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Shalini Khemka CBE , Founder and CEO , E2E

Reflecting on the recent timeline , there have also been various external factors that have had a direct impact on SMEs :

Brexit – 2016

Brexit caused an increase in the costs of importing goods and hiring staff , with around 80 % of SMEs facing the brunt of this uplift in price . Other challenges also included the tariffs for British exports , disruption in supply chains , decrease in EU workers , lack of confidence and a feeling of instability in the UK market .

COVID – 2019

From declining revenues , an inability to retain employees , postponing growth plans and defaulting on loans , the pandemic placed exceptional strain on SMEs . Businesses were forced into new ways of working , with many establishments having to shut their doors , work from home and implement new strategies to survive this difficult period . Whilst SMEs were amongst the quickest to react to the situation , they also faced a lack of incoming capital and urgency in accessing funds .

Russia / Ukraine conflict – 2023

As with the other geopolitical events , the conflict between Russia and Ukraine saw a significant relationship between price changes in the supply chain process of family-owned SMEs due to the ongoing conflict . With the rising cost of supply chains , SMEs will experience further difficulties with managing their supply chain processes .

Recession – Q3 / Q4 2023

The UK found itself in a recession in the last quarter last year , after shrinking for two threemonth periods in a row . The GDP experienced its weakest annual change since the financial crisis in 2009 , having risen by 0.1 % compared to the growth of 3 / 4 % in 2022 . Since 2022 , the demand for finance by SMEs has lessened , mostly due to the fact that the downturn in the economy caused a lack of confidence levels in these firms . The withdrawal of the bespoke COVID-19 loan guarantee scheme has also contributed towards this trend .

Despite this , things are looking up , as the UK exits this period of recession with the

BEING PART OF A NETWORK OR COMMUNITY DEDICATED TO SUPPORTING START-UPS , SCALE-UPS AND SMES ON THEIR BUSINESS JOURNEY CAN BE BENEFICIAL FOR THOSE LOOKING TO GROW AND NAVIGATE ANY CHALLENGES .