Latest Updates (Scroll for historical information)
19.03.2020
Who’s thriving?
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Zoom Video teleconferencing – 2.2m new users in 2020 (Bernstein Research)
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Peloton shares up 13%
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+7.5m new global Netflix subscribers in Q1 2020
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12.4% growth among subscription entertainment services such as Netflix and Now TV
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Takeaways sales growth of 8.7%.
18.03.2020
Government Support Measures
- A 12-month business rates holiday for all retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England
- Small business grant funding of £10,000 for all business in receipt of small business rate relief or rural rate relief
- Grant funding of £25,000 for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses with property with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000
- The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme offering loans of up to £5 million for SMEs through the British Business Bank
17.03.2020
Package of support from government 17.3.20 – a lot of the measures come as opportunity to borrow/loans.
£330bn guaranteed loans for businesses, equivelent to 15% of GDP & “this is just the first step”
The Coronavirus Business Disruption Loan, enhanced & available early next week – more clarity needed.
Business rates holiday is now extended to entire retail, hospitality & leisure for 12 months.
Cash Grant of up to £25,000 available for Small business (rateable value less than £51k).
For individuals – mortgage lenders will offer a 3 month mortgage holiday while people get back on their feet.
17.03.2020
We were aware that many small business owners, who had diligently paid their business insurance premiums, believed that they had business interruption cover and would be making a claim. This is the statement from the Association of Business Insurers today, highlighting it is very unlikely your insurance will cover Coronavirus, indeed any forced close by authorities.
I am so sorry to highlight this, as I know it was a lifeline for many.
We are still campaigning for a central resource from government to help small and micro businesses but until the, will do all we can to help any SME out there
16.03.2020
In the UK there are 5.8 million small businesses (up to 49 employees) it equates to 99.9% of the business population, the life-blood of the UK economy deserves support & easily accessible information of what help is available.
These are concerning & uncertain times for all – for our health, social & economic welfare.
Certainly the most important factor in this situation is the health of everyone.
It is also clear that this pandemic will have a serious economic effect, and for some businesses that could mean the difference between survival and closure.
We know business owners can often be incredibly time pressured & lack the resources to find information that helps.
We want a place where you can find the latest information & updates relevant to you & your business in one place – along with some advice.
Please bear with us as we try and build this into the support site containing all the assets you need.
We will be updating this resource with information & advice every day.
Please email contact@insightwithpassion.co.uk with any information or advice you would like to include.
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Insight with Passion | Kate Hardcastle
Finance
The very best thing to do is to call the organisation you may need to borrow from, or may not be able to meet a payment commitment & speak to them.
This of course can be uncomfortable for some people, but it is best to speak up & do so early – rather when it is too late.
HMRC/TAX
If you run a business or are self-employed and are concerned about paying your tax due to coronavirus, you can call HMRC’s helpline for help and advice:
HMRC Helpline – 0345 456 3565 or 0800 0159 559 – this is for tax enquires/ benefits
CORONAVIRUS BUSINESS INTERRUPTION LOAN
Although this was announced as part of the budget – this loan is not yet available. Indeed it may be several weeks & that is a long time to wait for some businesses. When it is available the purpose will be to give lenders more confidence in approving credit decisions for small businesses that have insufficient security to meet the lender’s normal requirements. Therefore you will apply for it through a lender.
Updates can be found here: https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk
BUSINESS BANKING IN THE UK
Take proactive action in calling your bank to speak with them as soon as possible about your concerns. Be as pro-active as possible.
Here are some statements from business banks & their helpline numbers.
Natwest: include loan repayment holidays, interest rate reductions, temporary emergency loans with no fees or immediate access to deposit balances with no penalty. 0345 711 4477
Barclays: Supporting clients with range of measures include 12-month capital repayment holidays on existing loans over £25k, and increased or new overdraft facilities. 0345 734 5345
HSBC: They are proactively contacting our customers to see what help their businesses need. 08000 121 614
The Co-operative can look at temporary increases or requests to pause or reduce current payment obligations, based on your individual circumstances: 03457 213 213
Support from your industry/sector
ARE YOU A MEMBER OF A GROUP OR ORGANISATION THAT CAN HELP WITH SUPPORT?
Many of the organisations are currently campaigning for support from the government with businesses in events, tourism, retail, food & beverage & many more facing challenging times.
Sign up to their updates & newsletters to be amongst the first to know of any changes or support for your sector
CREATE SUPPORT GROUPS FOR YOUR INDUSTRY/COMMUNITY
We know that many business owners feel alone & often concerned to talk or share their situation with others. Taking action to talk to other business owners & engage in idea sharing will help.
Form online groups with others who may be in a similar position to you. Share ideas, maybe even work on ways in which you can collaborate to offer a new service created specifically to meet changing demands?
Emails & Updating Customers
We have certainly seen a lot of communication from businesses about Coronavirus, but sending out a blanket cut, copy & paste email from another you may have seen is not the answer.
Think about what information your customer needs at this time – of course they will want reassurance that you are bring responsible and doing all you should, but how can you best serve the customer with all that you & your business can do for them.
TIPS
1. Be human – customers will be highly concerned to, and human-to-human tone of voice is always the best way
2. Do you have any products or services that can help them at this time? Help them understand why & how it could help
3. Reassure them in as many ways as possible, don’t tell them the mechanics of what you are doing to deal with changing times, but the benefits they will gain – e.g. we are offering an online class timetable to keep you fit & healthy if you don’t want to head to the studio
THINK LIKE THE CUSTOMER
You are a customer, so this simply requires a shift in mind set.
People will have heightened needs for: keeping fit, healthy & active, entertaining family & children at home, activities & supplies for home, different ways to celebrate events like birthdays etc.
How can you help to enable this? It will certainly require effort & creativity but your business is your passion & it is worth it.
DON’T EXPECT ANYONE TO KNOW YOUR BUSINESS
Be as honest as you can & appeal to customers to use your services & products in a way they can buy into.
Once you have your cash flow at least in some manageable state, try and revaluate your business plan for the current situation. It is highly likely that it will not be business as usual, therefore how can you analyse any data or facts about your customers to understand what opportunities are there.