Chequered career led Mayo entrepreneur to discover purpose in life
By Tom Gillespie
TOURMAKEADY born entrepreneur Diarmuid Gavin, country manager of the French company Théa Pharma, an eye-care company based in Castlebar, has the simple philosophy in life of ‘being there’.
In a chequered career, he qualified as a psychiatric nurse, joined the Aer Lingus transatlantic cabin crew, worked as an agency nurse and became a flooring expert, before making his mark in the pharmaceutical sector.
He grew up in Tourmakeady, the youngest of seven, just across the road from Colaiste Mhuire. His dad, Tommy, from Weatherford, Ballyglass, was the land steward in the college.
Diarmuid took up the story: “My dad was a musician in the showband era. He travelled quite extensively playing music all over Ireland. He played with Brose Walsh for a while and then he had his own showband.
“He told stories of setting off on a Saturday morning for Tramore and picking up lads and then playing all night until five in the morning and then driving back and dropping the boys off.
“My mother, Noreen Maher, who recently passed away in her 97th year, grew up in Balla. She was part of a family of 15. She trained as a nurse in London, came home, met Tommy. She was an intensive care nurse at Mayo General Hospital.”
Diarmuid went to St. Enda’s College in Salthill, Galway, after which he qualified as a psychiatric nurse.
He admitted: “I qualified on a Friday and on the Monday I started with Aer Lingus as a member of their transatlantic cabin crew. I spent a great year with Aer Lingus.
“Then my brother, Tom, was starting a flooring business and I worked with him all over Dublin doing wooden floors.
“Then I started as an agency nurse, which I did for five or six years, and I looked after some private cases in south Dublin.
“So in my mid-20s I was doing a bit of flooring, a bit of nursing and flying here, there and everywhere.
“It was time to figure out where I was going so at 27 I got a job with SmithKline Beecham. Getting into the pharmacy industry at the time was tricky and much sought after. I became the west of Ireland representative.
“I married my dear wife, Deirdre, who trained as a nurse in Dublin, and we moved west. She got a job with Dr. Broderick in Balla and was a practice nurse there for 20 years.”
Diarmuid continued: “I became the sales manager for the team and we merged with Glaxo. During all of this I was playing a bit of tennis in Castlebar. I was captain and then chairman. I got to know Tom Murphy and we both helped relocate the tennis club from Pavilion Road to its present location.
“From there I joined Tom at Pamex, Tom telling me I would have better fun in a small company. I started with Tom in 2007. When the recession happened we had to dig and bring in the sales. We did all that as a team and we had some fantastic moments and some other Fridays which were tough as well.
“That brought me to 2013 when I came across the Théa range where I am now.”
Says Diarmuid: “I had a varied career and each part of it was a piece in the jigsaw of me which was good.
“The psychiatric nursing was a great foundation for people’s interaction and for giving you leadership skills.
“The Aer Lingus part gave me a great customer service foundation that allowed me to work with customers but knowing your boundaries as well.
“I did a bit of flying as well in Florida where I did my 40 hours in a small plane. I quite enjoyed it and at one stage I was thinking of getting into commercial flying.
“I am glad I didn’t because the way things worked out I found that business gives you a blank canvass every day.”
Back in 1999 Dr. Stephen Covey came to Castlebar. He wrote the book of cards ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’.
He was an American educator, author, businessman, and speaker.
Diarmuid confessed: “I bought this set of cards and I have them with me ever since. These cards outline the seven habits that he (Dr. Covey) believes that are the most effective habits for success in life, not only business but for success for life.
“And I have those with me ever since and I try to share those with others.
“I am involved in a group called the ‘Power of Seven’, a west of Ireland business based out of Kinvara in Galway where Barry Walsh helps you look at your life in terms of, number one being me, making sure I look after myself both physically and emotionally, that will put me in a really good spot to look after my family.
“And if I am looking after my family by spending the right amount of time with kids, my brothers and sisters, wife and who ever, that then puts me in the best place to arrive to work in a happy place.
“So I aim to share that with my team so I always ask them to put themselves first. Every October we do ‘October Wellness’ and we talk about the benefit of exercise, of meditation, good diet, good sleep and how that can then help you to move into the world in a positive way with a smile on your face.
“I use a lot of what I learned with the ‘Power of Seven’ and I bring that to the team here at Théa.
“It helps you discover purpose, what drives you and I figured that down to two words ‘being there’ - being there for others.
“If I can do that I will have fulfilled some of my ambition.”
Théa Pharma is located at the Golden Mile Industrial Park, Breaffy Road, Castlebar, F23 D299, and they can be contacted in (094) 9250290.