ACORNS alumni Brosna O’Donovan left the broadcasting world to establish Mighty Grays Studio in Sligo and has never looked back.
We talk to rural women entrepreneurs from across Ireland who recently took part in the ACORNS 9 programme.
Acorns recently celebrated a decade of support for female entrepreneurship in rural Ireland. 57 women entrepreneurs who completed the recent programme saw their turnover increase by more than 40%.
“I had yet to set up the Studio when I began ACORNS. This turned out to be a good pressure, because it made me feel I had to earn my place, and I learned a lot from the group”
Women in rural Ireland with new businesses or at least with well-developed ideas are being invited to join next phase of the programme, ACORNS 10.
The ACORNS programme is designed to support early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland through a peer learning approach. Thanks to the support of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and the voluntary contribution of time by Lead Entrepreneurs, there is no charge for those selected to participate.
Only early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland, and who have had no sales before the end of June 2021, are eligible to apply.
ACORNS 10 will run from October 2024 to April 2025 and will include six monthly round table sessions, a workshop on understanding financials, a briefing by various development agencies and an end-of-cycle celebration.
Emergence of a 3D animation industry in the West
Brosna O’Donovan decided to set up her own 3-D animation company after she had grown accustomed to living in her native Sligo during the pandemic.
The call to return to work in Dublin after the pandemic was the catalyst for her to strike out on her own – which is something she had always wanted to do.
Now based in Sligo town, where she is originally from, Brosna had been working in TV operations and production in Dublin for RTÉ and then Vodafone before setting up her company, Mighty Grays Studio, in October 2023.
“Mighty Grays Studio is a 3D animation company specialising in creating short explainer videos for businesses and government agencies.
“I knew there was a gap in the market for good quality 3D animation – having attempted to source specialists in the area in her previous roles.”
While still in Dublin, she undertook a course in Drawing and Visual Investigation at NCAD to refresh her skills. Then, in Sligo, she did a Start Your Own Business course with LEO Sligo and launched the company.
She got her first two clients – Ardán and CÚRAM – through a successful tendering process.
When she joined the ACORNS programme, Brosna was apprehensive because she had yet to set up her business whereas other participants were further along.
“I had yet to set up the Studio when I began ACORNS. This turned out to be a good pressure, because it made me feel I had to earn my place, and I learned a lot from the group.
As the business develops, Brosna wants to continue creating explainer videos for business clients and to do idents work for tv stations. Idents are the short series of animations tv stations use to promote their channels.
Over the next couple of years, she expects to hire staff on a project basis and rent a space in a premises.
What is ACORNS?
ACORNS, which stands for Accelerating the Creation Of Rural Nascent Start-ups, is in its 10th year. It is funded through the Rural Innovation and Development Fund by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). ACORNS was a runner up in the 2018 European Enterprise Promotion Awards, Investing in Entrepreneurial Skills. The programme was developed by Fitzsimons Consulting.
Eligibility Criteria for participation on ACORNS
To be considered for ACORNS, applicants must:
- Have set up a new business which has generated sales no earlier than the end of June 2021 or be actively planning a new venture and have made good progress towards getting the new venture off the ground. Indicators of actively planning a business would include organising the start-up team, sourcing equipment / facilities, money saved for the start-up, writing the business plan, etc.
- They must own or part-own the business and be living in a rural area, that is in an area outside the administrative city boundaries of Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford.
- If selected, applicants must be available to attend the launch Forum and first round table session on October 21 and 22, 2024.
- They must expect to become an employer within three years.
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