From a €10k car loan to €15m in funding: How one Waterford entrepreneur has reached dizzying heights

She didn’t know it at the time, but Louise Grubb’s entrepreneurial learning started early. “Probably behind the counter of my dad’s retail shop in Waterford,” she tells me. Louise’s family has been in business in the city for over a century – her grandfather was a pharmacist and her dad went on to take over the pharmacy and general store, with her mum also working in the business.

“My mother taught me doggedness and tenacity . . . the power of sticking with something. And my father was always thinking of new ideas for the retail shop. He was full of ideas and was never afraid to try something,” she says. 

“He had the shop during the 1980s recession, so it meant there had to be lots of ideas,” she laughs, reminding me of the homebrew beer kits that were popular at the time (and have since experienced a revival).” 

Ideas are something that seem to come easy to Louise, whose success as a serial entrepreneur was recognised when she was honoured as the overall winner of the IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards in April 2023.  

‘What you are’

Today, as well as being CEO and co-founder of animal healthcare company TriviumVet, Louise is chair of Tangent, the Ideas Workspace of Trinity College Dublin, which nurtures student entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation at under- and post-graduate level. “I think having this type of opportunity for students can help provide the structure and confidence to consider entrepreneurship at some part in their career and particularly for ‘professions’ to see other opportunities,” she explains passionately. 

“Though you might study to be an accountant, a doctor, a lawyer, it doesn’t mean you have to follow that [career path] just because it is ‘what you are’. You can use the skills and bring them somewhere else,” she says.

Exploring the scope of ‘what’ every individual can achieve and challenging what might be considered the usual parameters of a profession – or a qualification – are important elements of entrepreneurship, says Louise, who did not originally plan to go into business. 

‘Sales. It’s all about sales’

Louise started her own career as a dietician in Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children after qualifying in nutrition and dietetics from Trinity. “After some time there, I felt it was not the right fit for me,” she explains, before describing her move into the pharma industry, crediting her early summer jobs with an important skill that helped her transition.

“Sales,” she says. “If you are not selling a product or your brand, you are selling your ideas. It is something that is so important to get comfortable with,” she says. She went on to complete an MBS in International Marketing from DCU before establishing NutriScience in 1999, an animal and human health company that developed a range of natural products designed to maintain joint mobility. 

Some of the original research was done around the kitchen table with her husband John Brennan, a vet, and pharmacist Clare Hughes, who were also both founders in the venture. It was funded with a €10,000 car loan, Louise explains, because the bank wouldn’t give a business loan. NutriScience was acquired by a Belgium healthcare company in 2009 and Louise went on to establish Q1 Scientific, the first Irish company to specialise in the provision of a stability storage service for the pharma and life sciences sector. It was acquired by Cambrex, a US contract pharma company, for an undisclosed sum last year.

TriviumVet

Her third entrepreneurial venture, TriviumVet, works globally “to develop and commercialise medicines and diagnostics for use in companion animals”. In recent years, our pets have gone from the yard, to the house and even to sleeping on our beds, she explains. They are, as most of us will attest, true ‘companions’ and it is a lucrative market space, as noted by one of the judges of this year’s awards, IMAGE Editorial Director Lizzie Gore-Grimes: “Louise spots gaps in the market with incredible results each time. And let’s face it, any business that focuses on improving the health and extending the life of our beloved pets is one I would be investing in!”

This year is a “very exciting” and “nail-biting” time for TriviumVet, says Louise who, at the time of this interview, was in the midst of presenting files for three products to the FDA in the US and the European Medicines Agency. Given the years of research and preparatory work that goes into the product development, it’s no wonder it is nail-biting.

By the end of 2023, it was confirmed that TriviumVet was preparing for the US launch of a treatment for heart disease in cats after raising €15 million in funding. She believes one of the drugs they are developing could be a “blockbuster” veterinary drug and have potential to make $100m a year in sales, as well as possibly being leveraged for human use, an exciting development for the team to say the least.

Ireland’s southeast

Louise references her team often and she is intensely proud of having set up the business in the southeast. 

“The most important thing [in setting up a business] is pulling the right team together, you need to attract people who are willing to work with a little bit of uncertainty. I’m so fortunate that throughout my career, I’ve had fantastic teams with me. I’m incredibly proud of the team I have with me that have been on this journey with me along the way.”

“We now have a critical mass of employers in the pharma and sciences sector in the southeast, so we can attract great talent to the area. This is important because it makes it easier to attract talent if they know they have other opportunities in the region, especially if they have had to relocate their family,” she explains. 

Another important element of being  based in her home county is the balance of work and life, which I mention given Louise is overlooking Tramore beach as we speak.

‘A proud supporter’

“My family is my proudest achievement,” she said on the night of the awards and she reiterates it to me. Married to John, they have two daughters Alex and Steffi, both in their twenties (along with two Alsatian dogs, Zeus and Luna). Asked about the reality of being an entrepreneur and having a young family, she highlights the need to make choices.

“We could have accelerated quicker if I’d been able to give it more hours, for example, but I didn’t want to do that and I wouldn’t do it again either,” she says, before emphasising the need to support women who return to the workforce after taking time out when their families are younger. 

“If you take 10 years out, you can come back [to the workplace] and, if you want to, you can move your career forward,” she stresses. “You still have a lot of years left to enjoy your career when your kids don’t need you as much. You are not any less capable or any less smart because you took that time.”

Supporting other women is important to Louise and was recognised by Fiona Dawson CBE, Global Head of Mars Food, and one of the 11-person judging panel for this year’s awards. “Louise is a powerful trailblazer . . . in areas traditionally underrepresented by women and a proud supporter of other women, launching the Science of Business podcasts, chairing the Trinity Ideas workspace and mentoring numerous young women.  What a wonderful role model and an incredibly worthy winner.”

Passion and tenacity

Asked about what drives a serial entrepreneur, Louise returns to passion and tenacity. “I had a passion to make the first business work and having been fortunate enough to exit one business, I found myself with another opportunity and just applied the same approach again and again! I think the key to success for any entrepreneur is tenacity, seeing the opportunity and making it happen. Sounds easy!”

Her passion is well recognised in the Irish and global business community, as noted by judge and CEO of The Currency Tom Lyons: “It is rare to see deep scientific knowledge combined with entrepreneurial passion but Louise has both attributes in spades. She is an inspiring leader [and] it is little wonder so many other Irish entrepreneurs have been prepared to invest in her new business TriviumVet.”

On the night of the awards, Louise offered advice about scaling – a key entrepreneurial skill. “One of the things that we talk about with women in business is that we don’t always scale these businesses. It’s so important when looking at your initial plan to make sure you’ve got the ability to scale your idea globally. Constantly challenge yourself to see if you can go further,” she advised. 

“Having a network of people around you, opportunities like tonight, making contacts and having a random coffee, it can be a challenge to your concept. It’s easy to be in an echo chamber, but it’s so important to look outside of that,” she said.

Nominations are now open for 2024

Nominations for the the 2024 IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards are now open. All you need to do is visit the Nominations Page to download your Nomination Form and start your application!

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