Trading Up
Episodes
Embracing Difference, Building Strength: Belinda Brown on Leadership, Diversity, and "Midlife Clarity"
18 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Trading Up, host Jim Fitzpatrick sits down with Belinda Brown, a highly accomplished executive who has held top leadership roles at...
The Economic Ripple Effect: Middle East Oil Shocks & Northern Ireland's Fiscal Doom Loop
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Trading Up Unpacked, Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey analyse the severe economic impacts of the Middle East conflict, exploring ...
Authenticity, Adversity, and Algorithms: How Olivia McVeigh Built a Social Media Empire
04 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this inspiring episode, we sit down with 27-year-old entrepreneur and social media sensation Olivia McVeigh. Diagnosed with alopecia at a young age...
Trump’s Tariffs Ruled Illegal, AI Impacts, Jobs & Northern Ireland House Prices
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Trading Up Unpacked, hosts Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey analyse the economic shockwaves following the US Supreme Court ruling...
Built in Belfast, Adored Around The World: Building High-Performance Teams with People Playbook
18 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Tony McGaharan, the founder of People Playbook, reveals how he built his Belfast-based consultancy into a global business generating over £1 million ...
Unpacked: Workers’ Rights, Water Crises, and the Truth About Tariffs
11 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey on this episode of Trading Up Unpacked as they tackle listener questions regarding the local and global econo...
From Tobermore to Detroit: Lyle Watters and The Unconventional Path to Leading Ford
04 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
From his family’s undertaking business in Tobermore to the "Glass House" in Detroit, Lyle Watters’ journey to the top of Ford Motor Company is a m...
Mark Carney’s Davos Warning: The Death of the Old Order & How UK & Europe Should Respond
28 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The rules-based world order is dead. That is the brutal wake-up call from former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney at Davos. In this episode of Tra...
Building a £20M E-commerce Brand: The Kukoon Rugs Story
21 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join Jim Fitzpatrick as he interviews Paul and Clare Vallely, the brother-sister duo behind Kukoon. Learn how they scaled a rug business from local ma...
Economic Inactivity, EV Wars, and Regime Roulette: Navigating the 2025 Landscape
14 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey explore the shifting dynamics of Northern Ireland’s economy with employment falling and economic inactivity hitti...
The Business of the Arts: Claire Murray and Scaling Success at the Lyric Theatre
07 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join host Jim Fitzpatrick on Trading Up as he welcomes Claire Murray, Head of Development and Marketing at the Lyric Theatre, to deconstruct the "busi...
Listener Questions: Breaking the Grant Culture and Fixing Northern Ireland’s Economy
31 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this special holiday edition of Trading Up Unpacked, Jim Fitzpatrick and Professor Richard Ramsey dive deep into the pressing economic questions fa...
Tiarnán O'Neill: Bucking The Trend & The Galgorm Growth Blueprint
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How does a local hospitality group thrive while the wider sector faces "lights out" financial pressures?. In this episode of Trading Up, Galgorm Colle...
Northern Ireland Economy Under Pressure: Brexit Frictions, Budget Crises, and Global Policy Headwinds
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On this week's episode with Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey they explore how one key private sector survey suggests Northern Ireland's economy is s...
Trevor Magill: How Musgrave Group Built a €5 Billion, 7-Generation Family Retail Empire
10 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Trevor Magill is the Northern Ireland Managing Director of the Musgrave Group, one of Ireland's biggest and longest-established family businesses. It...
Tax, Ambition, and the Exodus: Decoding the Budget's Growth Gap and NI's Housing Headaches.
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of Trading Up Unpacked digs deep into the controversial "Spend Now, Pay Later" Budget, described as the "Klarna" budget, focusing on incr...
Resilience, Purpose, and Perspective: Andrew Patterson’s Journey from Elite Sport to Overcoming Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia (HSP)
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join Jim Fitzpatrick as he welcomes former professional cricket player and Ireland International, Andrew Patterson. Andrew shares his incredible journ...
Unpacked: Budget U-Turns, Global Trade Wars, and the Northern Ireland Economic Puzzle
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to Trading Up Unpacked, the business podcast from the Irish News and EY. Hosts Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey dig deep into the pressing i...
Rupert Soames: the CBI Chair and Churchill's Grandson on rebuilding economic ambition
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dive into the massive challenges facing the UK economy with Rupert Soames, Chair of the CBI. Known for running difficult and massive companies like Se...
NI Wages Up, Gold Mine Stalled: Why Economic Stagnation Fuels Global Autocracy
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Trading Up Unpacked, Jim and Richard dig deep into the economy and global politics. Northern Ireland is enjoying record pay increas...
