Go Succeed

What Go Succeed does

Go Succeed is a publicly funded enterprise support service operating across Northern Ireland, launched in November 2023. It delivers free business advisory, mentoring, and skills programmes to local entrepreneurs, start-ups, and SMEs through three core pillars — Start, Grow, and Scale — alongside specialised tracks including Female Founders, Social Enterprises, Get Started in Business, and Future Founders. The service is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and delivered in partnership with Northern Ireland's 11 local councils, which collectively provide the regional distribution backbone and on-the-ground access to local SME ecosystems.

The platform operates as a hybrid service combining in-person advisory sessions, structured mentoring (up to 30 hours per Scale client), events, and a digital Members Area hosted on go-succeed.com. A benchmarking and diagnostic tools suite launched in June 2026 extends the offering into self-assessment across digital adoption, sustainability, innovation, and leadership maturity. Strategic partnerships — including with Young Enterprise NI on Future Founders and with the NI Economic Trade and Skills Seminar (NIESS) and Ardmore Group on industrial digital transformation — broaden reach into specific demographic and industrial segments. Since launch, the service has facilitated over 2,500 new businesses and reports the creation of more than 3,500 jobs across Northern Ireland.

Go Succeed is not a commercial enterprise; its business model is grant-funded rather than revenue-generating. End users receive services at no cost, while the operator's funding flows centrally from the UK Government. There is no pricing model, no commercial customer base, and no equity or external capital structure — the entity functions as regional SME advisory infrastructure rather than a venture- or PE-style business.

Name

Go Succeed

Legal name

Go Succeed

Website

https://go-succeed.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Go Succeed is a publicly funded enterprise support service in Northern Ireland, launched November 2023 by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. It delivers free advisory, mentoring, and skills programmes to entrepreneurs and SMEs via Start, Grow, and Scale pillars, in partnership with the region's 11 local councils.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Belfast

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government-funded free service: Go Succeed is a free service funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The service provides business support at no cost to entrepreneurs and businesses in Northern Ireland.
2. Grant funding: The Go Succeed Grant programme provides funding support to eligible businesses. The grant is for businesses currently accessing support via Go Succeed who have identified a barrier to growth. The grant requires 50% match funding from the business for Social Enterprises and 30% match funding for Scale programme participants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Go Succeed is a free government-funded business support service for individuals and businesses in Northern Ireland, delivered jointly by the region's 11 local councils. It provides tailored mentoring (up to 13–30 hours per business), masterclasses, peer networking, grant funding access, and a Members Area with online resources and diagnostic/benchmarking tools, organised around three stages: Start, Grow, and Scale.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Go Succeed Start Support service for individuals with a business idea who need help turning it into a reality, including those running a side hustle. Provides up to 13 hours of mentoring, business plan development, masterclasses, peer support, and access to funding.
• Go Succeed Grow Business growth support for established business owners seeking to expand and innovate. Offers up to 15 hours of mentoring, grant funding, peer support, and access to the Members Area with templates and benchmarking tools.
• Go Succeed Scale Intensive support for businesses capable of generating at least £1 million in revenue after three years. Provides up to 30 hours of sector-specific mentoring, masterclasses, and resources for penetrating new markets, identifying investment, and scaling operations.
• Female Growth Programme Specialised programme empowering female founders to scale businesses in new and existing markets through expert mentoring, networking, leadership development, and access to funding. Addresses gender disparities in business leadership.
• Get Started in Business Support for individuals not currently in paid work (carers, students, people with disabilities or long-term health conditions, retirees) to explore self-employment or business ownership. Provides up to 10 hours of 1:1 support with a local business advisor and access to a small grant.
• Members Area Exclusive online portal for Go Succeed users providing access to business templates, benchmarking and self-assessment tools, and bite-sized business tutorials.
• Peer Support Network Network connecting participants with local entrepreneurs and like-minded business owners for peer learning and support.
• Social Enterprises Support Specialised support for social enterprises addressing social, environmental, or community issues while achieving financial sustainability. Provides events, masterclasses, funding access (including 50% match funding grant eligibility), mentoring, and peer networks.
• Benchmarking and Diagnostic Tools Suite Suite of diagnostic and benchmarking tools providing tailored insights across leadership, financial performance, resilience, and growth potential for entrepreneurs and business owners.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,500 new businesses facilitated
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services. Councils provide local expertise, office locations, and connect entrepreneurs with the Go Succeed service.
• Ards and North Down Borough CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Belfast City CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland. Hosts the NIESS Programme Management Office. Primary contact for data protection queries: [email protected]
• Causeway Coast and Glens Borough CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Derry City and Strabane District CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland. Acts as data controller for marketing privacy under UK GDPR. Partners for programme delivery.
• Fermanagh and Omagh District CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Lisburn and Castlereagh City CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Mid and East Antrim Borough CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services. Mentorship delivery at Mallusk Enterprise Park.
• Mid Ulster District CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Newry, Mourne and Down District CouncilcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 11 local councils in Northern Ireland partnering with Go Succeed to deliver business support services.
• Young Enterprise NIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Go Succeed to deliver the Future Founders entrepreneurship programme. Engaged more than 2,500 young people in its first year. Programme includes interactive workshops, Innovation Camp with Dragons' Den-style pitches, and Entrepreneurship Hub.
• NIESS (Northern Ireland Enterprise Support Service)coreOthersThe overarching government programme that manages Go Succeed. Jointly managed by NIESS and Ardmore Group for website design, development, and content.
• Ardmore GroupcoreTechnology or IntegrationWebsite management partner responsible for hosting through Google Cloud Managed Hosting Services, shared responsibilities for design, development, and content with NIESS.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Innovate UK: UK's national innovation agency funding and supporting business-led innovation across the UK. Adjacent rather than overlapping — both publicly funded, but Innovate UK focuses on R&D-intensive scale-ups while Go Succeed serves the broader SME population.
• Federation of Small Businesses (FSB): UK's largest membership organisation for small businesses, providing advice, networking and policy advocacy. Comparable in audience (UK SMEs) and advisory flavour, but membership-funded and UK-wide rather than regionally scoped like Go Succeed.

