Foinse

Our start-up costs are modest. Luckily we also have a free cafe space were we can sell. We tend to measure our success more based on achieving our personal goals and community building elements. These parts come quite naturally to us. It will be more of a challenge to also try to focus on making a profit. Even if we didn’t make a profit in year one, we would still feel successful and proud, if the social and community aspects were working well. Ideally we will make a profit so that we could also offer employment to others.

Our business will provide a service to our town and locality. If it developed it could offer employment opportunities to people in our town. It would also provide a place for the people of our town to meet and socialise. Our (personal, community, financial) goals for our business are to explore other ways of creating a business, to create a positive space for community interactions, to show an example of work opportunities for everyone, and if possible to eventually create a viable business. It is also important to us to support others and Eoghan likes the idea of donating a portion of proceeds to a charity.

Our group has several skills and resources that will support the success of our business. Eoghan has extensive experience baking bread and rolls and has developed a strong kneading technique that helps produce light and fluffy bread. He has also completed a food and cookery course. Rosie spent a year running a bakery that produced bread, cakes, and biscuits while also hosting tea breaks, similar to a free café. She is certified in HACCP, providing knowledge about food safety.

We have access to essential baking equipment. We have identified a potential location in Callan with a large kitchen and a suitable space for a pop-up café. Both of us live locally, making it easy to manage the business. Initially, we can commit 5–10 hours per week and receive support from contacts.

The reason we chose pop-up bakery/cafe Foinse was because we both have some experience of baking and know that people always enjoy what we bake. We think it is good to use skills we already have in developing our business.

The business idea is also something that people in our town have been looking for on two different levels. Firstly, there is a want for another cafe space, especially one that opens on Sundays and at times when events or festivals are on in our town (this is not something that our town currently has). Also, we know people in our local community who are looking for work opportunities in an area like this and think that this is a way in which these could be explored.

We believe this will be successful because it is a niche in the market in our community and the need for a space like this that has flexible opening hours, especially at weekends, is in demand in our community.

EOB: To live a good life and support others to do the same

RT: Become better at pioneering new things