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How to Start a Business in County Dublin

Free start-up resources and useful local contacts.

Improve your chances of success!

How to Start a Business in County Dublin

Starting a business in County Dublin

If you are thinking about starting a business in County Dublin or would like to grow your existing business, we would love to help you.

Start Your Own Business in County Dublin contains resources and the information that will help give your venture the best chance of success. It also highlights organisations who offer friendly advice and the services that you are likely to need as a new startup or local business owner.

Grants | Networking groups | Business advice | Mentoring | Co-working spaces

Starting a business in County Dublin

Local help for startups

There is plenty of help for startups in County Dublin but where can it be found?

Select classification:

Local partners

We are happy to promote anyone who is prepared to offer friendly support to local start-ups.

Our local partners have been kind enough to help us and are keen to help you too.

Free Startup Resources

Getting it right from the start can help to prevent problems later.

To help you with this we have created a vast selection of resources and they are all completely free!

FREE startup workshops

If you are thinking about starting a business, our FREE three-hour ONLINE workshop is definitely for you!

Open to everyone, our sole aim is to increase your chances of success. We do that by explaining:

The reality of running a business; the most common pitfalls and how to avoid them; which legal status is likely to be most suitable; funding, grants and managing your money; business planning and cashflow forecasting; finding and keeping customers.

Latest articles

You don't know what you don't know!

The prospect of starting a new business can be incredibly exciting but should be approached with care. You have probably heard scary stories about how many start-ups fail in the early stages. You can make sure that you are not one of them by learning as much as possible before you launch. Over the years, we have collected lots of articles which will show you what has worked well for other start-ups and the putfalls to avoid.

Free Startup Guide

Start Your Own Business in 2024

Download the 2024 edition of our Free Start Your Own Business guide

An interactive step-by-step guide which also includes all of the most important subjects covered in an easy-to-read way with links to useful online articles and relevant contacts.

The idea of starting your own business can be incredibly exciting and who can blame you for being tempted?

However, the sad truth is that far too many new enterprises fail in the early stages. Our aim is to make sure that you don't become one of them.

This guide explains the key start-up subjects in simple English.

There is also plenty of help available in the area and much of it is free - please do make the most of it.

Read more about what our Free guide contains and how you can download it.
Starting a business in County Dublin

Key Contacts in County Dublin

'You don't know what you don't know' is a phrase that is so applicable to starting a new business.

County Dublin is a great place for start-ups but your chances of success are dramatically improved if you make the most of the support that is available locally. Click on logos to visit their websites.

Advice

ThinkBusiness.ie
Small business life can be tough but rewarding. You need to begin from the best possible position. Think Business have produced a guide to starting a small business in Ireland. ThinkBusiness.ie has been created for Irish business owners and managers who are seeking information, resources and help on a range of business topics. ThinkBusiness.ie provides practical, actionable information and guidance on starting, growing and running a business. It offers guides, tools, templates, checklists and a wealth of other content tailored to meet the needs of Irish business owners and managers. It also showcases case studies, with insights, tips and advice from Irish start-up entrepreneurs and business owners.
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Advice

Startups.ie
Ireland’s leading independent, online resource for anyone starting and growing a business. Established in 2005, we are the longest serving, largest and most comprehensive advice platform covering everything you need to know start, buy, run or sell a business. Whether you’re looking for inspiration to launch your own start-up, the latest insights into the Tech Startup scene or tips on how to manage your startup – we’ve got it covered. This site was created by entrepreneurs to be a starting place for people interested in setting up their own business.
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Advice

Who can help me start my business in Ireland?
A useful site for young people, which includes this article about starting a business in Ireland. SpunOut.ie is Ireland’s youth information website created by young people, for young people. They provide information to more than 180,000 active readers each month. Established in 2005, our vision is to help create an Ireland where young people aged between 16 and 25 are empowered with the information they need to live active, happy, and healthy lives. They aim to educate and inform our readers about the importance of holistic wellbeing and how good health can be maintained, both physically and mentally.
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Advice

Reasons why many entrepreneurs are starting their businesses in Dublin
There are many excellent reasons to locate your new start-up business in Dublin. From our favourable low tax regime and supportive environment for start-ups, to the availability of well educated workforce Dublin is the place to be. Ireland is simply a great place to live. Ireland has already attracted a huge level of foreign direct investment, particularly from the USA. Thousands of American companies have chosen Ireland because of its pro-business environment.
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Advice

