ThinkBusiness.ie

Sailing champion Laura Dillon heads Waterland Private Equity Investments in Ireland, which has just revealed a €2.5bn European fund. She tells ThinkBusiness about her focus on SMEs with growth potential. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and SMEs in Ireland. If you want to start and grow a business, ThinkBusiness .

Founded by three dentists, Spotlight Oral Care is now one of Ireland’s fastest-growing companies and recently raised €12m to go global. We talk to one of its co-founders Doctor Vanessa Creaven about how the Galway business is going from strength to strength. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and SMEs in Ireland. If you want to start and grow a business, ThinkBusin...

  Led by Galway native Warren Healy, Clubforce is on a mission to help grassroots sports organisations keep on top of their game through its innovative club management system. Focused on global growth, the Clubforce platform is evolving into a complete sports participation system, which will transform how club members, sports clubs and their governing bodies interact with each other. Visit www.thi...

Guinness Enterprise Centre (GEC) in Dublin city has revealed a new 100,000 sq ft expansion following €10m of investment. It projects 3,000 new jobs led by entrepreneurs in the next five years. We talk to Eamonn Sayers, manager of the GEC about the centre’s ambitions to be the Station F of Ireland’s entrepreneurial landscape. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and S...

Bank of Ireland head of Motor Sector Stephen Healy reflects on the recent measures in Budget 2022 around VRT and reliefs for electric car buyers and if these measures will help Ireland get to its aim of having 845,000 electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030. He also looks at how other countries are using policy to accelerate the shift from internal combustion to electric vehicles. Visit www.think...

Led by Galway native Warren Healy, Clubforce is on a mission to help grassroots sports organisations keep on top of their game through its innovative club management system. Focused on global growth, the Clubforce platform is evolving into a complete sports participation system, which will transform how club members, sports clubs and their governing bodies interact with each other. Visit www.think...

Irish-led Frankie Health reinvents mental health support for the workplace using the latest digital tools. We talk to Frankie Health’s co-founder James McGann about the Irish company’s growth plans and why employers need to pay more attention to the mental wellbeing of their most important asset, their employees. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and SMEs in Irela...

The Irish motoring sector has played a blinder despite the challenges of the pandemic. But all is not rosy in the sector. Head of Motor Sector at Bank of Ireland Stephen Healy addresses industry unease about potential increases in vehicle registration tax in the next Budget and the reduction in reliefs for buyers of electric vehicles at a pivotal time. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and...

Recently named Business Person of the Month by The Irish Times, SilverCloud Health CEO Ken Cahill talks about the company’s evolution as a university and hospital research spinout to become a global business with more than 300 organisations using its digital health platform. The company was recently acquired by Amwell for an undisclosed sum, which was reported in the press to be in excess of $250m...

Head of Tech, Media and Telecoms at Bank of Ireland Paul Swift talks about the sharp increase in fraud attempts on the Irish population, focusing on the individual. Every individual and business is now in the crosshairs of cybercriminals and the recent ransomware attack on the HSE could be just the tip of the iceberg. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and SMEs in...

We talk to Adam Oberem, co-founder of global design and digital advisory firm Lucky Beard, which is investing €1.1m in expanding its Irish operation as it gears up to help accelerate the digitisation of Irish businesses. Founded in South Africa in 2015, Lucky Beard currently employs 65 people across strategy, brand, product and experience design, with 18 already deployed in its European headquarte...

Drivers could save an average of 2.5 hours of commuting time every day by using a remote working location, according to new research conducted by NoCo, Ireland’s largest hybrid workspace network, and Trinity College Dublin. Not only that but 70pc of people would consider moving their home location if they could remote work. Brian Moran of NoCo talks about what the future working landscape could lo...

With Irish-led companies like Stripe swaggering on the world stage and new Irish unicorns such as Fenergo, Intercom, LetsGetChecked, Workhuman achieving amazing success, it is abundantly clear that now is the time to get behind our indigenous businesses with the right supports and tax policy. Across the land, in every corner of Ireland, some 2,000 indigenous companies employ 47,000 people. The tim...

