Business Builders

🔔🔔 Brendan McGurgan explains why your business can’t outgrow the leader you’re willing to become; and why scaling starts with self growth first 🔔🔔
Brendan McGurgan joins Business Builders to share the lessons from scaling CDE Global from a 15-person engineering company into a global market leader operating across six continents, before founding Simple Scaling to help ambitious business owners grow with purpose.
After spending nearly two decades leading one of Northern Ireland’s biggest business success stories, Brendan now coaches founders on the mindset, systems and leadership required to build companies that can scale beyond their dependence on the owner. He explains why most founders become the bottleneck in their own business, why delegation is a leadership skill rather than a management tactic, and why your business will only ever grow as far as you do.
Brendan also reflects on navigating the global financial crisis, building a culture that thrives through adversity, creating a compelling vision that people genuinely want to follow, and why success should never come at the expense of your health, relationships or sense of purpose.
This is a conversation about leadership, scaling, mindset, culture, delegation, purpose, and building a business that creates lasting impact.
“Leaders will only ever scale to the ceiling of their own belief system.”
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn:
 • How Brendan helped scale CDE Global from 15 people to a global business
 • The mindset shifts every founder must make to keep growing
 • Why founders become trapped working in their business instead of on it
• The power of delegation, systems and eliminating low-value work
• How to build a culture that thrives through uncertainty and change
• What the global financial crisis taught Brendan about leadership
• Why vision is one of a leader’s most important responsibilities
• How to inspire people by connecting business goals to personal goals
• Why every stage of growth creates new challenges
• How to scale without sacrificing your health, relationships or wellbeing
• Why purpose-driven businesses create greater long-term impact
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 – Cold open
 01:57 – What is Simple Scaling?
 04:27 – Why founders become trapped in their own business
 08:09 – Delegation, systems and your zone of genius
 10:25 – The mindset that stops founders scaling
 13:13 – Why leadership starts with changing yourself
 17:28 – Scaling CDE Global from 15 people to a global business
 21:22 – Leading through the global financial crisis
 27:08 – The principles behind successful scaling
 30:05 – How to inspire people with a compelling vision
 36:17 – Creating long-term business vision
 44:05 – Where founders get stuck
 49:39 – Every level has a new devil
 51:33 – Balancing business with family life
 01:00:27 – Why Brendan founded Simple Scaling
 01:10:02 – Why you have an obligation to scale
 01:12:16 – Where to learn more
Topics covered:
Scaling, business growth, leadership, founder mindset, entrepreneurship, SMEs, delegation, business systems, company culture, vision, purpose, leadership development, personal growth, scaling businesses, coaching, change management, resilience, business strategy, founder bottlenecks, Northern Ireland business, CDE Global, Simple Scaling, scale-ups, high-performance teams, business leadership

🔔🔔 Charlie Hamilton explains how he led a business through the financial crash and Covid; and why the best leaders never stop dealing with reality 🔔🔔
Charlie Hamilton joins Business Builders to share the story of Canadia Flooring, one of Ireland’s leading flooring suppliers, and the leadership lessons he’s learned from three decades of building the business.
Starting as an accountant before joining the company in its earliest days, Charlie worked his way from sales to Managing Director before eventually completing a management buyout and becoming owner. Along the way, he led the business through the global financial crisis, expanded into the UK when the Irish market collapsed, and later navigated the uncertainty of Covid.
Charlie explains why he believes the most dangerous thing a leader can do is ignore reality, why surrounding yourself with experienced people matters, and how building the right team has been the foundation of Canadia Flooring’s success.
He also reflects on the management buyout process, the importance of independent boards for SMEs, finding work you genuinely enjoy, and why entrepreneurship is often about spotting opportunities that others don’t see.
This is a conversation about leadership, resilience, long-term thinking, business growth, and building a company that lasts.
“The real danger is that you don’t deal in reality, and you don’t deal with the facts that are in front of you.”
