Trading Up

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Securing £100m with a slide deck

What sort of start-up business secures £100m in funding with nothing more than a slide-deck presentation to show for itself? And what sort of person is willing to take that money and several hundred millions more to build a business that won’t make a profit for years? This week on Trading Up we meet Dominic Kearns, the founder and CEO of telecoms challenger Fibrus. He explains the big numbers and the business model behind infrastructure investments like his as he takes fibre broadband to the parts of Northern Ireland (and Cumbria) the others don’t yet reach. With Clare Guinness of Belfast Chamber joining the discussion we also examine the wider issues of infrastructure investment and how the private sector could play its part in other parts of the economy.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There's a Maghera company of joiners involved in some of the most prestigious commercial, leisure and residential developments in London.

If you’ve ever needed anything more complicated than a bit of shelving installed at the house and want some decent woodwork done, you’ll know that It’s always hard to find a good joiner. On Trading Up this week Jim discovers that’s possibly because most of them have been snapped up by John Bosco O’Hagan and his Maghera-based Specialist Group. He began the business in 1987 to try and offer bespoke joinery to commercial customers. Today his business includes three of his children and a wider family of 270 employees delivering high end joinery, glass and metal manufacturing and fit out contracts. Projects include some of the most prestigious commercial, leisure and residential developments in London. JB talks about his inspiration, his family and his frustration with an education system that seems to have forgotten the value of practical skills. Suzanne Wylie from the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce joins Jim and JB in the studio.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Brainwaves and brain-boxes in Belfast where a tech startup's mission is to zap brains across the world with electricity

Dr Jason McKeown is the founder of Belfast tech start-up Neurovalens. His medical devices, which he has been developing for the last six years, have recently won two approvals from the powerful Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US. 

These devices pulse electricity into the brain to treat conditions like anxiety or insomnia. The alternative treatments to date have involved expensive surgery, or drugs with side effects. His devices, also made in Northern Ireland, are non-invasive and are placed at the back of the head for short periods each day. 

With the recent approvals the company is gearing up to hit the US market. News, numbers and part-time dictators all feature. Nichola Mallon of logistics UK joins the discussion.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kneecap, the movie

Trevor Birney is much more than a tenacious investigative journalist. He is a documentarian who has found himself producing a feature film that’s become a viral sensation even before it lands in cinemas across Ireland, the UK and US this month. In some ways it couldn’t be more niche: Kneecap is an Irish language film telling the story of a west Belfast rap group. But early indications, from awards to critical plaudits, are that the movie will have universal appeal. So what’s the business of showbusiness really like? How does a Belfast company raise millions to tell a story and bring it to screens across the world? All will be revealed. There’s also new, number crunching and proposals to make the world a better place. Melanie Harrison joins Trevor and Jim in the studio.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Bangor company shifts four million hairbrushes a year on Amazon. The Denman brush was made famous by celebrity stylists such as Vidal Sassoon and could be spotted on sale in shops across the globe. 

Kevin McNamee is an accountant by trade. But he’s also one of the world’s biggest sellers of hairbrushes. 

Today, Denroy, the Bangor-based company that makes the brushes and Kevin leads, sells most of its brushes direct through Amazon. 

Four million a year! So what are the secrets of success for selling on Amazon? 

Kevin’s tips are well worth hearing. Plus we have our usual news, numbers and big policy ideas for a better world, and Angela McGowan joins the discussion. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John McEvoy's story is the remarkable tale of a real Irish unicorn.

A unicorn is the title conferred on a start-up company that achieves a billion dollar valuation. Newry-based John McEvoy was previously Global General Counsel at a Dublin-based pharmaceutical company - a job he landed before he was 30 - where played a key role in its rapid acquisition-led growth and Nasdaq listing before it was sold last year for nearly $1.5 billion. It’s the remarkable tale of a real Irish unicorn.

He’s now planning to repeat the success with another Dublin pharma company while also setting up and growing Northern Ireland’s largest private GP services company in his spare time.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jim Fitzpatrick is joined by Belfast boutique hotelier Melanie Harrison who uses powerful storytelling to win business, engage her guests and create a unique experience. According to Conde Nast Traveller "This is an entrepreneurialism untainted by the boardroom or design studio. It is local, individualistic, committed and often witty.” 

From 16 rooms opened in the midst of the pandemic, to ambitious expansion plans, Melanie explains how a unique approach can have universal lessons. 

Also in the studio this week is Angela McGowan, director of the CBI in Northern Ireland. There’s also news, number crunching and what to do with untrammelled power.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jim is joined by Mark Gribbin of Setanta Construction who built the top four floors of Claridges Hotel at his Mid Ulster factory before shipping it to Mayfair and installing within one day. 

His family-owned firm has a mission to revolutionise how we build homes and how we live: specialising in modular housing, made off-site and constructed in days; and passive housing with the highest levels of energy efficiency. 

Also in the studio this week is Nichola Mallon of Logistics UK. The former infrastructure minister is enjoying life beyond politics.

News, number crunching and what to do with untrammelled power all feature.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.