Start Your Own Business Programme
Start Your Own Business Aims: It is important to plan in advance of setting up a business. Preparation is the single most important thing you can do to ensure your fledging business gets off the ground and continues flying. Key Issues Include: Is your business idea viable? Can you develop a competitive and sustainable enterprise? Are you prepared to take the risk? What skills do you require to achieve your objectives? Who Should Attend? The LEO SYOB programme focuses on: Anyone with a business idea they want to develop Anyone looking at self-employment as a realistic career option. Anyone who has recently started a business The programme will guide you through the various aspects of business and business planning. The objective is to assist you in assessing your idea, its viability and to decide if you should proceed or take a step back.
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Advice

Local Enterprise Office - 10 Step Guide to Starting a Business
If you're thinking of starting a business, our Start Your Own Business Programme will help you, from developing and researching your ideas, learning basic business start-up skills and expanding your potential with marketing and financial planning advice. Our Start Your Own Business programme introduces you to thinking about running your business and testing out your business ideas and plans along with like-minded people.
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Advice

Step by step guide to starting your own business - Irish Times
There has really never been a better time to start your own business. Thanks to Government initiatives, start-up communities and entrepreneur networks there is a smorgasbord of information available to surf your way through. Places such as your Local Enterprise Office (LEO) have developed courses and programmes to take you from the ideas board to having your product on the shelf, you no longer need to have a background in business to set up your own, you can just learn as you go. If you have created an innovation and feel that you want to put the business wheels into action we’ve set out a step-by-step strategy taking in the practicalities of getting your business up and running.
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Advice

How to Start a Business in Ireland
An interesting step-by-step article which explains how to go about starting a business in Ireland.
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Advice

Enterprise Ireland - Start a Business in Ireland
A hotbed of entrepreneurship and international business, Ireland is at the heart of the European Union, is a great place to live and work. As a country with a strong entrepreneurial spirits, there are many benefits to starting your business here in Ireland and none more so than the fact that Enterprise Ireland invests in approximately 200 start ups each year… the next one could be yours.
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Advice

Companies Registration Office
Registration of a business name is obligatory if any individual or partnership (whether composed of individuals or bodies corporate or any combination of both) or any body corporate carries on business under a name other than their own true names. Its purpose is to make public the identities of those individual(s), partnerships or corporate bodies being the legal entity behind the business name. Companies Registration Office Bloom House, Gloucester Place Lower, Dublin 1
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Advice

Starting a Company in Ireland for Non-Residents
Congratulations on choosing Ireland as a place to register your company. As well as our low Corporation Tax rate of 12.5% (0% for some companies until 2021), there are many advantages of doing business in Ireland. Company Bureau can register an Irish Company for you as quickly and efficiently as possible. We have vast experience in incorporating Irish Companies for non-residents and assisting with the provision of Corporate Services and Compliance for same. There are, however, a couple of points you must address as a non-resident looking at starting a company and register an Irish company.
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Advice

Citizens Information - Starting a Business
If you are thinking of setting up a business there are a number of issues you need to consider. Different supports and regulations apply, depending on your particular situation. You may be employed, unemployed or someone who is coming from outside Ireland to set up a business. This document highlights some of the important information you need to know with links to relevant topics. You can read more in our documents, Sources of information on starting a business and Becoming self-employed. The Citizens Information Board is the statutory body which supports the provision of information, advice and advocacy on a broad range of public and social services. It provides the Citizens Information website, citizensinformation.ie, and supports the voluntary network of Citizens Information Centres and the Citizens Information Phone Service - 0761 07 4000.
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Advice