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn:
• How Charlie grew from accountant to owner of Canadia Flooring
 • The lessons from leading through the financial crisis and Covid
 • Why expanding into the UK transformed the business
 • The reality of completing a management buyout (MBO)
 • Why good advice is worth paying for
 • How an independent board helped grow the company
 • Why entrepreneurs see opportunities differently
 • How to build a resilient leadership team
 • Why listening to customers is a competitive advantage
 • The importance of planning years ahead, not just months
 • Why doing work you genuinely enjoy changes everything
 • What the next decade looks like for Canadia Flooring
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 - Cold open
 01:03 - Introducing Charlie Hamilton and Canadia Flooring
 02:41 - The story behind Canadia Flooring
 09:25 - Building a nationwide business
 11:22 - From accountant to flooring
 13:16 - Becoming Managing Director before the financial crash
 14:35 - Surviving the recession by expanding into the UK
 16:09 - Finding work you genuinely love
 18:12 - The confidence to lead
 22:24 - Leading through crisis
 25:06 - Why EO and great advisors matter
 27:25 - Why every SME should consider a board
 29:39 - Listening to customers
 35:30 - Completing the management buyout
 42:39 - Becoming an entrepreneur
 44:40 - The future of Canadia Flooring
 48:46 - 30 years in business
 49:41 - Where to learn more
Topics covered:
Entrepreneurship, leadership, management buyouts, MBO, business growth, SMEs, Irish business, family business, recession, financial crisis, Covid, resilience, leadership mindset, boards, governance, strategy, customer experience, sales, scaling a business, construction, flooring, importing, entrepreneurship in Ireland, Canadia Flooring, business ownership, founder mindset

🔔🔔 Hannah Wrixon explains why the most successful women are often the least supported; and why she’s building a global network to change that 🔔🔔
Hannah Wrixon joins Business Builders to share the story behind Keller and why she believes one of the biggest challenges facing women in leadership is something few people talk about.
After building and exiting multiple businesses, Hannah noticed a surprising pattern. While countless initiatives exist to support startups and emerging leaders, many of the women who had already “made it” were quietly carrying enormous responsibilities with very little support themselves. The executives and founders mentoring everyone else often had nobody to turn to when they faced their own challenges.
That insight led Hannah to launch KELLA, a private global community for senior women leaders and entrepreneurs designed around peer-to-peer support, leadership development, and meaningful connections.
Alongside the story of Keller, Hannah reflects on building and selling Get the Shifts, navigating Covid, understanding her own strengths as an entrepreneur, and why ambition and personal fulfilment are not always the same thing.
She also shares her experiences as a woman entering heavily male-dominated industries in the 1990s, the importance of risk-taking, and why she proudly describes herself as “unapologetically ambitious”.
This is a conversation about entrepreneurship, leadership, ambition, identity, and what success really means.
“That’s all wonderful. But who’s mentoring you? Silence. Full stop.”  
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn:
• Why the most successful women are often the least supported
 • The story behind founding Keller and its mission to support women leaders
 • Why Hannah’s first attempt at building Keller went badly wrong
 • The costly mistake she made with Builder.ai
 • How she built and exited Get the Shifts
 • Why she sold the business after Covid
 • The challenges of balancing ambition with family life
 • Why knowing your strengths matters as a founder
 • How a conversation with her son changed how she thinks about identity
 • Why she believes women should be unapologetically ambitious
 • What success means to her today
 • How Keller plans to become a global network for women leaders
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 - Cold open
 01:03 - Introducing Hannah Wrixon and Keller
 02:55 - Why she founded Keller
 05:18 - “Who’s mentoring you?”
 05:47 - The mistakes she made building Keller
 08:38 - Why the original tech platform failed
 10:27 - Losing money on Builder.ai
 12:08 - How Keller works today
 18:47 - Expansion into the UK and global ambitions
 22:45 - The story behind Get the Shifts
 27:34 - The reality of entrepreneurship and cash flow
 29:50 - The bank almost stopped payroll
 32:21 - Covid and reinventing the business
 36:21 - Why she sold the company
 37:37 - “You’re my hardest-working, poorest friend”
 38:48 - Why entrepreneurs don’t work normally
 39:14 - Work addiction and identity
 41:07 - Her relationship with her son Callum
 43:02 - Why selling the company felt disappointing
 46:22 - Finding purpose through Keller
 50:34 - Being told there were no jobs for women in engineering
 55:03 - The challenges women leaders still face
 58:19 - Becoming an accidental entrepreneur
 59:37 - Why she isn’t afraid of failure
 01:01:10 - Being “unapologetically ambitious”
 01:02:47 - What she wants written on her gravestone
Topics covered:
Women in business, women in leadership, entrepreneurship, startups, founder mindset, leadership, ambition, purpose, identity, work-life balance, business exits, scaling companies, peer networks, executive leadership, female founders, mentoring, gender equality, confidence, family, personal development, business growth, Keller, Get the Shifts, leadership development, founder psychology.

