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Independent drinks wholesaler JJ Mahon & Sons has been synonymous with the licensed trade in Kildare since it first began operating in 1949. Founded by JJ Mahon, today the business is owned by David Mahon and his uncle Kevin Mahon. The family also own and run a pub in Kildare town, described by David as the county’s “best kept secret”. Just recently, JJ Mahon announced its acquisition of Carrick-on-Shannon based Drino Drinks, a wholesale supplier to the hospitality industry in the north west, west and midlands. “When Counterpoint exited the market in 2021, we saw an opportunity to grow the business into the north west. We also felt there was an opportunity for an independent wholesale bottler to take more of a market share. We took on a couple of the Counterpoint reps once they finished up and started to grow the business incrementally. When the opportunity to acquire Drino Drinks came up, we jumped at the chance,” said Sales Director David Mahon.

Drino Drinks, which is being rebranded as Connacht Bottlers, will be based at the existing distribution centre at Grange, Carrick-on-Shannon. All staff employed by Drino Drinks on the date of the takeover will transfer to Connacht Bottlers, which will become the largest independent drinks wholesaler in the region. “That additional facility will allow us to grow the business as we’re at capacity in Kildare. We’re aiming to expand into the north west of the country, into areas like Sligo, Cavan, east Mayo and Leitrim.” JJ Mahon already has a strong presence in the Dublin market. After the Celtic Tiger crashed, David and the team decided to expand into new areas, including the capital. “We took aim at Dublin and focused a lot of our time and energy there. Initially it was quite difficult, but I think there was an appetite for a family-run wholesale distributor like ourselves as opposed to a more corporate outfit. The fact that we’re publicans also helped build trust. We ended up growing our business quite significantly in Dublin; today we have 300 pubs in the capital that deal with us.”

Back in the 1970s, JJ Mahon used to manufacture its own soft drinks under the brand names ‘Curra Orange’ and ‘Curra Lemonade’. “We were forced to stop manufacturing the soft drinks in the late 1970s due to the fuel crisis in the Middle East. It became too cost prohibitive. We decided to focus on becoming a route to market for a lot of the main brand owners. We're in a very low margin business – it’s all about volume and trying to preserve your margins as best you can. Over the years, we worked really hard to develop the business as a credible route to market for the brand owners, which in turn has made us more relevant in the eyes of the publicans. Trust is hugely important in this industry. We’ve worked hard to build and maintain relationships with our customers and with the acquisition of Drino Drinks, we’ll be working even harder.”

With almost 700 customers on JJ Mahon's books, maintaining that personal touch won’t be an easy task. “There was a time when I would have known every single customer on our books, but that has become very difficult. The challenge now is guaranteeing the same level of service that we’ve always provided our customers. We’ve grown very quickly, almost doubling our turnover from 2019 to 2022. Right now, we’re focused on consolidating and ensuring we’re in a position to scale up while providing the best possible service.”

With a shrinking market, are there plans to expand JJ Mahon’s reach nationwide? “I wouldn’t say going national is on the radar right now. The way it’s worked within this industry is that each bottler had their patch and that was it. With so few bottlers left today, there’s scope for that tradition to shift. In a few years, we may sit down and review our expansion plans, but for the next two or three years we'll be knuckling down and capitalising on the acquisition."