Sunday Spotlight: Niall Rooney

Each month at What’s The Craic DubEye, we interview business owners in Dubai about their careers, experiences, and what’s next. This week, we speak to Niall Rooney, owner of Recoveroo, the UAE’s leading pitch side recovery service, catering for all athletes from amateur to elite.

Tell us about yourself pre-Recoveroo and what led you to launching last year.

I’ve been hugely involved in sports from a young age and played everything from GAA, handball, and basketball to rugby, as well as being a regular gymgoer. From the age of 15, II was involved in football development squads and played football for my county at both minor and under-21 levels. As part of this, recovery was hugely important, and as I moved onto senior level, recovery was a big part of our training. When I moved out to Dubai, the standard of football was still very high, but the added challenge of the intense heat made recovery even more difficult. Most of the lads on the team were just heading home after training and doing little to no recovery work, which means performance is constantly hindered. I looked into various options in Dubai as to how we could improve our recovery, but there were few options in Dubai and what was available was very expensive. So, I decided it was something I needed to look into further.

Many people come up with business ideas but taking that plunge is another thing. What was that experience like for you?

It was a tough process because I’d never experienced anything like this before. I didn’t have a business background, so there’s been a lot of trial and error and learning as I go, and the help of family and friends has been crucial. It’s been a great experience, though, to do the research, reach out to suppliers and develop a business from the ground up. I’ve only been in operation for a few months, but it’s been very exciting, and it seems to be going okay!

Your personal sporting background must be a huge help in that regard?

Yeah, absolutely. Prior to purchasing our products, I did a huge amount of research on the scientific end of things and tested a lot of different options myself. It was important to me that I knew my products inside out, and the best way to do this is to practice what I preach. I’ve trained at the highest levels, so I understand what is needed for proper recovery, and I can advise my clients as to what they need and what I can offer.

Do you have a base, or is it fully mobile?

One of the core things about my service that I was keen to offer is mobility and ease of use. The best time to start your recovery process is straight after the training session, game, race, etc., so I wanted to build a business that can be onsite and make it easy for clients. One problem many teams have is that when they organise a recovery session after a game, it’s in a different location, so players have to travel. This makes it difficult for players, and they’re much more likely to skip it. However, if you can be ready on the side of the pitch or track, it makes things easier and more beneficial for everyone.

What is your core product offering?

For on-site activities like training and matches, compression boots, ice baths and foam rollers are the main products our clients will use directly after a session. These are the best to promote recovery, reduce lactic acid in the body and help with any soreness, knocks, etc. Away from the pitch, our at-home box is really popular within the Crossfit community. This box includes compression boots, a massage gun, a foam roller, trigger point balls, Epsom salts and electrolytes. This is great for both prehab and rehab around competition times for these athletes.

What kind of clients are you now working with?

With my background, GAA was the natural starting point for me, so I’ve worked with various individual teams, and I’m also setup and many of the GAA tournaments in the UAE. Aside from GAA, Crossfit and athletics are growing markets for the business and are areas I’m keen to expand into over the coming months. Dubai is a huge hub for athletes of all different sports and continues throughout the twelve months of the year. In particular, as we move into the summer months in Dubai, recovery becomes even more important for teams and athletes. I believe I have a great product, and crucially, an affordable product, to offer to athletes of any discipline, so I’m keen to spread to expand into other disciplines.

To find out more, contact Niall on Instagram , WhatsApp on 050 121 3434 or email: [email protected].