Established since 1962, Gardiner Grain Ltd has been supplying the local farming community with quality products and services from their four outlets throughout Ireland’s south east. Carnew Branch manager Colleen Atkinson filled Irish Tractor & Agri in on what the company is all about.
These are indeed heady times for farmers in this country and companies like Gardiner Grain Ltd are there to provide them with the materials they need. With stores in Coolgreaney, where the head office is based, Gorey, Carnew and Avoca, the Gardiners have endeavoured to make sure that their products are available to those in the agricultural industry throughout Wexford, Wicklow and beyond.
It has been 53 years now since Joe and Margaret Gardiner started Gardiner Grain Ltd as a family business to supply the local farming community with quality products and services. While the reins of the company have changed and passed down the family ranks, the impeccable quality of brand and service stays the same.
Today, with over a half a decade experience and four store locations, Gardiners has become a trusted supplier for hundreds of customers throughout the east coast and all over Ireland, with online business broadening their horizons (gardinergrain.ie for more info).
Over the years the product line up has continued to expand to meet customer demand. Today Gardiner Grain is specialist in the supply of agricultural and farming products, hardware products, all forms of equestrian care and feed products and a full range of poultry related feeds and supplies. They also provide fertilizer under the Target fertilizer range which has been developed through Cooney Furlong Ltd.
For the past 10 years now, Colleen Atkinson has been the Gardiners’ branch manager at their store in Carnew in Co Wicklow and she insists that business has never been better out their way.
“Business is very good at the moment, thankfully. Farming is back booming in this area – beef is going very well; sheep are going well and there’s always a demand for grain,” said Colleen.
The demand for grain, in particular, is something which the Gardiners have been able to meet sufficiently down through the years and has seen them earn a valuable reputation as grain merchants throughout the south east.
With some 30 employees between all four branches, Gardiners have grown into specialising in all areas of the agri trading business. They also manufacture their own range of ruminant animal feeds under the ‘Avoca Milling’ brand name and retail their own range of dog food under the ‘Mad About’ brand name.
“We are involved in agricultural business and sell everything from feed and to hardware and chemicals. We set up our own mill here three years ago,” explained Colleen.
“We also opened a new branch in Gorey and it’s going very well. There are only three of us in the Carnew branch but we’re in a huge area and go as far as Baltinglass for our customers.
“Recently we started do our own dog food, rabbit mix – all in smaller bags and it has really taken off over the last couple of years for us.”
So why do customers continue to choose Gardiner Grain first? Colleen puts it down to the reliable brand and the personal touch from the owners themselves which people have come to appreciate down through the decades.
“They are a family business who are known throughout the area for many years. We have recently started selling the Staffords coal, along with briquettes etc and this in turn attracts women to the store also.
“The downturn didn’t hit us too badly, thankfully. Farmers are the one group of people that the banks will lend to nowadays and that’s great for our business, obviously. Basically, October through March is the busy period for us with feeding.”
Gardiner Grain Ltd also offers their customers products in other forms of animal nutrition, such as horse feed and poultry feed, as well as equestrian equipment, hardware and garden equipment and veterinary and poultry equipment.
That, in many ways, makes Gardiners a ‘one stop shop’ for anyone immersed in the agricultural industry. Colleen reiterates that point when outlining out the success of a company which she proudly represents from the Carnew end.
Proudly representing is something which she knows plenty about, having captained Wexford’s intermediate camogie team to an All-Ireland title at Croke Park four years ago. The win marked a very special year for the Slayneysiders as they’d also capture the senior crown with victory over Galway in the capital, which capped a remarkable double feat.
Colleen, who retired from camogie in March, fondly dwells when she looks back on the historic success.
“I started with Wexford from a young age and eventually broke on to the senior team in 2007,” she explained.
“We won the 3-in-a-row in 2010, 2011 and 2012, and I played left corner back on the intermediate team and was involved with the seniors and all those occasions also.”
She added: “JJ Doyle played such a huge part too. He came in 2010 and brought real belief to the team and we went on and won three in-a-row at senior level which was a great achievement for us. Then winning the intermediate on top of that as well, it was just a great year for Wexford camogie.”
Along with three All-Ireland medals, Colleen earned 10 county titles during her playing days with Oulart The Ballagh, earning two All-Ireland club titles in the process, before finally hanging up her boots in 2015.
Nowadays family and work commitments come first for Colleen, as she continues to keep her schedule busy.
“I retired in March gone past there,” she said. “They have tried to tempt me back but I’ve a daughter now and I knew that the All-Ireland club final last year would be my last game with Oulart The Ballagh.”
For now, it’s business as usual for Colleen as the customers keep coming into the store out Carnew way at Gardiner Grain Ltd.
Gardiner Grain Ltd
Head Office:
Coolgreaney,
Co. Wexford
Tel: 0402 37103
Email: gardinergrain.ie
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 3 No 9, October 2015
