FOUNDED by brothers Patjoe and the late Jamesie Collins, the iconic Collins Bros Butchers on Dunmanway’s Main Street has closed its doors, marking the end of an era for the West Cork town.
Both brothers shared a flair for butchering, rearing their own sheep, which they cut themselves, delivering the meat to households across West Cork.
With an entrepreneurial drive, coupled with the support of their late father DD, Patjoe and Jamesie, still in their teens, trained as butchers and opened their own shop in the late 1960s.
Patjoe had an eye for a good animal and he travelled to farms all across Ireland choosing only the finest beasts for slaughter.
He was often spotted outside the ring at marts up and down the country, including Enniscorthy Mart, for a breed of Textel Sheep and even made weekly trips to fill his van with Wexford potatoes, knowing his customers well and how much they loved a floury potato.
Jamesie ran the shop to meticulous standards and went above and beyond to ensure customers received not just a great service, but the best of produce.
They were more than butchers, they were trusted advisors, always ready with a recipe suggestion or cooking tip to make every meal tasty.
For over half a century, Collins Bros Butchers was been a gathering place for generations of families and a hub in the community with lively conversations about local happenings.
Anyone passing the shop front, on foot or by car, was greeted with a wave and a smile.
Patjoe, Jamesie and their team always shared a great camaraderie.
Not long after opening their shop, the brothers built an abattoir outside the town, based on their own design.
This led to them securing an European Abattoir License, one of the first in Ireland.
Such was the standard of their abattoir, it attracted attention from butchers across Ireland and even from Europe, who visited their site in Dunmanway to learn from Patjoe and Jamesie on how others could re-create this vision in their own locations.
The brothers did not shy from hard work and put in huge hours over the years to build up their business, often making deliveries well after closing hours.
This did not go unnoticed with their customers, as the Collins family found when they received numerous cards, letters and messages on the closing of shop, in appreciation for their years of service.
Closing the shop was not an easy decision and Patjoe expressed his heartfelt thanks to their employees, whose hard work and dedication were the backbone of the business; to their suppliers, who consistently provided top-quality produce; and to their customers, whose loyalty turned a local butcher shop into a lasting legacy and a part of Dunmanway’s history.
