INNOVATIVE BUSINESS IDEAS big and small take centre stage at the 23rd annual National Enterprise awards.
Organised by the network of Local Enterprise offices (LEOs), the awards recognise the top entrepreneurs in Ireland from across the 31 LEO regions. The 31 finalists represent a diverse range of innovative and amazing businesses and all will compete for a €50,000 prize investment fund.
Joe English, chair of the National Enterprise awards committee, said that preparation for the awards “goes on all year.”
Each individual Local Enterprise office will select their candidate for the final. Each LEO follows their own individual process – many will run local competitions or have competitions in conjunction with their local Chambers of Commerce to select the company that best represents the vision of the Local Enterprise office for their county.”
All nominees received support and backing from their LEO in the form of expert advice and trusted guidance, offering a helping hand to aspiring entrepreneurs. To find out more about how your LEO can help your business, visit here.
The award categories are as follows:
Shedding more light on the selection process, and what LEOs look out for when considering nominees, English said, “We really focus on those companies with niche products or services that have potential for growth and also the potential to export. Those are the companies that all LEOs will be focusing on as they select their representative for the national finals.”
Companies that show promise in the areas of digitalisation, green and productivity initiatives are a major focus of the work in the LEOs at the moment and they will feature in the finals of the awards,” added English.
Here is a flavour of the diverse businesses nominated this year, with further information available here:
From Leinster, the drinks sector is well represented with organic Kombucha and ultra-local beer, as is the manufacturing industry. Sustainability is a key part of several of the businesses nominated in the Leinster region, including CHI Environmental from Kilkenny.
Kildare – Kildare Brewing Company – ProKulture Organic Kombucha: ProKulture is an award-winning non-alcoholic restorative drink, packed full of antioxidants.
Laois – Ballykilcavan Brewing Company: Ballykilcavan Brewery is located on a 13th-generation family farm near Stradbally, with all their beers made with ingredients procured from within 500 metres of the farm.
Offaly – Glass Innovations: Glass Innovations specialises in printing and painting on glassware for clients in the drinks, beauty, and retail industries.
Westmeath – Watt Footprint: An innovative tech-enabled energy management service company that aims to deliver significant energy savings for businesses.
Carlow – Forest Rock Technologies: Forest Rock provides software and hardware solutions for multiple clients in energy usage, sustainable buildings, and access controls.
Kilkenny – CHI Environmental: CHI Environmental is the only EPA licenced site that collects and recycles a range of construction and demolition waste materials in the South East.
Wexford – Sully & Juno: Sully & Juno is Ireland’s only sensory-friendly design house, creating clothing designed to be inclusive and conscious of the sensory needs of the wearer.
Wicklow – The Wicklow Hops Company (WHC Lab): The Wicklow Hops Company is a biotechnology business, focused on yeast fermentation, and uses next-generation methods to grow yeast and bacteria.
Longford – Midland Language Centre: Midland Language Centre (MLC) offers English language programmes for European teenagers to stay with host families in Ireland and attend secondary school or summer camps.
Louth – SeaPark Consultancy: SeaPark Consultancy is an independent business intelligence consulting company based in Dundalk, working with technology vendors and their partner community and clients.
Meath – The Studio Coffee Roasters: The Studio Coffee Roasters supplies speciality grade coffee, capsules and cold brew coffee concentrate, with its roastery being run mainly on renewable energy.
Munster’s entries include three from Cork and sees several family businesses take centre stage, and touches on very ‘Irish’ industries, such as whiskey and agriculture.
Clare – Wild Irish Seaweeds: Wild Irish Seaweeds is a 4th generation manufacturer and exporter of products for the health food industry using raw materials sourced from the Atlantic Ocean.
Kerry – Lorge Chocolatier: Lorge Chocolatier supplies a wide range of chocolates and confectionery to gourmet shops, e.g. handmade truffles, bars, nougat, marshmallows and hot chocolate powder.
Limerick – Cotter Agritech: Cotter Agritech is a start-up founded by brothers Jack and Nick Cotter, and helps make farmers’ lives easier with innovative technology.
Tipperary – Truepos: Truepos is an international payment services company in the Fintech sector providing EPOS and Card Payment Solutions to SMEs.
Cork City – Stolen Stitches: Stolen Stitches is the one-stop-shop for adventurous knitters, running knit-alongs and offering advice, as well as providing luxury yarn.
Cork North & West – BaseWorx Technologies: BaseWorx is a flex space management software that provides solutions for flexible and hybrid workspaces.
South Cork – HYDE Irish Whiskey: HYDE Irish Whiskey is a premium range of award-winning Irish whiskey matured to perfection in County Cork.
Waterford – Hopfully Brewing: Hopfully Brewing produces high-quality and unique craft beer to its customers throughout Ireland and around the world.
A number of unique businesses will be representing Ulster at the National Enterprise Awards, with an automated equipment developer, a rope works, and storage specialist.
Donegal – Silver Strand Rope Works: Silver Strand Rope Works is an established cord, rope, string and strapping manufacturing business offering a wide range of products to the agriculture, construction, fishing & marine, hardware, oil & gas, packaging, mining and renewables industries.
Cavan – Nualach Automation: Nualach Automation works with companies on the development and design of bespoke automation equipment.
Monaghan – Moffett Parking Solutions: Moffett Parking Solutions designs and manufactures a range of innovative solutions to help increase storage capacity and simplify parking access for vehicles.
The Dublin nominees consist of two food companies, one specialising in food waste prevention and the other in artisan bakery products, one AR technology group, and a creative production company, with all hoping to catch the judges’ eyes at the awards.
Dublin City – Lovin’ from the Oven: Lovin’ from the Oven is an award-winning artisan bakery that supplies cakes and bakery products including vegan and gluten-free, to wholesale, corporate clients and events.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown – Imvizar: Imvizar is leading the way in immersive, walkable storytelling experiences by using augmented reality technology to create experiences for tourist attractions, universities and entertainers.
Fingal – Cream of the Crop: Cream of the Crop is a Fingal-based zero-waste pioneer business focused on turning ‘wonky’/surplus produce into delicious treats to help fight food waste.
South Dublin – High Resolution Lighting: High Res are a highly experienced full service creative production company, specialising in Virtual Production for the tv & film industry.
A broad mix of sectors is represented with the Connacht nominees, such as Lark Bridal, a distributor of bridal brands, and PRONAV Clinical, a customised supply chain provider.
Leitrim – CampusConnect: CampusConnect is a white labelled community app and platform for universities that delivers significantly higher rates of student enrolment and retention.
Sligo – PRONAV Clinical: PRONAV Clinical provides customised supply chain services for Early Phase Clinical Trials being conducted in Europe and across the globe.
Galway – GH Agri: GH AGRI manufactures and retails safe, effective natural veterinary and nutritional products for farms in Ireland and the global market.
Mayo – Advanced Cosmetic: Advanced Cosmetic manufactures bespoke cosmetic products for the leading skincare, tanning, body care and fragrance brands.
Roscommon – Lark Bridal: Lark Bridal distributes a portfolio of luxury fashion and bridal brands, exporting to 32 countries and working with 1,000 retailers across the EMENA territory.
Information on 2024′s awards will be available soon from LEOs in your area. LEOs are a fantastic source of information and guidance for businesses of all levels. Whether you wish to take your enterprise to the next level or you’ve got an idea for a project you’re passionate about, contact your LEO today.
All nominees and further information on the 2023 awards, are available to view here.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say