Matt Cooper takes on Tony O'Reilly

It’s a crisp winter morning in the centre of Dublin and Matt Cooper is smiling widely at the camera. It’s a bit disconcerting really. We were expecting the hard journalist best known for asking tough questions, a man who is focused and ambitious. However, he is warm and open, joking about it being too early to take pictures and chatting easily about our similar childhoods in Cork.

As our interview starts and I place The Maximalist, an enormous hardback book, on the coffee table in front of us, I detect a glimmer of pride. Cooper’s latest book that focuses on the fascinating life of Tony O’Reilly is some accomplishment but must have been a challenge to write. Most people in the country have an opinion on O’Reilly, whether you dislike his power or were won over by his charismatic charm. So, how did Cooper, a man that worked under him as editor of the Sunday Tribune for 10 years, remain unbiased?

Remaining Unbiased

“I smoked but never inhaled,” he replies, smiling. “It’s a book I’ve been thinking about writing for some time. I really felt there was an exceptional story to tell and I wanted to remain true to my readers, whatever their own personal opinions of O’Reilly were.”

It’s only as you delve through the pages of The Maximalist that you get a true understanding of the most powerful unelected man in Ireland during the past 50 years. Kerrygold, Heinz, Waterford Wedgeford, Independent News & Media (INM), Eircom; this businessman always had a project on the go and his life is fascinating.

“There were two biographies written about Tony O’Reilly in the 1990s, but so much has happened since. I wanted to write the story of the last two decades but, at the same time, conceptualise it by taking a fresh look at things that happened in his early years.”

Early Years

It doesn’t take a psychologist to determine that events in O’Reilly’s young life had a profound effect on the development of the businessman.

Matt says: “He had quite a privileged upbringing as an only child, but when he was a teenager one of the priests in Belvedere College revealed some shocking information. Not only were his parents unmarried, his father had left a wife and four children before he was born. While that would be a lot for any child today to take onboard, the timing of it is very interesting. This was Ireland of the 1950s, the time of the Magdalene laundries and all the rest. His father was a senior civil servant who worked his way up the ranks.

You can imagine the impact that would have. And then, on top of all that, he internalised it all. He never spoke to his parents about this until he was 37 years old. This must have had a profound effect on his motivation and drive to prove himself.”

O’Reilly started to stand out on the sports pitch. “He had a fascinating rugby career. I mean he was the Brian O’Driscoll of his day.”

For some people, that could have been a book in itself, but that is just one chapter of his story, a precursor to the main act that was his career in business.

Building an Empire

“A whole series of events bolstered his ego. Early in his career, he was a very popular figure working in Suttons in Cork, he progressed massively in the Irish Dairy Board and then to get so high up in Heinz in America, I mean he really was an expert in branding himself.”

“People go on about his role in Kerrygold – and with considerable reason as he was a driving force in growing such a massive Irish brand that is so important to the dairy industry. But you could say that, from that time forward, the most important brand Tony O’Reilly nurtured was himself. He was always interested in maintaining that successful image of himself. And that was how he attracted investors. A lot of people invested in companies like INM sometimes not because of a rigorous analysis of the business and its prospects, but the belief that if Tony O’Reilly has money in there, it must be doing well.”

Of all the business ventures though, what was he most proud of? “I don’t know because I haven’t spoke to him in a few years, but through all the interviews I conducted with his friends and family, I think he really was immensely proud of his enormous success in Heinz. Irish-born, he became the chairman and chief executive of this international brand. And it wasn’t like he was the son of an Irish emigrant who had worked his way up the system in the States. He went over himself and became the boss within seven years.”

Changing Tides

O’Reilly’s story, however, is now as well known for its collapse as it is for its success. So, what was the turning point?

“The book is bridged between two centuries, hence the opening chapter of the Waterford Crystal ball in Times Square on the cusp of the millennium. I think it was an important time.”

“There was an opportunity for him to hand over INM to his son Cameron, allowing O’Reilly to concentrate on Waterford Wedgewood. But he couldn’t give up the power, he didn’t trust others. He had such a belief in himself and couldn’t let go.”

Losing Touch

“He was stretching himself too thinly and wasn’t in touch with consumer trends. There was a generational gap and he couldn’t work out the impact of the internet on newspaper sales. There was also a lifestyle gap between him and his customers. I mean, if you are staying in hotel suites and eating in five-star restaurants, you’re not in touch. He didn’t understand the change in consumer tastes and that really impacted on sales of the luxury brand that was Waterford Crystal.

“People say he used get on the ground level and walk the stores, but just seeing displays doesn’t mean you’re in touch with modern contemporary tastes.

“On top of that, he was very fixed on his point of view. When he reached a decision, he wouldn’t switch from that view even if opposing evidence was in front of him.”

Life Lessons

There is a lot to learn from reading O’Reilly’s story, but for a man who spent a year immersed in the businessman’s life, what lesson did Matt learn?

“Not to overstretch yourself, not to be greedy, there are limits to what you can actually do, there are limits to what you should actually want. Ambition is a good thing, ambition is something that propels people to achieve, to do more – but there are limits. I also learned that you have to attend to your relationships, your family and your children, not just when they are adults, because they can work in business with you, but when they are young too.”

So, with the Last Word, writing a book, sports coverage on TV3, a wife and five kids, how does he fit it all in?

“I’m lucky in that, unlike a lot of businessmen like O’Reilly, I don’t have to travel for work. I’m at home every evening. I’m not gone before they leave in the morning and I walk my youngest fella to school. They are used to me being there. Even if I was heading into my study to work, they can wander in and out, they know I’m there.”

Creating Memories

“It’s funny, they are big into competitive swimming and I remember I got a huge chunk of the book written one day out in the National Aquatic Centre. We were there at about 8am, the kids got into the pool to warm up and they were competing all day. So I would stop and watch their races and they would come up and down whenever they needed something, but the rest of the time I was typing away until we left that evening.”

“It’s important to create memories and build on these relationships every day. When I look back on this year, there have definitely been some real highlights, such as publishing the book and presenting the Rugby World Cup, but my holidays in Minorca with Aileen and the kids are what I look back on most fondly.”CL