Hundreds attend ‘Who to talk to’ Expo for Small Businesses in Tipperary
The Premier County was in the enterprise spotlight last Wednesday, May 30th, with the staging of the first ever “Who to talk to” Expo for Irish businesses.
Organisers have estimated that around 300 business owners and new start-ups benefitted from attending workshops, supports seminars and advice clinics on offer, all of which were completely free of charge.
Co-ordinated by the North Tipperary County Development Board in collaboration with various state and community support organisations, the landmark event was staged at the County Council Civic Offices in Nenagh this evening.
Aimed at anyone in the region looking to grow their existing business or planning to start a new one, the “Who to talk to” event was being hailed as one of the most important events of 2012 for small businesses.
Earlier this evening, representatives from seven state agencies outlined the range of grants and supports currently available for enterprise and job creation in the region. These include grants available around exports, cross border trade, research and development, micro-enterprise, rural development and tourism. A recently launched scheme from the Local Authority around a reduction in planning and development levies was also on the agenda.
Stemming from the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs, workshops were held around the Revenue Commissioners’ Business Incentives, the recently expanded JobBridge Internship Programmes and around ‘ConnectIreland’, which encourages the use of global contacts to create new jobs in Ireland.
Forty support agencies, educational bodies, business organisations, financial institutions and Chambers all met visitors in the exhibition space, offering free information, guidance and advice.
Speaking at the enterprise event, Joe MacGrath, County Manager of North Tipperary County Council said: “Our goal is to help make North Tipperary one of the most enterprise-friendly regions in Ireland and to encourage as many small businesses as possible to set up a base here. By conveniently bringing all the state support organisations together under the same roof for this initiative, the small business community benefitted from having direct access to useful information, advice and guidance.”
He continued: “North Tipperary has a proud history and record of creating jobs locally. The economic climate in which we now operate presents a significant challenge which calls us to draw on our resources more than ever to create jobs and provide employment opportunities. All of the enterprise agencies and local authorities are responding to this challenge through various initiatives, such as the “Who to talk to” Expo, aimed at igniting enterprise in the region.”
The event was organised by the North Tipperary County Development Board and supported by Tipperary North County Enterprise Board, Enterprise Ireland, Shannon Development, North Tipperary Leader Partnership, IDA, North Tipperary VEC, Limerick Institute of Technology, FAS and the Department of Social Protection.