Oasis Travel: Sandra Corkin and Son Scott McCabe
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join Sandra Corkin and her son Scott of Oasis Travel, an independent family business that has defied the odds in the travel industry. They share how t...
The New Global Disorder: Trade Wars, US Tariffs, and the Threat to Northern Ireland Business
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this Unpacked episode Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey examine how small business can survive in today's big, bad world. The global order has "ch...
Stephen McKeown - Apprentice mechanic to Allstate CEO
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Stephen McKeown grew up in the Glens of Antrim and developed his engineering skills as an "volunteer" mechanic in his Dad's car workshop. He now heads...
Fat Loss and Trade
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week it's Trading Up Unpacked with Jim Fitzpatrick and Professor Richard Ramsey digging deep into the nature of north south business and economic...
Niall McKenna & Marion Lancial
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Running a restaurant business is definitely not for the faint of heart. Jim meets celebrated Belfast chef Niall McKenna and Normandy native Mario...
Engineers vs. Lawyers: Can China's Model Fix Northern Ireland's Economy?
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Fitzpatrick and Richard Ramsey unpack the latest economic stats for Northern Ireland, revealing a complex picture for the hospitality sector which...
Martin Tierney: Seating Matters
17 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jim sits down with Martin Tierney who quit school at 17 to develop a family business with his brothers. He was a star pupil but his mother told h...
Shooting The Messenger and Debt Balloons
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join journalist Jim Fitzpatrick and economist Professor Richard Ramsey of Queen’s University Business School as they unpack the big economic and bus...
Season Two Trail
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Season 2 of Trading Up is coming soon... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Summer Shorts: Catriona Campbell on Making Artificial Intelligence Pay
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Catriona Campbell has advised governments and major industry players on AI, so it was great to get her for a one-to-one to outline what anyone in busi...
Summer Shorts: William McColgan's Proud Culture of Success
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
William McColgan runs a third generation family business with his sister in Strabane in the North-West of Northern Ireland. He brings a wealth of qua...
Summer Shorts: Rory King of Rory's Travel Club
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Rory King loves travel. He wanted to find a way of sharing that love with others. So he set up a Facebook page and started posting travel tips and d...
Summer Shorts: Matthew Nesbitt, Halos Bodycams
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Nesbitt had had enough of working down mines in Australia or deserts in the Middle East selling property when he returned home with a burning ...
Summer Shorts: Matt Creighton and Bleubird Clothing
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Matt Creighton has taken an unusual route to success. He admits that his big idea was born while he was enjoying life as a ski seasonaire in the Fren...
Summer Shorts: Maeve Monaghan of Now Group Explains Social Enterprise
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Maeve Monaghan runs a social enterprise. But she likes making money. Profit isn't a dirty word - it's what allows her organisation to make a differen...
Summer Shorts: Paul Stewart of My Baggage
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Paul Stewart didn't like paying airlines a fortune to bring his bags home from Uni in Edinburgh to his home in Belfast. So he set up his own business...
Summer Shorts: Hotelier Melanie Harrison's Storied Success
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this second of the Summer Shorts, we catch up with Belfast hotelier Melanie Harrison. The key lesson here is how Melanie has put thoughtful storyt...
Unpacked: Benefits U-Turn and Tax Rises; Trump's Reverse Robin Hood and The Northern Ireland Economy
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On the latest Unpacked episode, journalist Jim Fitzpatrick and economist Richard Ramsey explore the big economic stories and how they're likely to sha...
Summer Shorts: Dominic Kearns of Fibrus and his £845 million gamble
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Trading Up, Jim Fitzpatrick interviews Dominic Kearns, founder and CEO of Fibrus, discussing the company's significant investment i...
Founders: How Declan Keeney Built The Most Advanced Virtual Effects Studio In the World
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Declan Keeney grew up with broadcasting in his blood. His Dad was the driving force behind a revolution in local radio in Ireland. Recognising a dem...
Thinkers: John Ryan on How Health Really Does Mean Wealth
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For years, issues like health and wellbeing have been the preserve of corporate HR departments. John Ryan is on a mission to change that. His approa...
EMERGENCY EPISODE. Unpacked: Spending Review, UK Growth, US-China Deal, Water Charges in Northern Ireland
12 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's been such a busy week for economic news that we needed another Unpacked episode of Trading Up. Once again, seasoned business journalist Jim Fitz...
