HOW DO PEOPLE around Ireland save and spend? As the digital bank N26 grows its user base here, we’re setting out to speak to real people about their relationship to money. What’s easy? What’s challenging? And which purchases can they never resist?
First up: Swan Sweeney. With a day job as the manager of a busy Dublin 8 café and shop, Swan is also a qualified graphic designer with a passion for letterpress printing and signpainting. In recent months, that lifelong love of design has become a fledgling business, in the form of Dublin Digits.
At first I was offering to do people’s doors for free. It started when my neighbour spotted me up a ladder, painting numbers onto my own front door. We’d lived there eight years and the door never had a number, so I got a nice magenta paint.
He said to me, ‘You could do the doors for the rest of the road’ and I thought, ‘Wow, maybe I could.’ It went from there. No-one would accept the work for free really, everyone wanted to pay something. Then I put up a photo of my first official commission on Instagram and got about ten more enquiries off the back of that.
I’m saving for my wedding, so money management is important. When you’re working for yourself, it can be a bit of a balancing act. You could have payments coming in for three jobs in one month, and none the next.
We’re saving for the wedding itself, but then there are all the extra bits, the suit and all of that. So when money comes in from Dublin Digits jobs, I remind myself that it’s not for spending right now.
I use the ‘second zero’ approach. You never want to have zero in your bank account, that’s the worst case scenario, but if you have a number like €1,000 that you’ll never go below, that’s your second zero. So you have a buffer if needed.
The last thing I splashed out on was a fancy flatscreen TV. It’s one of the Samsung ones that looks like a frame, so when it’s off, it’s displaying artwork. I’m quite luxurious sometimes – I don’t buy things often but when I do, I’ve done my research. I don’t mind spending a bit of money on something if I feel it’s really worth it.
I can’t resist a good natural wine either. It’s so good and once you delve into that world, it’s hard to go back. The problem then is that you start to think spending €25 on a bottle of wine is normal and you have to remember that it’s a ‘treat’ purchase.
If I had €10 in my pocket to spend anywhere I liked, I reckon it’d go on coffee. I’d get a bag of great coffee beans to use at home. My local spot is Vice Coffee Inc on Clanbrassil Street in Dublin 8, very near my house.
For a sitdown coffee indoors before Covid, I’d have gone to Proper Order in Smithfield. I love that feeling of ordering a filter coffee or an espresso that you just know is going to be excellent.
One Dublin spot I’m always happy to spend money in is Fallon’s. It’s my local pub. I love it there and I love the barman, Dave. My order is always the same: a pint of Guinness, because it’s one of the best pints in Dublin.
As I’ve gotten older I’ve figured out what works for me with money. I’m definitely not frugal and I’m not a natural saver, but I don’t flit my money away either. I’ve always had a savings account, and these days I try to take a more mindful approach to spending and saving.
Have a side hustle or just looking for a way to save for multiple different projects at the same time? The premium N26 You account includes up to 10 Spaces sub-accounts for budgeting and saving, along with a range of incredible benefits including a free Mastercard debit card in the colour of your choice, free ATM withdrawals worldwide, 24/7 customer care and premium partnership discounts to help you save money on some of your favourite everyday brands.
Like all N26 plans, you’ll get free payments worldwide, 100% mobile banking and no hidden fees. Get a free N26 You account for one year using the code N26FREEYOU on N26.ie until July 9, 2021.
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