South Oxfordshire has one of the highest five-year ‘survival rates’ for SMEs in the UK (Nesta's 'State of Small Business' report, 2017), with Oxfordshire businesses in general also boasting a standout five-year survival rate of 48.6% from 2010-2016 (ONS report, 2017).
To support the continuation of this trend across the county and supporting Oxfordshire’s small business community, OxLEP Business will be holding the inaugural ‘Marketplace’ event at Said Business School’s Egrove Park on Friday 8 June.
The business-to-business event aims to focus on supporting local SMEs, enabling them to showcase their products and services within a central exhibit space, network with peers, and utilise a series of breakout seminars with advice from subject experts.
Just last week (Wednesday 23 June), bi-monthly business magazine, B4 held their annual ‘Business in Oxford’ event, a larger-scale opportunity for businesses from all four corners of the county to showcase their work and network with likeminded individuals.
The occasion allowed individuals to attend a series of talks on the ways in which business currently operates within Oxfordshire, the direction in which this may be headed in future, and what opportunities this is likely to bring.
OxLEP Chief Executive Nigel Tipple discussed Oxford’s Economic Development and Strategy, describing Oxfordshire as a ‘genuine global asset’, whilst Director of Business development Richard Byard explained the ways in which transformative technologies are likely to create jobs for ‘Generation Z’.
There were also a series of breakout discussions on ‘Oxfordshire’s Business Voice’ running alongside these talks throughout the day, hosted by Communications Manager Rob Panting.
As Oxfordshire holds such impressive figures in terms of SME survival and success rates, it is critical support continues to remain a priority within the county.
OxLEP Business operates as the Growth Hub for Oxfordshire, utilising the Elevate programme to enable SMEs to receive as much key support and funding as possible – this consists of a series of workshops, assistance applying for competitive grant funding, and free support via network navigators.
Further to this, a discussion on ‘Enterprise’ within Oxfordshire will be held at OxLEP’s next quarterly Q&A event on Tuesday 10 July, debating the opportunities for SMEs within the county. Further details will be available in due course.
Head to the events section of our website for more details on the Marketplace event.
