A new initiative offering affordable office space is launching in Carmarthenshire.
DeskSpace aims to provide office space and free business support to home workers, entrepreneurs and start-up companies in the rural areas of Wales.
Led by business agency Antur Cymru Enterprise, the initiative is being piloted at Antur Teifi Business Park in Newcastle Emlyn.
It will offer those who sign up free parking, IT support, fast and secure internet, photocopier and scanning services, and guidance from Business Wales representatives on site.
The long-term plan is to roll out the concept to hard-to-reach towns and villages in the country, helping those home workers and entrepreneurs move to a high-quality office space.
The pay-as-you-go model means people can hire desks for £10 per day with ‘Go Workstations’ also an option.
Managing director of , Bronwen Raine said the initiative would provide small and start-up firms with business knowledge and guidance from experts and mentors on site.
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Ms Raine said: “This is more than just a ‘space’ for them to develop, it’s the perfect setting to test their ideas, network, collaborate and grow their business in a safe and sustainable way.”
She added: “We will be trialling it in Newcastle Emlyn and then other rural areas where the major issues are around broadband provision and slow internet speeds, travel time, fuel costs and administrative services unavailable in more hard-to-reach towns and villages.
“There are so many innovative and exciting new start-ups and entrepreneurs in this region who just need a foundation to build on, so hopefully can provide that and resolve some of these problems.”
A report by Aberystwyth University last year revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic had exported the divide between rural and urban areas in Wales, particularly the inequalities in broadband speeds, unemployment and healthcare and housing.
DeskSpace is just one of the projects being launched this year by Antur Cymru Enterprise.
“The growth of industry in rural locations is paramount as we bounce back from the challenges of the Coronavirus, and we are focused on delivering further projects like this in the months and years ahead,” said Ms Raine.