Irish businessman Nelson Loane has died aged 83, after a long battle with cancer.
Born in September 1942 in Innishannon, Co Cork, Mr Loane left for Liverpool in 1958 to join the merchant navy. He went on to qualify as a ship’s captain and later studied accountancy at night, gaining the qualification in order to enter the business world.
In 1983, he joined the then quoted Clondalkin Group plc and worked his way up under chief executive Henry Lund to become its chief operating officer, before leaving in 1991 to start Adare Printing Group plc.
He was the CEO of Adare, which was one of the strongest performing shares on the Irish Stock Exchange through the 1990s. It was taken private in 2006 after a takeover battle, with Mr Loane leaving the business at that point.
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Mr Loane was also acting chief executive at healthcare group Uniphar (now a listed company) from 2009, serving alongside chairman Maurice Pratt, at a time when it needed restructuring.
Mr Pratt described him as “steely” in nature. “He was quietly spoken but he was always very focused on what needed to be done. And he was a great supporter of the company after he had left and also was an investor in Uniphar subsequently.”
His son Elgin Loane is also involved in the printing industry, and is the owner of The Color Company and The Wren Press.
He said his father had a strong work ethic that he applied to everything he did: “He was a fair, thoughtful, a visionary and an inspiring man. We are naturally deeply saddened by his loss but will all be forever inspired by him.”
More recently, Mr Loane was a member of the board of directors at investment group Grenadier Holdings.
In a statement on his death, the company said: “Despite battling with his personal health issues during the past few years, he regularly attended the Dublin office, participated in our meetings and business reviews, contributing right up to the end. Nelson’s strong business ethics will continue to inspire us, and his contributions to our business will be missed, but his impact will never be forgotten.”
Mr Loane is survived by his wife Bridget, three children and five grandchildren. His funeral service will be held at 10am on March 3rd at Rathfarnham Parish Church of Ireland.
