Cupid For Business – 4500 ‘speed dates’ at Meet West Networking Conference

MeetWest 2015 really was ‘speed dating’ event for Business

4500 business speed dates took place in the Hodson Bay Hotel Athlone last Thursday at the Meet West Business Networking conference.

The event which is now in its 5^th year attracted over 300 businesses from the west of Ireland and beyond.

Manufacturing, Electronics, Information & Communication Technology, and the Construction & Engineering sectors were well represented at the event which drew particular interest from SME’s.

The event kicked off on Wednesday afternoon with a two hour panel discussion entitled “The Challenge of Change- Combining traditional and digital marketing for best results”, chaired by TV3’s Colette Fitzpatrick.

Speakers included social media expert Greg Fey, Joe.ie founder Niall McGarry, Gary Quinn, Digital Editor Irish Times Paul Young CEO of Cartoon Saloon and Carmel Dooley PRWORKS.

Ballaghadereen native, Tom Morrisroe was the key note speaker for Wednesday evening’s networking dinner. The serial entrepreneur and technology investor entertained the capacity audience with many insights into the highs and lows of his career.

Speaking after the two day event which included a full day of structured networking meetings, Una Ni Chuinn, Roscommon County Council, said she was delighted with the response to the event.

“We have had a phenomenal interest in this year’s event, which demonstrates the importance of events such as this in connecting people and providing opportunities for businesses to do business in the West,” said Una Ni Chuinn.

Delegates attending Meet West 2015 had an opportunity to engage in informal networking which sampling some of the many foods produced in Roscommon at ‘The Taste of Roscommon.”

Producers represented included Waldron Meats, Gleeson’s Restaurant and Townhouse, Roscommon Chocolates, Cloonconra Cheese, Black Donkey Brewery, Molloy’s Bakery and Gilligan Meats.

Meet West 2015 involved over four months of planning is organised by the local authorities, local enterprise offices and state development agencies in Roscommon, Mayo and Galway.