Senator Billy Lawless will deliver the keynote address to over 600 Irish pub operators from Ireland and abroad at this year’s Irish Pubs Global Gathering to be held in Dublin. This event, which will be held between the 26th and 28th of September, is in its fifth year and includes a conference, trade exhibition and the annual Irish Pubs Global Awards.

Senator Billy Lawless, who previously headed up the Vintners Federation Ireland (VFI) is the owner of a number of pubs and restaurants in Chicago, employing over 300 people. Before emigrating to Chicago in the 1990s, he was a prominent publican and hotelier in his native Galway.

“I’m delighted to be invited to speak at this Gathering” said Senator Lawless. “The Irish Pub continues to enjoy prominent status worldwide and it’s vital we maintain this position. It’s important that we share our experience and expertise and that is what this event will allow those attending to do” he added.

The theme of this year’s event is ‘Creating a Destination Pub’ and topics to be discussed include food and drink trends, entertainment, boosting profitability and pub design.

Participants and speakers include Peter Nash from Tourism Ireland, Kevin Arundel, Chef and Owner of the award winning Chophouse Gastropub, Anna McNally from The Irish Pub Company and Kevin Martin, Author of 'Have Ye No Homes To Go To - The History of the Irish Pub’.

One of the highlights of this event is the gala dinner and awards ceremony which will celebrate business excellence and success in the sector. Categories include Irish Pub of the Year, Best International Irish Pub Food and Best Marketing Campaign of the Year. The shortlist for these awards will be announced next week.

The headline sponsor of the Irish Pubs Global Gathering is Allied Irish Bank along with associate sponsors Dubai Duty Free, Guinness and The Irish Village Dubai.

For more information and to register visit www.irishpubsglobal.com or email [email protected].