The Fáilte Ireland Tourism Barometer is a survey of tourism businesses designed to provide insight into tourism performance for the year to date and prospects for the remainder of the season. Click on the following link: September-2011-Failte-Ireland-Barometer
Tourism Barometer by Fáilte Ireland- September 2011
January 27th, 2012Were Hiring. Two Instructional Designers. Wexford Based. Great Opportunity.
December 8th, 2011
Game on: video games could create 2500 jobs in Ireland
October 11th, 2011By Independent.ie Reporters
Tuesday October 11 2011
THE games industry could create 2500 jobs in Ireland over the next three years, it was claimed today.
Games Ireland Chief Executive Officer Mr David Sweeney said this could become a reality if the Government’s tax system was broadened to be more attractive to the burgeoning industry which would be worth over $80 billion wordline by 2015.
He was speaking as top executives from the sector congregated in Dublin as part of a strategy to make Ireland the top global destination for the games industry.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny was today addressing these global leaders from the video game industry and Mr Sweeney said it was a time of exponential growth in the sector with expectation that the sector. But he warned that jurisdictions elsewhere were giving better incentives and Mr Kenny’s government would need to respond to that.
“The video game industry is the most dynamic player in today’s entertainment industry,” claimed Mr Sweeney, who pointed out that it was no longer confined to young people but extended to people of all ages.
“The average age of people using game is now 34,” he pointed out. With games on Consoles, the X-Box, Playstations. with Apps on iphones and casual games on line, the industry is now bigger than the audiovisual and music industries, he added.
Speaking on Morning Ireland, he said that this country had a rich reservoir of talent and was ideally placed to become a leading player in Europe.
Mr Stephen Hegarty, Director of European Business Operation at Big Fish Games, said people should now understand that Ireland has a Games industry. “People can go to college and come out with a job.
We’re not just looking for artists, but engineering and IT graduates as well.” H said it was time that young people should be consider careers in this sector and not be thinking of going abroad to find jobs.
- Independent.ie Reporters
Why You Don’t Want to Be the Low-Cost Leader
September 14th, 2011When you select a pricing strategy–that is, decide how you wish to price your products or services–what is your goal? The first answer that comes to mind may be to maximize profits, but that isn’t a good enough answer.
Think about it this way: When your company develops new products or invests in a new marketing campaign, what’s the goal? To maximize profits. But that doesn’t tell you what types of products to develop or which customers to target or what message to deliver.
Both Ikea and Mercedes want to maximize profits–and they use very different pricing strategies to do so–but we don’t think of Ikea and Mercedes in terms of their pricing strategies. We think of them in terms of their products and positioning. Ikea is a fun, designer, starter furniture store; Mercedes is a luxury automobile manufacturer.
Both companies set their pricing strategies to be consistent with their overall goals and the vision of who they are. Price follows their corporate strategy–not the other way around.
What is your overall strategy? It’s the general description of how you compete in the market. It is your sustainable competitive advantage. Your strategy should be based on how your product or service differs from your competition, from product features or location to marketing or the breadth or focus of your offering. It can be many things, but it shouldn’t be price.
How Pricing Can Power a Turnaround
Why not? Because pricing is not a sustainable competitive advantage. Prices can change almost instantly. Your competitor can change prices just as quickly as you can. What if you find that optimal price, that psychologically perfect price that magically makes all customers want to buy from you? Your competitors will copy it–immediately. Any competitive advantage you may gain with pricing is not sustainable.
The one time that pricing can be a corporate strategy is when the company is positioned as the low-price leader. That’s Walmart. If you adopt low price as your strategy, then your business must be continually focused on lowering and controlling costs–like Walmart. You are attracting the price buyers, customers who are not loyal, but are looking for the lowest price. Once a competitor figures out how to sell a similar product for less, they will charge lower prices and you will struggle. If another company figures out how to sell products for less than Walmart, Walmart will be in trouble. Knowing this, Walmart maintains a laser-sharp focus on keeping costs down. If you make low price your strategy, you have to be like Walmart, continuously lowering your costs so your competitors don’t catch up.
You may be thinking about a different price-based strategy. “My product is as good as a Lexus, but less expensive. I’m going to make that my strategy.” Don’t do it. You may be able to have that product positioning for a short while, but it’s not sustainable. The market will morph, and your position may or may not exist in a few years. You have competitors on both sides of you, above and below, either of which may be able to steal your position, because your position is just price.
Five Signs It’s Time to Change Your Prices
Consider Walmart’s discount retail competition. Kmart is having a difficult time competing with Walmart. Same-store sales continue to decline even as they come out of the 2010 recession. On the other hand, Target’s same-store sales figures are growing rapidly. What’s the difference? Although there are many factors, one is that Target has a unique positioning. It is described as “trendy,” “cool” and “a hip discounter.” Kmart may have the Martha Stewart brand, but the company as a whole doesn’t own a position. There doesn’t seem to be any real differentiation between Kmart and Walmart–other than price, which Walmart wins.
