Tailored Scale-Up Support Programmes

We offer a range of tailored scale-up programmes along with those in finance and growth designed for specific groups or sectors.

Retail Marketing Ready

The retail sector is the biggest employer in UK, with 2.9 m people employed in retail in 2019, accounting for 15% of all jobs.  However, high streets up and down the country are under attack, with the rise in convenient online shopping and mounting pressure of business rates.  The lockdown for non-essential shops due to Covid-19 has seen retail sales see their biggest fall since records began 30 years ago.

We have supported  several thousand retailers across the UK to create effective business growth strategies, and help them understand how marketing tactics and messages will unlock their potential.  Retail Marketing Ready is our version of our GetSet For Growth programme, tailored specifically to retailers, delivered through practical workshops, business networking events and 1:2:1 coaching from marketing specialists.

Please get in touch to find out how you can help regenerate your town centre and support independent retailers through our tailored scale-up support programmes.

Women-Specific

In 2006, our Enterprising Women project started the transformation of the business support landscape for female entrepreneurs. In its first five years, it trained nearly 4,000 women, enabled the creation and growth of more than 3,000 businesses. By 2011, dedicated funding for female enterprise support fell off the map, and so all the learning from Enterprising Women was embedded into our other commercial and publicly-funded services alike. As a result, over half our clients are female!

Enterprising Women was selected by BIS as one of three national best practice examples for SME support and recognised by WINNET 8, a European project researching good practice in eight European countries. Now it has become a national community of female entrepreneurs, providing members with specialist Growth Programmes at all the key tipping points of the business journey, a mentor bank and access to our popular e-learning portals.

Enterprising Women has changed my perspective on networking and business relationships. I have learnt and developed both personally and professionally.

Liz White

E-Design Consultancy