News

Zoosh Ventures – Together We Will Drive Growth

October 29, 2020 By Admin

There is something magical in the water that flows along the Royal Canal in Mullingar. The line: ‘That fair metropolis, so great and populous, adorns the regions of sweet Westmeath,’ still perfectly sums up the town in the 21^st century. So many selfless people throughout the town’s history came together to lay the foundations for generations to follow. They were not in it for fame or glory. Their only vested interest was to see the town prosper and grow its burgeoning industrial heritage. Mullingar was safe in the hands of our predecessors who needed the town to grow, compete and succeed.

William Leonard: A home grown success

October 22, 2020 By Admin

When we feel down in the dumps, we instinctively reach out for our favourite food. And as if by magic, equilibrium is restored inside, our spirits are lifted and we feel better again, till the next time. Countless medical and scientific studies have proved that what we eat affects both our mood and our physical health.

Robert Mizzell – From Rhinestone Cowboy to Woodcarver

October 15, 2020 By Admin

Lots of start-up companies will fail, as will the careers of so many budding music artists and musicians. A degree can’t guarantee your business idea will turn into the next Google. Just as endless hours of singing lessons or guitar strumming are unlikely to make you better than Elvis Presley or Jimi Hendrix. The journey to chase your dreams will require a lot of hard work and hustle. The music industry has changed in the past 20 years and only appeals to the people who still care. When they stopped making vinyl, followed by cassettes, we all bought CDs. Now if we’re streaming music online, we don’t need to buy it. The big streaming technology companies, hold the power and now make the billions the big record labels did. Nobody cares about who you are until your plays hit the millions. If you’re being marketed on a tv talent show then you might get an advance. Sorry, I meant repayable loan.

TEG: Passionately Embracing Community Spirit

October 8, 2020 By Admin

This global pandemic is capable of destroying the sense of community within a company. As individuals, we need to feel that we are being cared for and belong to something bigger than ourselves. I met with Tommy Kelly a very successful local entrepreneur, someone who is deeply committed to the concept of community.

Kelly founded a specialist engineering services company called TEG almost 20 years ago. You might know TEG from its sponsorship of Cusack Park. Based in Forest Park, Mullingar, the company employs over 100 people, the vast majority of whom are local. TEG trades in over 30 countries worldwide and some of the biggest companies from the aviation, pharmaceutical, and biopharmaceutical industries are its clients. TEG is privately owned and managed by both Kelly and his business partner John Hunt.

From Mother’s Kitchen To The Open Roads

October 1, 2020 By Admin

For many people, the search for the finest food is an incurable obsession. A delicious home-cooked meal can melt a stone-cold heart on a winter’s day. Expanding the culinary horizons is something we can all aspire to but, only a few of us will ever reach a professional standard. You need passion, dedication and a tremendous amount of talent to serve up a delicious meal to hundreds of guests, time and time again.

Tucked away on the outskirts of Mullingar and named after the sacred centre of Ireland is Uisneach Catering, a multi-award-winning local catering company established since 2001. This business has a growing reputation to make any sized event unforgettable with fresh and delicious food. I recently spoke with Áine Gavigan, the unpretentious owner and executive chef of Uisneach Catering. We talked about the highs and lows of being in business for 20 years and about her new idea to take her kitchen to the open roads.

Shane Flynn: The Natural Born Winners

September 24, 2020 By Admin

Not everybody can be an entrepreneur, not everybody can make it. The skills that you need to run your own business can’t all be taught in school. Nor can they be acquired simply by reading books about billionaires. You don’t have to drop out of college, nor do you need lots of money to make money. In fact, the best entrepreneurs start off with next to nothing, because they have to. The defining characteristic amongst all successful entrepreneurs? the ability to create products that everybody wants.

Kilbeggan Races: The Heart Beats On

September 17, 2020 By Admin

If a company announced that it would generate 1.8 billion Euros annually for the rural economy and sustain 29,000 jobs across all 32 counties, it would be very hard to believe such a statement. You’d be right to think it was too good to be true. I mean that’s more money than the Irish economy benefits from events such as live music, exhibitions, comedy and theatre each year. It’s the same number of people that 450 MedTech firms collectively employ here in Ireland. But these mouth-watering figures are not an elaborate work of fiction. Nope, we are talking about horse racing, the Sport of Kings – where no royal blood is necessary. Horse racing is an integral part of Irish society and culture yet its contribution to rural Ireland often goes unnoticed.

Fortune Favours The Brave

September 8, 2020 By Admin

David Quirke of Wholesome Kitchen, Mullingar, heard the well-known expression: ‘Fortune favours the brave’, a few years ago. At the time, Quirke was preparing to invest 10 years of his life savings and borrow the remaining 30% from a bank to start his own business. He was told by established restaurateurs, setting up a new restaurant was madness; but Quirke wasn’t about to quit. His plan had been tweaked and fine-tuned over a decade, now was the time to act decisively and unleash the entrepreneurial spirit within himself.

Quirke had been rethinking the traditional restaurant business model for more than a decade. As a college student, he had worked in restaurants during this time. While there, he learned about the food industry and what sorts of things needed to be in place, so that customers would return. He understood that the environment was just as important as the food. So, Quirke began to explore the idea of one day owning and managing his own vibrant restaurant.

IMR: The Hidden Power of Mullingar

September 3, 2020 By Admin

In 1967, Mullingar was developing and advancing enough to attract the Netherlands-based tobacco business of Douwe Egberts Van Nelle. Eager to dabble with manufacturing, the town embraced the new factory development on the Dublin road with open arms. It was an economic romance that paid off for nearly 50 years. Hundreds of quality jobs in roll-your-own tobacco directly supported local families and businesses for generations. In 1998, Douwe Egberts Van Nelle was bought by Britain’s second-largest cigarette company, Imperial Tobacco Group PLC. But Mullingar’s successful marriage of convenience with the profitable tobacco industry never reached its golden anniversary. The health implications from smoking were becoming unacceptable and the European Union intervened with legislation. Imperial Tobacco exited the town in 2016 and 87 local jobs disappeared with them in a puff of smoke.

Latest Entries