The third part of the Equity Matters webinar series examines terms relating to investment economics such as term sheets, company valuation, investor fees and insurances.
Watch the entire series of Equity Matters here.
As an island nation, the export economy is essential for the health and growth of Irish companies. Our reputation for innovation and entrepreneurship has served us well in that regard, with Irish companies finding huge success in every corner of the world. Key markets such as the UK, the US, France and Germany remain hugely important, but ambitious Irish exporters are exploring other countries that are actively looking for the products and solutions produced by Irish entrepreneurs – and finding a whole new world of opportunity. A region that is growing rapidly in importance for Irish business is the Nordics, an area made up of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Iceland.
Currently, over 450 Enterprise Ireland supported companies export to the Nordics, with exports reaching a remarkable €1.16 billion in 2020. It’s easy to see why this region is so attractive, home to 26 million inhabitants, the Nordic region is the 11th largest economy in the world.
Irish companies have a strong track record and reputation here, says Eoghan O’Connor, Market Executive, ICT & Start Ups, Enterprise Ireland. “The Nordics are known for being progressive, stable, and open to new technology.”
This innovation can be seen in the number of household names from the Nordics. For instance, within the Nordic ecosystem are global companies like H&M, Nokia, Volvo, Maersk, and Ericsson. In addition, outside of Silicon Valley, the Nordics have generated the highest number of unicorns per capita globally, including companies like Spotify, Mojang (creators of Minecraft), Oatly, and Klarna.
“The success of these companies is down to the ecosystem, which is a fertile ground for innovation and entrepreneurship,” explains Eoghan. “Their comprehensive welfare state provides citizens with free education, healthcare, and social security and their public sector provides a strong framework for the ecosystem with opportunities for funding and other supports. There is also a dedicated focus on R&D and in general they are a population of early adopters of new technology.”
Already there are several very successful Irish companies in the region, all of which offer clever solutions in several different areas. “These include WAZP, an Enterprise Ireland High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) that specialises in the production of 3D printing materials, which has forged a partnership with IKEA, one of the most globally recognised brands,” says Eoghan.
“In addition, iCabbi, a Dublin cloud-based taxi firm, have a contract with Finnish taxi company Meneva, which has grown its fleet from 100 cars to over 1,500 since joining iCabbi over two years ago.”
A key term in today’s global business world is sustainability, a significant area of growth as we race towards ambitious goals of net zero emissions. The Nordic countries have been long considered leaders in this field, especially in the area of environmentally friendly transport options, such as public scooter schemes.
“Irish companies are playing their part here also,” says Eoghan. “For instance, Luna Technologies, which develops AI tech for the e-scooter market, has partnered with Swedish scooter giant Voi, while Zeus has rolled out scooters in Oslo, Halmstad, and Karlstad.”
These Irish companies have found huge success in the region – but there’s plenty more opportunity for ambitious Irish exporters who will find an open and welcoming market for their innovative products and solutions. To demonstrate the Irish Advantage to the Nordics, Enterprise Ireland showcased Irish innovation at SLUSH, a global-leading event for start-ups and the largest of its kind in the Nordics, which took place in December 2021 in Helsinki.
The event is considered a hotbed of start-up talent; the sold-out 2021 event attracted 8,000 attendees, over 3,200 start-up founders, and 1,500 investors, all of whom travelled from every part of the world. Irish attendees included seven companies, some already successful in the region along with some newcomers that have compelling offerings for this market
These included Boundless (B2B SaaS technology), MyPatientSpace (life sciences), Educatly (higher education), PlantQuest (oil & gas and data centres), Zeus (transport and mobility), Social Talent (learning and development), and Tito (events & ticketing).
The event acted as a springboard for Irish companies looking to expand their offerings in this prosperous region, keen to avail of the positives of trading in an area that values innovation, flexible working relationships and timely solutions to the issues that really matter in today’s world – everything that Irish enterprise is revered for.
Ireland has been a major destination for data centre development since the 90s, when US tech giants all started to base their data centres on the island, attracted by skilled workforce, climate, advanced infrastructure, and a low tax rate. This also created a platform for Irish construction companies to work on major data centre projects both domestically and abroad.
