Showcase Ireland special episode from Dublin featuring Siobhán Kehoe from Rathbornes Candles, Bob Ianson from Heirloom Linens, Eleanor Hanna of Hanna Hats plus Justin Manning and Julia Maddin of Drake General Store

Welcome to a very special Showcase Ireland 2020 episode of The Voice of Retail, I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.

In this episode, recored live at the January Showcase Ireland buying show in Dublin.  I sit with both makers of amazing Irish products and two of the Canadian merchants that joined me for the trip across the Atlantic.

We kick off with Siobhán Kehoe from  Rathbornes Candles.  Founded in 1488 this is a company that got its start lighting the streets, churches and lighthouses of Dublin to now making products found in the finest stores around the world.

Next all the way from Victoria Bob Ianson, founder and co-owner of Heirloom Linens is back on the podcast and we sit down and talk about his observations from the buying show floor, what it takes to win in retail and his advice after a lifetime in retail to merchants just starting out and learning their craft.

Then Eleanor Hanna, General Manager at Hanna Hats of Donegal a third generation company passionate about creating unique Irish products talks about their powerful brand story and incorporating tradition and craftsmanship into their popular products

We wrap up with buyer Justin Manning and Julia Maddin, Head of Operations from Toronto’s own Drake General Store on how to develop an eye for the right product  on the Showcase floor that is a perfect fit for the eclectic merchandise mix that is the hallmark of the Drake’s assortment.

But first, let’s jump right into my conversation with Siobhán from Rathbornes Candles of 1488:

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Thanks to Siobhán, Bob, Eleanor, Justin and Julia for being my guests on this episode.  If you would like to lear more about Showcase Ireland taking place in January 2021 drop me a line or visit showcaseireland.com

That’s a wrap on this edition of The Voice of Retail.  If you liked this podcast you can subscribe on Apple iTunes or your favourite podcast platform, please rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the retail industry.

I’m Michael LeBlanc, Founder and President of M.E. LeBlanc and Company Inc. and you can learn more about me on www.meleblanc.co or of course on LinkedIn

Until next time, have a great week!

Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur.  He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. 

Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google.  He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.

Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer.  If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.

Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.