The All Party Parliamentary Group on Small Shops held their second oral evidence session into their Everyday Entrepreneurs Inquiry in the House of Commons on Tuesday. Simon Danczuk MP, Luke Hall MP and David Warburton MP led the questioning of entrepreneurs and trade association leaders.
Leading entrepreneurs spoke at the inquiry, telling parliamentarians the barriers they faced when setting up their businesses and stating what more the Government could do to help them. The evidence session featured leading entrepreneurs including Kishor Patel of Houghton Trading Ltd, Nic Bottomly of Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights, and Colin Thompson of CC Tiles.
Trade association representatives, James Lowman from ACS, Michael Wheedon from the British Independent Retailers Association, and James Bielby from Federation of Wholesale Distributors also spoke at the inquiry talking about the entrepreneurial nature of their members.
ACS chief executive, James Lowman said: “The Everyday Entrepreneurs Inquiry is a fantastic way for us to make MPs aware of the large contribution everyday entrepreneurs make to the economy and local communities. The convenience sector is an expanding entrepreneurial platform with three quarters of local shops now being run by small business owners and Kishor Patel’s businesses and experience provide a fantastic example of this.”
The Everyday Entrepreneurs Inquiry was initially launched by Simon Danczuk MP, Chairman of the All Party Small Shops Group, looking at the importance of Britain’s Everyday Entrepreneurs and what they need to thrive.
More information about the Inquiry can be found here: http://www.acs.org.uk/parliamentary-group-launches-everyday-entrepreneurs-inquiry/
