The Gee family grows fruit and then makes award-winning jam from it at their farm in Abbeyleix, Co Laois.
What sets your business apart from the competition?
We're essentially farmers growing our own fruit on our own farm and making it into authentic, quality products.
Our products are entirely natural, comprising only two ingredients: fruit and sugar. They are produced in small batches to preserve their unique taste and flavour.
Our jams, marmalades, chutneys, relishes and mint jellies are all made the good old-fashioned way: an open pot, a wooden spoon and plenty of hard work.
In recent years, we introduced a new range of products under the Abbey Farm name. They are handmade preserves with flavours such as blackberry and apple, and rhubarb and ginger.
What is the best piece of business advice that you have ever received?
"Always remember where you started from."
My mother Helen set up the business from scratch 14 years ago. Selling the jams at local farmers’ markets was my first role in the business.
I remember my mother always making sure that people tasted the jam before buying it.
I think those humble origins have helped keep us from losing our heads as we have grown.
What is the biggest mistake you have made in business?
You have to stay grounded, but you have to think big at the same time. I've been guilty of not thinking big enough.
What's been your major success to date?
We have won numerous accolades including Producer of the Year with Good Food Ireland. But to be named among the Top 50 Foods in the UK and Ireland in the Great Taste awards last year was a terrific boost.
That said, just seeing your product on the shelves of shops and in major hotels is a huge source of satisfaction.
We are stocked by Fortnum & Mason in London, and our jams were in the Lough Erne Hotel for the G8 Summit.
Who do you most admire in business and why?
I can't look beyond the achievement of my mother Helen. It has been her passion and hard work that have developed the business from very small footings to where it is today, employing 14 people.
That’s inspiration enough for any son.
Sticking with food, Paddy Callaghan of Nature's Best is also someone I admire.
I’m really impressed with how Paddy manages to keep the operational side of things running smoothly in the background while he’s constantly out there himself looking for new ideas.
He doesn’t rest on his laurels, that’s for sure.
Based on your experience, are the banks open for business to SMEs?
In my limited experience, the banks have been very helpful. We have always found Bank of Ireland good to work with.
What one piece of advice would you give to the Government to help stimulate the economy?
Constantly fostering innovation is critical in a high-cost economy such as ours, and not just for tech companies.
Don’t forget the small manufacturing sector and the employment it brings, be it food, engineering or whatever. We also need to more actively encourage people to set up their own businesses.
What's the biggest challenge you have had to face?
The closure of the Irish Sugar Company and Irish Glass – big Irish companies – forced us to source sugar externally, and to look to China and other countries for our glass and packaging. That's such a shame.
How do you see the future for your business in the short term?
There's a lot happening, with sales rising in Ireland and exports hopefully about to accelerate. We are working on a deal in the US at the moment.
What's your business worth and would you sell it?
I've never thought for one minute about valuation to be honest. This is such a family business. My father, Cyril, grows the fruit and both my mother and my sister Sandra are involved in production. I'm on sales.
And, of course, with my daughter Taylor-Grace, who is third generation, 'loving the taste', we just can't think in terms of ever selling it.
In conversation with Olive Keogh
