Busy making ends meet

A group of singers, broadcasters, comedians and writers discuss their personal finances as the new year starts with CONOR POPEand RUTH O’CONNOR

Maria Tecce, singer and actor

I consider myself quite a frugal person as that’s how I was brought up. As one of five children in a Catholic middle class family in Boston the motto was: “If you work hard you can achieve anything”. I would like to buy a house at some point but at the moment renting suits me, is good value and avoids all the additional costs that homeowners have, especially since the budget.

I’m a saver by nature and always worry about financial stability so I’ve had to learn to spend money – buying myself a nice bottle of perfume or going out to eat. I used to think that I had to save every penny but realise now that if you’ve grafted all year it’s okay to treat yourself.

For 2013, splurging for me would be getting to visit my family in the US more than once or going on holiday. I tend to spend money on experiential things, money to me is a facilitator. The big investment for me this year will be the making of my new album.

Joanne Hynes, fashion designer

I don’t feel that great materialistic urge anymore, but I do have an urge to create. If I was to consider treating myself to anything in 2013 I think it would be to doing a night course or something intellectual or creative rather than buying something.

I’ve always been interested in the value of things rather than in always needing new things. I think less is more for 2013 – smart people want less stuff but more meaningful, beautiful and hand-crafted. There’s a shift towards this in design.

For 2013 my biggest financial investment will be my export business – we’ve been selling well in Japan, China, Kuwait and Korea and we also want to look at expanding into Saudi Arabia.

I’ll be spending on travel to artisan producers in places like Tuscany and to the shows in Paris. It’s investment in the business but I always try to take at least one day for fun when I visit these places. A skiing trip in March is also booked!

Brendan Courtney, broadcaster and designer

I’m pretty good at saving and I’m really good at spending. To be honest, I used to be very extravagant, sometimes to the point of being wasteful but I’ve calmed down a lot in the past few years. I have wasted a lot of money. I have a spare room in my apartment full of clothes and own 180 suits (I once spent €2,500 on a Gucci suit) so I don’t think I really need to spend any money this year on clothes.

This year I will be investing all my money in my new clothing design business, Lennon Courtney, which I run with Sonya Lennon (colleague and Off the Rails co-presenter). My biggest financial goal this year is to keep this going and to break even in the first year. The biggest problem in the design business is cash flow as you only really get paid twice a year and need to invest that money back into the business.