Cork pupils win award for towel business idea

Five students from a school in Bishopstown have won an award for their innovative idea to design a towel that won’t slip or come off when being worn. They explain how the concept came about, and their plans for the future

Five enterprising Cork pupils have won a prestigious award for designing and making a towel that does not slip or come off when it is being worn.

The students from Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh in Bishopstown won the Student Enterprise Best Innovation 2024 award in the Student Enterprise Christmas Fair at the Marina Market earlier this month.

The Tie Towel was designed by Mamoun Mirghani, Tom McKeown, Ahroon Santhosh, Michael Sweeney, and Abraham Kurian.

Now, the pupils and their mini company, called Tie Towel, will be battling for the top spot at the Cork Student Enterprise Finals in UCC in March.

The prize for winning that is an all expenses paid trip to Colorado, sponsored by phone case manufacturer, Otterbox.

Many schools in Cork, such as Colaiste an Spioraid Naoimh, Mount Mercy, and Presentation Brothers Cork, are taking part in this award scheme, which aims for students to showcase their creativity and ingenuity, and to bring out their entrepreneurial instincts.

The boys from the Bishopstown school had the idea of creating a Tie Towel, which is a bath towel with an attached drawstring that prevents the towel from slipping or coming off.

It is a locally handcrafted product, designed to make life easier, stress-free, and adding a dash of style too.

Featuring a built-in drawstring, the Tie Towel offers a secure fit in seconds, eliminating the frustration of slipping or constant readjustments.

The drawstring is securely held in place with the use of a stitched-in hem, and is indented using an eyelet, preventing any gaps or unwanted attention while wearing the towel.

The boys say it is ideal for beaches, gyms, pools, and any other scenarios where a towel is required.

The pupils want to thanks teachers Richard O’Reagan, Karen Callanan, and Anthony Malone for their involvement in the project.

The idea came to the CEO Ahroon Santhosh one day during school, when he looked out of the window and saw a class coming out of the changing rooms in their sports gear.

That got his mind thinking about the changing rooms, and how many lads wouldn’t take showers after PE because they were uncomfortable changing in front of others as towels often slipped off or were pulled off.

This got Ahroon thinking about a solution, and the product Tie Towel came to him as a practical way to address this problem. It takes away all the stress of changing in public, in one simple, comfortable package.

“This simple yet effective product has generated lots of interest online and has won the renowned award for Best Innovation 2024, presented by Student Enterprise and the LEO, the Local Cork Enterprise Office,” said Ahroon, who built a team of five to produce the product.

Tie Towel competed with more than 50 different groups at the Marina Market and came away with a prized award.

They faced fierce competition, with many interesting and unique products on display, ranging from Christmas decorations to hair oils.

The groups were judged on their product idea, display stands, marketing pitch, sustainability, and many other criteria.

Ahroon added: “Our product may not jump out at you immediately, yet it is something that makes your life so much easier.

“I know so many people who are embarrassed and nervous about changing in public, and this is a life-changer for them. It gives them confidence in who they are, and that impact is what we care about.”

As for the competition in March, he declared: “We’re ready to go to war to win the prize. It means a lot to me, particularly as my dad is a successful entrepreneur, and I want to follow in his footsteps.

“We were given this great opportunity, and we are doing our best to make use of it.”

The mini-company that he has created is not only looking to have a positive impact on people, but is also trying to raise awareness about sustainability through the packaging.

They use 100% recycled tags and packaging, and all their postage packaging is also completely recycled.

“We want to be remembered as a company that took the initiative and put sustainability at the forefront of everything. It means the world to us,” said Deputy CEO, Michael Sweeney.

“Tie Towel sources all its materials responsibly, and puts thought and care into each stage of producing the product in order to produce in a way that supports the ecosystem around us.”

The future looks bright for Tie Towel as they have a strong online social media presence through their Instagram site and website.

The instagram account has more than 300 followers, and is supported by the Bishopstown Credit Union. It is constantly growing, with new content being posted almost daily.

The boys are currently taking orders online and in person, and are offering multiple different colours and sizes for men and women.

They are planning on continuing to sell their products themselves, but are also looking to put it into retail stores.

The Instagram account it https://www.instagram.com/tie.towel?igsh=MWh3MDB2N2VzNnJwNA==

The Website is tietowel.mailerpage.io