Northern Ireland has enjoyed a real renaissance since the peace process began to blossom in the mid 1990s. Belfast in particular once synonymous with civil unrest has been tipped a top ten ‘city on the rise’ by the Lonely Plant, and most importantly is buzzing with life, excitement and creativity.
Belfast itself offers a unique balance of urban and rural, modern and ancient. Though Belfast’s very much a capital city, you’re never far from stunning scenery and fine Victorian and Edwardian architecture, and a rich shipbuilding history provides a striking contrast with modern investments including the Victoria Square complex, home to the Norths very Open Apple Store, and the Odyssey Pavilion, home to the Mighty Belfast Giants.
For those who live or travel here, you will find that your social life’s is bright with new hotels, clubs, bars and restaurants springing up all over the city, it’s good to know that the efficient pink and white Metro bus will take you pretty much anywhere you want to go.
For those seeking employment, there is plenty of variety and choice and despite the Credit Crunch, belfast is still attracting investment and creating jobs in some sectors. at the same time, house prices have come down significantly and are not at a level that is right having gone through what was a huge surge in valuations.
Some of the top companies to consider are:
- Tesco – 10,000+ employees
- Bombardier – 5,000+ employees
- Asda – 3,500 employees and growing
- BT – 2,600 employees
- HBOS – 2,200 employees
- UTV Media – 900+ employees
Some of the cool up and coming IT companies include:
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