Serial entrepreneur Elaine McPherson has been dealt a serious blow by the collapse of Ethel Austin, which went into administration yesterday.

Five leading entrepreneurs on what the pre-Budget report means for their businesses.

Who would have thought that there could have been so much change in the financial markets in such a short period of time? In early January 2009, I was still fairly bullish that Q2 of 2009 would start to see a recovery in activity.

Retail is a sector under siege during this recession but Moss Boss finance director Michael Hitchcock insists “there’s a degree of sadistic pleasure” involved in operating in such an environment.

Business Secretary Peter Mandelson says it’s crucial the government acts now to help small and medium businesses as they're the “lifeblood of the economy”.

The government is planning to back £20bn of loans to companies with 50 or fewer employees as the British Bankers’ Association releases statistics purporting to show growth in lending to small businesses towards the end of 2008 remained above 2007 levels.

Is your business like a shiny new Ferrari or a clapped-out old Skoda? Will it zoom into the new year with a throaty roar or will it sputter and stall? Complete our quiz of 27 questions to assess if your business will pass its MOT and survive 2009.

Silvigen, a supplier of biomass fuels for use in the power industry, will use £1.75m from Foresight to finance the development of a processing plant in Goole, North Humberside.

Signs for a finance director to recognise that the company is maturing into a real corporate entity

Spice FD Oliver Lightowlers is adament: turning operating profit into operating cash flow is a must for a fast-growing business.

Private equity-backed businesses take on large amounts of debt. Quoted companies pay it down or use it to buy back shares. So what’s going on?

Don't moan about late payment, make yourself indispensable.

Acquiring a competitor could transform your business. Tim Chapman discovers how to find a perfect match.

Cult clothing brand Howie’s is a decade old, but only recently raised its first round of funding.

Mark Mills runs Cardpoint, the UK’s biggest offsite cash machine business. He tells Adam Leyland about the company’s astonishing growth.

Need bigger premises? Worried about your pension? A SIPP can do the trick.

Keeping control of cash flow is an essential art to master. Cash is the life blood of an organisation.

Is winning that mega-contract from Large plc always going to benefit your company? Here’s the other side of the coin...

If you’re unhappy about the way things are going in your company, this is one decision you have to get right. Here's a cautionary tale.