Watering Can symbolising growth Watering Can symbolising growth

Stage Four - Growth Workshops

Once you’ve started a business, and dealing with all the things you’ve learned in a real commercial environment, it can be both exhilarating and fantastic, and scary and challenging! Sometimes it can be more difficult than you expected to win those all-important first customers, do a fantastic job, get paid on time and have more customers queuing up at your door. But you’re not alone, we’re here to give you encouragement, advice and support – a brain to pick, a shoulder to cry on, and a kick in the pants!

We’ll be running additional workshops as needed to help new businesses get through that first critical year and on the way to sustainable growth. We’ll also connect you to other people starting a new business near you, so that you can get the support of a circle of peers. Sharing your challenges and triumphs, disappointments and solutions with others dealing with the same things is often really helpful, and you won’t feel like you’re on your own.

Understanding Finance for Business – from the Outset
We’ve now added a unique financial support service to our Outset start-up programmes in Bristol/ in Plymouth: it’s aimed at people like you who can make good use of our friendly help and advice – those of you who are new or a bit unsure of how to go about raising the right sort of funding to grow and sustain your business. Find out about more about Outset Finance here.

Enterprising Women logoIf you’re a woman already in business, or one of our start-up female clients, you’ll be welcomed into the Enterprising Women community, and be able to access a huge variety of business benefits & resources.

Scheduled Events for May

More Events:


Thu 31 May 2012 Plymouth Media Hub Day/Wednesday Club Special
Plymouth Main Guildhall

Session Info: Plymouth Media Day, is a special showcase to help city businesses identify 'growth prospects' using the power of the local media.


Stage 1 – learning about finance

A general overview which takes you through the different ways of funding your business, and the features of each, from grants and personal funding through to commercial loans and equity funding – as well as a framework to assess which may be the best route for you.

Stage 2 – one-to-one coaching

A specialist business finance coach will work with you to develop your funding plan, and introduce you to potential funders. We’ll also run small workshops to help give you the skills to present it effectively!

Stage 3 – post-lending support

If you get external funding for your business, we’ll stay with you to help you produce the first set of financial reports that funders will need to see, so you know what information to provide and how to prepare it.