Kilkenny, where business moves

You need a business location with exceptional global connectivity and the capacity to attract
high calibre people. Here’s why world class businesses choose Kilkenny, Ireland.
where business moves

faster
If your business success depends on attracting
high calibre people and reaching global markets
fast, Kilkenny is the location for you.

Just 70 minutes from Dublin Airport by motorway, to move senior management teams and attract
Kilkenny is also home to Ireland’s closest high calibre people to Kilkenny because of the
deep-water port to Europe. This exceptional quality of life it offers them and their families.
connectivity is a key reason why many world
class businesses have already made the decision Quite simply, Kilkenny is an inspirational place
to locate and grow in Kilkenny. where the people you need to drive your business
success will love to live and work.
Kilkenny’s magic ingredient is its cosmopolitan
lifestyle and arts culture. Rich in medieval
heritage and recognised as one of Ireland’s
creative hotspots, it is a top international visitor
destination. Kilkenny’s CEOs believe it is easier

A beautiful multi-award
winning city, with
charming towns and
countryside
Attractive location for high
calibre people and their
families to live and work
Favourable tax regime and
financial incentives
Exceptional global
connectivity by air and sea
Dynamic pro-business
local supports
where business moves

globally

Dublin

(70mins)

Shannon Airport
Kilkenny

(30mins)

Belview Rosslare Europort

Waterford

Cork Airport

M9 Motorway Higher Education Institutes

70 minutes from Dublin Airport, Waterford, Carlow, Kilkenny, Tipperary
30 minutes to Waterford City
Key Development Zones
Catchment population Kilkenny City and Belview
498,000: 60km, 3,500 regional graduates p/a
International Airport
Railway Dublin, Waterford, Cork & Shannon
Belview Port – Waterford – Kilkenny – Dublin
Eastern Seaboard Economic Zone
Deep-Water Ports Business Services, Financial Services, ICT/Telecoms,
Digital Media, Life Sciences, Food, Eco-Innovation,
Belview Port offers the fastest route
Tourism, Arts & Heritage
to Continental Europe
Just one hour from Dublin and home to Ireland’s
closest deep-water port to mainland Europe,
Kilkenny lowers your cost of doing business.

Locate in Kilkenny and access global markets. The
county is served by a world class transportation
system with the M9 motorway to Dublin Airport
and Waterford City, direct rail links to Dublin and
Waterford, and Belview Port with its shorter freight
times to the UK and Continental Europe.
Kilkenny is a very cost-competitive location from
which to do business with average business
costs at least 15% lower than Dublin.
Kilkenny City offers an exceptional urban
experience with a choice of property ideal for
corporate headquarters, office developments,
ICT and telecommunications, business services,
craft and creative sectors and for progressive
industry. There are 165 hectares of serviced
land available including business and technology
parks, warehousing land and an IDA land bank.
The Belview development zone in the south of
the County is just 4 miles from Waterford City
and incorporates 265 hectares of zoned land
including a strategic IDA land bank, the Marine
Point Business Park and Belview Port. Belview
is supported by significant infrastructural water
and waste water capabilities supplying 3,300
cubic metres of water a day, with the potential to
supply 9,000 cubic metres a day.
Businesses locating in Belview benefit from
an exceptional transport infrastructure.
It has all the necessary infrastructure for high
volume production and is the ideal location
for industry in manufacturing and logistics,
agribusiness, energy and life sciences.
Other key locations within the county
include Thomastown, Callan, Castlecomer
and Graiguenamanagh, all offering a variety of
advantageous business hubs.

70 minutes from Dublin Airport

by motorway
Home to Ireland’s closest
deep-water port to Europe
Excellent motorway infrastructure
High capacity fibre optic networks
in Kilkenny City and Belview
Commuter rail services to Dublin
Substantial water and wastewater
capabilities in Belview
where business moves

high calibre people

It’s not just Kilkenny’s central location that allows you
to tap easily into Ireland’s highly skilled workforce,
it’s the cosmopolitan and culturally rich lifestyle that
only Kilkenny can offer.

Talented people power successful businesses. Kilkenny’s reputation as a sophisticated and

With West Dublin and Waterford City inside its vibrant creative centre is recognised as key to
commuter zone and a population of 498,000 its success in attracting a high calibre workforce.
people within 60km, Kilkenny gives you access CEOs have chosen Kilkenny as a location
to a highly skilled labour pool. because they believe it has a unique ability
to attract senior management teams and high
Kilkenny City is home to NUI Maynooth’s calibre people to live and work here.
Kilkenny Campus and an ICT Research and
Innovation Centre operated by Waterford IT/
TSSG (Telecommunications Software & Systems
Group). Two Institutes of Technology are located
within 30 minutes of Kilkenny.

