Two Cavan retailers get online retail grants
Funding has been given to retailers in Cavan to strengthen their online offering and enable them to reach a wider customer base.
Successful applicants were approved for funding through the COVID-19 Online Retail Scheme, administered by Enterprise Ireland.
McNally's Pharmacy 365 Limited, Cavan and Chapter One Café and Furniture Centre, Cavan, are the Cavan beneficiaries of the latest round of funding.
They will each receive funding ranging from €16,000 to €40,000 to strengthen their online offering. The average grant value is €35,500. Enterprise Ireland will be opening a second Call under scheme in the coming weeks.
The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar, has allocated some €6.5 million to 183 retailers nationwide to accelerate their online offering and increase their competitiveness.
Welcoming the news, Fine Gael Senator Joe O’Reilly said: “There is no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult for businesses in Cavan but they have stepped up to the plate in coming up with dynamic and innovative ways of trading while adhering to public health protocols."
He added: “I welcome funding for two retailers in Cavan, so that they can be more competitive, sustain jobs in Cavan and subsequently scale their businesses in international markets."
Announcing the funding, the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar TD said: "As our workplaces and businesses reopen, we must help our country recover, repair the damage that has been done, and restore confidence and prosperity. The July Jobs Stimulus will be radical and far-reaching and will set our economy on the right course for the next five years and beyond.”
About the Covid-19 Online Retail Scheme
It seeks to support the Irish retail sector to embed a more sophisticated online trading (e-tailing) strategy in its business model can contribute to the continued viability of a cohort of retail companies affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and help position them for recovery. Applicant companies must be an Irish-owned retail enterprise that had 10 or more employees on or before February 29, 2020, and have the potential to sustain or create jobs, generate growth in online transactions and with an ambition to internationalise their business in future.
The business must also have an existing online presence (e.g. website or social media) and have a retail outlet and derive the majority of revenue from the retail outlet(s).