All European markets have experienced a boom in data centre ventures. Today this is particularly apparent in Spain and Italy, with both Madrid and Milan fast becoming major destinations in Europe for the development of data centres.
“Milan and Madrid have been considered part of the so-called European data centre secondary market, but nowadays this definition should be considered somehow dated, due to the faster growth in terms of capacity of these two markets compared the FLAP-D (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris, and Dublin)”, says Roberto Bettuzzi, Senior Market Advisor, Italy, at Enterprise Ireland. “It’s also worth noting that the two markets are complementing each other rather than competing”.
Currently, there are 80 active data centres in Spain, with a total of 113MW. The largest area of capacity is in Madrid and its surrounds; and current pipeline predicts capacity to increase fivefold across 14 projects. Barcelona is also experiencing growth in the sector, with projects totalling 110MW capacity in the pipeline.
According to Spanish business newspaper Cinco Días, the expected investment in the data centre sector in Spain is $6.837 billion until 2026. Reflecting the growing relevance of the local market, the Spanish Data Centre Association (SPAINDC) was set up in October 2021.
Several hyperscale and co-location operators are developing centre centres in Spain – or planning to. The list includes Amazon, Microsoft, Meta & IBM, Digital Realty and Equinix. Google has launched a cloud region in Spain with Telefonica. This led several Irish general contractors and subcontractors to bid and win contracts to work in many of these projects.
Italy is also enjoying strong growth. Lombardy is the most developed Italian region in the data centre sector, sustained by the strong financial sector located in Milan and high demand for cloud services from business and consumer sectors.
Currently, there are approximately 120 data centres in Italy, with a capacity of 151MW, and an additional 33MW under construction that should cover the growing demand. New developments are set to boost the capacity by more than 60%.
The area around Milan sees a higher concentration. Microsoft, AWS, Data4, Equinix and Vantage all have data centre projects either announced or under completion. The latest to join was Google, who recently announced the launch of Milano Cloud Region, in partnership with national telco operator TIM. Among local players, the company Aruba is expanding its 200,000sqm campus near Bergamo, while RaiWay announced their plan to build a network of 20 edge data centres across the country.
Many large Irish companies are already operating in Italy, including General Contractors like Mercury and Kirby Engineering, and suppliers like Brodeen Fabrication. “Irish companies have long-term experience in working with tech giants in the design, build, and fit out of data centres,” says Roberto, “and therefore when those clients enter into a new market like Italy, they tend to bring that cluster of successful Irish companies in too.”
With such growth forecasted over the next few years in both countries, there’s plenty of room for more ambitious Irish businesses to enter the sector.
“2020 saw a boom in projects and 2021 confirmed the trend. 2022 sees a consolidation of the ecosystem, with the creation of local data centre associations and the hosting of prominent events related to the sector.
In May 2022, Enterprise Ireland led a trade mission to Madrid, bringing 13 companies in the high-tech construction sector to participate in the Madrid Platform, where the client had one-to-one meetings with Spanish and Latin American buyers in the construction sector. Besides, on the same days, EI Madrid co-hosted a networking event together with SPAINDC Association.
“The event was extremely successful,” says María Jiménez, Market Advisor for Spain and Portugal at Enterprise Ireland. “During the week the Irish client companies had the opportunity to network with all major players in the sector. We are already seeing real results from the event.”
Similar events are coming to Italy too. In May 2022, Milan hosted DCN – Data Centre Nation, the first business-oriented data centre event of its kind in the country. The huge success of the event proved how needed was such a platform where the players can meet, network, and build relationships. “In 2023 the event is set to get be even bigger” commented Roberto “and EI Milan is in a dialogue with the DCN organizers to get a more active role in this valuable networking event”.
Southern Europe is a location that Irish tech-construction companies should keep on their radar.
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As digitalisation and technological innovation rapidly become both more complex and more widespread, it’s increasingly critical for Europe to have reliable, superfast connectivity. The 5G mobile telecommunications standard not only enables real-time data transmission at scale, but also intelligent real-time networking of products, processes and industrial value creation chains
And that is where opportunity lies, both around products and services that facilitate the rollout of 5G, but also in the more or less endless universe of products and services made possible by these hyperfast mobile networks.
