The number of enquiries for business support from Business Gateway hit record levels in the year ending March 2014.
Figures released by Scotland's national business advice service in its first Annual Review publication show that the number of enquiries from existing businesses, at 8,786, was the highest on record, an increase of almost 21% on the same period the year before. Enquiries from start-up businesses grew by 13% to 48,280, again the highest figure yet recorded.
During the year, with the support of Business Gateway, 10,153 people started a new business, an increase of 5.5% from the previous year.
The number of enquiries being received directly into Business Gateway's network of local offices across Scotland increased by 63% highlighting the demand for business advice based on the varying needs of different regions.
Additional research indicates that with support from Business Gateway, businesses that will trade at or above the level for VAT registration within 12-18 months of starting up have a significantly better chance of surviving beyond three years than the national average.
According to the figures provided by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), for businesses started in Scotland in 2009, the national three-year survival rate is just over 60%. For businesses that have worked with Business Gateway during the same period, the survival rate is 81%. Note: the comparison figures for survival are based on the most recent ONS report dated 2012 and published in November 2013. It includes three year survival rates up to 2009 and one year survival rates up to 2011.
Councillor Stephen Hagan, Spokesperson for Development, Economy and Sustainability, COSLA said "The economy continued to provide challenges throughout the period but as we can see clearly it was a busy time for Business Gateway and its local offices across the whole of Scotland. The successful delivery of the Business Gateway service by local authorities continues and is based on the needs of its own business community with the flexibility to respond to meet those needs when required."
Enterprise Minister Fergus Ewing said: "Scotland is a wealthy country and the Scottish Government is committed to ensuring a supportive business environment and recognises that Scotland's businesses - both large and small - are the primary drivers of sustainable economic growth.
"A key part of this is ensuring businesses can access good quality, consistent business support such as that provided through Business Gateway.
"I am delighted to see this continued demand from businesses for the services that Business Gateway offers, both to help them start up and to help them grow their business and I look forward to seeing the service go from strength to strength in the future."
Hugh Lightbody, Chief Officer at the Business Gateway National Unit said: "These figures are extremely encouraging and mirror other recent economic indicators highlighting an increase in economic activity in Scotland. The significant uplift in the overall number of businesses contacting Business Gateway is very pleasing, especially as we are also seeing a big increase in the number of businesses contacting our local office network directly.
"While encouraging and assisting new businesses to start trading is core to long term economic development, supporting those existing businesses that are looking to grow is fundamental to what Business Gateway does. Recognising the specific regional challenges that businesses face is at the heart of the service's delivery across Scotland. We know that a business based in the Scottish Borders will have different requirements to a business based in Aberdeen, for example. The Business Gateway service is set up to respond to those geographical variations.
"We know that Scotland's economic development benefits from supporting new start and existing businesses, however, it's about growing sustainable businesses over the long term and the research we have indicates that those who do engage with us have a greater survival rate than those that don't."
Throughout the year there were almost half a million visitors to the Business Gateway web-site viewing over 1.5 million pages. The website also has links to the extensive programme of workshops covering key business skills such as financial management, sales and marketing and e-commerce.
The free workshops and events programme saw in excess of 20,000 people attending over 3,000 different training workshops providing valuable insights and practical advice for attendees.
On-going research, carried out by ibp Strategy & Research, into satisfaction levels within Business Gateway customers showed that for the year ending March 2014, 95% expressed overall satisfaction with their attendance at these workshops and 87% saying they would recommend the service overall.
To download a copy of the Business Gateway Annual review please go to http://news.bgateway.com/2014/06/annual-report/.
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