Minister Bruton Announces 14 Successful Winners of €200k Fund to Stimulate New Start-up activity in South

25^th June 2012

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mr Richard Bruton TD, today (Monday 25^th June 2012) unveiled the 14 successful winners of Enterprise Ireland’s €200K Pilot Competitive Feasibility Fund aimed at stimulating start ups and creating jobs in the South East.

The fund, which was launched earlier this year as part of the Government’s South East Employment Action Plan, offered funding of up to €25,000 to support entrepreneurs explore the feasibility of start-up ideas with job-creating potential in the South East region. Companies in the ICT, industrial and food sectors based in Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny and South Tipperary were eligible to apply.

The range of start-up ideas selected for support cover a range of sectors including food, renewable energy, medical devices, mobile payments, LED lighting, software, life sciences. Enterprise Ireland is now working closely with the entrepreneurs to help them develop the potential of their start-up ideas.

Making the announcement as he met the winners in Waterford today Minister Bruton said:

“Key to addressing the employment crisis in Ireland and in the South East is building a strong engine of indigenous enterprise. Foreign direct investment will continue to play a hugely important role in our economy, and we must continually seek to increase the range of multinational companies investing in Ireland and also increase the impact they have on our economy. But we must also crucially seek to ensure that we have more indigenous companies starting-up, succeeding, expanding, exporting, and ultimately creating jobs.

“Today’s announcement that 14 dynamic, innovative start-up companies, based in the South East and operating in key growth sectors, will have access to funding of up to €25,000 each is very welcome news. By continuing to support companies like these, and by implementing other measures in the Action Plan for Jobs, I am determined to ensure that we build powerful indigenous businesses and create the jobs we need”.

Enterprise Ireland’s Regional Manager Enda McDonnell added:

“We are delighted with the success to-date of this pilot fund, which enabled us to identify these exciting entrepreneurial ideas. The 14 ideas are based in an impressive variety of high-value, innovative sectors and the ideas are developing well in the workshops and mentoring we are conducting with the promoters. The success of this pilot is proof positive of the entrepreneurial potential that exists in the South East and throughout Ireland.”

ENDS.