THE ORGANISATIONS behind two high-profile events held earlier this year have yet to pay some of their suppliers and are in talks with a number of them in a bid to get their bills discounted or rescheduled.
Businesses which supplied the Ocean Volvo Race in Galway and Dublin’s St Patrick’s festival say that they have yet to be paid by the organisations behind both events.
One owner of a small Leinster-based supplier told The Irish Timesat the weekend that the company is owed a total of €80,000 by both organisations, but has yet to be paid.
Both have sought large discounts, with the Volvo Ocean Race offering 70 per cent of the total, and the St Patrick’s offering 40 per cent now, with the prospect of further payments in the future.
The owner-manager pointed out that he has over 30 staff who have to be paid every week, and added that his business cannot afford to operate in a situation where it is not being paid.
The stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race, a round-the-world sailing event, in Galway, was billed as a huge success. It was originally estimated that it would attract up to 140,000 spectators or “visits” over a two-week period.
Ultimately, it was estimated that it drew some 600,000, with a considerable spin-off for the city and the region.
Both the Ocean Race and the St Patrick’s Day festival in Dublin were organised with the aim of bringing in visitors and extra revenues for both cities.
A spokeswoman for Let’s Do It Galway, the group behind the organisation of the Volvo Ocean Race stopover in Galway, confirmed that it has a number of creditors who supplied goods and services to the event that have yet to be paid.
She said that the organisation had contracts with about 1,000 suppliers, and was dealing with debts running to a “double-figure number”.
The spokeswoman said that it was seeking discounts and attempting to reschedule payments to these suppliers.
State tourism agency Fáilte Ireland pledged €8 million to the Volvo Ocean Race. The spokeswoman explained that the body is not due to pay this money until Let’s Do It Galway completes a number of audits and reports on which it is currently working.
It also has to collect some sponsorship money due from smaller, local backers.
Delayed payment for goods and services is a major issue for Irish businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises.
Recently, the Irish Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (Isme) association found that the average wait for payment is 73 days – more than twice the 30-day recommended maximum.
The organisation said that Government departments and big businesses were the main culprits.
Isme wants the State to introduce a system whereby all companies and organisations pay within 30 days of the end of the month of invoice.
