A new grant scheme has been announced for businesses based in Cheshire and Warrington, designed to help you invest in offsetting lost sales due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Aimed at small businesses in the region, the grant will offer funding up to 80% on capital items with a maximum level of £5,000. £1 million has been awarded by Cheshire &amp; Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership for the scheme with applications opening on Wednesday, 28th October.

Available for a range of expenditure from IT equipment to support Test &amp; Trace obligations and contactless payments to the purchase of PPE equipment for staff. One of the more creative options for the funding is the option to invest in offsetting lost sales. By utilising digital platforms to establish online delivery and digital ordering systems, not only can lost revenue from physical sales be offset, in some cases, it may also lead to increased business, especially once fully established.

The application process will be split over five rounds which start on Wednesday 28th October 2020 at noon, and we advise anyone looking to take advantage of this scheme to apply sooner rather than later. Actuate Digital are on hand to help facilitate your application by providing quotations for work, and we advise you to get in touch with us immediately so we can discuss the needs of your business in full. The five application rounds will be launched by Blue Orchid on the following dates:
<ul>
 	<li>Round 1 - Wednesday, 28th October 2020 at noon and closes once 20% of the overall budget is allocated.</li>
 	<li>Round 2 - Monday, 9th November 2020 at noon and closes once 20% of the overall budget is allocated.</li>
 	<li>Round 3 - Monday, 23rd November 2020 at noon and closes once 20% of the overall budget is allocated.</li>
 	<li>Round 4 - Monday, 7th December 2020 at noon and closes once 20% of the overall budget is allocated.</li>
 	<li>Round 5 - Monday, 14th December 2020 at noon and closes once 20% of the overall budget is allocated.</li>
</ul>
<h2>Grant Eligibility</h2>
If you can answer yes to the following questions, then your business should be eligible for the grant:
<ol>
 	<li>Are you a small to medium Cheshire and Warrington based business?</li>
 	<li>Are you a business with commercial premises AND/OR employs staff other than yourself? 3. Are you a business that hasn't previously received a Cheshire and Warrington Covid Recovery capital grant?</li>
 	<li>Do you have a business bank account that you will use for your project spend?</li>
</ol>
<h2>Project Examples</h2>
Actuate are able to implement a range of digital solutions to help offset lost sales due to COVID-19, which could include:
<ul>
 	<li>A new eCommerce website based on Magento 2.4, specifically designed to addresses problems faced by businesses during lockdown. Features include online ordering for timed in-store pickup or delivery and heightened security features for employees working remotely.</li>
 	<li>Updates to a current Magento website build to introduce the new features and functionality added in the Magento 2.4 release.</li>
 	<li>EPOS setup and integration with your current eCommerce platform for seamless stock tracking combined with contactless payments to help keep your business COVID-secure.</li>
 	<li>Social commerce setup and integration with popular social media platforms such as Facebook to attract more visitors to your digital storefront.</li>
</ul>
Investing now to offset lost sales is vital for businesses feeling the pinch due to COVID-19. Consumers continue to switch to digital solutions and are driving growth for many aspects of eCommerce. By taking advantage of grants such as this from Cheshire &amp; Warrington LEP, you could secure an affordable solution from Actuate to move your business forward, so why not explore the options available to you now. Call Actuate on 01244 911360 and start the journey to recovery for your business.

Grant applications should be made through Blue Orchid via their website at

<a href="https://blueorchid.co.uk/cheshire-warrington-restructure-grant/">https://blueorchid.co.uk/cheshire-warrington-restructure-grant/</a>