Square Announces Square 50 Winners, Celebrating Businesses Around the World

Square 50 recognises businesses that are reaching major milestones within their operations

Today, Square announced the winners for its second edition of The Square 50, an annual awards program dedicated to championing businesses that are changing the entrepreneurial game. Honourees for this year’s Square 50 include four Irish businesses: Teach de Broc, a multi-award winning, family-owned and operated boutique hotel and restaurant in Kerry, Carved - Sandwiches by Chefs, La Cocina Cuevas, offering sustainable California style Mexican food, and Ardú Coffee, a specialty coffee shop with a focus on community and sustainability. The full Square 50 class of 2024 can be seen here.

After receiving thousands of submissions from countries across the globe, including Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Japan, Spain, the UK, and USA, Square selected just 50 that stood out in the following categories:

• Innovation: Businesses that innovate within their industry, from diversifying their offerings to revolutionising their operations to stand out from the competition
• Growth: Businesses that made incredible strides to expand their reach through new location(s), increased revenue, international expansion and more
• Community: Businesses that enrich the communities where they operate, supporting charities, prioritising diversity in their employment, building inclusive spaces and operating with integrity
• Experience: Businesses that change the game in customer experiences and level up their operations to entice new and existing patrons
• Sustainability: Businesses that champion greener operations and promote social and cultural growth through their work

“Small businesses around the world have had to navigate challenging economic environments over the past year and we’re delighted to shine a light on their resilience, innovation, drive, and leadership,” says John O’Beirne, Executive Director of Square in Europe. “It fills me with particular pride that four out of 50 winning businesses hail from Ireland, in categories such as Sustainability, Growth, Innovation, and Experience. Every business is a winner to us and The Square 50 aims to give sellers the recognition they deserve.”

One of the outstanding 50 global businesses recognised by Square is the multi-award winning family owned and operated boutique hotel, bar & restaurant Teach de Broc in Ballybunion, Co Kerry. The family running the hotel, which is located adjacent to the famous Ballybunion golf course, are no strangers to awards. Dermot Brock, second-generation co-owner of the boutique hotel commented: “In the last 30 years, we have gone from a bed and breakfast to a 16-room boutique golf hotel with an outstanding reputation. We have been named guesthouse of the year, breakfast of the year, hosts of the year, boutique golf hotel of the year and are constantly improving our offerings to give our guests the best experience while staying with us. We are delighted to be included in the category “Experience” and to be named one of the top 50 businesses globally by Square.”

The team behind Carved have made it their mission to bring culinary excellence to sandwiches. With locations in Dublin’s Grand Canal and Ballsbridge, and further aspiration to expand, they feel that they are well recognised in the “Growth” category. Founder Lee Roche said: “When we first came up with the idea for ‘Carved’, our vision was to take the sandwich scene to the next level. Our concept is simple - creating efficient, high quality sandwiches by chefs. We have a team of highly skilled chefs cooking everything in-house, from scratch, with the best produce. Since opening, we’ve had fantastic support from our community, resulting in strong sales and positive feedback. Being included in the top 50 Square businesses globally is another great recognition and we are now focussed on expanding our presence - so watch this space, ‘Carved’ might come to a location near you soon!”

A small California-style Mexican restaurant based near Naul Village is among the winners in the category “Innovation”. La Cocina Cuevas has grown from a food truck to a full-fledged, uniquely set restaurant and founder Jeremy Cuevas commented: “When we first started our food truck, we wanted to simply offer delicious street food and Sunday brunch, with a Mexican flavour, yet at the same time distinctly Irish. We are based on a farm and grow much of our own produce here. What we don’t produce yourselves, we source from other farms in the vicinity - championing our fellow farmers along the way. The success we have had so far is beyond what we had expected and being named as one of Square’s top 50 businesses globally is a great recognition, keeping us innovating and delivering outstanding food to our community.”

Meath-based Ardú Coffee was among the award winners in the category “Sustainability”, which is one of the focal points of the business. Established by James and Alan to bring speciality coffee to their village, Ardú has elevated the coffee scene in the village while supporting local initiatives such as Tidy Towns, sponsoring local teams, and running information events with local clubs and groups. James Coffey, co-founder and co-owner of Ardú said: “Sustainability is at the heart of all we do at Ardú. We reduce our waste by giving away our old coffee grounds to local gardeners and tidy towns. Alongside this we have upgraded our heating and doors to better reserve heat in the cold months and reduce energy output. We have recently won ‘best sustainable practice Meath’ in this year’s Irish Restaurant Awards and are delighted to be named among the top 50 Square businesses globally.”

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