SMEs are often said to be the backbone of Europe’s economy, but what measures have been put in place to help them?

This special episode of Business Planet from Euronews, in collobration with the European Commission, looks at the support that is being mobilised to support Europe’s 25 million SMEs. In an interview with Serge Rombi from Euronews President of SME UNITED Alban Maggiar, spoke of the “exceptional measures” being put in place and the need to keep the Single Market at the heart of all action taken and honour its borderless principles.

He mentioned the increased flexibility for Member States to grant loans to struggling SMEs and tools to help governments support companies and guarantee jobs. In addition he stressed the need for large companies to pay suppliers and sub-contractors, to avoid SMEs having to pay the price for unpaid bills.

Mr Maggiar called for entrepreneurs to hold on and stick together, as well as calling on big decision makers to honour commitments to smaller ones.

For more information read the original Euronews article.   

2016 marks the 10th anniversary of the European Enterprise Promotion Awards (EEPA). In this new feature, we catch up with former EEPA honourees who’ve gone on to do great things since winning the award.

This week, Ivaylo Grancharov from the award-winning Brandiko project in Bulgaria reflects on the impact of winning an EEPA two years on…

Ivaylo Grancharov, Brandiko project at the Ministry of Economy in Bulgaria

What was it like to win the award?

I accepted this award as the Oscar in our field of work. Given at the EU level, EEPA is the highest award in the field of entrepreneurship promotion. I didn’t expect it as it was the only time Bulgaria has ever been nominated for an EEPA. It was a big surprise – first ever nomination, first ever win – and the only one for us so far. This makes it even more precious for me and my country.

How did winning the award immediately impact your work?

The media attention was great. The Euronews programme, Business Planet, hosted by the great Serge Rombi, made a wonderful video about Brandiko. Some national magazines also showed interest. It was very flattering, and encouraging.

What response did you receive from your colleagues and peers?

My colleagues were very happy for me. We were grateful!

What has been the long-term impact?

After getting the award, Brandiko had its best ever season – record-breaking participation from school kids who wanted to be part of the project.

Why did you decide to enter the national competition?

As Bulgaria had never been shortlisted at the European level before, my motivation was that this project was good enough to portray the country as a place where projects for entrepreneurial support can happen and possess European-level quality.

How did you go about preparing your application and making it award winning?

I was very careful by presenting all the important details, and providing statistics to prove the project’s impact. It was important to provide accurate and to-the-point data and illustrate it in the most appropriate way.

What advice would you give to others thinking of entering?

If you believe you’ve done a great job with your project, don’t hesitate to show it to the world! Good luck, everybody! The EU is the greatest place in the world!

To find out more about Brandiko, visit the website at www.facebook.com/Brandiko or watch the video.  

Digital technologies are the single most important driver of innovation and growth today. They re-shape entire industries and open doors for a new generation of entrepreneurs and innovators. The Secret of Success 2014-15 brochure features 35 of Europe’s finest digital icons.

This very interesting video from Euronews about digital entrepreneurs in France is worth a look. It features Secret of Success entrepreneur, Benjamin Suchar who created Yoopies, (Europe’s leading social platform for child-minding services) after seeing his how two sisters had  limited choices for their childcare.

http://www.euronews.com/2015/02/06/delve-into-digital-tapping-into-europe-s-online-start-up-potential/

Europe’s digital economy has huge potential -as the success of French start-ups like Yoopies illustrates. It helps users to find a babysitter based on 50 criteria including, location, profile, and rating. Launched in 2012, Yoopies went from 3 to 15 people, from 10 babysitters to 400,000. The platform is now available in 7 languages in 9 countries. It now has a 300% year-on-year turnover increase and is moving into other services including shopping delivery and housekeeping.

‘42’ is another example of the digital’s sector’s potential. Created by top French digital entrepreneur Xavier Niel, ‘42’ is a unique school which trains 900 young people in digital skills each year, free of charge and regardless of qualifications.

Gilles Babinet is one of the EU’s Digital Champions, whose mission is to promote the benefits of an inclusive digital society.