Invest NI have just launched a new round of Innovation Vouchers. With £2.7m in funding the vouchers worth £4,000 vouchers can be redeemed against the cost of specialist expertise from universities, colleges and publicly funded research institutes.

Applications are open until November 30 with information available at www.innovationvouchers.com.

Don’t miss your chance to enter the Ulster Bank Business Achiever Awards before the end of the week.

The eight award categories are: One-to-Watch; International Business; Social Entrepreneurship; Best Business Start-up; Family Run Business; Green Business; Agriculture, Food and Drink; and Emerging Technology.

The overall winner will receive a prize package that includes an online and print package worth in excess of £10,000 in the Belfast Telegraph if the overall all-island winner is from here.

For more information visit http://businessachieversaward.com.

Last weekend saw the first Barcamp Derry take place in the University of Ulster’s Magee Campus. The unConference style event saw Northern Ireland’s digeratti and social media community come together for the collaborative event. For those not familiar with an unConference, it’s similar to a conference only the agencda is decided on the day and the whole thing is a lot more informal. Participants can register on the site to speak or on arrival they write their topic of choice onto a post it and stick it up on the schedule. The topics are as diverse in nature and the ‘talks’ range in quality. From marketing to achieving venture capital to time travel, no topic seems to be off the agenda. With an impressive 170 something people registered for the event the calibre of the delegates was very impressive indeed. Digital Circle put on a bus from Belfast and people traveled from all over the country to attend.

It is clear from the sentiment at Barcamp Derry that the creative industries and business community want more opportunities to meetup and network in an informal way which costs little or is free. A Bizcamp Derry is planned for the new year and Barcamp and Bizcamp Belfast will also be back next year.
See Barcamp Derry for more information.

Here’s some photos from Barcamp Derry:

The public relations workshop we ran this week went really well with over 20 businesses attending to learn how they can engage in PR to promote and protect their brand.

The panel of local media experts included Martin McGinley, Editor of the Derry Journal, Ciaran O’Neill, Group Editor of Derry News and Londonderry Sentinel, Reporter Eamon Sweeney. They highlighted that it is important to remember that editors are in the business of news so if you have something interesting going on in your business there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be sharing it with the world.

Also if you find yourself the subject of negative press the worst thing you can do is say nothing. If you’ve done something wrong hold your hands up, admit your mistake and let people know what you are going to do to make it right.

Due to the high level of interest I’ll be doing a podcast soon on PR so check back soon for that.

In the meantime to learn more about PR check out these links:

It seems hopes that the recession is bottoming out is not looking likely for the foreseeable future and in fact in Northern Ireland we’re getting hit harder by the crunch than the rest of the UK.

According to an article in the Irish News today Ulster Bank economist, Richard Ramsey estimates that the north’s economy contracted by one per cent last year compared to 0.7 per cent in the UK as a whole”.

Want to boost your businesses profile?

Then don’t miss this freshly squeezed breakfast workshop to unlock the power of PR for your business.

The format:

Intro into how you can use PR from Donal Doherty, Director of leading public relations agency, Converse Communications.

A panel of leading figures from the local media including Martin McGinley, Editor of the Derry Journal, who will highlight how you can be more successful in getting your business featured in the press.

Then a chance for Q&A with the panel and of course some networking!

The only charge for the event is for a continental breakfast in the beautiful Halo restaurant.

Everyone in attendance will also receive a free PR consultation from Converse Communications. The agency’s clients include Derry City Council, Western Health & Social Services Board (WHSSB), Northern Ireland Business and Innovation Centre (NORIBIC), South West College, Curtis Opticians and many more.

This is not to be missed by all those in business in the North West, places are limited and will be provided on a first come first served basis.

Email tara@conversegroup.com to secure your place. Halo Pantry and Grill, Market Street, Derry. 23 July - starts 8am - 9.30am.

For those of you who are interested in networking but prefer not to sit through presentations why not consider joining an OpenCoffee Club. See www.opencoffeeclub.org.

From the first OpenCoffee Club Derry in Starbucks

They run them all around the world from New York to Cape Town, Melbourne to Singapore and further afield. Just check out the site for a full list of locations.

I recently organised the first OpenCoffee Derry at Starbucks with Mark Nagurski of Really Practical Marketing (www.reallypractical.com) and it went down a storm. Since then our second event in Da Vinci’s was a success too and it looks like it will become a regular feature in the events calendars of discerning entrepreneurs in the region. See http://opencoffeederry.com for more info on the next event.

The events are for anyone with an interest in growing their network and business. They are 100% free and the concept is that the meetups are informal. Anyone can pop in, and all feedback on how the club develops is welcome.

To find out when the next OpenCoffee near you is check out:
Derry www.opencoffeederry.com
Belfast www.opencoffeebelfast.com

The first day of the ACE UnConference saw hundreds of entrepreneurs visit Derry/Londonderry to gain an insight into becoming more creative in their own businesses. The NORIBIC managed, delegate-driven UnConference welcomed senior figures from the world’s leading IT and communications companies to the country to highlight trends and possibilities through sharing their own vantage points and insights. Participating companies included Palm, Adobe, Powerscourt, Deutsche Bank, Archos, and Microsoft amongst others. They have been encouraging local entrepreneurs to instil re-invention and creativity into their businesses and practices by enabling them to access global expertise within an open innovation environment.

Lorraine McDowell, Director of Operations with the Arts Council who is funding the event highlights why ACE is so important:
“ACE UnConference supports the government’s priority to develop the creative industries. The ingredients are all here in Northern Ireland, with careful nurturing, we should have resources, talent, ingenuity and the belief in ourselves to compete successfully in the creative industries worldwide.”

