Entrepreneurs ‘give something back’ at Sleepless in Garryvoe workshop

OPTIMISM was the order of the day for the 24-hour Sleepless in Garryvoe Entrepreneur Experience workshop in Cork over the weekend.

Running from noon on Friday through to noon on Saturday in the Garryvoe Hotel, Co Cork, the CorkBIC-hosted overnight event gave an elite pool of 21 emerging business people one-to-one access to 21 of the country’s most successful established entrepreneurs.

Seasoned entrepreneurs attending included Cullen Allen of Cully & Sully, Jim Barry of Barry Group, Jim Breen of Pulse Learning, Liam Casey of PCH, Fergal Broder of LotusWorks, Michael Carey of Jacob Fruitfield, Michael Dawson of the Gift Voucher Shop, and Fred Karlsson of DoneDeal.ie.

PulseLearning CEO Jim Breen said: “All those participating at the event have started their own business and know what it is like to work at the coal face.”

CorkBIC chief executive Michael O’Connor said the “sleepover” aspect of the event ensured that participants had the time required to do some very real business.

“The 21 emerging entrepreneurs who attended were all pre-selected because they were at the cusp of a new phase in developing their business,” said Mr O’Connor. “Seven came with ideas for a business. Another seven are already trading, investor-ready and were trying to raise up to €200,000.

“The final seven are scaling companies. They are already employing 20 to 40 people, doing €2-3m turnover a year, and trying to get advice on how to grow into a company that would employ over 100 staff.