Ports, Past and Present looking for business stories

Ports, Past and Present is looking for business stories from the Rosslare Harbour area.

 

This is an initiative focusing on the port communities of Dublin, Rosslare Harbour, Pembroke Dock, Fishguard, Holyhead and the sea crossings between them. One aim is to enhance the visibility of SMEs in the port areas to increase tourist footfall and spending in the regions.

 

Rosslare Harbour business profiles

One strategy is to provide business owners with a dedicated profile on the Ports, Past and Present website, as part of its Business Stories initiative. These Business Stories showcase individual businesses in the various ports. Some examples on the website to date include Brady Cybi microbrewery, Mike Monroe’s ice-cream van and Fishguard Bay Boat Tours.

 

Ultimately, these stories will be integrated into a freely available app tour that will enable tourists to learn more about businesses they encounter in the ports. The Business Stories are also promoted widely through the Ports, Past and Present social media channels.

 

Next steps

If you are interested in having a Business Story featured, get in touch with researcher Ailbhe McDaid. All that you need is some information about your business that would make a good story. This can focus on any element of the business that you would like to highlight. It might include the history of the business, pandemic challenges, an unusual product or service, or anything else unique to your business. Do also include some images for the story.

 

If you would like to proceed with a Business Story, please contact ailbhe.mcdaid@ucc.ie and she can answer any further questions you may have. 

 

Port Places app

The Ports, Past and Present project has also developed a heritage tourism app specific to the areas in which it operates. It is downloadable from your phone app store: Port Places App : About Ports, Past and Present | Ports, Past and Present (portspastpresent.eu)

 

Port Places details heritage sites, tourism businesses and heritage trails in each port and their hinterlands. For instance, there is currently a ‘South Wexford Coast’ and a ‘Welcome to Wexford Harbour’ experience. 

 

Rosslare Harbour heritage and tourism

As the project comes to an end in March, the port communities can now author the app themselves free of charge. Businesses can add additional heritage sites and tourism businesses to the existing experiences or create new experiences. The following training video guides the user through the steps required to add new sites to the app: Port Places App – Authoring Workshop – 7 Feb 2023 – YouTube. 

 

There is also an option to develop a separate app using the same programme. You can create this in collaboration with Lancaster University who will continue to maintain the app. For further queries about this, contact Deborah Sutton at: d.sutton@lancaster.ac.uk 

 

Deborah will be the main contact for the Port Places app once the Ports, Past and Present project ends in March. However, until then, if you require further information or support, please contact James Louis Smith: james.smith@ucc.ie