🔔🔔 Danny Buckley shares how grief, purpose, and an ADHD diagnosis at 32 led him to build one of Ireland’s fastest-growing healthcare businesses 🔔🔔
Danny Buckley joins Business Builders to share the remarkable story behind ADHD Now and how a series of deeply personal experiences transformed both his life and his career.
For much of his life, Danny believed there was something wrong with him. Undiagnosed ADHD left him struggling with anxiety, emotional regulation, and self-understanding, while family health crises and the devastating loss of his wife forced him to confront some of life’s hardest challenges.
After receiving his own ADHD diagnosis at the age of 32, Danny discovered that understanding himself was only the beginning. Determined to ensure others wouldn’t face the same barriers he had encountered, he set out to build ADHD Now — an online service designed to provide fast access to diagnosis and meaningful support beyond it.
What began with a mission to help others has quickly grown into a thriving healthcare business employing almost 100 people, alongside the launch of Autism Care and a broader vision to improve access to neurodiversity and mental health services across Ireland.
In this episode, Danny reflects on grief, faith, purpose, emotional resilience, and why success means far more than money. He also explains how building a mission-driven business has helped turn pain into something that positively impacts thousands of lives.
This is a conversation about entrepreneurship, loss, personal transformation, and the power of finding purpose through adversity.
“I thought there was something wrong with me my whole life.”
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn:
• How Danny’s own ADHD diagnosis at 32 changed his life
 • Why diagnosis is only the beginning — and why aftercare matters
 • How losing his wife inspired him to pursue entrepreneurship
 • Why emotional awareness transformed his mental health
 • The story behind founding ADHD Now and Autism Care
 • How the business scaled to almost 100 staff in just a few years
 • Why purpose matters more than profit
 • The importance of structure and discipline for people with ADHD
 • How Danny thinks about success, grief, and happiness
 • Why Ireland can become a world leader in neurodiversity and mental health support
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 - Cold open
 00:40 - Introducing Danny Buckley
 01:20 - The vision behind ADHD Now
 03:00 - Why diagnosis isn’t enough
 07:20 - Growing up undiagnosed
 08:30 - Family health struggles and adversity
 09:50 - His wife’s illness and cardiac arrest
 11:00 - The conversation that changed everything
 12:20 - Grief and discovering ADHD
 14:00 - Receiving his diagnosis at 32
 15:00 - Building ADHD Now
 17:30 - The role of faith and purpose
 20:20 - Emotional regulation and self-awareness
 23:00 - Why children need better support
 25:50 - Redefining success
 27:00 - Faith, entrepreneurship and the “magic formula”
 29:00 - Scaling ADHD Now
 35:00 - Leadership and knowing your strengths
 37:00 - Why he no longer has bad days
 38:30 - Parenting, support and family
 41:00 - EY Entrepreneur Of The Year
 45:00 - Imposter syndrome and self-belief
 48:00 - The future of ADHD Now and mental health in Ireland
 49:30 - Final thoughts
Topics covered:
ADHD, entrepreneurship, neurodiversity, autism, mental health, grief, resilience, purpose, leadership, emotional regulation, startups, healthcare, personal development, parenting, faith, business growth, founder mindset, emotional intelligence, Ireland, ADHD diagnosis, Autism Care, entrepreneurship and purpose.

