Day: November 11, 2015

Brighton & Hove has been selected as one of the 27 stop-off locations for a national bus tour to promote Small Business Saturday.

The tour bus will travel the length of the country, from John O’Groats to Land’s End, parking up on Ship Street, Brighton, on Monday, November 23, 2015 between 10am – 2pm and offer a raft of information aimed at helping local businesses boost trade, not only on Small Business Saturday itself, December 5, but year-round.

The Brighton stop-off is being coordinated by the City Council with support from a range of stakeholders who will be on hand throughout the day with information about what’s on offer locally and nationally to small business traders, community interest, social enterprise and start-up companies.

Those taking part include:

♦        Business support resource, Business Navigator

♦        Local incentive voucher scheme Goodmoney

♦        Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce

♦        Brighton BID

♦        The city’s official tourism arm, VisitBrighton

♦        University of Sussex’s School of Business, Management and Economics

♦        the Conscious Business People

♦        Small Business Saturday UK

♦        Nat West Bank’s national initiative Entrepreneurial Spark

♦        The Wild Things & Happy Start-Up Schools

The day’s programme will include a series of free drop-in workshops and advice covering a range of topics including:

♦        Where to find help with business plans, funding and grants,

♦        How to identify your best customer

♦        Developing the mind-set and resilience to be a creative self-starter

♦        Local business courses

♦        Business development

There will also be the opportunity to find out about the benefits of the VisitBrighton partnership scheme and for consumers and businesses to join Goodmoney, the Brighton-based voucher scheme designed to encourage residents to buy local.

Goodmoney gift vouchers come in £5, £10 and £25 denominations and can be spent at a growing network of over 150 independent local businesses, including shops, restaurants and cafes, art classes, music tuition and outdoor sports.

Leader of the Council, Warren Morgan, said: “There is a wealth of information and help out there for entrepreneurs and small business operators but sometimes it’s just a case of having the time to find it, especially when you’re starting out and time is limited.  

“Brighton & Hove’s impressive range of independent businesses are a big draw for visitors and a vital part of the local economy so I’m really pleased the city has been chosen for this stop-off.  I hope that as many local traders as possible will visit the bus and take advantage of the extra help it offers ahead of Small Business Saturday.”