In the 1940’s the Irish industrial landscape was very insular with for example protectionist tariffs for domestic industry in place. During the 1950’s however government thinking had changed and Ireland began to look outwards – with economic expansion with foreign investment being encouraged. The question of Ireland’s admission to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank was being mooted.
In 1957 Sean Lemass was Minister for Industry and Commerce (later Taoiseach in 1959) actively pursued a shift in government policy from agricultural subsidies and tariffs protection towards free trade, expansion of exports and incentive for inward investment. This was the background in which Shannon Free Airport Development Company Ltd (SFADCO), now know as Shannon Development emerged. Lemass made a submission to government that Brendan O’ Regan, the Comptroller of Sales and Catering at Shannon Airport should be given an enhanced role to develop traffic, tourism and airfreight at Shannon. The activity would be financed out of Sales and Catering revenue.
Brendan O’ Regan background
Born in Co. Clare his background both nationally and internationally in the hotel industry gave him a uniquely rounded perspective on development. He had overseas training in London, Germany and Switzerland. He managed the Old Ground Hotel, his family’s hotel the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon, the ailing St. Stephen’s Green Club in Dublin and made it profitable in 12 months. He was appointed Foynes Catering Comptroller in 1943 aged 25yrs. He then moved to the new Shannon Airport base (then called Rineanna). His administrative arrangement for remuneration was an example of 1940’s style public/private partnership with his contract allowing as a private independent contractor with participation in profits. Under it he was granted use of public assets to provide a necessary service to a required standard and he set up his own company, called Sales and Catering Limited which he owned and controlled. His contract give him much freedom of action – making him in effect ‘a one man state company’
In 1947 the Dáil approved an act creating a Custom Free Airport at Shannon, the first ‘free airport’ in the world. This meant that goods and passengers in transit through Shannon Airport would not be subject to customs examinations. O’ Regan was allowed to sell products to passengers at the airport at duty-free prices. In 1951 a duty-free liquor shop was opened in the airport and also in that year a training school for hotel management was opened at the airport under the Sales and Catering umbrella. During the 1950’s further airport shopping opportunities were added, perfume and watches. This duty-free shopping was a first in the history of world aviation. By 1954 there were 500 people employed in Sales and Catering with a £1.5 m annual turnover, and they introduced another world’s first, a mail order service.
By the late 1950’s the jet age was beginning to blossom. Faced with the threat to the Shannon Airport by the fact that jet aircraft didn’t need to stop at Shannon to refuel. O’ Regan was aware of the threat and had been examining ways of solving the problem since the mid 1950’s – he went to the US to look for new sources of business and met with US travel agents who expressed an interest in using Shannon as a free port transit stop with one, two and three day tours starting and ending in Shannon. The idea of promoting industry projects as an integral part of air freight was also mooted.
First Targets set by O’ Regan
Main steps taken by O’ Regan during that period (i.e. up to 1959 when the SFADco was officially incorporated as a registered company) and with government impromata included:
The influx of industrial enquiries in the late 1950’s, Sean Lemass established Shannon Free Airport Company (SFADCo) on 28th January 1959 The company was established as a limited liability company with considerable freedom of action with 50 objective including:
Minister Erskine Childers introduced the SFADCo bill to the Dial in 1959 and asked for exchequer funds to be made available to the new company for factory construction (share capital), operating expenses (annual grant in aid). He pointed out that two incentives were already in place – customs freedom for import/export and exemption from corporation taxation for 25 years.
In 1961 Paul Quigley was appointed as SFADCo’s first General Manager, he started with the company as general services manager a year earlier. He adopted an integrated approach to developing tourism, industry, Shannon Town and other developments.
Innovative Tourism projects
Castle restoration and their development as tourist attractions
In 1957 Lord Gort, owner of Bunratty Castle and John Hunt, an archaeological expert and art collector, sought to have Bunratty Castle restored to its full grandeur, funding was secured from the Office of Public Works and Bord Failte). Lord Gort furnished it with items from his own collection. A furniture trust was established. The castle was open to visitors in 1960 with SFADCo charged with managing the castle as a tourist attraction. A partnership approach between Lord Gort, SFADCo, OPW and Bord Failte emerged for the management of Bunratty Castle – one of the first collaborative ventures to be undertaken and endorsed by O’ Regan who strongly advocated the idea of a partnership approach to development.
