Annual Report and Accounts Review 1

ANNUAL REPORT2014

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

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CONTENTS

3 Operations Manager Report

5 Membership Services

5 Officers & Council Members

6 - 7 Events Review

9 Media report

10 Corporate Sponsors

11 Conclusion

I am glad to report that 2013/2014 has been an extremely busy and successful year for Causeway Chamber of Commerce. Members are the lifeblood of every Chamber and we are delighted to report that we have seen an increase in our membership over the last year. Members join the Chamber based on the Benefits, Service and Value that they receive and our results in 2013 confirm once again that we have delivered value for our members and our partners.

Over the last year we have actively promoted the benefits of Chamber membership, recruited new members, involved our existing membership in events and activities of relevance and benefit to their businesses. Company budgets are still under great strain and with an increasing emphasis being placed on demonstrating value for money, we have had to make the case for membership to both new and existing members. This has involved clearly communicating what Chamber membership can do for our customer, how it can complement their current activities and how greater engagement and involvement with the Chamber can have positive spin off benefits in terms of providing members with a forum and network in which they can promote their businesses, how events can professionalise and improve their customer offerings, and how increased networking opportunities can positively impact on their bottom line.

We have delivered an extensive mix of events over the 12 month period. Our programmes are varied in order to meet the expectations of our wide membership

base but networking continues to play a key role in all our activities. As a Chamber we are committed to continuing to develop an events programme to provide an extensive mix of information and network driven benefits. We enhanced our communication engagement in 2013/14, whilst we continued to communicate through traditional news streams, and regularly deliver strong business messages in the press; we have developed a healthy social media presence. We are engaging more regularly with our client base and as a result we feel members are better informed about our activities and more actively involved in our many events organised throughout the year.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our member organisations for their support, advice and loyalty. I look forward to working with you on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. I would also like to thank our Corporate Sponsors Autoline Insurance Group, Irwin Donaghey Stockman, Riada Resourcing, Roadside Garages Ltd, W. Oliver Exorna Ltd all of whom have enabled this Chamber to provide the level of service that we give through their kind sponsorship. Finally thank you to our board of Chamber Council Members for their support and advice throughout the year.

OPERATIONS MANAGER REPORT

Annette DeighanOperations Manager

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

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Building our membership remains a priority for the year ahead. Our members are our strength. We plan to grow membership levels and encourage the greater involvement

and participation of the wider business community.

MEMBERSHIP SERVICES

OFFICERS

PRESIDENT IAN DONAGHEY MBEVICE PRESIDENT ANTHONY NEWMANPAST PRESIDENT JAMES SMYTHTREASURER KAREN YATES

CHAMBER COUNCIL

ALLISON HUTCHINSON HUTCHINSON TILESBRETT ROSS RIVERRIDGE RECYCLINGCLARE MCINTYRE B&E SECURITY SYSTEMSCOLIN MAYRS BLAIRS CARAVANSDAVID BOYD ROADSIDE GARAGES LTDDEIDRE HEENAN PROVOST, UNIVERSITY OF ULSTERFRANCES LUNDY RIADA RESOURCINGHELEN MCCANN AVX LTDJAYNE TAGGART CAUSEWAY ENTERPRISE AGENCYMERVYN LINTON ULSTER BANKPAUL MCATEER THE HARBOUR STUDIOANGELA STEWART AUTOLINE INSURANCE GROUP

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

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Our events calendar in 2013/14 had an extensive mix of events. We are extremely pleased at the success of our events in which we delivered over 20 events. Many of our events have been in partnership with Coleraine Borough Council, Causeway Enterprise Agency and Invest NI. We are delighted that we had over 1048 + attendees during the year at our events.

We encourage our members to provide feedback and recommendations for future events as this helps us to provide a better service. We appreciate your engagement and support and look forward to delivering more programmes that meet your needs in 2014/15.

Here are the highlights of 2013/14 calendar of events.

EVENTS REVIEW

1] Afternoon Workshop with David Meade. Learning some useful tips & techniques to use in business and other useful information 2] Tara Herron of Invest NI presenting award for Innovation Technol-ogy & Creativity to John Armstrong of Armstrong Medical Ltd with Ciaran Magee.3] Causeway Chambers Annual Dinner in the Lodge Hotel on 26th February with special guest David Meade4] Top Table consisting of Ian Donaghey (Chamber President), David Harding (Coleraine Mayor), Gregory Campbell (MP), Sarah Travers (TV Presenter) and Guests at the Coleraine Borough Business Awards 2013. 5] Prime Minister Meeting taking place in October 20136] Winner David Boyd and staff of Roadside Garages collecting their award for involvement in the community presented by Arlene of Riada Resourcing.

