Two brothers who have independently built two very different Irish
brands will go head-to-head in Dublin this Friday after both being
shortlisted for the exact same Irish eCommerce Award.
Brothers Michael and Peter McAuley are behind two businesses that, on
the surface, couldn’t be much more different.
Michael is the founder of performance activewear company Exsto
Apparel. Peter is the owner of independent watch company Nomadic
Watches.
Both have built their businesses from Belfast. Both are taking on
industries dominated by enormous international brands. Both now sell
their products to customers around the world.
And this Friday, they’ll be sitting in the same room in Dublin waiting
for the same award to be announced.
Both Exsto Apparel and Nomadic Watches are finalists for
Fashion/Apparel/Footwear eCommerce Website of the Year at the Irish
eCommerce Awards.
Meaning that, for at least one award on Friday night, the McAuley
family has a fairly unusual problem: Which brother do you support?
“We’re obviously incredibly supportive of each other,” Michael said.
“We both know exactly what goes into trying to build a physical
product brand from Belfast and compete against companies with
considerably bigger budgets. But we’re also brothers. So I’m not going
to pretend there aren’t serious bragging rights at stake on Friday.”
Peter McAuley’s Nomadic Watches has built a premium independent watch
company with Belfast quite literally running through its designs.
Nomadic’s watches are assembled by its team of watchmakers in Belfast
using Swiss mechanical movements, with the company’s identity heavily
influenced by the city’s industrial and maritime heritage.
One of the brand’s most recognisable details is its distinctive yellow
watch hand — a deliberate nod to the famous yellow Harland & Wolff
cranes that dominate Belfast’s skyline. It’s a small design detail
that tells a much bigger story about where the company comes from.
That local identity hasn’t stopped Nomadic becoming a global business.
The company has now shipped watches to all 50 US states, taking
watches built in Belfast to customers right across America and further
afield.
Peter has also created a very different approach to traditional watch
retail. Nomadic’s Belfast location isn’t simply somewhere customers
can walk in and buy a watch. The company has created a retail and
watchmaking experience where customers can meet the people behind the
products and actually see watches being built in front of them.
The open workshop gives visitors a glimpse into a craft normally
hidden from customers — bringing them directly into the watchmaking
process. It’s an approach that sums up what Peter has tried to create
with Nomadic: an international watch company that remains unmistakably
connected to Belfast.
Michael’s Exsto Apparel operates in an entirely different world but
shares a remarkably similar ambition.
Exsto is building a performance activewear company from Belfast in an
industry dominated by some of the largest sportswear brands in the
world.
Michael’s route into business wasn’t particularly conventional. After
pursuing rugby at a high level, a broken neck at the age of 23
abruptly ended his playing career. He subsequently moved into the
fitness industry, opening Exsto Gym in 2016 before eventually
establishing Exsto Apparel.
Today Exsto serves thousands of customers across Ireland, the UK and
internationally, creating clothing specifically designed around people
who genuinely train — whether that’s running, HYROX, strength
training, CrossFit or everyday fitness.
But Michael’s ambition for the company extends beyond selling
activewear. Exsto established the Exsto Empowerment Grant, designed to
support women across Ireland and the UK with funding towards an
ambition, project or opportunity.
The company has also developed specialist activewear for women who use
insulin pumps, including leggings featuring a dedicated waistband pump
pocket and internal access for tubing.
“For me, Exsto was never supposed to just be about selling leggings,”
Michael said. “I’ve got two young daughters and I want to build
something they can look at one day and see what’s possible.
“Peter and I have chosen completely different industries, but I think
there’s a very similar mentality behind what we’re doing. We’re trying
to show that you can build ambitious brands from Belfast and take them
to the world.”
The parallels between the brothers’ businesses are striking. One
builds mechanical watches. The other builds performance activewear.
One has taken Belfast’s shipbuilding heritage and incorporated it into
watches now worn around the world. The other is attempting to build an
international performance brand from the same city.
Both have chosen incredibly competitive industries dominated by
established global companies. Both have used eCommerce to take
Belfast-built brands far beyond Ireland.
And now, remarkably, both are competing against each other for the
exact same Irish eCommerce Award.
The Irish eCommerce Awards take place in Dublin this Friday, 18 September.
“There’s something pretty special about two brothers building
completely different businesses independently of one another and
somehow ending up competing for the exact same award,” Michael said.
“Whatever happens, I think our family will be incredibly proud of what
we’ve both built. And if Peter wins, I’ll obviously congratulate him.
Eventually.”