Inspirational Success Stories
Accountant Online
A move to rural Donegal was the catalyst for Larissa Feeney’s journey into entrepreneurship. The Sligo native set up Accountant Online, after training as a chartered accountant with a practice in Derry. Living in rural Donegal, Larissa realised that she would have to...
Caitlin NicGabhann
Caitlin NicGabhann is a qualified secondary school teacher, but she never wanted to teach in the traditional classroom sense; her passion for music is one of the reasons she works so hard teaching music through her own website IrishConcertinaLessons.com. Even the...
Diorite
The manufacturing industry is a key employer in Donegal and one company punching above its weight for the past two decades is Diorite Solid Surface Technology. Established in November 1996, the business benefits from a strong and experienced core team who have been...
Donegal Farmhouse Cheese
James and Noreen Cunningham of Donegal Farmhouse Cheese got help to develop their business with a Priming Grant from Local Enterprise Office Donegal While the Covid-19 pandemic brought unprecedented trading challenges, it has been used by many businesses as an...
Filligans
Filligans of Donegal is an artisan food producer located in Glenties, west Donegal. This family-run business has been making award-winning jams, marmalades, chutneys, mustards, relishes, oils, and dressings for over twenty years and is one the county’s most successful...
FireCloud365
Letterkenny-based FireCloud365 was started by Ryan Bradley and Kevin Boylan, who developed a cloud-based system for managing fire compliance. FireCloud365 is a unique mobile app which standardises, automates and schedules fire checks. Using the app, staff are able to...
Huku Balance
Donegal is a great place to set up a business, and as people search for a better way to live, the Covid-19 pandemic has put the county top of the list of locations for remote working. One Donegal business which had already found the perfect balance is Cathal...
Irish Gap Year
Donegal business, Irish Gap Year, has won the 2020 Annual Award for Innovation in Gap Year Programming. The Bundoran based company was founded by Killian O’Kelly and Ryan Allen, two outdoor enthusiasts and educators who, between them, have many years of outdoor...
Joe Bonnar Metal Craft
Established in the early 1990’s Joe Bonnar Metal Craft has been producing specialized, hand-crafted metal products for customers all over the world. The company works closely with a number of architects, interior designers and specifiers, including McNally Design in...
Kinnegar Brewing
Kinnegar Brewing is one of Ireland’s leading small independent brewers. Established at commercial scale in 2013 by Rathmullan native Libby Carton and her husband Rick LeVert, Kinnegar Brewing produces a comprehensive core range of beers, including the flagships...
KOKO Designs
Karen O’Kane knows how to take inspiration from her surroundings, and it has become the cornerstone of her Kokodesigns silk painting creations. Originally from Stoke on Trent – the potteries area of England – Karen spent a lot of time as a child with her grandmother:...
Life of O’Reilly
From selling bobble hats out of a car-boot, to shipping international orders, the O’Reilly brothers are keeping their eye on the ball, as their thriving Donegal based start-up soars to new heights. With the help of a Trading Online voucher from Donegal Local...
MacBride Brothers Joinery
MacBride Bros Joinery Ltd was established in 1993 by brothers Jay and Danny MacBride – a pair of master-craftsmen who pride themselves on creating quality pieces “from the raw plank to the finished product.”Over the past twenty years, MacBride Bros Joinery has become...
McGonigle Glass Studio
Sisters Elaine, Lyndsey and Zara Mc Gonigle make delicate and vibrant glass jewellery, art and homewares in their studio in the Donegal Craft Village on the Wild Atlantic Way. The three sisters that run Mc Gonigle Glass Studio are always asked how they came to work...
MMG Welding
MMG Welding is an Irish marine engineering and manufacturing company based in Killybegs. Established in 2005 by Martin McGuinness, MMG Welding are experts in coded welding and marine fabrication providing a support service to the marine, off shore construction and off...
Moville Clothing
Moville Clothing Company has been in operation for over 100 years. Harry Doherty had a workshop on the Malin Road, Moville, Co. Donegal in the early 1900's; he didn’t use patterns and did all the work by hand. Harry worked with the measurements of each individual...
Natnoot
Derek and Anna Walker of Natnoot are growing their juice business with the help of an expansion grant from Donegal Local Enterprise Office.Established in 2014, Natnoot specialises in cold pressed juice drinks using locally sourced produce and superfoods. The company,...
O’Donnell’s Bakery
Since 1969 O'Donnell's Bakery has been baking only the finest quality bread. However, in 2010 the business was facing liquidation when local Bread Agent Andrew McElhinney stepped up and bought the bakery saving local jobs.Since then, O’Donnell’s Bakery has gone from...
Secora Consulting
Secora Consulting was set up to assist businesses with their cyber security requirements. Founded by Phil Graham and Phillip Close, the business works with clients throughout Ireland and the UK from its head office in Stranorlar.As remote working becomes the new...
Silver Birch
As a child Sharon McDaid’s favourite gift was pencils; while other children were out playing, she would happily sit on her own and draw what she saw around her. When she was six, her mother took her to see a local art exhibition and a spark was ignited, Sharon said:...
Silver Strand Rope Works
Set up in 1990, Silver Strand Rope Works is an established rope, string and strapping manufacturing business based in Moville, County Donegal. The business was founded by Patrick McLaughlin, whose father Pat spent over 20 years as a fisherman before starting...
The Pear in Paper
She might have taken a longer path than many to set up her business The Pear in Paper, but every step of the journey brought valuable learning for Lynn Costello Erskine. “I was always making things” says Lynn, “but my educational path took me in a different direction;...
Tadáias
Tadáias is a premium cycling apparel brand inspired by the sportswear of an era gone by with a contemporary approach. Creator of Tadáias, Thomas McLaughlin has a wealth of experience as a high-end fashion designer. The combination of his deep passion for cycling and...
The Rusted Pixel
Paul McMahon was always artistic, but it was only when his mother was reading to him as a child that he realised he could turn his passion into a career: “As a child, all I ever wanted was colouring books” says Paul. “I remember so well, when I was about eight or...
Welditz
Welditz Engineering is a small owner-driven engineering firm based in Carndonagh, Co. Donegal. Established in 2002, Welditz is run by James Cuddihy, a fifth-generation blacksmith. Since its foundation, the business has grown steadily and James and his team have built...
xyMaths
A new online service that helps students better prepare for their Leaving Certificate Maths exams is reinventing maths grinds. Founded by Dr. Conor Purcell, xyMaths is Ireland’s first and only dedicated Leaving Certificate Maths live-video coach. Conor secured a...
Zona Dance
As a ballet teacher, Jessica Peoples knows all about a pirouette, but she never could have predicted the turns in her life journey that brought her from her hometown of Phoenix, Arizona to founding a dance studio in Donegal. Zona Dance Studio is a classical based...