Ben Dunne

Ben Dunne (1908–14 April 1983) was the founder and chairman of Dunnes Stores.

Early life

Dunne was born in the village of Rostrevor in County Down, Ireland in 1908 to Barney Dunne, a businessman who later became addicted to alcohol and spent 20 years up to his death in 1949 in the workhouse at Newry.

After leaving school at 14, Dunne worked as a boot boy and kept some sheep.

Career

In 1926, after aborting a plan to emigrate to the United States, Dunne moved to Drogheda in the newly established Irish Free State and then worked as an apprentice in Cameron's Drapery store in Longford. In the mid 1930s he moved on to Cork where he worked as a buyer for Roches Stores. A bust-up in 1944 led to his leaving and setting up his own business Dunnes Stores.

Personal life

Dunne met his wife, Nora Maloney, while working at Roches Stores. They were married for 44 years and had six children, including Ben Dunne who went on to work in the family business.

References

External links

Ben Dunne (entrepreneur)

Ben Dunne (born 3 March 1949, Cork) is an Irish businessman. Former director of his family firm, Dunnes Stores, one of the largest chains of department stores in Ireland, he now owns a chain of fitness centres established by his company Barkisland Developments Limited since the mid nineties

Biography

In 1981, he was kidnapped by the IRA and held for seven days. He was released unharmed.

In 1992, he was arrested for cocaine possession and soliciting while on a golf holiday in Florida, USA.

He was again embroiled in scandal in the mid-1990s when it emerged he had given large amounts of money to a number of Irish politicians, mainly from the Fianna Fáil party including the then Taoiseach, Charles Haughey. He also gave money to Michael Lowry of Fine Gael. Mr Justice Brian McCracken, sole member of The McCracken Tribunal which was established by the Irish Government in 1997, found that Dunne knowingly assisted Lowry evade tax. On 22 March 2011, the Moriarty Tribunal concluded of Ben Dunne's dealings with Michael Lowry that "What was contemplated and attempted on the part of Mr Dunne and Mr Lowry was profoundly corrupt to a degree that was nothing short of breathtaking" – the report referring to its finding Mr Lowry sought to influence a rent review of a building part-owned by Mr Dunne.