Colin Cameron
editor@argyllshireadvertiser.co.uk
WHILE the closure of bank branches continues apace and affordable finance becomes ever harder to find for the small business, one Argyll institution is bucking the trend.
But at its recent annual general meeting, trustees and friends of the SJ Noble Trust wrestled with the inescapable fact it must change to meet increasing demand from fledgling businesses in Argyll and Bute.
The trust was set up in memory of Johnny Noble, chairman and co-founder of Loch Fyne Oysters, who died in 2002. The purpose of the trust is to help promising business ‘acorns’ and promote rural regeneration. In recent times the trust has moved away from grants in favour of affordable threeyear loans and has helped more than 160 businesses over the past 15 years – helping create an estimated 400 new jobs along the way.
With particular external funding sources drying up while demand was increasing, trustees last year commissioned a report to assess the financial position.