FenuHealth, an equine feed business founded by entrepreneurs Kate (18) and Annie (16) Madden from Meath, will establish a UK distribution centre to deal with the potential threat of Brexit in a key export market.
Kate Madden told The Irish Times the company had discussions with former UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson surrounding the impact of Brexit, and how they would go about setting up the centre.
The pair attended a garden party in Dublin at the British ambassador's residence on Tuesday evening, where they met the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, more commonly known as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Kate said she hopes to involve the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in a new junior chamber of commerce which she and her sister were in the process of setting up. She said the chamber would cater for young entrepreneurs in the UK and Ireland, and would aim to develop relationships with American chambers.
“Hopefully they’ll be involved,” Kate said, speaking in advance of the garden party.
FenuHealth produces powdered supplements which can be sprinkled on top of equine feed to help prevent and treat the problem of gastric ulcers in horses. The business has received support from Meath LEO and Enterprise Ireland.
The company employs eight people in sales and administration, while the sisters also employ a distributor in Germany and a person in Qatar. It sells eight products across a variety of markets.
FenuHealth’s products differ from their competitors as they can be used on the day of a competition or race, whereas other offerings have to be stopped at least five days before.
On the company’s UK distribution centre, Kate said while they had not established a location yet, they expect it to be in the greater London area.
