The Coronavirus pandemic and subsequent social distancing and lockdown measures have undoubtedly already had a huge economic impact, with a surge of universal credit applications just one symptom of a struggling job market. While much attention is focused on the possibility of big businesses going under, the impact of small business survival and growth is hard to overstate.
SMEs make up 99.9% of private sector businesses and so supporting entrepreneurs to start businesses as well as providing vital growth finance is clearly of the utmost importance to the overall health of the UK economy. Small firms also employ over 16million people in the UK and the sector before coronavirus was growing at a faster rate than the overall job market.
The small business community and its success is as important to the economy as anything else in the near future. With an economic contribution of over £2trillion, the success of the UK economy as a whole may in future hinge on the prosperity of SMEs, start-ups and high-growth firms. There are a fantastic range of innovative, growing SMEs that we work with which are likely to drive our private sector forward in the coming years. And it certainly seems that private equity, through routes such as the Enterprise Investment Scheme, as well as other alternative finance options will be key to the business community in the future of a growing economy.
Government support, perhaps counter-intuitively, has served to highlight the importance of alternative finance solutions and private investors. There are a range of fantastic businesses in a myriad of sectors which will be successful if they are helped through this period. The hospitality and travel sectors have been hit hard, but when the UK returns to normal, businesses will bounce back. And, conversely, there are businesses in MedTech and Pharma which are, in this period, looking to scale rapidly. To IW Capital, the importance of private finance has scarcely been so clear. Private investors are needed now more than ever before to bolster the SME arena and ensure its success; this will in turn safeguard the nation’s economy as a whole.
To find out more about IW Capital, or for more information on investment and non-executive opportunities, please speak to a member of the IW Capital team today on 020 7015 2250, or email info@iwcapital.co.uk
