Celebrating the successes of IMAGE Business Club members

This is the season of celebration and not only is it fun, it’s also good for us!  Science shows us that celebrating benefits the human body and brain, meaning that celebration is also good for business.

Actively choosing to celebrate is a formal invitation to cease seeking and striving and to be present in the moment, smiling to yourself for a job well done, which boosts serotonin. Choosing to reward yourself releases dopamine, which gives our motivation levels and boost and when we celebrate together, we boost levels of serotonin, which enhance a sense of community. 

In one swoop, all three of the feel-good neurotransmitters are activated which is all the justification I need to bring you this article – a celebration of IMAGE Business Club members. This has been a big year for so many of you – we have members like Shana Chu succeeding at raising €700k capital for her business Tailr (read more here) and Aine Kennedy expanding The Smooth Company into the UK; having a pop-up store and seeing her Smooth Stick being stocked in Brown Thomas. This year saw  personal stylist Viorica Caraus team up with fellow member photographer Caroline Murray, The Portrait Boss,  on a project; Aoife Fogarty open her third cafe, Our Boy Bailey, in Dunboyne (Aoife also runs Five Good Things in Drogheda and Plate and Pallete in Dunshaughlin) and Ailbhe and Izzy Keane of Izzy Wheels continue to bring colour wheels across the world, being selected as a trusted partner by Disney to celebrate the 100th anniversary of animation greatness with an exclusive collection. 

Over the past few weeks, I have asked all members to send in their success stories of 2023. I’ve saved a few for articles in early 2024 (stay tuned!) and I am delighted to share them here. Thank you for sharing your successes; for informing this article and for inspiring anyone reading to keep track of their own wins from 2023.

Phoebe Holland, Rugs.ie

As 2023 draws to a close, the Rugs.ie team is proud to reflect on our successes this year, from winning awards to launching new websites and creating an affordable luxury rug brand. As we approach our 30th year in business in Cork, we are excited to see what the future brings for Rugs.ie! We were delighted to transform our website, which is designed to make choosing your dream rug a seamless, memorable and enjoyable experience, with the goal of reflecting the warm and personable in-store experience online. Website visitors can opt to place rugs virtually in their room, book design consultations with our expert team and browse a treasure trove of inspiration and room-size guides. 

This year also saw the launch of our latest venture, LoreRugs.com. Lore Rugs launched with two signature rug collections; a machine-washable vintage-inspired range, and a woven jute collection. LoreRugs.com offers free, fast delivery to the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe, and is available in multiple languages. We were proud to win Best Use of Instagram (less than 20 employees) at the Cork Digital Marketing Awards 2023. We were also thrilled to be finalists in the Irish eCommerce Awards this year.

Anonymous member

In anticipation of my return to work post maternity leave, I had the privilege through IMAGE connections to be able to work with Leonie and Platform 55 to prepare myself and my employer for my return. The process with Leonie and Platform 55 gave me the space and confidence to identify what I needed from my employer and myself and my partner in what has been a big adjustment for our family. 

I’m pleased to share that thanks to the work with Platform 55 and Leonie, the return to work full-time was as smooth a transition for me and my young family as it could possibly be. The expectations of my employer were managed from the beginning and we are now full steam ahead! 

Donna Reilly, Donna Reilly People & Wellness

This year we celebrated several big wins at Donna Reilly People & Wellness, being a finalist for the IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards to winning the Network Ireland Award for ‘Emerging New Business’ and the HiStyle ‘Woman in Wellness’ award.

Our team takes pride in the work we produce and the positive influence it has on our clients and their teams. To date we have worked with over 120 clients providing wellness, coaching and HR services to them. Building a wellness programme for parents and siblings at Ronald McDonald House Charities has been a high point of our journey. We also launched our first online course ‘Invest In You’ designed to encourage busy women to focus on themselves and their wellbeing. 

Our team has been continually striving for excellence and building on the solid foundation we’ve laid. We recently welcomed two new employees and have worked with over 23 associates this year. We have big plans for 2024 and are thrilled to start the year eager to build, expand, and help more individuals and teams. 

