Business Month July 2014

INCISIVE, OBJECTIVE, INDEPENDENT

July/August 2014 ISSUE 45 PRICE £2.50 (Where sold) l

SHOULD WE FEAR THE LION? Life in Northern Ireland with an independent Scotland

THE FELINE APPROACH TO CROWDFUNDING • REFLECTING ON SOLAR POWER • THE CHAIRMAN'S SOCIALISING REACHES NEW HEIGHTS

CONTENTS

COVER STORY

UP IN THE AIR Northern Ireland firms must be prepared for all eventualities should the people of Scotland vote for independence

Editor’s note

48

Margaret Canning

d.elliott@businessmonth.co.uk

FEATURES

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12 Analysis: Northern Ireland ‘will not lose from Scotland gaining independence’ 14 Analysis: Change is inevitable after independence vote 16 Economy watch: Do opportunities exist in the west for Ulster businesses?

26 Analysis: Belfast Motor Show 2014 founder reveals the secret of her success 28 SME: The brothers keeping their family-run wine business going after over 60 years 32 Inside Report: No easy answers to Scottish success

FOCUS

38 Hotels: Tourism industry is booming and our hoteliers are playing an important role 42 Green Sector: Excitment is buiding at a project proposing to make use of a raw material

OFFLINE

46 Out to lunch: Toby McMurray speads his optimism 48 Day in the life of: Paul McMahon, of the Belfast Chamber of Trade & Commerce 50 Hottest hatch: SEAT Leon 54 Hitting the heights: Enjoy Scotland’s finest scenery from behind the wheel of a Ferrari 58 The Chairman: The inside track on business 62 Last Word: With Nick Leeson BUSINESS MONTH 124-144 Royal Avenue, Belfast, BT11EB Editor - Margaret Canning

Edinburgh Castle

26

46

Sales manager - Jackie Reid Contact: +44 2890 264070 or email: j.reid@belfasttelegraph.co.uk

58 Design and production: RE&D Business Month is an imprint of Independent News and Media (NI)

ELCOME to the July/August edition of Business Month, in which we consider the contentious issue of Scottish independence and the possible effect it might have on us if our cousins across the Irish Sea decide to go it alone.

Lots of the businesspeople we have spoken to have erred on the side of caution and are unwilling to commit to the ‘yes’ or ‘no’ camp.

They do concede that even ‘devo max’ — the form of self-governance which the Scots are likely to get in the event of a ‘no’ vote — will have a ripple effect on Northern Ireland.

And they also acknowledge that come what may, we need to be prepared to make some changes to how we approach the Scottish market.

Plenty of business organisations have also found it a thorny issue to get involved in, with the CBI finding the going got really tough when they joined the ‘Better Together’ group.

But the head of one business body has declared his hand — please read on to discover his identity.

And at time of year when many of us are packing our suitcases for far-flung climes, Economy Watch considers the markets lying to the west and to the east.

Which leads me to wish you all a very happy and contented summer break.

See you in September.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 3

NEWS BITES

3.1%

Annual increase in UK index of services in April

1.7%

Share of total growth from business services and finance

0.9%

Share of total growth from hotels and restaurants

0.3%

Services output increase between March and April 2014 Source: Office for National Statistics

0.8%

Increase in index of services in quarter 1 2014 compared to quarter 4 2013

0.2%

Share of total increase from transport, storage and communication

Software firm brings 485 jobs to Newry FINANCIAL software firm First Derivatives Group has unveiled a 485-job creation package for Newry, making it Northern Ireland's biggest listed company in employment terms since Galen plc.

The jobs windfall, which is worth £22m to the economy, brings the global total of its workforce to almost 1,500.

The announcement was made by the First Minister Peter Robinson and his deputy, Martin McGuinness, who paid tribute to the firm's great success.

The firm, established by Newry man Brian Conlon, is a provider of financial software systems and has branches all over the world, from North America to the Far East.

Call to fast-track infrastructure projects FAST-tracking of major building projects will be key to keeping talented young people in Northern Ireland, according to a recruitment expert.

John Moore, managing director of jobs agency Hays in Northern Ireland, was speaking after new population statistics showed that migration out of the country is at the highest level on record.

Mr Moore said that those who would have traditionally travelled to the Republic to work had been forced further afield by the continuing slowdown in the construction sector across the border.

This year the Executive will allocate £1.6bn of infrastructure spend to projects – but there have also been calls from the Institution of Civil Engineers to expedite other major projects.

Tallest office building on market for £5m IRELAND’S tallest commercial building, the Nama-owned Windsor House in Belfast, has been put on the market for of-

4 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

TASTY OPPORTUNITY Niall McKenna, owner of James Street South, The Bar & Grill and Hadskis, is offering eight apprentices aged between 16 and 24 the opportunity to develop their skills during a year-long placement at his Belfast restaurants. Mr McKenna launched his search with the help of Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster (centre) and Belfast Met lead training manager Heather Hedley fers in excess of £5m. The sale through agents CBRE of the 22storey building at Bedford Street in the heart of Belfast's office district follows the collapse in 2012 of its former owners Lauderdale Properties.

Lauderdale Properties bought the Bedford Street office block in 2007 with the reported intention of converting it into apartments.

However, it fell victim to the property crash when the joint venture between Dublin developer Ray Grehan and Cavanbased P Elliott construction group went into administration in February two years ago.

Nama then took control of the office block, which had been purchased through a Bank of Ireland loan.

Stable growth is key for NI, says Carney NORTHERN Ireland should look to have an economy based on stable growth rather than a

short-term bounce in the housing market, the governor of the Bank of England has said.

Mark Carney spoke after meeting key businesspeople from around Northern Ireland.

In Belfast, he told Business Month the success of the economy should not be built on short-term increases in house prices.

He said: “The aspiration to own your own home is natural and entirely understandable.

What we can do as the Bank of England is make sure that people take out mortgages to buy homes — and they are mortgages that they can repay.

“And a consequence of that — for everybody whether they own their home or rent or live with their parents — they still have an economy that's going to grow, and not because of a short-term boost that comes from a bounce in the housing market but because of longterm fundamentals that are consistent with stable growth,” he added.

US company buys Bangor engineers CO DOWN company Whale, which makes pumping systems, water heaters and other equipment for boats and caravans, has been acquired by US firm Brunswick Corporation.

The New York Stock Exchanged-listed company, is based in Illinois. It did not say how much it paid for Bangor based Whale, also known as Munster Simms Engineering.

Whale, which is led by managing director Patrick Hurst, recently announced a £3m investment in research and development. It employs around 149 people.

Whale has three manufacturing sites, two in Bangor and one in California and holds 17 patents worldwide.

Brunswick said Whale would continue to be based in Bangor, and would be part of Attwood, a brand in Brunswick's marine parts and accessories operations.

NEWS BITES

Business services driving recovery PAUL GOSLING

▲ FIRST-TIME BUYERS The number of first-time buyers in Northern Ireland rose by 33% in the first quarter this year, compared to 2013. ▲ HOUSE PRICES Northern Ireland average house prices rose by 2.6% in the past year. ▲ MORTGAGE LENDING Gross mortgage lending in the UK was £16.5bn in May, up by 12% over the same month last year. ▲ SERVICES OUTPUT Output per hour grew by 0.2% in the first quarter in UK service industries, according to the Office for National Statistics ▲ PRODUCTION OUTPUT Output per hour grew by 0.5% in the first quarter in production industries, the ONS said ▼ M&A ACTIVITY The average number of UK deals has fallen by 2,288 per year between 1987 and 1989 to only 842 deals per year from 2010 to 2013, according to the ONS ▼ JAPANESE SENTIMENT Business sentiment fell in the three months to June, according to the Bank of Japan's latest Tankan survey ▼ UNEMPLOYMENT Northern Ireland’s unemployment rate fell from 7.8% a year ago to 6.9% in the quarter ended April. ▼ ROI JOBLESSNESS The Republic of Ireland’s unemployment rate fell from 13.7% a year ago to 11.9% in April.

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NORTHERN Ireland’s economic recovery is being driven by the business services sector, according to the latest quarterly sectoral forecast from Danske Bank. It predicts that economic growth here should reach 2.4% both this year and in 2015.

The report finds the strongest growth is in administration and support services, including recruitment and rental agencies, security firms and office support businesses. These are expected to grow turnover by up to 6%.

Professional and scientific services will grow by about 4%.

Other sectors such as ICT, arts and recreation, manufacturing and construction are forecast to grow by at least 3%. Although retailing and manufacturing are expected to grow at a smaller rate, their overall size means their growth will make a bigger impact overall to the Northern Ireland economy. Retailing is expected to grow 2.8% this year and by 2.1% in 2015, with manufacturing growing 3% this year and 3.1% next year.

By contrast, Danske Bank predicts there could be nearly 2,400 job losses by the end of next year in the Northern Ireland public sector. Government austerity measures are expected to lead the heaviest losses falling in the newly reformed councils.

