Daithi O’Connor, who died in December, established what would become Ireland’s leading supplement maker, Revive Active, in 2011. A devoted family man and born entrepreneur, he was also a proud member of Guaranteed Irish.
“I can remember an interview Daithi did a few years ago about Guaranteed Irish. He spoke about how he had set up the business in a time of recession, a time when people were very tired, and how the very name, Revive Active, was chosen because it was about regeneration and reinvigoration. It reflected his desire to bring about something positive,” says Helen Mannion, the company’s head of brand and retail marketing.
O’Connor started the business with just one supplement; thanks to its success, Revive Active now has a portfolio of 10 products in pharmacies and health food stores nationwide.
“Today we are the number one in Ireland’s VMS (vitamins, minerals and dietary supplements) category, selling through pharmacies and health-food stores and well as a number of online retailers,” says Mannion. “We also have a lot of new product development coming down the line.”
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The company began exporting to the UK six years ago.
“I can remember when Daithi first landed Jonn, Bell & Croydon, a very prestigious, 200-year-old pharmacy known as the Queen’s pharmacy. Daithi was so proud he asked one of our UK team members to go and take some pictures of Revive Active on its shelves. But when our colleague arrived, it was nowhere to be seen,” recalls Mannion.
“So Daithi jumped on a plane, went to the store and got the staff to go down into the underground storerooms to find the product, before putting on the shelves.
“To me that was the spirit of Daithi, always knocking on doors. Right from the very first pharmacy to stock our product, Mullins in Salthill, he drove the business forward. He was an inspirational leader, very charismatic and full of ideas.”
Thanks to O’Connor, today Revive Active employs 70 people, at its Galway HQ, its state-of-the-art production facilities in Mullingar and in the UK. One of its biggest overseas markets is Nigeria, where it is stocked in a big pharmacy chain. It also ships globally from its own website.
“Whether independent stores or chains such as Meaghers, Nourish, McNallys, McCabes or Evergreen, the 1,500 Irish retailers we have here are the retailers who built our brand. Having that Guaranteed Irish symbol has been a huge help to us in growing the business,” says Mannion.
“When it comes to supplements, it really is all about trust. To see the Guaranteed Irish symbol is a seal of approval when people are making a buying decision.”
Having the GI symbol helped it become the market leader in Ireland which, in turn, has opened doors abroad.
“We always lead with the fact that we are Ireland’s number one and make sure the GI logo is on all our corporate pitches. It also helps in terms of selling to the diaspora too, especially because ours are products that have always grown through word-of-mouth recommendations,” she explains.
The company is continuing to go from strength to strength, including through the introduction of innovative new supplements.
“Daithi was always determined to bring the most comprehensive and beneficial products to market that he could,” says Mannion. “Our aim is to continue building his legacy. He was just a fantastic man.”
