LAOIS COMPANY TOPS ALL-ISLAND AWARDS FOR BUILDERS MERCHANTS

Other awards go to builders merchants in Belfast, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Meath and Wexford

Telfords Portlaoise Ltd is the winner of the overall Octabuild Award for Excellence at the 2024 all-island Octabuild Builders Merchant Excellence Awards. The company also won the Leinster Regional Award.

Other winners came from Belfast, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Meath and Wexford.

Liam McEvoy with Declan Conlon and Patrick Atkinson



The Octabuild Builders Merchant Excellence Awards ceremony was held on Thursday 17th October at a gala event in the Round Room at the Mansion House in Dublin. It was attended by over 250 guests including shortlisted merchants and representatives of the builders merchant trade from across the country. The event was hosted by the eight Octabuild members, Dulux, Etex, Glennon Brothers, Grant Engineering, Gyproc, Irish Cement, Kingspan Insulation and Wavin.

Guest of honour at the awards was Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin, TD. Congratulating all the winners the Tánaiste said: “I would like to congratulate all the finalists and winners at this year’s awards, particularly Telfords Portlaoise Ltd who won the overall Octabuild Award for Excellence 2024. These awards recognise the vital role of the builders merchants industry to the wider construction sector. I want to commend the organisers and Octabuild Chairperson, Declan Conlon for such a great event.”

This year builders merchants competed for five Individual Category Awards, four Regional Awards and a Rising Star Award, which acknowledged up-and-coming talent in the industry.

Octabuild Award for Excellence – Declan Conlon, Octabuild Chairperson with Liam McEvoy from Telfords Portlaoise Ltd, Laois, winner of the Octabuild Leinster Regional Award and Octabuild Award for Excellence, and Patrick Atkinson, Chadwicks Group.



Octabuild Chairperson, Declan Conlon said: “It’s important for Octabuild that the Awards highlight the excellence of Irish builders merchants to the building and construction industry amidst its ever-changing landscape. Congratulations to all finalists and winners from all over the country who represented absolute excellence in the industry.”

Commenting on the quality of the entries, the judges said: “It is evident that the industry is evolving at a rapid pace with merchants across the country leading the way in the continuously changing landscape. The competition is fierce as merchants have embraced the opportunities in staff training, stock portfolio, premises, customer service, promotion, ecommerce and sustainability to develop their businesses.”

In total eleven awards were presented at the awards ceremony as well as the Octabuild Lifetime achievement Award, which was presented to Ian Haldane, CEO of leading independent supplier to the construction industry, Haldane Fisher.

Rising Star – Winner of the Octabuild 2024 Rising Star, Luke Martin from JP Corry Dromore, Co. Down, pictured with his colleagues, Stephen Gibson and Andrea Dougherty.



In addition to the two awards won by Telfords Portlaoise Ltd, other winners were:

Connacht/Donegal/Monaghan/Cavan Regional Award: Joyce’s Hardware & Home, Galway
Munster Regional Award: Cork Builders Providers, Togher, Cork
Northern Ireland Regional Award: JP Corry Springfield Road, Antrim
Excellence in Business Management Award: Cork Builders Providers, Togher, Cork
Excellence in Customer Service Award: Rooneys Home & Hardware, Meath
Excellence in Sales & Marketing Award: Wallace’s Homevalue, Wexford
Excellence in Sustainable Business Award: Chadwicks Robinhood Road, Dublin
Excellence in Community Outreach: Inishowen Co-Op, Donegal
Rising Star Award: Luke Martin – JP Corry Dromore, Down

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Michael McDonnell Managing Editor of Irish Construction Industry Magazine & Plan Magazine

Email: michael@irishconstruction.com      WWW.MCDMEDIA.IE