RN April Willie O'Byrne

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Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund

Appealing To Your Better Nature Willie O’Byrne, Managing Director, BWG Foods, is the new President of Appeals for the Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund. He explains why the Fund is now more important than ever, how the Fund needs some new blood and how the Fund is modernising for the 21st century.

WHEN Willie O’Byrne was asked to become President of Appeals for the Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund, he took some time to make up his mind on the move. It wasn’t that the BWG Foods Managing Director had anything other than huge respect for the Fund and its work to improve the lot of families from the grocery trade who have fallen on hard times. Rather, the softly spoken MD was worried that fund-raising wasn’t “my natural habitat”.

“I was very honoured to be asked, because there’s a very prestigious roll-call of people who have held this position over the years,” he stresses.

“In the context of our industry, I would be following in the footsteps of giants.

“I had to be sure I could do justice to the responsibility that comes with the position, given that I don’t have a track record in fund raising,” he admits. “But at the end of the day, I knew that with determination and the right attitude, I could do the IGBF some service and tap

into my own network and that of my company on its behalf.”

While confessing that the idea of asking his trade colleagues for donations “doesn’t come naturally to me”, Willie knows it is an essential part of the job: “When you get to hear the stories of people helped and the impact the aid has had on their spirits, it puts the steel in your back that you need to put the hand out and say, ‘I’m asking on behalf of people who would never dream of putting out their own hand for help’.”

Juggling the year-long role of President of Appeals with the day-job has been, he confesses, “a challenge” so far.

“The rhythm of the business year

in BWG is such that the first quarter is always particularly busy,” he reveals. “We pride ourselves on retailer communications and Q1 is when we host all our SPAR and EUROSPAR guilds, MACE retailer meetings, the XL retailer forum, and a variety of awards nights, so there are a lot of set-piece formal communication events where I need to be on top of my game. It is also traditionally the quarter in which the President of Appeals’ letter of appeal is issued, an important aspect of the fund raising year. I needed to give that a lot of attention, and there was also the Cork and Limerick IGBF Balls to attend. So there was a little bit of juggling, but to be fair, the Balls tend to take place over the weekend so they

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Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund don’t impact on company time.”

Eating With The Enemy While the events eat into his own down-time, the affable MD feels that they have a secondary benefit beyond the money they raise for the IGBF. “There are very few places where competitors in the industry get to break bread together,” he smiles. “Just like that celebrated football match between the Germans and the English in No Man’s Land during the first World War, we park our differences at these functions. Ultimately, what separates us is dwarfed by what we have in common. The natural competitive nature of business ensures that cutthroat rivalry resumes as soon as we leave, but it is nice to have these oases where the industry, including suppliers, wholesalers and retailers, get together, and raise a few euro for a very worthy cause.”

And so we come to the crux of the problem facing the IGBF, as revealed in these very pages last November, when we spoke to IGBF Development Director, Des Redmond: current donations come to approximately €450,000 per year, while grants to more than 300 families it helps nationwide amount to €650,000.

“For the last few years, the IGBF incomings have not covered its outgoings, which has depleted reserves,” Willie explains. “Ultimately, that is unsustainable. Unless we can grow donations to match grants made, eventually we will have to limit the number of families in receipt of help or reduce the grant they receive. What I’m trying to do on my watch is to make sure we have the funds to match the need.”

The work of the IGBF is, if anything, even more important in 2014 than when it was founded over three decades ago, according to Willie.

“The recession of the last five or six years has taken a heavy toll,” he states. “If you are a sole trader and your business fails, there is little or no safety net. Your access to social welfare

“When you get to hear the stories of people helped and the impact the aid has had on their spirits, it puts the steel in your back that you need to put the hand out and say, ‘I’m asking on behalf of people who would never dream of putting out their own hand for help’.” is very limited, so it’s a lonely and scary place to be, usually compounded by the debts of the business.”

It is not just sole traders who have been affected, however. “There has also been a significant consolidation within the industry, particularly on the supply side,” he explains. “When you look at the plethora of suppliers who have amalgamated in the last 20 years, there has been a huge reduction in the number of trading enterprises. Less companies inevitably reduce donations to the fund as the supplier community have been a traditional mainstay for the IGBF. And that consolidation has ironically grown demand, even as it has challenged fund raising, because so many jobs have been lost. Not all of these people have managed to re-invent themselves and get going again in the

workforce, and our discreet assistance has been greatly appreciated,” Willie says.

Corporate Social Responsibility So how do you convince companies to dig deep and donate to the IGBF when they all have Corporate Social Responsibility programmes where they are already aligned to many worthy charities? The answer, according to Willie, is that the IGBF shouldn’t be seen as an ‘either/or’ conflict, but rather a ‘both/and’ opportunity.

“I don’t want to compete for funds earmarked for the Make A Wish Foundation or Cancer Research,” he says. “My appeal is different. This is about our industry looking out for and looking after our own. There is no publicity, no profile, no intangible dividend for donor companies or individual retailers. It is not about the size of the donation; the act of giving is a tremendous gesture of solidarity with ex-colleagues who have fallen on hard times. So far, I’ve been overwhelmed by some of the responses and genuinely touched by the generosity of suppliers, service providers and retailers. I’m hopeful that we will get to where we need to be.”

The whole idea of CSR has grown in importance over the last decade; rightly so, according to the BWG boss. “Almost every company is conscious today of its culture and value set,” he muses. “They are looking at the interdependency of the whole economic system, whereby your employees and your suppliers are also your customers. It is good business and good economics to see the big picture. Most companies talk about connecting with community, about people and respect: if you want to put any flesh on those bones, you have to look at how you are responding to those in need within our own industry.”