Medieval banquets were run in 1962 as part of a tour programme on an experimental basis. In these early days some secretarial staff from Shannon Development donned medieval costumes at night to perform at the banquets. So successful did it prove that it took off from there. In tandem with this plans were prepared for a folk park in the grounds of the castle. In 1969 Lord Gort transferred ownership of Bunratty Castle to the State (SFADCo bought it for a nominal £10,000 –which was lent indefinitely to SFADCo by the Gort family).
Following on the success of Bunratty Brendan O’ Regan convinced US millionaire Mark Andrews and his wife Lavone to buy and restore Knappogue Castle near Quin in Co. Clare. A restoration trust was established and though this SFADCo was granted the right to use the castle for tourism purposes. It was opened as visitor attraction and then as a mediaeval banqueting venue. Dunguaire Castle near Kinvara in Co. Galway was the third castle to be acquired, it was owned by Lady Christobel Ampthill and during the early years of the castle as a tourism operation she resided there, but later retired to England and sold the castle to SFADCo.
A fourth castle project was initiated by John Hunt at Craggaunowen near Quin in Co. Clare. In 1969 SFADCo purchased the Craggaunowen site and set about developing the Craggaunowen Project – reconstructing a ring fort, a lake dwelling and other presentations of antiquity there.
Rent and Irish Cottage
In 1968 Rent an Irish Cottage company was set up by O’ Regan using clustering of traditional style cottages to rent as self catering accommodation to visitors, with one central cottage to provide reception, entertainment and dining facilities at each site. A number of centres were identified in villages around the Shannon Region. The goal of the public sector agencies was to act as primers for the initial phase of the project but to take a back seat one it was up and running and just be a minority shareholder. SFADCo was to act as an agent for RIC in site purchase, cottage construction, management and marketing. It was designed to address the problems of depopulation in rural communities and among RIC locations were Broadford, Feakle, Whitegate, Carrigaholt, Murroe, Kilfinane, Holycross, Knocklong, Ballyvaughan, Puchane and Corofin. In 1972, RIC board felt confident enough to establish it own management unit independent of SFADCo. In 1985 a number of loss making schemes were sold off and in 1990’s SFADCo sold RIC to a private sector company.
Tourism marketing in the 1960’s
The development of tour programmes, and tourism and air traffic promotion was a central part of SFADCo’s activities from its inception. Their aim to increase the number of airline passengers using Shannon. The US market was the major focus of their promotional campaign in the early days, with airline executives, charter operators, travel agents and Irish-American societies targeted to create a high level awareness of Shannon’s attractions. A US consultant was initially appointed but by 1962 the volume of work demanded the setting up of a New York office handing press relations and travel sales – with the primary promotional activity being travel trade and media advertising. By 1976 with rising costs of an overseas office, the press activity was discontinued and the focus concentrated on travel promotion.
‘Free day in Ireland’
The ‘Free day in Ireland’ tour was launched in 1962 on a pilot basis. It gave US tourists 24 hours at Shannon free of charge, including coach tour, accommodation and meals. The pilot attracted 300 participants and out of this success the ‘one day mediaeval tour’ was born. It involved a stop-over in Shannon a guided coach tour of scenic attractions and culminated in a mediaeval banquet, with 30,000 visitors participating by 1966. In co-operation with CIE the tour expanded into two, three and four day tours including other areas such as Connemara, Killarney. This venture was a first for Ireland and proved hugely successful.
During the 1970’s changes in the aviation patterns made the Shannon stopover less attractive to visitors, and the medieval tours were replaced by inclusive tours, special interest tours, special activity holidays and incentive holidays. Many of these would have been promoted to the European market to tour operators and charter companies. Ground handling in Shannon was done by Castle Tours, a section of Sales and Catering Ltd. By 1973 poor traffic growth rates were experienced at Shannon as a result of a number of issues among them the turmoil in Northern Ireland. New fare structures favoured larger airports. In the 1980’s the dominant traffic development activity was marketing and promotion. There was a growing realisation that new tourism product development was needed. Shannon Development set about securing funding for a diverse range of tourism attractions. From 1989 to the present day Shannon Development assisted in the development of a range of visitor attractions and tourism infrastructure valued at over €600 million.
Nandi O’Sullivan
Public Relations Manager
Tel: +353 61 710259
Mobile: +353 86-2371510
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