Danske Bank chief economist Angela McGowan said: “We have certainly seen a return of the feel-good factor in relation to the economy in quarter two.

The strongest growth is in administration and support services, including recruitment and rental agencies, security firms and office support businesses Large-scale job announcements combined with rising levels of household spending and improved levels of business investment are helping the economy along on its upward trajectory.

“Households may feel a little cheated as the economic improvements are still not translating into rising earnings.

However, it is anticipated that as the labour market improves

and a number of sectors struggle with skill shortages, there should be some upward pressure on wage growth in the second half of this year. Comfort can, however, be taken from the fact that low inflation will support disposable incomes in the months ahead and rising confidence levels are propelling [the] private sector onto a positive upward growth trajectory.”

First social enterprise hub opens THE first of 11 new regional social enterprise hubs in Northern Ireland has been opened in Londonderry, as part of a £4m government-funded programme.

The hub will operate from two prime city centre sites in Derry. Social enterprises are not-for-profit businesses that trade with the objective of achieving social goals.

The contract to operate the social enterprise hub in Derry was won by Enterprise North West.

Its hub manager Brian O’Neill said: “The social enterprise hub is a completely new approach to supporting brilliant social enterprise ideas, bringing about

more social benefits to communities across the north west.

“The city-centre based social enterprise hub premises will provide new social entrepreneurs and social enterprises with access to a ‘soft landing’ incubator from where they will be able to locate their new social businesses and get free access to resources such as mentoring, training and best-practice visits,” said Mr O’Neill. “We look forward to uncovering and supporting some ambitious, exciting and innovative ideas.”

Jennifer McCann, a junior minister in the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM), said:

“Social enterprises can be powerful catalysts for change — generating income, promoting innovation and helping develop a positive, sustainable community. The Executive recognises that many of the best ideas come from the ground up; this hub is about empowering local people by giving them access to the resources to make their ideas a reality.”

Funding for the programme is coming from OFMDFM, with delivery support from the Department for Social Development and Invest NI. Further hubs will be located in Ballymena, Belfast, Downpatrick, Enniskillen, Lisburn, Lurgan and Strabane.

NEWS BITES

Tourism Interest rate hike looms large to benefit from visa changes PAUL GOSLING TOURISTS from China have been given access to a new and simpler visa system that is expected to increase visitor numbers to Northern Ireland. Chinese visitors can now use an integrated website to simultaneously obtain visas to the UK and to EU countries that are members of the Schengen system, including the Irish Republic.

Previously Chinese visitors required separate visas for the Republic and Northern Ireland, causing many tourists who flew into Dublin to visit only the South. Enterprise minister Arlene Foster described the new system as “great news for Northern Ireland as it will benefit both business visitors and tourists”.

New figures show that visitor numbers to Northern Ireland rose by 2% last year, to 4.1m. Visitor spend rose by 5% over 2012, to £723m. A target in the Programme for Government is to achieve a £1bn tourism turnover here by 2020. The biggest increase last year was in visitors, and related spend, from outside Northern Ireland.

A new tourism innovation fund has been launched that is intended to further boost visitor numbers by supporting the creation of new visitor attractions. The fund is administered by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board and will provide financial support of between £20,000 and £100,000 to projects that offer “unique experiences and services” designed to appeal to prospective visitors.

Susie McCullough, NITB director of business tourism and events, said: “The aim . . . is to enhance the growth, quality, competitiveness and sustainability of tourism. We want to further stimulate innovative product development and improve the visitor experience on the ground.

8 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

THE BANK of England is likely to increase base interest rate from 0.5% later this year, governor Mark Carney has indicated.

Speaking at the annual Mansion House dinner, Carney said: “It [an interest rate rise] could happen sooner than markets currently expect.”

This point was underlined in the minutes of the most recent Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee: “The case for raising bank rate gradually and cautiously was reinforced by uncertainty over its likely impact on the economy, following the long period at 0.5%, although it

could be argued that the more gradual the intended rise in Bank Rate, the earlier it might be necessary to start tightening policy.” But the MPC added that a premature rate rise could choke the recovery.

The debate on the timing of an interest rate rise is particularly relevant for Northern Ireland. While 78% of mortgage borrowers in London and the south-east of England are on fixed-rate mortgages, and so are protected in the short-term from a rise in interest rate, the opposite is the case in Northern Ireland. Here 79% of mortgage

borrowers are on variable rate mortgages and so will feel the full impact of a rate rise on their monthly expenditure.

That will have a knock-on impact on the wider economy.

In addition, Northern Ireland has the highest proportion of ‘zombie’ companies of any UK region. These are businesses that are able to pay interest on their debts, but are unable to repay the capital sum and would be unable to meet higher interest rate repayments. An interest rate rise is therefore likely to tip many Northern Ireland businesses into insolvency.”

Belfast launches city vision BELFAST will become a leading European city if the city council’s economic development strategy achieves its objectives.

The council intends to build the ‘Belfast brand’ and take steps to improve the city-centre’s daytime and night life.

Measures planned include making better use of city centre heritage buildings, creating a rapid transit system and introducing a city travel pass. The council also wants to attract new air routes. The strategy is based on a report written for the council by consultants Urban Strategies. It said: “Belfast has already been transformed in recent years as it has emerged from a period of conflict, but it is still a city in transition.”

Historically, Belfast has had an economy with strong links to manufacturing and industry, but all that is changing, and this is the challenge for many similar European cities that are now having to focus on a ‘knowledge economy’. What this document sets out is a vision for taking Belfast forward, and the areas which will need attention as Belfast City Council prepares to take on planning responsibilities in 2015.”

The report was launched by First Minister, Peter Robinson.

He said: “Belfast is . . . already a top performer both locally and nationally. These draft plans will ensure that Northern Ireland’s already well developed reputation as a great place to live, work and do business. It will continue to grow and lead to further exciting new jobs and opportunities.”

The plan is to build the ‘Belfast brand’ and improve its daytime and night life. There will also be a greater focus on developing a ‘knowledge economy’

NEWS BITES

Help to Buy has little impact in NI PAUL GOSLING NORTHERN Ireland has had little benefit from the Help to Buy 2 scheme that is intended to reinvigorate the housing market, the latest figures from the UK Treasury suggest. Just 1.3% of the UK’s total mortgage completions achieved with the support of Help to Buy were located in Northern Ireland.

Scotland had 10 times more mortgage approvals supported by Help to Buy, yet its population is only three times greater than Northern Ireland’s. Wales had five times more Help to Buy supported mortgage approvals than Northern Ireland, though its population is less than twice that of Northern Ireland.

Help to Buy 2 is a mortgage guarantee scheme, through which the government offers lenders the option to purchase a guarantee on mortgage loans, providing the borrower has a deposit of 5% to 20% of the purchase price. The scheme is available for new build and older homes, for first-time buyers, home movers and for borrowers seeking to remortgage.

The Treasury says that the figures for Northern Ireland are in line with the proportion of mortgage borrowing.

In its latest statistical report, the Treasury explains: “Completions in Northern Ireland made up 1.3% of the total.

This is broadly in line with Northern Ireland’s share of overall UK mortgage lending; in the last two quarters there were 8,000 mortgage completions in Northern Ireland, compared to almost 486,000 in the UK as a whole.”

However, the state of Northern Ireland’s economy has severely depressed the property and mortgage lending market here. The purpose of Help to Buy was to help generate a higher level of house buying activity. Help to Buy appears not to have achieved that in Northern Ireland.

10 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Around 250 jobs are to be created by Applegreen at four new motorway stations as part of a £25m investment

Job creation continues

NORTHERN Ireland is continuing to benefit from a fast pace in job creation, with several major local employers expanding their operations and further inward investment attracted and supported by Invest NI. In the largest job announcement, some 250 service jobs will be created by Applegreen at four new motorway service stations which involve a £25m investment. An additional thousand jobs will be created during the construction phase.

The Belfast office of financial services firm Spence & Partners is to create 107 jobs over the next five years, as part of an

£8m investment. A further 100 people are to be hired in Belfast

by US healthcare company CVS Caremark.

Northern Ireland’s aerospace sector is also doing well.

Thompson Aero Seating, based in Portadown, is to take on an extra 85 skilled people through a £10m investment.

Meanwhile, the Thales Group — which has facilities in Belfast and Crossgar — has won a £48m contract for the Royal Navy.

On a smaller scale, Garage Door Systems in Ballymena is creating 17 jobs. Dungannon’s Taxi & Bus Conversions is to

take on an extra 19 people over the next two years. And 30 jobs will be on offer at the new Simple Be and Jacamo store in Belfast’s CastleCourt.

There are also exciting developments in Northern Ireland’s drink manufacture sector.

Echlinville Distillery in Kircubbin is developing premium Irish Whiskey and is the first new distillery to be licensed by customs authorities in Northern Ireland for 130 years and will create 15 new jobs. Gin manufactures Rademon Drinks in Crossgar is producing a new premium gin, generating three new jobs.

ANALYSIS

Looking for investors?

