Gibney and Rose of Tralee part of National Women's Enterprise Day event

International Rose of Tralee, Westmeath's Rachel Duffy, and crime fiction writer Patricia Gibney, were among the participants of annual National Women's Enterprise Day (NWED), which took place on October 13 last.

An annual initiative of the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs), including counties Westmeath, Laois, Longford and Offaly, the theme for this year’s event was “Our Future, Our Way” with the aim of inspiring more women as they start and grow their businesses.

The theme was reflected in the 16 physical events that took place across the country, supported by Enterprise Ireland and the Local Authorities.

These events featured a mix of well known Irish entrepreneurs and business people such as Suzanne Jackson, founder of the SoSu Cosmetics brand, jockey Nina Carberry, International referee Michelle O’Neill, award winning jewellery designer Chupi Sweetman, Interior design specialist and Home of the Year judge Suzie McAdam and broadcaster and entrepreneur Aine Kerr.

The networking event for entrepreneurs in counties Westmeath, Laois, Longford and Offaly took place in Glasson Lakehouse Hotel and was organised in partnership with Local Enterprise Offices in County Westmeath, Laois, Longford and Offaly with LEO Westmeath being the lead county.

Over 170 local entrepreneurs and businesswomen participated and speakers included author Patricia Gibney, Rose of Tralee Rachel Duffy, Christine Charlton, Head of Enterprise, LEO Westmeath and MC Sarah Jane Foster of SJF Productions, 2fm contributer; and Suzanne Jackson, entrepreneur, influencer, presenter and founder of SoSu Cosmetics.

Other special guests on the day were Claire Guinan, jeweller and artist, Áine Farrell owner of Áines Boutique Longford, Áine and Ann O’Reilly of Zobi fashion design consultancy based in Mullingar.

Catriona Duffy, business advisor with LEO Westmeath, said National Women’s Enterprise Day is a key event for Local Enterprise Offices around the country.

"Now in its fifteenth year it was fantastic to be back with a live event to celebrate female business success stories and provide learning opportunities and support to those who may have an idea but have not taken the first step.

"The event was pitched to be informative, inspiring and motivating and I would encourage anyone who is in the early stages of their business or established and growing to get in contact with the team at their Local Enterprise Office to see how we can assist in guiding you on your journey.”

Looking ahead to the future, Christine Charlton with Local Enterprise Office Westmeath added that the National Women’s Enterprise Day event is a hugely important platform for aspiring female entrepreneurs.

"By learning from experienced businesswomen, they now hopefully feel encouraged to develop their own business ideas to start their ‘road to success’," said Christine.

Female entrepreneurs

Breege Cosgrave, chair of National Women’s Enterprise Day 2022, said the importance of such events cannot be understated as Local Enterprise Offices continue to promote female entrepreneurship.

"Ireland has the third-highest rate for early-stage female entrepreneurs across Europe. This is in line with Enterprise Ireland’s 2025 ambitious target to increase the number of female-led companies growing internationally by 100%.

"Currently, the gender gap between men and women in early-stage entrepreneurs is at its narrowest. This is borne out by the Global Enterprise Monitor (GEM) Report 2021 which states that early stage female entrepreneurial activity has increased from 7.5% in 2018 to 11.3% in 2021.

"Backed by the Irish Government the National Women’s Enterprise Day is a highly effective enterprise promotion strategy and provides a highly accessible, interactive and engaging showcase for female entrepreneurship, innovation and business.”

"The growing popularity of NWED is aligned with a continued growth in female entrepreneurship. Research as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) for 2021 showed that 49% of women surveyed believed they had the necessary skills and knowledge to start a business. This was up from 39% in 2018. The report also highlighted that Ireland has the third highest rate for early-stage women entrepreneurs across European countries, with over 1,400 women starting a new business in Ireland every month.

"Early-stage women entrepreneurs in Ireland are mainly focused on the customer services sector with 64% of those surveyed working in that area. The report showed a significant growth in export customers for these businesses, with 26% of customers of these early-stage startups based abroad, up from 15% in 2019 highlighting how they have diversified their markets during Covid."

National Women’s Enterprise Day is just one of the initiatives of the Local Enterprise Offices aimed at fostering entrepreneurship and assisting companies to start up and grow. Others include Local Enterprise Week, the National Enterprise Awards, the Student Enterprise Programme, Local Enterprise Showcase in the RDS and the Local Enterprise Village at the National Ploughing Championships.

Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities are funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland. www.localenterprise.ie