Small Business Column: Start-ups popping in from abroad

With the creation of offices and virtual offices, we are seeing start-ups and small businesses arrive in Ireland and are quickly becoming the small business hub of Europe.

Ireland has a reputation for attracting companies from outside. The IDA has been instrumental in ensuring that the names of some the world’s biggest companies locate here. From Apple to Google to IBM, we have become synonymous with companies who span the globe and influence the very interactions of people’s lives.

But recently, something more has begun to happen. Now we are seeing start-ups and small businesses arrive in Ireland. With the creation of offices and virtual offices, we are now becoming the small business hub of Europe. It is estimated that in Silicon Valley, nearly half of businesses started and operated in the region are run by people who are from outside the United States. That’s a big portion of people with new thinking and new ideas on how business works. Now it seems we are at the forefront of a start-up movement where we are the place to be.