Crowdfunding is purr-fect ALAN WATTS I’VE previously explained various forms of crowdfunding, so now I want to give you a very real example. I happen to believe the world is divided in two: those who love cats and those who don’t. So perhaps if you’re a dog lover you might want to look away now...

People can readily understand crowdfunding as applied to debt or equity, ie shares. You may think the people who write cheques for this are mad, but you can at least see the theory of how it might work.

But reward-based crowdfunding often makes people scratch their heads. Why would you give good money to something where you have no guarantee of getting anything back just because

you think it’s a nice idea and would like to see it happen?

So, purely on your behalf of course, I visited Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium in newly fashionable Shoreditch in London. Cats and coffee, what a great combination. But is it an investment?

First of all, it’s a rather nice café serving the usual goodies in a good location right beside Brick Lane. The first thing you notice is the airlock system where people who have booked can move through to the cat area. And you do have to book by the way — it’s actually quite hard to get in. Here you are briefed, pay a £5 cover charge to cover the cats, and wash your hands before you can go through.

And once inside, it’s cat heaven — with couches and tables for the human interlopers. Cat laze about or play on various bits of cat furniture including a huge hamster wheel.

You order your food and drink and eat, as in any other café, but all the while people get up and admire or photograph the cats who naturally play up and enjoy the attention.

Or doze with arrogant distain

on specially constructed ledges, hammocks or boxes. Here the cat is king.

And it’s popular — 3,000 bookings were made in the first four-and-a-half hours after the café announced its opening day, causing the website to crash.

By now you’re already rushing to the web to book or feeling slightly nauseous and looking for your dog to pet. It is clearly a successful business — but how did it come into being?

The answer is reward-based crowdfunding — in this case, courtesy of Indiegogo where they raised £109,000. If you are an investor, I’m sure you’ll be reeling in horror. How on earth could anyone make a return on their investment?

It’s too early to judge the figures. The Emporium only opened this February, but one might guess that running a London café, no matter how successful, is unlikely to make a massive return.

However, 1,681 people put money in. They had a range of options, or to be more exact, promises. These are called ‘perks’ on Indiegogo. So for £5 you get a free entry or ‘pop in for a pat’ as they call it. Options

include £20 for a visit for two with cake, VIP membership for a year costing £120, and a ‘forever home' where, for a whopping £20,000, feline fanatics can have life membership for themselves and a rescued cat of their choice.

So in reality the crowd were actually pre-paying for access to something that didn’t yet exist but which they rather fancied. I wouldn’t call this investing, but it is a great way to help create something novel.

Now even if you’re not a cat lover, you can extrapolate this to other things including plays, musicals, films and of course, fanciful products. Or maybe the world’s first dog café?

I’m not sure that crowdfunding is really the best term to describe this reward-based model but there’s no doubt it’s here to stay and will fund diversity in all sorts of areas — and that’s a good thing.

And in case you’re wondering, the food was delicious and totally without any added cat fur.

Alan Watts is director of Halo, the NI Science Park-based business angels

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 11

NEWS ANALYSIS

Opportunities will flow Northern Ireland will not lose from Scotland gaining independence, says Paul Henry, chairman of Chartered Accountants Ulster Society

A

T its narrowest, the distance between Scotland and Northern Ireland is a mere 13 miles.

Small wonder, therefore, that for centuries trade flourished across the North Channel.

Little, apart from a sea crossing, impeded those of a mercantile disposition who had goods to buy and sell. And back in the 6th and 7th Centuries, Antrim and Argyll formed the Kingdom of Dal Riata — separated by the North Channel.

Today, Northern Ireland and Scotland are constituent parts of the United Kingdom with strong bonds and, sadly, a number of similar divisions that straddle culture, language, literature, religion and sport. Our links are also man-made and of economic significance — the gas pipeline and electricity interconnector, not to mention the daily ferry services.

From a time well before the Magna Carta in 1215, the west of Scotland and the northeastern corner of Ireland had a relationship like no other.

Diluted and lessened over time, it remains quite powerful and capable of generating debate.

Nowadays, the debate centres on the Scottish referendum and

12 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

what, if any, impact a ‘yes’ vote would have on Northern Ireland? Is the prospect of an independent Scotland something to be feared? Would it lead to trading difficulties, a break with sterling, separate taxation regime and the introduction of the euro? And would border controls and barriers be erected to make it more difficult to sell products and services to Scottish customers?

Time to nail my colours to the mast.

I, for one, do not share the doom-laden assessments that a ‘yes’ vote would result in isolationism, protectionism and introversion. Our Celtic cousins are far too pragmatic and practical a race to take that route.

No, from the safe distance of Belfast, and being careful to strip out the emotional and highly charged political element to the debate, I believe an independent Scotland could serve Northern Ireland’s interests well. Yes, it would be a different country, but we’re used to dealing with a neighbouring EU country with a different currency with different demands and structures.

Let’s not forget this: the Republic of Ireland is one of our major export markets, a

position that accounts for hundreds of millions in sales and thousands of jobs. We’re not daunted by exporting ‘down the road’, so why should we shiver at the prospect of selling Enniskillen-made foods in Edinburgh?

In fact, we’re ahead of the rest because of the invaluable experience we’ve gained in an island-wide context. Whether Scotland opts out of the UK, or votes to remain, one of the first things we could do after the votes are counted is open a Northern Ireland Office round the corner from the Scottish Parliament, followed by a massive trade fair to ‘showcase’ what we make, and why we want their business.

Figures on the value of trade that we do and the type of products we sell to Scotland are not compiled, which is a terrible shame as it would be useful to examine the relationship that already exists and to see just where we stand as a near trading neighbour.

We have figures for exports to Great Britain but they’re now broken down into their constituent parts. Perhaps that’s something the ‘folks on the hill’ could turn their attention to irrespective of the outcome to the referendum.

The danger in this debate is that we will overlook the busi-

ness imperative and settle on the emotional, allowing flags, identities, traditions, the royal family and differences to dominate when, instead, we should focus more on the ‘glue’ that binds us all together — trade and commerce.

Opportunities will emerge once the dust settles after the September vote and I would argue that for far too long, we’ve actually ignored the scale of the opportunity that’s represented by a country with a population of almost six million people.

It’s essential we fly the flag in the USA, Canada, Brazil, India, Europe and China, but right on our doorstep is a ready market waiting to be developed.

We should recalibrate the export drive and look with fresh eyes across the North Channel.

History offers up ample evidence of business ‘pathfinders’ who spotted a gap in the market and rushed to exploit it.

One such individual was James Magee from Bridge Street, Belfast, who, in 1787, became the first to publish Robert Burns’ poetry outside of Scotland.

Whether it’s ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on independence or devo-max or the worst of all worlds, ‘neverendum’, Northern Ireland must be ready to catch the tide.

James Magee did, and we should follow his lead.

NEWS ANALYSIS

Change is inevitable Northern Ireland firms should realise that the status quo isn’t an option no matter which way Scotland votes, says Andy Willox

T

HERE are 340,000 small and mediumsized businesses in Scotland who employ about half of the country’s private-sector workforce. It is little wonder, then, that both sides of the Scottish independence debate are trying their hardest to persuade this economically and politically important section of the electorate.

Better Together, the official campaign group to keep Scotland within the Union, and home to Labour, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, argues that Scottish small businesses’ interests are best served by remaining part of the UK. Independence, they warn, risks affecting continued access to both UK markets and the rest of the EU. They suggest that any transition would be costly and that new institutions, tax and regulatory regimes would usher in extra layers of risk, cost and complexity and may not be favourable to small enterprise.

Conversely, Yes Scotland, the pro-independence body backed by the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Green Party, claims that Scottish small businesses would actually benefit from new institutions, tax and regulatory systems as they would be better designed to serve Scotland’s interests.

They argue that Scottish businesses would have continued access to UK markets and that it is the rising tide of English euroscepticisim, not nationalism, which puts our access to Europe most at risk.

While the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) in Scotland will maintain a neutral position, we want to make sure that our 19,000 Scottish members have the best information available on the issues which might affect their business.

But when both sides fundamentally disagree on even the most basic issues — what

14 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

currency we would use, for example — this is no mean feat. Indeed, the only thing that both sides do agree on is that they love Scotland and just want what’s best for it.

So, if you’re a small business in Berwick, Belfast or Braemar, how do you go about trying to get some sort of reliable facts about how Scotland separating from the UK or sticking together will affect you?

There’s no doubt it’s a question which is exercising us. In a recent poll of 1,800 FSB members in Scotland, some threequarters said they had searched for information to help them decide how to vote. But most found the official guides wanting. Just under 60% (58%) of those who had read the Scottish Government's White Paper and 53% of those that had read the UK Government's analysis papers didn't find them useful.

Little wonder, then, that almost three-fifths condemned the debate so far as poor or very poor.

Unsurprisingly, almost all respondents highlighted the economic prospects of an independent Scotland as an important issue. However, the figures suggest that FSB members are more interested in the practical issues in the event of a yes vote, rather than macroeconomic concerns.

