As life returns to near normal, hopefully, Mike Lade, one of the founders of the Oswestry Angels, formed at the start of the pandemic to help residents with food, prescriptions, PPE and so many other things is focusing on trying to help small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Businesses of all sizes have had great difficulties over the last year. Some have gone, some have been forced to change their business model to survive. The High Street has struggled and so have many small businesses in so many business sectors.

So, Mike Lade has started a Face Book group called “Oswestry area Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses” as a self-help group. Business owners can support each other with new ideas in the new normal as a discussion group or discuss any current difficulties using the experience of the other members in the group. Many have really thought outside of the box to keep their business going using online purchasing for the first time or using Zoom to reach customers for exercise, Pilates and even language classes etc. Those that have trodden that path are able to help others that want to try on-line selling.

Many people have become redundant or on short-time and this has given people time to evaluate their lives and opportunities. This country is great at producing entrepreneurs with so many ideas but don’t really know where to start in developing their idea into reality. These are the group that is near to Mike’s heart and wants to help.

Mike is a Business Mentor with the Princess Trust so is used to taking people through the process to get a business to market.

Mike said, ”I really like helping people fulfil there ideas through the Princess Trust and I have helped many people outside of the Trust to start their own businesses of many sorts and many business sectors. If I can help anyone in our area to step up and think about a new business or try something new in an existing business, then that is what I set the group up for and I am ready to help.”

This group is not just for Oswestry. Anyone within a 20mile radius in business or with a business idea is welcome to join the Face Book group “Oswestry area Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses”.

Our new normal is full of opportunity …