Awards are now an important event in the Duhallow business calendar
“The excitement being expressed by the shortlisted finalists this year is palpable, as we “celebrate their ‘Excellence in Local Enterprise’
IRD Duhallow’s Board and Working Groups recognise the strong role that we must play to support the development of local enterprise. By investing in local enterprise we are, in turn, creating local jobs and a better quality of life for people in the area.
The IRD Duhallow Business Awards are now in their sixth year and are an important event in the calendar for Duhallow’s Business Community. The excitement being expressed by the shortlisted finalists this year is palpable, as we celebrate their ‘Excellence in Local Enterprise’.
Starting a business is no easy task, sustaining and growing that business can be even more of a challenge. Each of the finalists have done just that, and it is important that we continue to give this platform to celebrate their achievements.
This event would not be possible without our partners, The Corkman, who have done Trojan work in ensuring that all 19 of our shortlisted finalists receive the profile they deserve in highlighting their business. The standard and quality of this supplement is a testament to the great work of John Feerick and his team.
I would also like to welcome on board AIB, IPB and the McCarthy Insurance Group as our sponsors this year. James McAuley from MIG has been judging these awards for the past number of years and has always given so freely of his time to support the development of local enterprise. Kathleen Cronin from Peter Doyle from AIB Kanturk sit on a number of our committees in IRD Duhallow and are great advocates for supporting local start-ups and developing enterprise in Duhallow.
Family businesses are the lifeblood of enterprise in Duhallow, and a huge percentage of our local enterprises involve a number of family members, or have been passed through generations. We especially wel- come the addition of the Family Run Business Category, which I think is something that needs to be celebrated. We have to encourage our young people to continue to live and work in the area, and family run businesses are a great vehicle for doing just that.
I have been overwhelmed by the passion and enthusiasm from not just those in the family run business category, but also all our finalists in the Women Led Business Category, Creative Industry, Long Established, Newly Formed and Community Enterprise.
I would like thank our panel of judges - James McAuley, Mick O’Connell and Siobhan Murphy - who have expressed to me how much they have really enjoyed the time they have spent visiting the finalists. They have had no easy task in whittling the many entries down to the shortlisted few you see across the coming pages.
Funding from our Duhallow Skillnet programme has allowed us to once again host the awards in the James O’Keeffe Institute. Since the programme started in 2015, it has gone from strength to strength with 775 member companies, training 1703 employed trainees and 228 unemployed trainees. IRD Duhallow was delighted to once again receive another increase in our Skillnet budget for the 2019 programme, recognising these local indigenous firms need to access to affordable, quality training here locally. This success can be attributed to the dedication of our voluntary enterprise working group for giving so freely of their time and expertise to push the enterprise agenda.
Networking and business go hand in hand. In fact, it is said that networking is cited as the number one unwritten rule to business success. Our awards night on the 22nd of November, offers a great platform to meet other local enterprises and likeminded entrepreneurs and I would encourage business owners from all across Duhallow to attend and maximise the opportunities to meet other like minded entrepreneurs.
I read a sign in a small retailer recently and it said: “When you shop here, we do a little happy dance”. It made me think … we as consumers have a huge responsibility to give our business locally and ensure that vital services and smaller independent businesses can continue to operate within our communities.