Oishii Sushi’s founder Ciara Troy talks with Mark Cullen about how resilience and innovation turned a farmers market idea into Ireland’s leading sushi brand over 19 years.
I had the brilliant opportunity of sitting down with Ciara Troy, founder of Oishii Sushi and discussing her journey through tough times but also through great times. Nineteen years on, Oishii is still supplying those who want to switch up their food choices from what once was a limited option of a sandwich or a wrap.
The concept of Oishii (meaning delicious) started out with a semester studying abroad in Japan and has turned into a passion project which exploded onto the Irish food scene and onto the shelves of the top retailers in Ireland including Tesco, Dunnes, Lidl and Aldi.
“You are only as good as your last tray of sushi”
Ciara quoted ‘resilience and ‘being agile’ as key reasons why 19 years after being founded in 2006, the company is still thriving and eyeing up further growth. This food business has withstood multiple spanners in the wheel of business such as Brexit which at the time was an upset to the plans.
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From the beginnings at the Greystones market in 2006, this was a “low-cost way of testing the market with instant customer feedback” and Oishii has grown exponentially since that day.
The instant feedback was a great point made by Ciara as in today’s world a lot of purchases are made online for the first time. Producers never get to see that reaction in the moment which Ciara states as invaluable at the beginning of a brand such as sushi when you’re testing something completely new.
Oishii has also won many awards including Small Food & Drink Business of the Year in the SFA 2024 Awards, and multiple product awards at both Blas na hEireann and the Irish Quality Food & Drink Awards.
Blas na hEireann is a competition that highlights the up-and-coming Irish brands, as well as the more established food brands, which over the following few years could explode onto the scene. This event, held in Dingle, is proudly sponsored by Bank of Ireland and has given numerous brands the platform they need to be seen by both the industry and future potential customers.
It was a refreshing conversation seeing as recently there has been a lot of negativity around the cost of being a food manufacturer, Ciara seemed to have a positive outlook. Although she did mention that the raw materials when it comes to sushi can be on the expensive side, the automation she is now bringing in with future digitalisation innovation plans is a positive aspect of things to come.
An interesting take on the growth of competition within the sushi industry was the fact that it creates a more mainstream view of sushi consumption rather than seeing it as a niche. This can be framed in all industries at what first may seem like a threat, can often benefit the industry as a whole and doesn’t need to be viewed as an automatic threat. Along with this it forces the industry to continue innovating and improving in order to avoid being outdone and the longevity of Oishii Sushi has highlighted that this has in fact been done.
Early retail partnerships included Superquinn, BWG, and later Tesco and Dunnes Stores which provided Cara and Oishii with great partners at the beginning of the expansion into retail stores.
A powerhouse of efficiency
Ciara Troy, founder and owner of Oishii Sushi
Today, Oishii is the largest supplier of freshly prepared Japanese food to Irish retail outlets nationwide across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Stockists include Tesco, Lidl, Aldi, Applegreen, Dunnes Stores, Musgrave Group, and most recently, the BWG Group.
Having grown the company from its farmers market beginnings as a two-person team hand rolling the sushi, to over 75+ of workers feeding households across the island of Ireland with its delicious sushi, Oishii has turned into an efficient powerhouse.
Although predominantly supplying the Irish economy at the time of Brexit Ciara’s story on how this affected the company shows the vast reach that macroeconomics has on industries.
Certain key suppliers were UK based and naturally this supply chain came under strain as a result of Brexit. However, with capacity growing and a change in their procurement strategy, this allowed them to order their first shipment directly from China. This enabled Oishii to stabilise their supply chain and avoid the large repercussions that came with sourcing from the UK.
When I am interviewing founders, I always enjoy hearing about specific decisions that may have had a much larger impact on their future than they ever imagined at the time. For Ciara Troy this came about because of the Covid-19 crisis, like so many affected businesses globally. But instead of this being the end of the road for a business which was operating by having a fleet of vans delivering daily to store, Oishii Foods redesigned the way they do business. Rather than having transport and logistics to worry about they became product focused and stocked retailers via central distribution which allowed them to be more tunnel vision on producing the best product possible while still functioning through the tough times of COVID. This was quoted by Ciara as turning “threat into opportunity” which as a founder is something you need to become accustomed to and this skill of adaptation can be vital.
I was curious to find out about any history of funding opportunities for a company and brand such as Oishii Sushi, as investors are always looking out for ways to maximise investment. Ciara mentioned that external funding had been offered in the past, but she believed there was “more to be done” and wanted to continue the journey without outside investment.
Looking at where Oishii are in the marketplace currently, this looks to have been a wise financial decision. The reinvestment of cashflows approach suggests a preference for controlled and sustainable expansion.
In terms of their future, Ciara is optimistic of the sector and is “ready to capitalise on its nearly two decades of expertise”. When it comes to Oishii and its daily production, consistency is key as “you are only as good as your last tray of sushi”.
With revenues having surged 260% from years 2022-2025 Ciara Troy and Oishii foods are capitalising on the populations growing appetite for a change from the standard sandwich or wrap for lunch.
This story shows that although naturally in the life of a founder and entrepreneur there will be curve balls thrown their way, through adaptation, positive reaction and the will to grow their idea and project, success can be found at the other end, and this has been proven by Ciara from Oishii Foods.
Top image background: Photo by Tamas Pap on Unsplash
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