A young business owner has launched a new podcast which he hopes will inspire others to look after their physical and mental wellbeing.
Padraig Fitzsimons from West Belfast opened his business Simply Zen in 2020 at the age of 21 and since then it has grown from selling online to owning a flagship store on Belfast's Royal Avenue.
With that success has come many personal challenges and Padraig is hoping that through chatting to others on his Tru North podcast, it might help others find ways to look after their wellbeing.
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"I wanted the podcast to be something that highlights purpose," he told Belfast Live.
"For me, I wanted to highlight the expertise that we have here in Northern Ireland, be that a company CEO, a mindfulness coach or a pharmacist.
"We have mainly had people on who have a holistic approach to wellbeing because that is the industry that I am in," he said.
Padraig said that the inspiration for his podcast came from listening to others and having an interest in people's back stories.
"I always find that whoever I have on, what they are doing now in life has come from some sort of pain or a pleasure point that they have experienced in the past.
"So, I want to share those stories of inspiration so that people know there is more than just what meets the eye."
Previous episodes of the podcast have featured a number of local people including Domhnall Nugent who spoke about overcoming his addictions.
In an upcoming episode of the podcast, Padraig will be joined by make-up artist and fellow entrepreneur, Ciara Daly who will discuss her battles with depression and how she overcome that to become the success that she is today.
"I take a lot of value from everybody who comes on the podcast and I want to share that with everybody who either watches or listens to each episode," he added.
"Hopefully through that, it will empower our listeners to start to think about their own values and purposes."
Tru North is available to listen to on Spotify, YouTube and other podcast apps.
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