Feargal Quinn facts for kids

Feargal Quinn (27 November 1936 – 24 April 2019) was an Irish businessman, politician, and TV star. He started the famous Superquinn supermarket chain. He also served as a Senator for the National University area from 1993 to 2016.

Early Life and Family

Feargal Quinn was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1936. His dad, Eamonn, started a grocery business. He also created the Red Island resort in Skerries. Feargal had two famous cousins: Ruairi Quinn, a politician, and Lochlann Quinn, a top banker.

Feargal went to Newbridge College and later studied business at University College Dublin. He married Denise Prendergast, and they had five children. He lived in Howth, near Dublin.

Business and Public Service

Feargal Quinn built a successful career in business. He also worked in many public service roles.

Starting Superquinn Stores

Quinn opened his first supermarket, called Quinn's Supermarkets, in Dundalk in 1960. Later, it became the well-known Superquinn chain. He was known for making sure his stores had amazing customer service. He even wrote a book about it called "Crowning the Customer."

He brought new ideas to Irish supermarkets. In 1993, he launched Ireland's first supermarket loyalty card. It was called SuperClub, and it gave special benefits to regular shoppers.

In 2005, Superquinn was sold to a new company. Feargal Quinn stepped down as chairman but stayed on as a non-executive president. In 2011, the business was sold again to Musgrave Group. By 2014, all Superquinn stores changed their name to SuperValu.

Working for the Public

Feargal Quinn also helped out in public service. He was the chairman of An Post, which is Ireland's postal service, until 1989. He also worked on other important public groups.

From 1993 to 1998, he led a group that helped create the Leaving Certificate Applied. This is a special school program for students. In 2006, he became a marketing professor at NUI, Galway.

Helping Other Businesses

He was also involved with big business groups. He was the president of EuroCommerce. This group represents retail and trade businesses across Europe. He also served on boards for other food business groups.

Television Shows

Feargal Quinn became a TV star too! In 2009, he had a show called Feargal Quinn's Retail Therapy on RTÉ. In the show, he helped small shops improve and compete with bigger stores. The show was so popular that it ran for three seasons.

In 2011, he led another RTÉ show called Local Heroes – A Town Fights Back. In this show, he brought experts to Drogheda, County Louth, to help boost the local economy.

Political Career

Feargal Quinn was first elected as a Senator in 1993. He represented the National University area. He was re-elected four more times, serving until 2016.

As a Senator, he worked on many important committees. He suggested many changes to government laws. He also introduced 17 of his own proposed laws, called Private Members Bills. One of his most successful bills became the Construction Contracts Act 2013. This law helps protect building sub-contractors.

He also helped change other laws. For example, he wanted to stop a "passports for sale" plan. His idea was later made into the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2004. He also helped stop a rule that made people give their PPS numbers (like a social security number) to Irish Water.

Feargal Quinn was a key person behind "Democracy Matters." This group worked to stop the government from getting rid of the Seanad. In 2013, he helped introduce a bill to make voting for the Seanad fairer. This bill showed people that the Seanad could be improved. In a public vote in October 2013, people decided to keep the Seanad.

In 2014, Quinn shared that he had given his entire Senator's salary to charity. In his later years, he even refused to accept any salary at all. In 2015, he voted against the Marriage Equality bill in the Seanad. He did not run for re-election in 2016.

Awards and Honors

Feargal Quinn received many awards for his work. He was given five honorary doctorates from universities. He also received a papal knighthood and a French award called the Ordre National du Mérite. In 2006, he shared the "Listener of the Year" award with Oprah Winfrey.

See also

• Families in the Oireachtas