LOCAL AREA SUMARY:

Northern Ireland

Total number of scaleups

No. by employee growth

No. by turnover growth

No. by employee and turnover growth

Total employees

Total turnover

Top 5 Visible Scaleups by Employee Growth

McBurney Transport Group
McBurney Transport Group provides transportation services and vehicles to various sectors working in logistical operations.

Direct Medics
Direct Medics provides recruitment services to the healthcare sector.

Bradley’s Pharmacy
Bradley’s Pharmacy runs a pharmacy and sells various products, including cosmetics and other beauty products, through its online store.

Hughes Mushrooms
Hughes Mushrooms sources and distributes a range of mushrooms for the food industry.

T-Met
T-Met recycles and trades ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals.

Top 5 Visible Scaleups by Turnover Growth

O’Hare & McGovern
O’Hare & McGovern operates a construction company which offers its services to a wide range of industries from education to healthcare.

McBurney Transport Group
McBurney Transport Group provides transportation services and vehicles to various sectors working in logistical operations.

Eagle Overseas
Eagle Overseas provides a variety of logistics and distribution services, including delivery.

Woodland
Woodland manufactures furniture for kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms, specialising in custom cabinets.

T-Met
T-Met recycles and trades ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals.

Local ScaleUp Programmes

Invest NI is working with partners on two new supplementary early-stage scaling programmes: The Way to Scale and Ambition to Scale.

The Way to Scale works with cohorts of 10 companies to enhance CEO confidence as well as leadership and strategic skills, create a lifetime cohort of peer support and deliver an effective sales and marketing strategy and resource. Businesses are also supported to make initial contacts within target export markets.

Ambition to Scale focuses on companies with turnover between £3-10m. Combining academic learning with coaching and peer networking, the programme helps senior management teams to create a scaling focus, build top team cohesion and a transformational culture and develop the right company structures to support international growth. It also enables more time for businesses to concentrate on strategy and business development.

Scaleup Views

The key barriers to growth are access to talent and access to UK markets. The key forms of support sought are general support from government, Innovate UK, local universities / business schools and peer networks.

Top barriers to growth

  • Access to talent
  • Access to UK markets

want TO SEE more of:

  • Local universities/business schools
  • Peer networks
  • General business support from government
  • Innovate UK

Access to finance and attitudes to financial partnering have continued to be a challenge for scaling companies in Northern Ireland. Working with the London Stock Exchange and building on the listing of two NI companies on AIM within the last 18 months, Invest NI is holding a number of “Road to IPO” events. Invest NI is also leading on the development of a new Innovation Accreditation Programme for Northern Ireland businesses.