I would strongly urge local Hexham businesses to vote for the Hexham BID Project - key financial and other support for the town

I am backing the Hexham BID Project = an exciting government backed initiative to promote, expand and enhance the business opportunities in the Town. But we need Hexham businesses to get involved. Full details are found here and set out in more details below: http://reviveandthrive.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Hexham-BID-FAQ-1.pdf

1. Marketing and Promotion - To market and promote Hexham as a centre for retail, leisure and tourism, including better use of digital and mobile technologies, and extending cultural activities, festivals and events. To include comprehensive and coordinated marketing, promotion and events campaigns for the town and support for the development of a Hexham Loyalty scheme.

2. Town Pride - To take pride in Hexham by building on its fantastic heritage and creating a more attractive town for workers residents and visitors. This would be delivered through improvement works designed to raise standards of appearance, accessibility, cleanliness and security throughout the town and will include action aimed at improving signage and linkages within the town.

3. Business Investment - To invest in people and businesses to enable Hexham to build upon its reputation for high quality services and goods. To deliver high quality customer services and an effective network across the town. This will include a series of initiatives to achieve business excellence, better business networking and deliver cost savings for individual businesses linking into the Hexham Business Forum and Tynedale Business Network. Work will be undertaken to build upon the two newly created Enterprise Hubs operating in the town and the benefits that could be accrued in attracting and supporting new and existing businesses.

4. Vibrant Markets – To invest in and build upon the Hexham Markets as an excellent way of bringing people into the town, and enabling new traders to test out their idea before committing to permanent facilities. This may include the purchase of new stalls and equipment and is linked to the Business Investment and Marketing and Promotion themes.
The BID will only deliver additional projects and services. The BID will not duplicate or replace services provided by public bodies but will, in particular, work with Northumberland County Council, Hexham Town Council, Northumbria Police and other relevant service providers to ensure their continued delivery of high quality services.

Small Business Saturday - try and support small businesses today and in the run up to Christmas

All of us can play a role in our shopping not just today but every day. If you continue to shop all the time at big supermarkets do not be surprised when your local shops suffer. If you buy books on Amazon then your local independent bookshops and small shops will suffer. So if you can then please support small businesses.
This remains my absolute favourite advert for SBS - kindly featuring two of the dogs who make up the tasters for Jaspers Dog Treats of Ovingham. This is the picture taken from last year but it makes me smile every time so I keep using it.

BBC Radio Newcastle interview today on small businesses in Hexham and beyond - 1 hour 22 minutes in

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02ctc7w

BBC Radio Newcastle Interview tomorrow at 8.20am on the importance of entrepreneurs and new SMEs

Will be live on BBC Radio Newcastle tomorrow morning celebrating our young, and not so young, entrepreneurs in the North East: much to celebrate notably:
SME and Business growth:
We in the North East are the region with the:
I) most tech start-ups outside London [over300]

II) the fastest rate of growth in private sector businesses over the last quarter,

III) and the highest rise in the value of exports, plus the only region with a positive balance of payments

Fuel Costs: throughout the parliament we have frozen fuel duty, and the oil price is coming down as well [Labour wanted to put the fuel duty up].

Child care costs: I am a big fan of the free childcare up to 15 hours paid for the by the government to parents of a 2 year old - this is really popular with parents I spoke to recently in Prudhoe, allowing them to go back to work.

Apprenticeships: doubled in the North East and 2 million nationwide since 2010

 

Small Business Saturday and the packed shops of Hexham last weekend have shown that our retail sector is thriving with new shops opening up in Hexham like Mr Wolf, the toyshop, and The Vintage Emporium in Hexham both packed on Saturday when I popped in.

Also there are businesses which are really using the internet cleverly like Dillies which has a high street presence and makes significant internet sales. 

Supporting Small Businesses in the Autumn Statement

The doubling of Small Business Rate Relief is very welcome.
As is the continuing the cap on the inflation-linked increase in business rates at 2%.
The £1,000 discount for shops and cafes on the high street will increase to £1,500
And there will be a full review of the structure of business rates to report before Budget 2016.

We will strengthen Entrepreneurs’ Relief by aligning it with Enterprise Investment Schemes

Increase in the R+ D tax credit for SME firms to 230%,
and extend the Funding for Lending scheme by another year – focusing it entirely on small businesses. 

 

72,000 properties in the North East will benefit from these business rates measures.

2,000 properties will benefit from the cap on business rates, with savings worth £4m.

28,000 small businesses will benefit from the extension to Small Business Rate Relief, with savings worth £19m. 21,000 of these businesses will pay no business rates at all.

10,000 properties will benefit from the £1,500 discount for retail properties.

This is my favourite advert for Small Biz Saturday!!

Shop local! Make sure you support your local shops, butchers, grocers, bookshops, markets and shop local for Xmas gifts. This is from the team at Jaspers Dog Treats from Ovingham.