Introducing PiVot Crowdfunding
Estimates vary between 25% and 75% for the proportion of Highstreet / Mainstreet businesses that won’t survive the sudden loss of income and business paralysis of the current lockdown.
The impact on the very fabric of local society at either end of that scale will be huge, not to mention local economies. The human cost is even higher given the many many thousands of businesses and so livelihoods and jobs lost.
That fire is still raging, even after the government has done what it can. We don’t yet know the outcome.
But what can we do about it right now? Having spent more than a month establishing the UK Fintech taskforce, to help reshape and enable the UK government’s response to Covid-19? (a whole other story) this is the question we asked ourselves.
Can Crowdfunding Help Save Main Street?
Then the phone rang with a request: Could crowdfunding, seed crowdfunding, help a restaurant business, missing out on government help, to survive the lockdown?
Research quickly revealed that it was already saving some businesses who had the knowledge, inspiration and initiative to apply it – usually with ‘a little help from friends’. But this is not widespread or well known to the vast majority of people and businesses that it could help.
Our first conversation with restaurant owner Giuseppe Cina of Trattoria Domenico in Huddersfield revealed that the answer was a clear YES – but that there were some barriers to overcome – not least: could this be done quickly enough to make a difference?
It is usually good advice to allow at least two to three months to prepare properly for a campaign. Could it be done, well, in less – much less?
A week later the clear answer was YES, because the campaign was launched, after just four days of intensive work, and going well. (There are clear reasons as to why and how this is possible which we will explore in Tuesday’s webinar).
A Radical Transformation
Today, two weeks into the campaign, things have changed radically at Trattoria Domenico. The business has reconnected with its, now increasingly engaged, customer base and – despite lockdown and with its doors still firmly shut – is back in business!
How did this transformation happen? Well the full story is here.
But in short, having dealt with the initial barriers and misapprehensions Giuseppe set to work and, with guidance from my partner at TheCrowdfundingCentre, Kay Klug – and a little help from her friends – crafted the campaign and some creative rewards that would bring new business and people back into the restaurant after lockdown while also being attractive to contributors.
Reconnected to Customers, Now – and an Enthusiastic, Connected, Crowd
Giuseppe has already raised more than $9,000 (£7,500) and is going well. More importantly his customers have become an enthusiastic crowd of supporters, hungry for the latest news and developments. Obvious pun swerved.
From the start Giuseppe had ruled out pivoting to provide takeaway, fearing that he might undermine his core business – but this experience, and the demand from customers, has changed that, as well as his perception and relationship with the Domenico crowd!
The Means, and Lubrication, to Pivot Fast
So a few days ago Giuseppe launched the Trattoria Domenico takeaway menu – to so much acclaim that the interview I did with him via his phone (link above) was repeatedly interrupted by fans trying to get through with takeaway orders!
So can this help an independent restaurant transform itself, pivot, and survive in the face of businesses interruption and lockdown? Certainly!
Not Just Restaurants and Pubs
But we now know it can help a wide range of other independent businesses pivot in similar (and sometimes not-so-similar) ways. That it can reconnect businesses with their customers, especially during lockdown, and turn them into fans and advocates. That it can provide the lubrication needed to pivot fast.
An Additional, and Alternative, Solution – Saving thousands of business, livelihoods and jobs
We believe this could provide an additional, sometimes an alternative solution, to government aid in the form of loans that will inevitably burden such businesses for years to come – potentially saving thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of business, livelihoods and jobs.
The First PiVot Hub!
So we have decided to create the first, global, PiVot hub. To enable independent businesses everywhere to pivot – benefitting from years of experience and all this new form of crowdfunding can do to reconnect, change, and enhance the relationship of independent businesses with their customers.
To not just survive the lockdowns, and an uncertain future, but start to function and live again, preparing to not just to survive but thrive – and be ready, with a ready stream of enthusiastic customers waiting when the doors open again.
To find out more or join our us as Giuseepe answers your questions as we launch the first PiVot hub by registering at FundingHubs.com/pivot
Barry James is author of New Routes to Funding, on Crowdfunding, Cofounder and CEO of TheCrowdfundingCentre and Chairs the British Blockchain and Frontier Technologies Association