Media Groups Support Small Business Owners

Media Groups Support Small Business Owners

Sunday Ehigiator

The Silverbird Group and Business Day Newspaper recently subsidised publicity for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) during the Silverbird Small Business Events Circuit (SBEC) which officially began last week, with a stakeholders meeting in Lagos state.
The meeting, which was an offshoot from a partnership between Silverbird Groups, Business Day, and EventsTracer, with the theme: “Interact, Sell More.”

Stakeholders came together with wealth of experience to organise the event to help grow small and medium scale businesses in Nigeria.
In his welcome address, the MD/CEO, Business Day Newspaper, Mr. Frank Aigbogun said, SMEs are significant to governance.
According to him, “We are aware of the difficult environments the SME’s in Nigeria have to survival in. It is a thing that requires a new approach to SME management.

“Especially, at a time when technology is reducing time and space, and creating a seamless market in size, so it is important for SME’s to understand how they can collaborate, and take advantage of technology. But, most importantly, to come into modern and latest innovations that can help SME’s to thrive.

“I have absolutely no doubt with the very strong support of the Silverbird group, given the large network they have behind them. This initiative would go very far.

“This event may at this initial stage start a little bit slow, but given the number of SME’s in Nigeria, and how very quickly they are adapting, I have absolutely no doubt that this is indeed something that will grow into a massive development and achievement.”

Speaking on what the essence of the circuit and its structures, the Lead Adviser, Silverbird SBEC, Mr. Dike Demeri, said the three partners involved have come to realise that, at the age and time Nigeria is, funding is not too much of a problem to SMEs anymore, especially with the estimate of N1 trillion available to fund SMEs in Nigeria, but accessing those funds or knowing what to do with them. According to him, “There is a gap between access to funding and its availability.

“There is now a conscious focus to fund SMEs in Nigeria, and by estimate we have over, one trillion naira in funding made available for SMEs, but there is a gap between the SME’s and access to those money.

“How then can it be trapped? It has to do with a lot of things. You can’t run a business successfully if you want to fly alone. You must involve other key players in other related fields. For instance, there is a need for awareness for any business to grow, but ask an entrepreneur to choose between using all his funds as capital for a business, or using part of same for awareness, he would prefer to invest all as his capital, but how then would people get to know about the product without awareness?

Speaking on the contributions of Silverbird to the circuit, the Vice President, Silverbird Groups, Mr. Guy Murray Bruce said, the circuit was aimed at the, “sustainable development of businesses in Nigeria. Silverbird entertainment is leveraging its radio; Rhythm fm, television, and galleria to host the series of Small Business Events Circuit.”

Related Articles