Business Start-Up

This is a programme which offers up to £2,000 in the form of a monthly payment which can be as much as £500.  A business development grant may also be available should you need to purchase equipment or develop premises to start up your business.  We cannot assist with the purchase of premises however.

Businesses can be full-time, part-time or even seasonal - however, businesses which are both part-time and seasonal are not eligible.

While we can help you set up in business in a number of sectors, we are unlikely to be able to assist you if you are setting up a business which competes directly with any other which is serving purely the local market. 

Emile van Schayk - Orkney Wine Company
After twice winning the home brew and wine competition at the Orkney Food Festival, Emile van Schayk decided that his home made wines deserved a wider audience, and set about turning his hobby into a business.

He applied for a business start-up allowance and a grant package towards the considerable investment required to convert premises at his home into a wine making operation and the Orkney Wine Company got up and running in June 2002.

The initial range of wines which included elderflower, primrose, organic carrot and gorse was well received and by the summer of 2003, the range had expanded, with a number of new flavours and combinations of flavours being introduced.  Orkney wines are now available in most local supermarkets and restaurants and the unusual and innovative blends are proving popular with visitors and locals alike.