I am always surprised at how little emerging companies investigate and then actually use government grants.
While we all think of venture capital, private equity and bank loans as crucial forms of funding, a government grant at the right time and in the right place can be hugely beneficial.
One of the big reasons companies are hesitant to get a grant is the process and the work involved. But as we saw this week with changes to the Federal Government’s Commercialisaiton Australia program, this problem is being addressed.
The Commercialisation Australia grants are open to businesses with up to $50 million in revenue and are designed to help companies develop ideas and turn them into real businesses.
Grants come in different shapes and sizes – basically between $50,000 and $2 million – and under the original guidelines of the scheme had to be repaid once the company met certain hurdles.
But the Government has now changed that, and the grants no longer need to be repaid. That’s made the process of applying much easier and should provide you with another great reason to check the grants out.
Early stage companies need all the help they can get and these grants deserve attention. They could be the little kick-start you need to get your idea a bit further down the road.
Get it done – today!
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
