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Noel and Majella O’Regan in Batavia, Fermoy sitting at a beautiful handmade table and chair set surrounded by wonderful gifts and ornaments. Photo: Sandra Quinn

With all of their own in-house designs, Noel and Majella O’Regan of Batavia in Fermoy give home owners furniture that will become part of their homes, part of their lives and over the years, the stories of the generations will be told through these unique pieces.

The couple started the business 14 years ago, after they moved home from Indonesia to have a family and the strength of their production still lies in Indonesia, where their staff numbers rose by over 100 full time employees this year alone.

While Noel does a lot of the designing and liaising with the workers and managers in Indonesia, Majella does all of the sourcing and buying of the home décor and gifts which are bought in.

For Noel, the process of making the furniture from start to finish is very important, from buying in the logs to placing the product in the perfect place within their Fermoy shop.

“It’s all very hands on, we buy the logs, take them to the mill and after milling they are dried out in the kilns. After making a product from scratch that you are proud to put your name to, you can really stand over it, unlike when you buy a product off a shelf in a faceless warehouse.

"We don’t make cheap furniture, we make good furniture at a good price and I know nowhere in Ireland has comparable prices to us, as we are the sole manufacturer and supplier of this furniture both to the UK and Irish markets,” he said.

Batavia has developed some of its own finishing process, which highlights the natural beauty and character of the teak timber while enhancing the heat and water-resistant properties. "We believe in showing the timber off instead of hiding it," Noel said.

While Batavia furniture can be found in homes across the globe, their Fermoy shop remains their baby and the home of the business in many ways.

Batavia, in joint venture with their UK and Indonesian operations, are currently designing their new ranges for the biggest furniture show of next year, 'Home Interiors Exhibition at Birmingham NEC 2014' and every design is unique and unlike anything else on the market here.

Noel added that when a customer comes in and sees something they like but wants it in a different shape, finish or size, that can be done at no extra cost.

"A very large and growing facet to our business is custom made furniture, with over 90% of our customers placing repeat orders and referring our business to friends and family. This has always been a core part of our business identity," he explained.

Batavia also supplies furniture to the corporate and hospitality market.

“We are currently designing and making all the furniture with Seamus Nunan the owner and developer of the new 'Sonas' Ballyhoura Holiday Hostel in Kilfinane," Noel said.

The shop itself is somewhat of must-see experience with the atmosphere set by the massive vaulted front room, exposed stone walls and a purpose built wide open staircase leading to the second floor. The floors and stairs are designed and handmade by Batavia and are made from a combination of coconut, teak and other unusual hardwoods. This showcases the quality of their design and workmanship, which is reflected throughout their shop products.

The shop is a haven of beautiful furniture and gifts that people can see becoming part of their home and also smaller gift items that will give a home that finishing touch or be the perfect house warming or wedding present.

Over the next few months, customers will start looking for the perfect stocking fillers and presents and Majella has been busy planning for the festive season.

Christmas is special at Batavia. You can really experience this in the warmth of an open wood burning stove in the beautifully decorated store. Majella has spent the first half of this year specifically selecting beautiful gifts and Christmas decorations, which are both quality and affordable with this coming season in mind.

“What we find is that people will walk around and have a look, the second time around they will always see something different," Majella said.

They also run a loyalty card scheme, whereby people will be rewarded for their custom. Every time they spend €20 on gifts or €50 on furniture they receive a stamp and full cards can then be redeemed.

Their location on Rathealy Road, Fermoy is ideal with parking right outside. They also display their goods in a window in the Town Square to encourage people to come down and find their shop while in town.

“When people come in, there is a very personalised service and we know our regular customers very well and they all know myself, Noel and Dan Griffin and Annette Cronin who have been with us for more than 10 years,” Majella said.

Noel added that when they deliver furniture to people’s home, it is not a case of dropping it off and leaving, they stay to place and position the item – to make sure the customer is happy.

“Once a customer is happy and it looks good, we are happy,” he said.

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