Carpet business flying after grant
"The grant has been absolutely brilliant...the support is benefiting us already and will do far into us the future."
Forty businesses have been supported by grants totalling almost a quarter of a million pounds from a Warwickshire County Council scheme designed to help businesses in the retail and hospitality sector.
With the sector hard-hit by temporary closures enforced by the lockdowns, the council reacted quickly to devise and deliver a new funding stream - the Retail and Hospitality Recovery and Investment Grants.
The funding helps small businesses with capital investments which will help sustain the business, safeguard existing jobs and support future ones.
The Retail and Hospitality Recovery and Investment Grants scheme is part of an initial £6 million package of funding approved by council to support the immediate economic recovery in the county. The rapid release of funding made available grants of between £2,000 and £7,500 and the projects they are backing will feel long-lasting benefits for the businesses, their local communities and the local economy.
The first round of grants (a second round will open early next year) saw 40 businesses supported with funding totalling £215,000. Among them was House of Carpets, in Rugby, whose co-director Steve Legate says the support has given immediate impetus to the company.
"The grant has been absolutely brilliant," Steve said. "It enabled us to make improvements that we knew would really help, but couldn't afford the risk of financing completely ourselves.
"We spend a lot of time at customers' premises and, until now, had to do all our computer work in the office. Now, all our estimators have tablets so can get online wherever they are. That has transformed how we work...only yesterday we won a £1,100 order because we could access info on the spot.
"We have also installed new IT at our shop so, when lockdown is over, we can have more staff and customers there in accordance with social distance regulations.
"We couldn't have made these changes without the grant. Louisa, at the council, was brilliant in setting it up for us and the support is benefiting us already and will do far into the future."
Louisa Smith, Contract and Project Monitoring Officer in Economy & Skills, said: "I am delighted that the support has been so beneficial to House of Carpets.
"These grants have been awarded to a diverse range of businesses around the county. These include a number of pubs, cafes and restaurants who have taken advantage of the funding to improve their premises, for example by installing covered outside areas. These improvements will stand them in good stead both for immediately after lockdown and far into the future.
"Other retail businesses, like House of Carpets, have directed the funding towards projects to improve their IT infrastructure. This includes upgrading websites by adding the ability to take online payments, as well as ‘Click and Collect’ functionality, and similarly, these improvements will add value in the long as well as short term."
The first round of grants has now closed but businesses are encouraged to consider applying for the second round which will open early next year.
Warwickshire County Council leader Izzi Seccombe said: "The Retail and Hospitality Recovery and Investment Grants will have long-reaching benefits for the businesses and it is great to see such a good take up from the first round. We look forward to supporting many more businesses through this scheme."