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Irish Guy Is Smiling
By A.J. Daulerio
After our first meeting, Magrogan gave me a copy of Rhinoceros Success. (He doles them out to employees and friends he thinks could benefit from a rhinoceros makeover.) He says most of his Kildare’s staff has adopted rhinotrocity. Sometimes after he meets with his general managers, they’ll place their index fingers pointing out of their foreheads to show they’re rhinos. Occasionally, if he stops at a Kildare’s and catches somebody on the waitstaff slacking, he’ll go up and gently ask, “Why are you being a cow, man?” Cows can only last so long at Kildare’s; if they don’t become rhinos, well, they’ll be dismissed. As one former employee says, “You’re either on Dave’s side of the fence or not.” No cows allowed.
LIKE MANY SELF-made entrepreneurs, Magrogan started out small but always thought big. He took out loans from family members and ran up credit card debt to open his chiropractor business in 1996. It did well, but he didn’t spoil himself early. He paid himself $500 a week. He saved. He bought real estate. And in five years, thanks to the real estate boom in the early oughts, he had enough money to go into the Irish pub business. He was passionate about Irish pubs — the culture, the look, the camaraderie, and, of course, how lucrative it was to own an “authentic” Irish pub in the United States.
Kildare’s, however, is “authentic” the same way Epcot Center’s World Showcase is — the spirit, the accoutrements and the cultural touchstones may all be there, but that’s where the authenticity ends. The first three Kildare’s were facsimiles that Magrogan put together through the Irish Pub Company, which is essentially a bar-in-a-box-type factory that helps you, young budding publican, become owner of an authentic Irish pub — outfitting your location with custom-made Irish bric-a-brac, sharing Irish recipes, recommending outsource agencies from which to hire “authentic” Irish staff, even offering naming suggestions. (Add “& Sons” or “& Daughters” for authenticity.) The company was featured in a 2006 Slate.com article called “Ireland’s ‘Crack’ Habit,” which outlined how faux Irish pubs have become huge business in all parts of the world — even Ireland. Magrogan’s last three pubs were built through another Irish pub warehouse company, called Bar None, that’s based in the not-so-authentic Irish realm of Canada. Magrogan disputes the claim that his bars aren’t authentic. “The furniture comes from Derry, Ireland. The millwork comes from Ireland. It’s much easier to come across with a truck from Canada than to wait for customs in New York City. I’d say 85 percent of our pubs come from Ireland. I’m not Epcot!”
Magrogan’s first pub opened in 2003 on Gay Street in West Chester. Already a popular fixture because of his chiropractor business, the former Dr. Magrogan thrived. Abundantly. From there, he went to King of Prussia, razing the old Pizzeria Uno at traffic-boondoggle 202, and that pub succeeded, too. Magrogan became obsessive about buying up places and expanding (charge!) and location. Next, he took on Manayunk, then Media, then Headhouse Square. Building too fast? When Magrogan entered the pub business, he had no desire to open just one. “I didn’t want to be 70 years old, sweeping up the floors of the place at 1 a.m. every night,” he says.
Magrogan isn’t a pub owner. He’s a businessman, in every sense of the word. Kildare’s, Inc., grossed $21 million in revenue last year, and Magrogan owns 86 percent of the company. Twenty-one million dollars may seem small-time compared to national companies, but in a bar and restaurant business that boasts ominous failure rates, it’s phenomenal after only four years.
LIKE MANY SELF-made entrepreneurs, Magrogan started out small but always thought big. He took out loans from family members and ran up credit card debt to open his chiropractor business in 1996. It did well, but he didn’t spoil himself early. He paid himself $500 a week. He saved. He bought real estate. And in five years, thanks to the real estate boom in the early oughts, he had enough money to go into the Irish pub business. He was passionate about Irish pubs — the culture, the look, the camaraderie, and, of course, how lucrative it was to own an “authentic” Irish pub in the United States.
Kildare’s, however, is “authentic” the same way Epcot Center’s World Showcase is — the spirit, the accoutrements and the cultural touchstones may all be there, but that’s where the authenticity ends. The first three Kildare’s were facsimiles that Magrogan put together through the Irish Pub Company, which is essentially a bar-in-a-box-type factory that helps you, young budding publican, become owner of an authentic Irish pub — outfitting your location with custom-made Irish bric-a-brac, sharing Irish recipes, recommending outsource agencies from which to hire “authentic” Irish staff, even offering naming suggestions. (Add “& Sons” or “& Daughters” for authenticity.) The company was featured in a 2006 Slate.com article called “Ireland’s ‘Crack’ Habit,” which outlined how faux Irish pubs have become huge business in all parts of the world — even Ireland. Magrogan’s last three pubs were built through another Irish pub warehouse company, called Bar None, that’s based in the not-so-authentic Irish realm of Canada. Magrogan disputes the claim that his bars aren’t authentic. “The furniture comes from Derry, Ireland. The millwork comes from Ireland. It’s much easier to come across with a truck from Canada than to wait for customs in New York City. I’d say 85 percent of our pubs come from Ireland. I’m not Epcot!”
Magrogan’s first pub opened in 2003 on Gay Street in West Chester. Already a popular fixture because of his chiropractor business, the former Dr. Magrogan thrived. Abundantly. From there, he went to King of Prussia, razing the old Pizzeria Uno at traffic-boondoggle 202, and that pub succeeded, too. Magrogan became obsessive about buying up places and expanding (charge!) and location. Next, he took on Manayunk, then Media, then Headhouse Square. Building too fast? When Magrogan entered the pub business, he had no desire to open just one. “I didn’t want to be 70 years old, sweeping up the floors of the place at 1 a.m. every night,” he says.
Magrogan isn’t a pub owner. He’s a businessman, in every sense of the word. Kildare’s, Inc., grossed $21 million in revenue last year, and Magrogan owns 86 percent of the company. Twenty-one million dollars may seem small-time compared to national companies, but in a bar and restaurant business that boasts ominous failure rates, it’s phenomenal after only four years.
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Posted by Jermaine | Oct. 12, 2007 at 1:10 PM