Venture For Success Programme Announced

Fledgling businesses in "high growth areas" are being offered an opportunity to increase sales, profitability and competitiveness through a new business development programme.

'High growth areas' include creative and digital industries, hospitality and tourism and clean technology.

Venture for Success, a free Belfast City Council three-year programme, part funded by Invest Northern Ireland and the European Regional Development Fund under the Investment for Growth & Jobs Northern Ireland (2014-2020) Programme, is tailored for start-up companies and those which have been trading for under two years.

Chair of Belfast City Council's City Growth and Regeneration Committee, Councillor Mairéad O'Donnell, said: "Venture for Success is an unmissable opportunity for new companies to access one to one mentoring from an industry specialist and learn from inspirational and informative workshops. If you sign up, you'll also benefit from widening your network of support and business contacts.

"Growing our city's economy is the prime objective in The Belfast Agenda and delivering programmes like this one will help our businesses grow, employ more staff, consider opportunities to export and become more competitive and sustainable.

"We're leading the way in terms of innovation and creativity in a number of high growth sectors and we want more businesses to tap into current global opportunities, whether they're creative and digital, financial and professional, advanced engineering, clean technology, ICT and electronics, hospitality and tourism or life and health sciences."

To be eligible to participate in the 'Venture for Success' programme, applicant companies must have been trading for under two years, have a valid business plan, and must not be an Invest NI client company.

Registration is open now.

(MH/JP)