Carlow entrepreneurs full of beans having found their niche
Majella Owens co-owner of Barrow Brew, Milford. Pic: © Michael O'Rourke Photography 2026
YOU don’t have to travel far to get your caffeine fix in Carlow! Coffee shops in horse boxes and containers have sprung up all over the county since the pandemic years.
Many of the locations of these caffeine pit-stops are in the suburbs and outskirts of towns, perfect for commuters, parents taking a ten-minute refueling break and the young and old who are looking for a local place to meet friends for a walk and to gossip.
Their owners are all striving to create a sense of community around their businesses, to create places that encourage strangers to have conversations.
We spoke to four businesses in Carlow about what it’s like to run a coffee container, but there are many more â CIAO, Deerpark Industrial Estate, Carlow; The Forge, Accommodation Road, Carlow; Xpresso drive-thru, Kilkenny Road, Carlow; Rayburn Coffee, Tullow; and the Vintage Coffee Box, Oak Park â that deserve a mention. Hygge Coffee Box, run on weekends by 17-year-old Walter Webb, can be seen popping up around the county too.
Barrow Brew, Milltown Sisters Nicola Doyle and Majella Owens always said to each other “Wouldn’t it be great to get a cup of tea” when they were down by the River Barrow. They grew up in Milltown, playing along the stretch of water that is still so popular with young Carlovians.
After Nicola had an awful experience with the coronavirus, they decided to turn that dream into a reality. They pulled up their “little horsebox” at the car park in March 2021 and were an immediate success.
“When I say a baptism of fire, that was a baptism of fire. I could only make one coffee at a time,” said Majella.
After two years in the horsebox, the wooded area surrounding the car park caught their eye. They asked the landowner if they could set up a coffee shop in the natural semi-circle of trees under the canopy of a 230-year-old oak tree and found he was “incredibly supportive.” The construction of the wooden cabin and the picnic area was an example of “the power of community,” said Majella, with Irish Waterways, local businesses and residents pitching in to spread mulch and donate tables.
“Even in absolute depths of winter, when it’s pouring rain, it's still so lovely to look out there,” said Majella.
A few years in, the business is popular with young and old alike â students come down to study at the picnic tables and older people come to enjoy a “bit of banter” with the people working there.
Their 86-year-old mother comes down daily to take care of the flowers.
“She will never be alone. Somebody will always come and sit down and talk to her,” said Majella of the welcoming and friendly atmosphere.
The two sisters have been instrumental in helping other pop-up coffee places in Carlow, giving advice and sharing their supplier details. “We're all just trying to earn a crust. There's plenty of business for all of us,” is Majella’s attitude.
Hot Shotz, Tullow Road, Carlow Sisters Sinéad and Jennifer Brady opened a coffee shop out of a container at Éire Óg car park, Carlow in May after working in retail most of their lives. “We just said we'd like to do something for ourselves; we’ve been working for people all our life,” said Sineád.
They decided to base themselves at Éire Óg GAA grounds “because there's great footfall between stuff going on in the club, there's all the schools, the naíonra playschool, the Gaelscoil. There’s a huge residential area on the Tullow Road and there was nothing really on that side of town,” explained Jennifer.
Between school runs, people can “swing in” to one of the many car parking spaces and take five or ten minutes to refuel, text a friend and get themselves a treat.
“We’re not coffee connoisseurs,” said Sinéad.
“We just want it to be a spot for everybody, everyone is welcome and we want to have a word for everyone when they're here,” said Jennifer.
The hut is already a popular spot for people to meet after exercise classes in the clubhouse, after matches, training and tournaments and even running clubs.
“We have good coffee and we have snacks and treats, but we're more about the people,” said Jennifer.
“Even with the benches we had one woman who sat down last week and said, ‘I'm going home to an empty house,’ but another woman came and they sat beside each other for half-an-hour and just had a lovely conversation. They didn't know one another. We want that community kind of feel to it as well.” Their extended family has been very supportive. Their uncle made them a bookcase where people can swap books while getting their coffee. Another family member donated a bench and their aunt organised an advertisement to go in this newspaper.
Although they work hard, “we don't take ourselves too seriously,” they said, showing a gift card that read ‘Treat yourself to something hot, obviously not us.’ Hot chocolates and iced coffees are incredibly popular, they say. They are looking at adding acai bowls to the menu and a hot item for the winter menu.
It took them a year to do their research, from getting barista training to setting everything up.
They give a lot of credit to the owners of Barrow Brew, who gave them advice.
“If it works, it works. And if it doesn't, you know, it's, like, nothing ventured, nothing gained,” said Jennifer.
“It doesn't feel like work,” said Jennifer. “We laugh every single day,” said Sinéad.
