South East Economic Development

Conferences

"Get Up & Grow" Conference & Business Awards Wednesday 13th June 2012
Venue: Canal Court Hotel, Newry

The Canal Court Hotel, Newry was the venue for this year’s Get Up and Grow Business Conference.

Delivered by the SEED Consortium of Councils (Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon and Newry and Mourne) businesses from Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon and Newry & Mourne Council areas heard from a variety of speakers, including keynote speaker Dame Mary Peters, Olympic & Commonwealth Gold Medallist, with an inspirational message of what it takes to win in an incredibly competitive environment. The conference speaking panel included an opening welcome by Mayor John McArdle of Newry and Mourne District Council and presentations from Carole Donaghy, former Director of Virgin Money and leading business and marketing professional, Gerry Faloona, motivational speaker, networking guru and serial entrepreneur, and Adrian Toner, Chief Operating Officer of First Derivatives.

Commenting on the Business Awards and Conference, Martin Patterson Enterprise Development Officer at Newry and Mourne District Council said,

“We are delighted to see so many local businesses attend the conference and I have no doubt the calibre of speakers played a key role in the success of the conference. I would also like to congratulate all the businesses that participated in the business awards and we have seen some great examples of innovative and growing businesses".

Commenting on the Business Awards and Conference, Paul Kavanagh Economic Development Officer at Craigavon Borough Council said,

“We are delighted to see so many local businesses attend the conference and I have no doubt the calibre of speakers played a key role in its success. I would also like to congratulate all the businesses that participated in the business awards and we have seen some great examples of innovation and strong growth despite the recession. This business conference is one of a number of initiatives under the umbrella of the SEED Council Group of Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon and Newry and Mourne and we will bring others forward in the coming months as we continue to support local business”.

Commenting on the conference and awards Simon Devlin from organisers Full Circle Management Solutions explained,

“This conference has been about celebrating business success in the SEED region. We had over 150 owner-managers of local businesses here today and I think that they certainly left inspired by listening to our guest speakers who are all leaders in the fields of business and of sport”.

“On behalf of Wade Training Ltd, I wanted to express our thanks and appreciation for all the hard work by the Full Circle Team associated with the organisation and logistics of yesterday’s SEED Event. The speakers were all very upbeat and engaging, they all contributed to setting a very positive tone for the event. It was a really nice touch to engage Dame Mary Peters as Keynote Speaker, someone renowned for her positive image and a great ambassador for N. Ireland. Please also convey our sincere thanks to the Awards Judging Panel, for their recognition of our work and for naming Wade Training as Business Champion, Newry & Mourne area”.
Jim Gallagher, Wade Training

“I just wanted to thank you for the great event last week. Delighted to have been shortlisted in my category. Really enjoyed Dame Mary Peters' presentation, very inspirational and allowed me to look forward to entering (and hopefully winning) an award in the future. Gerry Faloona was a fantastic and very memorable speaker! Overall a great event!!!”
Stacey Kilpatrick, s.a.k.DESIGNS

The conference and business awards were part financed by the European Regional Development Fund under the European Sustainable Competitiveness Programme for Northern Ireland.

Conference Image Gallery