Ciara Spillane, Positive Prospects

2023 will be remembered as the year Positive Prospects scaled to support even more clients navigating their careers. I’m proud of the career talks and workshops we delivered to our clients including Google, Workday and UCD. We covered topics to help people succeed in their careers such as increasing confidence, how to create a sustainable career and discovering your strengths.

As a solopreneur, creating and running a business can sometimes be lonely so I’m grateful for the support I have received in the IMAGE Business Club. A highlight was being coached by Leonie and making a solid group of friends in our coaching circle.

Tracy Gunn and Michelle O’Keeffe, Platform 55

From coming runner-up in the Dublin Tech Summit Pitch competition, to scooping Entrepreneur of the Year at the Diversity in Tech Awards, Platform55 has had an epic year.  We’ve picked up the keys to our new office, just as well as the team has doubled in size growing from 3 to 6 core employees and is now working with clients across the US, Ireland, UK and Europe. 

Our clients love what we do, and with a 100% renewal rate and consistently positive feedback from our Masterclasses, coaching and resources we’re having a positive impact on individuals,  employers and society.  

We held our inaugural Families at Work Summit in November, with attendees joining in person and virtually from around the world. New friendships have been forged personally and professionally in the Business Club, and we’ve been delighted to contribute regularly to Image editorial features. We’ve still got so much to do when it comes to creating workplaces that are equal, sustainable  and where families thrive – so we’re looking forward to 2024! 

Angela Bergin

My big win for this year was getting comfortable with the idea of taking time away from the desk. My starting point is a corporate job working with many timezones as well as having a young family. Both my partner and I worked an ‘80% week’ for parts of this year and it’s had such a positve impact on our wellbeing. I’m looking forward to it being more and more common to see senior men and women role-modelling a balanced approach, leaving the stereotypes in the past where they belong! 

Taking time away from my desk allowed me to keep up other parts of my life – to do courses, sea-swimming, and sometimes nothing at all. Another big win was getting my father to write his life story through the Storyworth app. It took us a year in total and now it means we have his stories written in a way that we can pass down. His favourite quote is “What is this life if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare.” I’m still learning this. 

Rachel Bothwell, GP Practice Ally

2023 has been a year of growth both professionally and personally. At GP Practice Ally, Ireland’s leading GP Practice Management community, we now have over 1,500 members across 65% of GP practices in Ireland. In 2023, we increased the number of practices on our Free and Premium membership by 48% and 97% respectively. In October we hosted our first in-person event, the GPPA Practice Leadership Summit, welcoming over 100 practice managers and GPs to participate in two days of professional development talks, panels, and workshops and to build relationships with exhibitors. This is the first event of its kind for practice managers in Ireland and I’m delighted that attendees left feeling more confident, more connected and more informed. We also now have 40 live GP practice websites and 20 more in development. 

On a personal level, achieving Runner-Up in the Start-Up Category at the IMAGE Businesswoman of the Year Awards was such a huge confidence boost and contributed to my mindset shift this year along with transformative coaching from Michelle Ryan, The Holistic Leaders! Meeting so many amazing like-minded women through the IMAGE Business Club has made the journey that bit easier and I have found people to collaborate with, such as the fantastic Donna Reilly (People & Wellness), and picked up service provider recommendations, like Sandra Thompson (Thompson Admin Services) and Paula Casey (Fluent Virtual Accounting). 

[Editor’s note: I was delighted to present a session – From Burnout to Balance – at Rachel’s Leadership Summit and it was such a pleasure to witness her vision in action…and to also witness the expertise of fellow member Donna Reilly, who was also presenting a session. It was a professional highlight of my year!]

Sarah Hawkins, F.I.G (Food Is Good) Nutrition

This time last year I pitched my first article for IMAGE.ie and it’s mad to think that this is my third appearance since! As a nutritionist and yoga teacher, I love to marry my qualifications to give a full mind body approach to supporting people to overcome digestive issues and a difficult relationship to food. Back in 2019 when I started my yoga journey and felt the transformation it had on my own gut issues, I dreamt of creating a gut directed yoga workshop where people could learn the benefits of yoga for digestive issues. My dreams came true in January, when I held my first in-person ‘Make Up With Your Gut’ yoga for digestion workshop, a really proud moment!

Following on from some great workshops, the first ‘how to beat the bloat without cutting out more food’ a community approach to better gut health took place. We brought together the most kind and supportive individuals, sharing wins and helping each other through the challenges over our six weeks together.

