An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, recently launched a great new Mayo based business called Tellmystorybook.ie in the Castlebar Library We asked the owner of the business, Eoin Heverin, to tell us more about Tellmystorybook.ie who make unique personalised children's books. "What makes our books unique is that every page of every book is specially printed using a picture of the child. We superimpose a photograph of the child's head on to the character in our books. When the child sees that they are the character in their very own story, their reactions are priceless!
"We had our official launch, before the big rush for Christmas, however we have been trading now for about 10 months. We are receiving fantastic feedback towards our books, with lots of repeat customers. We are very excited about the future of our business and will be adding another book to our range in 2016. We currently have two books to choose from Imagination which has a boy and girl version and My fairy Godmother which is available for girls.
"Back in February of this year we were contacted by the hospital play specialist in Temple Street Childrens Hospital. She asked if she could get one of our books for one of her patients. We did up and donated a number of books to her for the kids in the hospital, we were delighted to do this as it's a fantastic hospital who do brilliant work. The children loved the books and it was great to be able to bring a smile to the kids' faces. This year we are donating €2 to Temple Street Hospital with every online purchase of our books this Christmas period.
"Our business is 100 per cent Irish and we are based in Mayo. We wrote the books, we did the graphic design for the books, we print the books, and we bind the books, all here in Mayo." When An Taoiseach Enda Kenny was asked about this new business he had the following to say: "It's fantastic to have budding entrepreneurs coming up with great business ideas and then making them a reality. Tellmystorybook.ie makes books, books make memories, these personalised books are memories that the children can keep with them throughout their lifetime. Reading is a special gift and a gift that we should encourage. I wish this new venture all the best in what is sure to be a successful future."
We then asked Eoin where the idea for the business came from, he said: "I was inspired by my niece Toni Pia who loves to read. She received a personalised book as a present a number of years ago and being a graphic designer, I foresaw that adding the child’s photograph to the personalised book would make it even more appealing to the recipient. I created a prototype personalised book with pictures of my niece and I was blown away by her reaction! That was the moment that I knew that this would be a fantastic gift for any child. We believe that children should be encouraged to read from a young age. Our books instantly grab the child’s attention and maintains it throughout. Having the child as the lead character in their very own book is what sets our books apart. We advocate that adults reading good books to children from a young age gives the child the invaluable gift of a love of reading. In today’s modern age, people are tending to turn more and more towards digital media but we believe traditional hardback books should still have a place in our lives and on our bookshelves"
