Fingal is Back to Business at Local Enterprise Week 2023!

Fingal’s business community came out in droves for this year’s Local Enterprise Week, run by Fingal Local Enterprise Office (LEO).

A series of exciting business-focussed events were run both online and in-person between the 6^th and 10^th of March 2023 as part of Local Enterprise Week (LEW) this year. There were hundreds of physical and virtual events taking place across the country, run by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices from March 6^th to 10^th, and huge numbers of Fingal business owner/managers used the opportunity to network and learn about new supports and opportunities for their businesses.

The packed week of events kicked off on Monday the 6^th of March with an in-person dynamic “Start-Up Bootcamp” in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown. Over seventy aspiring entrepreneurs participated in the intensive bootcamp, where they joined in interactive group exercises and received real-world advice from business experts followed by one to one mentoring from Fingal LEO Mentors.Meanwhile, in Balbriggan, the Stop Hesitating – Start Networking event hosted by Balbriggan Chamber in association with LEO Fingal got underway with speaker Sean Weafer sharing his tips for easier and more worthwhile networking experiences.

On Tuesday, LEO Fingal launched a new series of the Export Development Programme for entrepreneurs intent on increasing their market penetration outside of Ireland. That evening, the Fingal Enterprise Awards took place in County Hall Swords, with seven finalists battling it out for the coveted prize of winner of the 2023 competition.  The seven finalists from across Fingal consisted of: Cream of the Crop (Giselle Goncalves Makinde, Dublin 15); Culinary Microherbs (Carol Lopez and Paul Curry, Dublin 11); Lynott Jewellery (Lauren McDonald, Kinsealy); MilkBath (Sandra and Derek Hickey, Lusk); Platform55 (Michelle O'Keefe, Malahide); Prints of Ireland (Heather Gilroy and Peter O'Neill, Balbriggan); and The Little Wax Company (Marc and Amy Herbert, Balbriggan).

Cream of the Crop Gelatos who provide healthy artisanal gelatos, sorbets and snacks using surplus ingredients  were announced as overall winners, scooping the top prize of €5,000 and will now represent Fingal Local Enterprise Office at the 23^rd National Enterprise Awards at the Mansion House in Dublin on the Thursday June 1st. Platform55 run by Michelle O’Keeffe and Tracy Gunn received the Highly Commended award and an associated prize of €2,000.

Acknowledging International Women’s Day on Wednesday, Fingal Chamber hosted a panel of accomplished female entrepreneurs and business leaders from the region, who shared their extensive knowledge, experience, and advice in an event called "Behind the Business". There was a panel discussion which considered the challenges and opportunities that exist for businesses aiming to achieve success.

On Thursday following the Fingal Business Briefing at the Riasc, Kinsealy, the Local Enterprise Office ran a lively and dynamic event called “9 Ways Social Media Can Generate Business Results in 2023” in the Marine Hotel, Sutton. With a packed audience of 150 businesses, guest speaker Greg Fry highlighted clever ways you can use social media platforms to monetise products and grow further sales. He also focussed on using AI for content generation.

Local Enterprise Week concluded on Friday 10th March with one of the highlights of the week, the networking lunch hosted by Fingal Enterprising Women’s Network at the Carlton Hotel, Dublin Airport. The Fingal Enterprising Women Network (FEWN) welcomed guest speaker and Businesswoman Sonya Lennon, who discussed a range of topics including "Challenging your own relationship with Fear and Action”. 

Other events run during Local Enterprise Week included “The Future of Food – Trends 2023” hosted by Dublin Food Chain and  “Pitch Perfect: Battle of the Start-Ups” hosted by the four Dublin Local Enterprise Offices in conjunction with TUDublin which saw Dublin’s top entrepreneurs battle it out for the chance to win €5,000.