Awards stack up for Cork beekeeper

HANNA Backmo, who has been running Hanna’s Bees since 2018, is positively buzzing after beating more than 400 competitors to the top spot in the Sustainability category of this year’s Showcase - one of Ireland’s biggest international trade shows.

Hanna’s business produces eco-friendly handmade honeybee products ranging from reusable beeswax wraps to beeswax candles and soaps and honey.

“All the products are traceable back to the hives in Cork where I keep 60 honeybee colonies,” says Hanna.

“Getting the award was pretty amazing,” says Hanna, who has been running Hanna’s Bees in Little Island since 2018.

I’m delighted for myself and my two colleagues. We’ve been working under the radar for many years.

She’s delighted for her worker bees too.

“There’s millions of them! Bees are the most essential workers of all. Without their pollinating activities, the bulk of human crops would fail.”

Just this past week Hanna’s Bees was also crowned ‘Best Small Business’ in the inaugural Best in Cork Awards.

Hanna is a determined woman who always delivers the goods.

“I am absolutely thrilled to win the award, it’s fabulous” says the mother of one who comes from the Island of Gothenburg in Sweden, near the Danish border, where she nurtured her love of the natural world.

What brought her to this part of the world in 2001?

“I met someone! What else?” she says, laughing. “Isn’t that the usual story?”

The story of Hanna’s success is a feelgood one.

“I came to Ireland one week after 9/11 happened,” she says.

She travelled light. “I had my rucksack and my sewing machine.”

Hanna got a job in Apple computers before she set up her own dressmaking business.

The women who went before me were dressmakers and beekeepers. I learned all the little tricks from the generations.

Like the women before her, Hanna had a natural creative flair.

“I loved meeting the brides and sometimes their mothers talking about their expectations about the bridal gown for their big day.

“I loved the creative process from start to finish. It didn’t faze me. I had the confidence in my talent.”

Hanna had the confidence in herself.

“Talking to people about their lives, their hopes, their insecurities; I felt confident in talking through problems and helping to solve them. I could handle that really well. Dressmaking for people, I almost became a counsellor!”

Hanna built up trust with her clients. There were no holds barred.

“They trusted me. I asked them to take off all their clothes; there was no problem. When people feel vulnerable, they open up about things.

“The December before Covid; I made my last wedding dress. It was the right decision to make. The whole wedding dress industry collapsed overnight.”

The hum of the sewing machine was replaced by the hum of honeybees.

When I told people that I was closing my very successful wedding dress-making business to focus on beekeeping, they thought I was completely bonkers!

What did they say?

“You can’t make a living from beekeeping in Ireland,” they said.

But Hanna, dancing to her own tune, was always very in tune with nature and with the outside world.

“I love the bees,” she says.

“I did a couple of practicals in the County Cork Beekeeper’s Association where they have a training apiary. Then I got my own hives and put them in the garden.”

Hanna was up and running.

“My journey began with a simple desire to aid pollination in my garden. It quickly transformed into a deep connection with the healing powers of bees.

“Through their honey, beeswax and propolis, I’ve discovered a world of natural remedies and products that nurture both body and soul, and that are kind to the earth.

“Bees have a calming effect. I concentrate on doing and seeing. Beekeeping is a type of meditation,” says Hanna.

There is something quite extraordinary and serene working with bees. I learn new things every day.

From a couple of hives in her vegetable garden to help pollinate her fruit trees, to five apiaries around Cork county, Hanna’s obsession with bees took over.

“I switched completely from my dressmaking business to keeping bees,” says Hanna, who has recently also been crowned Best Small Business in South Cork by Cork County Council.

Hanna sells honey and other products, including’ bee wraps’, which is a reusable alternative to cling film.

“At Hanna’s Bees we have a great track record in driving sustainable change,” she says.

“Our pioneering efforts significantly contributed to making beeswax wraps a common and beloved item in many Irish homes, promoting eco-conscious practices.”

Hanna’s son, Julius, is eco-conscious too.

“He is my little helper,” says Hanna.

Julius is diligent, donning his beekeeper suit to help his mother with the bees.

“He calls it child labour!” says Hanna, laughing. “Julius drives a hard bargain.”

He is creative like his mother.

“He is designing a new logo for the business.” says Hanna.

“Julius is really interested in the business. I think he has an entrepreneurial spirit.

Sharing my beekeeping journey with him and encouraging him to develop a sense of curiosity and love of the natural world is one of the most rewarding things I have done.

Hanna wants to spread valuable information, educating the public about sustainability and the role that bees play in it.

“I enjoy visiting schools and businesses to tell people about sustainability and how my business began as a hive-to home beekeeping business with a mission to harness the healing powers of bees.”

The bees called Hanna.

“Beekeeping is my calling,” she says.

“As I tend to my buzzing companions, often in the company of my son, we are also playing a part in preserving the environment.

“Our native Irish Honeybees contribute to the delicate balance of nature, reminding us of the profound impact we can make when we harmonise with the world around us.”

Hanna has the best job in the world.

“This thought runs through my head every single time I put on my bee suit, and it makes me feel incredibly lucky and happy.

I took the plunge becoming a beekeeper and it has been a steep learning curve, not without complications and lots of hard work.

The curiosity, creativity and love of nature born at home in her homeland has stayed with Hanna.

“It permeates everything I do, from gardening and beekeeping to parenting and creating natural and sustainable products from what Mother Nature has to offer.”

“I love my job,” says Hanna.

“What started out as a desire for a viable ecosystem in my back garden has grown organically into an artisan cottage business, creating beautiful useful natural and delicious products for you to enjoy straight from my hives to your home.

“I couldn’t imagine doing anything else as I continue to explore the wonders of bees and their nurturing powers.”

See https://hannasbees.ie/ for more.