If you’re looking for funding or investment to grow your business, here are 5 ways you can find it…
1. Check out UMi’s ‘Get Funding’ service
The aim of the free ‘Get Funding‘ service is to improve accessibility to finance for any business in need of it. Currently, business owners looking for funding or finance need to navigate multiple funding avenues & advice channels, often not knowing what they are eligible for or what else is available to them.
Once registered, your Business Funding Adviser will review your eligibility & help you figure out the best solution from a range of the most competitive options.
They’ll also handle the process from start to finish, helping you land the funds & provide any ongoing advice & support.
Find out more & get started at www.umigetfunding.co.uk
2. Get a Start Up Loan or Small Business Loan from £500 to £250k from BEF
The Business Enterprise Fund (BEF) team manages the Start Up Loan & Small Business Loan funds on behalf of the UK Government’s British Business Bank.
Based in Sunderland, BEF helps business owners across the North East access flexible funding with local expertise & one-to-one support from their team.
If you’re just starting out in business or in the early stages & need money to help you grow that you can’t access from mainstream providers, you have 2 options:
Start Up Loan (£500 to £25k)
- Average loan is £11,500
- Repay over 1-5 years
- A 6% fixed interest rate
- No arrangement fee
- No early repayment fee
- 12 months free mentoring
- Get funds in 3-8 weeks
Small Business Loan (up to £250,000)
- Average loan size is £75k
- Repay over 1-5 years
- 13% + base interest rate
- 4% setup fee
- Low early repayment fee
- Support that stays with you
- Get funds in 2 weeks or less
Find out more & start your loan enquiry at www.befund.org/north-east
4. Get growth funding from NEL Fund Managers (£25k to £2m)
NEL’s funds are targeted at ambitious growing businesses with a finance gap from £25,000 upwards. They can invest up to £2m & can form part of a larger funding round where other investors are involved.
NEL has invested in over 1,100 business growth plans so far & each one has benefitted from bespoke finance solutions, strategic guidance & access to their network of sector-based experts including corporate finance advisors, business coaches, Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) & other investors.
The NEL team currently have 2 funds available:
NPIF II – NEL Smaller Loans Fund (£25k to £100k)
The ‘NPIF II – NEL Smaller Loans Fund‘ for the North East can offer from £25,000 to £100,000 to support new or growing businesses based in, or with major operations in, the North East & Tees Valley. Businesses relocating to these areas may also be eligible.
NPIF II – NEL Debt Finance Fund (£100k to £2m)
The ‘NPIF II – NEL Debt Finance Fund‘ for the North East can offer from £100,000 to £2m to businesses that can demonstrate growth potential based in, or with major operations in, the North East & Tees Valley. Businesses relocating to these areas may also be eligible.
Find out more at https://nel.co.uk/funds
5. Meet angel investors & venture capitalists (VCs) at our PLATFORM events + UK Startup & Scaleup Week festival!
An angel investor is someone who invests their own money in a business in exchange for a minority stake (usually between 10% & 25%). Angel investors tend to be entrepreneurs or people with extensive experience in the business world.
Venture capitalists (VCs) put money into early-stage businesses to help them grow, typically (but not exclusively) in sectors such as life sciences, IT & FinTech.
Often, VCs assist entrepreneurs & business owners in identifying & refining their business strategies to ensure they can successfully introduce their products to the market. This guidance aims to help the business meet specific consumer or business needs, thereby creating tangible value.
Angel investors & VCs (& people who work with them) regularly attend our monthly PLATFORM events in Newcastle, Sunderland, Middlesbrough & Edinburgh & there will be lots of them at our UK Startup & Scaleup Week festival taking place in Sunderland between 2-6 June, especially on Day 3 (FUNDING & FINANCE)!
For example, Naomi Allen Seales (Investment Manager, Northstar Ventures UK) will be talking about the ‘Venture Sunderland Fund‘ (initial investments of £200,000-£750,000) which is for Sunderland-based businesses that are looking to grow or those that want to expand their business in the City of Sunderland area.
(If you’re preparing to raise funding or investment, I recommend speaking to the team at Blu Sky Chartered Accountants who have helped business owners raise millions).
If you can’t make it to our PLATFORM events or your business isn’t based in Sunderland (or wanting to expand into the city) but you are looking for funding or investment, you need to be at our UK Startup & Scaleup Week festival in June!
We’ll have representatives from every type of funder & investor attending all 5 days of the event with the opportunity to have 1-2-1 meetings on multiple days.
Day 3 (FUNDING & FINANCE) at City Hall will also feature a full day of talks, panel discussions & fireside chats with people who are providing or have accessed grants, loans, crowdfunding, angel investment, venture capital, private equity, etc.