LEO South Dublin – Supports for Start Up Businesses
By Maurice Garvey
Local Enterprise Office South Dublin is the “First Stop Shop” within South Dublin County Council for anyone seeking information and support on starting or growing a business in South Dublin County.
Our role is to drive the development of local enterprise, putting local micro and small business at the heart of job creation.
We support business start-ups and work to increase the job potential of new and existing micro and small businesses with information, advice, training, mentoring, seminars and selective financial support.
In 2015 alone LEO South Dublin successfully delivered a range of supports to microenterprise clients including the following headline achievements:
• Over €550k in grant approvals for 32 projects with a potential for 174 jobs;
• financial supports of €375k paid directly to clients;
• Training programmes provided to 722 participants
• Mentoring assistance given to 487 clients through clinics and appointments
LEO South Dublin has continued this level of client service in the current year, participating in a comprehensive range of national and local initiatives as well as placing ourselves to the forefront in engagement with the local business community and promotion of South Dublin County as a positive place to do business.
The range of services specifically targeted at Start – up businesses includes, but is not limited to, the following:
Priming Grants
Priming support is to help fund the cost of starting a small business in South Dublin. It is for new businesses within the first 18 months after start up.
The overall maximum support is €80,000. In general the level of funding will also relate to the level of employment provided in the short to medium term at an indicative rate of €8000 per new job created.
To qualify for any of these funding supports, all projects must have the potential to be commercially viable within a reasonable timeframe, employ 10 or less and must be located within South Dublin County LEO jurisdiction.
Priority is given to manufacturing and internationally traded service projects.
Mentoring
The Mentoring Service aims to help young or growing eligible companies improve their chances of survival and growth.
Occasionally, developing or start-up businesses encounter a specific problem or want to undertake a specific project that requires skills beyond the normal range of the Owner/Manager.
Our panel of ‘Mentors’ are all experienced business executives and consultants who are skilled in working with the owner/manager to specify the problem, identify solutions and implement them.
Training Programmes
Regular business training and events are one of the pillars of our supports to micro enterprise, see online bookings for the selection available.
Our training aims to help young or growing companies improve their chances of survival and growth by offering regular comprehensive courses in
• Starting a Business,
• Financial management,
• Technology,
• Online Marketing,
• Social Media,
• Computerised Bookkeeping,
• Business Planning,
• Intellectual Property,
• Employment Law,
• Time Management, and many more.
Sector specific programmes such as Food Academy Start are offered to early stage food production companies.
Management Development Programmes such as Plato, Hi Start, Accelerate are also offered to owner / managers wishing to take their business to the next level.
Trading Online Voucher Scheme
The Trading Online Voucher Scheme provides grant assistance to small businesses to trade online.
Eligible businesses can apply for a voucher to invest in developing their ecommerce capability, of up to €2,500 matched by own funding to develop a trading online component to their business.
(Applicant businesses must be registered and trading for at least 12 months)
Micro Finance Ireland Loans
Microfinance Ireland was established by the Government to provide additional lending to start-up and existing micro enterprises.
Under a partnership between Microfinance Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices, Business Loans are now available through the Local Enterprise Office South Dublin at a reduced Interest Rate of 6.8% APR for LEO clients.
Microenterprise/Start-up Support (Rates)
In order to encourage new micro enterprise and where previously vacant enterprise space is made available to, and occupied by, a new microenterprise, a graduated “rates holiday” for up to two years is available(subject to terms & conditions).
Signposting Service
The Local Enterprise Office also provides a signposting service to the many other agencies providing supports to the business community locally, regionally and nationally.