Banks are under pressure to innovate to secure their digital future, ensuring the right products and services for customers, at the same time battling competition from new digital challengers and defending against a surge in cybersecurity attacks. Mark Kenny, director of Banking and Payments at Expleo Group outlines the digital transformation challenge facing banks. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for...

ThinkBusiness talks to ride hailing business Free Now’s country manager for Ireland Niall Carson about how the company resiliently weathered the pandemic storm by innovating, supporting its drivers, investing in sustainability, electrification and new mult-modal transport options and his plans for the future success of the business. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-u...

One of Ireland’s few unicorn tech giants – founded in Dublin by Marc Murphy – Fenergo has plans to grow from a $1.65bn valuation today to $5bn in the coming years by helping banks to digitally transform. ThinkBusiness talks to Fenergo’s chief strategy and marketing officer Stella Clarke about the making of an Irish unicorn. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for more news and supports for start-ups and SM...

Bank of Ireland head of Motor Sector casts his expert eye on how the sector is revving up for a stronger second half (H2) as the registration of new cars in July exceeded those of January. But the road ahead is bumpy with older cars holding their residual value, chip shortages delaying new car deliveries and electric car purchases will need to accelerate significantly if the Irish Government’s 203...

Across Ireland motor dealerships have been opening up and all eyes have been on early July sales as an indicator of a return to normal. In the first four days of July the car market was up 45pc. Bank of Ireland’s head of Motor Sector Stephen Healy charts how the rest of the year will look, the return to growth for hire-drive fleets and tackles the subject of whether Ireland has enough electric car...

Sharon Jordan, managing director of Irish Travel Trade Network (ITTN) talks about the reopening of tourism in Ireland and the eventual return to international travel. Jordan has been at the fore of the travel industry for twenty years and last year took over ITTN. Admirably, she took over a new business in the middle of a pandemic, and has rejuvenated immense energy into the industry during what h...

David Kindlon’s business Eppione helps organisations leverage technology to manage HR and employee benefits. Kindlon believes the days of ping-pong tables and free office snacks are behind us. Now, employers must look to provide their workforce with tangible benefits to support their health, wellbeing and performance as the pandemic continues. Its more about access to mindfulness and meditation ap...

Google country manager for Ireland Helma Larkin talks about Ireland’s evolving digital culture, changing behaviours and increased expectations of businesses. Helma leads the team at Google Ireland that aims to help large Irish businesses grow and succeed domestically and internationally through their use of Google products. Google has committed to supporting 60,000 Irish businesses recover from th...

Recently named Business Person of the Month by The Irish Times, in association with Bank of Ireland, Gwen Layden of the Layden Group talks about her company’s decision not to charge rent to tenants of the George’s Street Arcade in Dublin who were forced to shut due to Covid restrictions. While waiving rents at the famous arcade cost her family business in terms of lost income, Layden has maintaine...

ThinkBusiness talks to the CEO of Aercap Aengus Kelly, a recent Irish Times Businessperson of the Month in association with Bank of Ireland, about how the Irish company has become the biggest company of its kind in the world with more than 2,000 planes, 300 helicopters and 900 engines with its €25bn acquisition of GE Capital Aviation Services. Kelly talks about reopening the Irish economy and stee...

ThinkBusiness talks to Feargal Harrington, co-founder of the successful agency INTRO Matchmaking about how the company is kicking off an international expansion in the wake of a spike in demand from single people whose romantic lives were put on ice because of the pandemic. The company has seen a 60pc increase in enquiries as people prepare for a summer of dating. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie for mo...

Led by brothers Kevin and Barry O’Loughlin, Nostra Systems is one of Ireland’s fastest growing indigenous tech companies and recently announced plans to create 120 jobs bringing total headcount to 270 people. ThinkBusiness talks to Kevin O’Loughlin about how the company scaled and takes a disciplined approach to growing the leadership team and empowering its workforce. Visit www.thinkbusiness.ie f...