Bringing the family business forward to a new generation

“Everyone is driven to serve our customers, always going the extra mile. Nobody sits still for long in the hotel business,” says Helen Wycherley of the Celtic Ross Hotel

Gerry Wytcherley, Neil Grant, general manager, and Helen Wytcherley, celebrating Celtic Ross Hotel’s 25th anniversary in March 2021.

Family businesses have always been great innovators, adapting their skills and resources to look beyond survival to show ambition to expand.

This innate ingenuity was very evident among the 53 CEOs and 198 employees who responded to ‘Surviving a Crisis as a Family Business’, a seven-month study conducted by DCU National Centre for Family Business, along with colleagues at Ulster University, the Northern Ireland Family Business Forum, and the University of Central Florida.

The study shows businesses investing in and enhancing e-commerce platforms, rolling out ‘click + collect’ and other new retail services, while taking on new financial tracking systems, even as revenues were hit, most notably by Covid.

“Family businesses have traditionally been the backbone of the economy, with 64% of all businesses in the Republic of Ireland and 74% of businesses in Northern Ireland being family-run affairs,” said Dr Catherine Faherty, DCU National Centre for Family Business.

When asked about the factors that contribute to their company’s coping and resilience in very challenging times, it emerged that the companies all share common factors for their continuing success, ranging from strategic planning to open communications, resilience and innovation.

All of these factors are very clearly evident among the companies features in this special report. 

Generations of commitment to business 

 Family business runs deep in the DNA of Helen Wycherley, in her roles as director of Cork’s Marina Commercial Park and the Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery.

“I have good role models in my dad and my late mother who passed away 16 years ago. They both had a wonderful influence on me. I went to college and worked in Dublin before moving back to Cork in 2007 to work in the family business.” 

 The Celtic Ross hotel opened in 1997 – a key element of the family business that has continued to grow and expand over the years.

The Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery, Co Cork. Picture: Dan Linehan

“I didn’t choose a career in hospitality, and began by working on the floor in each department for nearly a year when I first started. Then I worked in sales, marketing, PR for a number of years. With it being a family business, I was always involved at a management level from the beginning and as a chartered accountant by qualification it has been a help in the figures area of the operation,” she explains.

A loyal staff count for so much in the hospitality business – an area that is very well served by the team at the Celtic Ross.

“Everyone is driven to serve our customers, always smiling and willing to go the extra mile time and again. I am proud that the passion for the job is still the same, and nobody sits still for long in the hotel business.”

 Her responsibilities are strategic and mainly involve working with the senior management team: “The best part of my job is meeting people – everyone has a story and something interesting to say.”

 Having celebrated its 25 years in business last March, The Celtic Ross hotel continues as a proud family jewel: “When its doors first opened in 1997 it was the first hotel to be built in West Cork in 30 years. I have been part of the hotel since inception and have celebrated many of our own family occasions here. I am proud to continue what my parents started a quarter century ago, and the successful journey it has taken us all over the time.” 

 During this historic centenary year, it adds greatly to the Celtic Ross’s deep roots and family history that Michael Collins was born in the parish of Rosscarbery at Sam’s Cross – in addition to the fact that the legendary patriot’s parents are buried in the graveyard close by. Another pair of Ireland’s more prominent patriots Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa and Tom Barry – also have strong connections to Rosscarbery.

For her presidency of Network Ireland in 2019, Helen’s theme was ‘Step Up’ – during which she visited all branches around the country.

“It was invigorating and inspiring to see the enthusiasm of other women going about their business. Coming together with like-minded people to support each other discussing the same topics, the same issues, offering each other ideas, is very empowering.” 

 With such a network providing a type of family ethos in itself, Helen is fulsome in her praise of an organisation where “women get to meet like-minded women in business, which in itself is inspiring. It encourages women to not only set goals, apply for grants, and enter an awards scheme, it also demonstrates that by setting goals, female entrepreneurs get to grow and develop.” 

 The current boom in Cork business is lifting all commercial boats, even with the challenging memory of Covid still visible in the rearview mirror.

“We have a city with multiple cranes in the sky, all of them there because there is a demand for them. Big companies are realising that they need to have a presence in Cork and are choosing here to set up their headquarters to attract Cork business.”

With her own three children all under 10, it’s definitely too early to guess whether they’ll eventually put their mark on this enduring family affair. Like Helen herself, they will be given the space and time to make their own decisions about that.

“It’s very early days,” she laughs. “But, just like I did as a youngster, they will all have jobs in the hotel during their school holidays in a few years’ time. Beyond that, we’ll just have to wait and see.”