The Business Growth Fund Program (BCF) is a new program announced by the Queensland Government. The BCF provides funding to small and medium-sized businesses experiencing high-growth to buy specialised equipment to unlock growth potential, increase production, expand your workforce and maximise economic returns.
Applications opened on Tuesday 11th May and will remain open until funding is exhausted. The program has been established by the Department of Employment, Small Business and Training.
Businesses funded under the program can expect to experienced increased confidence for business growth as they aspire to make a transition from a small to medium sized business. The funds will also aim to increase productivity, profit, turnover and employment within the organisation by 20 percent. The funds are also expected to improve confidence to automate, increase market share, scale up, diversify or exploit exporting opportunities.
Business who apply might be eligible to receive a single up-front payment up to $50,000 (excluding GST).
You must also fund at least 25 percent of project costs to buy and implement the specialised equipment. Funding must be used to buy specialised equipment to meet business growth. The equipment must have a direct link to increasing employment and maximising economic returns.
Some examples of eligible highly-specialised equipment include but are not limited to; production equipment to meet otherwise unachievable growth demand, advanced manufacturing or digital equipment and systems or advanced logistics systems and equipment.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible to receive funding under the Business Growth Fund you must be an established small to medium-sized Queensland based business who is financially sound and has the potential to experience high growth within the next two years.
The definition of high-growth is defined as 20 percent increase in productivity, turnover, profit and/or employment in the past 12 months.
Businesses applying must also have a minimum trading history of 3 years at the time of the application, have a minimum turnover of $500,000 during the last financial year and have under 50 employees at the time of applying for the grant.
Business must also have an Australian Business Number (ABN), be registered for GST, have a Queensland based headquarters for their business, have competitive opportunities in domestic or international markets, be experiencing growth and have clearly defined high-growth and employment opportunities within Queensland. The business must also not be insolvent or have owners or directors that are an undischarged bankrupt.
To be deemed eligible for this grant, businesses must have a plan in place, a clearly defined opportunity and plan for growth, the capacity to access finance to fund the growth of your business and must be capable of demonstrating how the project for example; the implementation of specialised equipment will help your business to achieve these goals.
Application Process
Funding for the program will be awarded via a competitive assessment process with 3 stages
Stage 1: Complete a mentoring session specific to your application. You will then be offered details to apply for the grant.
Stage 2: Complete a full application for competitive shortlisting assessment.
Stage 3: If your application is shortlisted, you will be invited to pitch to business experts and department executives.