Exchange Creates Opportunities

New ideas, contacts and business deals are just some of the outcomes for eight young entrepreneurs as the first half of a Nova Scotia-Northern Ireland entrepreneur exchange wrapped up.

The second leg of the exchange takes place in Northern Ireland during Small Business Week at the end of October.

The 10-day Nova Scotia half took the group to businesses around the province. The participants, three from Northern Ireland and five from Nova Scotia, agreed that the visits were instrumental in showing them the scope of what is happening with entrepreneurship in Nova Scotia.

"It appears that the goals of this exchange exercise were right on target," said Economic Development Minister Gordon Balser. "The exporting techniques and advanced telecommunications and technology demonstrated by hosting businesses showed these young people that the opportunities are there - and they're working."

Based on what they learned from these visits, and experiences throughout the exchange, each of these young entrepreneurs developed a personal action plan. And some of what they experienced helped them make decisions about their own businesses.

"This week provided direct, concrete business connections between Nova Scotia and Northern Ireland," said Dan Ross, owner of Ross Screenprint in Antigonish. "You really can't put a price on the people we met during the week and the things we've learned."

One new business connection resulting from this exchange will see Mr. Ross exporting T-shirts and hats to Marc Martin, owner of AllTalk Communications in Northern Ireland. Mr. Martin, who markets mobile phones and accessories, also made a deal to export cell phone accessories to Nova Scotia.

"My attitude toward Nova Scotia really changed once I got here and found out what was happening in this province in the area of entrepreneurship," said Dominic Muldoon, owner of Fox Video Communications in Northern Ireland. "I went to Silicon Island (Sydney) and met people like Harvey Webb and Don Snow. It's been amazing."

Mr. Muldoon also visited the Telecommunications Advanced Research Association, or TARA, in Halifax and decided to purchase a membership with the organization.

The exchange is a joint project of the province of Nova Scotia through the Department of Economic Development, the Black Business Initiative and the Centre for Entrepreneurship Education and Development (CEED). The Northern Ireland partners are Action Resource Centre and Shell LiveWIRE (NI) Ltd.

The Nova Scotia portion of the exchange was managed by CEED, and funded by Economic Development. CEED is a joint venture funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Education and the Canada/Nova Scotia COOPERATION Agreement on Economic Diversification. The agreement is managed by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and Nova Scotia Economic Development.

Participants in the Nova Scotia leg of the exchange were: From Nova Scotia

• Jo-Anne Donovan of Halifax, The Cape Breton Store online
• Nicole Johnson of Dartmouth, En Jay Fashion Designs
• Dan Ross of Antigonish, Ross Screenprint Ltd.
• Tanya Shaw-Weeks of Dartmouth, Unique Patterns Designs Ltd. and Virtually Yours
• Mark Knodell of Bedford, Continental Connections Trading

From Northern Ireland

• Dominic Muldoon of Newtonabbey, Fox Video Communications
• Marc Martin of Belfast, AllTalk Communications
• Jennifer Smyth of Londonderry, Airporter

Businesses and organizations visited by participants included:

• Ambassatours, Halifax
• Nova Scotian Crystal, Halifax
• Grohmann Knives Ltd., Pictou
• Capetech Technological Solutions Inc., Pictou
• Ross Screenprint, Antigonish
• Silicon Island, Sydney
• Blue Mist Pewter, Springhill
• TARA, Halifax
• InNOVAcorp, Dartmouth
• Technology Innovation Centre, Dartmouth
• MTT, Halifax
• DownEast Mobility, Halifax
• InfoInteractive, Bedford
• Scotsburn Dairy, Scotsburn
• Golden Silkscreening, Halifax
• Maritime Trading, Halifax