Carlow’s best businesses honoured at glittering awards ceremony in Visual
Carlow Business of the Year – Torc Candles Ltd: Stephen Bryan, Veronica Dobbs, Colin Heraty, cathaoirleach Tommy Kinsella representing overall sponsors Carlow County Council, David Sammon and Norah Ryan, president of County Carlow Chamber of Commerce Photos: Thomas Sunderland
CARLOW was sparkling last Thursday evening as hundreds gathered in the Visual arts centre to celebrate excellence in local business. Twenty-six winners were announced at the glitzy Carlow Business Awards, one of the highlights of the business community’s year.
Winners, nominees and supporters attended the vibrant awards ceremony celebrating together during an evening that emphasised a huge pride in being from Co Carlow. More than 400 people attended the event, organised by the County Carlow Chamber, which was hosted KCLR presenter and judge Brian Redmond.
The winners came from businesses of all shapes, sizes and sectors throughout the county. This year’s overall winner was Torc Candles from Borris, which also won the Medium Business of the Year award.
“The Carlow Business Awards are always an eye opener – they highlight not only the quality and variety of businesses operating throughout the county, but they also give us an insight into the amazing achievements of the companies that enter,” said Chamber president Norah Ryan.
“Huge congratulations to the team in Torc Candles who stood out for the progress and development that they have made over the years. Their passion, commitment, drive and vision evolved a traditional, craft-led, labour-intensive business into an innovative, modern, world-class company, without losing any of its authenticity.”
Torc Candles has built on the strengths of a loyal, talented and long-serving team, coupled with an innovative, modern, expansionist approach, and this has resulted in a business with local expertise and global reach. Many of its employees have been with the company for years, giving Torc a rare depth of technical expertise that is passed on through structured training and mentoring.
The Business of the Year Award was presented to the team from Torc Candles by president Nora Ryan and cllr Tommy Kinsella, cathaoirleach of Carlow County Council, the overall sponsors of the business awards.
In his address at the start of the event, cllr Kinsella said: “Carlow County Council are proud to sponsor the Carlow Business Awards 2026 as part of our ongoing engagement with County Carlow Chamber and the business community. I would like to congratulate all of this year’s winners, finalists and nominees on their achievements. Being recognised among your peers is a significant accomplishment, and one that should be celebrated.”
Among the other notable awards presented on the night was the Carlow Ambassador of the Year award, sponsored by , which was presented to a man synonymous with music in the county and indeed beyond, Ollie Hennessy. The Lifetime Achievement Award, sponsored by the Talbot Hotel, went to Joe Tully of Tully’s Travel.
The President’s Award, sponsored by EBS Carlow, was won by Xenon Building Technology Ltd, while the Retail Business of the Year award, sponsored by Milford Financial Services, was presented to Bramley’s Jewellers.
This year, over 820 nominations were received for the business awards, with some businesses receiving several nominations. This resulted in over 350 applications, which in turn was shortlisted down to 77 presentations to judges and 102 ‘mystery shopper’ visits. Last Thursday, 122 finalists from 110 different businesses competed on the night, resulting in 26 worthy winners.
Carlow Chamber noted that none of this would have been possible without a strong pool of impartial experts who gave their time and expertise to assess and select the finalists and winners. In total, there were six panels of judges for the presentations, and ten mystery shoppers who visited businesses throughout the county.
