Grant helps to build TinyWood homes
A grant for small businesses has had a big impact for TinyWood homes, who design and build miniature houses for the Glamping Industry from their base in Long Itchington near Southam.
The company's design criterion is to combine practical living spaces with a truly tiny footprint. With the increasing popularity of the glamping industry, TinyWood felt it was time to expand and sought out support to enable it to make the next step.
With less than ten employees, TinyWood meets the criteria for micro-enterprise grants which have been helping small companies in rural areas working engineering/advanced manufacturing, digital media and low carbon technologies sectors.
Micro-enterprise grants are funded by DEFRA who awarded £500,000 from the Rural Development Programme for England through a bidding process by the Warwickshire Rural Growth Network to deliver grants to micro enterprises in the RGN areas. Tinywood Homes initially received a Micro Enterprise Grant of £20,000.
Aidan Reeve, who owns and runs Tinywood Homes, said: “My accountant sent me a link to the Rural Growth Network website. I checked out the link when I had an idle moment.
“I was thinking that it was unlikely to come to much, but after reading the website I got directly onto the phone and spoke to the team. It was quickly established that my proposed business would qualify for support and I began the form filling process. Help was provided with this task which was very much appreciated.”
Aidan says: “This grant money empowered me to develop my product and allowed me to embark on a serious advertising campaign. The advertising campaign culminated in Tinywood Homes taking an entire finished house to the CLA Game Fair where 18,000 people set foot upon our stand.
“The 'word of mouth' advertising that was generated by this is still astounding. Potential customers from all over the country have contacted me with regards to our product, and quite often they say that their friend had seen us at the CLA Game Fair.”
A second event called The Farm Business Innovations Show held in London at the end of November saw the Tiny Houses showcased in front of 6,000 visitors - at least 1,000 of whom showed a direct interest in the product.
"This was a very important networking exercise for Tinywood Homes, as representatives of the industry as a whole saw our products for the first time,” says Aidan.
“The grant money allowed me to take a few directions with the product that would have otherwise been impossible on the constraints of the original budget. Not only were we able to embark on the advertising campaign mentioned above, but we were able to turn every stone over on our journey through the development stages.
“A prototype house was constructed where every complication encountered was resolved. Without the additional grant money it would have been impossible to answer all of these problems with a suitable solution. Some ideas would have had to been abandoned all together.
Aidan concludes: “I am very grateful for this financial support for my project and the results of this support are apparent in the quality our final product.”
For more information about the Rural Growth Newtwork visit http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/ruralgrowthnetwork and for more information on Tinywood Homes, visit www.tinywoodhomes.com