498,000 population
within 60km radius
(Demographics Ireland)

Three third level facilities

within 30 minutes producing
3,500 graduates per year
ICT Research and
Innovation Centre
Young, flexible, workforce
Cosmopolitan and
culturally rich lifestyle
attracts high calibre people
where business moves

with success
Successful Irish and international businesses have
chosen to locate in Kilkenny, a place where global
aspiration is in our nature.

Almost 800 years ago, Anglo-Norman settlers
chose Kilkenny to build a prosperous merchant
trading town and Kilkenny City subsequently
became Ireland’s capital for a period in the 17th
century. This outward-looking spirit of global
enterprise, combined with a culture of success,
has created a highly entrepreneurial outlook.
Kilkenny is now home to a mix of international
and indigenous businesses across a variety of
sectors including Financial and Internationally
Traded Services, Agriculture, Food, ICT, Digital
media and more. Glanbia PLC, one of the world’s
leading international cheese and nutritional
ingredients companies, is headquartered in
Kilkenny and Diageo PLC, brewers of the world
famous Kilkenny beer and Smithwick’s ale, have
proven that Kilkenny is a competitive location
from which to build a world class business.
In addition, companies locating in Kilkenny can
avail of the services of our dedicated Business
Support Unit.
From Ireland’s Entrepreneur of the Year, Terry
Clune of Taxback.com, to an Oscar nominated
animation studio, Cartoon Saloon, Kilkenny has
a buzzing and ambitious entrepreneurial culture
with a proactive and coordinated local agency
support structure.
A dynamic regional innovation ecosystem
powers the many indigenous businesses and
multinationals who have chosen to locate here.
Applied research centres in the region operate in
the areas of ICT, Telecommunications, Software
Design, Applied Materials, Pharmaceutical &
Molecular Biotechnology and Eco-Innovation.

Located in a vibrant
economic zone
with leading ICT,
International Services
and Life Science
companies
Buzzing entrepreneurial
culture
Dynamic regional
R&D ecosystem
Home to the National
Patents Office
Sophisticated
conference
and corporate
entertainment
amenities
where business moves

you
Imagine cycling to work through the tree-lined
estate of Kilkenny’s 13th century medieval castle,
lunch in the magnificent world championship
golf course at Mount Juliet and ending the day
with friends in one of Kilkenny’s chic restaurants,
boutique hotels or designer bars.
One of Ireland’s top international visitor
destinations, Kilkenny City is loved for its mix
of medieval heritage and chic places to shop,
eat and be entertained. The city is surrounded
by rolling river valleys with charming towns and
villages rich in history and providing a wonderful
landscape for outdoor activities such as
walking, running, angling and horse riding.
Kilkenny’s competitive nature is exemplified by
the County’s mastery of the ancient Gaelic sport
of hurling, one of the fastest and most skillful field
games in the world.
Known as a national hub for craft and home
to the National Crafts Council and the National
Heritage Council, Kilkenny is full of picturesque
studios where discerning shoppers will find
beautifully designed artisan pieces.
More recently, Kilkenny has experienced a
flourishing food culture and offers a wide range
of gourmet eateries and artisan food produce for
the most sophisticated palates.
Kilkenny has a particularly high profile in Ireland
as a centre for arts and culture. In the 1960’s,
Kilkenny was chosen as the location for a
national multi-disciplinary design centre.
Kilkenny became a magnet for national and
international arts and design professionals which
sowed the first seeds of an exceptionally vibrant
cultural community. Art, music, comedy and
theatre are all part of the cultural landscape in
Kilkenny, culminating several times a year in
internationally renowned festivals such as the
Cat Laughs and the Kilkenny Arts Festival.
With its mix of executive residences, excellent
schools and facilities for children, including the
largest sports and leisure complex in the region,
Kilkenny is a place where families come first.
Kilkenny is not only cosmopolitan and beautiful,
above all it is a safe and welcoming place where
you can live surrounded by inspiration.
Contact us
Business Support Unit
Kilkenny County Council
County Hall
Kilkenny, Ireland

Tel: +353 (0) 56 779 4040

Fax: +353 (0) 56 779 4004
Email: move@investkilkenny.ie

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While every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this publication,
no liability is accepted for any error or omissions. All information is correct
at time of print. For supporting information please refer to our website.

Photography: Aspect Photography, Mark O’Toole

Kilkenny Castle image © Dept. of Environment, Heritage and Local Government