Pat Quinn (businessman)
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Pat Quinn | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1 July 1935 |
| Died | 23 November 2009 (aged 74) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation | Founder of Quinnsworth |
| Spouse | Anne |
| Children | Bernard, Patrick, Lisa, Gavin, Paul, Tanya, Barry-John |
Pat Quinn (1 July 1935 – 23 November 2009) was an Irish publican, hotelier, music promoter, storyteller,[1] former millionaire and founder of the Quinnsworth (now Tesco Ireland) group, Ireland's first supermarket chain.[2] He invented the term "yellow pack".[dubious – discuss] According to The Irish Times, he was "one of the country's best-known business figures in the 1960s and 1970s", "the whizz kid of the Irish grocery business" and "a well-known figure in the Irish-Canadian community" at his death.[3] He worked, honeymooned and eventually settled with his family in Toronto. The Toronto Sun described him as "County Leitrim's favourite son".[4]
Quinn was born on 1 July 1935 and grew up in Cloone, County Leitrim.[1][5] His mother ran McNamee's, a nearby public house and grocery store, and his father was a local member of the Garda Síochána.[2][6] The family were also funeral undertakers.[2] His brothers Fersey, Fintan, and Kevin, and sister Annette Maher survived him, though another sister, Mary Lynch, died before him.[3] Quinn boarded at St. Mel's College, County Longford.
Business life
Woolworths and family business
Quinn began work as a stockboy at Woolworths in Limerick, being promoted to the position of store manager at the age of 22.[2] In 1958, Quinn and his uncle, Peter Quinn, opened Quinn Co on Longford's Main Street.[2]
Promoter of music events
Quinn was a promoter of music events during the 1960s in Ireland.[5] He hosted events at Quinn County,[clarification needed] featuring pop stars such as Joe Dolan, The Drifters and the Royal Showband.[2] He met his future wife, Anne, at one of these performances in 1960.[2]
Quinn advanced his knowledge of the grocery and music business in Canada,[3] and promoted artists such as The Beach Boys, Johnny Cash, The Dave Clark Five, The Dubliners, Roy Orbison and The Supremes.[2][4] He introduced the Rolling Stones to North America in 1965, with Canadian police being called to a riot at the band's debut concert in London, Ontario.[4]
H. Williams and Quinnsworth
Quinn returned to his homeland in 1965 when he was hired as general manager of the H Williams supermarket group.[1][3] He asked them to open a branch of their chain in the new shopping centre in Stillorgan in Dublin.[1] When they refused, Quinn established his first Quinnsworth supermarket at the Stillorgan Shopping Centre in December of the following year, inspired by the Woolworths brand.[3] He worked alongside his wife to clean up in the evenings after the store closed.[1] Quinn opened six stores and made £6 million within five years.[3]
Upon learning that the fee to hire football player George Best to open one of his stores was £1,000, Quinn donated the money to charity instead, believing he had a high enough profile to perform the ceremony on his own.[1]
Rival stores
Quinn's supermarket rivals were other Irish stores such as Dunnes Stores and Superquinn,[3] the latter of which had to change its name to avoid confusion with Quinnsworth.[6]
Sale
Quinn sold his Quinnsworth chain to Galen Weston's Associated British Foods in the early 1970s,[5] becoming a millionaire at the age of 36.[6] By the time he sold Quinnsworth he had stores in Crumlin, Ballymun, Dundrum, Rathfarnham, Douglas, Wilton, Galway and Shannon.[2]
Promotion and style
Quinn is noted for participating in his own advertising,[3] wearing a white polo neck jumper in "the fashion and retailing statement of the late 1960s", as Sam Smyth dubbed it in the Irish Independent after his death.[6] Quinn's love for polo necks led him to arrive at one funeral dressed in a pink polo neck.[6]
Hospitality businesses
Quinn purchased several Irish pubs, such as the Dead Man's Inn in Palmerstown (closed in 1975) and Mooneys (which went into receivership).[1]
He went on to set up a hotel and sports complex in Kilternan, County Dublin.[3] Quinn's intention had been to create a similar facility to that seen in The Shining, but the 1973 oil crisis disrupted this plan.[6] The Pat Quinn Club later was called "one of the most spectacular [Irish] business failures on record".[1]
Quinn opened three pool halls, initially above Rathmines's Stella cinema and later in Bray and Drogheda and also set up an "executive coach service" for businessmen travelling around Ireland.[1]
There were also discount stores in Ballymun and Finglas, Ringsend's Pierrot snooker and gaming club and the Shoparound Centre on Dublin's South Great George's Street.[1]
The last venture shut in early 1986 following below average Christmas trading in 1985.[1] Quinn moved to Toronto in 1986, emigrating to escape the recession which gripped Ireland at this time.[3][5]
Later years
Quinn initially sold books and crisps in Canada.[6] He set up his first bar there in 2001.[2] His family are known in Canada for their Toronto restaurants and pubs, which include the "Irish Embassy" and "PJ O'Brien's", as well as one Montreal bar.[3] He appeared in the Toronto Star's business section to demonstrate his prowess in the Canadian business industry.[2] Quinn also continued his music promotion after his return to Canada.[3]
