James Whelan Butchers

Pat Whelan spent many years polishing and perfecting his concept of opening boutique butcher’s shops in supermarket settings. So, when the opportunity came to team up with a revitalised Dunnes Stores, and to gradually roll out the concept across multiple outlets throughout the country, Mr Whelan was ready. This explains why the James Whelan Butchers brand has been able to multiply with such speed and open so many new outlets: Pat Whelan knew how he wanted his shops to look and, more importantly, he knew how he wanted his shops to feel. Mr Whelan has transformed the purchasing of meat products into a de luxe experience – an Irish Chartier charcuterie experience – a truly extraordinary achievement, given Ireland’s history of sawdust-on-the-floor butchers shops. Every detail of every product, and every piece of the design and fit-out of the shops, which are nothing other than elegant meat salons, has been finessed and transformed into a bespoke, couture classic, shops that make you feel good just to be in their superbly lit and stage-like settings. Of course, the meat products and their preparation need to be world-class to match the detail of the design, and they are world-class in every way. Pat Whelan may be a quiet revolutionary, but he’s certainly created a revolution.