And I imagine that many Northern Ireland small business owners who trade with Scottish firms will share these areas of interest.

There are four possible currency options — formal and informal currency unions, the euro and a brand-new currency — being discussed. What would each one of them mean for your dealings with Scottish customers and suppliers? Could you still send post to Scotland using the Royal Mail’s UK rates? Would you need your passport at the airport or ferry terminal when visiting your Scottish clients or suppliers?

Would Scottish banks whose customers are mostly based outside Scotland continue to headquarter themselves in Edinburgh? Would it be more attractive to relocate to an independent Scotland with a more favourable tax regime?

Many of these answers will depend entirely on the two big — and bitterly contested — issues of the campaign: will we be a member of the EU, and if so on what basis, and which currency option will be adopted. Others — the postal or tax systems, say — hinge on what would happen in the various negotiations that would be conducted in the event of a yes vote.

We can also look to how places like Northern Ireland manage cross-border trade with the Republic. Indeed, a session we ran with an accountant from Omagh outlining the daily routine of doing business over an international border — and the fun to be had with double taxation deals — certainly got the audience of Scottish

business owners thinking.

The University of Edinburgh Business School is going to analyse the detailed questions from our members and produce a referendum guide for the small business owner — highlighting what we can find out, what may be reasonable assumptions and what we simply won’t know.

What is important to note, though, is that the choice for the Scottish electorate isn’t between change and the status quo. Additional tax raising and varying powers are already coming to Holyrood in the next few years and additional devolution has been promised by all the parties campaigning for a no vote. If you trade with Scottish firms, or you have Scottish employees, this might mean you might need to change some of your systems and processes, no matter what.

Andy Willox OBE is Scottish policy convener at the Federation of Small Businesses

ECONOMY WATCH

Spreading

With Northern Ireland’s business nature, economist Richard Ramsey lie to the west, while Adrian Doran

O

UR largest company Moy Park, which employs almost 11,000 people, may be Brazilianowned, and a key sponsor of this summer’s World Cup — but Northern Ireland’s trade with Brazil remains relatively small.

Indeed, despite much focus on Brazil as one of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries, local firms export more than 12 times more manufactured goods to North America than they do to Central and South America as a whole.

Canadian aerospace firm Bombardier, one of our flagship exporters, has something to do with this. But it is the United States of America that is, after the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland’s most significant source of FDI (foreign direct investment) and key export market.

As of last year, there were 185 US-owned companies operating in Northern Ireland, employing almost 23,000 people. Clearly Northern Ireland, along with businesses the world over, stands to benefit from a sustained US economic recovery.

Some of the US firms here, such as Asda (owned by Walmart) and McDonald’s, will be more familiar to us than others.

They include global industrial giants Seagate, Caterpillar and the power company AES, alongside some lesser known names such as AVX and forklift manufacturer NACCO. In recent years, however, the services industry has accounted for the lion’s share of new US inward investment and the expansion of existing investment. Allstate NI and Citigroup are two companies that have continued to expand since their arrival on these shores.

Last week the US indulged in its annual 4th July Independence Day celebrations. However, Northern Ireland has been

16 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Richard Ramsey

Chief economist, Ulster Bank celebrating US inward investment for most of the year. So far, 2014 has been a bumper year for US investment, whether it’s new investment, expansion of existing investment, acquisitions of property assets, or the takeover of local companies. In recent weeks, Hughes Insurance, Northern Ireland’s largest independent insurance broker, was bought by US firm Liberty Mutual. Co Down manufacturing firm Whale has also just been sold to the US-based Brunswick Corporation.

One of the most significant US investments this year though, was the sale of Nama’s £4.5bn Northern Ireland loan book to Cerberus Capital Management. Cerberus, whose chairman is former US Vice President Dan Quayle, secured the deal ahead of another US bidder PIMCO. Meanwhile, Belfast’s Obel tower was recently sold to New York-headquartered firm Marathon Asset Management.

Too much property was concentrated in the hands of too few institutions, and the dilution of property ownership into new hands with less constrained balance sheets can only be good for the local property market.

Meanwhile, US healthcare

company, CVS Caremark, is creating 100 new ‘high-end’ technology jobs. Back in April, Californian firm Concentrix announced plans to add another 1,000 jobs to its existing workforce of 800.

Despite the lack of a 12.5% corporation tax rate, as in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland has been an attractive inward investment location for North-American firms, particularly within the ICT, software and financial service industries.

Can this trend continue? There are certainly opportunities for further growth in these sectors.

However, the key limiting factor cited by the chief executives of these firms will be the supply of skilled graduates.

Two other key challenges facing existing North-American investment (and indeed all foreign-owned investment) are the significant fall in US energy costs and changes to EU State Aid rules. According to a recent study by the Boston Consulting Group, the US is the rising star in terms of manufacturing competitiveness and is now ranked second after China for manufacturing competitiveness. This is due to the 50% fall in natural gas prices over the last decade due to the shale gas revolution. This is encouraging

many manufacturing plants to return to the US in what is termed ‘re-shoring’. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s energy costs are one of the highest in Europe. This combination of factors makes it more difficult for Northern Ireland’s energyintensive multinationals to stay internationally competitive.

The new EU State Aid rules, which came into force on July 1, will restrict the ability to provide selective financial assistance for expansions or ‘repeat assistance’ to firms already in Northern Ireland. This could impact on the viability of a range of North American FDI. Reducing subsidies and removing barriers to trade is also the focus of the Transatlantic Trade Investment Partnership (TTIP) initiated from Washington. This is the trade agreement between the EU and the US currently being negotiated. The sixth round of trade talks between the EU and the US will be held in Brussels next week. Clearly TTIP will present trade opportunities for local firms. However, the potential reduction/elimination of EU agricultural subsidies will have a big impact on local farmers.

Overall, Northern Ireland has availed of many opportunities from the west. And that includes in areas that might not have seemed likely even 10 or 15 years ago. The HBO TV series Game of Thrones is a big hit around the world and, as the biggest TV production in Europe, its filming here has been a big hit for the local economy too. But can 2014's bumper year of US investment continue? The change to state aid rules and energy costs are threats to the further expansion of existing North-American investment. Similarly, the lack of a sufficient supply of skilled graduates will limit growth opportunities in the software/ICT sphere. There are certainly challenges on the western front.

the search focus increasingly international in considers the opportunities which of Barclays looks to the east

I

N RECENT months much has been written about the Northern Ireland economy finally emerging from recession. However, it has been apparent to many of our exporters that the global economy has been picking up for some time. In the UK in general, and Northern Ireland in particular, companies are increasingly becoming aware of the fantastic export opportunities available in emerging markets.

With non-OECD countries forecast to account for around 33% of global growth between 2012 and 2025, Northern Ireland businesses need to think beyond the traditional comfort zones of Europe and the US as they seek out new markets – whether that’s the high profile BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India and China) or other emerging economies. The term “emerging” markets perhaps conveys the wrong impression – in the case of China, its economy is poised to overtake the US as the world’s largest economy later this year.

Many commentators have forecast increasing opportunities for Western companies as China rebalances from what was an infrastructure investment-led boom, to a more consumption-led economy. With a population of some 1.4 billion people, demand for Western goods such as cars, clothes, and luxury accessories has increased in recent years – in fact BMW now sells more cars in China than in the US. Growth in China is also anticipated to dramatically exceed that in other countries with Barclays forecasting GDP growth of 7.4% this year, compared to 2.7% in the US or 1.3% in the Euro area.

So how can Northern Ireland companies take advantage?

Well, to give but one example, China’s 1.4 billion citizens are developing an increasing taste for Western food, which offers fantastic opportunities for our

Adrian Doran

Barclays head of corporate banking in Northern Ireland local agri-food sector – our dairy, red meat and poultry products are all rightly perceived as premium products that can help fill this demand.

Likewise, India with a population of 1.2 billion people (c50% under the age of 25) is fast emerging as a key growth market.

Recent elections have seen the Modi government elected on a mandate to reform India’s economy. Barclays forecasts the growth in India’s economy to accelerate from 4.7% this year to 5.6% next year. Local companies such as Wrightbus are already discovering the opportunities that India offers and are further assisted by English being widely accepted throughout the country as the business language of choice.

Indonesia too is on the cusp of a positive turn with a July 9 presidential election that could usher in more market friendly

policies. Not often in the limelight, Indonesia inherited greater focus from the investment community by being included in the MINT acronym (Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey) earlier this year. With a nominal GDP of c$868bn in 2013, Indonesia is the 16th largest economy in the world.

Having experience strong growth over the past three years, Barclays believe a stronger lift in manufacturing will assist continued growth of 5.1% in 2014 and 5.6% in 2015.

In the case of Africa, the global markets have finally woken up the tremendous potential growth in many Africa countries, due mainly to a buoyant mining and natural resources sector. Barclays has been in Africa for over 100 years and we see the continent as one of the main parts of our business going forward. With a presence

in 12 African countries, we are acutely aware of the increasing trade corridors that are opening up between the UK and Africa and are helping a number of local companies avail of the opportunity.

