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Small Business Strategy Inquiry 2025 - ACT and Bira call for members to share their voice

20 Jun 2025

The House of Commons Business and Trade Committee has asked the ACT, and its parent company Bira, to help them reach out to small business retailers across the country, for their quick input on... Read more…

Beyond the discount: Restoring integrity to the cycle supply chain

18 Jun 2025

The Association of Cycle Traders believes the time has come for greater accountability throughout our supply chain, writes ACT Director Jonathan Harrison in an article published for BikeBiz.
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Bira welcomes Wales' business rates proposals but calls for key improvements

11 Jun 2025

Bira has welcomed the Welsh Government's consultation on business rate reforms for retail shops, whilst calling for significant improvements to ensure the proposals truly support high street... Read more…

New awards launch to champion Britain's independent high street heroes

9 Jun 2025

Retailers on Britain's high streets are being encouraged to put themselves forward for the first-ever Love Your High Street Awards, designed to celebrate the small businesses that bring... Read more…

"Tectonic shift" in employment law threatens independent retailer viability, warns Bira podcast

6 Jun 2025

Independent retailers are facing a "generational" transformation of employment law that could fundamentally change how small businesses operate, according to the final episode of Bira's first... Read more…

Retailers hope warm weather and bank holidays will boost high street sales

16 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has said that members are hopeful the warm weather, Easter weekend and upcoming bank holidays will provide a much-needed boost to high street sales.
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Economic growth surges to 0.7%, but "April reality check" looms for high street retailers

15 May 2025

UK economy delivers strongest quarterly performance in a year despite forecasts of business downturn.
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Communities come together for Local Bike Shop Day 2025 celebrations

13 May 2025

Local Bike Shop Day 2025 brought a wave of... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira welcomes Bank of England's latest interest rate cut

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has welcomed the Bank of England's decision to reduce interest rates from 4.5% to 4.25%, calling it a "much-needed boost" for the retail sector, including for cycling... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira responds to Beales' "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" as iconic store makes final protest

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has responded to the news that the 144-year-old Beales department store is staging a "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" in its final weeks of trading, with giant yellow... Read more…

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Eight in Ten Small Businesses Taking Positive Steps to Strengthen Their Enterprises in 2024

Posted on in Business News

Eight in ten small business owners (81%) are planning to develop their companies in 2024, according to new research from Novuna Business Finance. The research shows that over a third (33%) are focusing on new initiatives to increase income, whilst a fifth (20%) are looking to reduce their fixed costs.

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With around nine in ten small businesses (89%) saying that they still feel the pressures from the cost-of-living crisis, there is an emphasis on increasing business income and sales this year across all sectors. Small businesses in the media and marketing sector were the most likely to say they are looking at new ways to improve their income and sales (52%), followed by small businesses in retail (42%) and IT and telecoms (40%).

 Nationally, the top five initiatives small business owners are focusing on to secure growth include: 

  • Increasing new business income/ sales – 33%
  • Reducing fixed costs – 20%
  • Diversifying the business, offering new service lines/ products – 18%
  • Planning ahead with business budgeting – 18%
  • Building up financial reserves – 17%

Across the UK, small businesses in the North East of England are the most likely to be prioritising particular strategies to strengthen their enterprise (89%), followed by small businesses in London (86%), and the South East (84%).

Rather than recruiting new employees, one in four (25%) hospitality and leisure businesses and over a fifth (23%) of manufacturing businesses are spending time investing in the people who already work at the company in the year ahead.

Top strategies used by small businesses to become stronger in 2024:

  • Increasing new business income/ sales – 33%
  • Reducing fixed costs – 20%
  • Diversifying the business, offering new service lines/ products – 18%
  • Planning ahead with business budgeting – 18%
  • Building up financial reserves – 17%
  • Advertising online to increase awareness or sales 14%
  • Spending time investing in the people that already work at the company – 13%
  • Invest more money in marketing the business to raise awareness of our brand and services – 11%
  • Expanding into new geographical markets – 10%
  • Not applicable – my business is not planning to prioritise anything in particular to make our business stronger – 19%

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