2023 has been a year of learning and collaboration for F.I.G (Food Is Good) Nutrition, making the prospects of 2024 very exciting. For me, community is everything and being part of the IMAGE Business Club has been absolutely brilliant. I have met some incredible business owners and great friends at the IMAGE events and feel so grateful to have been part of such a wonderful community. Here’s to 2024!

Rachel Hennessy, Happy Days

Happy Days moved into its second year of business in 2023, a big step up from Year One. In that first year, Happy Days really grew by word of mouth so in Year Two we had to focus on marketing to new customers, growing our repeat customer base and increasing customer loyalty. 

In March, we collaborated with six other female owned businesses (some of whom are Business Club members – Croía Jewellery and Contone Collection) and opened a one week long pop up on South Anne Street in Dublin and that was absolutely brilliant. We met lots of new customers and the buzz of being in the city centre is like nothing else. 

Another huge achievement this year was winning the VISA Ireland IFundWomen small business grant. Not only is this amazing exposure but you receive a monetary grant of €10k! From a business that is boot strapped this made a huge difference to us. 

To finish off the year we launched a really exciting collaboration with Vision Ireland (formerly NCBI) to rent dresses on their behalf with proceeds going to charity. The response has been amazing and the dresses they have to rent are absolutely beautiful. 

We are excited to go into our third year of business and grow rental even further! 

Maria Macklin, Image Consultant 

I joined the IMAGE Business Club, initially, to get out of my own space and my own head. Working as a solo business owner in rural Ireland can be lonely and I deliberately joined a Club outside my geographical area because diversity is important to me.

It has hosted an amazing variety of highly inspirational speakers, all of whom are business women. There is always something more to learn, a nugget of knowledge and experience to take away. The topics discussed are highly relevant to me whether they are the importance of failure to learn, or how to approach growth. Pertinent information is shared without any misgivings. 

I feel privileged to have met some amazing members all of whom (whether on stage or not) are supportive and encouraging. Through these connections, I’ve contributed to company-wide presentations for other members who have sought my expertise on image and personal brand. A journalist has availed of a colour consultation with me and wrote an article for IMAGE magazine as a result. I’ve participated in one of the group coaching series, which encouraged me to re-define and refine my offerings this year. It’s also heartwarming to be able to support other members in these smaller groups. We all have different experiences and knowledge sharing is key. The Business Club is a very generous and supportive space both during the events and within the community that has evolved. 

Hannah Buchanan, Joy with Hannah Lilly

What a year it has been. It began with me feeling burnt out and anxious, triggered by overwork and people-pleasing, but as always, the difficult times lead to transformation when we are willing to see the lessons. I’m ending 2023 feeling so different – excited about the future at peace with the past and grateful for now.

Joining the IMAGE Business Club felt like a big step for me as although I have been self-employed for seven years, my inner critic would often whisper, “You left school early; you won’t fit in here. You’re not a real business person”. But I’m so glad I did. The atmosphere at the live events is so welcoming and inspiring. Although I didn’t take advantage of all the amazing extras, like coaching, that the club offers, I found the experience so positive, and the guest speakers were amazing. I hope one day to be interviewed by Melanie! 

This year, I held space for people at a transformational retreat in Lisbon twice;  shared a self-compassion session at a retreat in Ibiza; improved my financial situation and relationship with money; created and launched a deck of affirmation and journal prompt cards, held a one-day ‘More Joy’ workshop in Dublin and my big dream this December – I submitted my book proposal to Hay House and am manifesting a publishing deal in 2024 for my book How to Make Friends With Yourself – Six Steps to Move Out of People-Pleasing, Loneliness & Overwhelm and into Confidence, Self-Compassion & Joy. I’m also happy to report that as a Mum of four, I’ve finally found a sense of balance, mixing work, home, and time for myself. Remembering that perfection doesn’t exist was a big part of this. In January, on Instagram, I’ll be sharing a 30-Day Joy Journey Challenge – join in!

Final words

As we come to the end of the year, I challenge you all to celebrate yourself. Pick one thing that you are proud of this year, personal or professional, and bring it into your mind. Appreciate it, recognise it and celebrate it and you!

It is the season for it afterall…