FEAT believes it will be easier for small, women’s businesses to access Olympics opportunities if they work together as a group or consortium to access larger contracts and longer-term work opportunities. Therefore the project aims to cluster women’s businesses and business support into three sectors:
- building and construction,
- tourism and hospitality, and
- sport and recreation.
Why build the women’s business co-ops?
It will be easier for small, women’s businesses to access Olympics opportunities if they work together as a group or consortium to access larger contracts and longer-term work opportunities. Social enterprises will provide benefits to women’s businesses through:
- Undertaking joint marketing.
- Establishing links with larger suppliers and contractors.
- Creating capacity to take on larger, longer-term contracts.
- Opening up access to Olympics and post-Olympics opportunities.
- Creating opportunities for joint buying.
- Access to a tool bank of specialist equipment and the possibility of company vehicles.
- Creating the ability to provide a more comprehensive package of services eg plumbing, plastering and carpentry or massage, yoga, and aromatherapy.
- Additional support with business advice, book-keeping, tax, benefits, childcare, training etc.
- Access to virtual business locations in the Olympics boroughs
- Improved links to the corporate sector and big business.
What type of services are the women’s business co-ops likely to provide?
1. Building and light construction
Building maintenance services to social housing providers, plasterers, painters, electricians, plumbers, locksmiths, cabinet makers etc.
2. Tourism and hospitality
Bed and breakfast, home stays, East London tours, catering, event and conference management, festival performers, community cultural programmes
3. Sport and lesiure sectors
Fitness instructors, personal trainers, sports coaches, holistic therapsits
As part of this clustering the project will develop three women’s business co-operatives. The co-ops will
- establish systems, procedures and online management tools to enable them to market the network of businesses to contractors,
- build consortium models of contract delivery to access supply chains,
- tender for and manage larger contracts on behalf of groups of women’s businesses,
- create virtual office networks from which multiple business can operate,
- establish On line trading, and adapt employment agency models to provide flexible employment opportunities for BAMEW
- provide administrative support through managing payroll and contract payments and other business services,
- provide access to resources, childcare and training providers,
- Share resources e.g. accountancy, bookkeeping, monitoring systems and staff, admin and office support, childcare, marketing.
To join one of the networks go to the membership section of this site click here and register. At the start of the registration process you will be given the option of indicating and interest in one of the sector networks.
