February 24, 2026

Background

Jack and Harry’s is a state-of-the-art Drive Thru Coffee, Gourmet sandwich and Sweet Treats eatery on the outskirts of Clare-Galway, Co Galway, Ireland. It is the brainchild of business entrepreneurs Conor Mullen and James Leonard.

Since opening in late 2025, the coffee sales at Jack and Harry’s have been on an upward trajectory month on month, as local customers and passing trade make this purpose-built convenience a daily visit.

After such a successful opening, the owners of Jack and Harry’s will shortly add to their locations, with the announcement of new store openings.
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The Challenge

The busy thoroughfare from Tuam to Galway is an ideal location for a Drive Thru outlet which provides the daily traffic commuters with excellent coffee on-the-go gourmet food offerings to suit different day-parts.

By opening a flagship Drive-Thru which would excite its customers, the entrepreunerial owners planned to establish a business template which would assist in launching a chain of similiar Drive Thru’s in various nationwide locations.

Having navigated the planning permission process, secured a purpose-built stand-alone Drive Thru unit, and hired adequate numbers of staff, the 2 entrepreneurs now needed assistance with:

• Staff Training
• Food Safety Compliance
• HR Compliance
• Menu Guidance
• Overall Business Planning

They also insisted that their business be officially opened to the public in 3 weeks.

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The Solution

Conor Mullen and James Leonard engaged Beacon Consulting to assist with bringing their idea to a functioning and profitable business.

Beacon Consulting spent 2 full days with the owners of Jack & Harry’s to completely understand their goals, intentions, values and aspirations. From here, it was all stations go!

After an initial ‘safari’ of local competitors along with visiting premises/businesses around the country who operated a similar business model, Beacon Consulting agreed a plan with the owners.

Beacon Consulting engaged a Chef with the relevant experience to work alongside the owners to develop a customer focussed menu, with locally sourced ingredients, in food products that are easy to eat in the car. Once finalised, the chef worked with the new staff members to ensure they had internalised both the preparation and presentation of each product, to ensure uniformity.

Beacon Consulting managed the Food Safety staff training, as well as designing and implementing a HACCP plan for Jack & Harry’s .

Contracts of Employment and Staff handbooks were agreed with the owners and finalised by Beacon Consulting for each employee. Beacon Consulting also advised on schedule rosters for the 1st fortnight, along with food ordering templates for ingredients.

Prior to opening the new business, on time, Beacon Consulting ensured that both staff and management were fully trained and ready for their venture into the unknown, confident in the knowledge that their Food Safety and HR systems were fully compliant and fully understood.

Beacon Consulting understanding of the food business enabled the owners to immediately focus on food usage and food waste, along with efficient use of labour, thereby maximising profits from the outset.

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“working with Beacon Consulting was like having an experienced older brother by your side. They guided us around many potential pre-opening landmines, whilst instilling confidence in all the new staff members with their approach and professionalism. Their experience made planning really smooth, as they fore-saw multiple pit-falls, enabling a very enjoyable opening period. Their mantra of ‘Do it properly the first time’ has guided us to build a template which will be easy to replicate with future planned openings and expansion” - James Leonard , Co-Owner Jack & Harry’s.