CIDO hosts entrepreneur event

Students from Craigavon Senior High School, Lismore Comprehensive, Southern Regional College, Drumcree College and Portadown College attended the lecture at the Seagoe Hotel with guest speaker John Woods, Managing Director of Linwoods who told his inspirational story of success.

Linwoods has been in business for over 30 years and manufacture a range of Premium Bakery, Fresh Dairy and Healthy Super Food products.

Based in County Armagh they deliver bakery and dairy produce to over 1,600 customers daily and distribute their Healthy Super Food range throughout Ireland, the UK, Spain and Holland.

John Woods highlighted the need to find people with the right attitude, open to change, willing to look for opportunities and at the same time focus on delivering excellent service. He emphasised how resilience is necessary for success, using the statement: “Resilience is the ability to survive and thrive in whatever environment we find ourselves.”

As he shared the Linwoods story it was evident that innovation and having a good understanding of where the market is going is key to success.

Brian Hunter, Chief Executive of CIDO said: “It was a privilege to hear the inspiring story of Linwood’s from John, particularly in regard to his persistence in the face of adversity. His rallying call to young people to consider starting a business as an alternative to conventional employment was well received by those in the audience. We in CIDO are always looking to support people with business ideas which have growth and export potential. Please feel free to contact us and we will take it from there.”

This event was the first of an annual CIDO Lecture with the aim of highlighting the option of entrepreneurship to young people.