Surge in support for Downtown Portlaoise which wants more businesses on board to help drive recovery Reporter: '); Adversity in the face of Covid-19 has united businesses in Portlaoise with a surge in firms joining the Downtown Portlaoise traders group as the Laois town gets back in business after lockdown. But the group wants as many companies on board as possible to help drive the town's success. So much so that its Chairperson PJ Kavanagh has, on behalf of the committee, invited companies that are not in yet to join as new associate members. "With retail and hospitality set to reopen after months of lockdown, we at Downtown Portlaoise have been blown away by the level of support we have received in the past few weeks," he said.