Scale South West – Good news for growth ready businesses

8th December 2017

There’s good news for South West businesses ready to grow in 2018: A new high-growth programme for local businesses has been announced by PwC, in partnership with Business West and The Engine Shed.

The Scale South West programme has been designed to help growth-ready businesses by connecting them to commercial opportunities and investment.

Bristol, already a hub for the tech, creative, and media industries, has been chosen to host Scale South West, and the programme will link fast-growing companies in the region with market leaders and industry experts.

Alumni of PwC’s scale-up programmes raised £60 million in equity on joining and have since gone on to raise a further £20 million, winning over 70 pilots with corporates enabling them to scale-up and achieve the next level of growth1.

Launching Scale South West, Katharine Finn, PwC’s regional leader for the West said:

“The South West is home to some of the UK’s most innovative start-up companies and it’s a great place to do business. Through our Scale South West programme we will help regional businesses, small and large, in their strategic growth, by opening doors to our networks, facilitating introductions and funding access, to provide mutual commercial opportunities.2

Successful applicants to the Scale South West programme will be enrolled in a business development curriculum, receive advice across areas like international expansion and the corporate procurement process, and have the opportunity to pitch to investors.

Business West are committed to supporting new and growing businesses and have helped over 870 South West business to start trading within the past five years.

Responding to the launch of Scale South West Tara Gillam, Head of Enterprise at Business West, said:

“Supporting new businesses to have the ambition and resources to scale and grow is critical for the success of the local economy, and the PwC Scale programme is a fantastic initiative to aid SMEs in the South West to accelerate their growth potential.”

The government also recognised the value of scale up businesses in the recent Industrial Strategy whitepaper and acknowledged the important role growth initiatives, such as Scale South West, play in creating supportive environments for growing businesses:

“More opportunities to operate in an environment with advice and challenge, especially from other entrepreneurial business people, can help businesses succeed initially and through their stages of development.3

South West business owners who want to apply for the Scale South West programme can also apply for one of our Scale-Up coaching grants which would cover 40% of the programme cost.

For more information and to express your interest in the programme, visit the dedicated scale programmes page.

1) PWC, September 2017. https://www.pwc.co.uk/who-we-are/regional-sites/midlands/press-releases/...
2) PWC, November 2017. https://www.pwc.co.uk/who-we-are/regional-sites/west/press-releases/pwc-...
3) Industrial Strategy, November 2017. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/industrial-strategy-building-...

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