Newry Prepare for the Upturn

6th november 2009

On 6th November major businesses and organisations from the greater Newry area hosted an event in Dublin entitled, ‘Opportunity Newry’.

Not resting on the retail success which Newry has experienced recently, the event sought to promote the region for investment. Over forty business people from the Republic of Ireland attended the business breakfast at the Shelbourne Hotel to listen to experts from the private and public sector advise on how successful Irish businesses now recognise the importance of having operations in both jurisdictions.

The audience heard how many more Republic of Ireland based businesses could benefit from having operations on both parts of Ireland if they took full advantage of the incentives available both in Northern Ireland and the Republic.

The event was supported by Invest Northern Ireland, Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade and leading business figures from the Newry area.

Dr. Gerard O Hare, Managing Director of Parkergreen International who chaired the event said, “We may be in a recession but we need to be prepared for the upturn. We felt that now was the time to proactively market Newry as a centre of excellence for inward investment for Irish companies to create a ‘win win’ situation. Newry offers a strategic location to service Northern Ireland, the UK and further a field while its border location allows businesses to stay close to their central southern hub. Attendance at today’s event shows there is a real business appetite for this proposal and we are looking forward to doing business with many of the attendees in the near future.”

Guests at the event heard from Alastair Hamilton, CEO of Invest NI, Dr Conor Patterson, President of Newry Chamber of Trade & Commerce, Padraic O’Kane, Managing Director of the Sancian Hospitality Group and Feargal Mc Cormack Managing Partner of FPM Chartered Accountants.

The event was supported by Parkergreen International, Stakeholder Communications, Invest Northern Ireland, Norbrook Laboratories, Glen Dimplex and Newry Chamber of Trade & Commerce.