7] Afternoon Workshop with David Meade. Learning some useful tips & techniques to use in business and other useful information 8] Chamber Members attending Bank of England Briefing held at the Ramada Hotel, Portrush on November 2013. 9] Chamber Members on a Tour of Armstrong Medical in October 2013.10] World Host Customer Service Taster Session for Retailers11] Social Media Essentials Workshop May 2014Ian Donaghey(Chamber President, Bill McCartney (Social Media train-er) and Jayne Taggart (CEA Chief Executive)

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MEDIA REPORT

Causeway Chamber has been in media in regards to the following areas:

DVA JOBS MEMBER SUCCESS STORIESREVITALISATION BUSINESS EVENTSANNUAL DINNER CAR PARKINGJOB ANNOUNCEMENTS

Media coverage we use for new stories and statements include:

COLERAINE TIMES THE CHRONICLEOUR WEBSITE BUSINESS MAGAZINESSOCIAL MEDIA ( TWITTER AND FACEBOOK)

We have released many new articles throughout 2013/14. The Key Articles include:

MAY 2013 Causeway Chamber AGMJUNE 2013 Causeway Chamber Elects New PresidentJULY 2013 Danske Bank Export First: Thought Leadership with Armstrong Medical AUGUST 2013 Finance Minister addresses local business on rates revaluationSEPTEMBER 2013 Causeway Chamber Business Awards OCTOBER 2013 Chamber meets Prime MinisterNOVEMBER 2013 Proposed Closure of All DVA offices in N.Ireland Including Coleraine Headquarters with loss of 324 JobsDECEMBER 2013 Coleraine Politicians Join Translink to Support Rail Service EnhancementJANUARY 2014 Chamber Annual Dinner and Business Workshop with BBCs David MeadeFEBRUARY 2014 Riverside Jobs BoostMARCH 2014 Revitalise Project: Waterside and Bridge Street Areas of ColeraineAPRIL 2014 Launch of the 2014 Vauxhall International NW200 in the Titanic Building Belfast

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

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With over 160 members and growing, Causeway Chamber is the organisation to help you develop contacts, support networks and sales opportunities in the Borough.

If you are new to business in the Borough or have traded here for years we can guarantee you will meet other companies new to your business. Each event has a time set aside for networking and if you are new to the Chamber, the Chamber staff will introduce you to other members.

By joining the Chamber you will automatically increase your customer and supplier base. With many high profiled events scheduled for 2014-2015, the Chamber is continually working to promote, develop and grow business in the Coleraine Borough

The Chamber is very keen to ensure that you get value for money from your membership. As a local business, the two most precious services are your time and your money.

YOUR TIMEThe Chamber has no set monthly meetings. As a member, we send you details of information seminars/events that you can choose to attend. We would encourage you or a representative from your business to attend these events to develop your contacts and gain maximum benefit from your membership.

YOUR MONEYIn return for your membership fee, you will receive:

WEB PRESENCE - We promote your business onlineMEMBERSHIP CERTIFICATE Display this with prideFUNDING Regular updates on funding opportunitiesINFORMATION If you have a query let us helpCORPORATE HOSPITALITY Entertain your clients at impressive eventsNETWORK Chamber members are a trade and support network, use this to your advantage

If you would like to know, more about how the Chamber is working to benefit your business please contact: Annette Deighan on 028 7034 3111 or via Annette@causewaychamber.com.

CONCLUSIONCORPORATE SPONSORS

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

PS. The secret is for a

representative from your business to get involved

with the regular events and seminars that the Chamber runs as part of an ongoing programme to ensure your business benefits

from the experience and expertise of others.

AUTOLINE INSURANCE GROUPFive years ago Autoline Insurance Group, one of Northern Irelands fastest growing financial services companies, acquired James Campbell & Son, establishing their third branch in Northern Ireland. Since then, Autoline has expanded further in the province and now operates 5 branches in other key locations including Newry, Downpatrick, Ballymena and Enniskillen.

IRWIN DONAGHEY STOCKMANIrwin Donaghey Stockman has evolved from one of the oldest firms of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (Atkinson & Boyd) through a series of takeovers (Touche Ross) and mergers (Price Waterhouse, BP Stockman & Co), to be the largest independent accountancy practice in the Borough of Coleraine..

W.OLIVER EXORNA LTDOliver Exorna is a family run business located in Coleraine with three dynamic businesses, Exorna Kitchens, Oliver Transport Services Ltd and Coastal Self Drive Ltd.

RIADA RESOURCINGRiada Recruitment was established in 2000 and is now one of Northern Irelands most successful & innovative Recruitment Agencies. We strives to develop & maintain long-lasting partnerships with our select client base, as well as with all of our candidates. We are focused on pro-actively sourcing candidates to match business needs across all disciplines & industry categories.

ROADSIDE GARAGESRoadside Garages offers an assortment of high-quality Kia and Vauxhall cars to customers throughout the north of Ulster. We also have several second-hand vehicles of various marques for sale, each in excellent condition thanks to the efforts of our skilled mechanics. At Roadside Garages, we boast a fully-integrated service that can meet all your driving needs. Visit our dealership today to find out more.

RiadaResourcing

12 Annual Report and Accounts Review

ChamberCauseway

Coleraine Castlerock Garvagh Kilrea Portrush Portstewart

Causeway Chamber of Commerce and Industry2A Abbey Street

ColeraineBT52 1DS

Tel: 028 7034 3111Fax: 028 7032 1416

Email: info@causewaychamber.comwww.causewaychamber.com

Causeway Chamber

@causewaychamber