COVID Update 20

The Government's new Bounce Back Loan Scheme goes live today. It will allow businesses to borrow between £2,000 - £50,000 and access the cash within days. Loans will be interest free for the first 12 months and businesses can apply online through a short and simple form.

The Government will provide lenders with a 100% guarantee for the loan and pay any fees and interest for the first 12 months.

We know of one company owner who called us yesterday to say that he applied for a Loan at 9.00am and the money was in his bank account by 5.00pm. He had agreed a six year term: The first year was completely interest free and the remaining five years were fixed at 2.5%. He is using his loan to pay off more expensive loans, such as his company vehicle fleet.

Details on the Bounce Back Loan Scheme

Although it’s not yet compulsory, we suspect that face masks will be encouraged shortly which makes total common sense. But which to buy? We have all see on television pictures of NHS staff with sore faces after wearing plastic masks, and other masks available on the market (many of them made in China) seem really thin and are not really suitable for re-use.

Manufactured right here in Hinckley by the Davenport family, these new comfortable and multi-use knitted, easy-wash face masks and snoods provide the ideal solution and are also pleasing to look at. Unlike lesser quality alternatives, these safety products are made with a fluid repellent finish so there is a near zero chance of them becoming damp, in fact this treatment will ‘repel’ rather than absorb any bacteria. In addition, these multi-time re-usable masks and snoods are also treated with an antimicrobial wash during the manufacturing process which is yet another layer of protection. They have sold 30,000 to date, and are now available to Hinckley BID member businesses with a special 10% discount.

Due to their popularity, we strongly advise you to order yours now. To see the range, and to purchase online, please go to: www.protectivefacemask.co and enter the code HB2020
in the CODE box before final checkout to get your discount.

And it’s another opportunity to support a go-ahead Hinckley company with a long-standing tradition for manufacturing high-quality knitted products

Both HBBC and ourselves are awaiting more details of a new scheme which should help businesses who have not received a grant (as their landlord receives and pays the annual business rates demand for every tenant in their building).

We will provide more information once Government have provided actual details to Local Authorities but in the meantime, if you have not qualified for a grant so far, and have not already advised us of that, please could you e-mail steve@hinckleybid.co.uk
with your company details and a contact phone number so that I can add you to the list.

Please be warned, and take note of the advice in the link below:

COVID-19 exploited by cyber criminals

We have a strong and committed following on Facebook, both on our own BID page and on ‘Wonderful Hinckley’ which we co-fund with the Borough Council. We would be delighted to help you promote your goods and services and help you share your stories. (When you post, please tag @Hinckley BID to ensure we see your post and can then share it to our pages).

We have been doing everything we can to get the message out locally about all BID businesses that are still trading and we want to ensure that the SHOP LOCAL message remains the mantra as we move forward and out of full lockdown which will hopefully be very soon. One of the outcomes of this awful pandemic is to highlight the importance of our communities and having a ‘High Street’ that can meet their daily needs. We are determined to make sure BID member businesses are marketed fully in Hinckley and the surrounding towns and villages to capture as much market share and customer loyalty as possible.

Please get in touch with toni@hinckleybid.co.uk. We are here to support you.

You have probably heard many friends, relatives and colleagues discussing the popular chat app ‘Zoom’, which is best-known for offering easy to use video calls. Here at the BID we have been using Zoom to continue with our team meetings and we are finding the app extremely helpful to keep in touch with colleagues and businesses.

Signing up to Zoom is free and easy and you will just need an email address and speaker and microphone in you IT equipment. You can find the Zoom sign-up page here: https://zoom.us/signup

We have familiarised ourselves with the Zoom functionality, so if you would like some further assistance with setting this up for your business, please contact Toni at toni@hinckleybid.co.uk. Below is a link to some further useful instructions to getting started with Zoom.

Getting started with Zoom

Hinckley BID are currently putting plans into place to deliver a range of FREE digital training sessions, available through Zoom for BID Members, to aid your sales by promoting your products and/or services online.

Below is a list of the initial courses we are looking to hold, which will be designed to suit all levels of digital marketing skills – whether a beginner (and maybe a bit scared by it) or an advanced daily user who would benefit from the latest tips:

• E-Commerce Training
• Digital Marketing Training
• Online Selling

For all businesses that are interested in taking part in any of the courses, please contact toni@hinckleybid.co.uk and provide us with the following details:

• Company Name
• Number of owners and employees requesting training
• Which digital training session you would like to attend (see above)
• Preferred day/times (we will try and schedule out training sessions at popular times to ensure as many BID members can be included in each session)
  

Behind the scenes, a large amount of work is taking place on a Hinckley Town Centre Recovery Plan and we will keep feeding you relevant information whenever it is available. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact: steve@hinckleybid.co.uk.

Steve Wegerif (BID Director)
steve@hinckleybid.co.uk
07709 394841

Toni Scott
toni@hinckleybid.co.uk
07821 123026

Martina Smullen
martina@hinckleybid.co.uk
07496 839304

Best wishes, stay safe and well.
The Hinckley BID Team