Welcome to the second Chamber Newsletter of 2025.
It has been a busy period for the Chamber with a number of highly successful events taking place and providing excellent opportunities for networking, information sharing and gaining insight on the issues impacting our local business community.
The Chamber team has been working hard on meeting the challenges and seizing the potential opportunities facing our members in the months and years ahead.
Our events programme kicked off on 4th February with focus on Digital Connectivity in partnership with our Communications Partner, BT.
Members attended in great numbers for this event at The Graduate Restaurant in Southern Regional College to hear about the planned transformative expansion of the digital infrastructure and roll out of 5G connectivity across Newry City and how businesses of all sizes can benefit.
Since then, we have held events on ‘Maximising the Opportunities of Dual Market Access’ in partnership with Invest NI & Fortior Insight, our ‘Cross-Border Conference’ with colleagues in Dundalk Chamber and our sold-out ‘International Women’s Day Celebration Lunch’ in the beautiful Killeavy Castle Estate.
You can read more on these events below and we hope to see you all at our events in the coming months. I would like to draw your attention to an upcoming seminar we are hosting in partnership with Juris Resolutions on Tuesday 25th March.
It focuses on ‘The Power of Mediation for Local Businesses’ and it will provide business leaders and HR professionals in the Greater Newry Area with insights into the benefits of mediation for resolving disputes efficiently, preserving relationships, reducing operational disruptions including significant time and costs.
Speakers on the day will include Rosemary Connolly, Principal Solicitor, Rosemary Connolly Solicitors and Alva Brangam K.C., Mediator & Arbitrator, Juris Resolutions and you can book your FREE place HERE. We hope to see you there.
I would like to wish our members a Happy St Patrick’s Day with it being just around the corner. There are lots events happening in Newry City which you can read about below so be sure to get involved, support our local businesses and enjoy the day with family and friends in our city.
Michael Savage
Chief Executive Officer
Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade
NEWRY CHAMBER ANNOUNCE BT AS COMMS PARTNER
Newry Chamber is delighted to announce BT Group has come onboard as our Communications Partner, at an exciting time with BT’s proposed investment in its EE 5G infrastructure across Northern Ireland, including Newry.
With Newry’s location on the threshold of the both UK & EU markets with its Dual Market Access, the city is strategically positioned to become a pivotal digital hub.
Future investment in 5G offers a gateway to both markets, maximising our connectivity and creating an unparalleled connected business ecosystem for inward investment.
Edwina Flynn, President of Newry Chamber said:
“Newry Chamber is delighted to welcome BT as our Communications Partner and look forward to working with them to deliver key digital investment to the Greater Newry Area.”
“This support from BT is recognition of Newry as a key area for economic investment in Northern Ireland and the Chamber’s deep commitment to growing our local economy.”
READ MORE HERE
NEWRY & DUNDALK CHAMBERS’ HOST 10TH ANNUAL
CROSS-BORDER TRADE & ECONOMIC CONFERENCE
250+ business representatives from across the island of Ireland were in attendance at the 10th Annual Cross-Border Trade & Economic Conference jointly hosted by Newry and Dundalk Chambers’ on Tuesday 4th March in the Carrickdale Hotel.
The event was first held in 2015 and cross-border trade was worth just over €5bn then. According to most recent figures, this has now trebled to around €15bn, illustrating the significant growth and importance of cross-border trade to our economies both North and South.
The ongoing theme for the conference is ‘Building a Sustainable All-Island Economy’ and featured 12 expert speakers from both sides of the border across four sections including the All-Island Economy, Business Supports, Skills & People and Growing Prosperity on a Shared Island.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:
- InterTradeIreland
- Newry, Mourne and Down District Council
- Louth County Council
- Louth Local Enterprise Office
- Dundalk Chamber Skillnet
- M1 Corridor
VIEW PRESENTATIONS HERE
READ MORE HERE
NEWRY CHAMBER MARKS INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
AT SOLD-OUT EVENT IN KILLEAVY CASTLE ESTATE
Newry Chamber hosted their 6th Annual International Women’s Day Celebration Lunch at a packed Killeavy Castle Estate with over 220 guests on Friday 7th March, kindly sponsored by KPMG Ireland, Zen Orthodontics and Southern Regional College.
The incredible journey of our Keynote Speaker, Sósanna Ní Dhubháin, Composite Lead Engineer at the Aston Martin Formula 1 Team and a native of Rostrevor, deeply resonated with this year’s theme for International Women’s Day, ‘Accelerate Action’.
The vision of Chamber President, Edwina Flynn for this year’s event was to acknowledge women in sport and guests also heard from a panel of inspirational local women who are all high achievers, operating within the world of sport.
Our panel on the day included Armagh Ladies Footballing Superstar, Aimee Mackin, Newry All Stars & Special Olympics Athlete, Maeve Robb, CEO of Down Royal Racecourse, Emma Meehan-McCoy and Top Irish Amateur Golfer, Louise Coffey.
