At Business Growth West Midlands, our mission is to provide informed, responsive, and impactful support to businesses across the region. As part of this commitment, we are pleased to share the findings of our recent Growth Canvas Insights Report - a comprehensive analysis of the ambitions, challenges, and evolving needs of local enterprises.

Below, we've highlighted some of our key findings, along with links to relevant support programmes. If any of the topics resonate with your business needs, we encourage you to explore the support available.

What is the Growth Canvas Insights Report?

The Growth Canvas is a strategic tool we use to assess and understand the current state and growth aspirations of businesses in the West Midlands. Through detailed conversations, surveys, and diagnostic assessments with hundreds of SMEs across sectors, we gather data that informs how we design and deliver our support services.

The Insights Report is based on aggregated feedback from businesses who engaged with the Growth Canvas over the past year. It provides a real-time snapshot of regional business priorities and highlights the specific areas where support is most needed.

Key themes from the 2025 report

Common business objectives

Our analysis uncovered the following recurring priorities among businesses:

• Access to funding
  Around 40% of businesses are actively pursuing financial support - including SME Grants - to scale operations, acquire assets, or support ongoing growth. Learn more about our Investment Readiness programme here.
• Marketing and promotion
  Approximately 30% are prioritising improved marketing, with a strong focus on digital channels, social media, and participation in industry expos. Explore upcoming marketing webinars and networking events in your area here.
• Capacity expansion
  About 25% are seeking to increase their workforce or invest in equipment to enhance operational capacity. Explore government programmes supporting business growth in your area here.
• Product development
  Innovation remains key, with many businesses aiming to diversify offerings and explore new market opportunities. Explore government programmes supporting Innovation here.

Specific growth goals emerging

 Several distinct goals were also identified:

• Growth through acquisition
  Roughly 10% of businesses are planning acquisitions to expand service lines and gain competitive advantage.
• Environmental sustainability
  Around 15% are embedding sustainability into their operations, seeking to reduce emissions and introduce greener products. Learn how your business can become more sustainable through BEAS.
• Market diversification
  Businesses are strategically moving into new sectors - particularly healthcare and leisure - to spread risk and capture new opportunities.

Key challenges facing businesses

While ambition is strong, some barriers to growth were consistently reported:

• Limited financial resources
  35% of respondents cited low cash reserves or restricted access to capital as a primary constraint. Learn more about our Investment Readiness programme here.
• Skills gaps
  20% reported gaps in digital marketing or strategic planning, requiring external expertise to move forward. Explore our upcoming learning webinars covering key areas in HR, Sales, Marketing & digital here.
• Operational inefficiencies
  15% highlighted the need for process automation and technology integration to improve productivity.

Using data to shape future support

The findings of the report are a roadmap for action. Based on the data, Business Growth West Midlands will:

• Expand financial advisory services
  With demand for funding high, we plan to increase access to specialist advisors to help navigate grant schemes and funding pathways
• Strengthen marketing and digital support
  We anticipate a 25% increase in demand for digital marketing and e-commerce expertise and we’re scaling our resources accordingly.
• Launch targeted training & development
  To close skill gaps, particularly in marketing and operational efficiency, We continue to deliver free, expert-led webinars designed around the most in-demand business disciplines - from marketing strategy and digital upskilling to operational efficiency and financial planning.
• New skills hub on our website
  Coming soon - a dedicated Skills section on the BGWM website to make it even easier for local businesses to access training opportunities, events, toolkits and resources in one place.
• Specialist programmes
  We also offer tailored support through initiatives like the Investment Readiness (IR) Programme, which helps businesses build the capabilities needed to secure funding and scale sustainably. Explore all programmes here
• Support sustainable business practices
  As the region embraces green growth, we will roll out more tools and guidance to help businesses embed sustainability and adopt green technologies - with expected demand growth of around 20%.

Driving growth, together

The Growth Canvas Insights Report provides a clear, evidence-based picture of the needs of our regional business community. This intelligence enables us to deliver targeted, relevant, and timely support that makes a real difference.

Whether your business is focused on funding, growth, sustainability, or innovation - Business Growth West Midlands is here to support your next step.