Three Kildare Entrepreneurs emerge victorious in the IBYE Regional Final on 5th November in Tullamore.
Three young Kildare entrepreneurs have won a place at the national final of the prestigious ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur’ competition, for a chance to share a €100,000 investment fund. The winners from Kildare are as follows
- Best New Idea, Conor Devlin, uHerrd, Celbridge
- Best Start-Up: David Carey, Nutraplenish, Celbridge
- Best Established Business: Tim Dunleavy, Dunleavy Bespoke, Caragh
Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) competition is an integral part of the Action Plan for Jobs and is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation through the 31 Local Enterprise Offices around the country.
At the IBYE Regional Final, three local business owners and new start-ups from Kildare all under the age of 30, went head-to-head with other county winners from Offaly, Westmeath, Laois.
The nominees were all interviewed by a three member judging panel and had to deliver a business pitch, live. Assessed on criteria such as business innovation, job creation potential and financial planning, the announcement of the national finalists was made at a reception in Axis Business Centre.
Congratulating the finalists, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton T.D. said: “Central to our plans for jobs and growth is supporting more businesses to start-up. Part of this plan is also fostering a stronger culture of entrepreneurship and promoting start-up business as a career option for young people. That is what is behind this competition to find the best young entrepreneur in each region, and ultimately Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur. I am delighted to congratulate all involved.”
The local winner now faces tough competition from 23 other finalists, emerging from eight regional finals. The €100,000 investment fund in December is divided up across four prizes:
- Best New Idea (€20,000 investment)
- Best Start Up (€30,000 investment)
- Best Established Business (€30,000 investment)
- Overall Winner of ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur’ (an additional €20,000 investment)
More than 400 business owners and start-ups from around the country have already benefitted from intensive business bootcamps and mentoring programmes through the network of Local Enterprise Offices, as part of the competition.
The Head of Enterprise with the Local Enterprise Office Kildare, Mary Foley said: “We are proud and honoured to have not one but three representatives at the national final in December, as over 1,000 young entrepreneurs entered from every county in Ireland, with tough competition across each category. Our finalist now has a chance of being crowned ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur’ and to win additional investment of up to €50,000 for their business. We’d also like to congratulate all our other nominees and entrants, who ‘flew the flag’ for us at the county and regional finals and the Local Enterprise Office looks forward to supporting their businesses into the future.”
The three young entrepreneurs representing the county at the Regional Final were:
- Best New Idea, Conor Devlin, uHerrd, Celbridge
- Best Start-Up: David Carey, Nutraplenish, Celbridge
- Best Established Business: Tim Dunleavy, Dunleavy Bespoke, Caragh
News, results and updates for ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur’ competition, is available through www.ibye.ie, www.localenterprise.ie and by searching #IBYE on social media.
