Latest news with #Clodagh
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Homeless entrepreneur Sean builds babywear business inspired by daughter's eczema condition
It's not your average route to market: from living out of a car to starting your own business while in emergency accommodation. But that's the journey undertaken by one young homeless entrepreneur, inspired by his one-year-old daughter's health issues. Sean Fox has come through addiction, health scares, and homelessness in the past few years, so launching a start-up on a second-hand laptop is just another chapter. He has plans to move his online business into markets in Dublin and Cork. Goosey Goo, created with his partner Clodagh Kelly, sells organic hypoallergenic clothing for infants, clocking up almost €2,000 in sales since its inception last month, no mean feat for a business created on a battered second-hand laptop. The company is already in talks about linking up with a prominent Irish investor. All that would have seemed in a different world not so long ago for 26-year-old Sean, who hails from Finglas in Dublin, who stumbled his way through the education system. 'I failed my junior cert and then I got about 250 points in my Leaving Cert. I studied computers in Blanchardstown IT, but never completed it," said Sean. 'I went on undiagnosed with ADHD and found it hard to stick to things that didn't pique my interest. I fell into drug addiction on and off from the time I left school. Cocaine abuse and alcohol abuse were filling a void. I felt like I was lost and without purpose. Sean Fox with his partner Clodagh and their daughter Eabha. Photograph Moya Nolan "I had a bad relationship with my father growing up. He was a drug addict himself and that was my whole life in my teenage years. He'd pick me up on a Friday to bring me over to his place but it was always be a thing where he'd end up on the session and but I'd be left crying at the window every weekend. 'I think all of that had a part to play in where I found myself. You know, I went out looking for love through the street. I didn't always find it at home, so I looked elsewhere. I end up finding other things, and falling into addiction.' The negative spiral saw Sean 'going in and out of jobs' for seven or eight years. 'I went back to college a second time during covid; I studied automotive management and technology in Bolton St. I did that for two years before I dropped out. With cocaine, I'd have about six months and let me life get turn to ruin, then get back on my feet and get a job then would end up falling off again.' Two events got Sean on the road to recovery: meeting partner Clodagh, and the death of his father. 'When my father passed away about three years ago, I got myself back on the straight and narrow. I started going to NA meetings and started to get my head together.' Meeting Clodagh brought another positive into his life. By the time they found out Clodagh was pregnant with baby Eabha, Sean was already started on his journey of recovery, settled and was working as a service advisor for a national car firm. 'I had worked hard, and then I got an offer to work as a service advisor across the city with better money and. It was a dream.' Eabha was born in July 2023, and life was looking up, when fate too another twist. A trip to the dentist saw a sore on his lip misdiagnosed as a squamous cell carcinoma. It turned out to be benign but when Sean told his employer he believed he had oral cancer, he was still on probation in his job. He was let go days later. The young couple, with baby in tow, now had no income and had to leave their accommodation. 'I come from a big family, so there was no space for us in my mother's house in Finglas. We ended up sleeping out of the car, and my Ma would take the baby at night, and we'd call to her during the day. 'I was sacked at start of January 2024, and in mid February we got emergency accommodation, in a converted hotel. We were then moved to an old Magdalene laundry, where my grandmother had been 56 years before.' Eabha had developed eczema, which was another worry. 'It was severe. It was literally head to toe and we'd be wake in the morning, and she'd be scratching her neck. 'When your child has a skin condition you are cutting back all your other spending about 20% for medications and for different skincare products. And like us, when Eabha was raw head to toe, you need specific clothing. Bamboo clothing is realy soft to the touch and children don't sweat as much. But it was expensive, it could cost €30 a piece,' said Sean. 