It was shortly after the birth of her first child that Louise Cooney took the initiative to step away from the business she had built from the ground up.
Upon returning home from New York during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Louise got itchy feet and decided to put her business acumen to good use. And thus, CLOO Active was born in November 2021.
At the beginning of 2024, the influencer made the bittersweet decision to park her professional life and prioritise her son and family. As we chat, Louise explains she didn’t quite wrap her head around how much of your time having a baby requires.
Louise Cooney. Pic: CLOO Active/Instagram
‘I decided to step away from CLOO Active after I had Jude. I had to step away for a bit,’ Louise explains. ‘When you’re running a business, you need 110 per cent.
‘If you want it to be the best it can be, it takes a lot. I just couldn’t keep up with both. I had to make a choice,’ she recalls.
‘CLOO Active was 100 per cent mine; there was no one else running it with me. I looked after all aspects of the business. I assume people know how much time it takes when you have a baby, which is something I didn’t know before I had a baby.
‘I was doing everything, which is impossible to do anyway, without a baby, it’s not possible time-wise or mental health-wise. That’s why I made that decision, so that Jude didn’t have to pay the price of me trying to do this thing when I didn’t have the time.’
Louise Cooney. Pic: CLOO Active/Instagram
Louise’s son, Jude, is now two years old, and once again she appears to be getting those same itchy feet that led to CLOO Active’s inception many moons ago.
‘I just put it on pause, and there are some things that I have to figure out that are in the process of being figured out,’ Louise teases. ‘I’m hoping at some stage soon I’ll be able to give an update as to what’s happening.
‘I can’t right now, because there are still some things that I need to figure out.’ Watch this space, folks!
Louise Cooney. Pic: CLOO Active/Instagram
Shortly after she launched CLOO Active in 2021, Louise got a taste for entrepreneurship and ventured into the drinks industry with a drink brand called 67 Spritz.
Unfortunately, due to ‘production and supply chain issues’, 67 Spritz fell through just months after Louise stepped away from her athleisurewear brand.
I was curious as to whether this was a ‘blessing in disguise’, or whether the influencer would consider reintroducing herself to the drinks industry in the future.
Louise Cooney and Tara Anderson. Pic: 67 Spritz/Instagram
‘I wouldn’t say it was a blessing in disguise, it was totally disappointing,’ Louise laments.
‘I could see these problems down the line, so when it happened, I wasn’t surprised; I was just disappointed. There was so much potential.’
Yes, Louise wants to put that business degree to good use once more, as she tells me: ‘I would love to do my own thing again. I don’t know what that is right now, but then I think there are seasons to these things as well, and I don’t know if it’s my season right now.’
Louise Cooney and her husband, Mark Sweeney, with their son, Jude. Pic: Louise Cooney/Instagram
‘There are other life things I need to figure out in order to give 110 per cent of my time to business,’ Louise explains. ‘Family is so important to me, and that’s definitely a priority for me right now.’
I also wondered whether Louise, as an influencer-turned-entrepreneur, encountered scepticism when she launched her businesses, or whether her followers were chomping at the bit to pick up whatever she was putting down.
‘People were really supportive,’ she remembers. ‘I definitely felt very lucky to have an audience that was there ready to receive something.’
Pic: Louise Cooney/Instagram
‘When you start a business without an audience, you have to find that audience, and you have to work and pay for it, and pay for marketing, and really, really work hard at getting that word of mouth out,’ she says. ‘I was really lucky like that.
‘I loved that side of it, because you’re learning, and it’s different, and exciting, and you’re able to create and put your stamp on something.
‘I loved it, and I think people really respect people going out there and giving it a go and trying.’
Louise Cooney with her husband, Mark Sweeney. Pic: Louise Cooney/Instagram
‘The other side of that is that you’re more easily accessible if things go wrong, and everything will fall on your shoulders. You have to be extra careful about that,’ she says.
As for her 2026 professional goals, Louise tells me: ‘In terms of work, I’ve loved being able to put my stamp on things, rather than showcasing things someone else has created.
‘It makes it really exciting for me cause then there’s a story to tell and a story behind it, a lot of thought and time has gone into it. I’d love to do that again, and I have something in the pipeline, so I’m hoping to share that really soon.’