Apply now for Xero Beautiful Business Fund

Funding Categories

Xero is excited to introduce the Xero Beautiful Business Fund, an initiative backing small businesses for the future. There are four funding categories with no limit on how many you can enter:

• Innovating for sustainability
  • For small businesses who want to take the next step on their sustainability journey. For example, it could be to move to sustainable packaging, implement energy-efficient equipment or carbon neutral transport. They want to see how you plan to take the next step on your sustainability journey.
• Trailblazing with technology
  • For small businesses seeking to innovate. This could include digitalising parts of your operations or integrating new emerging technologies. They want to see how you are setting pace with technological advancements.
• Strengthening community connection
  • For small businesses or non-profits who strive to give back to their communities. It could be to contribute to philanthropy, social good, or make an impact on the community in a meaningful way. They want to see how you are bringing people together and giving back to your community.
• Upskilling for the future
  • For small businesses seeking to support upskilling for themselves or their employees. This could include access to training and other professional development opportunities. They want to see how you are thinking ahead and preparing for the future.

Funding Information

• The Xero Beautiful Business Fund offers more than NZ$750,000 in funding to winning small businesses. Funding will be awarded to winners at a regional and global level.
• Each of the seven countries where the competition is running will select four winners (one for each category) for a total of 28 regional winners. Each winner will receive NZ$20,000 in funding or a regional equivalent.
• The pool of regional winners (28 winners total) will then be evaluated by a global judging panel and 4 global winners (1 in each category) will be identified and receive an additional global prize of NZ$50,000 in funding (or equivalent local currency).
• Here is the the regional fund breakdown:
  • United States x 4 winners: $12,500
  • Canada x 4 winners: $15,000
  • South Africa x 4 winners: R250,000
  • New Zealand x 4 winners: $20,000
  • United Kingdom x 4 winners: £10,000
  • Singapore x 4 winners: $15,000
  • Australia x 4 winners: $20,000

Eligibility Criteria

• You’ll be able apply to the Xero Beautiful Business Fund if you are a Xero small business customer that meets the following eligibility criteria:
• Your business must:
  • Be located in the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, Canada (excluding Quebec), South Africa, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Singapore, or Australia.
  • Have between 0-50 employees.
  • Be a paying Xero subscriber (either directly or via a Xero accounting or bookkeeping partner) at the time of entry and at the time of announcement of the winners, which will take place in November 2023.
  • Be operating on a for-profit or not-for-profit basis.
  • Complete and submit the full application including a short form and upload a 90 second pitch video.
  • This can be done by either the business owner or a designated employee.

Judging Criteria

• The following assessment criteria will be used to determine which applicants are selected to receive the funding provided through the Xero Beautiful Business Fund.
• The regional and global judging panels will be made up of a minimum of five judges. The regional judging will occur first and each judge will assess the quality of shortlisted submissions based on this criteria and assign between 1-5 points for each question listed below (5 being the best). Each judge will then add up all the points for each applicant and identify their top three highest scoring submissions. The totals from the top three highest scoring submissions from each judge will be calculated to identify the regional winner in each category. There will be a total of 28 regional winners, one from each region for each category that will be put forward to the global judging panel to conclude the global winner for each of the four categories.
• The global judges will assess the 28 regional winners based on the same criteria and assign between 1-5 points for each question listed below (5 being the best). From there, each judge will add up all the points for each applicant and identify their top three highest scoring submissions. The totals from the top three scorers from each judge will be calculated to identify the global winner in each category, for a total of four global winners.

For more information, visit Xero.