'The friendships we had in homeless accommodation helps get you through, and one evenig we were sitting down with a few of those friends having dinner, when Clodagh saw bamboo clothing could be purchased online. 'The cogs started turning in my head,' said Sean. 'Why don't we sell our own clothing? I just started working from my old laptop. Sean Fox's Goosey Goo baby clothing orders ready for postage. 'I have no background in business. I started getting in contact with suppliers,. It was literally me and Clodagh paying our social welfare to pay for the samples. I put everything into it, this became like a drug to me." The business needed a name. 'Sometimes we'd call baby Eabha our little 'Goose' so we said what about Goosey Goo?' Sean created a goose design emblem and started putting together a business plan. He enrolled in the Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers national entrepreneur development programme, which supports start-ups in Ireland. One of his mentors there was Dr Colin Keogh, a leader in the Irish start-up space, and a specialist in commericalisation, who helps companies and entrepreneurs to bring research and ideas to reality. 'I deliver a lot of content on those courses around the country teaching and training entrpreneurs on building companies. Sean told me his story fully, and that sort of honesty is quite rare in the start up space. It was so impressive,' said Mr Keogh. Building the brand has taken on a life of its own in the year since. Sean sourced a supplier in China who could supply Ecotech standard 100 FSC-certified organic bamboo, hypoallergenic and antibacterial. Bamboo keeps the skin about two degrees cooler than cotton. The babywear prints are designed in Ireland, manufactured in China. The Goosey Goo website is up and running, with babygrows selling for €15. 'We are solving affordability of organic materials for children who suffer from severe skin conditions,' said Sean. Last February, Clodagh was attacked by a service user at the homeless accommodation the family were using, so the family were moved to a new emergency accommodation flat across Dublin city. That's now serving as HQ for Goosey Goo, which was incorporated as a business in April, with the first products ready for market. 'It's my office, my fulfillment centre, team meet-up spot, everything,' said Sean. Clodagh acts as the eyes and ears of the business, the creative director and company secretary. Nicola, who the couple described as their 'homeless mum' in their previous accommodation, previously worked in corporate travel before she found herself and her family homeless. She is now acting as operations director for Goosey Goo. The company even has a young marketing professional on board. 'Alan has just finished his degree in marketing and communication so is jumping on board to gain experience with social media and website marketing,' said Sean. Dr Colin Keogh and Goosey Goo founder Sean Fox speaking to students at the ID8 hub in Dublin. The website is live and the company has sold almost €2,000 of babywear since April. Sean is now looking at the next step in the company's development. 'I'm looking at getting into the Herbert Park market and the St Anne's Park market in Dublin, and I'd like to go down into Cork's Marina Market, which has a huge footfall,' said Sean. 'I'm hoping to do 500 units a month. That might drop off in summer, but should pick up again towards the winter.' This week, Sean was a guest speaker for third level students at the ID8 innovation hub in Dublin who are looking at becoming innovators themselves. He has also held discussions with an angel investor interested in taking a stake in the company. 'That would be a gamechanger but we don't have a valuation yet. I've worked so hard to set up this up, I don't want to give it away,' said Sean. Colin Keogh works with entrepreneurs and business leaders of the future every day, at Trinity, UCD, and other institutions around the country. He doesn't hold back in his praise for Sean. 'I've been in the start-up space for 10 or 15 years, I've started seven or eight companies and I have been involved in 40 or 50 others. I've seen some companies fail, lots of companies grow. Sean's dedication is unmatched, despite the fact he had less resources and much more precarious life situation. 'Goosey Goo has found a massive need. I have an 18-month old so I am aware of the cost, particularly for people that can't afford expensive clothing. "This isn't going to be Sean's only company because he has that bug now that he knows what is possible. 'There's lots of entrepreneurs, a handful may have once been homeless, but to be actively homeless setting up a business, Sean is a one in a million.'
