Online program for NSW women starting or operating a small business

Women in Business provides women living or working in New South Wales with access to a fully subsidised online program to help them establish a new small business or consolidate an existing small business.

Status: Open. Application detail: You can apply at any time.

Overview

This fully subsidised online program is available to help women in New South Wales develop sustainable small businesses.

What you get: Fully subsidised online business training program with access to resources, events and other services.

Who is this for? Women in NSW wanting to start, or who are already operating a small business.

The program offers:

24/7 online access to topics that can be mixed and matched to suit your needs

insights from Australia’s leading female entrepreneurs

access to small business events

other resources and services.

What are the eligibility criteria?

To be eligible, you must:

be aged 18 years or over

identify as female

be establishing or own a business:

with a valid Australian business number (ABN)
registered or trading in NSW
with 0 to 199 employees

live or work in NSW

be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, humanitarian visa holder or New Zealand citizen.

How do you apply?

You can find out more about eligibility and how to apply at Women in Business.

Australia’s new small business boom

A Xero study shows Australia’s small business boom is expected to continue over the next ten years.

Research into Australia’s small business sector reveals that our small business boom is expected to continue over the next ten years, with an additional 3.5 million new small businesses expected to be established.

While the pandemic disrupted thousands of businesses, it also created opportunities for new businesses in a variety of industries. For example, while brick-and-mortar stores were bleeding, e-commerce reached new heights. Similarly, Fintech and Edtech companies saw a significant increase in their consumer base.

Prior to the pandemic, small businesses accounted for 99.8% of total businesses, 66% of employment, and 55% of value added in Australia. This rapid growth in response to an economic crisis is unprecedented, and it is the polar opposite of what happened after previous periods of economic uncertainty, such as the 2007-09 Global Financial Crisis.

READ REPORT

According to the study, the following external factors are likely to have contributed to the increase in new business registrations:

Job uncertainty: reduced hours, redundancies, limited opportunities for pay rises
Great resignation: Australians re-evaluated their job satisfaction and sought greater enrichment, control, and flexibility in their work.
Digitalisation: increased use of technology and digitalisation has decentralised many workplaces creating opportunities for business owners to work in regional areas.
New opportunities: the rise of the gig economy, digital ways of working, and favourable business lending have created the conditions for more budding entrepreneurs to take the plunge.

Australia’s small businesses are investing in their recovery, with an uptick in financing for equipment and machinery financing among small businesses.

The Federal Budget included provisions that allow small businesses to receive a $120 tax deduction for every $100 spent on employee training or technology investment, up to a maximum of $100,000 per year.

According to Xero, the landmark report arrives at a hopeful chapter in our nation’s pandemic journey: one that sees a surge in small business creation as Australians adapt to uncertainty.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL

Tag: entrepreneurs

Women in Business NSW