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Aoibhin, Ailbhe and Doireann Garrihy open up about parents losing their business during recession

Their parents struggles inspired them to dream big

Aoibhin, Ailbhe and Doireann Garrihy are the most well-known sisters in Ireland right now.

The trio are all making a name for themselves – Aoibhin, 30, as an actress; Ailbhe, 27, as a PR guru; and Doireann, 25, as one of Ireland’s top social media stars, as well as a radio presenter on Spin 1038.

However, the Garrihy sisters have revealed that their work ethic and drive was influenced by their parents losing everything in the recession – like many families in Ireland.

They revealed that Eugene and Clare Garrihy ran a construction firm for years, but they were forced to go into liquidation during the recession.

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“Our parents were actually in construction for 26 years. In 2010, they went into voluntary liquidation because, well, nothing was happening,” Doireann told VIP Magazine.

However, their parents managed to pick themselves back up – and launched a brand new business after spotting a gap in the market.

“They had to put a Plan B into action, which turned out to be Dublin Bay Cruises. Dad and his brothers run the ferries that go out to the Aran Islands and he thought, ‘Dublin has nothing like that’ — so he decided to capitalise,” she continued.

Aoibhin, who starred on RTÉ’s Dancing With The Stars earlier this year, said that losing the business “was like a death in the family”.

“It sounds very ­dramatic, but that was what they did all their lives. It’s what we knew them as and all of a sudden you lose that sense of identity.

“For us, well for me, it was a wake up call that all of a sudden you’re not your parents’ responsibility — they’re kind of yours now. Because they felt that really hard,” Aoibhin said.

“It was tough. But now five years on, the business is thriving,” Ailbhe added.

Former Fair City star Aoibhin also told how their parents always encouraged them to follow their dreams.

“Our parents put in an incentive scheme that if you put time and work in, you’d be rewarded for your efforts, and made sure to ground us.

“They always took us back to the West (where they’re from) — to Inisheer and the Aran Islands, so we were blessed to have that.”

“We were so lucky in a way, they never told us, ‘Oh, there’s no future in that.’ They always told us to follow our dreams,” Doireann added.

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