The new owner of a €20 million Laois mansion intends to live in the property and develop it for personal use.
Yesterday, we revealed how John Collison, one half of the billionaire Tipperary Collison brothers, bought the 1,050-acre Abbey Leix Estate – located 1km outside Abbeyleix.
A source close to John revealed to LaoisToday that Mr Collison, who is one half of international payments company Stripe alongside his brother Patrick, intends to live in Abbeyleix at different stages during the year.
They said: “He is really looking looking forward to getting to know the Abbeyleix community when he is home.
“John is excited to get to know people there. He’ll be down at the local pub, in the butchers and doing all the things that normal people do.”
The source also revealed why Mr Collison was attracted to the property in the first place and outlined some of the plans he has for it.
When the news broke yesterday, speculation mounted that he was going to turn the estate into some sort of commercial entity as part of Stripe.
However, our source says this is not the case as describes the purchase of the estate as ‘personal’.
They said: “There aren’t many historic houses in Ireland and very few people have the ability to repair and maintain them.
“In most cases, these type of sites get turned into heritage sites, go to ruin or end up getting demolished.
“John saw that Abbeyleix had been on the market for a very long time and felt that it needed a ‘minder’.
“John really sees his role as a steward of the estate. He wants to mind the property and regenerate the historic woodlands.
“He wants to nurture the wildlife because both him and Patrick care deeply about the environment.
“Stripe does a lot of investment in projects that mitigate against climate change and they are very passionate about the outdoors.
“These houses have lives far beyond their owners and John wants to set it up for future generations too.”
Brothers John and Patrick Collison have a combined wealth of €7.7 billion, were named third on the 2020 Rich List for Ireland and are the founders of Stripe.
Originally from Dromineer in Tipperary, the brothers are typically refereed to as being from Limerick as they attended Castletroy College before moving to the US at a young age to further their business interests.
Stripe is an online payments company that the brothers founded in 2009 and is now the most valuable ever Irish-made enterprise with a market value of just under €80 billion.
The entrance to the mansion is just off the Ballacolla Road about 1km from Abbeyleix town.
Abbey Leix Estate’s mansion is augmented by 10 lodges and cottages on the estate and includes some of Ireland’s most notable ancient woodland as well as extensive frontage to the River Nore.
The 1,050-acre estate previously belongs to Sir David Davies – an 85-year-old British electrical engineer and educator.
