There’s 10,000 reasons to smile for three businesses in the Dubbo local government area.
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Rave Hair Design, Clive and Wally and Central Butchery in Wellington have been awarded $10,000 apiece from Dubbo Regional Council.
The organisations are the winners of the Great Business Program’s Business Development Grants.
I actually thought it was another beauty business that had won and then they said ‘Rave Hair Design’. I nearly burst into tears.
- Nikki Sinclair
Rave Hair Design owner Nikki Sinclair said winning one of the grants had been a shock.
“I’ve never applied for a grant before so I was really surprised to be in the top ten let alone actually winning,” Ms Sinclair said.
“I actually thought it was another beauty business that had won and then they said ‘Rave Hair Design’. I nearly burst into tears.”
The funding would allow Rave Hair Design to build a permanent beauty section and learn eyebrow feathering, Ms Sinclair said. It was a goal she said she hadn’t thought possible for another 12 months.
“I have a staff member that’s got a health issue so we’re looking at doing some staff training in another field to help her out,” Ms Sinclair said.
“Having a small business is really hard and there are so many hair dressers in Dubbo that you have to stay competitive. This will help expand our services and diversify our business to we stand out from everyone else.”
There were 56 businesses who applied for the grants, Dubbo Regional Council’s city development program leader Jacki Parish said.
Ms Parish said the business participation in the Great Business Program had been phenomenal.
“This program continues to provide a solid platform for businesses to develop, thrive and grow,” she said.
There was a high level of customer satisfaction within the Dubbo business community, customer feedback has shown. More than 4150 feedback forms were filled out through the ‘Shop in my Business’ part of the program.
“The results showed 91.23% of shoppers were very satisfied with the level of customer service provided at the participating business and that 89.8% were very satisfied overall shopping experience,” Ms Parish said.
More than 130 businesses signed up for the Great Business Program this year.