West Enterprise Case Studies
Sligo Case Study: Logis Media
Debbie Woodward worked in the UK as a Contract IT Development Project Manager for 7 years before returning to Sligo in 2007. Earlier this year, she set up a business called Logis Media.
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“My parents live in Sligo and I had lived here before moving to the UK to finish my university degree in IT and starting work for Oracle Corporation as a business consulta Debbie’s business, Logis Media, offers Social Media Marketing and Training and helps companies to promote their brand online using the Social Media networks like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. “People often ask me where the business name came from. Logis is an anagram of Sligo and is actually a business name I came up with when I was twelve years old” says Debbie. Debbie found the Sligo County Enterprise Board Start Your Own Business course really helpful. “I found Sligo CEB to have been invaluable in terms of networking, I joined a group called the Sligo Women in Business Network (SWIBN) which really helped my confidence and my business”, she adds. Debbie has since delivered many Social Media training courses on behalf of Sligo CEB and SWIBN and is also a member of their mentoring panel. Debbie is also passionate about Internet Safety for children and blogs regularly http://bewebsafe.net/. She has delivered talks to parents at many local primary schools and is looking at developing training courses for primary and secondary school children. The sense of satisfaction that comes from having set up her own business is not the only advantage of her move to Sligo as Debbie explains. “We have an amazing quality of life now. The children spend so much more time outdoors. There is a real sense of community where we live and everyone knows everyone.” Debbie and her husband James have three children – an eight-year old and six-year old twins. “They all attend the local school and for them, Sligo will always be home”. The Woodwards live a couple of miles from Sligo town and a couple of miles from Strandhill beach and are never short of things to do. Describing her life-style Debbie says, “Sligo has pretty much everything - cinema, restaurants, library, public swimming pool, shopping centres and on the sports front there is surfing, kayaking, golf, horse-riding, GAA, tennis etc. Debbie’s husband works for an IT Company called Cora Systems in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim. “After our hectic life in the UK, he can’t believe his luck! His commute is a straight 40 minutes each way – there is never any traffic jams and the scenery of Lough Key is amazing” says Debbie. When asked if she would recommend a move to the West, Debbie is very positive; “It is the best move we ever made! We absolutely love living by the sea and having a home with a large garden. “It’s a beautiful place to live, I still gasp every time I see the mountains of Knocknarea and Benbulben. It’s a completely different way of living, less anonymous and everyone is so friendly – the stereotype is so true here! It’s the perfect place to bring up children”. Debbie would advise others who are thinking of moving to the west to “do your research and plan your budget – it is worthwhile spending time planning the move well in advance. Look at estate agents’ websites regarding house prices and recruitment agency websites regarding employment in the area – and of course www.lookwest.ie - we used it all the time in preparation for the big move ‘home’. http://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiewoodward
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nt. As my husband and I started to have a family, we knew that we wanted to bring up our children in the West of Ireland and have a support network in my family nearby, so coming home to Sligo was an obvious choice for us”, says Debbie.
