Jinny’s is a family business run by
Sinead (Jinny) and Pascal Gillard.

Sinead returned to her native Drumshanbo, Co Leitrim in 1998 to help in the family business, set up by her parents James and Moira McGuire in the 70’s.  It comprised of self-catering cottages and a restaurant.   Sinead loved making breads and cakes for the restaurant and in 2003 her best friend convinced her to try selling her bread to the local shops in Drumshanbo. 

Jinny is Sinead’s childhood nickname so she thought it might be safer to brand her bread under that versus her own name…just in case it didn’t go according to plan! And so the bakery began, in her first week Jinny sold 16 loaves.

Sinead’s husband Pascal joined the business in 2007.  He had a food science background and ran the Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association. They have proved a great combination, both hugely interested in food, how it’s sourced and cooked and how wholesome food contributes to our overall health and wellbeing.  

So from humble beginnings, 1 baker and 16 loaves, Jinny’s is now a team of 11 people supplying brands like SuperValu, Centra, Tesco, Gala and Independent retailers among others and is available online and in 70 locations nationwide. And it’s not just supermarkets! When you bite into a Supermacs SuperSubs Ciabatta chances are you eating a Jinny’s bun!  The values of ‘no compromise and superior’ taste mean 5-star hotels across the country want to be part of the Jinny’s story, sharing this authentic, traditionally made bread.

And the business has come full circle.  The kitchen and family restaurant that Sinead worked in when starting off Jinny’s bread has now been transformed into Jinny’s Tearooms.  These beautiful Tearooms on the shores of Acres Lake looking onto the Blueway are a haven for walkers, cyclists, boating tourists and the local community.  You can now eat Jinny’s products straight from the oven, they’re so fresh you can smell the baking bread as you approach the Tearooms!  Vegetables and salads come straight from their own polytunnels, also onsite.

Like getting bread to rise, building a business is a slow process and Sinead and Pascal put their life and soul into this family business.  It’s more than a business – it’s a way of life.

“We couldn’t do what we do if it wasn’t for our distributors, suppliers and our fantastic team of people that get up every morning to ensure our bread is truly fresh and tastes as if it has just come out of the oven.  And to our customers and our local community a big thank you from our family to yours!”