Electric.ie Magazine Nov - Dec 2019

14 ELECTRIC.IE • The Magazine & Website for the Irish Electrical Industry • Paddy Sugrue, Managing Director of Kellihers Electrical is awarded the EIFI Lifetime Achievement Award M ƒ‰†ƒŽ‡ ‡ŽŽ‹Š‡” ƒ••—‡† –Š‡ ”‡•’‘•‹„‹Ž‹–› ‘ˆ Ž‘‘‹‰ ƒˆ–‡” –Š‡ ‡ŽŽ‹Š‡” „—•‹‡•• ‹ ‡””› ™Š‡ Š‡” Š—•„ƒ† ‘Š †‹‡† ‹ ͥͣͤ͝Ǥ Š‡ •‘—‰Š– –Š‡ ƒ†˜‹…‡ ‘ˆ Š‡”…Ž‘•‡ ˆ”‹‡†• ‡‹• ƒ† ‹– —‰”—‡ –‘ •—……‡••ˆ—ŽŽ› ƒƒ‰‡ –Š‡ ‡ŽŽ‹Š‡” „—•‹‡•• ™Š‹…Š ƒ– –Šƒ– –‹‡…‘•‹•–‡† ‘ˆ ƒ ƒ‹ƒŽ ˆ‡‡† ‹ŽŽ ƒ† ƒ •ƒŽŽ ‡Ž‡…–”‹…ƒŽ „—•‹‡••Ǥ She approached their son Paddy Sugrue, a chartered accountant, formerly employed by Arthur Andersen in Dublin, and asked Š‹ –‘ —†‡”–ƒ‡ ƒ Ƥƒ…‹ƒŽ analysis of the Kelliher business as well as to actively explore any future potential commercial opportunities! Paddy was subsequently asked to move back to Tralee in 1979 to assume the position of Managing Director of the company. Paddy ™ƒ• –Š‡ Ƥ”•– ƒ† ‘Ž› ‘Ǧˆƒ‹Ž› member in Kelliher’s long history to assume this role. Magdalen Kelliher continued to work in the company as Company Šƒ‹”’‡”•‘Ǥ Š‡ Ƥ”Ž› „‡Ž‹‡˜‡† that ‘you must remember that the single most important emphasis at Kellihers is servicing the customer requirements’ and that attitude was duly passed on to Paddy and is ingrained throughout the whole organisation to this day! While Kellihers was originally an Agri business, Paddy switched focus and began to expand the electrical side of the business from ‹–• ”ƒŽ‡‡ „ƒ•‡ǡ Ƥ”•–Ž› –‘ ‘”ǡ followed by Limerick & Waterford. The Kellihers legacy continued to grow during the 90’s with the acquisition of the West of Ireland’s largest electrical wholesaler CT Electric and Fitzpatricks Electrical in the north east. During the 90’s Kellihers continued to expand to the East Coast, starting with Dublin. There are now 8 branches covering an area from Bray to Dundalk. Paddy gives great credit to all the team who, by their dedication to customer service, have enabled the company to grow throughout the past 40 years. GE – 1998 Kellihers status as one of the country’s leading electrical wholesalers did not go unnoticed and, in 1998, attracted the attention of the global conglomerate General Electric. At one stage during GE’s tenure and during the boom years in Ireland, Kellihers had almost 30 branches nationwide which showed the phenomenal growth path Kellihers had been on, in only 20 years. Kellihers strong association with GE then ended in 2006 when the American company sold its electrical division to Rexel, France, one of the biggest electrical wholesale companies in the world. Š‹• ™ƒ• ƒ– ƒ ˜‡”› †‹ƥ…—Ž– –‹‡ ˆ‘” Industry News