THE SUCCESS of 92 Irish companies in concluding business worth €100 million in the United States was a testament to the quality of their products, Enterprise Ireland chairman, Hugh Cooney, said in New York yesterday.
A range of companies including high-tech specialists, engineering firms, Bord Na Móna Environmental and a specialist coffin manufacturer were among those who signed off on contracts yesterday.
In one of the larger deals, US fashion label Calvin Klein signed a licensing agreement with the Cork-based company Premium Golf Brands (PGB). The deal allows PGB to source, manufacture and distribute Calvin Klein golf apparel and accessories on a global basis. The deal is understood to be worth €50 million a year after five years.
PGB is Europe’s largest golf apparel distributor. It owns two specialist golf apparel brands: Dwyers and Green Lamb, which is Europe’s leading ladies brand.
Speaking to RTÉ, Calvin Klein president and chief executive Tom Murry said his company was “very excited” about the partnership. “What they’ve been able to do with our brand over there, they’re already selling some of the very best clubs in shops throughout Europe so that was really why we came to that decision.”
Meanwhile, Information Mosaic, which provides wealth and asset management solutions to the investor services industry, has signed a deal with the outsourcing provider Broadridge Financial Solutions.
“That our clients continue to secure significant contracts in the US and other markets in evermore competitive times is testament to the quality of their products and services. And the Irish continue to move up the value chain in the types of products and services they offer,” said Mr Cooney.
“The US is Ireland’s second biggest export market. Ireland is now the 10th biggest investor in the United States and Irish companies employ more than 82,000 people across all 50 states. Last year alone more than 40 companies opened in the US,” he said.
One of the companies to sign an agreement yesterday was Advanced Innovations based in Limerick which supplies electronic design solutions for the world’s leading manufacturer of electronic security systems.
Another Irish firm, Allergy Standards Ltd, based in Dublin, won a contact for its flooring line, while Galway-based Alison Signs announced its e-learning software will be integrated into systems provided by the Florida-based, Geographic Solutions, the leading US provider of workforce training software in the US.
The Bord na Móna contract is for new cutting edge waste water treatment, while Heritage Caskets, announced a tie up with a US firm to supply memorial products including coffins.
