IT HASN’T got exactly got the pizazz of some of his previous careers but we hear that former restaurateur and perma-tanned man about town Marcus Sweeney, below, is venturing into the distressed property market.

Word is that he’s launching a website called namavalueproperty.ie in March which will showcase Nama properties at a location near you. Sweeney, who is now 33 and keeping a lower profile of late, ran restaurants Lemongrass and Il Pomo DOro on South William Street in Dublin 2 before reinventing himself as a personal trainer and then a travel adviser in Dubai. It was reported that he was living the high life in a plush apartment while specialising in travel tips and recommendations for celebrities on their high-end destinations. He’s now back in Dublin working on his new career since Dubai was badly hit by the global downturn

Once engaged to the late Katy French and linked to actress Leigh Arnold, daughter of property developer David Arnold, the only gadding about town he seems to be doing these days is promoting his new website.