€250,000 fund for start-up companies

Business and Employment Minister Ged Nash has announced a new €250,000 fund to support the creation of design-based start-up companies

The Competitive Start Fund – Design will be delivered by Enterprise Ireland as part of the Irish Design 2015 (ID2015) programme.

The Competitive Start Fund – Design will provide up to €50,000 in equity support, aimed at start-ups in manufacturing or internationally traded services that are design-led or utilise design as a strategic competitive advantage. The Design Fund will provide new companies with early stage funding to ensure delivery of their design-based product or service.

Minister Nash explained the Design Fund is a core component of Enterprise Ireland’s strategy for increasing the number and quality of high potential start-up companies (HPSUs) that have the potential to employ more than 10 persons and achieve €1 million in export sales within three years. The call for applications will commence on July 15.
Minister Nash also praised the achievements to date of the ID2015 programme. The year-long programme, an initiative of the Global Irish Economic Forum in 2013, aims to promote Irish design capability nationally and internationally and to encourage small and medium Irish companies to use design as their critical competitive advantage.

Halfway through its term, ID2015 highlights include:

Over 300 designers, studios and companies were showcased
nationally at core exhibitions and other promotional events

Over 160 Irish designers, studios and companies were showcased
internationally at exhibitions, trade fairs etc, generating leads with
significant potential for exports and job creation

Forty companies have been supported through ID2015’s International
Trade Fund, in association with Enterprise Ireland and other agencies, to
participate in 50 other international trade events, generating new market
penetration and export opportunities

Over 180 new design-led products have been showcased through
national and international events

Five major trade events, – two in Ireland, as well as in Paris,
Milan and New York, have taken place showcasing Irish designed products
and services, supported by the Dept of Foreign Affairs and Trade,
Enterprise Ireland, the Local Enterprise Offices and other State Agencies

One hundred and sixty new design companies have registered with the Institute of
Designers in Ireland

Fifteen new Design Networks have been established, bringing designers,
design organisations and design users to work together

Over 80 public and private sector organisations have partnered
with ID2015, demonstrating the pervasiveness of design across business and
society
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Two hundred design-focused promotions, across multiple design disciplines,
have been approved for funding through ID2015’s Design Innovation Fund,
reaching across all the regions of the island of Ireland and
Internationally

Twelve major design exhibitions have been mounted, nationally and
internationally, highlighting the importance of design and Irish design
capability

Twenty-six Irish embassies around the world have hosted ID2015 exhibitions
and other events promoting Ireland’s innovative design secor