Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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87. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if it is planned to reintroduce the Enterprise Ireland online retail scheme in 2025. [6612/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Trading online is an important route for retail businesses to grow and improve. Developing digital capability with a strong online presence will assist retailers to become sustainable, increase their customer base and reduce their costs.

The online Retail Scheme was introduced by my Department in conjunction with Enterprise Ireland as part of the ongoing work of the Retail Forum. From 2018-2023 more than 850 projects from retailers based in Ireland were approved for €30.7 million in funding through seven rounds of competitive calls, including two pilot rounds of the Online Retail Scheme. Retailers awarded funding under the Scheme operated across a broad spectrum of sectors including jewellery, fashion, sports, homeware and furniture, healthcare, electrical goods and equipment and were based all across the country.

There are no plans to introduce a new call of the Online Retail Scheme, however, in 2024 a package of targeted supports for businesses to digitalise was developed and introduced by my Department.

Firstly, the new LEOs Grow Digital Voucher, launched on 4 September 2024 offers businesses with up to 50 employees in all sectors up to €5,000 towards deployment of a wide range of digital software solutions. This new offering will cover a wider range of digital interventions available to a broader range of businesses. This includes a range of elements including e-commerce software, e-invoicing software, cyber security software, as well as analytics software including artificial intelligence systems and website development subscriptions.

Secondly, the LEOs Digital for Business consultancy scheme provides expert digital consultants to help businesses explore technology adoption opportunities. The LEOs are committed to assisting small businesses to engage with Digitalisation and are fully committed to assisting them in achieving basic digital intensity, towards the target of 90% by 2030. This Programme is designed to help small businesses across all sectors to prepare and implement a plan for the adoption of digital tools and techniques across their operations. It provides third party consultancy to assist small Businesses in identifying where they are on their digital business journey and in developing a digital adaptation plan based on their identified needs and is now a prerequisite of applying for the new Grow Digital Voucher.

Thirdly, the Grow Digital Portal, is a website with a 5-minutes assessment that helps businesses, including retailers, to assess their progress on digitalisation and opportunities for improvement as well as presenting relatable case studies of businesses that have benefited from technology adoption.

More broader supports for the retail sector, including training programmes and funding, to help retailers adapt to new challenges and opportunities in retail can be found on the National Enterprise Hub.