Join Network Ireland Wicklow on Wednesday, 22nd of September for an online “fireside” chat with 3 of Wicklow’s inspirational entrepreneurs.
This must-see 1-hour event will cover their journey, aspirations, key drivers, funding, and the challenges of building a fledgling business.
Speakers include:
Deborah Brock – Founder & CEO Nua Fertility
Deborah’s personal passion is for fertility health, supporting people and communities. Nua Fertility is a pioneering, Irish, fertility health company. They have developed innovative, scientifically sound, fertility-supporting supplements with a microbiome focus. Nua Fertility was inspired by her own experience of infertility. Searching for solutions, grounded in science, led her to the importance of nutrition for fertility and the amazing world of the microbiome, and how they are a key determinant of our fertility health.
Alison Banton – Brooke & Shoals
Alison Banton is the CEO and creative driving force behind Greystones based, luxury fragrance brand, Brooke & Shoals Fragrances, which creates and manufactures a range of scented candles, reed diffusers and body products. She founded the company in 2010, starting at her kitchen table with just 3 candle products. But Alison had bigger plans for her company, which was not an easy task back then in one of the worst recessions in decades. She grew the business gradually and organically with the belief that her product quality was strong, and if she could make it work in a challenging economic environment, she would be well positioned once the economy recovered.
Now in 2021, Brooke & Shoals Fragrances Ltd has over 50 different products in its collection, and everything is made in Ireland. The business employs 14 people, and the range of home-fragrance products are sold in over 400 retail outlets in Ireland. This includes high profile retailers such as Meadows & Byrne, Carraig Donn, and Dublin Airport, as well as a long list of independent shops and pharmacies all over the country and in Northern Ireland. Over the last 11 years, the brand has won a total of 11 awards, in both Ireland and the UK, for the quality of their products and for the innovation in their fragrance blends.
Alison Stroh – Dr Coys
Having identified a lack of truly healthy chocolate snacks in the market Alison founded Dr. Coy’s Health Foods with her brother Aaron in 2014 in order to bring their
award winning, patented, ‘Nutritional’ Chocolate Bar to market. Alison has since succeeded in securing nationwide listings in 220 SuperValu stores and 460 Centra stores, a nationwide listing in Tesco and also secured listings in AVOCA, Brown Thomas, Applegreen and on all Ryanair flights worldwide. Outside of Ireland her chocolate range can be found in Ocado, Amazon and Selfridges in the UK, in Bahrain and soon Sweden. She was nominated as a Nissan Generation Next Brand Ambassador, was runner Up in IMAGE Business Woman of the Year Awards and completed Coca Cola’s and Enterprise Ireland’s Thrive Programme as well as KMPG’s Going for Growth.
Dr. Coy’s have been a national finalist in the Bank of Ireland Startup Awards, the Irish Times Innovation Awards and their products have won the Irish Quality Food Awards, Great Taste Awards, Irish Free From Awards as well as the UK Veggie Awards.
Speaking about the event, President of Network Ireland Wicklow, Jean Evans, said, “I feel privileged to get these inspirational female entrepreneurs together to share their experiences of expanding their exceptional businesses. This event is open to our members and any female entrepreneurs in Wicklow who have aspirations to grow their business and expand into new markets.”
Tickets are available now via Eventbrite under Network Ireland Wicklow
Become a Member of Network Ireland:
If you would like to join, you can contact NI Wicklow Membership Officer Dawn Leane at wicklow@networkireland.ie for more information.
Benefits of membership include:
• Access to the monthly newsletter
• Profile on social media
• Access to a highly supportive WhatsApp group
• Monthly coffee mornings
• Pitch in Person opportunity
• Monthly speaker events
• National mentoring programme
• Self-development with lunch and learn sessions
• Community and tribe to support you and your business succeed • Access to national Network Ireland events
