We signed a lease in May and moved into a new office in July with our own broadband contract.  As a small business, with our team working from home a lot of the time we have always sublet office space before so this seemed like a big step forward for us.  The office is just the right size for 3 of us to be in there at the same time which gives us flexibility when we need to do training.  Taking on a higher rent, electric bills and a broadband contract when the price of everything is on the increase has been a real challenge.

More recently with a few changes in staff levels we also promoted a second Director to the Board.  Sarah has helped Jen grow the business since she increased her hours in May 2021, and it became more obvious that her input and calm was helpful in steering the ship.  To acknowledge her role and appreciate her support, she joined the Board as a Director in September 2023.

The latest change has been registering the business for VAT.  We remain a small company and hadn't quite reached the compulsery VAT registration threshold but we feel that being able to claim VAT back on our costs (such as rent, telephone, software) will help us remain profitable at a time when our margins are being pinched by increases in wages.

Every small business owner we speak to is having difficulties because prices are increasing and demand is unpredictable, as customers are struggling with cost of living issues.  We are finding the time challenging too, but we are very proud with the growth we have achieved over the last 12 months.

Here's to the next 12 months - hoping it will go well for us and our clients.