Business from the daily grind

The next six months promises to be very interesting and varied for Aine Duffy. Around Christmas, she is due to give birth to her first child. By then, she will also know how she has fared in her latest venture into the big, bad world of business. On Monday 21st September, the young woman will officially open the Navan Grind School at Ludlow Street in the town. At a time when thousands of second-level students are trooping back to school, Duffy will be hoping a sizeable contingent will show up to her new academy to receive extra tuition in a wide range of topics from Boyle's Law to the poetry of Gerald Manley Hopkins. Undaunted by the changes she is expecting in her domestic life, and the fact that Ireland continues in the grip of a deep recession, Duffy (30) is determined to push ahead with her plans. "Some people say you're mad setting up a business when you are expecting your first child but I say, don't worry, it'll be fine," she says with the type of optimism that is part of her make-up. As she explained when sat down to talk to the Meath Chronicle last week, Duffy intends to employ up to 10 to 15 people from day one in her school. Most will be teachers and all on a part-time basis with all classes conducted in the evenings. With news that up to 3,500 teaching posts are expected to be axed by the Government, the creation of any jobs, even if they are part-time, will surely be music to the ears of those looking to get a firm foothold in the teaching profession. Duffy aims to take on teachers who have spent at least four years in the classroom and who are also be experienced in how State exam papers are prepared and marked. Aine Duffy lives in Navan with her husband, John Duffy, better known to local rugby followers as a lock forward on the Navan rugby team. The Balreask Old side are in the process of preparing for their debut season in senior rugby with Duffy as captain. It's a new challenge for the club, a step into the unknown - a bit like setting up a new business. Aine Duffy has already gained invaluable experience in the pitfalls of running a business generally and a grind school specifically. She has already set up a similar school in her native Tullamore, Co Offaly, and is more than pleased in how it is progressing. Duffy studied applied maths in UCD in the late 1990s, went on to complete one masters degree in UCD and another in DIT in teaching and "deep learning" before landing a job as a lecturer in computer science. Understanding The need for extra classes to help out secondary school students quickly became apparent to her when she started teaching at third-level. She says she was "amazed" at just how little some students really understood when it came to subjects such as maths and physics. All too often, she has come across examples of students choosing "popular" degree courses such as computer science or engineering, only to find themselves floundering. While youngsters can get by at Leaving Cert level by rote learning, their lack of real understanding is exposed in college. "Students are getting into courses that they are not able for when it comes to the maths, the biology, the physics. When I got to ask them about basic maths such as, say, two to the power of something, they just don't know it." Another cornerstones of Duffy's grind school philosophy is showing students the art of how to learn. Considering her background, it is hardly surprising that Duffy wants to make her mark in business. Her father, Oliver McManus, ran an electrical wholesalers in Offaly for many years. That entrepreneurial flair burns brightly in her family with a number of her siblings already running their own enterprises. The whole process of getting a business underway, she insists, should not be filled with stress and worry. It's about the challenge, the enjoyment that goes with getting a project up and running and ensuring it is operated in the proper manner. The young entrepreneur points out she is in a business that doesn't need a large, initial capital outlay. She is using her own resources to make up the investment required. She is also helped by the fact that she can cut costs by setting up her own website and do her own blogging. "It's vital not to kill yourself for the first couple of months making repayments because you should enjoy setting up your business as well. There's no point putting your health at risk, your family at risk, your house at risk, setting up a business. But, for me, this type of business, it's not a high-cost set-up. It's more word of mouth, reliability. That is what could put me out of business in two months' time or ensure I'm still on the go in 20 years," she says. "You have to love it. My father was an entrepreneur, my brothers are entrepreneurs, all my family would be very much self-movtivated to set up their own business. In my family, the ethos is, 'look, if you want to do your own thing, do your own thing, take a chance'." She says the employment of all of types of modern technologies - blogging, twittering, facebooking and viral marketing - are essential in getting her message out to the masses. Also vital in that process is the more traditional outlet, such as newspapers. Ironically, the recession has helped her in that rents have fallen. Two years ago, she explored the possibility of renting a premises and found the sums asked were "ridiculous". Now landlords are more amenable to arrangements whereby if economic conditions improve, rents can be increased accordingly. At least it gives new enterprises a chance to breathe. With the Navan Grind School about to set sail on its maiden voyage, Aine Duffy is also about to launch herself on a new and what promises to be an interesting phase of her business and personal life.