“In the end, 5G is only the connection,” says Raul Marigorta, a Senior Market Advisor for Enterprise Ireland in Spain, who specialises in telecoms and digital technologies. “It’s what we do with 5G that will prove most interesting, whether that is eHealth and remote healthcare, VR and AR in education, smart cities, private network, Internet of Things (IoT) or many other innovations.”
Following the auction of relevant spectrum, the rollout of 5G has kicked off in most EU markets. While there are more distinct differences between markets when it comes to other aspects of technological innovation, Marigorta explains that 5G is somewhat different.
“Europe in general is quite homogeneous in the development of 5G. We don’t see many differences in the 5G rollout across countries like Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. That is because most telecom operators in Europe are mature providers such as Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica, Orange and/ or Telecom Italia, who are well in sync when it comes to 5G.”
Through the Next Generation funds administered through the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the European Commission is actively enabling EU member states to accelerate their digital transitions, including the rollout of 5G, which is a key area for investment.
Of the €723.8 billion in loans and grants it is giving, at least 20% must be spent by member states on digitalisation, although in reality the Commission reports that at least 26% of this funding is going to digital transformation projects.
Much of that funding, in turn, is going to 5G. In April 2022, for example, the European Commission approved €2 billion in funding for Italy’s 5G rollout.
In 2022, the growth of cloud services will outpace the growth of traditional IT solutions, says Gartner. This makes cloud computing one of the most influential changes in the IT market since the early days of digitisation.
Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) or cloud infrastructure services will grow tremendously in the coming years, as will platform-as-a-service (PaaS) and software-as-a-service (SaaS) cloud computing services. It’s the ongoing rollout of high speed 5G networks that makes this skyrocketing growth possible.
“While Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud dominate the cloud market, there is ample opportunity for Irish firms that can offer products and services to customise and facilitate access to the cloud for SMEs who may have thought they couldn’t use cloud technology,” he explains.
SMEs are not interested in 5G as such, Marigorta points out, but in what this high speed connectivity can enable them to do. “5G is the highway that we need to facilitate cloud adoption by SMEs. If I am an SME owner, I don’t care what the underlying technology is as long as it works. I need to manage my accounting and my clients. I need to develop my operation quickly but in a quality way, and I need to do proper customer service.
The strong Irish cluster of cybersecurity firms, for example, has clear opportunities across key European markets as do Irish firms specialising in Open RAN, a technology that facilitates the deployment of 5G. Other thriving areas where Enterprise Ireland has identified significant opportunities for Irish firms include IoT and smart cities.
Among the Irish firms specialising in 5G and connectivity products and services, and thriving in EU markets, are Open RAN radio infrastructure specialists Benetel or Aspire and core cellular network software company Druid Software.
Expert advisors in Enterprise Ireland’s network of offices across Europe, together with its Market Research Centre in Dublin, can support your business as it investigates market opportunities, including by making local introductions and helping you to build your network.
If you are not sure where to start your export journey, get in touch.
While Belgium has lagged in 5G connectivity, that is set to change completely by 2025. Meanwhile, uptake of private cloud and data services is strong.
As France demands a cloud-first approach, 5G sites and antennas are multiplying rapidly there. That represents real opportunity for Irish firms.
Leading the way in spectrum allocation, Germany is focusing on the connectivity needs of industry, while also seeking to make 5G available to everyone.
Italy is vigorously pursuing digitalisation and cloud adoption, with significant funding for extensive infrastructure and service development.
While opportunity abounds in this tech-savvy market, regulatory processes may slow down the growth of 5G.
As Spain seeks to bring ultrafast connectivity to everyone in the country, there is keen take-up of cloud services in business and industry.
