BusinessPlus

Sodexo has secured a contract with Meta to provide food services to more than 130 locations globally following a competitive tender process. The French group will provide food to the Facebook owner's corporate offices, large campuses, data centres, conference hubs and smaller office locations. The deal represents one of the largest single global workplace food services contracts in Sodexo's history, and service delivery will start progressively in the coming months.

Tesco Ireland has opened its newest superstore in Tyrrelstown, Dublin 15, adding 65 jobs. The bright, modern 22,000 sq ft outlet offers an extensive range of Irish food and drink products and beloved brands. The store has energy-efficient lighting and modern fridges to held reduce energy use as well as 220 solar panels on the roof, providing 20% of electricity needs.

How have the core expectations of accountants shifted for growing Irish businesses? Business owners no longer accept hearing from their accountant once a year. They expect to know where they stand in real time, not months after decisions have already been made. The businesses we work with are making decisions weekly, sometimes daily, and they need numbers they can actually act on. The expectation hasn’t just shifted, it’s outpaced how most firms are structured.

Marks & Spencer has expanded its offering on Amazon to the Netherlands as it accelerates its new channel growth and build its global brand. M&S first partnered with Amazon in February, launching across the online shopping giants platforms in France, Germany, Spain and Italy. M&S Fashion has been available in the Netherlands since 2022, through marketplace including Zalando.

Soft drink Something & Nothing has secured national distribution through Musgrave and BWG. The low-sugar, low-calorie, all-natural drinks range has been created to meet growing consumer demand for healthier drinks. Something & Nothing uses natural ingredients and grape juice instead of refined sugar and artificial sweeteners for drinks that are refreshing and full of character without artificial sweeteners, colours or preservatives.

Repak has opened entries for the 2026 Repak Resource Awards with businesses, community groups, schools and organisations invited to enter the environmental awards. Formerly known as the Pakman Awards, the awards celebrate impactful businesses and organisations in waste prevention and resource efficiency.

Having begun her career in Kinsale 33 years ago, Johanna Murphy now runs her own estate agency covering Kinsale, Cobh and Cork City, while also selling properties farther afield, including West Cork. “Demand from international buyers has been robust over the past year. Interest spans the market, from two-bedroom homes to premium properties. “Companies are also increasingly active, buying homes for employees and higher-end properties for directors and contractors,” she observes.

Applegreen will celebrate its anniversary next Friday (24 July) with its annual 24/7 event, offering one-day offers, discounts and treats to participating stores across Ireland. The centrepiece will be a Birthday Bash event at Applegreen Enfield Westbound on the M4 starting at 10am, hosted by PJ Kirby and Kev Twomey from the I'm Grand Mam podcast. TikToker James Doyle will also be in attendance, and there will be live music, entertainment, games and giveaways.

Iced coffee sales at Maxol more than tripled during June's heatwave as customers sought to cool down. The forecourt operator and convenience retailer saw sales of iced coffee increase 215% week-on-week during the hottest days last month (22-29 June). The company saw regulars swapping out their usual hot beverages for chilled coffees such as iced lattes and flavoured iced coffees to beat the heat. Maxol sold more than 5m cups of its proprietary ROSA coffee last year.

Irish television advertising revenue increased 3% during the first half of the year to €136.5m, figures from TAM Ireland show. The total accounts for revenue generated for advertising on linear television, product placement, advertising-funded programming and broadcaster catch-up and on demand services (BVOD). BVOD saw the strongest growth, growing 12% year-on-year, while linear television also saw solid growth of 2%.