Athy firm wins national design award at the RDS

A WOOD design company from Athy has won the Best Product Award in the Home category at Showcase, Ireland's international creative expo at the RDS, Dublin yesterday.

Sam Agus Nessa operate out of a workshop in Nicholastown, and this is their third to display at Showcase, Ireland’s international creative exhibition.

The show opened on Sunday (18 January) at the RDS for three days and brought together hundreds of Ireland’s leading designers, makers and creative brands under one roof.

Showcase 2026 welcomed almost 400 exhibitors and 3,350 buyers under this year’s theme, ‘Making Irish Stories’.

Upwards of €32m is expected to be transacted over the three days and the total annual value of stock purchased by Showcase visitors across all buying channels is expected to exceed €124m, underlining the scale of spending generated by buyers attending the fair. Orders generated by buyers Showcase since 2015 have grown at an average rate of 18 per cent year on year.

Showcase is a key destination for domestic and international buyers and a milestone event in exhibitors’ calendars who will show their latest collections across four product categories – home and gift, wellbeing, fashion, and jewellery.

In all, 105 brands will exhibit for the first time at this year’s event and 280 brands will return to the show to sell to buyers from across the globe.

The Irish design and craft sector directly employs over 73,000 people, mostly outside of Dublin, which highlights the sector’s importance in regional employment and economic development.

A successful three days at Showcase is the first step in a positive trading year for many of Ireland’s design and craft businesses. Sustainability and independent retailers continue to be significant pillars of this year’s event.