Brewing Beer, Building a Business, Innovating Every Day
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Bernard Sloan studied chemical engineering at Queen's University but found his true calling when he moved to Nigeria with his wife Kerry to run a brew...
Unpacked: Trump's Tariffs, TACO Trade, Big Beautiful Bill, Uncertainty Squared
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Does Donald Trump have an economic strategy and what does it mean for us? What are Tariffs? Who pays them? What's the latest development? What's happ...
Kneecap Film Business and Hero Sam's Life Lessons
28 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's not much that immediately connects a controversial Irish language rap group from West Belfast and a former Royal Marine and George Cross recip...
Making Stuff and a Multi Million Turnover in Kilrea
23 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Hutchinson was only 18 when he took charge of the family engineering business in rural South Derry. His father, Creighton, had built a successfu...
How They Build Boats in the Glens of Antrim
14 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Tom McLaughlin built his first boat in 1965 at the age of seven. It had its maiden voyage in the family garden. By 1977 with a strong desire to avoi...
Building Palaces for Saddam Hussein and Rides for Disney
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Who would you rather work for: Saddam Hussein or Mickey Mouse? Mervyn McCall has worked for both. As co-founder of construction giant Mivan, he buil...
Andrew Ingredients – 80 Years in Baked Goods with Tim Andrew
30 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It may be a tough business, but it seems like "wee buns" to Tim Andrew. Join Tim and Jim as they delve into Andrew Ingredients' 80-year history. Disco...
Balancing Bricks and Clicks - The Born and Bred Story with Linzi Rooney
16 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Discover how this Belfast-based independent retailer is thriving against the odds. Learn about what Linzi Rooney means by her culturally relevant prod...
From Belfast Roots to Business Powerhouse: Tina McKenzie's Story
09 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Discover the inspiring journey of Tina McKenzie, from launching a recruitment business that went from zero to 150 million in short order. From r...
Entrepreneurs on Risk, Resilience, and Rapid Business Growth
02 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The multi-millionaire and serial entrepreneur who began his business journey as an unlicensed street trader. The bank employee who quit school be...
Sugar Rush: From Coffee Loyalty Apps to Bespoke Business Solutions
26 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The scariest business decision Ali MacFarlane ever made - and he's not alone here - was hiring his first employee. But two decades later, his bespoke...
Putting The Human First in Cyber
19 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Clare Ryan cut her entrepreneurial teeth on a market stall and then a corner shop. She was the first in her family to go to university where she exce...
Female Founder Karen Sells Up To Staff
12 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Karen Maguire doesn't do the expected or routine. She wouldn't have decided to set up her own manufacturing business if she did. She wouldn't have g...
53 rejections, 1 yes, and £150 million to lend.
05 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Judith Totten thinks kindness is important in her business. Which is rather surprising because she's in the finance business. But it has paid off for...
Heart Attack Sows Seeds of Success at Linwoods
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Patrick Woods' grandfather died at age 42. His father needed a heart bypass in his early fifties. So, being healthy really means something to him an...
Saving Lives With Precision
19 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Picture a 72-year-old farmer in Idaho who has been diagnosed with skin cancer. He's about to start a tough regime of chemotherapy. The kind of toxic...
Greg's Pure Gym Grit & Growth
12 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Greg Bradley is no spoofer. But when he got a call from the strength and conditioning coach for a global sporting giant requesting equipment he'd see...
Hero Sam Swaps War Fighting for Juice Squeezing
05 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What qualifies or prepares someone to create a chain of juice bars and a hospitality-focussed software business? A glance at Sam Shephard's CV wouldn'...
Food, Faith & Frozen Fish
29 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Andrew Lynas runs a family-owned food business. But it's not like many others. It began with his grandfather who had a row with his greengrocer boss s...
How The Sausage Gets Made
22 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You can't have it all. Life involves sacrifice. But William McColgan is an example of how you can come close to having it all, as long as you correc...
Turning a Facebook Punt Into A Multi-Million Business
14 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A nasty tackle during a football match in his final year of school left Rory King with a broken jaw, and it changed his life. If it hadn't happened, R...
Always Pay The Sales Guy Well
08 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's a reason why you should keep your key sales staff happy. Mathew Nesbitt is what can happen when you don't. He goes and sets up his own busin...
Building Big in Belfast
18 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
He's behind the biggest residential development Belfast City Centre has ever seen and he wants to change the way we live. He began his career as a sur...
Mayfair Comes to Magherfelt and Nasdaq to Newry
11 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We catch up with two former guests to find out what's happened since we first met them on the podcast. The Newry lawyer who took an Irish pharma firm...
