1. 38 BUSINESS PROFILE October 10 2013
BY MARTINA NEE
Building on its continued success
Galway based company Arrabawn
Dairies has this week officially
launched more modern and vibrant
branding across all of its products
giving it a new lease of life while at the
same time holding true to its
reputation for quality, consistency, and
supporting local businesses.
To help celebrate this new look and
give back to its many loyal customers
Arrabawn Dairies is, for the next eight
weeks, holding the Legendary Acts of
Kindness Competition which aims to
acknowledge those who have given
selflessly, shown generosity, or have
simply been kind to others. All you
have to do is nominate somebody who
has carried out a selfless act for you or
others, no matter how big or small,
and they will be in with a chance of
winning one of the fortnightly €1,000
prizes. But that’s not all - promotional
teams will be sent out to stores and if
they spot any Arrabawn product in
your shopping trolley or basket you
could have your entire shopping bill
paid for.
Making changes and improvements
is just par for the course at Arrabawn
Dairies. The business has benefited
from significant growth over the past
few years at its state-of-the-art
processing plant and distribution
facility in Kilconnell (around 6km
outside Ballinasloe) and it has future
plans for even more expansion at the
50 acre site.
It all started back in 2001 following
the merger of Oranmore Dairies and
Nenagh Co-op. Then in 2004 the
Kilconnell facility was built
amalgamating the processing of
products for the two plants in Co
Galway, and a year later the Arrabawn
brand was born. The next big
milestone was achieved in 2010 when
Arrabawn Dairies acquired Dawn
Dairies in Renmore, Galway city,
integrating the business into the milk
processing facility in Kilconnell. As
commercial manager Cormac Sinnott
explains, Arrabawn Dairies as well as
Dawn Dairies milk is still processed
“right here in Galway”. Arrabawn
Dairies prides itself on being a Galway
company implementing a strict
purchasing policy to ensure that goods
and services are sourced locally as
much as possible.
“It’s important to us as a Galway
company that people buying our milk
know that the product is from Galway.
It’s unique to Arrabawn that the
majority of the liquid milk processed
here is sourced from Galway farmers.
We try to support local. The milk is
sourced from quality assured farms
and when processed it is put through
rigorous testing at all stages of
production,” said Mr Sinnott, before
taking me on a tour of the facility.
Dressed in a lab-type coat, hair net and
shoe covers, I saw for myself the
various stages of production, the
impressive machinery, but most of all
the major effort that is made by staff to
maintain quality control, not just in
the milk itself but also in terms of the
cartons and packaging. It is this
attention to detail that has helped
Arrabawn to continue its success.
Arrabawn Dairies has enjoyed
significant growth since the purchase
of Dawn Dairies which resulted in its
doubling its volume, according to Mr
Sinnott, who further explains: “In 2012
the business grew by nine per cent
and the forecast for 2013 is for another
15 per cent growth. Plus, with plant
expansion we have plans to double our
processing capacity.” Things are
certainly looking up for the business
which currently employs 130 people
directly in the dairy side of the
business plus contracted staff, and
also supports, and generates,
employment in local businesses.
Arrabawn Dairies services many
different sectors such as retail,
catering, food service, contracts, food
manufacturing plants, and bulk
through a network of 46 van sales
routes and 15 articulated lorry routes,
and a network of depots in Oranmore,
Co Galway, Nenagh in Co Tipperary,
Athlone in Co Westmeath, Balla in Co
Mayo, and Roscommon.
Regarding the re-branding efforts
which began in mid 2012, Mr Sinnott
explained: “There was a need to give all
Arrabawn products a fresher look. In
the initial stages we conducted
consumer research to give existing
customers exactly what they wanted
and to reach out to a new generation of
customers. As part of the rebrand we
felt it was important to keep the key
elements of the existing packaging. The
Galway hooker and Nenagh Castle are
now incorporated into the logo. The
new look cartons now give tremendous
shelf presence. It’s a modern look that
stands out and appeals to customers
across the board.”
Mr Sinnott also tells the Advertiser
that the Legendary Acts of Kindness
competition was chosen because
“everyone is a fan of random acts of
kindness”. He added: “There are a lot
of good people out there, doing good
things without looking for recognition.
If they are nominated their efforts
have already been recognised, and
they have the possibility of winning
€1,000. This will be running for eight
weeks, along with promotional teams
who will be out visiting stores and if
they spot you with an Arrabawn
product in your shopping then they
may pay for the entire shopping bill.
This will be done at random in any
store stocking Arrabawn dairy
products. The teams will also be
engaging with customers as feedback
is very important to us.”
The new branded products will be
on the shelves from this week. To find
out more about the rebranding, the
Legendary Acts of Kindness
competition, and the in-store
promotions check out the website
www.arrabawndairies.ie where details
of the winners will be provided, or
follow Arrabawn Dairies on Facebook.
Arrabawn Dairies is part of the
Arrabawn Co-op which operates
through four divisions: Arrabawn
Dairy Ingredients Manufacturing,
Animal Feeds operating as Greenvale
Animal Feeds and Dan O’Connor
Feeds, Arrabawn Retail agri/hardware
stores, and of course Arrabawn
Dairies.The Arrabawn Dairies liquid milk production plant at Kilconnell, Co. Galway. Photo:-Mike Shaughnessy
The Arrabawn customer team ( l-r) Cormac Sinnott commercial manager, with Paddy Hickey, Michael Cafferkey,
Joe Lawlor, sales managers, and Michael Bermingham key account manager. Photo:-Mike Shaughnessy
in association with the
www.advertiser.ie
Arrabawn Dairies launches new look with
Legendary Acts of Kindness competition
Get your shopping paid for by promotional
teams at stores throughout Galway