Connemara Carpets is a family-run business with an emphasis on quality and craftsmanship that believes in making beautiful, affordable carpets, hand-made rugs and wall hangings that will stand the test of time …
“Instead of a house, we bought a business”, explains Joan Nagle, Managing Director of Connemara Carpets, the Irish brand founded in 1972 and based in Moyard, Connemara, which designs and manufactures bespoke carpets, rugs and wall hangings for both Irish and international markets.
Nagle and her husband John moved to Connemara in 2020 and acquired the business on March 8, four days before the first lockdown. In retrospect, Nagle explains: “It was good for us; it allowed us time to assess what the business had achieved and where it needed to go.”
Originally founded by Dennis and Wilhelmina McMurray, and later acquired by Kieran O’Donohue in 2010, the business was steeped in heritage having produced traditional hand-made, hand-tufted carpets and rugs for palaces, presidential homes and parliament buildings, including the famous blue carpet in the Dáil.
When the Nagles took over, the workforce had been reduced to two full-time and two part-time employees. However, in the short space of two years they now employ 14 full-time staff while a full-time apprentice started in March. “Some of the original craftsmen who were a part of Connemara Carpets returned, so there is a sense of continuity,” says Nagle with pride, whose interest in the business is personal. She had often worked with the McMurrays on bespoke commissions during the Celtic Tiger years, for herself and for clients, when she was involved in high-end house projects.
“In the 1990s and Noughties everything was made bespoke at Moyard but there was no showroom – so beautiful rugs and carpets were created but never seen. Our priority was to create a collection for display purposes in The Station House Gallery, Clifden to engage with the local community and seasonal visitors.”
This strategy was a huge success; they exhibited their first Moyard collection, inspired by Irish wildflowers, in July 2020, when lockdown lifted. “People who came to Clifden on holiday saw the new colourful, flamboyant designs, and realised that acquiring a bespoke rug was actually an affordable luxury.” Nagle is currently working on five commissions each under €3,000.
The Moyard Collection was followed by a more abstract Retro Collection, and this year’s dramatic Shore Collection, which is inspired by the sea, shells and seaside life. “There are three of us designing rugs at present which makes for a varied collection. Beatriz Laguna, Susan Mansfield and myself all work together on the collections.” Best-selling designs are the Cornflower and Montbretia designs from the Moyard collection, and the Resonance and Simplicity from The Retro Collection.
If the Nagles’ plan for visibility was also matched by a desire to diversify, their plans have mirrored current decorating trends. “Undoubtedly people are coming back to fitted carpets”, she says. “They may not be fully fitted but we have found that area rugs and wall hangings are becoming increasingly popular to soften areas that have polished concrete floors, for instance.”
Their hand-knotted wall hanging collections are created by Irish artists, recommended personally by the Oliver Sears Gallery in Dublin. “Artists offer us an artwork they think will translate well into tapestry and we recreate the piece in a selection of colours, deciding on whether a wool or silk tufting works best,” explains Nagle. There are in fact 2,150 colour samples in the Connemara Carpet inventory and it’s growing all the time. “We subtly match and create new colours for pieces of enduring quality.” To date they have worked with Irish artists Sam Walsh, Sarah Walker, Sasha Sykes and local Galway artists Alannah Robins and Joan Finnegan and plan to augment their artists’ stable in the autumn.
As for commissions, these are also thriving; costs range from €850 to €1,200 per square metre for all carpets, wall hangings and off the peg designs. Nagle has developed a seamless process from commission to completion.
“We create rugs in proportion to a space and the whole process is very personal. Often clients will see a sample in the showroom they like. I will visit their home to either replicate the design to the correct scale, or design something completely unique, if required. As each carpet is uniquely crafted, we can create unusual shapes from wrapping around fireplaces or pillars to curves.
Nagle will create an artwork of the design, and then a sample tufted square for clients. Once the colours and design are confirmed, a template of the rug is printed to scale so that clients can see what it would look like at home. Only after they are happy is the rug created.
This tried-and-tested process guarantees client satisfaction and has led to many repeat commissions. Among those are local hotels such as Ballynahinch Castle and The Abbeyglen. “We are very lucky we inherited a factory which is expansive enough to allow us to create a 30 square metre carpet without a seam – where wear and tear is more prominent. That is especially beneficial for commercial commissions.”
Given the interest from architects and interior designers, expansion is also part of the Nagles’ strategy. “We realised that while holiday business was thriving, there was a need to have a base in Dublin. We wanted to find a townhouse in a prominent position so that we could showcase the variety of our output – from fitted carpets to interesting ways to decorate stairways.”
Of the first Connemara Carpets townhouse, which opens on Merrion Street Upper, Dublin 2, on June 3, Nagle explains, “My concept is to do something different. I am particularly happy with the bedroom which showcases a subtle hawthorn tree carpet, deliberately designed so the branches and leaves and petals appear to emanate from under the bed. It’s really spectacular.
“At the townhouse, where our son will work, we will also showcase our rug collections in linen and bamboo, which are perfect for summer and cooler underfoot. The bamboo collection is made from a loop weave not a cut weave, while the linen collection is a mix of linen and wool and feels like silk. Our merino wool collection has the texture of velvet.”
In addition, having developed a business relationship with Clodagh Murray, owner of Granny’s Bottom Drawer in Kinsale, visitors and residents in Co Cork will also be able to view, and more importantly feel, Connemara Carpets. “We replicated a striking throw which Clodagh had in the store and have made a fitted carpet at the back of the shop, which gives the impression of a trail of seaweed.”
Further afield, plans are also afoot to open a showroom in Westport, in upstate Boston, such is the demand from the Irish diaspora. Nagle has been working with two American interior designers and exports to the US are flourishing, something that started in the 1970s.
“The business has completely changed. When the McMurrays ran the business, 85 per cent of carpets produced were for export, now 85 per cent is for the Irish market. While we still export, mainly to the US, the European market is also prospering.”
Such is the Nagles’ success with Connemara Carpets, they have been nominated to represent Galway at the 22nd National Enterprise Ireland Awards which take place on Thursday, June 2 at the Mansion House, Dublin.
“It is a great honour and our Local Enterprise Office, headed by Breda Fox, has been very supportive, with mentorship to financial support.” Connemara Carpets will compete against 30 other finalists from every local authority area for a share of the €50,000 winners’ prize fund. “The nomination acknowledges the employment, manufacturing and exporting opportunities we have initiated since taking over the business.”
As a family business, the company’s successful approach in marrying traditional craftsmanship, with creativity, colour and a cohesive vision for the future speaks for itself.
Need to Know: Visit the Connemara Carpets exhibition at The Station House Gallery, Clifden, and its Moyard showroom, Co Galway which is open from Thursday to Monday, 10am to 6pm, and by appointment on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Dublin showroom at 30 Merrion Street Upper is open from Monday to Saturday, 11am-6pm, and until 7pm on Thursdays. To find out more visit www.connemaracarpets.ie.