Meath saw 467 new company start-ups in 2009

Meath was the fifth most popular location nationwide for business start-ups in 2009, with 467 fledgling companies getting off the ground, according to a leading Irish bank. The Bank of Ireland Business Start-up Barometer that tracks the number of new businesses starting up in Ireland showed there were 13,327 new businesses formed in 2009, or 36 per day, which represented a nine per cent decrease when compared to 14,753 new business formations in 2008. Nearly half of the start-ups, 6,129, were registered in Dublin. Meath ranked number five with 467 new business start-ups during the year, compared to 551 in 2008. The services sector saw the largest number of start-ups in 2009, with 3,500 new businesses registered nationally. Given the decline in the commercial and residential property markets, there was a decrease in the number of new business formed in the associated industry sector of finance, insurance and real estate. As a sector, it saw a 37 per cent drop in new company registrations when compared to 2008, or just 1,176. It also showed a spike in the number of dissolved companies, up in 2009 by 39 per cent to 1,698. However, overall new business activity fell by nine per cent, year-on-year. The number of business dissolutions in 2009 has increased by 16 per cent on the 2008 figures, with the motor sector seeing the largest increase in dissolutions, up 42 per cent from 2008. Last year saw an arrest in the dramatic decline in new business activity experienced in 2008. There is a stabilisation of sorts in the year on year percentage differences across all sectors. Mark O'Connor, regional sales manager for the north-east with Bank of Ireland commented: "2009 was a challenging year with a fall-off in new business start-ups, particularly in the first half of the year. This slowed significantly in the second half and resulted in a nine per cent year-on-year drop. As expected, the pick-up in the latter part of the year can be partly attributed to the lead-in time for establishing new businesses, with many people opting for entrepreneurship as an employment option." He added: "2010 should be viewed with some optimism. The faster pace of recovery in Europe, the US and other countries offers growth opportunities for export orientated start-ups. Indeed, the stabilisation of Ireland's finances should help to instil more consumer confidence and business activity in 2010. In addition, the Government's extension to its corporation tax exemption for start-ups makes 2010 an attractive year to start a business. "Going into 2010, there are some signs of optimism. Many businesses have taken the necessary action to reduce costs and realign their business models. Company dissolutions, although at the highest level in 2009, are declining quarter by quarter. The outlook for 2010 is that overall start-up activity will remain at between 13,000 and 15,000 new companies being formed this year." Mr O'Connor said there is still a vibrant and passionate entrepreneurial spirit evident that needs to continue to be fostered and supported in the coming year. In the last number of weeks, he said Bank of Ireland had approved new lending facilities for developing and start-up businesses for ventures such as health and fitness, logistics, web development, food businesses and environmental support. "On average, over €2m each month was provided to small or micro businesses in early development stages in 2009, and we anticipate this trend will continue in 2010," he added. The highest numbers of company dissolutions were recorded in Q1 2009, but since then, the number of company dissolutions has been on a downward trend. However, 2009 saw a marked increase in the number of companies who have had a liquidator appointed, up 76 per cent, albeit from a small base, to 1,110 from 630 in 2008. The construction industry accounted for just under 22 per cent of that figure.