Alan Quane, Group CEO of Sullivan’s Brewing Company, speaks about continuing to grow during difficult circumstances and building an international brandSullivan’s Brewing Company, based in Co Kilkenny, has a fascinating history, dating all the way back to 1702. The company boomed through famines, fires, and wars, until one fateful day in 1918, at the end of WW1, an unfortunate member of the Sullivan family – a descendant of original owner Richard Sullivan – lost the business over a bet on a horse. Sullivan’s was then acquired by Smithwick’s, formerly a rival of the company.
Alan Quane says, “It was in 2016 when I had met Paul Smithwick through my work with Diageo and he told me he was resurrecting this great brewery. So along with Paul, his son Dan, who is our Finance Director, and Master Brewer Ian Hamilton, who has huge brewing experience internationally with Diageo, we relaunched the business.
“Then there’s Michael Meade, our US based co-founder, who was a strong believer and instrumental in fundraising from day one. Alan Smithwick, a cousin of Paul’s, was also a co-founder. Alan is not only a Smithwick, but also a Sullivan. So we have the Sullivan blood in the business which has led to our brand tagline of ‘brewing is in our blood’.”
With the help of Enterprise Ireland, who provided grant support, and Bord Bia, the team rebuilt the brewing business, with a real focus on exports. As soon as their ale was out their gates, they were exporting to the US, places such as Buffalo in Upstate New York. “Enterprise Ireland and Bord Bia were extremely helpful from the early days,” says Alan.
“In fact, in 2017/18, we won the best beer in the world competition at the Oscars of the beer world in Burton-on-Trent, amongst 1,300 beers from over 45 countries around the world.”
Having been through difficult times, including the Great Famine and many a rebellion, Sullivan’s Brewing Co. is no stranger to challenges – so how have the company been coping during the Covid-19 pandemic?
“The on-trade shut down completely and utterly in all of our markets in the US, as well as Ireland,” says Alan. “The off-trade retail environment were very much focussed on big brands and boxes of the beer, so shoppers weren’t looking for ‘craft beer’ for the most part, they were really going after the deals and a quick-fire purchase.
“We had to move with speed into survival mode, cutting our overheads and any costs we could get at. From a supply perspective, we had created great momentum in the States up to St Patrick’s Day prior to the lockdown. We had nine new markets in the US alone year to date, on top of six new markets added in 2019. This had led to great strain on our supply chain.
“But during the lockdown, we were lucky enough to be able to brew here in Ireland and therefore we were able to build up the pipeline inventory for these US markets.
Sullivan’s Brewing Company and family motto has long been ‘standing up to do the right thing’. Back during the Great Famine, the brewery was transformed into a soup kitchen to serve food for those most in need. And this trait has lived on today. During lockdown, the company went above and beyond to support the community in Ireland and the US.
“We sent pizzas from our Sullivan’s Taproom in Kilkenny to frontline staff at the regional hospital and Gardaí station,” says Alan. “We also contributed to the Answer Ireland’s Call charity, helping them repatriate much-needed frontline staff to Irish hospitals at the peak of the pandemic. Stateside, we helped deliver meals to people in need, for example, through the VA Medical Centre and Kenmore Mercy Hospital in Buffalo, NY. That concept of community has always been important to us and our sales team were very happy to try to help.”
So what has Alan learned from the pandemic?
“As a team, we have learned that we are very resilient,” he says. “The team and our plans pivoted quickly to focus on a new set of priorities in an unprecedented and seismic change to our customers’ needs and channel dynamics. As always, we’ve learned that innovation and creativity is central to how we respond to the fast-changing needs of our trade partners.
Alan says they now have plans to relaunch their route to market in Ireland. “We’ll service pubs and restaurants directly ourselves. We will continue to use C&C, our distribution partner for other opportunities, but by taking control of the bars and restaurants, I believe this will give us a chance to get even closer to our customers and their needs, and see how we can better serve them.”
Alan emphasises that a huge part of their future focus is exporting. “Having expanded to nine US markets in the early part of this year, on top of six last year, we have a lot of very new markets to nurture and grow. We’ve also plans to add more new markets in the US and look to the UK and Canada to continue to fuel our rapid expansion plans.
