Innovation-driven enterprises from North West City Region explore Stateside Opportunities in Boston

5 businesses from the North West City Region took part in the second edition of Pathfinder, a US Go-To-Market lab, where business leaders from Donegal, Derry & Strabane travel to the US to explore stateside opportunities and gain market insights from sector leaders.

Participating Pathfinder companies and programme co-ordinators - L-R:

Head of Innovation at ALPHA Innovation - Kevin Sexton, CEO of Forward Emphasis - Paula Kennedy Garcia, DigiFood NPD Founder - Shaun Gilbride, co-founder of Challenge Curve - Paul Nelis, Teambase Business Development Exec - Paul Boyle, Kippie CIC co-founder - Katherine Rowlandson, Programme co-ordinator - Graham Merriman & Derry City & Strabane District Council Investment Manager - Rosalind Young

Arriving in Boston and residing at the Cambridge Innovation Centre between 12 - 14 November, the innovation-driven enterprises (IDEs) were carefully selected as they are preparing to scale their enterprises and refine their Go-To-Market export strategy to expand internationally.

The initiative is led by Donegal County Council, and Derry City & Strabane District Council with industry support from ALPHA Innovation and the Donegal Local Enterprise Office.

Donegal companies participating in the programme that travelled to Boston include Forward Emphasis International’sCEO Paula Kennedy Garcia & Chairperson Fiona Burns, showcasing their latest employee learning platform innovation, Eleet. The pair were joined by DigiFood NPD’s CEO, Sean Gilbride, who brought his SaaS product for food manufacturers to Boston; and Teambase’s Business Development Exec, Paul Boyle, who was showcasing their end-to-end insurance comparison platform for insurance brokers. 

Derry-Londonderry-based Chris Beam & Paul Nelis, co-founders of of ChallengeCurve, a software testing and quality assurance platform & Kippie CIC, co-founder Katherine Rowlandson, a company enabling corporates to access talent from underserved minorities made up the 5 companies participating in this year’s programme.

2024 participants meeting Stephanie Swanson, Executive VP of Associated Industries of Massachusetts

While in the US, the founders were based in the renowned Cambridge Innovation Centre (CIC), situated in the “Most Innovative Square Mile”, where they will have the opportunity to stress-test their business models with US experts and sharpen their value propositions.

ALPHA designed pre- and post-programme modules for participating businesses so that they could be prepared to make the most of their time in the market and maximise their opportunities from the introductions received after the trip to the US.

During the pre-sessions in Derry and Letterkenny, the IDEs worked on refining their value propositions and secured meetings with contacts, mentors and potential customers to discover and learn how they can adapt their products for the US market.

Upon returning to Ireland, ALPHA will host debriefing and mentoring sessions, and businesses will draft plans for leveraging any US industry contacts they have established.

Paul Boyle, Business Development Manager with Teambase, showcasing Teambase’s Value Proposition to experts at the Cambridge Innovation Centre.

Commenting on the US trip, CEO of Forward Emphasis Paula Kennedy Garcia said:

“Pathfinder is such an impactful incubation space to challenge the preset ideas you have on your business and get laser focus on ensuring market fit. If you are planning to grow in 2025, I would highly recommend getting involved.”

Echoing Paula’s comments, Teambase’s Paul Boyle, valued the connections made in Boston:

“We have gained so much more knowledge on the US market and more importantly connections to take us to the next phase for our Go-To-Market plans.”

Applications will open again for the 2025 edition of Pathfinder in the coming weeks. If you are an IDE who can demonstrate an appetite to expand internationally or are diversifying with new offerings that have the potential to scale internationally, click here to Register Your Interest for the 2025 programme.