The UK’s flair for turning adversity into opportunity has helped a Gateshead company reach a major milestone well ahead of forecasts.
Transmit Startups says a surge in demand for finance from lockdown entrepreneurs means it has now supported thousands of members of the UK’s business community with £100million-worth of funding.
Transmit, which is the UK’s leading provider of Start Up Loans for business, has invested in 8,578 new entrepreneurs across the length and breadth of the UK since being set up in 2013. Businesses backed range from valet-style bike parking to vegan handbags, and everything imaginable in between.
The company has seen a spike in demand for its services since the pandemic, as more people consider setting up their own business as a solution to employment uncertainty or after making money from a lockdown side hustle.
Transmit is now receiving three times the number of applications it did at the same time last year and is in the process of recruiting its eighth new staff member in a year, to cope with the demand.
Business Support Director Damian Baetens said: “What we are seeing on a daily basis is the UK’s resilience and relentless passion for enterprise. These are people who refuse to be kept down, and we love to see it.
“If we can couple that ambition and creativity with the fact that more people are making mindful decisions to support small businesses, the UK’s independents will be in a really strong position as we come out of this crisis.”
Transmit Startups provides fixed-interest loans and high impact mentoring to aspiring entrepreneurs who are struggling to access traditional finance. The loans are available to businesses under two years old.
The company was created by three North East entrepreneurs; Richard Myers, Damian Baetens and Ian Straker, who shared an ambition to help others starting out in the world of business by offering a refreshingly different approach to enterprise support.
Transmit employs 33 people across its head office at Northern Design Centre, Gateshead, London, its Scottish base in Glasgow and its network of consultants across the UK. It offers funding, consulting, coaching and mentoring services to entrepreneurs throughout their business journey.
Operations Director Ian Straker said: “As a startup ourselves we understand how important it is to access money and the right support when you need it and we are committed to giving UK entrepreneurs the best possible start.
“This passion for what we do and the care the team gives to helping each and every one of the businesses we work with is what has made us such a popular choice with entrepreneurs. We look forward to continuing to build on this momentum in 2021 as more new businesses spring up from the pandemic.”
Transmit’s £100million milestone comes just weeks after research revealed one in five adults have an ambition to start a business in 2021.
The Start-up Appetite Report, conducted by Start Up Loans and Enterprise Nation shows that that entrepreneurial ambition is strongest in the 18-34 age group and 54% of those planning to start up plan to do so by starting a side hustle first.