Loan will help businesswomen beat the credit crunch

A £20,000 loan from Partnership Investment Finance (PIF) is helping Leeds- based management consultancy Red FM prepare business women in the region to beat the credit crunch.

Red FM plans to use the loan to finance development of innovative curricula for new group training programmes.

The current training portfolio, which is offered exclusively to businesswomen and female entrepreneurs, includes personal brand workshops, a Leadership Peer Support Group for managers and one-on-one personal business coaching.

Red FM managing director Steve Phillip said: “I have a strong background in management consultancy and noticed that there was a gap in the market for practical management training for women.

“We aim to combine networking for businesswomen with the chance to learn new skills which will show real results in the workplace.”

He added: “So far our training has proved popular, so I plan to develop new training courses using the additional working capital provided by PIF. We think that during the credit crunch our training will be able to give businesswomen the edge.”

Ian Atkinson, PIF lending manager said: “I was extremely impressed with the quality of RedFM’s business plan. Steve is extremely professional and has a wealth of experience in management training and understands his market well.”

PIF is an investment fund aimed at supporting growing businesses in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Following the successful investment of £37m of funding between 2004 and 2008, PIF now has a further funding to invest in businesses in the region’s Objective 2 areas.