The Journal
18-05-2025
- The Journal
Gardaí must learn from shortfalls in Hawe case investigation, head of policing body says
THE HEAD OF the State's policing oversight body has said that gardaí must learn from questions raised about the investigation into the murder suicide of a Cavan family. Dr Elaine Byrne made the comments as part of an interview with The Journal this week about her role with the Policing and Community Safety Authority (PCSA) which she chairs. The body has replaced the Policing Authority and Garda Inspectorate. In August 2016 Alan Hawe, a vice-principal, killed himself after murdering his 39-year-old wife Clodagh and their sons, Liam, 13, Niall, 11, and Ryan, six, at their home near Ballyjamesduff, Co Cavan. Now Clodagh's sister Jacqueline Connolly has said a review of the Clodagh Hawe case should be published to provide a greater awareness of the behaviours of 'family annihilators'. She has written a memoir called Deadly Silence to raise awareness of what happened. She claimed that the deaths were not initially investigated thoroughly by gardaí and she wants this approach changed. She has said that there was not adequate collection of CCTV and digital evidence as well as follow up interviews with 20 key witnesses. Byrne said that the PCSA has been focused intensely on a review of homicide investigations – which has been ongoing for a period of time. 'The Commissioner did initiate a homicide review where it showed that there were lapses in the investigation of a number of homicides. Advertisement 'But that is a constant focus for us, and it's on our agenda, and we will be asking the Commissioner [Drew Harris] more questions,' she said. Dr Elaine Byrne of the Policing and Community Safety Authority. Niall O'Connor / The Journal Niall O'Connor / The Journal / The Journal Byrne paid tribute to Connolly for documenting what happened to the Hawe family. 'I think that Clodagh's sister Jaqueline, she's done a public service in allowing the public inside that very tragic event, moment by moment, and I think society will learn something from it, and the guards must learn something from it as well. 'I have read everything, all those extracts of her book, and it is something that we will be bringing those issues that she's outlined are issues broadly match our concerns in general, around the homicide review that the Commissioner initiated, and one that we will have a constant focus on,' she added. Jacqueline Connolly, whose has written about the murder of her sister and her family by her husband Alan Hawe. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Last week, in an interview on RTE radio, Connolly said that a second investigation carried out by the serious crime review team, authorised by Garda Commissioner Drew Harris in 2019, highlighted what was missed in the first investigation. This included CCTV that had not been examined, digital evidence that was overlooked, and 20 key witnesses who needed to be re-interviewed using different techniques. Connolly said she has been told gardaí in training will be advised to gather evidence in murder-suicides as though it is a case that will be prosecuted, but she said she wants that rolled out to all rural garda stations because officers were not prepared to 'find Clodagh and the boys like that'. She called on Harris to release the findings of the serious crime review, for which Connolly has seen a summary, because she said it was important that the recommendations are seen by domestic violence institutions. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Sunday World
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Ireland's rising country star aiming high after becoming radio hit
Singer and Today FM country music presenter Clodagh Lawlor says she's ready for anything and now has her sights set on a television music show. Rising star Clodagh Lawlor reveals how landing her own country music show on Today FM has given her career a massive boost — and introduced her to one of her idols. Singer and now radio presenter Clodagh, who is a native of Newmarket-on-Fergus, Co Clare, first shot to fame when she won The Late Late Show search for a country star in 2019 and landed the opportunity to tour with Nathan Carter. But she tells Magazine+ that her new Wednesday night country music show on Today FM has taken her to another level. Clodagh says: 'I just love that people know my name now and tell me 'oh, we listen to you on the radio.' 'I'm manifesting that I'll have a music show on RTE television next. That's what I'd love, something like The Kelly Clarkson Show… The Clodagh Lawlor Show. 