Ian Hughes, Metaverse Evangelist, Director of Feeding Edge Ltd and formerly of IBM showed delegates the benefits of communicating in social networks and virtual worlds.
“When you connect people from all different walks of life with different ideas, and you get them talking, get some dialogue going, some good things happen, and that is where the innovation springs. You are no longer in a position that you have to sit there as an individual and get permission from someone to get something done, there is a whole world out there of people to connect to, so you can be entrepreneurial in whatever you’re about. Whatever your business is, you can connect with some other people.”

Euan Semple, former Director of Knowledge for the BBC and leading authority on the use of social media in organisations, covered the speed of communication and the decentralisation of knowledge. Using the example of the 2007 London bombings, he explained that within thirty minutes of the bombings photos were posted on Flickr and the traditional media could not gain access to the area. Within a short time frame major news organisations were getting in touch with these people to gain permission to use their photos. Euan also urged businesses not to restrict their employees’ access to social media websites such as Facebook and LinkedIn, as increasingly complex conversations and valuable connections are being made in these spaces.

Dr Barney Toal, Chief Executive of NORIBIC feels the UnConference has been highly beneficial for local companies. He explains:
“Indigenous SMEs have been building an impressive network of contacts at the event while learning new skills which they will implement into their own businesses. The ACE UnConference reinforces the region’s position as a hub for the creative industries and highlights the need for further investment in the North West.”

For further information on ACE UnConference visit http://ace.noribic.com, contact Tim Kelley on 028 7126 4242 or email ace@noribic.com.

Another casualty of the credit crunch today, as Zavvi went into administration. Insolvency expert, Begbies Traynor, recently suggested that up to 15 national retail chains are predicted to go bust before the middle of January, forcing thousands more shopworkers onto the dole. So Zavvi is the first on Christmas Eve and many other major retail chains face uncertainty in 2009.

A look at Northern border regions such as Derry and Newry suggests that these regions are largely cushioned from the worst effects of the credit crunch. So are these regions bucking the trend?

A look at the trading conditions in Derry in the run up to Christmas suggests trade has been exceptionally high this festive period. Attributed to Sterling’s value against the Euro, the 2% VAT reduction, and exceptional pre-Christmas sales have proved irresistible for many price conscious consumers. Lucky shoppers are set to benefit even further with massive Christmas sales offering unprecedented discounts of up to 70% off.

Footfall in Derry city centre increased by 4% on the same period last year according to the City Centre Initiative as shoppers flocked from border regions to take advantage of the bargains. A recent price comparison report which compared twenty gifts, fashion and food items in Derry and the border regions revealed an incredible saving of £396.24. For example the Nintendo Wii in Derry is priced at £179.99 compared to €279.99 across the border, resulting in a massive saving of £60.34. In the run up to Christmas a two day €1 for £1 promotion further boosted commerce, with many retailers taking the decision to continue the scheme as it proved so effective. As a further carrot for shoppers, many big name retailers including M&S and Debenhams slashed prices in a bid to curb the negative effects of the credit crunch with discount days. Independent retailers followed suit, making shopping in Northern border areas even more attractive for shoppers across the region.

Fergal Rafferty, Centre Manager of Richmond Shopping Centre highlights their observations. He explains:

“I would estimate that 30-40% extra revenue has been generated over the festive period, with many shops offering much more favourable euro rates than banks. This has been the nature of border retailing for years, with either side receiving the benefits of currency fluctuations. In these difficult economic times globally, traders in Richmond are delighted that the economic advantage is currently in the North. Shoppers can expect to see excellent value throughout January with many shops offering huge discounts in order to remain competitive and maintain market share and I would expect this trend to continue well into 2009.”

Independent retailer, Chocolate, of Foyle Street, Derry, say that this winter period has certainly not been bleak for them. Proprietor, David Conaghan comments:

“Although the credit crunch has certainly had an effect on traders, this Christmas has been an overall success in figures. With the current VAT and Euro rates, we have seen a huge number of customers travel from Donegal and other border counties to shop in Derry. It is great for independent retailers like ourselves. With our 50% sale starting on 27 September we expect that this will be ongoing in the New Year.”

As further evidence Foyleside Shopping Centre reported their biggest day of trading ever this Monday 22nd December, with 20,000 additional shoppers visiting the city centre. Time will tell if Begbies Traynor’s predictions are correct, but the statistics certainly suggest that Northern border regions have been cushioned from the worst of it this Christmas.

Perhaps a pessimistic note, but with the credit crunch looming big on the agenda, I thought I would pose the question; ‘has there ever been a harder time to start a business?’

A recent article in the Guardian by Deborah Meaden of Dragon’s Den fame talked about business and her experiences. Asked about her outlook for SMEs she suggested that if you’re in business you need to batten down the hatches over the next couple of years and if you’re a start up, you may as well forget about it all together.

This is a little disheartening for me considering that we are still in the startup phase and just over our first year. With 80% of businesses failing within the first year, we’re ahead of the curve, but we have another six months to go before we’re out of the critical 18 months small business startup phase in which most businesses fail. I would imagine in this time of economic uncertainty this percentage would rise.

With small business grants from the Go for it program also disappearing and banks becoming ever more reluctant to lend it also seems that accessing sufficient start-up capital is also a major problem.

Perhaps with the credit crunch less people will leave the security of their jobs to go it alone, but then this may be balanced out by those forced into self-employment by redundancy? So does this mean that this brand of entrepreneurs will be less or more hungry? Who knows, but I would speculate that perhaps those companies who are born and thrive in such economic times will be stronger businesses when they come out the other side.