“Higher Ground” is the highly acclaimed Entrepreneur Series on RTE One now in its second season. It follows the progress of 8 people from all over Ireland, each with a new business idea, as they attempt to diversify to beat the rapidly growing recession.
They are mentored by two experts in the field of Farm Business. Paul McCarthy is a Rural Business Specialist with Teagasc. He has organised events and written extensively on Rural Business and Rural Entrepreneurship. He is a regular contributor on national radio and print media. Peter Young is best known for his ‘On & Off The Farm’ pages in the Irish Farmers Journal in which he writes weekly on innovation and starting businesses in rural Ireland.
“Higher Ground” is designed to motivate rural entrepreneurs to take an innovative approach to new business and help them to turn their ideas into reality. In this time of economic uncertainty many rural people are being forced to look at the resources they have around them and to come up with new ways of making money and building towards the future.
Our mentors will provide the 8 farmers selected with an intensive, tailored service which would give their business the best possible chance of succeeding. They will guide them through creating a business plan, set out action plans with strict deadlines, help prepare a marketing and distribution plan, advise them on legal, accounting and taxation issues, prepare them for key meetings when seeking funding or meeting potential customers. They will arrange for the entrepreneur to visit a similar business or maybe even get hands on work experience. Peter and Paul will do everything in their power to guide the new ventures towards success.
Higher Ground – RTE
Programme 1 : Brian Phelan
Brian Phelan is a 25 year old based in Monaghan. He has a passion for Duck eggs! Brian noticed a gap in the market over the last number of years. There is a healthy demand for duck eggs, but they are hard to track down. He purchased 20 ducks originally, and has now built up the flock to nearly 650. Brian has reached a crucial point – How does he build the business to bring it to the next stage ? His goal is to own 4,000 ducks which would make him the leading Producer in the country.
Programme 2 : Ann O’Connor
Anne has an Open Farm/Visitors Centre which allows people to get close to the animals. She is a busy mum and is a very pro-active woman. She has tried to make ‘Secret Valley’ different to other open farms around the country. The business is up and running, but it is just not making the money that it should. Her goal is to develop the business as a working farm e.g. producing goats milk, goats milk ice cream, and she’s also interested in the conservation of rare breeds. They have 40 acres of land which is not in use at the moment, which Ann is very keen to utilise, but she needs the advice of our experts as to how to maximise her profits.
Programme 3 : Shane Heuston
Shane produces hand-made wooden chicken coops and bird houses. His plan is to sell them directly to the customer and also to provide the hens. A recent casualty of the recession, Shane has only been in this business for a couple of months, but the business is not moving forward. He is not a farmer but is trying to sell ‘a farming lifestyle’ to the middle classes. Shane is currently using a friend’s shed to produce his masterpieces. It is time for him to stand on his own two feet.
Programme 4 : Liam Murphy
Liam lives on the family farm in Ballyraggett in Co Kilkenny, with his wife Breda and their four children. Unique Inventions was formed in 1999 to develop new farm machinery ideas and sell his inventions to both the Irish markets and UK market. The business is now at a level where Liam he needs to decide what to do – does he sell the rights to one of his key inventions to a major manufacturer or does he continue selling it himself? Our mentors are guiding Liam as he decides which path to take.
Programme 5 : Rupert Hugh-Jones
Rupert’s story is unique – he believes he is one of the only farmers in Ireland growing hops, and he aims to set up a Micro-Brewery. Rupert hopes to produce a very high-quality organic beer. Rupert currently makes a living from managing the very successful Farmers Markets in Mahon Point, Cork. Ruperts wife is a trained Masterchef and together they sell their own high quality products from a stall at the market. They have a 2 year old daughter Amelia. Rupert has built a premises on his land where he can brew but he just doesn’t know what to do next! So this is where we come in. Our mentors are going to bring Rupert through the marketing & branding aspects, as well as the financial side of the business!
Programme 6 – The Allen Brother (Derek & Brendan)
Derek and Brendan are brothers from the heart of Roscommon who have both been hit by the recession in recent times. Derek was a full-time carpenter and Brendan was put on a 2 day week from his job in Galway University. They looked at the resources they had at home and decided to join forces and use the family farm as their new source of income. They are changing their farming practices from conventional to Free Range farming. They have pigs, sheep, cows & hens. The main aim of their business venture is to cut out the middle-man and sell directly to their customers. They need mentoring on various issues such as the Marketing/Branding of their company, to advice on how to re-work the farm to the correct standards that are required for Free-range farming.
Programme 7 – Jill Fitzgerald
Jill is living on her family farm with her husband and three children. She is a doer! Her business is currently based on her kitchen table. She produces alternative personalised cake decorations for all occasions. A customer can send a photo of a person or object and Jill will use the image to hand-make a clay model. This is certainly a unique product and there is potential for a mass market. This quirky product could sell very well as weddings are becoming more non-traditional. She really is hungry for the mentoring from our experts.
Programme 8 – Niall Mc Grath
Niall McGrath is 31, married to Elayne, has a 3 year old son called Darragh and Elayne is expecting twins in October! Niall was part of the Family farm business where they always had waste straw so he decided to make straw briquettes to be used as fuel and he His research brought him to the UK, Denmark & Spain. He has now built his premises, with full facilities to manufacture STROGS on a green field site near his home. Until now Niall has been selling ‘STROGS’ to 40 local shops. He now wants to pitch his product to ‘the big boys’ such as Tesco, Dunnes Stores etc. Can he successfully launch this innovative new product in time for ‘The Heat Season’?
