Business
Funding match of the day a real winner for local businesses A new scheme is offering micro, small and social enterprise businesses up to £5,000 of match-funding, provided they can raise an equivalent amount from 10 or more supporters. Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) set up the Crowdfund Dorset Business campaign in response to the first wave of the covid-19 pandemic. Developed as part of Crowdfunder UK’s pay-itforward campaign and with support from Enterprise Nation, the scheme has so far pledged over £36,000 in match-funding to nine businesses and projects
across Dorset. Among them is Weymouth’s Nothe Fort, which raised £5,000 through crowdfunding, matched by Dorset LEP, to make the heritage attraction covid safe, enabling over 35,000 visitors to safely enjoy the attraction throughout the summer of 2020. Lorna Carver, Dorset LEP director, said: “While there has been a substantial amount of government funding available to businesses in Dorset throughout the pandemic, there are inevitably businesses and organisations who fall through the cracks
or that have been – and continue to be – affected more than others. “Along with a range of other business support schemes, we created Crowdfund Dorset Business as an additional opportunity to help local businesses and organisations – from sole traders through to larger SMEs – adapt to the challenges of trading through the pandemic. “We have seen how it has made difference to some businesses already, and while restrictions remain in place, we’re sure it can benefit others as well.” Other projects that have
received funding include Christchurch Seagulls Swimming Club, Chaplin’s Bar, Coda Music Trust and the Dorset Artists Emergency Fund. The Crowdfund platform provides great access and support to attract investors and supporters and once eligible applicants have reached 25% of their target, Dorset LEP will commit match-funding of up to £5,000 payable when the target is met. n Businesses and organisations interested in finding out more should visit dorsetlep.co.uk/crowdfunder.
Make assets sweat to unlock productivity Some years ago, we were building a Mayan Temple mirror maze at Port Aventura, Spain’s largest theme park. I needed to drive from Tarragona to catch a plane at Barcelona Airport, and tried to join the Autoroute. Unfortunately I misread a road sign, and found myself in heavy slow-moving traffic struggling for several kilometres from one intersection and small roundabout to the next. After what seemed an interminable age, I saw another sign for Barcelona, collected my toll ticket and joined the autoroute. Suddenly I had three lanes and a hard shoulder almost to myself, all the way to Barcelona. What was going on? This splendid autoroute had been built with EU funding, which if you want to be specific, came partly from British taxpayers to provide regional funding for the Spanish economy in particular and to help Europe prosper as a whole. That much I wholeheartedly applaud. The clue was in that toll 70
ticket. Virtually none of the Spanish traffic could afford to use the autoroute, whether cars, vans or lorries. It’s not as if the road needed paying for, for goodness sake. It had already been paid for, and given to Spain. The Spanish economy was thus needlessly underperforming by failing to use its assets to the full.
All the more reason to applaud the Severn Bridge toll arrangements I found last year on the M4 into Wales. The toll booths had disappeared without trace. The bridge has now been paid for, so no more tolls need to be collected. This is a brilliantly simple and effective way to help the
Welsh economy prosper What’s true for motorway tolls is also true for businesses. What assets can we put into effective use, at little extra cost, or perhaps at no extra cost at all? What equipment and resources are lying idle and unused for most of the time? Why own equipment. when we can rent them whenever needed? Can we run the business using less of our existing premises, perhaps by installing shelves and using all those unused cubic metres towards the ceiling? If so, what else could we use that free floorspace for? My brother’s mining company in Toronto had some spare office space, and he let two freelance entrepreneurs use it for free. Later they asked him to be the chairman of their new company, and all three ended up with shareholdings in a valuable mineral mine. Open doors to others, and perhaps they will open doors for you! Make those assets sweat! n Adrian Fisher is an awardwinning maze designer in Durweston.
