Ecosystem community: Check if you’re eligible to apply for the Xero Beautiful Business Fund

Have you heard about the Xero Beautiful Business Fund? We recently opened the call for applications for the Fund which aims to help Xero small business customers boost their growth plans and drive future success. The initiative offers more than NZ$750,000 in funding globally for winning Xero small business customers who are eager to take the next step in various aspects of their business.

So are those from our ecosystem community eligible to apply? Many members of the ecosystem community are small businesses too — as long as you meet the eligibility criteria, you can apply.

Applications close 6 October 2023, so get your applications in soon! Take a look below for more info:

Eligibility

Applicants need to meet the following criteria to be eligible:

• 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

Application process

There are four categories that applicants can apply under (and no cap on how many each applicant can apply for):

• 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.
• Trailblazing with technology: For small businesses seeking to innovate. This could include digitalising parts of their operations or integrating new emerging technologies.
• 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.
• 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.

Once you’ve checked your eligibility and reviewed the categories, applying is easy. All you need to do is:

1. Check out the dedicated website for key information
2. For each category you wish to enter:
3. Shoot a maximum 90 second pitch video for each category you would like to enter — you can find out more about what the judges are looking for here
4. Upload the video to our dedicated website
5. Fill out the short application form

We’ve listed out the application process and tips on how to apply in our blog post.

Funding

The Xero Beautiful Business Fund’s NZ$750,000 global prize pool is split into specific amounts per category per country. This means that you don’t need to apply for a specific amount.

The judging panel of each country 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. Four global winners (one in each category) will be identified and receive an additional global prize of NZ$50,000 or regional equivalent in funding.

You can find all the details about the prizes up for grabs on our website here. For full competition T&Cs, click here.