Published: February 20th, 2023
Dave Courteen, Marches LEP Small Business Champion, says the Marches Growth Hub should be the first port of call for any business wanting help, support and funding throughout 2023.
The Marches Growth Hub – the business support arm of the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership – offers unrivalled help for businesses across Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin.
Of course, I would say that wouldn’t I? I chair the growth hub’s steering group and sit on the board of the LEP at the same time.
So don’t just take my word for it – look at these examples of businesses which have been helped at all stages of their journey by the LEP and growth hub.
Wye Cylinder Engineering, Hereford: The Marches Growth Hub Herefordshire has supported this terrific engineering company access a number of funding programmes and has helped contribute to a growth in turnover of 15 per cent in the last year and a 16 per cent increase in staff numbers. Managing director Richard Williams says the business is now in a position for further growth and adds: “The team at the Growth Hub has always been really helpful and has made it easy to talk honestly about our business needs. You get a sense that once they understand those needs, they’re genuinely supporting you to submit a successful application.”
Ply Van, Shrewsbury: Ben Griffiths set up his van racking business just as the pandemic hit and turned to the Marches Growth Hub Shropshire for help to ensure his supply chain remained robust. Ben says: “Launching a business just as the world was entering an unprecedented lockdown was far from ideal but thankfully, via the Marches Growth Hub, I found out about the UK-Centric Supply Chains programme and was connected to Jamie Pratt at Aston University. Jamie gave us some great ideas on how to make the business more visible and, importantly, he allowed me to see on how I could take the business forward in spite of the challenges that Covid had posed.”
Global Minds, Telford: Software services company Global Minds has enjoyed significant growth since moving to Telford from London and credits the Marches Growth Hub Telford & Wrekin with playing a major part in its success. The hub has helped Global Minds find a new base, access funding and supported its business ambitions. Global Minds executive director Hema Kumar says: “The help and support we have had from the team at the Marches Growth Hub Telford has been outstanding. Their passion to help has been invaluable.”
These are just three examples of the thousands of businesses the Marches Growth Hub has supported over the past few years – and give just a flavour of the help the exceptional teams on the ground in Hereford, Shrewsbury and Telford can offer.
So, whether you are a planning to launch a new venture, a new start-up, established business or going for growth get in touch with your local team today to see how they can help you #buildyourbusiness.
