Sweet smell of success as Bernice’s business takes off
Bernice Moran de Neve is a pilot, an entrepreneur and mother to three children under the age of 10. She flies planes for Virgin Atlantic and runs a novelty confectionery business - The Be Sweet Company - with her sister, Linda. She adores her job; all three of them in fact!
Her Dutch husband, Rick, is based in Hong Kong; Bernice, in London, but their home is in Howth, County Dublin; where their children – Elizabeth (9), Zara (6) and Alexander (4) – have “the most magical of upbringings”. How does she juggle it all? Hard work. But that’s a trait she says the Irish are known for.
“I spend a lot of time in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and the Irish consulate general - who I’d have a lot of contact with - tells me the success stories of the Irish people. It makes me very proud.
“One Irish girl - who is a very good friend of mine - is a manager of a hotel in Shanghai; it’s one of the most famous hotels in China.
“In Hong Kong, you meet a lot of Irish people doing well and everywhere I go - LA San Francisco, Seattle, Barbados, wherever - everybody loves the Irish.”
“We’re thought so well of, because we’re hard workers and because we have a compassion in us.”
Bernice’s family has always been obsessed with all things sweet. She first started thinking about building a confectionary brand while on maternity leave from Virgin Atlantic.
With no idea how to start a business, she decided to email her boss Richard Branson, who is also the boss of her 79,999 colleagues! He responded, they met, hit it off and she started The Be Sweet Company - a novelty confectionery company that’s 100% Irish and exports overseas.
That was almost a decade ago and last year she opened the Be Sweet Cafe in Baldoyle, Dublin.
“That’s open a year now; it’s a success. I was making sandwiches this morning and I had just landed from LA last night.
“I’m such a control freak and have such attention to detail. They call me Harry Potter because as soon as I go in to the cafe everything is moved and bows are put on everything.”
Her brand is about making people happy.
“We wanted to extend the kindness of our brand to people every day, so we have things like unicorn hot chocolates and mermaid candy-shakes.
“And, when people come into our cafe they get a kiss! I designed a coffee cup with a lid for your nose and lips, so when people are drinking it is like they’re getting a kiss.”