Plan ahead and prepare your business for the upturn

When the economic upturn arrives, the manufacturing businesses that are most likely to succeed are those that have planned ahead in spite of the downturn. Business Link Northwest can work with companies in the region to help them to plan for growth and emerge from the downturn strong and competitive.

Peter Watson, Managing Director at Business Link Northwest says: “In the throes of a recession, companies have a tendency to focus on reactive fire-fighting and can lose sight of their long term plans for growth and development. Working with a Business Link Adviser can provide business owners with the impetus to take a step back and look at opportunities to proactively plan for the future while also addressing any issues they may currently be facing.”

Managed by the Northwest Regional Development Agency, Business Link Northwest is a free-to-use business support service that can advise companies on issues ranging from access to finance, cash flow and sales and marketing to innovation, employment and training. It can also offer guidance to people thinking of starting a business.

Peter continues: “Our Advisers work with companies to identify areas that could benefit from some attention or improvement. These can include issues that need to be addressed to help the business survive through the recession, barriers to growth that need to be overcome and opportunities to really drive the business forward.

“Our in-depth and real-time understanding of the support available from the public and private sector can help business owners to consider all the possible solutions that are out there and access the right support quickly. We then help them to compile an action plan that addresses these issues and plots out future plans for the business.”

Business Link Northwest recognises that for some companies the inability to plan ahead or progress their long-term goals is forced upon them by a lack of finance. In response to this, it has developed an Access to Finance Service to provide guidance to companies around their financial requirements. By helping businesses to identify possible investors and funding streams and working with them to enhance their appeal to lenders, it can help them to resolve short term cash flow problems. The service can also provide information to companies that are trying to source capital for growth.

Peter explains: “The tightening of lending conditions means that companies that have never had any difficulties with their overdraft or lending facility before are more likely to come across problems. It also means that those looking to borrow money to implement growth strategy may hit a barrier that wouldn’t have existed in the past, causing their expansion to grind to a halt.

“There are still organisations out there with cash to lend or invest and our Access to Finance team has an excellent working knowledge of the funding and financial products available. This includes public sector loans and grants and all types of private sector finance, so we can help business owners to explore and understand all the options that may be available to them.

“Sometimes the best way to move forward is to take a step back and look at the bigger picture, which is exactly what our Advisers can help you to do. I’d urge businesses to get in touch with us and find out about the range of support we offer. By planning ahead, businesses can be in the best shape possible for when the upturn arrives, enabling them to capitalise on some of the massive opportunities that will inevitably follow.”

To find out more about Business Link Northwest and how it can help your business, call 0845 00 66 888 or visit Business Link Northwest.