INTUIT PLEDGES £20,000 TO BRITAIN’S SMALL BUSINESSES

#SupportSmallBizUK

LONDON, 27th February 2014 – Intuit UK, together with StartUp Britain, has today launched “Small Business Local Buzz”, a national competition offering £20,000 of funding to British start-ups and business owners. Winners will be selected through a combination of online votes and a judging panel with representatives from Intuit and StartUp Britain.

As part of Intuit’s pledge to the Government-backed GREAT Business Exchange, Intuit is offering ten £1,000 cash awards and one £10,000 grand during the six-week campaign. Submissions open on 27th February and the overall £10,000 winner is to be announced on 4th April 2014.

Rich Preece, Vice President and Managing Director, Intuit UK said: “Small Business Local Buzz is an example of Intuit’s commitment to helping small businesses and start-ups succeed. We know there’s a great appetite for this competition as more than fifteen hundred businesses entered last year’s Love Our Local Business which generated more than thirty thousand online votes. We anticipate this number to be even greater and wish everyone taking part in Small Business Local Buzz the best of luck.”

There are record numbers of new businesses in the UK. Last year saw the creation of 526,446 businesses. Small Business Local Buzz’s cash prizes will provide help to those small businesses and start-ups who are still struggling to find early stage funding.

StartUp Britain co-founder Emma Jones said: “This competition represents a great opportunity for small businesses in search of much-needed funding. StartUp Britain has partnered with Intuit to provide SMBs with a simple chance to boost their business with the offer of extra cash.”

To participate, businesses need to enter a ‘wish’ on www.SupportSmallBusiness.co.uk outlining why they believe they should qualify for funding, and then use social channels to drum up support from their customers and supporters to vote for them.

About StartUp Britain

The StartUp Britain campaign is backed by Government and operates as a fully private sector supported venture. It was founded by eight individuals and business owners and is sponsored by Intuit, PayPal, BT Business and Iris. Its role is to inspire, accelerate and celebrate entrepreneurship. www.startupbritain.co

About GREAT Business Exchange

The Business Exchange seeks to link the growing number of new businesses in the UK with bigger, more established corporates, in order to help British SMEs get to the next level. The initiative makes it easier for the small business community to understand and take advantage of the range of pledges on offer from big businesses. For more information, please go to http://greatbusinessexchange.co.uk

About Small Business Local Buzz

Intuit’s Small Business Local Buzz competition grows out of Intuit’s Love Our Local Business programme, part of Intuit’s larger, ongoing commitment to support the financial success of consumers and small businesses all over the world.

About Intuit in the UK

Intuit in the UK helps small businesses get paid, manage their money and pay their employees, and accounting professionals be more productive and grow their practices. The company’s flagship products in the UK include QuickBooks, QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Payroll and Intuit Pay. For more information visit www.intuit.co.uk

Intuit Limited is a company registered in England and Wales (Company No. 2679414) with registered address and principal place of business in 1 Cathedral Piazza SW1E 5BP London. Intuit Limited is a subsidiary of Intuit Inc.

About Intuit Inc

Intuit Inc. creates business and financial management solutions that simplify the business of life for small businesses, consumers and accounting professionals. Its flagship products and services include QuickBooks®, Quicken® and TurboTax®, which makes it easier to manage small businesses and payroll processing, personal finance, and tax preparation and filing. Mint.com provides a fresh, easy and intelligent way for people to manage their money, while Demandforce® offers marketing and communication tools for small businesses. ProSeries® and Lacerte® are Intuit’s leading tax preparation offerings for professional accountants. Founded in 1983, Intuit had revenue of $4.2 billion in its fiscal year 2013. The company has approximately 8,000 employees with major offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India and other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.