{"id":57411,"date":"2022-08-26T10:24:02","date_gmt":"2022-08-26T09:24:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/news\/?p=57411"},"modified":"2022-08-26T10:24:05","modified_gmt":"2022-08-26T09:24:05","slug":"council-support-to-help-devon-businesses-struggling-with-high-costs-and-recruitment-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/news\/council-support-to-help-devon-businesses-struggling-with-high-costs-and-recruitment-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Council support to help Devon businesses struggling with high costs and recruitment challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many Devon businesses don\u2019t know which way to turn, as they continue to struggle with recruitment difficulties on top of rising costs of commodities, energy and fuel.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Businesses in hospitality and leisure especially, mainstays of Devon\u2019s local economy, are continuing to find it difficult to recruit, says Stuart Elford, Chief Executive of Devon & Plymouth Chamber.

And part of the reason for that is because property is seen to be too expensive and out of reach, dissuading many people on lower incomes from moving to where the vacancies are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the war in Ukraine, it had become more common in busier tourist areas of the county to see employers \u2013 restaurant and caf\u00e9 owners \u2013 paying taxi fares for staff to travel-in from locations outside the area, in order to fill vital vacancies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But now with the rising costs of fuel, even that is becoming difficult to afford for cash-strapped firms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been just one thing after another,\u201d says Stuart Elford.

\u201cNo one expected the pandemic, of course, but businesses had to adapt immediately to stay afloat.

\u201cThey diversified. They changed their business models to new ones that worked as best they could in that climate. They took opportunity from government grants, but their regular clientele largely disappeared during the restrictions, and many staff left, were laid off, and have not returned.<\/p>

\u201cMany businesses took out loans to help them diversify, to see them over the hump not knowing how long that was going to be. Many used up any financial savings or reserves they had, in the promise of better times around the corner.

\u201cAnd having quickly adapted to that challenge, the goal posts have now shifted, and businesses are having to change again to adapt to rising fuel costs, and costs of living.<\/p>

\u201cThis time, I fear it’ll be the final straw for some. While members of Devon & Plymouth Chamber are three times more likely to survive than those that are not, we will see some businesses throwing in the towel.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

But not all. Our \u2018Growth Hub\u2019 helps support local businesses, and some businesses tell us that they are feeling optimistic on the one hand, but still worried about the future.

Owain Quick runs a car detailing and valeting firm, \u2018MAD about detailing\u2019, based in Tiverton. The business has been trading since 2014. He\u2019s a sole trader and feels his business is ready to take off.

Due to his work load he needs help and thinks he could take on a new member of staff but is hesitant because he\u2019s worried that he\u2019ll not be able to afford the rising costs in months to come.

He\u2019s very busy, but the uncertainty is holding up his business plans.

Ninety seven percent of Devon\u2019s economy are small to medium sized businesses, and 90 per cent of those have fewer than 10 employees.<\/p>\n\n\n

\r\n\t
\r\n

Rufus Gilbert, Cabinet Member with responsibility for economic support., said:<\/p><\/div>\r\n \t\t

\u201cWe see a lot of sole traders and small to medium sized businesses with few employees struggling with this dilemma, whether now is the right time to grow and have their costs grow too.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe uncertainty in not knowing how long and how deep these rising costs will impact on them is holding many back.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough our South West Growth Hub, which provides business support and advice to Devon firms, we\u2019re seeing a steady increase in the number of businesses looking for additional grants or finance.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\r\n\t<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\n\t
\r\n\t\t\"placeholder\r\n
\r\n Councillor Rufus Gilbert, Cabinet Member for Economic Recovery and Skills<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n <\/figure>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Since April 2021, the Growth Hub has supported over 1,200 businesses and many more are reaching out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey want to buy new equipment and new machinery. They want to become more energy efficient, for environmental reasons, and to save money in the longer term,” says Cllr Gilbert.<\/p>

\u201cThey\u2019re ready to invest, but they\u2019re uncertain about the future and rising costs.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Business man, Owain Quick has signed up to our Growth Hub\u2019s \u2018Thrive\u2019 support service, to help him with his business plan and to learn how to write applications or bids for additional grants or finance.

He said:
<\/p>\n\n\n\n


\u201cI am very excited to be working with Thrive. I wasn\u2019t aware of the programme until I went to my local job centre to see if there was any local support for small businesses like my own.<\/p>

\u201cOne of the team members from Thrive told me about a few local companies that offer advice and support to businesses like mine.<\/p>

\u201cThrough Thrive, I spoke to a few like-minded businesses that were able to advise and support me to help my business grow in these very hard times.<\/p>

\u201cI am now looking for an apprentice to join me, to learn all aspects of detailing and valeting.<\/p>

\u201cI\u2019m very grate for Thrive\u2019s support and look forward to working with them more in coming months.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n


Rufus Gilbert said,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are suggesting to businesses that they look at their current business plans, in light of the current economic climate, knowing what the challenges are right now, knowing what the risks are and the potential gains, and ask themselves whether their current plan is realistic.<\/p>

\u201cPeople forget that even applying for business grants or loans require a solid business plan, and without one, they\u2019re less likely to be successful. Even writing the bid can be challenging for businesses that haven\u2019t applied for funding before.<\/p>

\u201cThrive support service can help with business planning, financial planning, support with staff training or recruiting, and the use of digital technologies to help local firms gain a firmer footing to adapt again to these latest challenges.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

We are also working closely with the Federation of Small Businesses, to provide two in-person events specifically for the hospitality and leisure industry in Devon, to discuss and offer support about recruitment and retention of staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can find out more about the two events, on the 15 September and 29 September, on the Growth Hub’s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":57412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[22,24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-economy-and-skills","category-dcc-homepage"],"acf":[],"featured_image":{"ID":57412,"title":"docusign-7RWBSYA9Rro-unsplash","alt":"Two professional people looking at a laptop computer","description":"","caption":"Photo by DocuSign on 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