Hundreds of businesses from across Ireland are coming together this week with a focus on strengthening their presence in overseas markets, with the potential of increasing global export sales.
Enterprise Ireland’s International Markets Week (IMW) is taking place in Dublin this week. The event supports and facilitates Irish companies access advice from Enterprise Ireland’s international offices and dedicated market advisors from all around the world.
“All of our offices are going to be here for International Markets Week. It’s the biggest event in our annual calendar,” says Giles O’Neill, regional director for Enterprise Ireland in India, the Middle East, and Africa.
“IMW is about business success in key markets. We are bringing business teams from our 42 offices around the world to talk with companies about their export plans. More specifically, it’s about how we can help them. As we are present in the key markets, we have first-hand information which Irish companies can access. It’s a perfect opportunity to assess market potential.”
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The format is based on a series of one-to-one meetings. “We are expecting over 700 companies to attend over the four-day event and to participate in over 2000, 1-1 meetings. This will be a record for us, the most highly attended event we have ever done. That’s a very positive sign about Irish business confidence,” O’Neill says.
Each of these 45-minute meetings offers real value for Irish businesses, providing advice on what they need to do to grow in specific markets. Given the current global climate, there’s an obvious attraction for Enterprise Ireland client companies.
“The real value of IMW for Irish companies lies in the opportunity for face-to-face time with these market experts. That dedicated time allows for a realistic understanding of the market and what’s required, and each conversation is tailored to the client’s business and its market potential. If you ask our clients what they most value about Enterprise Ireland, of course they’ll mention the financial support, but a very close second is that advice and connection piece from our overseas colleagues.”
A major focus of the event will be on market diversification, to open up companies to the idea of moving beyond traditional focus markets.
“There’s a lot of talk about diversification at the moment. It means different things to different people. The long and short is that clients need to have more options. You can’t rely on doing business solely in the UK or US anymore,” says O’Neill.
The event is a way for companies to gain access to Enterprise Ireland’s thorough research and connections within each of these markets, through its global market advisors who, according to O’Neill, are in essence the “boots on the ground in markets opening doors and providing introductions between Irish innovators and potential in-market business partners”.
“Our aim is to elevate and accelerate the ability of Irish companies to compete in overseas markets. This involves research, a market validation piece, exploring distribution channels, and identifying buyers and partners for our Irish clients’ products and services,” he says.
“We also spend a lot of time developing sectors. A lot of companies look at the US, UK and European markets first, as they should, but they also need to look further afield, adopt a twin track approach. There are significant opportunities for some of our clients in Asia Pacific, India, Middle East and some African markets.”
For the past 14 months, O’Neill has been based in Dubai with his current role, and it was a fascination with the opportunities in the Middle East, Africa and Indian markets that drew him to the challenge.
“There’s a lot going on in the Middle East in terms of investment. A lot of that is in areas that Irish companies are competing and winning business in at the highest level from medical technology to high tech construction.
That’s one of the reasons O’Neill is excited for the event, as a great amount of work has been done by Enterprise Ireland’s international offices in understanding the cultural nuances across different markets, which when understood and actioned, can make all the difference when doing business in that particular country.
“In the UK, US and Europe you don’t need to introduce Ireland, but in other parts of the world, you have to spend quite a lot of time explaining just what is going on and how you do things. We might spend more time on regulatory proceedings for companies targeting South Africa than Europe because it’s very different, it’s horses for courses,” says O’Neill.
The event, which takes place in the RDS, will give Enterprise Ireland client companies a chance to learn about these differences.
All of the sectors Enterprise Ireland covers internationally will be represented at the event including industrial, life sciences, technology, and services.
“We’re seeing a large volume of clients from across all sectors booking meetings. The most important thing across the board is getting a product or service validated. Is there a demand for a particular product or service? Can you compete? After that, it’s a case of working out how to access the opportunity,” says O’Neill.
“We work with clients to explore all of their options. We then work out what needs to be done, develop a joint plan and it’s tracked.”
In addition to having meetings around international markets, companies will be able to talk to experts around the impact of tariffs, new grants to help scope markets, research and development and other EI services.
International Markets Week takes place from Tuesday September 30th to Friday October 3rd in the RDS. For more information visit enterprise-ireland.com.
