Family Is The Glue That Binds Hickeys’ NAA
As he begins to hand over the NAA reins to his children, Conor Hickey tells Nick Mulcahy why the transfer is smoother than when he took over from his own father
The transfer of authority from the third generation to the fourth generation of family business NAA Ltd has been much more polite than the transfer that went before. Based in Ballymount, Dublin, NAA is a distributor to the furniture, kitchen, woodworking and packaging industries, and was established by James Hickey around the time of Ireland’s Civil War a century ago.
His grandson Conor Hickey recently delegated leadership roles in the company to two of his five children. Luke Hickey (33) has assumed the role of managing director of NAA Ltd while sister Laragh Hickey (35) has become managing director of NAA Appliances Ltd. Both companies operate under the umbrella of various group companies, where Dad is the sole shareholder.
It was a bit more rough and ready when Conor took over from his dad, Philip Hickey. In his twenties, Conor operated a transport business with his brother Rory, separate to the family business. When NAA ran into trouble due an economic downturn, Conor’s father approached his son about joining the firm.
“I’ll join you the day you leave,” was Conor’s reply. “I told him we’re too alike, we’d kill each other. I knew that from working with him as a young lad. He persisted and told me NAA had 400 customers. After five years my transport business had about 40 customers, so it became a no-brainer. I had to join that business, but I couldn’t work with him.
“‘Right,’ he said, ‘I’ll leave on Friday, and you join on Monday.’ And that’s what happened. He proceeded to ring me every single day for 15 years, with the same questions: what were the sales yesterday, what’s the money in the bank,
and how much stock do you have? There were no other questions — that’s all I got every day.”
The NAA business Conor and brother Rory stepped into in 1985 was involved in distribution of sandpaper, cutting tools, grinding discs, glue, and edge banding for furniture. NAA is an acronym for National Adhesives and Abrasives, which for a brief time was the trading style for the Hickey business. When first established by James Hickey in an office over the Ulster Bank premises on O’Connell Street in Dublin, around 1920, James Hickey & Sons imported chisels, blades, planes and other tools of use to carpenters.
Philip Hickey joined the firm in 1948 after a stint with the Palestine police,
where his role was to put manners on British squaddies. “My dad and his mate wanted to see the world and didn’t realise what they were doing,” Conor relates. “Off they went to Holy Land, and it took them two years to get out.”
With a BSA Goldstar 350 under his bottom, Philip Hickey took to the highways and byways, selling his dad’s wares and adding two other carpenter necessities to the sales catalogue, glue and sandpaper. With the expanded range, the company name was changed to National Importers Ltd. Later, the name morphed to National Adhesives and Abrasives, reflecting the additional product lines.
Problem was there were two other companies called National Adhesives and National Abrasives. This was problematic because customers couldn’t be sure who they were supposed to be paying and might write the wrong payee on the cheque. “So the dad said, look, we’re changing the name to NAA,” Conor explains. “We had a warehouse near the Canal End of Croke Park, and my father reckoned that since everybody recognised GAA, then NAA was the best solution.”
With the third generation in the driving seat, Conor and Rory set about expanding the business. Among their best customers were the since departed cluster of furniture manufacturers in Meath and Monaghan.
As well as the glue, the Hickey brothers saw the opportunity to supply hinges, drawers, handles, doors and lockers and other items related to furniture assembly, including veneer.
The NAA business prospered and in 1997 the company relocated from its dingy city centre warehouse to owned premises in Ballymount in west Dublin. Conor Hickey thought he would celebrate by asking his best customers out to the site for a glass or two of bubbly. Philip Hickey, in retirement, had other ideas.
“I was down in the house and asked Dad to come along for old time’s sake. ‘What are you talking about?’ he said, ‘That’s showing off success, and you don’t do that in Ireland. What you need to do is invite your top suppliers. Customers will come and customers will go,’ he said. ‘If you don’t have top suppliers, you’re finished.’” Conor Hickey took his dad’s counsel and organised a slimmed-down event. He says the suppliers who attend are still working with NAA today.
With a warehouse that can house 2,500 pallets, the Hickeys’ next priority was tying down agencies for reputable, global brands. In Conor’s sights was Hettich, one of the world’s leading
‘You need to learn how to mess it up or grow it. There’s your choice.’