MANY of the major problems faced by small and medium sized businesses in the Peterborough and Stamford area were addressed at the inaugural Value 4 Business (V4B) event. Hosted by the Peterborough and South Kesteven branches of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), around 80 local business people attended the event on the evening of Tuesday 15 September 2015.

Held at Grange Farm Equestrian Centre, Wansford, attendees heard from three experienced speakers. FSB policy director Mike Cherry explained how the interests of SMEs are being driven through Parliament. Maurice Power, managing director of Ferguson Financial Solicitors, and Shaz Nawaz, of AA Chartered Accountants, shared insights on the complete sales journey, from making the sale and getting pricing right, all the way through to ensuring you get paid on time.

FSB regional chairman, Doug Balderson said, “The event was a great success and it was wonderful to see so many local businesses making new connections at this inaugural event. Encouragingly, the activity that the FSB is undertaking to represent SMEs with Parliament was very well received by the attendees and we gained useful insight into the biggest issues for businesses in our region today. We look forward to the event becoming a regular fixture on the calendar.”

Maurice Power said, “Something that really caught the attendees’ attention was the size of the late payments issue for SMEs in the UK. £32.4bn is currently owed to SMEs in UK and on average £32K due to each SME in late payments. Getting people together for this kind of event is not only enjoyable and great for networking, but it can also be powerful in driving local business forward.”

The FSB ‘V4B’ events are open to members and non-members and another similar event will be planned in early 2016. Keep an eye on www.fsb.org.uk/lincolnshire for information.