Meet the Best Small Business finalists – West Cork Business & Tourism Awards 2023

The West Cork Business & Tourism Awards take place this Friday, February 2nd, at The West Cork Hotel in Skibbereen. Brought to you by The Southern Star, in association with Carbery, the awards celebrate the best of West Cork business and tourism.

Meet the finalists in the Best Small Business category, sponsored by OfficeMaster, below.

Charles P Crowley & Co Chartered Accountants – A unique accountancy offering

Charles Crowley of Charles P Crowley & Co. (Photo: Andy Gibson)

PROVIDING personal tax services to individuals and companies who may be tax-resident outside of Ireland and living in West Cork is a niche service delivered by Charles P Crowley & Co Chartered Accountants in Bandon.

Typically, professional tax/ financial advice for an individual seeking such a service would not be available in rural Ireland.

However, the business, set up over 35 years ago, recognised the demand and felt it had the expertise to deliver in this area. To provide an efficient and comprehensive service in this area, the firm has invested significantly in and greatly expanded its software facilities, which are compatible with software abroad and greatly enhance the practice offerings.

Caroline Crowley, daughter of the company principal, Charles, who is a chartered accountant and chartered tax consultant is the head of this department, and given the success of the service, other employees are now also being trained in this area.

‘We developed our own website (www.cpccorkaccountants.com) for the purpose of promoting this offering and making the general public aware of our offerings in this area. The North and West Local Enterprise Office supported our firm and offered financial assistance as they felt this was a most innovative service,’ said Charles.

‘The success of this offering has resulted in providing stable employment for our staff and consolidated the existence of the firm into the indefinite future,’ he added.

As an insolvency practitioner, he also successfully developed a Personal Insolvency Practice. ‘We are the only firm in West Cork providing this service,’ he added.

Meanwhile, around 15 years ago, the firm acquired and developed an old mill in Bandon to accommodate its future business activities and development.

The historic building was reconstructed into a state of the art premises, while maintaining its original features to accommodate its current staff of 12, three of which are members of the founder’s family. It has since won many prizes.

RH Vintage Interiors – Making vintage and antique furniture more accessible

Rita and Ian Holding, RH Vintage Interiors. (Photo: Andy Gibson)

RITA and Ian Holding have a passion and talent for design, colour and sustainability and are sharing it at their business, RH Vintage Interiors, based at the Old Creamery in Connonagh.

The couple source, restore and deliver high quality, one-of-a-kind pieces of antique and vintage furniture. They also offer a restoration and chalk painting commissioning service from a separate workshop on the premises.

‘Our aim is to fulfil our clients’ needs, by matching their personality and lifestyle with beautifully sourced products that revitalise a space, resulting in an inexpensive, impactful, and inviting home environment,’ said Rita.

‘We are also driven to make antique and vintage interiors more appealing and affordable to all ages by providing clean and stylish pieces and to remove the dark and dusty image it may have had in the past,’ she added.

The couple have thoroughly researched this market and have found that as well as beautiful aesthetics, choosing antique and vintage furniture has great environmental benefits.

‘Since opening at The Old Creamery in February 2022, we know the trend for this type of furniture and other decorative pieces is continuing to grow. Feedback from our customers and suppliers, is that that there is a rediscovery of traditional craftsmanship and as a result, it makes perfect sense to buy antique and vintage furniture for your home or office space.

It is also possible to mix ‘old’ and ‘new’ as long it is tastefully done,’ she explained.

By adding a coffee trailer this summer, the location developed into a destination for people traveling to West Cork where they can take a break, drink great coffee, and peruse the shop’s eclectic treasures.

‘We are educated, creative by nature, intuitive, with exceptional interpersonal skills and we believe these are extremely important attributes to possess in this business. RH Vintage Interiors will continue to evolve in the coming years,’ Rita pledged.

The Skibbereen Food Company – Skibb-based chef making waves on snack market

Matthew Brownie of Skibbereen Food Company. (Photo: Andy Gibson)

A RECIPE of skill, attention to detail and resilience has proved the perfect mix for Matthew Brownie of The Skibbereen Food Company (TSFC), an outsourcing snack company that provides unique, premium and healthier pork and corn snacks to the Irish and UK markets.

In business for almost 10 years, TSFC has three products ranges with nine product lines which are available in four of the major retailers in Ireland, with a fifth onboard in 2024.

A professional chef who is originally from New Zealand, Matthew first developed the idea of the unique snack after studying Culinary Arts at Cork Institute of Technology in 2011.

While using new product development methods, and incorporating British, Irish and a bit of Kiwi gastronomy, he created the snacks which are MSG, fluten and dairy free and also high in protein.

Over the past nine and a half years, he has grown TSFC significantly and it’s now exporting into the UK, Belgium and Germany, which has created new pathways into Europe and the UK and will continue to grow, he said.

‘By using creditable distribution companies along with online portals such as Amazon UK, TSFC innovates new and improved snacks which adds to the already successful snack ranges it has, which creates growth, more revenue and brand awareness. TSFC has the ability to scale to triple turnover with new and exciting snacks in the pipeline,’ he pledged.

Matthew is also a regular on Irish television with appearances on Virgin Media on Ireland AM, and runs his company from a laptop and a phone from his Skibbereen home, where he manages everything from logistics to new product development to networking.

Category sponsor – OfficeMaster

Helping to create an appealing and productive workspace

The team at OfficeMaster.

THE world in which we work has changed and businesses have had to adapt in line with the new norm.

OfficeMaster, which celebrated 50 years in business in 2023, is not only growing and looking to the future, but is also helping clients all over the country to do the same.

The OfficeMaster ethos is, as its tagline states, all about ‘Work Happy’. Whether this is working from home, at the office or a combination of both – employees now expect a lot from their working environment.

To encourage staff back to the office, employers are having to review their available workspaces.

Certainly, one factor that remote working has highlighted is the importance of ergonomics. Ergonomics is just one area in which OfficeMaster excels. In fact every member of the sales team has been trained as ergonomic assessors.

Ergonomics focuses on creating environments that are safe, comfortable, efficient and suited to the needs and capabilities of individuals using them. It takes into consideration factors such as posture, movement, physical exertion, and cognitive abilities to manage the risk of injury, strain, and discomfort.

By applying ergonomic principles, workplaces can enhance productivity, reduce fatigue and musculoskeletal disorders, and promote overall health and wellbeing for employees.

A well-designed office can also contribute to creating the right impression for clients, prospects and potential employees.

With the steady popularity of hybrid and remote work, office aesthetics and facilities are more important than ever. An office refurbishment is a great opportunity to revitalise and refresh your surroundings without having to move to a new office.

A refurb has a whole host of other benefits including improved space utilisation, whether you need a large office desk for collaborative projects or a standing desk for flexible working options, an office redesign allows you to create a space that works best for your unique office needs. A quality office project can also lead to a more harmonious and productive work environment.

Employers who take the physical comfort of their staff into consideration by providing modern and agile workspaces with ergonomic office furniture are more likely to have and retain happy and productive employees.

If you would like to get some office fit-out inspiration, be sure to visit our showroom at Northpoint Business Park or check out our case studies with client testimonials online.

We’ve worked with some of Cork’s biggest names, including Laya, Maxi Zoo, Enable Ireland, ICBF, Keelvar, Cork Chamber and more. We’d love to work with you next!

Let’s discuss your next project; we offer a full range of services including space planning and design, product and finishes selection, project management and post-project support.

Get in touch with our experienced team, Patrick Murray (086) 1364 284, email [email protected] or Dave McCarthy (086) 145 2774, email [email protected] Visit us online at www.officemaster.ie