only a matter of time!
 
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