Retail experts are set to assist Stone town centre businesses with a series of free workshops this autumn.
It follows successful workshops in neighbouring Stafford, in which a number of town centre businesses have been involved during the last couple of months.
Businesses are invited to workshop launch events in Stone and the adjacent market town of Eccleshall in September and October. Sessions will then be offered to around 15 businesses, with one-to-one support at their premises.
The free workshops are part of a campaign driven by Stafford Borough Council in partnership with leading consultancy Good2Great, who have retail sector experience across the Midlands.
The expert support is just one of a series of initiatives being rolled out by the borough council with funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF). The council was awarded one of the largest pots of money in the country after successfully putting forward schemes to help the visitor economy, regeneration, climate change, and culture.
The 90-minute workshops will kick off at Granvilles in Stone on Thursday, the 19th of September, at 5:45pm. A second session will take place at the same time and venue on Wednesday, the 2nd of October. The final workshop will be at Eccleshall Cricket Club at 5:45pm on Tuesday, the 15th of October.
Councillor Rob Kenney, Deputy Leader of the council with responsibility for town centres, said
“We want to help grow our new and existing businesses and this programme demonstrates the council’s ambition to do just that across the area.
“We will be reaching out to a whole range of companies, enterprises and future entrepreneurs to invite them to take up the advice, support, or financial help that could be available so they grow and thrive in our borough.”
The scheme includes several hours of one-to-one support on aspects such as sales, marketing, and administration.
The local authority say they hope to attract more than 50 businesses to the workshops which will also be a great opportunity for networking. For more information and to sign up, go to www.staffordbc.gov.uk/high-street-boost