Target’s success isn’t based on price. They could not beat Walmart in a low price battle. Target’s success is because they own the unique positioning of “hip discounter.” There is only room for one company with lowest prices, and that company is Walmart, at least for now.
The strategy of low-cost leader is a rough-and-tumble position. Everything is done without frills. Once you get too comfortable, someone else hungrier than you will do it with less and steal your position. This is not a fun position to defend.
Even for companies that aren’t low-cost leaders, you must still focus some of your energy and resources on costs. Target, Kmart and every company in a competitive situation still win and lose customers based on their prices. And to have competitive prices, they must maintain relatively low costs. Price is a factor in every customer’s decision, and if one company’s costs are much higher than another’s, then they run the risk of losing on price.
- BY MARK STIVING (Courtesy of www.entrepreneur.com)
Industrial output up 2.2% in April
June 12th, 2011DAN O’BRIEN Economics Editor and SUZANNE LYNCH
IRISH INDUSTRIAL production rebounded in April, increasing by 2.2 per cent on March.
The seasonally adjusted volume of industrial production for manufacturing industries for the three-month period between February and April inclusive was 1.8 per cent lower than in the preceding three month period.
Output in industry has been broadly flat since last summer, albeit at high levels.
Industrial production figures are a key indicator of the health of the Irish economy given that manufacturing accounts for a larger share of total output than most other developed countries.
In April output in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry soared by almost 16 per cent month on month. This sector, which is by far the largest in terms of the value of its output, saw its highest level of output in April.
In that month the food sector also recorded an above average increase in output, growing by 2.7 per cent on March.
By contrast, the computer and electronics industry suffered a 9.5 per cent monthly decline in output in April. Production in this sector is now back to 1998 levels and is well below half of its peak, registered in 2006. The decline reflects the migration to lower cost locations of many companies’ manufacturing operations.
Separately, the number of new cars licensed in May increased by 5.2 per cent, according to figures released by the CSO yesterday.
A total of 9,359 new private cars were licensed last month, compared with 8,893 in May 2010.
Ford was the most popular choice for customers, with 1,613 new cars registered during the month, followed by Volkswagen with 1,276, Toyota which sold 1,073, and Renault with 791.
Of the total new cars sold, 24.6 per cent were petrol while 73.6 per cent were diesel.
The Government scrappage scheme is due to be phased out later this month.
May rise in consumer sentiment
June 8th, 2011Irish consumer sentiment rebounded in May on optimism about employment and future growth in the economy, a survey showed today.
The KBC Ireland/ESRI Consumer Sentiment Index improved to 59.4 from 57.9 in April, reversing a fall registered a month earlier. It was the fourth rise in the past five months.
“There appears little prospect of a marked improvement in the circumstances facing the average Irish consumer, but these results suggest an increasing confidence in their ability to adapt to tough times,” said Austin Hughes, chief economist KBC Bank Ireland.
Optimism about future economic prospects has surged, according to a consumer expectations sub-index, which improved from 42.3 to 50.8. A second sub-index that measures perceptions of current conditions slipped from 81.0 to 72.1.
KBC said there was evidence that consumers remained sluggish in spending their build-up of savings, but that consumers appear to be getting used to the “new normal” situation of low growth.
“Consumers appear to be drawing comfort from the absence of regular negative surprises that were a feature of the Irish economy through the past couple of years,” KBC said in a statement.
Reuters
Ikea’s Dublin store is the most profitable in Europe
June 8th, 2011Ikea, had a bumper first year in Ireland, recording sales of more than €2m a week at its Ballymun outlet and an €11.4m profit.
The ‘don’t move, improve’ mantra of many home owners has accounted for the weekly turnover that is the highest of all the Scandinavian giant’s European stores.
Its accounts show that for its first full year in Dublin, Ikea Ireland had revenues of €110.7m, compared with €15.6m in the previous financial year, when it traded for just 36 days after the outlet opened on July 27, 2009. More than 15,500 people visited the store in the weeks after it opened.
According to the directors’ report for 2010, Ikea was affected, like many other retailers in Ireland, by the slowdown in the economy. “We continue to invest in our prices in the long term and to improve the shopping standards for our customers, and believe we can further strengthen our position in the market as a value for money retailer during these difficult times,” it said.
The banking crisis and its spill into the Irish economy has affected the Irish home furnishing stores with many like Land of Leather, Jim Langan Furniture and Reids all closing down. However a spokesperson for Ikea has said that the company is not adversely concerned about the market:
“These threats are not considered to be significant, and it is the opinion of the directors that Ikea will continue to gain market share during this slowdown,” the company said.
