Pictured (l-r) are: Dr. Lisa Keating, Enterprise Ireland, Seán Sherlock T.D. Minister for Research & Innovation, and Yvonne Brady, CEO Sports Shorts Ltd, announcing 120 new business start ups and €12.65 million investment for the Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers Entrepreneur Development programme.

Over 120 new business ventures have successfully completed the first Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers Programme. Based on the success of the first year of the programme, a further €12.65m is now being invested for the next three years of New Frontiers, which aims to develop sustainable businesses that will create jobs throughout the country.

New Frontiers is Ireland’s national entrepreneur development programme that is delivered at a local level by the Institutes of Technology. The programme provides budding entrepreneurs with a package of supports including funding of €15,000, office space, mentoring and workshops to help accelerate their business development. The aim is to equip participants with the skills and contacts they need to successfully start and grow a company.

Following a competitive process 150 potential entrepreneurs were offered a place on the intensive six-month core element of the Programme in 2012 which focuses on developing the person as an entrepreneur and bringing their business idea to fruition. They were provided with the practical skills needed to run a business and challenged to realise their goals. To date, 120 have successfully developed their ideas and launched their business start-ups, the remainder continue to work with New Frontiers to further their business idea.

Yvonne Brady, CEO and founder of EVB Sports Shorts Ltd, joined the New Frontiers programme in March 2012. EVB Sport will provide a line of sportswear to allow women be active and stress free. Yvonne successfully completed the New Frontiers Programme and has since been awarded Competitive Start Funding of €50,000 from Enterprise Ireland to further develop the product and business, to make her business market-ready.

Commenting on her experience of the New Frontiers Programme Yvonne said: ‘I urge everyone with a business idea to apply to the New Frontiers Programme. It provided me with such amazing resources, coaching, mentoring and placed me in a creative space with other like minded individuals all trying to get a business off the ground. Between the Enterprise Ireland led support and the interaction between the participants, the programme has delivered on a huge scale for me, and EVB Sports Shorts’.

Declaring the call for budding entrepreneurs open, Greg Treston, Enterprise Ireland Head of Research and Innovation and High Potential Start-ups said: ‘The feedback from participants on the first New Frontiers Programme has been extremely encouraging.  We are excited to be launching the programme for the next three years and look forward to working with more first time entrepreneurs to help them build the skills and capabilities  necessary to bring their ideas and ambition to success in the highly demanding  international marketplace and as a result  create more sustainable jobs in Ireland’.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Applications for the New Frontiers Programme are now being accepted by your local Institute of Technology (as of Feb 2013)