$50K on offer from Business Growth Fund.

I absolutely love the Business Growth Fund! There is so much assistance available right now for small and medium sized businesses and I'm always on the look out for grants that may be of interest to my clients and the wider business community. This one is up to $50K and is a beauty.

The Queensland Government through Advancing Small Business Queensland has opened the Business Growth Fund Program. This is a fund for businesses who meet the eligibility criteria, submit a compliant application and are awarded the funding. It is very competitive - as you can imagine.

The equipment or service that you are applying for funding for must have a direct link to increasing employment or contributing to your business' growth strategy. If your application is successful, a single up-front grant payment will be made directly to the business.

Examples of what the funding can be used for include:

• engage business consultants to provide advice on matters such as business structures and governance, systems improvement, export and commercial negotiations
• engage an advisory board
• intellectual property (IP) advice
• feasibility studies

Examples of eligible highly specialised equipment or services include:

• production equipment to meet otherwise unachievable growth demand
• advanced digital equipment and systems such as 3D printers, scientific equipment or medical devices
• advanced logistics systems and equipment

Organisations need to meet these criteria to apply:

• have a minimum trading history of 3 years at the time of application
• have a minimum turnover of $500,000 for the last financial year
• have fewer than 50 employees at the time of applying for the grant
• have an Australian Business Number (ABN) and be registered for GST
• have Queensland headquarters
• have competitive opportunities in domestic or international markets
• be experiencing growth and have clearly defined high-growth and employment opportunities in Queensland
• not be insolvent or have owners/directors that are an undischarged bankrupt.

​Your business must have the potential for high-growth within the next 2 years. High-growth is generally considered to be a 20% increase in turnover or employment.

The applying business must have:

• a business plan in place
• the capacity to access finance to fund the growth of their business
• clearly defined an opportunity and developed a plan for growth
• demonstrated how the funding will assist the business to achieve these goals.

To learn more, please visit the Business Growth Fund Program webpage.