The Rt Hon Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office, Paymaster General visited Kemptown on Friday, December 6 at the invitation of Simon Kirby MP to show support for Small Business Saturday.
In the United States, Small Business Saturday takes place following Thanksgiving and is a retail focused campaign to attract shoppers into a small, local business during one of the busiest shopping periods of the year.
The inaugural Small Business Saturday in the UK extends the focus beyond retail to celebrate the vital role small firms play in our economy and local communities. The campaign in not proscriptive and it is open to everyone to decide how they want to support a local organisation which is important to them. It has received the backing of Government, large companies and local authorities across the UK.
Mr Maude spent time talking with the owner of Red Rooster Coffee Shop in St James Street who complained about the effect 20% VAT levels were having on his business. Local Queens Park Councillor, Geoffrey Bowden listened on intently to concerns raised about the cost of parking locally.
Mr Maude then joined Simon Kirby in a walk up St James Street to the new fishmongers opposite the Bulldog where he admired a fresh salmon and bought some scallops.
Mr Kirby said: “I am delighted that Small Business Saturday has crossed the Atlantic, as I believe it can provide a real boost to small firms at a vital time of year.
“The importance of small and medium sized businesses cannot be overstated. They make up 99% of the 4.9million private sector companies in the UK and employ 14.9 million people. With 100,000 businesses created last year, private enterprise is going from strength to strength under this Government, and playing a vital role in driving our economic recovery.
“I am urging my constituents to join me in doing what they can to support local businesses in Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven this Saturday.”
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