High commodity prices and strong consumer spending are also driving the change in Africa’s fortunes. As one of the regions where big families remain the norm, the continent is also set to benefit from a demographic dividend. By the middle of this century, Africa will make up over a fifth of the world population with a startlingly young population. The average age in Botswana is 22.7 - in Kenya, it’s under 20.

Many African countries are reaping the benefits of enviable growth, increasing political and social economic stability and abundant mineral resources.

Mobile technology innovation offers huge opportunities to connect businesses and consumers – for instance Kenya is the world’s leading mobile money transfer market.

According to IMF data, seven of the top ten fastest growing economies in the world will be in Africa by 2015. Unsurprising then that for many UK companies, Africa is fast becoming a priority for business expansion.

It’s clear that the markets to the East are already providing many UK companies with opportunities. UK exports to nonEU countries recently overtook exports to the EU for the first time, while exports of goods to the BRIC economies accounted for 9.1% of the UK total in the second quarter of 2013, compared with 5.6% at the beginning of 2008.

The UK government is aiming to be double the value of exports by 2020, from £500bn to £1trn, and it’s inevitable that the markets to the East will have a big part to play in this – it would be remiss of Northern Ireland businesses not to explore opportunities in this area.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 17

COVER STORY

SCOTTISH FACTOR Northern Ireland companies must be prepared for all eventualities should the people of Scotland vote for independence. Rebecca Kincade reviews the potential threats and opportunities

O

N September 18, Scotland will take to the polls to vote on the future of its 300-year union with the rest of the United Kingdom. As this date approaches, companies in Northern Ireland are beginning to consider the impact that an independent Scotland could have on trading links, working relationships, currency and jurisdictions.

There are many unresolved questions on those hot topics which are generating an air of uncertainty in the Scottish business community — and having a knock-on effect on how Northern Ireland companies are feeling.

In the short term, the vexed question of whether Northern Ireland can set its own rate of corporation tax is to be settled

by Westminster after the referendum — and if the answer is no, and an independent Scotland sets its own rate of corporation tax, Northern Ireland could face some sticky problems.

Scotland has also been warned that a ‘yes’ to independence will mean leaving the pound — creating headaches for trading partners, including Northern Ireland.

Tom MacLennan, head of Scotland, for business advisors FRP Advisory, has been in the insolvency profession for over 30 years and feels the debate over independence is more emotional than factual.

He said: “There is a mantra of ‘it will be alright on the night’.

We aren’t being given very much detail on how the main

issues will be dealt with and I think that is a deliberate move to keep the decision simple.

“The arguments are very emotional rather than factbased. When you have uncertainty and lack of clarity it creates inactivity and we know that some companies have deferred employment and investment decisions until after the vote.”

Mr MacLennan said that the real opportunities and dangers of Scottish independence for Northern Ireland will lie in whether there is a radical change to company taxation rates to make Scotland more attractive for global bound inward investment.

He added: “If you think back to how the Republic of Ireland turned itself into a tiger economy 15 years ago, Scotland could potentially do the same and that would leave Northern Ireland with two close neighbours who are able to dictate their own rates.

“However, a move to Scottish independence may, with a forward-looking Westminster, help give more impetus to invest in Northern Ireland in order to ward off danger of a ‘company drain’ towards Scotland.”

And could Scottish independence make working relationships between Scottish and Northern Irish companies more difficult? He said: “I would assume that there wouldn’t be significant changes to our cost base, but that would depend on the currency that is adopted. If Scotland does a deal to keep the pound then there would be

fewer barriers to business.”

Terry Cross, chairman and joint managing director, Delta Packaging, whose Belfastbased company has interests in Scotland, feels that a vote for independence will have a range of economic consequences — some of which could work in Northern Ireland’s favour.

“A study that was conducted

by Oxford Economics into the potential economic benefits of Scottish independence highlighted that 70% of all Scottish exports are sold to the rest of the UK. “It indicated that large companies would not be able to offset losses in Scotland against profits in the rest of the UK, even though the Scottish government’s proposal to cut corporation tax would mitigate this.

“It also stated that independence would result in additional costs and complexity in the operation of business pension schemes. These aspects could favour Northern Ireland as companies may choose to have a base in Northern Ireland as opposed to Scotland.”

The report also indicated that Scotland performed better than the UK average in securing new foreign direct investment in 2012–13 (measured by the number of projects), although not as well as Wales or Northern Ireland. The challenge, Mr Cross said, will be for Northern Ireland to continue to maintain its position in relation to attracting foreign direct investment, irrespective of Scotland’s corporation tax position.

“The principal options for an independent Scottish currency

>> Turn to page 20 18 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Bosses and celebrities take sides THE run-up to the Scottish independence referendum has been punctuated with controversial debates sparked by high-profile business people, and even celebrities, voicing their opinions.

Those who chose to come out in favour of a ‘no’ vote have been branded unpatriotic and perhaps the most widely reported of these was the decision by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) to voluntarily register as an official supporter of the proUnion Better Together campaign.

It wasn’t long before the business lobby group backtracked on this PR blunder, but not before it had cost them several members.

Ian King, chief executive, BAE Systems, spoke out on the issue in the company’s annual report, noting that a continued union offers “greater certainty and stability” for its businesses. BAE Systems have significant interests in Scotland. Mr King went on to say that defence companies were used to working within “changing international parameters” and would continue to do so if Scotland backed independence.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling took to her website to explain her reasons for making a donation of £1m to the Better Together campaign. She said: “Scotland is subject to the same 21st century pressures as the rest of the world. It must compete in the same global markets, defend itself from the same threats and navigate what still feels like a fragile economic recovery.”

Sir Sean Connery and Brian Cox, (the actor, not the professor), were both present at the launch of the Yes Scotland campaign, with Connery saying it was an “historic day” for Scotland.

With so much uncertainty surrounding the potential outcome of the referendum, we can anticipate with certainty that further heated debate will take place as the big day approaches.

The Edinburgh skyline

Rebecca Kincade 7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 19

COVER STORY >> From page 19 are to join the European single currency, or retain the pound sterling. If you consider that 70% of all Scottish exports are sold to the rest of the UK — if the option is to join the euro this will obviously result in currency costs for those that may regularly trade with Scottish-based companies.”

Ann McGregor, chief executive, NI Chamber of Commerce and Industry, feels that a vote for independence could present many issues for Northern Ireland, both politically and economically. She said: “If Scotland leaves the union, Northern Ireland's continuing place within it could be called into question.

The White Paper [a document on independence published by the Scottish government last year] sets out a plan for a common travel area, which would cover Scotland and the remaining parts of the UK, arguing that there would only be a need for border controls on the edges of the area, not within it, but there isn’t clarity for exporters and traders trying to get into Scotland.

“With regards to currency, the euro remains in the background as the only logical

20 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

fallback position if Scotland is barred from using the pound after independence. That would leave Northern Ireland with a eurozone country to the south and another to the east.”

The White Paper confirmed the Scottish National Party’s intention to cut corporation tax after independence in an attempt to attract businesses into Scotland, away from other parts of the UK. Ms McGregor added: “As Northern Ireland's corporation tax rate still has not been lowered, it is distinctly possible that Scotland could get there first. That would leave Northern Ireland surrounded by countries with lower corporation tax rates, which could cause potentially substantial damage to business in the province. Those working in businesses with cross-border interests would also find themselves dealing with two separate regulatory regimes, two different tax systems and possibly even an exchange rate — none of which would make business any easier.”

Douglas Smith, chairman Scotland, CBRE

It is not all bad news for Northern Ireland. Douglas Smith, chairman of Scotland CBRE, feels that if there is an independent Scotland, the connections between the two countries will need to be stronger than ever before: “Scotland will need to be more focused on its relationships with trading partners. In this period of uncertainty we are seeing a few investors who are looking elsewhere or holding off until there is a firm outcome on the referendum. In the event of a yes vote this period of uncertainty will continue until key issues affecting the business community have been addressed.”

He added: “During this period, other parts of the UK, including Northern Ireland, could pick up new investors and FDI opportunities may begin to look elsewhere, but I anticipate that it will all settle again fairly quickly. I would hope that there would be a speedy resolution to these issues as an independent Scotland would need to be pro-business.”

While most Scottish companies have chosen to take a neutral approach to the vote, Dan MacDon-

ald, chief executive of property development firm MacDonald Estates in Edinburgh, has spoken freely of his pro-independence stance.

He said: “I will vote yes because it is the only way forward. We will be responsible for our own affairs.

“Business and government will be able to work together in a new culture that encourages economic growth, with policies that take account of what is happening here.”

He added: “I think that the Scottish brand would be stronger if we vote for independence. It would allow us to get ahead and be inspirational.

Our decisions would be made by people who understand what makes our country tick.”

