15/06/2014 - LEO Searches For Fingal’s Best Young Entrepreneur

Deadline approaches for competition with €50,000 fund to invest in local winning businesses

Fingal’s Local Enterprise Office is calling all entrepreneurs in the region, under the age of 30, to apply for the ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur competition, which could secure an initial investment in their business of up to €20,000.

The ‘Best Young Entrepreneur’ competition was announced by Government in May and through the Local Enterprise Offices, aims to promote a culture of entrepreneurship among young people.

Oisin Geoghegan, Head of the Fingal Local Enterprise Office is encouraging local entrepreneurs, under thirty and with a good business idea or established business, to enter the competition.

He said: ‘Three categories will be judged at the County stage of the competition; ‘Best New Idea’; Best Start-up Business’ (under 18 months) and ‘Best Established Business with new add-on’ (over 18m months). The winners will share a total prize fund of €50,000 and will progress to the Regional and National finals, where a further €100,000 investment fund will be available for the overall winners.”

The deadline to enter the first stage of this competition is Thursday, 31st July. As well as a substantial cash investment, each of the finalists will benefit from a management bootcamp and mentoring support.

Geoghegan added: ‘This is the first competition of its kind ever to take place in this country and offers an unprecedented opportunity for Fingal’s young and would-be entrepreneurs to benefit from a substantial financial investment along with peer-learning and networking that will help create a platform for local jobs and future employment. We’d encourage young entrepreneurs across the County to put their ideas forward and compete for a slice of this fantastic opportunity.’

One such entrepreneur is Castleknock-native, 28 year old Emma Manley, Creative Director at Manley, her eponymous fashion line. Following internships with fashion labels VPL in New York and Alexander McQueen in London, Emma returned to Dublin and set up her own label in 2012. She has dressed well-known faces such as Amy Huberman and Aoibhin Garrihy, with her clothing line currently available in Ireland and Egypt.

Speaking at her Dublin design studio, Emma Manley said: ‘The scale of potential investment, both financially and commercially, from this competition is such that it makes absolute sense for my business to apply. The training bootcamp and mentoring programmes would be great opportunities to meet and work alongside fellow young entrepreneurs while a financial investment would mean Manley could access advanced marketing, branding and international sales opportunities at a much earlier stage that I would have originally anticipated.’

Applicants are invited to visit www.ibye.ie for further information on the competition. The closing date for applications is 31st July 2014 with the first stage of the selection process taking place in August 2014.

IBYE Competition - Emma Manley

ENDS

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Adrienne Ferguson: 01 8855162 | aferguson@engageireland.com

Notes to Editor:

WHAT IS THE IBYE COMPETITION? Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur Competition is open to all sectors. The competition takes place at County level initially, with a prize fund of €50,000 available to the winners of 3 separate categories (the overall County winner will be eligible for an investment of up to €25,000). CATEGORIES OF ENTRY

  1. Best New Idea 
  2. Best Start Up Business 
  3. Best Established Business with new add on 

Winners at County level will go on to compete at Regional level. The competition will culminate in a National final where finalists will compete for part of a €100,000 prize fund and the opportunity to be crowned Ireland's Best Young Entrepreneur.

The proposed schedule is:

31st July 2014:                                    Deadline for applications to LEOs

1st – 15th August:                                       Screening process by LEOs

15th – 31st September 2014:                     Entrepreneur Bootcamp and mentoring

October 2014:                                                County Finals

November 2014:                                     Regional Finals

November-December 2014:             National Finals  

Who can apply?

  1. Age 30 years and under  (at 31st  December 2014).
  2. Original and innovative idea, start-up or existing business add on.
  3. Applicants must own,control and manage their business Intellectual Property.
  4. Not for profit and social entrepreneurship applicants must operate in a commercial domain.
  5. You must be eligible to own, manage and operate a business in Ireland at the time of application.
  6. Applicants from overseas who are eligible to operate a business in Ireland are encouraged to apply.
  7. You must submit a preliminary application online or via your local enterprise office by the closing date of the 31st July 2014.
  8. One project submission per applicant is allowed.
  9. Existing businesses that wish to apply must be promoted by a young entrepreneur (30 years of age and under) and must have a new plan to further develop the business.
  10. If you are under the age of 18 at the 31st of December 2014 we will require parental consent in order for you to participate in the competition.

HOW TO APPLY

Interested parties can apply online at www.ibye.ie. Further details on the competition, including eligibility criteria, can be found on the website. Closing date for applications is 31st July 2014 with the selection process taking place in August 2014