Sixty-eight companies in Westmorland and Furness are sharing over £771,000 to help them to grow their businesses.
The SMEs received individual grants of up to £20,000, to meet up to half of the costs of their projects from a two stranded programme – Catalysing Growth and Investing in Growth.
Catalysing Growth funded revenue investment to help businesses to access new markets, with Investing in Growth funding capital investments to improve productivity and innovation.
And 19 of the SMEs have already completed their projects.
Businesses completing Catalysing Growth projects include Apple Designs Ltd, near Carnforth, which specialise in marketplace management and digital marketing.
It helps businesses sell or market their goods on online platforms like Zalando, Aboutyou and Amazon. Thanks to a grant of £7,500, towards its project costs of £15,117, it has been able to connect their ecommerce platforms with new European marketplaces.
Bartletts Group Limited, Dalton-in-Furness, used their Catalysing Growth grant of £7,500 to invest in a rebranding project costing £15,220.
Bartletts provide a very specialised service, in a highly regulated industry, protecting equipment and machinery in marine environments from erosion and corrosion. They say a stronger branding image should help them to win more contracts.
Bartletts also benefited from an Investing in Growth grant of £20,000 to meet 40% of the cost of buying a JCB TLT35/230 Teletruk. Purchased locally, it says it will help it win higher-value contracts from the marine industry, whilst growing the business and increasing productivity and safety.
Another Investing in Growth grant was made to First For E Players Limited (trading as EStars), near Penrith. EStars invested its grant of £20,000 in a project with a total cost of £55,000 to develop an educational esports platform for students to use.
It has attracted global attention, and is being launched in Nigeria this July, at an event hosted by the British Deputy High Commissioner. Mags Byrne, of the company, said: “Developing the platform has enabled EStars to grow, create more jobs and to further our reach, globally.”
E-Bike Safaris Ltd, in Kendal, said its Investing in Growth grant of £13,000 has matched funded the purchase of 10 new e-bikes and navigation devices. It is helping it to expand its business across the central and southern Lakes by offering new multi-day and single day cycle tours, in addition to its electric bike rental services.
Other successful completed Catalysing Growth projects were:
- The Gas Rooms Ltd, Burton in Kendal, which used its grant of £1,641 to meet 50% of the costs of a buying a customer relationship management system, plus support, to deliver its digital marketing strategy.
- Majik House, near Kendal, used its grant of £2,400, to meet 50% of its investment in marketing activity their Smart Home Monitoring Systems, to new customers.
Investing in Growth Grants were also successfully delivered by:
- Barrow BID, which received a grant of £8,000 to help meet the total project cost of £16,000 for a mobile stage and exhibition trailer. The new event facility draws people into the town and can be hired by local organisations.
- Cottages Cumbria, Coniston is a small family-run holiday letting business with properties in central Lakeland. It was able to refurbish a 25-year-old bathroom with its grant of £4,779, which helped to meet the total project cost of £9,558.
- DAV Cumbria Ltd, based in Barrow, used its grant of £15,481, to meet 50% of the total cost of its investment in growing the business. It now has an additional fully equipped van and a new engineer.
- George & Dragon, a 17th century inn near Alston, used a grant of £20,000 to meet 50% of the total cost of installing ground floor electrics and plumbing. They hope the improvements will put the pub back at the centre of village life and be a focal point for walkers and cyclists.
- Hargreaves Enterprises Ltd, Bowness-on-Windermere, used its grant of £5,834 to diversify the business with a project that cost £11,668. Units with screens have been installed which offer revenue generating advertising slots.
- M&T Adventures Ltd, near Ulverston, can now provide more climbing and abseiling sessions for children and adults using a grant of £1,562, which met 50% of the costs.
- Papaya Trading, near Carnforth, has invested in a new delivery vehicle at a cost of £42,130, with the help of a grant of £20,000.
- Silver Forge, Milnthorpe purchased a new mid-level laser welder to help the business. It received a grant of £4,554 towards the total cost of £9,108.
- The Milking Parlour, Kirkby Lonsdale, upgraded its ice cream manufacturing equipment to increase capacity and grow the business. It received a £20,000 grant towards a total project cost of £73,595.
- Traybakes, at Redhills, near Penrith, received a grant of £3,456 to meet 50% of the costs installing a pallet wrapping machine to cope with the increasing volume of orders.
- Vision Support, in the Barrow area, received £20,000 towards a £72,516 project to fit two solar power systems to its properties to decarbonise its operations.
- Verstone Kennels & Cattery, near Ulverston, received a grant of £8,000 which met 50% of the cost of installing solar panels.
This programme is funded through Westmorland and Furness Council’s Shared Prosperity Fund.
