Chloe picks up prize for business idea
INVENTION Handy Hook catches on!
Successful entrepreneurs will tell that it is often the simplest solution that is the most effective. Longford girl, Chloe Hopkins, may well be one of those business players. Chloe will be familiar with viewers of The Late Late Show when she, along with a number of other young entrepreneurs, got a chance to show the nation their products.
Chloe also won the best commercial potential prize in the intermediate category of the National Student Enterprise Awards. The Ballymahon Vocational School pupil picked up her award at a ceremony that was held virtually at Croke Park.
The Cavan connection for the young business person is that her mother, Aisling Gaffney, is originally from Galbolie, Bailieborough, and is the daughter of Pat and Mary Gaffney.
Speaking to the Celt Chloe outlined where the idea came from: “I play a lot of sports - soccer, gaelic and basketball. I was training and girls were leaving tops and jumpers and gear bags on the ground. Knowing Irish weather, it starts to rain and everything gets wet. So I thought there has to be a better option than just leaving them there to get wet and dirty so I came up with Handy Hooks.”
Chloe says the COVID-19 pandemic played a part in coming up with the idea: “Dressing rooms all across the country are no longer accessible for use. This is resulting from the fact that you are 19 times more likely to contract the virus indoors than you are outdoors. As a result of this players no longer have somewhere to store their gear. This was an issue, which impacted my life on a daily basis, so I though ‘what if you had an outdoor hook you could bring to the pitch to hang up your gear’ and so the Handy Hook was born.”
The product became a reality with the assistance of 3D printed at the Athlone Institute of Technology. It comes in two parts that clip together: “It can be hung on a green mesh fence at football pitches, astro turf pitches and parks,” Chloe says.
“The Handy Hook holds coats, jumpers, jerseys, bibs and drinks bottles. They come in a wide range of colours including club and county colours. They are small in size and lightweight so can be easily carried around. The Handy Hook only costs €5.”
The 15-year-old third year student had some assistance to making the hook a reality: “My business partner is Amy Kelly. Amy looks after all the business side of things. Our teacher Ms Hall entered us into the local County Longford Enterprise competition in the intermediate category, which we won out. As a result, we were to represent County Longford Enterprise in the All-Ireland National Enterprise final.”
Mass production
Chloe is hoping to develop the idea: “We are looking at mass producing them at the moment. We are hoping someone will come on board to help us get them printed.”
She thanked everyone who has backed the project: “This has been an amazing experience, which would not have occurred without the support we received from our school, especially Ms Hall, Longford Enterprise Board, the Athlone Institute of Technology Engineering department and our wonderful families.”