Ambassadors for Shannon Region

A NEW high-powered US-based business group is promoting the Shannon Region as a tourism destination or a location for business investment.

It comes at a time when worries have been voiced about the poor record of the IDA in attracting foreign direct investment projects into the region. It recently emerged that just three new IDA-supported projects were established in the Mid-West in a five-year period up to last December.
While the inaugural meeting took place in the US in December, members of the new North American Advisory Council, (NAAC) established by Shannon Development, held their first Irish meeting in Adare this week and pledged to “act as business ambassadors for Ireland and the Shannon Region”.
The council is a network of Irish people, with business or family ties to the Shannon Region, who are in positions of influence in various fields of endeavour in the US.
Among the NAAC members are The Irish Voice newspaper owner, Niall O’Dowd; John Fitzpatrick of Fitzpatrick Hotels; Declan Kelly, senior vice-president of sales/marketing at GECAS and Michael Brewster, managing director of private banking (US Division) of Credit Suisse.
At Tuesday’s meeting in Adare, representatives were briefed on the aims and objects of the organisation. Clare man Michael Vaughan, representing the Irish Hotel Federation; Professor Jim Deegan from the University of Limerick; Bill Doherty representing the Mid-West branch of the American Chamber of Commerce and Isobel O’Regan from Savills Property Consultants were among those who outlined the many opportunities the Shannon Region presents for potential overseas investors.
The NAAC delegates, during their three-day stay, attended a full programme of site visits and meetings with key individuals and representatives of industry, education and tourism, which were organised by Shannon Development.
Shannon Development chief executive, Dr Vincent Cunnane, said the new group will have a important role to play in supporting the region’s recovery. They wanted to establish a grouping of highly motivated people “who would provide a sounding board for new ideas and initiatives and assist Shannon Development in peer-to-peer marketing and create authentic brand connections – both tourism and industry”.
Dr Cunnane sees their knowledge and understanding of the region as quite important. “I think it’s important that the Mid-West has people in America who are well aware of the advantages of the region and who will work to direct industry or tourism here,” he said.
The Shannon Development chief rejects the notion that NAAC will be little more than a talking shop. “The group will have a defined role and each member will have a defined task to deliver. Shannon Development doesn’t have a permanent presence in the US but there is huge goodwill towards the region and the NAAC will be trying to capture and distil that,” he said.
According to Dr Cunnane, the NAAC members have already provided a number of leads, which could turn into valuable tourism and industry projects for the Shannon region.
Hotelier Michael Vaughan, like Dr Cunnane, is hopeful that the establishment of the NAAC will give a shot in the arm to local tourism interests.
“It’s composed of enablers, a set of people from the Irish diaspora, who are mostly based on the east coast of the US. We’re hoping that they will open up doors in relation to tourism. A lot of the time, we would be looking for people to have their international conferences here and we will be hoping that the NAAC will help with that. We would also be hoping to get advice and introductions when we go there to promote sales,” he said.
He said that as well as helping the industry with networking, he is hopeful the group would help secure some investment in tourism in the Mid-West.
Mr Vaughan believes Ireland needs to revisit how it attracts US visitors.
“We need to develop links with the current and next generation, who may not have the same genealogical links and who may need to be coaxed in another manner,” he said.