Broadening Support The President of Appeals is at pains not to abuse his position with BWG Foods to put pressure on its supplier base: “My day job gives me access

About the Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund The Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund (IGBF), founded over 30 years ago,

by Tim Nolan and the late Gerry Duffy, is a national registered charity assisting people in the retail, wholesale and supplier trade sectors. The objective of the Fund is to provide financial relief for persons in need who have been involved in

these trade sectors.

For over 30 years, enormous assistance has been provided to relieve hardship amongst unemployed and retired members and their spouses, who have fallen on difficult times because of ill health or bereavement.

Above all else, the IGBF are committed to the

improvement in the lives of our colleagues. Their mission is to enrich their lives by engaging with and involving as many colleagues as possible in raising much needed funds to meet such needs and maintain the long term viability of the Fund.

The charity currently assists over 300 families /

individuals monthly and will contribute over €650,000 annually on welfare support without any Governmental funding. The breadth and depth of support is inclusive of annual annuities and crisis grants.

The Fund is a registered charity - No. 6577 and also a registered friendly society No. 1775F.

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Irish Grocers Benevolent Fund to an extensive network, which I am delighted to canvas on behalf of the IGBF, but I am conscious in my wording to the supplier base to stress the voluntary aspect of any donation made.”

He is keen, however, to broaden the support for the fund, particularly from new entrants to the Irish grocery market, and has written to all the active retail groups. “Families from the retail trade dominate the list of grants made, I am hopeful all the groups will make a contribution. I was in a position to directly canvas BWG’s symbol retailers and was heartened by the generosity of many of our own retailers,” he says.

In addition to the letter of appeal, the National Ball, and the Christmas lunch, the IGBF is blessed to have many regional events across the year.

“I’m very grateful for the voluntary service from people who willingly and generously sit on regional committees, organise events, and raise money for the Fund”, Willie says. “All the money ultimately gets pumped back into the regions so the money stays close to where it was raised. In addition, a lot of the referrals tend to come from those regional committees because they are on the ground and get to hear of local situations where somebody is not doing so well or has ended up in a bad situation.”

A Discreet Service The President of Appeals stresses that the IGBF will remain “a discreet service” which will never use the testimonials of beneficiaries to market itself. Such a move, he feels “would be anathema to the values of the IGBF”.

He does, however, believe that the Fund needs to move with the times, look to attract new blood into the active volunteer group and be open to new ways to raise money from a wider donor base. “You need to know that the baton is getting passed on to a new

“As trustees, we cannot take the kind of ballsy, entrepreneurial decisions that you can make in business, where you can back seven big ideas in the hope that three will come through and one will win big. So that does constrain you a little, but I think the Fund and its organisation is modernising and opening itself up to new ideas.” generation in our trade. We need to work on improving awareness of the IGBF across the industry, particularly amongst younger people working in it, and make sure there are enough people coming into the IGBF to ensure its continuity and active presence as a force for good for many years to come.”

Balls and golf outings have provided an enduring traditional source of income. A great example of something different is the upcoming IGBF Midsummers Day at Tayto Park,

Forthcoming Events May 20 IGBF North East Region Golf Outing

Rossapenna Golf Resort.

May 22 IGBF Dublin Region Golf Outing

Palmerstown House G.C.

June 21 IGBF Midsummers Family Day

Tayto Park.

June 25 IGBF Southern Region Golf Outing

Faithlegg G.C.

July 17 Musgrave Golf Outing

Mount Juliet G.C.

Oct 18 IGBF Presidents Ball

Shelbourne Hotel.

Dec 5

Doubletree Hotel.

IGBF Christmas Lunch

Details of all forthcoming events and contact details are available at www.igbf.ie

Ashbourne, Co. Meath, on June 21.

Thanks to the generosity of Ray Coyle of Largo Foods, the IGBF have been allocated 1,000 Family Tickets at a substantial discount.

“This allows us to give value to those who buy the tickets but still deliver a significant contribution to the Fund,” Willie notes. “It will also help raise awareness because we are broadening our base. We want everyone who comes along to go home, knowing who the IGBF is and what it is about.”

Re-Energising the IGBF The President Of Appeals credits recently appointed IGBF Development Director, Des Redmond with reenergising the Fund for the 21st Century, with its new logo and new website (www.igbf.ie). However, he accepts that due to its very nature, the Fund is always going to be “somewhat conservative” in how it raises money and “cannot back an even money shot”.

“When we are trusted with money donated to assist colleagues in need, it is not an option to speculate to accumulate on very radical initiatives.” he reveals. “As trustees, we cannot take the kind of ballsy, entrepreneurial decisions that you can make in business, where you can back seven big ideas in the hope that three will come through and one will win big. So that does constrain you a little, but I think the Fund and its organisation is modernising and opening itself up to new ideas.”

So at the end of his year-long tenure as President of Appeals, what would he like to have achieved?

“With my primary responsibility as President of Appeals, I would like to sign off at year’s end knowing the money raised has covered grants made,” he says simply. “Also, if there is more engagement with the IGBF from the next generation, as well as a wider awareness of the Fund and what it does, and if our fund-raising activities have continued to diversify, then I will be very happy to pass the baton on to the next President.”

It is said giving is its own reward, and Willie has found reading the correspondence the IGBF receives from those it helps a great reminder of what is really important. “The grants we give out are modest enough, with the maximum around €2,500 per year. It makes a huge difference to those families helped, and reading the Christmas cards the IGBF gets from those families brings home that fact,” he concludes. “Invariably comfort came not just from the practical assistance but from the solidarity those helped took from the fact that the industry in which they had plied their trade had not forgotten them in their hour of need.”