Eoin Bara of Arderin Distillery.

Tullamore gin maker through to IBYE final

A Tullamore artisan gin maker has won a place at this year’s national final of ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur competition, for a chance to share a €100,000 investment fund.

Eoin Bara of Arderin Distillery, makers of Mór Gin, is representing the region in the Best Established Business category at the national final in Dublin and has already won €15,000 in investment from the Local Enterprise Office.
Offaly’s Arderin Distillery’s first product Mór Gin recently won Double Gold at the wine and spirits wholesalers of America. Mór Gin is being produced at Arderin micro-distillery on Church Road in Tullamore town. Arderin Distillery uses water direct from the Slieve Bloom mountains in its famous Mór Gin product.

Mr Bara saw off the challenge of young entrepreneurs from Laois, Offaly, Kildare and Westmeath who gathered in the Osprey Hotel, Naas on Friday last January 26 to compete for one of the country’s most coveted titles – Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur.

Each young entrepreneur has been supported by their Local Enterprise Office. The Regional Finalists have diverse businesses ranging from a brewery; a distillery; a multi-award winning beauty salon; a plastic recycling plant and more.
Joanne Sweeney-Burke, broadcast journalist, PR lecturer and CEO in various roles addressed the room of entrepreneurs as key note speaker. Embracing the digital age is something that Joanne has done with vigour and passion.  In discussing the opportunity that has been the digital transformation curve, Joanne insists that: “Digital and social gives you and your business a global marketplace into which any business can scale.”

The Head of Enterprise with the Local Enterprise Office Offaly, Orla Martin, said: “Our search to find and support Ireland’s best young entrepreneurs, which started last September, has turned up some incredible business talent. Our local entrepreneurs are the business leaders of the future and the entrants in the competition have all shown innovation and drive. After a very successful bootcamp, County Final and now Regional Final, the Region will be proudly represented by Eoin Bara in the ultimate stage of the competition – the IBYE National Final in March”.

The Offaly representatives at last Friday’s regional finals were: Eoin Bara, Arderin Distillery (Offaly’s Best Young Entrepreneur and Best Established Business Category Winner), David Kelly, Codeucate Ltd (Best Start Up Category Winner) and Deirdre Hynds (Best Business Idea Category Winner).

The regional winners, announced by Head of Enterprise, Jacqui McNabb and Mayor Martin Miley were: Best New Idea: Matthew McCann, Access Earth, Kildare, Best Start-Up Business: Ciaran Gorman, Bevcraft, Westmeath, Best Established Business: Eoin Bara, Arderin Distillery, Offaly.