Inside Business with Ciaran Hancock

In the 10 years since Aimee Connolly founded the viral beauty brand Sculpted by Aimee, it’s become a multi-million euro enterprise with plans to increase its revenues this year by 25 per cent.

Today, Ciaran asks about her early days as an entrepreneur, starting the business with €10,000 in savings, and her tips on leadership, scaling, and plans to enter the lucrative US market.

Connolly tells Inside Business that her supply chain - with some products coming from South Korea - have been impacted by delays in freight getting through the Middle East.

“I remain optimistic and hope that whatever happens [in the conflict] we’ll be able to pivot” she says.

Following the ceasefire between the US and Iran which began on Tuesday, Cliff Taylor of The Irish Times explains the impact of falling oil prices, and the jump in European and Asian stock markets.

Produced by Andrew McNair and JJ Vernon.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a year on since Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs and host Ciarán Hancock is joined in studio by Aidan Meagher, EY partner and co-head of the geopolitical strategy team; to hear about the impact this has had on Irish exporters and global trade.

They also chat about the current market turmoil and an increasing level of cyber-attack on the operations of American companies in Ireland by Iranian interests.

In the second half of this week’s Inside Business, Ciarán speaks to Declan Bolger, the chief executive of the Irish Life group, one of the biggest asset managers in the country.

Declan gives his thoughts on the State’s new auto enrolment pension scheme, the rising costs of health insurance premiums, and the impact of AI on his sector.

He also explains why Simon Harris’s plan to introduce a tax-friendly savings and investment scheme will be an “absolute failure” if only viewed for the wealthy.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week the Government introduced a €250 million package of measures to help businesses and households with their fuel bills over the next couple of months.

But will it be enough? And is it merely a bet by Government on the Iran conflict being resolved quickly?

Joining host Ciarán Hancock in studio to tease this out are Cliff Taylor of The Irish Times and Fergal O’Brien, director of lobbying and influence at employers group Ibec.

But the episode starts with Irish times political correspondent Cormac McQuinn taking us through the various fuel measures introduced by Government.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

First up on this week’s Inside Business is Ireland’s housing crisis and where it is felt most – Dublin city.

Mark Fitzgerald is chairman of the Fine Gael Commission for renewal and a non-executive director of Sherry FitzGerald Group. He joined host Cliff Taylor in studio to discuss a recent piece he wrote for the Irish Times where he highlights restrictive geography and the lack of imagination around land use and zoning as some of the key contributors to the challenging housing situation in the capital.

But what decisions led to the current scarcity of supply and what choices could be made to meet demand for future generations in the capital?

Also on this episode, the latest report from the Economic and Social Research Institute suggests Ireland is trending to fall far below the 2030 targets as set out in the Climate Action Plan.

Focusing on decarbonising Irish households, the report highlights the slow uptake in retrofitting and the installation of heat pumps. The report also points out some of the barriers preventing homeowners from taking such measures.

Muireann Lynch is a Senior Research Officer with the ESRI and co-authored the report. She joined Cliff on the line to go through the report’s key points.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

First up on this week’s Inside Business is St Patrick’s Day. It’s just six days away but the festival itself is a four-day affair this year and will begin on Saturday.

The man in charge of this major annual undertaking is Richard Tierney, chief executive of the St Patrick’s Day festival. He joined host Ciarán Hancock in studio to discuss year-long preparations that went into the 2026 festival, what it means for the economy and the part it plays in kicking off Ireland’s tourism season.

Earlier this week, The Irish Times began an 8-week series on how to invest. Fiona Reddan is the author of the series, and she joined Ciarán in studio to discuss the thesis behind the series and the various that she will cover.

She began with a piece on how Irish people are leaving up to €172 billion on deposit with the banks, earning little or no interest.

Produced by John Casey with JJ Vernon on sound.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.