'I have my boots on now and I said it at the start of the year that this year is going to be my year. When I was in Nashville with my mother we met a guy who was working in the Boot Barn store… we were chatting away and he said he was also a songwriter, adding: 'I just wrote a song for Tim McGraw and he's going to hopefully cut [record] it.' He said to my mam, 'When preparation meets opportunity nothing can stop ya.' Clodagh with Lainey Wilson 'You are prepared so much in your lifetime for these things to happen. Now I'm like, throw anything at me and I'll be ready because I'm finally comfortable in my own skin.' A fan of America's contemporary country music stars, Clodagh is now getting the opportunity to meet and interview them thanks to her Today FM show. 'I'm now getting to meet my idols on a huge scale,' she tells me. 'I was so excited meeting Lainey Wilson when she headlined the C2C festival in Belfast recently. They always say never meet your idols, but she was so incredible. Clodagh takes the mic at Today FM on Wednesday nights News in 90 Seconds - May 17th 'She was also so encouraging to me. Lainey herself didn't have overnight success and that's what I love as well. She said, 'Girl, I should have given up a hell of a long time ago. I'm 15 years in Nashville and I should have left after year two and I didn't.' She just kept the head down. 'She was asking me how long I was doing the radio job and I told her 'two months!' She said, 'You're a natural.' 'I was 30 at the weekend and she said, 'when I was 30 things just started to happen. I was doing a lot before that but nobody really saw me.' 'In the Irish country music scene I was trying to figure out what I really want to look like and sound like and what kind of artist I want to be. 'But I'm getting the idea of who I want to be now and that's exciting for me, that I finally know what I want to do and I know I can do it and I can sit there with the likes of Lainey Wilson and not be so starstruck that it's written all over my face. Put me in any situation now and I can do it. Country singer and Today FM country music presenter Clodagh Lawlor 'I absolutely love the radio, it's such a different side of things. I always said when I was growing up that I want to be in the entertainment business, regardless of what I do. Once it revolves around country music that's what I'd be happy with. I live, breathe and eat it. I just love it so much. 'Country music is getting so big as you know. Now nightclubs are tapping into it and playing country nights. It's so commercial nowadays that all kinds of people are now embracing it. 'I recently got my first DJ job where I'm playing country music for four hours in a nightclub. Never in my life did I think I was going to be behind the decks. I have a month to get my DJ skills in order before I do it. It's the radio that opened that door for me as well.' Despite being in a good place career-wise, Clodagh admits that she still panics about the future. 'I'm an awful panicker,' she admits. 'When I turned 30 at the weekend I was crying the whole time because it just hit me with emotion that life has to begin now. I feel so bad about it because at the same time I feel that there's nothing that can stop me really.' Clodagh has weathered many storms in her career. Her star was shining in 2019 after winning the Late Late Show search for a new country star, but then Covid shut down the live entertainment business. 'That was a shock because I was worried about people forgetting me,' she admits. 'I was only getting started, introducing myself to people and getting my name established and I was afraid that people wouldn't remember who I was when the pandemic was over. I'd only had my 15 minutes of fame on the Late Late Show the previous year. 'But, looking back today, I'm thankful that Covid actually gave me the chance to figure out the type of artist I wanted to be. I wouldn't be the type of performer I am today doing concerts and shows if it wasn't for that time. 'I found what I want to do looking back on the records Mum and Dad had at home and reliving the '90s country music with women like [American stars] Martina McBride, Faith Hill and Trisha Yearwood… and that helped me to figure out where I was going with my music.' Clodagh, who once worked as ground staff with Aer Lingus in Shannon Airport — 'I remember people like Jamie Dornan, Tommy Tiernan and Shaggy checking in' — adds that whatever happens in her career, Ireland will always be her home. 'Ireland is a beautiful country and I am so fortunate that there is a great country music scene here,' she says. Tune in to Country Hits with Clodagh Lawlor on Today FM every Wednesday from 10pm to 12am.
