A LIMERICK mentor helped and supported the start-up for a business woman who has now won awards and gained international markets for her fashion and perfume brands, ‘Jo Browne’.
Speaking with the Limerick Post, Joanne Browne said it was Gaye Moore, who specialises in mentoring and executive coaching for Women in Business and who founded The Women’s Business (TWB) mentoring network, who helped her get on her feet.
“Starting a new business is never easy. But there is plenty of help. I remember meeting Gaye Moore at a network event, I knew she had over 25 years coaching, and asked her to mentor me, she believed in me and my business and she motivated me, and helped get rid of limiting beliefs. The local enterprise board have been amazing and still are, and there are so many grants to avail of,” said Joanne.
Joanne was the speaker at last weeks TWB event at the Castletroy Park Hotel.
“We are delighted that Jo is travelling to Limerick to tell her story and meet her Munster suppliers. My aim for TWB this year is to introduce game changing entrepreneurs to the group and provide ongoing training and mentoring throughout the year,” said Gaye.
Established 18 months ago, Joanne has already won many awards for her brand, including the overall gift category at Showcase 2017 at the RDS Dublin, the Bank of Ireland Start Up Awards, the RSVP award for best solid perfume, the Best Beauty Company in Ireland with the Irish Country Magazine and the best start-up Company with the Carlow Chamber.
Jo Browne is currently stocked in Canada, Florida, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand and the UK and from February will be stocked in Switzerland, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and France.
Joanne enjoys sharing her story so that she can, “inspire other women who are thinking of starting their own business. I am a mother of three kids, and that be challenging on any day. To let women know that there is so much support out there and not to be afraid to ask for help. I constantly ask questions and listen to other people’s opinions, and this is important if you want to build a business.
“I love Limerick city it’s so beautiful. I have stockists in Limerick and always come down to visit them”.
All the products are handmade by Joanne, the raw materials are sourced from Ireland when possible, and she has received the guaranteed Irish award which guarantees that all her products are manufactured and produced in Ireland.
It took three years of research to develop the product, which meant Joanne was working 16 hour days seven days a week, finally launching her company Jo Browne in July 2016.
From Hacketstown Co Carlow, Joanne lives with her children and husband Matt, who is an award-winning Press Photographers Association of Ireland (PPAI) sports photographer.
Joanne said she has had to make many sacrifices while setting up her business, “you forget about everything else and you really want your business to be successful. I have only moved from the kitchen table six months ago to a purpose built, clean room and office in my garden, so it was hard having every room in the house full of boxes for three years, but that is what you have to do to start a business.
“The first year of any new business is a massive rollercoaster you will have more bad days than good. Ask for help, attend as many network events as you can you will get inspiration from other people and get contacts. Also, it’s so important to get the right employees. I have been lucky as both my employees give the company 100 per cent,” added Joanne.
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