30
Aug
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Monthly Archives: August 2019
07
Aug
ThinkBusiness.ie: Limerick startup making difference to global issue
ThinkBusiness talks to Brian O’Callaghan, founder of EcoStraws and guest speaker for next month’s Friday breakfast club in Limerick. Here he discusses his company.
Research has shown that Ireland uses approximately one million plastic straws every day. Similarly, the US goes through 500 million every day.
EcoStraws aims to offer people an eco-friendly, high quality, fun alternative to the plastic drinking tube. The company supply many different types of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws. Here’s what Brian had to say:
Starting out
After 17 years running my own hospitality business, I was keen for a change and pursued a career in air traffic control. The entrepreneurial spirit never left me though and after attending the National Geographic Symphony for our World event at the Gaelic Grounds, three of us, running buddies coincidently, decided to try and do something about it, and EcoStraws was born.
It took two months from the initial concept to our first online sale. We have pivoted somewhat with regards to our initial two target markets of domestic and trade and have added retail outlets and corporate gifts as two more. Online sales make up about 50% of our total sales.
Networking
Vital. Not only are events important with regards to contact making and activating certain sales funnels, but there is also a certain degree of integrity and respect garnished by attending such events.
Finance
We are self-financed up to this point, although the time is fast approaching where we know we will have to apply for funding to grow, particularly internationally.
We keep our spending very tight, and only plan to spend when the money is in our account. We do not want to fall into the trap of just being a facilitator for the movement of money, we monitor it extremely carefully.
Importance of advice from peers
Advice from peers is always important, but ultimately, in business, the buck stops with you, the decision maker, and you need to trust your own judgement on what advice to take on board and on what advice to disregard. It is these decisions that deliver success or failure.
Role models
I admire any man or woman who goes out to do an honest day’s work. From a personal point of view, my parents have engrained that work ethic into me so I should be thankful to them. In business, at the high end I admire the likes of Richard Branson, Alan Sugar, Michael O’Leary, and more locally I look at the likes of the Fitzgerald family, Mark McConnell and Colm O’Brien, who possibly without knowing, have been extremely helpful through the years.
Biggest challenge
The biggest challenge is time, and not enough of it. The decision will have to be made very soon, whether we remain a cottage industry whilst holding onto our day jobs, or whether we bite the bullet and commit to it fulltime. There are obvious pros and cons to both. The biggest mistake to date was in our early days when we sided with the cheapest supplier quotes we received. Quality of the product was compromised and we ended up binning a lot of stock because we did not want to be associated with inferior quality.
Future
Our business plan has already been cast aside, so there is no concrete roadmap to success for us. We will continue to progress both here in Ireland and internationally. Success for us is not defined by money in the bank, we are not necessarily motivated by money. That said, we are obviously a commercial enterprise, but for us, and me personally, it is about making an impact on this planet, and leave something worthwhile behind when it’s all over.
Advice for others
Don’t be afraid, people on the whole are very helpful. As a nation we tend to help others until you reach a certain point. Then when you have got high enough, the help stops. As long as you understand that, you will be ok.
Friday Breakfast Clubs take place every first Friday of the month across Bank of Ireland’s Workbench network and are free to attend – to register for September’s Friday Breakfast Club on 6th September at Limerick Workbench click here.
03
Aug
Limerick Post: Enable Ireland Sucks Up The Eco-friendly Message
THE staff and service users at the Enable Ireland centre in Limerick are not just a friendly bunch, they’re an eco-friendly bunch!
When Manager Orna Maguire decided to reduce plastic waste at the centre, one of the areas she focused on was the use of drinking straws. With more than 40 service users at the Mungret centre and most of them with complex physical disabilities, they go through a lot of plastic straws!
While there has been some push-back from groups representing people with disabilities against the introduction of EU regulations banning single-use plastics, Orna was determined to press ahead.
Her search for a practical alternative to plastic straws brought her to a company that was based only a few miles away, Limerick based EcoStraws.ie.
“The team at EcoStraws.ie sent a variety of reusable straws to us so we could test them out and decide which ones were viable alternatives,” Orna explained.
“We trialled them rigorously for days, with thickened fluids, regular drinks, hot and cold drinks. We hand washed them and put them through the dishwasher. All in all they have been through the mill!
They eventually found a suitable alternative in the form of the soft silicone straw,” Orna explained.
The straws are produced with strong, food grade, soft silicone and can be cut to fit shorter drinking vessels. They are attractively designed for children and adults with flexible silicone, safe for delicate mouths.
One user who was impressed is Enda Gallagher. He explained how the silicone straws were the best option for him; “The angle of the straws makes it easier to drink without lifting the glass and it allows me to drink independently and with confidence wherever I go”.
Sarah Keyes of EcoStraws.ie said they were delighted to play their part in helping the care users at Enable Ireland go about their daily business with independence and dignity.
“It’s up to all of us to support these charities, and help the users reach their full potential and I’m glad that we could make a small contribution to this,” she added.
https://www.limerickpost.ie/2019/07/31/enable-ireland-sucks-up-the-eco-friendly-message/
01
Aug
How To Have An Eco-Friendly Festival.
