Project Cosmic saw the Recovery Loan Fund (RLF) as an opportunity to rapidly scale up their organisation and increase their ability to provide digital skills training in Devon.
Social Impact
Navigating today’s world without a solid grasp of technology and digital skills can put you at an alarming disadvantage.
This is something Project Cosmic is determined to address in Devon.
Project Cosmic have been operating for 25 years, with the vision to inspire people to achieve success in the digital world. Digital inclusion is at the heart of this. The services they currently provide include: digital skills training, website development and technical support as well as, leadership development, and consultancy on digital transformation projects.
The pandemic provided an opportunity for Project Cosmic to leverage the increased demand for digital skills as employers and educational providers moved towards technology and digital solutions. They saw the potential to take on bigger contracts that would allow them to rapidly scale up their organisation to meet this demand. Despite Project Cosmic being an experienced social enterprise, they found that commercial banks were not able to support them with a loan for their expansion plans.
Navigating today’s world without a solid grasp of technology and digital skills can put you at an alarming disadvantage.
This is something Project Cosmic is determined to address in Devon.
Project Cosmic have been operating for 25 years, with the vision to inspire people to achieve success in the digital world. Digital inclusion is at the heart of this. The services they currently provide include: digital skills training, website development and technical support as well as, leadership development, and consultancy on digital transformation projects.
The pandemic provided an opportunity for Project Cosmic to leverage the increased demand for digital skills as employers and educational providers moved towards technology and digital solutions. They saw the potential to take on bigger contracts that would allow them to rapidly scale up their organisation to meet this demand. Despite Project Cosmic being an experienced social enterprise, they found that commercial banks were not able to support them with a loan for their expansion plans.
How we helped
Securing funding was critical for Project Cosmic to be in the position where they could pursue larger contracts. As application windows were closing a fast and straight forward decision-making process was also a priority. These investment needs made the RLF the ideal fund for them.
After applying to the RLF, being approved quickly, and receiving a loan of £100,000 they were able to secure new contracts and replenish their cash reserves back to pre-Covid trading levels.
“
The importance of the Recovery Loan Scheme for Cosmic is clear, in that it provided the most effective way for us to plan with clarity and confidence for the coming years and allowed us to embrace many opportunities which were on offer. The availability of affordable finance solutions at this time is vital for social enterprises in particular at this time, so that we can continue to deliver high levels of social impact for those suffering disadvantages post-pandemic.”
Julie Hawker
Co-CEO of Project Cosmic
What was the outcome?
The investment allowed for Project Cosmic to strengthen their finances as they enter into new major contracts, and provide finance for growth in 2022 and beyond, with projections for a dramatic increase in turnover.
They are also building additional capacity during this time in order to continue their growth in social impact beyond Devon to the wider South West of England.
The end result is that tens of thousands more people will get digital skills training provided by Project Cosmic in the next few years.
Find out more about the Recovery Loan Fund.
