Case study:Just how do you use a new 400-seat multipurpose venue to transform a minor tourist attraction into a year-round beacon for the local and wider communities, while at the same time increasing revenues to cover higher running costs and turn a profit? That was the challenge faced by four teams of students in the final of the Newstalk 106-108 Student Enterprise Competition.
The competition was designed to give participants a "true-to-life" experience by using case studies on real Irish companies. The final centred on Ionad Cois Locha, a tourist attraction situated in the small village of Dunlewey in west Donegal.
Located on the southern slopes of Mount Errigal, above the lower Dunlewey Lake, Ionad Cois Locha is centred on an old house that was once home to renowned local weaver of tweed, Manus Ferry.
Under the management of a local co-op, it had been transformed into an interpretive centre/museum with a café and restaurant, craft shop and administrative offices. It was later extended to include a children's playground and access to the lake where two boats were available for boat trips. Having attracted an estimated 70,000 visitors and increasing turnover by €100,000 to €700,000 in 2006, the co-op decided to expand the centre.
It decided to build a new 400-seat multipurpose venue adjacent to the existing facilities. This was scheduled for completion by the end of April this year, although poor weather conditions set back the project by more than a month.
But for the new venue to be viable, drawing in visitors who were already in the area was unlikely to be enough - Ionad Cois Locha would have to be marketed and sold to new users and tourists.
The challenge facing the students was to look at the management and marketing of the new venue, ensuring that it could pay its way.
"It is a challenge for students at this level to understand and have a go at business when they have really no understanding or hands-on experience," says Elaine Geraghty, chief executive of Newstalk and one of the judges.
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