How BPerfect’s Brendan McDowell went from a £500 stall to a multi-million pound beauty giant

‘In the first four weeks, I spent £3 million’: The Belfast man who grew a £10M lottery win into a booming whiskey business

In 1996, Peter Lavery's life changed overnight. At the time, he was earning £300 a week driving buses when he became one of Northern Ireland's biggest ever lottery winners, scooping up a £10.2 million. Nearly 30 years later, he's one of Belfast's best-known businessmen. Today, he's at the heart of one of Belfast's most ambitious tourism ventures as founder of Titanic Distillers, bringing whiskey production back to the city for the first time in almost 90 years. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

"Everyone will have an opinion!": Conquering the social media 'cringe' and finding your niche

From a beauty counter in Debenhams to a global beauty brand. Elanna McGowan is the owner of Pearl Beauty – a functional makeup brand which is making waves in the UK, Ireland and beyond. Originally from Canada, Elanna moved from Ontario to Ballymoney after meeting her now husband. Having built up a following on YouTube of almost 300,000, she decided to start a beauty brand that anyone could use – and pearl beauty was born. She joined Cathy to talk about finding your niche, building a brand, and staying true to yourself in business. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

“I was told I wouldn’t see 40”: The reality of ‘skinny jabs’

Marc Mckee was once told by his doctor that he wouldn’t see 40. At his heaviest, he was over 23 stone, and was heavily struggling with anxiety, food noise, and physical health issues. Now, after losing 9 stone through GLP-1 jabs, he’s started a skincare business, Elastik, to help others who have had a similar journey. He joined Cathy to talk all things GLP-1, the lessons he’s learnt in his journey, and how he's found running his business alone. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

‘It’s human nature to be scared’: How to master networking

Alastair Cameron is the founder of TechTides – a growing programme of regional tech conferences across the island of Ireland. His mission is simple – to bring everyone in the tech ecosystem on the island of Ireland together. In 2023, his life was turned upside down, when he was diagnosed with bowel cancer, which eventually advanced to stage 4 and metastasised to his liver. While recovering, he spent his time contemplating changes in technology – and TechTides was born. He spoke to Cathy about how to master networking, his experience with OCD, using LinkedIn to your advantage, and much more. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

“People think you have to be a millionaire”: What is angel investing?

Clare McGee is the co-founder of AwakenHub and Awaken Angels — organisations focused on supporting female founders and helping more women get involved in investing and entrepreneurship. Awaken Angels is the first all female investment syndicate. Only 2% of global investment goes into female-founded startups, and Clare and her team want to close the gap. She joined Cathy to talk about the journey of a female founder, all things investment, and her upcoming Sheventures summit. The content of this podcast is for information purposes and does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation of any investment product. See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.