Thanks to the generosity of guests in attendance, over £3,500 was also raised through a Charity Raffle for our Charity Partner, Women’s Aid Armagh Down, supporting their ELEOS project which their CEO, Eileen Murphy spoke about during a fireside chat with our fabulous MC, Deborah Loughran.
READ MORE HERE
NEWRY CHAMBER HOSTS WORKSHOP ON BENEFITS OF
DUAL MARKET ACCESS WITH INVEST NI & FORTIOR INSIGHT
The Chamber highlighted the Benefits of Dual Market Access for our local businesses based in Greater Newry and how they can maximise the many opportunities at a workshop together with Invest NI and Fortior Insight on Thursday 20th February at Invest NI’s Regional Office in Newry.
Chamber members and representatives from the local business community heard two insightful and detailed presentations from Peter Curran, Head of Dual Market Access at Invest NI and Jonathan Walsh, Director of Fortior Insight, two of the foremost specialists in this area in Northern Ireland.
Despite the huge uncertainty in Global Trade Markets following the imposition of trade tariffs by US President, Donald Trump and subsequent imposition of retaliatory tariffs from impacted countries, the Greater Newry Area finds itself in a potentially unrivalled trading position.
With Newry City’s strategic location on the threshold of both the UK and EU Markets alongside its Dual Market Access, our region now has a huge opportunity to trade on a scale never seen before.
By embracing the Dual Market Access to both the UK and EU Markets and taking advantage of potential UK Free Trade Agreements, the Greater Newry Area has the potential to be the Gateway City to market for many companies across the globe.
VIEW PRESENTATIONS HERE
READ MORE HERE
ST PATRICK’S DAY PARADE & FESTIVITIES IN NEWRY CITY
The cross-community St Patrick’s Day Carnival Parade will be at the centre of celebrations across Newry City on Monday 17th March.
Led by St Patrick himself, the parade will offer a feast for eyes and ears as swirling dancers, community floats and costumed characters entertain the crowds.
The parade sets off from Albert Basin at 1pm and follow the route along Buttercrane Quay, Merchants Quay, Sugar Island to Kildare Street.
Beyond the parade, make sure you catch the live music and dance performances and free family entertainment on Hill Street, McClelland Park, Margaret Square and Marqus Square.
Our members, The Quays, Buttercrane and Studio 23 are also hosting a wide range of fantastic events across the weekend, find out all the info on what is happening in Newry City for St Patrick’s Day below.
Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Events
FIND OUT MORE INFO HERE
The Quays Shopping Centre Events
FIND OUT MORE INFO HERE
Buttercrane Shopping Centre Events
FIND OUT MORE INFO HERE
Studio Twenty Three Events
FIND OUT MORE INFO HERE
READ MORE HERE
THE POWER OF MEDIATION FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES
SEMINAR IN PARTNERSHIP WITH JURIS RESOLUTIONS
DATE: Tuesday 25th March 2025
TIME: 9:30am – 11:30am
VENUE: The ThinkLab, WIN Business Park, Newry
COST: FREE TO ATTEND
Newry Chamber in partnership with Juris Resolutions is hosting a FREE seminar on ‘The Power of Mediation for ‘Local Businesses’ in the Greater Newry Area.
The objective of this FREE event is to provide local business leaders and HR professionals with actionable insights into the many benefits of mediation for resolving disputes efficiently, preserving relationships, reducing operational disruptions including both time and costs.
Disputes are inevitable in business, but how they are resolved can define the trajectory of an organisation.
The mediation process offers a proactive, cost-effective and confidential way to address conflicts, whether it is employee relations or commercial disagreements.
Rosemary Connolly will deliver a presentation on the day on ‘HR Disputes: A Path to Workplace Harmony’.
Alva Brangam K.C. will also deliver a presentation on ‘Commercial Disputes: Strengthening Partnerships’.
The two presentations will be followed by a Q&A session where attendees will have the opportunity to ask our two experts questions and share their perspectives.
BOOK YOUR FREE PLACE HERE
GO SUCCEED – NI BUSINESS SUPPORT AVAILABLE
TO HELP YOU GROW AND SCALE YOUR BUSINESS
Launched in November 2023, Go Succeed represents a multi-million-pound investment in local entrepreneurs and businesses. It provides a holistic approach to government support services with a focus on providing a tailored service to suit individual needs in a bid to foster enterprise across the region.
The service, which is FREE and supports entrepreneurs to start, grow and scale their businesses with easy-to-access advice and support including bespoke mentoring, masterclasses, peer support networks and access to grant funding at every stage of their business journey.
It takes only a few minutes to sign up and once you’ve done that someone will be in touch with you to assign you to a mentor.
Catherine Elliott from Newry-based BT35 Physiotherapy & Pilates was able to use Go Succeed to help accelerate their business, see how they did it.
FIND OUT MORE HERE
SIGN UP HERE
