Looking to the Future: Fingal Local Enterprise Week is Launched

Fingal Local Enterprise Office (LEO) has launched a series of exciting business events and initiatives to take place both online and in-person for Local Enterprise Week (LEW) this year, which is happening between the 7th and 11th of March 2021.

LEW will allow local business owners/managers to learn, engage and network in person at events occurring throughout Fingal.

In addition, a wide series of online events organised by Fingal and other LEOs will be accessible to businesses throughout Ireland.

The future-focused week will kick off on Monday morning with an in-person dynamic “Start-Up Bootcamp” in the Riasc Centre.

Later that morning Fingal Chamber will host a special online event for Fingal businesses, with An Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Trade & Employment Leo Varadkar TD delivering a keynote address.

Tuesday begins with a business breakfast hosted by Balbriggan Chamber, featuring a high-calibre talk on “Preparing Your Business for Growth”.

Other Fingal events include information events for digitising your business, a focus on “ethnic entrepreneurship”, and the annual Fingal Enterprise Awards which will take place in Skerries on Thursday evening.

The first in-person “Fingal Enterprising Women” networking event since Covid struck two years ago will prove to be an exciting highlight of the week featuring renowned broadcaster Lorraine Keane.

The week will close with a major event called “Show Me The Money” in the wonderful new studio in Sonica in Skerries.

This will feature many experts on how to raise finance for your business, with Irish state agencies and a series of entrepreneurs that have successfully raised funding through grants, equity finance, loans, crowd-funding and venture capital. This event will be live-streamed throughout Ireland.

Many other events are accessible online, including an event focused on Protecting your Business online, run by TU Dublin (Blanchardstown), a food sector webinar featuring Bord Bia, LEAN for Business, Growing a Sustainable Business, Developing Export Opportunities and much more.

At a photo-call in Skerries to mark the launch of the programme, Mayor of Fingal Cllr. Seána O Rodaigh highlighted the necessity for all small enterprises to use the opportunity to tap into the wide range of supports available to them: “Through our Local Enterprise Office, Fingal County Council is providing vital services and assistance to our local businesses.

“We want to ensure that our SMEs take advantage of the various programmes and supports available to them through the LEO and other state bodies”.

AnnMarie Farrelly, Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, further added: “In Fingal, we strive to create a dynamic environment conducive to business growth and local job creation.

“Local Enterprise Week is an excellent opportunity to network and keep up with the latest business developments.

“I am particularly pleased to see the schedule this year incorporates a broad mix of in-person and online business events, enabling all Fingal businesses to benefit from the programme”.

Oisín Geoghegan, Head of Enterprise in Fingal concluded: “Local Enterprise Week 2022 offers a very practical and contemporary programme to help businesses.

“We have a great selection of forward-looking events and initiatives that will cater to the needs of growing small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs that want to set up a new enterprise.

“Once again this year, we are delighted to see the buy-in to Local Enterprise Week from across the many business support organisations and agencies operating at both national and local level in 2022”.

All of the online events during LEW 2022 are completely free of charge, or a small nominal fee to attend some events in person.

To see the full line-up of events for LEW 2022 and book online, visit www.localenterprise.ie/week.