Sporting Failure meets Business Success
04 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jan Cunningham believes in failure. He may have helped put Ulster Rugby on the world stage as European champions with a stunning victory in the 1999 ...
AI Takes Over The Podcast
27 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Things get meta on the podcast this week as Jim Fitzpatrick dives into AI with industry leaders Catriona Campbell of EY and Tom Gray of Kainos. Not o...
World's Biggest TV Show and a Field of Dreams in Banbridge
20 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Game of Thrones is one of the biggest TV shows ever made so you would expect a tour based around one of its key studio locations to be world class.&nb...
Taking a bite of the food business
13 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Thana Thammavongsa was working for a mapping company in Coleraine when her career took an abrupt turn off the planned route and into the unchartered t...
Ski bum to clothing king - How Matt Creighton took off with Bleubird
06 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We don’t all get to take ourselves to the top of a mountain for inspiration. But for Matt Creighton, it worked. As a keen skier, he’d ta...
A student loan & an illegal pitch - Pete Boyle's remarkable story
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Pete Boyle began with a student loan and an illegal pitch on Belfast’s Royal Avenue. He built a retail business that’s made him many millions...
Brexit and Bubbles - JN Wines' James Nicholson
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The journey begins in 1977 with a Ford Cortina in Crossgar and makes important stops in Dublin and London with foreign destinations now on the horizon...
Jailhouse Spirit - John Kelly of McConnell’s Irish Whisky
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
John Kelly of McConnell’s Irish Whisky: It looks like a typo, but it’s central to the brand - McConnell’s Irish Whisky. Spot the issue?&nbs...
Wellies on the farm and a suit in the office - Rob Heron from EY Northern Ireland
08 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When he’s not wearing wellies on the family farm at the weekend or trainers as he pounds the pavements prepping for his latest marathon, Rob Heron w...
Throw away the begging bowl - Maeve Monaghan from Now Group
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Maeve Monaghan loves making money. It’s what she does with it that makes her business different. She heads Now Group which is a social ent...
From chief ride tester to director of the company - John McAreavey from Clearhill
24 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The serious business of fun - So, picture the scene. You’re in town doing a bit of shopping but you’ve got your young toddler with you and they're...
University frustrations led to shipping firm - My Baggage's Paul Stewart
17 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever tired of hauling a suitcase after you on holidays and the queues for bag drop at airports; or wondered how to get a student packed off t...
Saving money with net zero - Connor McCandless from EnergyStore
10 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This business turned its net zero ambitions into a bottom line bonus, and at the same time found itself snarled up in an unwanted investigation from t...
Securing £100m with a slide deck - Dominic Kearns from Fibrus
03 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Securing £100m with a slide deckWhat sort of start-up business secures £100m in funding with nothing more than a slide-deck presentation to show for...
The Maghera joiners building big in London - John Bosco O’Hagan from the Specialist Group
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
There's a Maghera company of joiners involved in some of the most prestigious commercial, leisure and residential developments in London.If you’ve e...
Amelia Hall is Belfast's newest hospitality spot - Peter Ringland from the Ringland Group
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Peter Ringland is one half of the family firm, The Ringland Group, the other half is his brother Ben. Between them they’ve developed from an Ai...
Treating anxiety and insomnia with electrical pulses - Dr Jason McKeown from Neurovalens
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Brainwaves and brain-boxes in Belfast where a tech startup's mission is to zap brains across the world with electricityDr Jason McKeown is the founder...
Kneecap and the Irish language movie business - Trevor Birney from Finepoint
06 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kneecap, the movieTrevor Birney is much more than a tenacious investigative journalist. He is a documentarian who has found himself producing a f...
The secrets of selling big on Amazon - Kevin McNamee from Denroy
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A Bangor company shifts four million hairbrushes a year on Amazon. The Denman brush was made famous by celebrity stylists such as Vidal Sassoon and co...
The Newry lawyer and the Irish unicorn - John McEvoy
23 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
John McEvoy's story is the remarkable tale of a real Irish unicorn.A unicorn is the title conferred on a start-up company that achieves a billion doll...
Boosting business through storytelling - Melanie Harrison from The Harrison hotel
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Fitzpatrick is joined by Belfast boutique hotelier Melanie Harrison who uses powerful storytelling to win business, engage her guests and create a...
Claridges Hotel top floor built in Mid Ulster - Mark Gribbin of Setanta Construction
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jim is joined by Mark Gribbin of Setanta Construction who built the top four floors of Claridges Hotel at his Mid Ulster factory before shipping it to...