Cork is Ireland’s second city, and according to Ireland’s latest projections is set to become the fastest growing city region in the country. Home to more than 150 foreign investors and employing over 40,000 people in the region, Cork is home to strong industry clusters in sectors such as pharma and life sciences, ICT and agri-food, with new clusters emerging in areas such as financial services, cyber-security and energy/marine.
More than 50 global technology companies have operations in both manufacturing and services, and many of these have their EMEA operations in Cork, hosting functions from supply chain to sales, technical support and finance, servicing multiple markets in the local language.
Cork not only acts as an international gateway to Europe for many global companies, but provides a stable political and thriving economic environment for international investors. Cork is well connected, with nine flights daily to London and regular daily flights to the hub airports of Amsterdam, Paris and Manchester.
Amongst the region’s strongest assets are the third-level institutes of University College Cork and Cork Institute of Technology, both of which work closely with industry to provide highly-skilled graduates with relevant and professional qualifications. The city is home to more than 35,000 students, including international students from more than 100 countries, many of whom are pursuing postgraduate studies through some of more than 20 research centres located in the region.
Cork is in the middle of an exciting growth phase, with a steady stream of new gold LEED-standard, next-generation offices coming onstream in the next few years, with rental costs at around 50 per cent of the equivalent spaces in Dublin. There is a collaborative business environment in Cork and investors will find that there are good networks available, with people open to making introductions and referrals. Located only 20 minutes from the coast, Cork is known as the food capital of Ireland, and offers an excellent work-life balance.
Visit Cork to see for yourself!
This article was originally written and published in the Business Reporter. The original article can be found here.