For 2019, Ireland’s festival count has increased even more with loads of great new music events popping up around the country. Tickets have already sold out for Electric Picnic and Altogether Now but there are plenty of others to whet your appetite over the next few months such as Love Sensation, The Playing Fields, and Tipp Classical. There are 3 festivals kicking off this Friday, and which will continue all weekend :-
BEATYARD – This quirky festival returns for its traditional spot in Dublin’s Dun Laoghaire. Beatyard is a nautical adventure to uncover and celebrate all things music and art.
ALTOGETHER NOW – All Together Now is a 3-day camping festival, where everyone with a ticket has the opportunity to make the beautiful Curraghmore Estate their home on the August Bank Holiday Weekend. Festival revellers will stay in everything from tents, campervans and bespoke accommodation across the festival weekend.
INDIEPENDENCE – One of Ireland’s festival success stories over the last decade, INDIE has grown over the years from its initial three thousand capacity at Deer Farm into a fully-fledged summer spectacular with up to 15,000 people expected in 2019.
But how do you ensure you have an eco-friendly festival? Here are 5 tips :-
- Attend a festival with sustainability at its core: When organisers launched All Together Now in 2018, they wanted to take the opportunity to create a sustainable and environmentally friendly festival where they could set their own standards. With sustainability at the core of their ethos, they are passionate about creating and promoting the message as best they can. In order to increase awareness of their environmental initiatives, they plan to roll out educational videos, informative clear messaging on their social channels and to host a dedicated area at the festival where festival-goers can go and learn about sustainable, fair-trade products. In addition, festival attendees can learn about factors affecting climate change and what they can do to play their part and make sustainable choices in life, both socially and environmentally. They are committed to reduce waste drastically on site, use green suppliers where possible, and use environmentally friendly, compostable materials at their festival.
- Travel: Road transport is now the largest and growing source of CO2 emissions in Europe, accounting for one-fifth of all emissions. With the average car producing 2.5kg of CO2 per litre of fuel, lift sharing has the potential to reduce a festival’s carbon footprint considerably. We can have a real impact on our carbon footprint if we reduce the number of car journeys. Obviously hopping in a car with just one other mate gives you all that luxurious space, but consider your carbon footprint.Car emissions are one of the biggest environmental issues at music festivals. The Association of Independent Festivals states, “more than 66% of people travel to their festival of choice by car, with more people than ever travelling in a car of two or fewer people. So, how about using public transport such as trains and buses, car share, cycle, or walk to your festival.
- Leave no trace: According to theAssociation of Independent Festivals, other than car emissions, abandoned tents are one of the biggest issues festivals face when it comes to sustainability. Not only camping equipment, but staggering amounts of leftover food, plastic containers, drinking cans are left on the fields after a weekend’s festivities. While tents and camping equipment are not fully recyclable they are fully reusable. Camping equipment shouldn’t be considered disposable. If, by the end of the festival you have no intention of bringing your tent home with you, please deposit it at donation banks located in the festival campsites. Please do not abandon your tent for others to come pick it up after you. Over the course of the weekend please look after your camp, after all, it is your home for 3 days and 3 nights.
- Use a Reusable Cup: We dispose of over 22,000 takeaway cups and lids each hour in Ireland, that’s a phenomenal amount of waste of our planet’s resources for something we use in a few minutes. Designed to reduce the waste caused by disposable coffee cups, this reusable Collapsible Cup from EcoCups.ie is a revelation. We have designed the EcoCup to be collapsible so that it can easily fit into your pocket. We care about the planet and so do you, making the EcoCup ideal for expressive, environmentally conscious individuals. Also, save money – Most cafes offer BYO cup discounts. See here for more details. Or fill the EcoCup with homebrew and save even more! It is ultra-portable, reusable, leak-proof and collapsible. Designed by coffee lovers, it’s a convenient alternative to bulky travel mugs and limits the wastage from disposable coffee cups. We have made the simple to use EcoCups with recycled materials, it is BPA free and contains no phthalates or glues. The design is uniquely innovative as we have made the body of durable mouldable food grade silicone which can be collapsed down to a two-inch disc.
- Use a Collapsible EcoStraw: How can you ensure that you never take a plastic straw? By always having your own of course! EcoStraws.ie have a couple of fun options that can guarantee your commitment to sustainable living, in the form of collapsible straws. We think the Collapsible EcoStraw is the cleverest straw on the market. Each straw is made from food grade 304 Stainless Steel and collapses, like magic, to store in a handy keychain case. A simple but clever folding mechanism allows the Collapsible EcoStraw to go from full-length to collapsed almost automatically, making it ideal as an on-the-go straw. A compact and robust straw which comes in a choice of 5 fun colours and is guaranteed to attract attention. Be a leader in the fight against single-use plastics by always carrying a Collapsible EcoStraw.
We are EcoStraws; an Irish company with a passion for the planet. EcoStraws.ie supply a complete range of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws, as well as other associated products. Our stock of reusable eco-friendly straws include Stainless Steel, Glass, Bamboo and Silicone straws. Our biodegradable EcoStraws are available in Wheat, PLA, and Paper, and we even stock Edible Straws so you can have your straw and eat it too!
By choosing our products you are making a difference. By sharing our message you are helping to educate. EcoStraws/EcoCups help us to live in harmony with the natural world around us. Our ethos helps us to protect it from damage and destruction.
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