5.
Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality – Sponsored by Fáilte Ireland Pictured: Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality award sponsored by Fáilte Ireland is presented to Barry and Kyra Fingleton from Glamping Under the Stars by Justine Carey. Picture: Alf Harvey. Glamping Under the Stars have created a glamping destination unlike any other in the country. They have recently opened a second glamping site – their Mountain glampsite ‘hobbit village’ - and this has doubled their capacity, offering a high end luxury glamping experience to families and groups. They were named as one of the ‘Top Ten Best Camping & Glamping Destinations in Ireland’ 2022 in the Irish Independent Reader Travel Awards. Glamping Under the Stars also work hard to prioritise environmentally responsible business practises, allocating large areas of land on each glampsite as wildflower meadows in order to create natural habitat and promote biodiversity. They also avoid single use plastic, and recycle 90% of all waste generated at their site. As a low impact business, all of their new accommodations and facilities are constructed from super-energy efficient building materials.
6.
Excellence in Retail – Sponsored by Gerry Browne Jewellers Pictured: Excellence in Retail award sponsored by Gerry Browne Jewellers is presented to Darren Strong from DS Sports by Gerry Browne. Picture: Alf Harvey. Since the founding of DS Sports in 2014, they have evolved from a GAA Gloves and socks company to a business which supplies sportswear to teams, clubs and the general public not only in Laois and Ireland, but also across the world. They now employee 12 staff. Although during Covid their business took a huge hit with the majority of their target market being withheld from playing sports, they used this time wisely to improve their retail systems. They pushed the boundaries of their E-Commerce platform, which was a huge success. In the meantime, they also built their very first physical shop in Emo which is open to the public. DS Sports work incredibly hard with existing and new suppliers to create new product ranges, using different materials which are more sustainable. Another move they are making to reduce their carbon footprint is the process of creating their own jersey manufacturing plant in Emo, which will help reduce their carbon footprint and also reduce lead times from 4 weeks down to as little as 3 days.
7.
Excellence in Innovation – Sponsored by Mulhall’s SuperValu, Portlaoise Pictured: Excellence in Innovation award sponsored by Mulhall’s SuperValu is presented to Tony Woods from Midland Steel Reinforcement Supplies by Ger Mulhall. Picture: Alf Harvey. Midland Steel have invented, developed, and patented the fastest steel fixing process in the world with its product, FASTER Fix. The benefits of this include 75% less labour onsite, 25% preliminary savings on cost, and 12% less carbon emissions in their delivery and placement process, contributing significantly to a better future in construction They have delivered to Ireland’s largest private investment project, Intel, with 26,000 tonnes of steel over an 18 month period from their Mountmellick depot. They have reduced their programme of works by 3 months using FASTER Fix, as well as offsite rebar which was detailed and modelled using BIM. Midland Steel also supplied Fast Track hospital buildings during the Covid-19 pandemic - Thurles Hospital, UHL & Croom hospital. These projects had extremely tight deadlines and were only possible to meet using the FASTER Fix product.
8.
Best Online Presence and Social Media Award – Sponsored by McKeon Stone Pictured: Best Online Presence and Social Media Award sponsored by McKeon Stone is presented to Kelly Lou Ging from Kelly Lou Cakes by Yvonne McKeon. Picture: Alf Harvey. Kelly Lou Cakes continually strive to keep their social media channels active and interactive with their followers. Social media often only shows the edited picture perfect side, and while they love to show off their beautiful cakes and finished designs, the stunning wedding venues they visit and cool festivals, it’s not all glamorous and they aren’t not afraid to show the “real” side of bakery life and running your own business… the crazy early mornings, long nights, endless hours in a delivery van, and taking down marquees in the lashing rain after a festival. Social media plays a huge role in their business. It is their main source of contact with their customers and followers, as well as their main marketing platform.