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Yorkshire entrepreneurs to take advantage of £117.5m pot

The Business Enterprise Fund (BEF) is calling for more Yorkshire businesses to come forward and take advantage of a £117.5m loan pot.

The Business Enterprise Fund (BEF) has begun administering a new Government funded scheme in the Yorkshire area, which is offering a total of £117.5m in loans to 18-to-30-year-olds across the country to help them with their fledgling companies.

The scheme is being run by the Start-up Loans Company chaired by TV’s Dragons’ Den entrepreneur James Caan and began distributing money earlier this year.

A range of North and West entrepreneurs have already successfully applied for money from the scheme.

A female gas technician, a fashion group, sandwich shop owners and an entrepreneur who hires out white goods are among those to have received loans to help their companies get off the ground.

Jordan Hunt, 22, runs JP Electrical Yorkshire and has been in business for little more than a year hiring out, delivering, installing and maintaining washing machines from just £3.50 a week across the Bradford district.

He is fully qualified to repair and look after washing machines and says he saw a gap in the market for his business given the economic downturn and the loan is helping him to cope with demand following an upsurge in business.

BEF fund director Stephen Waud said JP Electrical Yorkshire is the ideal type of business to receive support from the start-up loans. He added: “Business can be difficult for anyone, particularly young entrepreneurs, so I hope they see us and the scheme as the ideal opportunity to get off to the best start.”

Nationally, it is expected the money will be allocated by April 2015, meaning about 50,000 entrepreneurs will have taken up the loans.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Mark Lane .