Direct peers

• Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Ireland: Republic of Ireland's government-funded network of 31 local enterprise offices providing mentoring, training and grant supports to startups and small businesses. Closely analogous to Go Succeed in mission, funding model (state-backed) and service mix (advice + grants + masterclasses).
• Prince's Trust (Enterprise Programme): UK charity providing enterprise support, mentoring and start-up funding to young people aged 18–30. Strongly comparable to Go Succeed's Future Founders programme, which engaged 2,500+ young people in its first year through Young Enterprise NI and six FE colleges.
• Be the Business: UK-focused, government-backed initiative helping SMEs improve productivity through peer networks, mentoring and benchmarking — overlapping directly with Go Succeed's Grow and Scale offerings and benchmarking tool suite.
• Business Gateway (Scotland): Scotland's publicly-funded business support service delivering advice, training and masterclasses to entrepreneurs and SMEs via a national and local partner network. Highly comparable model to Go Succeed's council-delivered, government-funded business advisory framework.
• Young Enterprise NI: Northern Ireland charity delivering enterprise and financial education to young people, and a core Go Succeed partner on the Future Founders programme. Directly comparable in mission and geography, focused on the youth-enterprise segment.

Emerging players

• Enterprise Nation: UK small business support community offering events, mentoring and resources to entrepreneurs. Overlaps with Go Succeed's masterclass/peer support offer but operates as a membership/community rather than a state-funded service.
• Start Up Loans UK: UK Government-backed loan and mentoring programme for early-stage entrepreneurs. Comparable to Go Succeed Start in target segment and government funding model, with the difference of providing personal loans rather than free advisory hours.

Regional players

• Enterprise Ireland: Irish state agency driving the growth of Irish enterprises in global markets, focused on scaling and exporting businesses. Comparable to Go Succeed Scale tier but operating in the Republic of Ireland rather than Northern Ireland.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/gosucceed_ni
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@GoSucceedNI
• Facebookfacebook.com/ni.gosucceed
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/go-succeed-ni
• Instagraminstagram.com/gosucceed_ni
• TikToktiktok.com/@gosucceedni

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Go Succeed