The plan sets out the main steps in ‘Barcelona Never Stops’, a programme to kickstart the city economy with shock measures and long-term tools for regenerating the social and economic fabric, as well as the Strategic Plan for Markets 2015-2025, the main goal of which is the development of new technologies. The plan to renew urban commerce is based around four basic areas:

• Technical improvements representing a significant benefit for the development of commerce: promoting initiatives such as training and subsides for small establishments to go digital, the goal being to add vitality and make them stronger.
• Renovation, modernisation and adaptation of new technologies in municipal markets: with action such as the development of telecommunications infrastructures, the installation of sensors and digitally controlled capacities, the new incident-management tool, roll-out of the network of screens and the content-management tool, plus the installation of collection boxes for orders.
• Action at commercial establishments outside municipal markets to promote employment: these include the projects on the ‘Impulsem el que fas’ scheme, which subsidise 80% of business projects involving the purchase or acquisition of on-street commercial premises, or the ‘Amunt persianes’ scheme to acquire empty premises for a public pool.
• Support for young entrepreneurs in the commercial sector and for inter-generational renewal: an advice service has been set up for the under-35s to promote their business ideas, with 10 million euros earmarked for six private venture capital funds to drive innovative start-ups in the city.

National Award for Small Commerce to the shop Santa Eulàlia

The Ministry also gave the National Award for Small Commerce to the shop Santa Eulàlia, located in Passeig de Gràcia. The prize is worth 15,000 euros.