BLANCHARDSTOWN Traveller Ann Rose Mongan will be featured in the second episode of a new documentary series on RTE 2 that’s hosted by top entrepreneur, Norah Casey.
Norah’s Traveller Academy begins this week and on Thursday, January 22, she’ll be seen helping Ann Rose – who’s well known within the Traveller community as a talented seamstress – kickstart her business potential.
Ann Rose devotes much of her time to altering and up-styling clothes for Traveller girls and women at home on her kitchen table.
Impressed with Ann Rose’s self-taught design skills, Norah sets out to uncover the gaps in the young designer’s skill set and arranges a meeting for her with leading designer Joanne Hynes.
Over the course of three months filming, Norah pulled out all the stops and called in a host of favours from key business contacts to help each of her four Traveller protégées turn their ambition and vision into action.
As well as practical training, Norah enlisted the help of industry professionals to advise her trainees and assess their potential as they prepared to launch new businesses.
Traditionally, Traveller women are consigned to the home and discouraged from the world of business. Few finish school and fewer still progress to third level education.
The series aims to change perceptions and encourage the confidence and resilience Norah’s trainees will need to survive in the tough business world
The first episode of Norah’s Traveller Academy will be shown this Thursday (January 15) on RTÃ?2 at 9pm and Ann Rose’s business journey can be seen at the same time on January 22.