This page answers some of the frequently asked questions about the Indie Durham City project, and how independent Durham businesses can get involved.
About the project
- What is the purpose of Indie Durham City?
- Who is behind Indie Durham City?
- How does Indie Durham City relate to Durham BID and other existing initiatives?
- How is COVID-19 affecting how you manage the project?
- How long will Indie Durham City run for?
About CannyInsights.com
Availability of support
- Does my business qualify for support?
- What support is available via the project?
- Is the support being offered free of charge?
- How do I apply for support?
- What happens next after I apply for support?
- Is there a deadline for getting help from Indie Durham City?
- I’m based outside Durham city – is other help available to me?
Getting involved in other ways
What is the purpose of Indie Durham City?
Indie Durham City is a campaign to support and promote independent shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and other businesses in Durham’s historic city centre as they emerge from the COVID-19 lockdown.
The project wants to help independent Durham businesses get, and market themselves, online – and grow the reputation of Durham city as a place that is full of interesting and distinctive small businesses.
Attracting more local people and visitors – and independent traders – into Durham city centre will help to grow the local economy, and make it easier for Durham to navigate all the changes that are taking place as big-name retailers depart Britain’s high streets.
Back to Index
Who is behind Indie Durham City?
The Indie Durham City project is funded by the City of Durham Parish Council, and managed by retail consultancy CannyInsights.com.
The City of Durham Parish Council has existed since 2018, and has 15 parish councillors covering three wards: Elvet and Gilesgate, Durham South, and Neville’s Cross.
Back to Index
How does Indie Durham City relate to Durham BID and other existing initiatives?
Indie Durham City is an initiative funded by the City of Durham Parish Council, so is entirely separate from Durham Business Improvement District Company (Durham BID), which is funded via a 1.5% levy on business rate payers within the BID area.
The BID and the Parish Council also have different boundaries, though Durham city centre falls within both.
At CannyInsights.com, we strongly believe that the most successful town and city centres are those where all the key stakeholders work together in the interests of their place.
That’s why we’ll happily be talking to and collaborating with all the main players in Durham city centre, including the BID, as well as Durham County Council, the city’s shopping centres and leisure complexes, commercial property landlords, local organisations and charities, and anyone else with a desire to make Durham an even better place.
Back to Index
How is COVID-19 affecting how you manage the project?
Due to COVID-19, we are spending substantially less time on the ground in Durham than might otherwise be the case.
We are holding initial and follow-up consultations with businesses via video chat, and are only visiting businesses in person by appointment and with the agreement of the business owner. While inside those shops, we are, of course, maintaining all necessary social distancing measures, just as any customer would.
Our overall position at the moment is not to encourage unnecessary visits to Durham. However, we invite those who do wish to go out to support their local businesses that are currently trading in Durham city centre, and to act safely, respect others, and be kind while doing so.
Back to Index
How long will Indie Durham City run for?
The Indie Durham City project launched in May 2020, and is funded for three days of activity a month.
After being initially funded for six months, the project is now set to continue into 2021, to help local businesses as they continue to deal with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Back to Index
Does my business qualify for support?
Because the Indie Durham City project is funded by the City of Durham Parish Council, we can only support businesses that are based or have premises within the Parish Council area.
If you are unsure whether your business is within the parish boundary, you can check the map here.
To be eligible for potential support, you also need to be an independent business – a small, privately owned enterprise, often owner operated, that isn’t part of a large chain.
The project’s main focus is on “indie” shops, as well as hospitality businesses such as cafes, restaurants and bars. If you run some other type of small business in Durham city, get in touch and we’ll let you know whether we can help.
Back to Index
What support is available via the project?
The project offers a range of support, particularly focused on helping businesses build an effective online presence to market their services.
You can read more about the types of support available here.
Back to Index
Is the support being offered free of charge?
Yes – thanks to funding from the City of Durham Parish Council, any support offered to businesses via the Indie Durham City project is free of charge.
In some cases – for example, if a business we work with requires a new website, or wants someone to manage their social media for them on an ongoing basis – we may refer those businesses to other trusted companies that can help them further.
It will then be up to those businesses to decide whether they wish to make use of other services that are outside the scope of what the Indie Durham City project can offer.
Back to Index
How do I apply for support?
To apply for support from the Indie Durham City project, get in touch with us using the application form.
For any other enquiries, contact us here.
Back to Index
What happens next after I apply for support?
After we receive your submission, we’ll check that you’re eligible for support and then get in touch to arrange a chat!
We would normally come and visit you in your premises, but during the COVID-19 situation we are being flexible and also holding consultations via video chat.
We will want to understand more about your business, and where you think you need help, so that we can come up with a plan of how to work together.
Back to Index
Is there a deadline for getting help from Indie Durham City?
No, not at the moment.
Independent businesses in the City of Durham Parish Council area can sign up for our free marketing and mentoring support at any point during the duration of the project – which began in May 2020 and is now expected to continue into 2021.
However, the sooner you sign up, the sooner we can start helping!
Back to Index
I’m based outside Durham city – is other help available to me?
If your business is not eligible for support from us – because it’s not based, or doesn’t have premises, within the City of Durham Parish Council area – there are still other ways you can access help or promote your business.
For example:
- Any business with premises that people visit can claim and use its listing on the Roam app for free, with the opportunity to share content such as news, menus, offers and alerts. Visit roam-local.co.uk and scroll down to “Claim your venue”.
- Based in the North East but working with businesses UK wide, Save The High Street Ltd runs a fully-funded six-week business improvement programme (BIP), targeting high-street businesses with support “to improve the efficiency, marketing, product sourcing and vision of your business”. Visit the website to find out more and apply.
- #indiehour is a weekly Twitter hour for independent retailers, which takes place every Tuesday at 8pm. Its focus is “informal chat and collaboration”, and it’s a great way to make connections, share ideas and find support – while helping spread the word about your business, too. You can follow the hashtag here.
- For bespoke or in-depth support, CannyInsights.com – who manage Indie Durham City – may be able to help. The CannyInsights.com website includes full details of the services that the business offers.
If your business is not in Durham, but is within the neighbouring area covered by Chester-le-Street AAP – including places like Sacriston and Kimblesworth – then you can potentially access help via the Shop Chester-le-Street project instead.
Back to Index
Can I follow Indie Durham City on social media?
Yes, we’d love you to!
We share updates about our work, and the businesses we’re working with, via the @IndieDurhamCity channels on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
If you’re a business or other organisation in Durham city centre, please feel free to tag or mention us, so that we can potentially like and share your own posts.
Back to Index
Can I use the Indie Durham City logo?
Yes, we are very happy for independent businesses in Durham city to show their support for Indie Durham City by using the Indie Durham City logo on their website or other promotional materials.
You can download a PNG version in 2000×2000 pixel or 500×500 pixel versions, or a PDF (vector) version suitable for printing is available here.
Back to Index