“Throughout these difficult past few months, we’ve maintained a very close relationship with Enterprise Ireland. They supported our very successful and latest round of funding. They’re a firm believer in us and continue to help us as we transition from a high-potential start-up into a successful scaled-up business.”
Tourism is on the way back. While the pandemic severely disrupted the travel and tourism sector, every region saw increases in travel in 2022, according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
In fact, more than 900 million tourists travelled internationally in 2022. While this was twice as many as in 2021, it was just 63% of pre-pandemic levels. Europe fared better than most other regions, however, with numbers returning to close to 80% of 2019 figures.
Hotels, hospitality providers, travel agencies, transport companies, tour operators and activity providers can be reasonably confident of seeing improved revenues again in 2023. This is despite and in ways subject to macroeconomic challenges such as inflation and the war in Ukraine.
Broadly speaking, the industry in Europe continues to offer substantial opportunity to Irish travel tech companies. And with substantial funding flowing across the region from the €806.9 billion NextGenerationEU recovery and resilience programme, there is unprecedented
Across the travel and tourism industry in Europe, digital solutions are making the industry more efficient and more cost-effective, while also smoothing the journey for consumers.
In the accommodation sector, for example, accommodation providers across all price levels are increasingly using digital technologies to enrich and improve their offer. This includes innovations such as:
Likewise, the cultural sector is also taking more advantage of digital tools. In this space, these can include:
Furthermore, the pandemic also led to an increase in offerings such as virtual visits to museums or other attractions, online lessons (such as cooking lessons) and experiences, or dedicated e-commerce platforms for food, wine and crafts.
Across every aspect of the travel and tourism experience, from research and booking, to how people get around to their stay and what they do on their trip, there are opportunities for specialist travel tech providers to improve the experience for both the traveller and the service provider.
The opportunity is broader than specific travel tech solutions, however. Fintech, cybersecurity, and data analytics and protection firms, for example, may find valuable opportunities in this sector.
Under pressure from government as well as from the consumers they service, travel and tourism companies are increasingly committed to sustainability. This can include:
In terms of the offer to travellers, sustainability comes to the fore in the shape of eco-tourism, slow tourism, cultural exchange, community development and environmental protection.
Other avenues to sustainability include newer trends that help to reduce overtourism and increase bookings in the low season, such as appealing to digital nomads and promoting long stay holidays, both of which are significant factors in Italy and Spain.
While Ireland has long excelled as a tourist destination, it’s also home to an increasingly vibrant travel tech sector.
Irish companies succeeding across Europe in the sector include Campsited, a booking platform for campsites and outdoor activities, car rental and mobility solutions provider CarTrawler and biometric travel security specialists Daon.
A tech savvy-market with substantial public funding for transformation, France offers opportunities to any company with a distinctive offering.
Developing a local approach is key to unlocking the digital transformation potential of this large but still fragmented market.
A world leader in tourism, Spain is pushing hard to see more innovation and digitalisation across all levels of this vital sector.
If you are considering expanding into international markets, or if you are an early stage exporter, the First Steps to Export Success webinar is for you.
This webinar organised by the Local Enterprise Offices, in conjunction with Enterprise Ireland and Bord Bia, will heighten your awareness of market opportunities and supports available. It will examine challenges to internationalisation and feature case studies drawn from both Local Enterprise Offices and Enterprise Ireland clients.
The event aims to support companies with potential for export or who are at the early stage of exporting and provide information and encouragement to guide your company into market diversification opportunities.
Designed to outline the steps to export success, this session is packed with practical advice, supports and case studies of businesses who are already on the export journey.
The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney TD will give an opening address at the event, signalling the importance of such an event for early-stage exporters and companies considering exporting.
Participants will gain expert advice on market opportunities and insights from Enterprise Ireland’s Regional Director UK, Nordics, and Global Procurement, Deirdre McPartlin and Anne Lanigan, Regional Director of the Eurozone for Enterprise Ireland.
Bord Bia’s Claudia Saumell, Client Engagement Manager, will speak about how Bord Bia engages with potential food exporters.
While Tracey Tallon of the Local Enterprise Office plus Bernadette Mooney and Naghmeh Reilly of Enterprise Ireland will outline supports available.
