This weekend marks the third annual Small Business Saturday. There 5.4 million small businesses in the UK and time and again consumers say how much they appreciate the individualism, variety and personal connection offered by an independent retailer. Our local independents are a prominent factor in why Horsham continues to attract shoppers from a very wide area, supporting the local economy.
For those keen to show their support for local shops this Saturday is a great time - across the country 17million did so last year. In the run up to this weekend I visited local shops and businesses with Ann Swain of the Federation of Small Businesses and Cllr Gordon Lindsay, who is responsible for Economic Development at HDC. As ever there was wide variety – from childrens’ soft play in Swan Walk, to market stalls. Some businesses have taken transforming decisions over the last year – it was good to see Gobsmack Comics thriving following its move within the town. Cocoa Loco is another great local success story – producing its “bespoke chocolate” locally it initially sold only on-line but now has a shop front as well –the “new economy” benefitting from the additional value of a shopfront on the High Street.
I saw Cocoa Loco twice on Saturday in the afternoon on their home turf and in the morning supporting, as did many, the Fair Trade Christmas Fair in St Johns Church. A good turnout supporting small family businesses globally.
The vibrancy of our High Streets and international trade in all its forms has been front of mind this week in Parliament. The Chancellor’s “Autumn Statement” had a difficult balancing act to strike. The country continues to spend more than it earns – but the amount by which it does so has been cut by 2/3 and will continue to reduce. However we have a national challenge not only with our deficit but our productivity – how cheaply we can produce goods and services compared to others. The Chancellor has set aside over £20billion for investment in Research and Development and infrastructure to help meet this challenge as we focus on the challenges and opportunities of the post BREXIT world.