Ikea is not planning any new stores in Ireland in the coming year but has a long-term strategy to continue to expand.
The Dublin outlet — which is equivalent in space to five-and-a-half soccer pitches — contains 9,000 home furnishings, a 550-seater restaurant, food hall and creche along with 1,850 car parking spaces.
The pre-tax profit last year of €11.4m compared to a pre-tax loss of €8.3m in its first year, which was related to start-up costs.
The figures show that the company employed 452 people last year and staff costs totalled €9.4m compared to €4.5m in 2009. Ikea Ireland Ltd’s land and building was valued at €78.5m at the end of August last year. Ikea recruited an additional 100 temporary staff to handle the volumes of customers shopping at the 31,500 sq m outlet immediately after it opened in 2009 when some 4,000 people queued to inquire about 280 entry-level jobs at the store.
- Gordon Deegan and independent.ie reporters
We’re winning tourists back
May 8th, 2011Ireland’s tourist industry has been brought to its knees since the recession hit in 2008 — yet if our top attractions are anything to go by, the industry has just turned a corner.
The number of tourists flocking to our visitor attractions plummeted between early 2008 and late 2010 — but many of these attractions have seen visitor numbers jump by at least 10 per cent so far this year.
The iconic Cliffs of Moher have seen their visitor numbers increase by almost a fifth, while Dublin Zoo’s visitors are up by almost a third.
This year’s unseasonally sunny April must have played its part as did the absence of the ash cloud, which prevented many tourists from flying into Ireland in April 2010.
The recent visits of Queen Elizabeth and US President Barack Obama have also lured many tourists here — in particular Americans, who largely steered clear of Ireland in 2009 and 2010.
We still don’t appear to have won back the British tourists lost in recent years, however; and as this is our biggest market, it’s something that must be addressed for tourism to get back on its feet.
“The indications for this year are that there will at last be some increase in our overseas numbers,” said Shaun Quinn, chief executive of Failte Ireland. “Coupled with the fact that a third more Irish are indicating they will be holidaying at home this year, 2011 could be a great one for our top places and attractions.”
UP 18%
The Shannon region was one of the worst hit by the tourism downturn of the past few years, so it’s no surprise that the numbers visiting the cliffs dived between 2008 and the end of 2010. Things, however, seem to be looking up.
“Overall visitor numbers to the Shannon region for the first four months of this year are up about 18 per cent on last year and the Cliffs of Moher’s performance is slightly ahead of that figure,” said Katherine Webster, director of the Cliffs of Moher visitor centre.
“We are noticing clear increases in the US and French markets. The late Easter break also saw a lot of Irish visitors to the cliffs. There’s no sign as yet of any recovery in the British tourist market.”
DUBLIN ZOO
UP 31%
Kituba, the baby gorilla born in Dublin Zoo last March, has certainly wooed the crowds — as have the baby rhino and giraffes born over the past seven months.
Last year, 963,053 visitors went to the zoo — its highest footfall ever. Those record numbers have continued into this year. In the first four months of 2011, 311,731 visitors went to the zoo — 31 per cent more than visited in the same months last year.
WAX MUSEUM
UP 10%
The new National Wax Museum, which opened in October 2009 and is home to wax models of the Simpsons, U2 and Thin Lizzy, had 160,000 visitors last year. Visitor numbers for this year are about 10 per cent ahead of last year, according to a spokeswoman.
ROCK OF CASHEL
UP 16%
People are flocking to the Rock since the visit of Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburghlast month.
“Shortly before the royal visit, we were getting about 655 visitors a day,” said Elaine Moriarty, supervisor with the Rock of Cashel. “The week after the visit, we got about 1,000 visitors a day. You’d only expect those kind of figures in June. A lot of the people coming are following the route of the Queen’s visit.”
In the first four months of this year, about 16 per cent more people visited the Rock than in the same months last year, according to Moriarty.
BOOK OF KELLS
UP 12%
“Since the Queen’s visit, there has been an increase in inquiries from Britain and elsewhere,” said a spokeswoman for Trinity College Dublin. “Quite a few Irish people have been coming and there is an increase in school visits already this month.”
Last year, 469,674 people visited the Old Library and the Book of Kells — a far cry from the tourist heydey of 2007 when almost 570,000 people came to see the manuscript. The number visiting in the first five months of this year, however, is already 12 per cent ahead of last year.
NATIONAL LEPRECHAUN MUSEUM
NEW (90,000 visitors)
Our crafty leprechauns and their precious crocks of gold have long captured the imagination of foreigners and Irish alike. Yet it was only in March 2010 that the first leprechaun museum opened in Ireland.
As well as telling the story of the leprechaun, the museum tells visitors about Cuchulain, the banshee and other major figures in Irish folklore.
