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Businesses in Bridgend thriving with Business Start-up Grant
Tuesday 26 August 2025
New businesses across Bridgend County Borough are continuing to receive support to help with their start-up costs thanks to the Bridgend County Borough Council’s Economic Development and Enterprise Team.
Through a partnership with UK Steel Enterprise, the grant provides financial assistance to new micro-businesses that are located, or are planning to locate, to Bridgend County Borough.
Two fine examples of these businesses were recently visited by Councillor Huw David, Mayor of Bridgend County Borough and Councillor John Spanswick, Leader of Bridgend County Borough Council.
RB Club, based in Maesteg, has been one of the businesses who have been supported through the grant. Owned by Jack Wiles, the business started in 2023 creating bucket hats from rugby jerseys and has since expanded into manufacturing an original line of clothing. The business is already becoming a household name with rugby fans and has plans to move into a bigger warehouse to keep up with demand.
“The Business Start-Up Grant from the council has been a huge support to the business and massively improved our productivity. We were able to upgrade our equipment and buy a new cutting machine to help with our demand and it has halved our production time, giving us more time to explore new products. The Economic Development and Enterprise team have been helping us every step of the way and we’re so grateful to have this support available to us.”
PoGo Bakery, based in Wyndham Street in Bridgend, have been selling freshly baked bread, sausage rolls, pasties and sweet treats from their shop in Wyndham Street, Bridgend Town centre since August 2024. Run by mother and son Perry and Gareth Owen, whose initials make up their bakery’s name, had been selling at pop-up food markets around Wales and after deciding to take on a physical trading space, they were awarded the Business Start-Up Fund to purchase essential items to help them on their business venture.
"The support from the council has been instrumental in us opening our first ever shop in Bridgend town centre. We’ve wanted to have a shop of our own since we started the business and with the grant, we’ve been able to make that a reality. Everybody has welcomed us with open arms, and we love getting to serve our treats to customers. We recommend anyone looking to start a business to get in touch with the council; they have been amazing and have helped us make that transition to trading from an actual address!”
“It has been a wonderful experience getting to meet Jack, Perry and Gareth. They are such hard working people and have taken their ideas and turned them into huge successes. The support that the council has provided has allowed them to flourish within their respective spaces. I would highly recommend businesses getting in touch with the team about the grant.”
Getting to chat with Perry and Gareth and see first-hand how the Business Start-Up Fund has helped them with their bakery has been a brilliant experience. The support that is available to businesses in Bridgend directly showcases our commitment to helping people become entrepreneurs and support them in their business journey. Both PoGo Bakery and RB Club are brilliant examples of what can be achieved here in the county."
If you are planning to start a business in the county borough of Bridgend and would like to know more about funding opportunities, please contact the Business team at businessfunds@bridgend.gov.uk.
