The Community of Madrid launches the Comercios con Solera program from which 1.500 traditional businesses will benefit
The Community of Madrid launches the Comercios con Solera program, a specific support plan for commercial and hotel establishments that are over 50 years old to promote and favor this type of business that has become a hallmark of the region. Nearly 1.500 SMEs are expected to benefit from this initiative that includes, among other measures, priority when accessing aid that the regional government will convene in the near future for the modernization of their activities, elimination of regulatory obstacles and tax reductions.
This is how the Minister of Economy, Finance and Employment, Rocío Albert, has advanced today during the visit to the pastry shop The Oriental, a family firm created in Madrid in 1950 that has become a benchmark, as it has a workshop where all kinds of gluten-free bakery and pastry products are made.
“It is an example of the effort that traditional companies have to make to adapt to new challenges. From the Community of Madrid we want to value this innovative spirit and support them with new measures that help them make new projects, new investments a reality, to continue advancing and be more competitive", the counselor pointed out.
To this end, the regional government has recently modified the regulatory bases for aid for the modernization and digitization of commercial and artisan SMEs, so that those that are over 50 years old can obtain a higher score. These are subsidies to make investments both in establishments and in machinery or energy efficiency measures, among others.
Streamlining administrative procedures
The program Businesses with tradition It also includes specific actions to eliminate any type of regulation that hinders the work of these professionals, such as the elimination of planning permits for all hotel and restaurant establishments, replacing them with a responsible declaration, as has already been the case in businesses for 10 years. years.
“It is about helping businesses that are already part of our neighborhood, that have spent decades struggling to maintain their activity, taking care of their customers, and we know that many times they encounter obstacles that slow down and hinder the implementation of new ideas that allow them to be more competitive”, insisted Albert.
In addition, in the tax field, the regional government works, in collaboration with the town halls, to study reductions in both municipal and regional taxes, such as the IBI (Real Estate Tax), Asset Transfers and Documentary Legal Acts and the fees paid for Your activities.
Almost a million euros for 80 SMEs in the pastry sector
The Community of Madrid has had a line of aid for small and medium-sized commercial companies since 2016 aimed at financing investment projects in establishments. Of the total companies benefited (772), 80 belong to the pastry sector, amounting to 969.208,11 euros, which have been used to reform and improve their equipment and technology. In the region, there are more than 3.100 stores of these characteristics that employ almost 8.850 people.
