Scale Up Ashford scheme continues to support businesses in the Borough

As part of Ashford Borough Council’s (ABC) continued commitment to developing the economic prosperity of the borough, we are once again working with Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce (KICC) to roll out the Scale Up Ashford programme to support businesses.

Scale Up Ashford first launched in 2017 and aims to help businesses who have been trading for at least three years by providing them with the advice and tools to develop a plan to support the growth of their business. Each business receives 32hrs of intensive 1:1 coaching with expert coaches (from KICC) and forms part of a cohort that will be exposed to networking and shared learning opportunities. They are also supported in creating and reaching ambitious growth goals that support not only their individual businesses, but the local economy too.

The 2022/2023 cohort of 12 businesses saw the creation of 48 new jobs and an average increase in turnover of 18.6%, as well as over £400k of growth investments. Businesses in this cohort included Stephenson Bros., Ashford Outdoor Cleaning, Borderpoint Films, and Kare Plus.

Here are just some of the successes of the 2022/2023 cohort:

• Ashford Therapy & Rehabilitation Alliance were helped to improve their overall business structure, focussing on people management and financial control. As a result, they are in the process of expanding their clinic to the first floor to offer more rooms for practice and will be recruiting additional physiotherapists.
• Bloomsburys were able to streamline their services to refocus away from glamping and more on couple’s retreats. This has helped refocus their businesses and increased stability.
• Frasers of Edgerton were given the tools to look at their marketing strategy and were shown ways to utilise low-cost social media channels to directly target and engage with potential clients online. From this, they have been able to launch tours of the estate and have networked with other companies to work together on an ongoing basis to support their carbon-credit initiative.

This year’s cohort consists of 7 businesses who vary hugely in their activity and come from across the borough. The cohort is made up of;

• Label manufacturers Lemon Labels
• Video production companies Modus Films and OCD Media
• Opticians Brownbill
• Tourism operators Wine Tours of Kent
• Publishing and design company Sideways Media
• Construction surveyors Costplan

Each one of these businesses is on a journey to support and develop their businesses growth and cement themselves further into the fabric of the borough. We will keep you posted on their achievements later in the year!

For now, businesses can register their interest in being part of the next cohort here: https://info.kentinvictachamber.co.uk/scale-up-ashford