Madrid helps small businesses go digital

The City Council and its partners train 70 commercial establishments in developing digital strategies

Madrid will be promoting the digital transformation of small businesses and thereby help them become more resilient to economic transformations such as the Covid-19 crisis. The city council announced on Friday its participation in an activity involving no less than 70 small enterprises. Representatives of each of them will receive guidance on how to develop digital strategies and unfold concrete actions contributing to their online presence.

Digital transformation vs Covid-19

The coronavirus pandemic has hit hard the small businesses around Europe, that by definition lack the financial means to survive these prolonged weeks with practically no economic activity. The ones that manage to transform their offer from the physical space solely to the online world certainly stand a better chance at remaining competitive.

This is likely to be the reason why the Spanish capital, through its General Directorate of Commerce and Hospitality decided to join forces with the Centre for Social Innovation at the Instituto de Empresa Foundation. The city council became part of their “Digital Transformation for Inclusive Business Development” project, the objective of which is to promote the digitization of small businesses and thus support them in their effort to manage the impact of Covid-19.

This year makes the second edition of the project, which is implemented together with JPMorgan Chase Foundation. It will involve 70 small businesses from the city.

As part of project activities, merchants will receive training and personalized support in the development of online presence actions in accordance with their business model and general sales strategy. The project will be promoted through the city council’s online portal for small businesses madridcapitaldemoda.com, as well as by Orange and commercial associations.

In the selection of businesses, priority will be given to those located in the most vulnerable neighbourhoods of Madrid. Participation is free of charge and the registration process will last until July 1. Eligible businesses can submit their applications here.