Sligo Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Sligo Chamber Welcomes New President

Sligo Chamber has elected Catriona Walsh as their president for 2014.  Catriona Walsh is Managing Director of OSD, OSD Building, Stephen Street, Sligo. Following her election Catriona emphasised the need for everyone in Sligo to collaborate closely with each other to unlock the economic potential present in the Sligo region. Catriona went on to say that her focus during her Presidency would be on:

• The continued promotion of the Sligo region as an investment and tourist location;
• The importance of the future development of County Sligo in a properly planned and sustainable manner to the benefit of the business and wider community.
• Ensuring that the Chamber continues to support all its members and provide networking opportunities in order to connect and collaborate.
• Contributing towards a New Economic Vision for Sligo by strengthening its links with local government, government agencies and voluntary bodies.

She stated “Sligo Chamber of Commerce is one of the oldest and best established Chambers in the country I have always been a proud member of the Sligo Chamber and indeed the Sligo business community and it is a very proud honour for me to be elected President. I enjoy working with dynamic teams and look forward to working closer with Paul Keyes and Mary Harty who already deliver remarkable results. I intend to provide inspiring leadership at this time when economic vision, and its implementation, is imperative for all.  The challenges in Sligo must be faced together as a unified front in an open and transparent manner, working more closely and supporting one another’s businesses to assist County Sligo to grow”.
She went on to say, “Sligo is a great city with so much going for it! There is always something going on and remarkable people who work extremely hard to make a difference.  Sligo has a strong digital voice and we will work hard to encourage, nurture #sligo and build on the strength of #sligowhoknew.  We look forward this year to Sligo hosting the All-Ireland Fleadh, it is such a wonderful opportunity for Sligo to showcase all it as to offer internationally along the Wild Atlantic Way and have the visitors spreading the word (#sligo) and wanting to come back for more.  This will bring enormous economic benefits to Sligo and to the wider region.  It is also important that Sligo businesses emphasise our community spirit by supporting worthwhile voluntary causes. There are many examples of our members supporting these causes, including Sligo Tidy Towns Committee and TEAM Sligo”.
As the Chamber’s business representative, Catriona has served on the Sligo Tourism Committee ‘Marketing Sligo Forum’.  She has been eBusiness Project team leader and organised Sligo’s Entrepreneur awards for two years.
Catriona is originally from Ardcarne, Boyle and now lives in Ballinafad village with her husband Oliver.  Catriona has been involved in the digital world since the mid 1990’s when as a student she worked in Ireland’s first Internet café bar in Temple Bar in Dublin.  Catriona started her career in recreation and leisure management and after working several years in the industry decided to change direction and pursue another passion, the Internet.  She never left the fitness behind and has taught many classes part time in Sligo from swimming to aqua aerobics and now solely focuses on Sligo Pilates classes.
She started her own business as a sole trader OSD in 2000 after spending a number of years as Business Development Manager with Irish Internet Ltd.  OSD (OmniScience Design Ltd.) was formed as a limited company the next year and now has a team of ten all based in Sligo.
Catriona is determined with a vision of providing clients with the information to succeed online. Catriona’s background is in marketing, planning and development. She has significant experience in business consultancy, mentoring, digital brand development, SEO web site traffic growth, and online revenue growth and measurement.
Catriona is a graduate of IT Sligo and has also lectured part time in IT Sligo as well as Dublin Business School.  She has worked with a variety of clients including AA Ireland, Failte Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Sligo County Enterprise Board.  She has written several published articles locally for the Sligo Weekender, Sligo Business Magazine and nationally for Failte Ireland, Young entrepreneurs Livewire magazine, Sunday Business Post and the Irish Times IT supplement.  Catriona’s entrepreneurial side is born out of a family business background in the tourism industry namely Lough Key Boats; she is still actively involved in tourism marketing, developing business and increasing revenue.