Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 June 2018
140. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation the number of businesses that have availed of the market discovery fund to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25986/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraEnterprise Ireland believes that the best way for Irish companies to withstand current global economic challenges is by diversifying their export footprint. Enterprise Ireland launched the Market Discovery Fund in January 2018 with the aim of encouraging companies to expand into new markets by helping with the costs of researching viable and sustainable market entry strategies.
The Fund provides support towards both internal and external costs incurred by companies when researching new markets for products and services. Eligible companies can receive support when they are looking at a new geographic market for an existing product/service, or when looking at exporting a new product/service to a market that they already do business in.
The Market Discovery Fund is available across three levels:
- Level 1: Grant up to €35K
- Level 2: Grant greater than €35K but less than €75K
- Level 3: Grant greater than €75K but less than €150K
The maximum funding is 50% of eligible expenditure up to a maximum grant of €150,000. Eligible expenditure includes, but is not limited to, salary support, consultancy costs, trade fair costs and foreign travel.
The Market Discovery Fund has now been open for applications for a number of months and to date, thirty-three Market Discovery Grants have been approved.
