Economy of Cork City

with expensive boutiques for one end of the market and high street stores also available. Shopping centres can be found in many of Cork's suburbs, including Blackpool, Ballincollig, Douglas, Ballyvolane, Wilton and Mahon. Others are available in the city centre. These include the recently completed development of two large malls The Cornmarket Centre on Cornmarket Street, and new the retail street called "Opera Lane" off St. Patrick's Street/Academy Street. The planned Grand Parade scheme for the site of the former Capitol Cineplex has been approved by the planning authorities but for now at least financing hasn't been made available. Cork's main shopping street is St. Patrick's Street and is the most expensive street in the country per sq. metre after Dublin's Grafton Street. Other shopping areas in the city centre include Oliver Plunkett St.and Grand Parade. Cork is also home to some of the country's leading department stores with the foundations of shops such as Dunnes Stores and the former Roches Stores being laid in the city. Outside the city centre is Mahon Point Shopping Centre.

Cork City Centre has seen many retail businesses close down in recent years due to high rents and the collapse of consumer spending since 2008. Many Cork retail businesses are locked into "upward only" lease contracts meaning rents only increase over time with no account for decreasing sales turnover. Some other very central streets in the city have a large number of unoccupied shops which tend to detract from the City as a whole.

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