What spiked your interest in bloodstock and sales?

I grew up with horses and ponies at home in Co Clare. I did quite a bit of hunting and showing as a child. After finishing college, I spent a season working for Enda Bolger. I then started working in a food company where I spent three years, during this time I started a two-year part-time Masters in Supply Chain Management in UCD. This really extended my skill set and working with international students really broadened my way of thinking. It was always in my mind that if the right opportunity arose, I would like to work in the bloodstock industry and in 2021 I started with Goffs.

Who has been the biggest influence in your career so far?

There are a lot of good people in the industry who have given me plenty of guidance and advice along the way but from a career point, it would have to be Peter Molony and Gerry Hogan, they have both been a huge help. However, none of the Goffs team would ever let you go too far wrong. It would be remiss of me not to mention my parents, they are the ones that mind the horses at home and without them, it wouldn’t be possible for me to keep them. As Chair of the ITBA Next Generation, I want to highlight its importance and value: it acts as a gateway for those with an interest outside of the industry, it also provides a great opportunity to meet like-minded individuals and a space for learning and continuous networking. Any younger industry enthusiasts looking to gain more experience in the business should look into and consider applying for the ITBA Next Generation Internship Scheme.

Are there any challenges you’ve had to overcome?

There are always new differing challenges but there is a solution to every problem. I didn’t have huge luck with mares until last year, that changed when the first foal I bred sold to the highly regarded Ballyphilip Stud. There’s no greater feeling when it works out. Ursula Fogarty once told me “nature isn’t for the control freak”, that has always stuck with me. With horses things will go wrong but if you are persistent and work hard, you will make your own luck! For the small amount of breeding and pinhooking I do, I usually try to apply the “do it different or do it better” approach. However, when getting started, “doing it better” is not often possible because this industry, like most others, is very competitive and is made up of professional and established operators who can be hard to compete with. Therefore, I try to find the less obvious horse with a different or unique selling point.

Given my position in Goffs as Senior Bloodstock Executive, as part of the company policy, it is a requirement that all trading must be disclosed and logged in the Register of Interests. Trading must be carried out in a transparent and straightforward manner at all times.

If you could go back in time, what would you tell yourself starting out in the industry?

Be patient! This is something I try to continuously remind myself of.

Like a lot of young people when getting started, there can be an urge to get stuck in. While you do have to make the move at some point, I don’t think you can underestimate the value of putting in the research and ground work before putting your money down. It’s harder to bounce back from mistakes early on, whereas when you are more established or you have numbers, some horses will help to carry others.

What goals have you set for yourself going forward?

To continue viewing the industry with an open mind, to breed winners that are commercial, and to go racing as much as possible. I think this is really important, racing must be supported from within and it is a great way of mingling. Also, to stop judging foals when they are born before Clare Manning bans me from the Boherguy Foaling Unit!