The well-known Irish entrepreneur, Paul McGlade Sr, has died at the age of 69.
Mr McGlade was the founder of the former Champion Sports chain, as well as the Thérapie and Optilase clinics, among many other businesses.
Born in Belfast in June of 1955, Mr McGlade began his working life in markets in Northern Ireland where he learned the art of sales and retail.
In the late 1970s he moved to Dublin where he later established the Apollo bargain store on Moore Street.
In the early 1990s he opened a sports shop called Champion Sports and grew it into a large nationwide chain of stores, before selling it in 2006 to a consortium of investors for a reported €40m.
It was later sold to British retailer JD Sports.
In 2001 he opened the first Thérapie clinic on Dublin's Molesworth St, which over time has grown into a cosmetic treatment chain which now has over 75 outlets across Ireland, the UK and US.
Mr McGlade was also the founder of the Optilase eye surgery clinic chain in 2005 which now has ten locations across the island of Ireland.
Among the other areas of business that he was involved in were hospitality, with Dublin bar and nightclub Pygmalion among his best known ventures.
"He was a tremendously hard worker who dreamed big," his family said in a statement.
"His world was filled with possibilities and promise, and he coupled that with an innate skill for identifying what people wanted."
McMGlade passed away last Thursday following short illness.
He is survived by his four children Paul, Phillip, Katie and William, their mother Rita and their six grandchildren.
