On a warm weekday morning, East 9th Street in the heart of the East Village in lower Manhattan is quiet. A tote bag with Sinéad O’Connor printed on it is visible from the window of a new homeware and gifts shop on the block, Irving Green.
“The Guinness is a bit of a giveaway,” owner Alison Doyle says of the shop’s roots, pointing to Guinness prints on the wall by Studio143. Like London, New York is in the midst of a Guinness boom, and the prints are in high demand. Throughout the cosy shop, the Irish influence is pronounced. There’s Adelle Hickey stationery, contemporary Claddagh-inspired jewellery by the Irish brand Don’t Kill My Vibe, and blankets by Foxford and McNutt.
Irving Green is a venture by Doyle, a Dubliner, to bring quality Irish homeware products and gifts – classic and contemporary – to New York city, and to bring herself that bit closer to home. Although retail has been in her family, it’s a new project for Doyle, who left her job in sales in a tech company to pursue a dream.
During and after the pandemic, Doyle was working from home a lot. Now she’s working in her store six days a week. One day off isn’t much, “but I have much more interaction with people, more interaction with the neighbourhood ... It’s a much more creative outlet.
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