Hosted by Richard Curran, presenter of RTÉ’s “The Business”, this is a must attend webinar for anyone planning on developing export markets.
Irish companies operating in the UK have had quite a turbulent few years. Not only have they worked through the Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected literally every part of the business world, but they have also come through the preparation and implementation of Brexit. But now there’s another issue that is becoming ever more urgent by the day – climate change – and it’s time now for Irish companies in the UK to start implementing strategies to make their business more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
While climate change is an urgent issue in every country, an even closer light has been cast on the changing environmental and sustainability conditions of the UK market. The UK was the first industrialised nation to enshrine its climate targets in law, pledging to cut carbon emissions from 1990 levels by 78% by 2035 and to reach net zero by 2050. This has been supplemented by recent UK government announcements including its ten-point plan for a green industrial revolution (published in December 2020), a new hydrogen strategy and an offshore wind sector deal. COP26 is taking place in Glasgow this autumn, and to coincide with its launch, the UK government is planning to publish a comprehensive cross-sectoral net zero roadmap, which should provide greater clarity for all sectors.
“By and large, net zero been welcomed by the market, as businesses can see the opportunities that come with such a move, but the details still need to be sorted out,” explains Darragh Cotter, Senior Market Advisor, Industrial and Cleantech, at Enterprise Ireland. “The comprehensive roadmap to be published ahead of COP in November is expected to include all the important steps to take the UK to their net zero target, including the level of investment the government is willing to put into it.”
With such ambitious targets, it’s clear that this will result in fundamental changes across the business community. Already, the UK net zero challenge is rapidly impacting government policy and legislation, influencing consumer preferences, impacting investor decision making and changing the way major corporates work with supply chain partners.
“If you already have a presence in the UK, you must become conscious of the net zero ambitions of your customer base and the changing dynamics,” says Darragh. “For instance, already a lot of public procurement is building in environmental criteria into their tender assessments. That will be the same in the construction and agricultural sectors. So our message is that this is a critical issue for Irish businesses if they want to continue working in the UK because everything from procurement to the type of products and services will undergo fundamental change as we journey towards net zero.
“For us in the Enterprise Ireland London office, it’s the number one issue facing businesses today; we want to educate our clients on the issues facing them, find out what’s required by their customers and potential customers in the UK and relay that information to our client companies. For instance, we are seeing more and more UK corporates looking for their supply chain to have achieved environmental accreditation through certification such as ISO 50001 and ISO 14001. Our client companies need to be aware of the criteria they need to fulfil in order to continue doing business in the UK.”
To help, Enterprise Ireland has launched Net Zero UK: Ready for a Green Future, a proactive market intelligence and insights campaign that is designed to keep Irish business informed of the UK’s net zero plans and their impact on business. Through webinars, podcasts and reports, the campaign will highlight technologies and verticals that are likely to decline and those that will grow and emerge, along with the evolving expectations of major UK corporates. These insights can inform the strategic planning and R&D activities of Irish companies operating in the UK to both protect and to grow their business over the coming years.
Of course, with every change there’s opportunity, and working with Irish SMEs to identify new and relevant business opportunities is a key goal of Enterprise Ireland’s Net Zero UK campaign. “Net Zero will affect every sector, but some sectors would require different measures to others,” says Darragh. “For Irish companies, there are opportunities across all sectors related to net zero, not just in renewable energy – there are also opportunities in construction, engineering, manufacturing, local authorities, finance, business technology and more.”
Enterprise Ireland’s Net Zero UK campaign is complemented by the €10 million Climate Enterprise Action Fund, which provides a suite of products to help Irish companies assess their current carbon footprint and develop a concrete decarbonisation strategy to help future-proof their business. These financial aids work alongside the focused sector insights provided by the Net Zero UK campaign.
Despite Brexit, the UK remains one of Ireland’s most important export partners, and it’s vital that Irish companies take action now to address the opportunities and risks brought about by the growth of UK’s green economy. Enterprise Ireland’s Net Zero UK campaign aims to support Irish exporters and help them to emerge stronger, more successful and more sustainable than ever.
