Boatyard Distillery secures huge investment and adds a new range

HBAN is a joint initiative of Invest Northern Ireland, InterTradeIreland and Enterprise Ireland, dedicated to the all-island promotion of business angel investment. HBAN allows companies from a wide range of sectors to pitch to angel investors for funding. Currently, there are around 80 registered members in Northern Ireland.

Co-Fund II is part of the Invest Northern Ireland’s Access to Finance portfolio and is managed by Clarendon Fund Managers.

Situated at Tully Bay Marina on the shores of Lough Erne, The Boatyard Distillery was set up in 2016 and currently produces Boatyard Double Gin, Old Tom Gin and vodka. The company has secured deals with supermarket chains M&S and Waitrose to stock their products across Great Britain and Ireland.

In response to the coronavirus crisis, The Boatyard Distillery has also diversified and started using ethanol it normally uses in drinks production to manufacture hand sanitiser, to World Health Organisation specifications. Boatyard has given away more than 1,200 litres of sanitiser to front line services in Fermanagh including to NHS key workers and supermarket staff and is now selling the product to customers in other industries, both locally and internationally. The sanitiser will be stocked in Tesco stores in Northern Ireland from this week.

Joe McGirr, founder of The Boatyard Distillery, said: “We are really pleased to secure this investment and excited about the unique experience our new investors will bring, particularly when it comes to growing our presence overseas. The gin market remains highly competitive but we offer something different, with some botanicals grown on the family farm.

“Right now, Covid-19 has interrupted some of our immediate plans but we have responded to the situation by being innovative and using our expertise to produce a product that is not only in high demand but which our health service and key workers desperately need. We are pleased to play our part in the fight against Covid-19 by donating supplies to help those people on the frontline doing great work for everyone in the Fermanagh region.”

Of the new investment into Boatyard, £460,000 came from HBAN business angels.

Brian Cummings, Investment Director at Clarendon Fund Managers which manages HBAN in Northern Ireland, added: “The Boatyard Distillery has experienced tremendous growth over the last few years. Joe has continued to diversify the product offering and that has led to international success with a number of new global distribution deals agreed. Their ability to quickly pivot into the production of hand sanitiser demonstrates what an innovative business this is.

“We are delighted to see Boatyard attracting new investment from our network. HBAN gives companies the opportunity to pitch for business investment as well as access to business angels who have the knowledge and experience to take their business to the next level.”

Co-Fund II is supported by ERDF under the EU Investment for Growth and Jobs Programme 2014-2020.

More information on HBAN can be found at https://www.hban.org/. Anyone interested in joining the network and taking part in its next remote pitch event on May 27 should contact [email protected].

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