The strangest thing in the world is going for an interview in knee-high snow to a bikini shop,” Ruth Phelan laughs as she describes the moment that led her to opening an Irish design shop in south Kildare.

Situated in the Square in Castledermot, Ruth says it was her time to open her shop, George & Milly: “I’d set up and worked for so many people and established so many different things for other people that I just thought it was time to do it for myself.”

The shop opened last October and, according to Ruth, holds: “a small mix of Irish design, ranging from fashion, to jewellery, kids’ toys to art with a varied price range”.

“If you want to come in and spend €200 you can and if you want to spend €5 you can,” Ruth adds.

Ruth, who studied Art and Design in GMIT and branched into textiles in her second year, says that she always had a huge interest in fashion and from a young age wanted to be a fashion designer.

“My mam was the mam who two weeks before Halloween would have been sitting at the sewing machine making our costumes. We had full clown suits with hoops and everything was homemade,” she tells us.

Scarves made by Ruth hang in a corner of her Castledermot shop, while “Oneted” bears lie in a crib adjacent to the counter, specially made by Ruth’s mum, Marrion.

“Every time I ring her she will say: ‘I have a different way of doing them now and they will be different the next time.’ So they are all one of a kind.”

Ruth’s mother was certainly a main influence in her younger years. Since then, her travel and colourful retail experience cemented her choice to set up her own shop.

Wanderlust

After finishing her degree, Ruth worked in Ross Morgan Plus Size in her hometown of Clane before she decided to move to Australia. While there, she worked in a Jewish Bakery and TS14+, another plus-size shop.

“TS14+ had very good customer service. I already knew how to sell, but they put a huge emphasis on building relationships with a customer so they would continue to come back.”

Ruth was back in Ireland for 10 months after her time in Australia before deciding she wanted to travel again and moved to Canada, where she became sales manager in a bikini shop and then moved to a shop called Hugo Nicholson, which was connected to a Vera Wang bridal store.

“The women that owned Hugo Nicholson and Vera Wang were two Jewish ladies in their mid to late 80s and I have never seen people like them in my life,” Ruth says.

“They worked so hard at everything. At 85 years of age they were flying off to Paris to see the fashion shows, whereas here you retire at 65. They were dedicated to their business and for them it was a life choice. They were in it for the long haul, which was nice,” she says.

It seems that Ruth has brought some of that dedication to her store in Castledermot, which is evident when you walk in the door.

Once a bookmaker’s, Ruth has turned the shop into a quirky space full of gorgeous Irish design from suppliers she has sought herself.

“Everything in the shop has been chosen by me and I always ask would I wear or use it before I buy anything,” she says.

Hats are made by a second generation milliner in Dublin, scarves by John Hanly from Tipperary, knitwear by Janet Byrne in Lucan, and there is a stand dedicated to Bia Beauty, a natural skin care company in Cork.

Ruth places a huge emphasis on quality in her shop, telling Irish Country Living on several occasions throughout the day that: “You are only as good as your suppliers.”

“There’s so much talent in this country, and a lot of it goes unnoticed. People don’t realise what’s on their doorstep.

“With the girl making leather bags in Sligo or another girl making knitwear in Lucan, there’s such a wide variety of Irish suppliers doing wonderful things and they just need a platform.”

Ruth not only supports Irish produce but points out that a lot of her suppliers are female too.

“Women have an awful habit of trying to keep each other down, whereas I find the people I deal with are all about building each other up and that’s so important,” she says.

She points to the lady that helped her find her shop premises, who runs The Old Yard, which is a converted farmyard that opens from May to October and serves tea, coffee and cake.

Last May, Ruth began the market research for her business here, taking over a corner of it to sell some of the pieces that she has now brought into her shop. The feedback Ruth received led her to opening the shop in October. With her last couple of months seeing lots of custom, she looks forward to the growth of her business and welcoming new suppliers into George and Milly. CL

George & Milly, No 1, The Square, Castledermot, Co Kildare

www.georgeandmilly.wordpress.com