Why Apply for Grants?

Winning a grant is exciting and can supercharge your business. A grant can be an important source of funds, but it comes with responsibilities. So, why apply for a grant?
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF GRANTS?

FINANCIAL BENEFITS
Grants provide essential funding without diluting equity, enabling founders to retain ownership of their company and control over business decisions. Unlike loans, grants do not need to be repaid which provides businesses with necessary capital without the burden of interest payments or repayment schedules. Grants can make high-risk projects possible that might not attract immediate venture capital or private investment. Some grants provide funding up-front, which can be beneficial for cash flow. 

 

NON-FINANCIAL BENEFITS
Grants also offer a range of benefits that go beyond mere financial support, such as:

  • Business Growth and Commercialisation
    Successful grant applications can help scale a business by providing necessary financial resources for expansion and can assist in the commercialisation of research by helping to develop supply chains
     
  • Network Building and Collaboration
    Grants, especially those requiring collaborators, provide the momentum for businesses to grow their networks, leading to long-term relationships that endure beyond the grant period. They can provide access to new customer groups and communities
     
  • Strategic and Operational Sanity Check
    The process of applying for a grant can refresh your strategic perspective by obtaining new market insights. They provide a platform to refine and validate your business model by checking out whether your current value proposition really works. Managing grants can help you gear up operationally and anticipate challenges, for example helping businesses identify and address potential cash flow and resource management issues before they occur
     
  • Access to Expertise and Resources
    Grants often come with invaluable additional support, such as access to facilities and equipment, expert mentorship and business services
     
  • Reputation and Competitive Advantage
    Winning competitive grants enhances a company’s credibility and prestige, signalling to investors and stakeholders that the business is promising and has undergone rigorous peer review. They can provide a platform to attract other investment, such as VC funding. Grants can also provide a competitive edge by enabling businesses to innovate and explore new technologies and different markets (and understand relevant considerations such as cultural nuances) 

 

TIPS FROM OUR EXPERTS

“Think of a grant as part of a systematic process to de-risk technology and develop commercial opportunities to prepare you for the next stage of investment.”

 

“Use it as a test for strategic relationships. We’ve got a couple of really key collaborators now that we work with commercially outside of grant funding, because we’ve been able to build those relationships through these grants. We’ve been able to explore whether we work well together.”

 

“Leverage the grant when you win it. Use it as a badge that a third party thinks what you’re doing is a great idea. Utilise any further expertise that’s on offer as part of the grant package.”

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