This is an opinion shared by many. Independent opinion polls are showing that as the referendum approaches, the gap between yes and no voters is closing, with the key decision-making power potentially lying in the hands of the 10% as yet undecided.

Only time will tell what the outcome will be — and in the meantime companies in Northern Ireland need to prepare for all eventualities.

NEWS ANALYSIS

Sun’s shining on solar

A growing number of businesses and households are turning to this alternative source of power to cut energy bills, says Andrew Ryan N

N

ORTHERN Ireland may not seem the most likely place for solar power, but in recent years a combination of financial incentives and falling prices for solar panels have made it an increasingly attractive proposition.

As a result, local companies installing solar panels at a variety of scales, from household rooftops to field-size arrays, have seen business grow markedly. While some barriers to increased growth have emerged, there remains significant growth potential in this emerging market.

Until recently, the sight of a rooftop covered in solar panels here in Northern Ireland was a rare one. While the solar industry was seeing huge expansion across in England, the same could not be said for Northern Ireland. Then, a combination of factors sparked a rapid growth in the sector.

The first was an increase in the levels of financial support for solar photovoltaic (solar PV) generation under Northern Ireland’s statutory renewables obligation. Differing renewable technologies (wind, hydro, solar PV, etc) receive different numbers of renewables obligation certificates or ROCs for every megawatt hour of electricity generated. With each ROC being worth in the region of £40-£50, the sale of the certificates by qualifying generators can drastically cut payback times on installation costs. As ROC payments are guaranteed for 20 years, renewable generation can also be seen as reliable longer term source of income.

The second factor that made solar PV more attractive was a rapid fall in solar panel costs.

The debate over the impacts of low-cost panels from the Far East (and EU moves to restrict imports) is worthy of a separate article, but either way, the lower cost of installation coupled with the value of ROCs for electricity generated compensate for the lower intensity of sunlight we are familiar with in the region.

22 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

A third factor encouraging solar PV uptake has been the Westminster Government’s curbing of support for solar PV in Great Britain under their feed-in tariff (FIT) system. This led to developers in England starting to look further afield, including Northern Ireland where the signals from the Northern Ireland government suggested that the equivalent ROC values were less likely to plummet. Finally, the introduction of permitted development rights for household and commercial rooftop solar PV reduced timescales and costs for installation.

Although the solar PV market is growing, there are a number of obstacles that may have contributed to a slower than anticipated development of the sector. A popular scheme in England, known as ‘rent a roof’, involved developers

installing solar PV on residential properties at no cost to the householder. The residents would receive free electricity from the panels and the developer would take the FIT payments and any export payments for unused electricity.

In Northern Ireland this type of arrangement has been severely hampered by the Business Tenancies (NI) Order 1996. This creates security of tenure for business tenants which would include rent-aroof providers, and unlike in England or Scotland, this provision cannot be excluded from rental agreements. As a result, many residential mortgage providers have been unwilling to grant consent to rent-a-roof schemes in the absence of guidance from the Council of Mortgage Lenders or a change in the law. Unfortunately and despite

lobbying from solar PV suppliers, neither guidance nor new legislation has emerged. Until it does, the level of uptake of such schemes will be severely limited.

Another constraint on rooftop solar PV has been NIE’s recent reduction in generating capacity for simple fit-and-inform” grid connections. While NIE argues that this is necessary to reduce the burden on a grid that was designed primarily for supply and not generation, it inevitably impacts upon the cost-benefit of rooftop solar, particularly for households.

Despite these difficulties, both homeowners and businesses are looking at solar PV to reduce electricity costs which otherwise are only going to increase and this will undoubtedly drive further uptake.

Also, the development of field-scale solar up to 5MW will be a sector to watch in the coming years. Already a number of planning applications are in the system and land is being secured for such sites across Northern Ireland.

These large-scale projects will themselves raise challenges in terms of planning (already in England objections to such schemes are becoming increasingly common) and grid connection, but careful siting and local engagement can minimise these issues.

If Northern Ireland is to meet its ambitious target of 40% renewable generation by 2020, solar PV schemes of all sizes will be an important part of the energy mix. Although recent policy has encouraged solar PV uptake through increased subsidies, the absence of a joined-up approach in relation to dealing with, for example, the Business Tenancies Order and constraints on the electricity grid are threatening to stifle this emerging sector.

Despite this, the future seems. . . well . . . bright.

Andrew Ryan is head of the environmental and planning department at Tughans solicitors

BREAKING THE MOULD

Geoff’s happily cleaning up Having left school at 16, managing director Geoff Baird attributes the success he has enjoyed in business to hard work and following the example set by his father

Name: Geoff Baird Company: Craigmore Industrial and Engineering Solutions, Portadown.

I got into business because....

I grew up in a family haulage business and although I never intended to join, I did spend a few years at the coalface.

At 16 I left school and spent my days cycling around the village of Scarva selling Amway household products to friends and neighbours. It was at this stage of my life that I realised that in sales the rewards come from hard work and good customer service.

I then spent a short time living and working in Florida, in the United States. Upon returning home I found myself working for the family business.

I started Craigmore a few years later, in 1990. Today, I am proud that the business is the largest Karcher dealer in Northern Ireland. Throughout its 24-year history, the company has been selling power washers, sweepers, scrubberdriers, welding equipment, safety wear, workshop tools and cleaning products from Karcher, SIP, 3M, Arrow, Nielsen and other leading brands to the public and businesses.

Looking back, I recognise that running my own business was always going to be my thing, but the experience of travel and the wisdom and business knowledge picked up from my father were vital for my current role.

I didn’t always do this…

As well as my days selling Amway products, I worked for my father as a van driver, before joining the RUC and working in Omagh, Beragh and Carrickmore.

I realised quite quickly that this was not the job for me, and so I moved to Florida where I waited tables and bummed about on the beach before travelling around the country and spending several weeks in the Amazon rainforest of Columbia.

24 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

The best thing about my work is….

I enjoy meeting people and solving problems. I am most happy when out of the office with clients discussing what Craigmore can bring to the table to assist them with their business.

The person I take inspiration from in business is…

My father. He left school at a very young age and started his own business in 1969. He taught me everything I know. His key message was that business was “about people and not money, money was what you got if you were good with people”.

I use to watch how he would

interact with staff, customers and suppliers — he was and still is, honest, courteous and hard working.

I hope that I am stilling putting into practice the things he taught me.

The biggest obstacles I have come up against in business are…

If I am truly honest I cannot think of a single thing that I could say has been a major obstacle.

I have been blessed to come through one of the best times and one of the worst times while running a business, and every day when I get up I

thank my Lord and Saviour for all that he gives me — good or bad.

My advice to anyone thinking about starting their own business is….

Go for it. Take all the advice given to you, but in the end the decision is yours and if you have the drive and the hunger you can run your own business.

In 10 years’ time I hope to be….

Healthy, working (a little less, perhaps) and more in love with Jesus than I am today.

I couldn’t go to work without….

My iPhone and the love and support of my wife Joy.

AND I’LL TELL YOU ANOTHER THING

Kerrie’s really motoring

Freelance events planner Kerrie Mann, the founder and organiser of the Belfast Motor Show 2014, reveals the secret of her success and why mistakes are invaluable My first job was….

At the age of 11 I got a job delivering newspapers for pennies — but they were my pennies. I was so proud of myself. I got the job as my cousin didn’t want it any more.

The person who taught me how to succeed in business is…

It’s hard to pin-point one particular person. I think that success is down to the individual person and the mechanics that surround them, what the business model is, who you work with — and also your own make-up and how you set about achieving your goals.

I’ve learnt to give 100% to each and every project, from writing a simple email to pulling together entire events, but I’ve also learnt to realise when to change direction or diversify if something isn’t working.

I’ve taught myself a lot of this through trial and error and a lot of hard work but I’d say I’ve also learnt from every single person I’ve ever worked with. Good or bad experiences always teach you something new.

My business mantra is…

Always give it a go and don’t let fear hold you back. If you believe and are passionate in what you do, make others listen, never giving up on your dreams and passions. Don’t let negativity put you down.

It’s all changed since I started out…

There have been many ups and downs and it’s certainly a lot harder to get business and secure funding and sponsorship now. That said, I feel a change in the tide — it feels like business is on the up.

I began working for myself in the middle of the recession so in many ways I’ve learnt the hard way and I believe it’s made me a stronger and wiser businessperson. Reputation remains important as people trust a brand, service or person they know and recognise. Trends in exhibitions and

26 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

The Nobel M600 will be among the attractions at the Belfast Motor Show, organised by Kerrie Mann, pictured below shows come and go, I’ve even noticed some go full circle.

In 10 years’ time the business world will look…

It’s hard to predict as there is so much change with technology, ideas and people on a daily basis but I think most businesses will rely much more on technology. Perhaps in 2024 I’ll be organising virtual shows and exhibitions and our visitors won’t be re-

stricted by borders. I do expect there will be a wide variety of new businesses starting up with many people taking the plunge and living their dream.

