Over last couple of years, Pen y Cymoedd has supported several local garages across the fund area through Micro Fund and Vision Fund grants. While each business is different, clear themes emerged from their journeys with us — highlighting the value of flexible, friendly support and the direct impact on growth and employment.
Key Themes & Impact
- Investment in Technology: Nearly every garage identified keeping up with diagnostics and MOT standards as a major challenge. Our support helped fund key pieces of equipment like ramps, wheel alignment tools, and diagnostic software.
- Jobs Created: Across the businesses we spoke to, the £50,000 awarded in this group contributed to at least four new jobs (including apprenticeships) — a significant result for micro-businesses.
- Business Growth: From expanding services to storing stock on-site, several garages now have the capacity to serve more customers, more efficiently — in one case, the owner anticipates business could double once improvements are implemented.
- Accessible Support: Business owners consistently praised Pen y Cymoedd for being approachable and efficient — with some saying we were easier to deal with than other funders. In at least one case, we encouraged a more ambitious application to better match the business’s growth plans.
The auto service sector is under constant pressure to modernise. Equipment upgrades, rising costs, and the difficulty of finding trained staff were common concerns. Most businesses had not received other funding, underscoring the importance of Pen y Cymoedd’s role but also the importance of raising awareness of other funds and trying to leverage more in from other funding bodies.