Barcelona City Council has promoted a series of measures to encourage the digitalisation of shops and restaurants in the city to provide an effective response to the needs of the establishments and their digital transition.

Barcelona Activa and the City Council’s Department of Trade, Catering and Consumption are contributing to the initiative with the creation of a specialised technical support service to help small businesses and self-employed people develop a personalised digitisation plan.

The council has approved a line of grants worth € 500,000 to advance the digital transformation of local trade and neighbourhood catering businesses. The funding line will also be extended should there be enough requests to warrant it. Applications for the grant, which will cover 50% of total project costs (a maximum of € 7,500 per application), can be submitted from the 22nd of July. The package of measures also includes direct support with advice on technology renewal and online training to reinforce digital skills.

Online training for business owners and staff of the establishments

The Barcelona Activa Cibernàrium has launched 52 online courses for a potential 52,000 recipients. The courses are designed to help trade and catering professionals acquire new knowledge and training at a variety of levels.

Users will be able to access training on business digitisation, internal management, website creation including attracting web visitors, internet marketing, social media communication, social media advertising, internet advertising, gaining customer loyalty and e-commerce. You can find more information about all the available courses by clicking on the following link.

Personalised Digitisation Plans

The City Council has also created a specialised technical advice and support service to support small businesses and self-employed people in the design and implementation of their own personalized Digitisation Plan. The support process is aimed at companies with registered offices in the Barcelona metropolitan area and a maximum workforce of ten people.

Request help with your Digitisation Plan now through the Business Services Office, which can be accessed by clicking here.