My one regret in business is…

If I thought long and hard I would probably have a few but then I wouldn’t be where I am today or have learnt everything I have and be the person I am. My mistakes as

much as my successes have got me to where I am today – in the midst of creating the Belfast Motor Show, the first of its kind in Northern Ireland for a decade.

My one piece of advice is…

Do what you believe will make you happy. Life is too short to sit around wondering ‘what if’.

I couldn’t start a day’s work without…

Exercise keeps me sane so my morning walk or run is absolutely vital to a successful day's work — followed by a very hot shower and a hot, sweet cup of tea.

SME WATCH

A young Kevin McAlindon

Wine route to success

The pioneering spirit which gave birth to a family-run drinks business in the 1950s is still very much alive in the McAlindon brothers who lead it today, says Amanda Ferguson

D

IRECT Wine Shipments is Belfast’s oldest independent wine merchant. Run by trailblazing brothers Neal and Peter McAlindon, the business was started in 1954 by the brothers’ grandfather, Edward.

Direct Wine Shipments moved from Duncairn Gardens to its current location at Corporation Square in 1979. The business incorporates retail and trade sales, and it supplies restaurants and independent wine shops.

“Our dad, Kevin, one of the

28 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

middle of a big family of eight, ended up staying in the business until he retired in 2001,” says Peter, (49). “His older brother ended up in the Foreign Office and travelled widely. He got into wine and he got dad into wine.

“The first linkage with wine was bringing in Italian wine to sell to the Italian families who had ice-cream shops and cafés.

“Our uncle Dennis spoke Italian, which they loved, so that created a good connection.

“The area dad pursued was with Queen's University, because in those days you had

a lot of lecturers who were not from Northern Ireland and they drank wine.

“In those days people here drank spirits, beer and fortified wine, so a fledgling wine business started and in 1962 they set up a room above the shop which was called The Continental Wine Room. It had a display of wines from around the world — quite remarkable in those days.”

The wine was and is bought from family-owned small to medium-sized wineries to avoid the big-brand mass-producers.

Neal, (44), said: “I could have

chosen a life in academia but I got enthralled by wine.

“I realised the world of wine is not just about this drink made from grapes — it is about history, culture, geography, people and food.

“There is an outdated view in Britain and Ireland that wine is the preserve of the upper or middle class but in the European continent it is for everybody. It is a very democratic drink.

“We want to get really goodquality wine, drunk by the ordinary people of Barcelona, Tuscany, Bordeaux, Lisbon —

that is what our ethos is. That led to the whole idea of antiglobalisation — wines which are produced by small, familyrun businesses, so the guy who has his name on the bottle was also in the vineyards pruning the vines and washing out the bottles. It is an artistic creation.

It is part of their heart.”

Direct Wine Shipments was among the first to educate staff through London's Wine and Spirit Education Trust and has run wine-tasting events and wine courses since the 1980s.

Wine education became the focus for the specialist business, finding interesting growers early on, such as Torres, Hugo, and Brown Brothers.

Research, development and finding the best growers is the McAlindon brothers’ passion, which has led to the business winning a series of awards. In 1999 and 2001 it was voted the best Spanish retailer in the UK by Wines of Spain and the Which? Wine Guide and was recently voted the International Wine & Spirit Competition’s best independent retailer in the UK. In 2003 the McAlindons’ dream of buying their own vineyards in Spain to make their

Located in Corporation Square, Direct Wine Shipments, which was started in 1954, is today run by brother Neal and Peter McAlindon, pictured below own wine, Creu Celta, became a reality. The brothers sold their wholesale wine business a decade ago and started a new one in 2007.

McAlindon Wines now accounts for 70% of the business turnover. Its 15 staff work with restaurants across Northern Ireland, including James St South, Mourne Seafood, Home, Le Coop, 4th Wall, Titanic Belfast, the Lyric Theatre, Harry's in Cushendall, Browns in Derry and Roe Valley in Limavady. The company has experienced year-on-year growth over the past five years.

Wine consumers have never been better informed, with the growth in popularity across the UK and Ireland in part down to wine production within the New World, simple labelling, supermarkets making it more accessible and the increase in air travel.

Peter said: “We have always wanted to be the shop that can serve the postman who

comes round from Tomb Street or the Lord Chief Justice, and we do.

“So anyone who walks in, we will look after well, whether it is one bottle or 10 cases. The [price] range is dramatic, from £6 to £400 a bottle.

“We introduce people to things they may not have tried before, to up and coming regions and producers. Our job is to always be one step ahead of the market.”

The brothers believe the success of Direct Wine Shipments is down to the “really good people” they have worked with over the years. “Peter Gilfedder, who has been with us for 50 years, for one,” Peter said.

“There was also dad's contribution for so many years, then the hard-working team we have who are real wine enthusiasts. We have lots of fun, good craic and banter about football, rugby and wine.”

As for the future, he said: “We will grow the company in a way that's manageable and enjoyable.”

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 29

ASK THE EXPERTS I am a property investor and have a number of residential properties in Northern Ireland. All of the properties are mortgaged and unfortunately have been in negative equity for several years.

What options are open to me to avoid the least financial distress?

There are a number of options open to you but I would commend you for doing something that a lot of people are still refusing to do – that is, ask for help?

Your first course of action is to educate yourself on the process involved and take advice from an expert in the field.

This can be difficult as many companies only promote some of the options available to people in this position.

However if you speak to a few and ask plenty of questions, then you will get a better handle of the situation.

Once you have decided on the best course of action, its imperative you engage with the bank either directly or through your advisor?

It can be quite an overwhelming experience and extremely stressful when you are dealing with the bank — however the stress will only begin to lift once you completely understand the process you are entering into.

The banks in general are quite difficult to deal with and it’s only in the last number of months that they have began to make progress in this regard in terms of dealing with these types of cases.

It’s likely that in 2015 we will see interest rates starting to crawl upwards, so its imperative that people plan now for themselves and their families’ futures.

CD

Kathleen Lavery-Boulouha General Manager, Ramada Plaza Hotel, Shaw’s Bridge

Conor Devine Principal of GDP Partnership

Mark Thompson Head of Office, A&L Goodbody, Northern Ireland

Sound advice can be a valuable commodity We put your questions to the experts with the answers I am a small agri-food business based in Northern Ireland and around 30% of my business comes from sales in Scotland. What impact could the Scottish referendum in September have on my business?

I

am a small agri-food business based in Northern Ireland and around 30% of my business comes from sales in Scotland.

What impact could the Scottish referendum in September have on my business?

This is a question that will be on the minds of many local businesses as we approach September 18. If the vote for Scottish independence is a ‘no’ then it should be business as usual for your company. However, a ‘yes’ vote could certainly impact Northern Ireland firms which are currently doing business with Scotland and, although we don’t fully know the extent of the likely impact at this stage, there are a number of factors that we can consider.

An independent Scotland could mean that Northern Ireland businesses would find themselves dealing with a separate regulatory regime, potentially requiring increased regulation and compliance.

There would also be two different tax systems, and with the potential for a different currency to be brought into the equation as well, doing business with Scotland could become more complicated. Risk assessments would need to be taken as to whether it is appropriate to establish an operational base in Scotland and logistics would also need to be considered — both in relation to transporting goods from Northern Ireland to

I have been tasked with organising a conference for 300 delegates, what should be my checklist to ensure a successful event?

THE first thing to do when organising a conference is to think about the location. For a day conference, you will likely want somewhere central to your delegates or, alternatively, for a residential conference its common to pick a venue that is ‘out of town’ to get delegates away from their normal environment.

■ Visit the venue personally if possible and check out the parking, ask if the WiFi is free, and what level of service the venue offer?

■ You’ll then need to check availability, as large function rooms, such as The Grand at Ramada Plaza are often booked out a year in advance for major conferences and events.

■ Think about the format and atmosphere for the conference. Is it to be formal, with theatre-style seating facing the podium, or interactive with delegates sitting at round tables.

■ Also what audio-visual aids will be needed – such as digital projectors, audio or video capability?

■ Then start planning the catering — a major element of any conference is the informal interaction that takes place at breaks, so think about the arrival tea and coffee, break-outs and lunch. A standing buffet lunch allows delegates to mingle, and fun foods like fish-and-chip cones can be real icebreakers.

■ Often the success of a conference is in the follow up, so remember to send out conference notes quickly while its still fresh in people’s minds. And overall, keep it fun!

KL-B Scotland and those transiting through Scotland to England.

On the other hand, an independent Scotland could also bring about opportunities for Northern Ireland. Some English or Welsh businesses wishing to keep trade within the UK could prefer to trade with Northern Ireland as the next closest UK jurisdiction.

A ‘yes’ vote could also have implications for our corporation tax debate for Northern Ireland. In the eventuality of Scottish independence coming

into play, the Scottish National Party [SNP] has stated its intent to cut corporation tax and there is every chance that Scotland could get there before Northern Ireland.

This would leave Northern Ireland surrounded by two countries with a lower rate of corporation tax, which could certainly impact negatively on our competitiveness and on the impact of any corporate tax rate change by local assembly in the future.

