Monthly Archives: August 2020

Hot Business News Today

Shops, gyms and restaurants call for £2bn property bounceback grant

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Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
Shops, gyms, restaurants and pubs have called for the Government to split the cost of unpaid rent with commercial landlords.
Trade associations including the UKHospitality, ukactive and the British Retail Consortium have issued a joint call for the Government to introduce a Property Bounceback Grant.
The Property Bounceback Grant would cost an estimated £2bn, yet it would save 375,000 jobs and more than pay for itself nearly fourfold in the first year alone.
>See also: Where to find your £5,000 small business technology grant
Analysis commissioned by the trade bodies found that if Government support covered 50 per cent of unpaid rents across the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors for only six months, it would cost £1.75bn.
However, the total return to the Treasury in terms of tax revenue from economic activity would be almost £7bn, and 375,000 jobs would be saved – a return on investment of nearly 400 per cent.
Without financial support from the Government, warn the trade bodies, both tenants and landlords face the very real risk of business failure, hundreds of thousands of job losses, and long-lasting damage to high streets across the UK.
>See also: How to make a successful business interruption insurance claim
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Hot Business News Today

What winning The Start-Up Series meant for me – Ed Bird, Bird Eyewear

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Originally written by Timothy Adler on Small Business
The idea of launching fashionable, eco-conscious eyewear came to drummer Ed Bird in 2015 after developing a product idea for drummers using sustainable materials. Fast forward to April 2020, Bird Eyewear became the first UK eyewear company to become a certified B Corp in recognition of its outstanding commitment to sustainable and ethical business.
There weren’t many brands out there making well-made sustainable eyewear says Bird. So, Ed and his younger brothers Lawrence and Paul decided to launch their Bird Sunglasses brand with a triple mission statement: people, profit and planet.
Bird says: “We wanted to fill the gap in the eyewear industry with affordable frames that made a real difference in the world. We wanted to demonstrate that we were a more-than-profit company and a force for good.”
>See also: What winning The Start-Up Series meant for me – Les Dawson, Uniblock
Each pair of Bird Sunglasses helps distribute solar lights across Africa through their Share Your Sun partnership with charity SolarAid. They help create micro businesses in communities, weaning people off toxic and polluting kerosene and paraffin burners.
Bird spent the whole of 2016 researching the sustainable eyewear market and creating prototypes. He settled on working

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