🔔🔔 Emmet O’Neill reveals how StoryToys nearly collapsed after years of venture capital funding, how he cut the business from 45 people to 15, and how that turnaround ultimately led to a €35 million children’s media company with more than 300 million app downloads 🔔🔔
Emmet O’Neill joins Business Builders to share the remarkable story behind StoryToys, one of Ireland’s most successful digital media companies and the creator of educational children’s apps based on brands including Disney, Lego, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, Bluey, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and more.
Starting his career as an illustrator before moving into digital media, Emmet spotted the opportunity created by the arrival of the iPad and helped pioneer a new category of interactive storytelling for children.
But the journey was anything but straightforward.
After raising significant venture capital and scaling rapidly, StoryToys found itself growing too fast in too many directions. Burn rates soared, the business came close to collapse, and difficult decisions had to be made. Emmet shares the painful reality of cutting the team from 45 people to 15, taking over leadership during the company’s darkest period, and rebuilding the business around profitability rather than fundraising.
What followed was a remarkable turnaround.
By refocusing on high-quality licensed content for preschool children, securing partnerships with brands such as Lego and Disney, and maintaining a relentless focus on product quality, StoryToys transformed from a struggling startup into a highly profitable global business generating €35 million in annual revenue.
Along the way, Emmet reflects on working alongside his brother, the challenges of venture capital, product-market fit, acquisitions, leadership during crisis, creativity in business, licensing major intellectual property, and why he believes great businesses are built by enabling talented people to do their best work.
The conversation also explores the future of children’s media, Netflix’s growing games strategy, AI’s impact on creative industries, autism-friendly product design, and why creating products that genuinely improve children’s lives remains at the heart of StoryToys’ mission.
This is a conversation about creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership, resilience, product-market fit, and building a business that survives long enough to become extraordinary.
🎧 In this episode, you’ll learn 🎧:
• How StoryToys grew from a small Dublin startup into a €35 million business
 • Why Emmet believes many startups become addicted to venture capital
 • The mistakes that nearly caused StoryToys to collapse
 • How cutting the team from 45 people to 15 saved the company
 • Why profitability changed everything for the business
 • The story behind securing partnerships with Disney, Lego and Netflix
 • How StoryToys creates educational alternatives to addictive mobile games
 • Why creativity can be a powerful advantage in business leadership
 • The lessons Emmet learned working alongside his brother
 • How to identify and nurture talent inside an organisation
 • Why product-market fit matters more than growth at any cost
 • The realities of scaling a venture-backed business
 • How StoryToys was acquired and why Emmet stayed on as CEO
 • What makes successful acquisitions work after the deal is signed
 • The changing economics of children’s media and entertainment
 • Why Netflix is becoming an important gaming platform
 • How AI is being used inside StoryToys today
 • Why Emmet is less worried about AI than he was five years ago
 • How StoryToys designs products for autistic children and families
 • Why meaningful impact matters more than download numbers
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 - Cold open
 01:00 - What StoryToys does and the children’s app market
 04:00 - Educational games versus addictive mobile apps
 10:00 - From illustrator to digital entrepreneur
 14:00 - Joining StoryToys and working with family
 17:00 - Creativity as a business advantage
 20:00 - Building products and securing major licences
 26:00 - The Very Hungry Caterpillar and children’s storytelling
 31:00 - Venture capital, growth and near-collapse
 37:00 - Returning to profitability and saving the business
 43:00 - Pandemic growth and finding product-market fit
 46:00 - Selling the company and lessons from VC funding
 50:00 - Acquisition by Team17 and continued growth
 56:00 - The future of children’s media and gaming
 59:00 - AI, creativity and the future of software
 01:04:00 - The challenges facing children’s content creators
 01:08:00 - Building products for autistic children
 01:15:00 - Creating meaningful impact through technology
Topics covered:
Entrepreneurship, startups, venture capital, StoryToys, children’s media, educational technology, mobile apps, app development, product-market fit, Disney, Lego, Netflix, intellectual property, licensing, acquisitions, leadership, business turnaround, scaling companies, profitability, creative entrepreneurship, digital media, gaming industry, children’s entertainment, AI, artificial intelligence, autism, neurodiversity, company culture, product design, business growth, Irish startups, technology business.