WILD Atlantic Opticians in Kilrush are celebrating 2021 in style after being awarded Optician of the Year at the Retail Excellence Awards at a national gala in Dublin.
Proprietor Julie Moore Neylon marks five years in business with the Excellence award, which she collected on November 15 with her four-month old baby Joss in hand. The Kilrush-based optometrist was joined at the Dublin ceremony by her husband Padraig Neylon and member of staff Jamie Mulqueen.
Wild Atlantic Opticians also put Kilrush on the map by being shortlisted to the Top 30 in the overall National Retailer of the Year category and Julie admits she felt “honoured” to be recognised by a prestigious national event, which is judged by an independent panel of judges as well as mystery shoppers.
Julie told The Clare Echo, “It was fantastic recognition especially for all our staff who are the backbone of the business. I’m on maternity leave at the moment so really this is their award. They’ve driven the business on in my absence, always striving to provide top class eye care and eye wear to all our patients, and aiming to always go that extra mile in order to deliver exceptional customer service to our customers.
It was Jamie Mulqueen – a third year student studying Business & Irish in NUIG – who entered us into the award and he was the driving force behind it. We wouldn’t have won the award without all of his hard work and effort in particular.”
Julie added that without the support of family, friends and neighbours, Wild Atlantic Opticians “wouldn’t be where we are today”.
Julie acknowledged that while being a mum to her four young children is her current priority, the award is recognition that successful business results can be achieved by busy mothers. The Galway native said she is lucky to share a joint vision with her staff and stressed the importance of “believing in your staff and giving them reign to drive things on”.
“I have four children under six but it’s nice to show people that just because you have children, it doesn’t mean your business has to suffer. There are ways in which you can be off on maternity and still play an active role in driving on your business.”
Julie extended the business in 2020 to include a gift shop offering upstairs in the Frances Street premises, with an online offering available at their webstore https://wildatlanticliving.com/. Call Wild Atlantic Opticians on (065) 905 1832
