The dragons from the BBC progamme, Dragon’s Den, have created a website in the wake of the economic downturn that will be aimed at aiding small businesses in Britain as more and more small businesses are being forced to close their doors throughout the country. 

The website, labelled Smarta.com, is hoping to supply advice and inspiration for small businesses as well as offering a space for networking and gaining contacts for those looking to either start up their own small business or even to expand their existing business.  The move comes as unemployment rates drop even further into record breaking figures and the year ahead looks to be a greater struggle than previously expected.

Shaa Wasmund, the founder of Smarta, has underlined the necessity for aids such as Smart.com for budding entrepreneurs in Britain.  “A new approach is needed for entrepreneurs and small businesses more than ever before. Smarta.com will allow users to tap into the brains, experience, and ideas of the entrepreneurial community,” said Wasmund.

The website is claiming that users of the site will learn how to set up a business within 30 minutes and will also allow the user to create profiles on the site with the outlook to networking with other business owners and potential entrepreneurs. 

Well-known Dragon, Theo Pathitis, who owns the lucrative stationary store Ryman Stationary, has said that the demand for the service is overwhelming.  “Each week, I receive hundreds of requests from people wanting advice about becoming an entrepreneur, so I am delighted that Smarta.com has been set up to provide practical help and support,” claimed Pathitis.

Other features involved with the website will be the use of hundreds of video guides, features and reports that will supply the user with advice on starting or expanding a business.  The site will also provide interviews with the leading entrepreneurs in the sector, which should provide a helpful insight into their experience and knowledge.

Smarta.com has clearly received strong backing from the minister for competitiveness and small business, Baroness Vadera, who announced, “In the current economic climate it is more important than ever that entrepreneurs have the confidence and support they need to cultivate and develop their ideas. Smarta.com will be an important resource in achieving that aim.”

Deborah Meaden is also involved in the production and backing of the site and has claimed that the site should provide a “much needed upgrade to small business support in the UK”.  However, Meaden and Pathitis have also made headlines recently as they face losses into the tens of thousands of pounds due to a bad investment they made on the Dragon’s Den programme.

Pathitis and Meaden invested £100,000 in JPM Eco Logistics, a company who ran their trucks on bio-diesel, in 2007.  However the company have now gone intro administration leaving the Dragons with a hefty loss.  However, Meaden is staying positive, saying, “If you don’t take risks you have no economy.”  Better luck for Smarta, she hopes.

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