County Dublin Citizens Information
The Citizens Information Board is the statutory body which supports the provision of information, advice and advocacy on a broad range of public and social services. It provides the Citizens Information website, citizensinformation.ie, and supports the voluntary network of Citizens Information Centres and the Citizens Information Phone Service - 0761 07 4000. It also funds and supports the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) 0761 07 2000 and the National Advocacy Service for People with Disabilities. Citizensinformation.ie provides comprehensive information on public services and on the entitlements of citizens in Ireland. We gather information from various government departments and agencies, and make sure that you have all the information you need, presented in an easy-to-understand way. Balbriggan CIC 1st Floor, Balbriggan Library, George's Square, Balbriggan Phone: 0761 07 7450 Ballyfermot CIC Ballyfermot Community Civic Centre, Ballyfermot Road, Ballyfermot, Dublin 10 Phone: 0761 07 5000 Ballymun CIC Ballymun Civic Centre, Main Street, Ballymun, Dublin 9 Phone: 0761077330 Blanchardstown CIC Westend House, Westend Business Park, Snugborough Road Extension, Blanchardstown, D15 KPW7 Phone: 0761 07 5040 Cabra CIC Deaf Village Ireland, Ratoath Road, Cabra West, Dublin 7 Phone: Text 0871332232, 0761078470 Carmelite CIC Carmelite Community Centre, 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2 Phone: 0761 07 7070 Clondalkin CIC Luke Cullen House,, Oakfield Industrial Estate, Clondalkin, Dublin 22 D22 A9C6 Phone: Reception: 0761 07 5100 Dublin 12 & 6w CIC 8 Sundrive Road, Kimmage, Dublin, D12 TP82 Phone: Reception 0761 077 020 Dublin City Centre CIC 13a Upper O'Connell Street, City Centre, Dublin 1 Phone: 0761 07 7230 Dublin City North East CIC Unit 4 Killarney Court, Buckingham St Upper, Dublin 1 Phone: 0761 07 7260 Dublin City North West CIC The MACRO Community Resource Centre, 1 Green Street, Dublin 7 Phone: 0761 07 7270 Dun Laoghaire CIC Marina House, Clarence Street, Dun Laoghaire, A96 P6P7 Phone: 0761 07 7400 Dundrum CIC Unit 2, 5th Level (Above Tesco's / Penney's), Dundrum Town Centre, Sandyford Road, Dundrum, D16 X4K7 Phone: 0761 07 7430 Finglas CIC 1B Village Centre, Finglas Village, (beside PermanentTSB Bank), Finglas, Dublin 11 Phone: 0761 07 7360 KARE CIC 2 Sybil Hill Road, Raheny, Dublin 5 Phone: 0761 07 7280 Liberties CIC 90 Meath Street, Dublin 8, D08 TPH9 Phone: 0761 07 7180 Lucan CIC Ballyowen Castle Community Centre, Ballyowen, Lucan Phone: Reception: 0761 07 5090 Malahide CIC 2nd Floor Malahide Library, Main Street, Malahide, K36 EW63 Phone: 0761 07 7480 Northside CIC Northside Civic Centre, Bunratty Road., Coolock, Dublin 17 Phone: 0761 07 8190 Rathmines CIC 7 Wynnefield Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6 D06 YE29, Phone: 0761 07 7110 Skerries CIC 13 New Street, Skerries, K34 T624 Phone: 0761 07 7500 Stillorgan CIC St. Laurence' s Parish Centre, Lower Kilmacud Road, Stillorgan Phone: 0761 07 7440 Swords CIC Unit 26, The Plaza, Main Street, Swords, K67 WN23 Phone: 0761 07 7510 Tallaght CIC Hainault House, The Square, Tallaght, Dublin 24 Phone: 0761 07 8340
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Funding

Bank of Ireland Business Startup Account
At Bank of Ireland, we understand the challenges faced when starting a new business, that’s why we have designed our new Business Startup Package with you in mind. It will give you everything you need to help you start, run and grow your business. Our Business Startup Package has everything you need to get your new business up and running, including:
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Accountancy

Blanchardstown Area Partnership
Blanchardstown Area Partnership Enterprise Department. Call us today to discuss your Business......we guarantee you we will have something of value, no matter what stage your business is; whether you are just starting to have an idea or have been trading for year.
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Advice

Dublin Business Innovation Centre
Dublin Business Innovation Centre (Dublin BIC) is a public-private business support organisation. We work with state agencies and private sector investors to support entrepreneurs as they build the next generation of successful Irish businesses. As well as helping to develop investor ready companies and providing access to funding, Dublin BIC advises companies on business planning and development; provides best in market incubation space; and creates platforms for entrepreneurs to develop their skills and networks.
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Advice

Fingal County Enterprise Board
Fingal County Enterprise Board provides a range of supports to help anyone establishing a new business and ownermanagers of existing small businesses who wish to grow their enterprise. The supports include an initial First Stop Shop service for business information, management skills training, business advice, networking opportunities and financial supports. Our
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Networking

South Dublin Services
The South Dublin Services Business Network Group was started initially by a group of friends, this network group has grown to offer our customers a one-stop shop for all services in South County Dublin.
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Networking

Dublin Chamber of Commerce
Dublin Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of businesses in the Greater Dublin Area. As the leading business organisation, the Chamber offers the opportunity to promote your business and to get involved in the future direction of the area. The Chamber can help you network with other businesses, maximise and grow your business and understand the driving forces behind the future shape of the Greater Dublin Area.
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Directory

Drinan Enterprise Centre
The Drinan Enterprise Centre provides enterprise space and support to new and developing businesses in the Swords region of Fingal. The Drinan Enterprise Centre has been developed as part of Fingal County Councils ongoing responsibility for ensuring that sustainable economic development and growth in the county continues in a managed, structured and innovative way.
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Start-up articles

100's of free startup articles

We have created a collection of 100s of startup articles to help anyone with whatever stage they are on with their business journey. Hundreds of thousands of people have gone before you and we can learn from what they got right and avoid the things that have been proved not to work so well.

You can see the full list of 'articles' at: How to start a business