It has attracted 90,000 visitors since it first opened and 30,000 of these came in the first five months of 2011.
Tom O’Rahilly, director of the museum, said: “I would expect visitor numbers to be up on last year.”
BUNRATTY CASTLE
UP 10%
The collapse of tourism in the Shannon region dampened the appetite for medieval banquets at Bunratty Castle but the banquets have started to regain their popularity over the past five months.
“Visitor numbers to the banquets at Bunratty are so far 10 per cent better than the same period in 2010,” said John Ruddle, chief executive of Shannon Heritage.
“This is a very good start to the season. It is too early, however, to conclude that any real recovery is back in the tourism market.
“Visitors from Britain eased back considerably over the last four or five years and these numbers have not yet recovered,” said Mr Ruddle.
GUINNESS STOREHOUSE
UP 12%
Although Queen Elizabeth politely declined to drink a pint of the black stuff, the famous brew whetted the appetite of the 930,000 people who visited it in 2010.
As more than a million people visited the Storehouse in 2009, its visitor numbers dropped by 9 per cent in 2010.
However, there has been a pick-up in the first five months of this year, with 12 per cent more visiting the Storehouse.
A spokeswoman said: “In April and May of this year, the number of British visitors has increased and we have also seen an increase in US visitors. Last month, we received 20 per cent more American visitors than in May 2010.”
NATIONAL MUSEUM (ARCHAEOLOGY)
UP 17%
Even the lure of the Cross of Cong, which was sent to the Museum of Country Life in Mayo last year and returned to Dublin late last month, was not enough to stop visitor numbers to the Mayo museum dipping by about 5 per cent this year.
The Country Life Museum, however, was the only one of the four national museums (there’s also Archaeology, Natural History, and Decorative Arts and History) to see its visitor numbers fall in the first five months of this year.
The biggest jump in visitor numbers was in the National Archaeology Museum, which had 139,968 visitors in the first five months — 17 per cent more than the same time last year.
“Visitors, in particular foreign visitors, come to the Archaeology Museum for the ‘must-see’ iconic artefacts, such as the Tara Brooch and the Ardagh Chalice,” said Ann Daly, a spokeswoman for the National Museum.
VIKING SPLASH TOURS
UP 50%
It seems visitors can’t get enough of dressing up as Viking warriors and driving into rivers. Viking Splash Tours said it carried 50 per cent more passengers in the first five months of this year than over the same period last year.
A spokeswoman for the company said: “This year, we have seen a noticeably higher number of foreign tourists taking our tour instead. A lot of these foreign visitors are from the US.”
Export forecasts revised up after strong first-quarter growth
April 8th, 2011A LEADING trade body has revised up its export forecasts for the year after a strong first quarter for the export industry.
The Irish Exporters’ Association (IEA) said the value of goods and services shipped overseas during the first three months of the year increased 9.4pc, or by €3.5bn, year-on-year to €40.9bn.
Based on that performance, the IEA forecasts exports to rise by 9.1pc to €177.5bn this year. At the start of the year the association said it expected a 7.2pc rise this year.
Despite the higher forecasts, the IEA warned that export growth cannot be taken for granted and pointed to a number of factors that could affect the export sector.
“Global trade could be easily derailed if fuel prices go higher, due to the impact of the Japanese disaster on world trade and if interest rates rise too high, as well as continued protectionist measures as governments try to protect their employment numbers,” said IEA chief executive John Whelan (pictured left).
Growth was driven mainly by the US and UK markets, which increased by 16pc and 14pc respectively.
Merchandise exports from Ireland rose 10.5pc to €22.9bn, driven mainly by the pharmaceutical and agri-food sectors. Agri in particular benefited from higher commodity prices worldwide, the IEA said. Merchandise exports are slated to top €98.3bn by the end of the year.
Services exports gained 8pc to €17.9bn with computer services and the financial sector leading the way. It is expected that services exports will total €79.1bn this year.
Mr Whelan said the growth in financial services reflects “the continued attractiveness of Ireland as a location for high-end back office investment services”.
“The World Trade Organisation’s forecast on global trade growth for 2011 shows a decline from 14.5pc in 2010, to a more modest 6.5pc this year.
“In contrast, we believe that as a result of a return to greater competitiveness in the Irish economy and with world-wide commodity prices continuing strong, that Ireland looks set to see its export growth rates exceeding the global average in 2011,” said Mr Whelan.
- Peter Flanagan
Originally published in Business
November Motivational Quotes
November 11th, 2010- “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore” — Andre Gide
- “What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight — it’s the size of the fight in the dog” – General Eisenhower
- “They are in front of us, behind us, and we are flanked on both sides by an enemy that outnumbers us 29:1. They can’t get away from us now!” – Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, USMC
