News

Free ‘Business Start-Up’ courses are being delivered across the county in the New Year, specifically for Ukrainians who have re-settled in Wiltshire…

YTKO wins Queen’s Award for Enterprise 2022 for its excellence in promoting opportunity through social mobility….

A strong business proposal is a top opportunity to win new business. It is the ultimate sales document, a condensed version of all the value your solution brings to a client’s problem. …

Outset Cornwall launches a new grant fund to provide fledgling businesses with the financial boost they need to get started….

Build your customer base with our top tips on how to attract new leads and maintain excellent service to your loyal following. …

Cashflow is the number one thing to get right when starting up a business. Even some of the best business ideas can fall flat because there isn’t enough money to keep it going, let alone growing.  Indeed a staggering 90% of small business failures are due to poor cash flow….

In this blog, we look at the recent trends in terms of women in UK starting and running their own businesses. We also examine the reasons why women make great business leaders, and finally we talk about why Outset Start and Grow Portsmouth programme backs women-led businesses….

With the Winter Olympics just over, and the Paralympic Winter Games starting this week, the ski jump comes to mind when thinking about starting a new business: The challenge you have to conquer when starting at the top of the slope, and then taking a leap, not knowing if you are going to land safely, let alone whether a gold medal awaits you at the end. …

As a busy business owner, and even if you are just starting out in business, do you wonder where all the times goes in the day and how you can do more? Do you ever finish your workday feeling like you weren’t able to accomplish everything on your list? You start with a plan, a […]…

The Outset Start and Grow programme is supporting aspiring entrepreneurs and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) based in the PO1-PO6 postcode areas of Portsmouth with a mix of intensive support and grant funding.  On completing the support programme, participants are now benefiting from pre-qualified access to grants towards the costs of starting and growing their business.  Any […]…

With six million SMEs in the UK, accounting for 99% of all businesses, 33% of all employment, and 21% of economic turnover – the pandemic sent ripples through our economy and communities.  Many businesses in our region had to close or operate at reduced capacity throughout the pandemic. So it’s no surprise that two years […]…

Many businesses that fail young simply don’t understand their marketplace and where they fit within it. Since 2019, access to markets has been the most vital or very important factor for future growth for scaleups according to the Scale Up Institute. When you have a few big, repeat customers every month, you can feel a false […]…

There is now a short window open to people like you – who are thinking about starting their own business – to get free business support and a grant from the Outset Start and Grow Portsmouth programme. The UK Government’s Community Renewal Fund (CRF) is focused on regenerating communities and enabling more people to benefit […]…

Growing your business might seem a daunting task when you oversee every aspect of your business. Regardless of whether you are just starting out or have some experience, managing your business has many challenges. This explains why roughly half of small businesses close their doors by the fifth year. How you deal with these challenges defines […]…

Many entrepreneurs are intimidated by the idea of writing a business plan. The idea of writing such a detailed document may remind you of the dreaded days of school, or may just feel that you can better use your time elsewhere. “An intelligent plan is the first step to success. The man who plans knows […]…

How are your New Year resolutions going? Perhaps you have been thinking about becoming your own boss and have a great idea for a new business, or if you are already trading, then now is the right time to inject some new direction, skills and money into your business to take it to the next […]…

In December we reviewed David J Schwartz’s seminal book, The Magic of Thinking Big. Following our reading, we came together to discuss the different aspects of the book, and the various lessons that can be learned. …

Start-up and growing businesses in Portsmouth can now benefit from a new intensive enterprise programme delivered by YTKO and funded by Portsmouth City Council through the UK Community Renewal Fund…

Our wonderful Outset clients are a very talented bunch, so we decided to put together our ultimate Outset Christmas Gift Guide to help you find the perfect gift and support small businesses while you’re at it…….

So many of our amazing Outset clients are lined up and booked into the many Christmas markets taking place between now and the big day, so we’ve put together a few festive dates for your diary…….

Step Forward is a new project to develop volunteers and provide business training is launching in Bournemouth….

We are thrilled to report our first Grand Day Out was a huge success, featuring 23 of our brilliant Outset clients……..

Over 1,000 new businesses are now up and running across the county, thanks to free support they received from Outset Cornwall…….

At Outset Cornwall, we’re all about supporting new and small businesses to thrive in their communities, and where better to find them than at one of Cornwall’s many local craft and farmers markets…….

At a recent event, TechSwindon Summit, Bev Hurley, CBE, CEO of YTKO, presented to a virtual seminar to over 50 businesses, outlining the need to further build their resilience to remain sustainable in the future. …

YTKO has been selected to provide business support services to entrepreneurs across the Swindon & Wiltshire Local Area Partnership (SWLEP), through its award-winning Outset programme….

Recently Outset events took place in Cornwall, Bournemouth and Plymouth to mark what has become a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. delivery partner for the Government’s Start Up Loan Scheme….

Official delivery partner for the Government’s Start Up Loan Scheme, Outset Finance is marking the significant achievement of providing a total of £20million worth of funding to business start-ups in the past six years….

If you live and work in Cornwall, then there’s a high chance you’ve bought the products or used the services of an Outset business. Don’t believe that could be the case? Well, let’s just see……….

In 2019 the SJL Foundation launched a new initiative to give 8 entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch their new business start-up idea to a panel of 4 judges in the House of Commons. Businesses running for less than a year had the opportunity to enter for a chance to win funding and mentorship for their […]…

Outset were delighted to be one of the businesses, community organisations, volunteers and local residents that were honoured for success across employment and learning services by the Bristol City Council Employment, Skills & Learning (ESL) Department….

The last two years have seen Outset’s Bristol branch help 200 individuals and start over 30 local businesses in the city, as part of the Enterprising West of England project, funded by the European Regional Development Fund. In this Outset programme nearly half (47%) of its entrepreneurs are from BAME backgrounds and is closely aligned […]…

Start Up Loans delivery partner Outset Finance is celebrating their success after hitting another impressive milestone; securing a total of £10million for UK entrepreneurs looking to start or grow their businesses….

Outset, the pre-start and startup programme from YTKO, has launched across Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch as part of The Dorset Business Growth Partnership…

A mission to support 10,000 entrepreneurs and established businesses has not just been achieved – but exceeded by 50%, and four years early…