Fund Secured For Ambitious Business Women

A new fund has been established by Enterprise Ireland to be used to support ambitious business women in starting new enterprises.

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, launched the new €500,000 Competitive Start Fund, which is part of an ongoing drive by Enterprise Ireland to boost the number of innovative, export-oriented businesses being set up and led by female entrepreneurs.

The Fund is open to female-led start-ups in Manufacturing and Internationally Traded Services including Internet, Games, Apps, Cloud Computing, Enterprise Software, Lifesciences, Food, Consumer Products, Medical Devices and e-Health.  Applications will be considered on a competitive basis and the financial support will be in the form of equity investment. 

The Fund, which provides for up to €50,000 in equity support for each successful applicant, opens for applications today, Wednesday, 11 November and closes at 3pm on Wednesday, 25 November 2015. 

Launching the Fund, Minister Bruton said: "A key part of the Government's Action Plan for Jobs is driving growth in female entrepreneurship. In Ireland we have hugely innovative and ambitious female entrepreneurs but we just don't have enough of them. Since taking office we have put in place a range of initiatives and the numbers have improved, but we must do more. By specifically targeting a substantial increase in their numbers we can make a real difference to the overall level of entrepreneurial activity in Ireland. New businesses create two-thirds of all new jobs in the economy. This €500,000 Competitive Start Fund targeting female entrepreneurs will give a real boost to ensuring that more women get involved in starting international businesses, ultimately creating more jobs in Ireland."

(MH/CD)