Scottish Sun
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
This Morning's Dermot O'Leary leaves ITV show's chef red-faced after spotting major Eurovision blunder
THIS Morning host Dermot O'Leary left the show's resident chef cringing after calling her out on a massive Eurovision blunder. Dermot, 51, pointed out Clodagh McKenna's faux pas as she got ready to whip up a plate of themed 'nibbles' for this weekend's contest. Advertisement 6 This Morning's Dermot O'Leary pointed out a major Eurovision mistake on the show 6 Clodagh McKenna lifted up her Danish pastries - decorated with Spanish flags Credit: ITV 6 At first, the telly chef insisted it was the Danish flag Credit: ITV Clodagh, 49, lifted up her plate and showed off a selection of traditional small bites from various Eurovision competing nations. But as she pointed to one of her savoury Danish pastries, Dermot asked: "Why has it got a Spanish flag on?" Clodagh insisted the pastries were sporting a Danish flag, telling him: "It isn't, it's Danish." Dermot replied: "I'm pretty sure that's a Spanish flag." Advertisement Clodagh picked up one of her pastries that was decorated with a little red and white flag to give it a closer look. Looking embarrassed, she laughed: "Do you know what...I wasn't in charge of the flags!" Dermot was in fact correct. Clodagh's Danish pastries were decorated with mini yellow and red Spanish flags. The Danish flag is red with a white cross on. Advertisement Dermot apologised to his This Morning co-star for embarrassing her over the blunder live on television. "I wasn't trying to... I was just curious!" he laughed. Awkward moment Dermot O'Leary is blanked by chef However, when they returned for Clodagh's cooking segment later in the show, Dermot couldn't help but mention it again. The Spanish flags had been swapped for the correct Danish flags. Advertisement Gesturing to her savoury pasties, he said: "Got the flag right." Clodagh laughed: "We quickly swapped it out!" Fans were quick to comment on the big mistake after tuning in to Friday's episode of This Morning. One wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: "She proudly holds it up, still convinced it's a Danish flag—bless." Advertisement Another posted emojis of both the Spanish and Danish flags along with a 'crying with laughter' face. "They're almost identical," they mused. Agreeing, another wrote: "Seriously though... How can you confuse these two?" Meanwhile, Dermot was joined on Friday's This Morning by Lisa Snowdon due to a last minute presenter shake-up. Advertisement Lisa was drafted in at the last minute after Alison phoned in sick. Alison blamed her absence on a bad bout of hayfever, but Lisa told viewers: "She's had a major allergic reaction. She looks and feels terrible." 6 Dermot didn't let it drop when it was Clodagh's turn to make her nibbles Credit: ITV 6 He pointed out the Danish pastries now had 'the right flag on' Advertisement
The Irish Sun
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
This Morning's Dermot O'Leary leaves ITV show's chef red-faced after spotting major Eurovision blunder
THIS Morning host Dermot O'Leary left the show's resident chef cringing after calling her out on a massive Eurovision blunder. Dermot, 51, pointed out Advertisement 6 This Morning's Dermot O'Leary pointed out a major Eurovision mistake on the show 6 Clodagh McKenna lifted up her Danish pastries - decorated with Spanish flags Credit: ITV 6 At first, the telly chef insisted it was the Danish flag Credit: ITV Clodagh, 49, lifted up her plate and showed off a selection of traditional small bites from various But as she pointed to one of her savoury Danish pastries, Dermot asked: "Why has it got a Spanish flag on?" Clodagh insisted the pastries were sporting a Danish flag, telling him: "It isn't, it's Danish." Dermot replied: "I'm pretty sure that's a Spanish flag." Advertisement READ MORE ON THIS MORNING Clodagh picked up one of her pastries that was decorated with a little red and white flag to give it a closer look. Looking embarrassed, she laughed: "Do you know what...I wasn't in charge of the flags!" Dermot was in fact correct. Clodagh's Danish pastries were decorated with mini yellow and red Spanish flags. The Danish flag is red with a white cross on. Advertisement Most read in News TV Dermot apologised to his This Morning co-star for embarrassing her over the blunder live on television. "I wasn't trying to... I was just curious!" he laughed. Awkward moment Dermot O'Leary is blanked by chef However, when they returned for Clodagh's cooking segment later in the show, Dermot couldn't help but mention it again. The Spanish flags had been swapped for the correct Danish flags. Advertisement Gesturing to her savoury pasties, he said: "Got the flag right." Clodagh laughed: "We quickly swapped it out!" Fans were quick to comment on the big mistake after tuning in to Friday's episode of This Morning. One wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: "She proudly holds it up, still convinced it's a Danish flag—bless." Advertisement Another posted emojis of both the Spanish and Danish flags along with a 'crying with laughter' face. "They're almost identical," they mused. Agreeing, another wrote: "Seriously though... How can you confuse these two?" Meanwhile, Dermot was joined on Friday's This Morning by Lisa Snowdon due to a last minute presenter shake-up. Advertisement Lisa was drafted in at the last minute after Alison phoned in sick. 6 Dermot didn't let it drop when it was Clodagh's turn to make her nibbles Credit: ITV 6 He pointed out the Danish pastries now had 'the right flag on' Advertisement 6 Clodagh went on to show viewers how to make her Eurovision dishes