All questions should be addressed to: experts@businessmonth.co.uk Questions and advice are published in good faith but should not replace the advice of your professional financial advisor.

30 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

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INSIDE REPORT

CAN WE COPY SCOTLAND? Paul Gosling finds there are no easy answers when it comes to what Northern Ireland can learn from Scotland’s economic successes under its present constitutional arrangements

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COTLAND has significant economic advantages over Northern Ireland. It is not separated from the rest of the UK by the Irish Sea, so its distribution costs are lower than ours. It does not have a southern neighbour offering a lower tax rate. It has the significant benefit of its oil, gas and growing renewable energy sectors. And it does not have the legacy of the Troubles holding it back. But given that it is much more economically successful than Northern Ireland, does it have economic policies we should copy?

To inform the Scottish referendum debate, the UK Statistics Authority produced a raft of data that enable the UK’s nations and regions to be compared. Scotland’s gross value added — a fairly simple measure of economic output — is £20,571 per person, which is a bit behind England’s, but substantially better than Northern Ireland’s at £16,531. Both Scotland and Northern Ireland benefited from annual growth of 4.1% in the period 1998 to 2011.

It is when labour market statistics are compared that Scotland’s advantage over Northern Ireland is demonstrated most clearly. The employment rate here is 66.7%, while that of Scotland is 71.9%.

Gross weekly pay (as at 2012) was £459 in Northern Ireland, while it was £498 in Scotland.

The pay difference is most marked at the top end — 13% of Northern Ireland’s households

32 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

received more than £1,000 income weekly, against 18% in Scotland (and 21% in England).

But there are barriers to Northern Ireland learning from Scotland’s experience. No studies appear to have been undertaken comparing the UK’s devolved nations’ economic policies.

Professor Neil Gibson of the University of Ulster said: “As far as I am aware, very little work has been done on this.

The only comparisons have been on tax policies.” He added: “The Northern Ireland economic policy has been ‘let’s see what the Scots do’.

That’s made it difficult to say what our economic policy is. It is always difficult describing Northern Ireland’s economic policy — are we right, left, social democrat, or conservative? What are we?”

One partial economic comparison study of UK regions was conducted last year by the former accountancy firm RSM Tenon evaluating foreign direct investment (FDI) into the UK’s nations and regions. It assessed FDI quality based on average pay, productivity levels, research and development input and export orientation.

This found that Scotland has one of the UK’s largest proportions of high quality FDI — at 85% of total FDI. On the other hand, Northern Ireland has the UK’s lowest proportion of high quality FDI, at 46%. That stark difference is related to Scotland having a much larger university sector in the UK per capita compared to Northern

Ireland, which has the smallest university sector in the UK per capita.

A report just published by EY confirms Scotland’s strength in attracting FDI. EY found that Scotland is the second best UK region, after London, in attracting FDI, as well as receiving record levels of research and development.

Northern Ireland was sixth best region (out of 12). Scotland received 10.3% of all UK FDI, while Northern Ireland obtained 4.5% of the total.

The main agency in Scotland promoting economic development is Scottish Enterprise.

Its approach is based on the Scottish Government’s Economic Strategy, the core element of which is for Scotland to be international in outlook and to maximise export earnings. The strategy specifies that the public sector is to be a “partner” with the private sector for mutual benefit, including through universities collaborating with industry in research and development.

Other priorities are skill development from schools, colleges and universities that is geared to the needs of businesses.

Scottish Enterprise is focusing support on growth companies, including new start-ups that have strong potential, innovation, internationalisation, low carbon technologies and renewable energy. Scottish Enterprise assists growth businesses to access capital, including through the Scottish

The harbour at Leith

Investment Bank, and by making introductions to external equity investors. Businesses focused on innovation are given support from Scottish universities and relevant public bodies (such as the NHS) via a network of local innovation centres.

Companies with an international focus are supported in foreign markets by Scottish Development International

(operating in a similar way overseas to Invest NI). SDI also plays a central role (again, as does Invest NI) in attracting FDI. Scotland’s Renewable Energy Investment Fund can provide financial support to businesses in the renewables sector.

Over the next three-year period, Scottish Enterprise objectives are to assist 2,000 Scottish companies operating globally,

to lift turnover by £1.4bn in targeted companies, support extra revenue generation of up to £200m from innovation activities, secure up to £150m of additional research and development, support 9,000 new jobs through FDI, generate £70m of investment from the Renewable Energy Investment Fund and achieve £85m of private growth finance via the Scottish Investment Bank.

Allowing for different sizes in the populations of Scotland and Northern Ireland, and the fact that they are three-year targets, some of these figures are not dramatically different from the targets for Invest NI. For example, the Invest NI annual report for the 2012/13 year (the 2013/14 report was not published at time of going to press) showed more than 2,200 jobs had been created in the one

year from FDI projects. And more than £100m in research and development private sector expenditure was claimed for the year.

However, it is difficult to compare the figures of the two agencies for various reasons.

Firstly, it is unclear if the criteria are directly comparable.

Secondly, we do not know the extent to which the agencies were influential in attracting

>> Turn to page 34 7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 33

INSIDE REPORT

Eilean Donan Castle

>> From page 33 additional investment and job creation. Most important of all, though, the legacy weakness of Northern Ireland means that to catch up on economic output, average wages and employment rate, we need to substantially out-perform other regions in terms of new investment and growth.

The broader economic agenda for Northern Ireland is exactly to catch-up. This was made clear in the Independent

34 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Review of Economic Policy, commissioned by Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster and chaired by Richard Barnett, the vice-chancellor of the University of Ulster who is to retire next year.

Its recommendations were designed to “meet the Executive’s goal of halving the private sector productivity gap between Northern Ireland and the UK, excluding the greater south-east of England, by 2015”.

In fact, the latest productivity figures from the Office for National Statistics show

little change since that 2009 report was produced. Northern Ireland’s position has barely changed — as at 2012 it was still one of the seven worst performing UK regions in terms of productivity. By contrast, north-eastern Scotland was, by some way, the fastest improving UK region for productivity.

Within Northern Ireland, Belfast was the best performing sub-region, followed by greater Belfast and the east of Northern Ireland — though all, bar Belfast, were substantially below the UK average produc-

tivity levels. Even Belfast was 8% below the UK average.

Comparisons, then, help to underline just how far Northern Ireland has to go to achieve reasonable economic outcomes.

There are some Scottish policies that might help Northern Ireland — an expanded university sector, closer relations between the private sector with universities and public bodies and greater targeted support for renewable energy businesses, all seem attractive. But Scotland does not offer any simple solutions for us to copy.

TICKERS

The month’s local indicators at a glance Ulster Bank economist Richard Ramsey gives a rundown on the latest key pointers NORTHERN Ireland’s latest batch of labour market data provided further tangible signs of economic recovery. Indeed, the province’s claimant count (or dole queue) fell for the 17th consecutive month in June.

Meanwhile the Quarterly Employment Survey (QES), which measures the number of jobs as opposed to the number of individuals in work, recorded its fastest year-on-year rise (+2.3%) in six years in Q1 2014.

This equated to a net gain of 15,980 jobs with over 90% of these in the private sector. The QES excludes the self-employed. It should be noted that the QES coverage and methodology used to estimate the number of jobs in Northern Ireland (NI) has changed. This explains the apparent surge in job numbers in Q4 2009. The latest figures revealed an eighth consecutive quarter of employment growth with a net gain of 3,310 jobs (+0.5%) in Q1 2014.

The number of seasonally adjusted jobs peaked in Q2 2008 at 733,030 and troughed in Q1 2012 with 691,310 jobs.

This represented a decline of 5.7% or 41,720 jobs. In the subsequent eight quarters, NI has recouped almost 20,000 jobs, or nearly half (48%) of the jobs lost during the downturn.

At a sector level, manufacturing posted its largest year-on-

year percentage rise (+4.5%), or 3,370 jobs, since records began in 1978. Manufacturing employment is now at its highest level in five years. The services sector, which recorded its ninth successive quarter of growth in Q1 2014, has recouped over 90% of

the jobs lost during the downturn. Construction was the only broad sector not to post a rise in employment in Q1 2014. It saw employment fall by 0.8% q/q (250 jobs) in Q1 2014. Construction employment remains 36% below its Q4 2007 peak.

FULL-TIME employees bore the brunt of the job losses in Northern Ireland’s downturn. From Q1 2008 to Q1 2013 full-time employment fell by 7.5% (36,550 jobs). However, following five years of year-on-year declines (for like-for-like quarters), fulltime employment increased by 2.9% (+13,150 jobs) between Q1

2013 and Q1 2014. Despite this rise, the number of full-time jobs in Q1 2014 remains 4.8% (23,400 jobs) below the Q1 peak in 2008.

So, to date, Northern Ireland has recouped just 36% of the fulltime jobs lost during the recession. Part-time employment in Q1 2014 was 0.6% (+1,370 jobs) higher than it was in Q1 2008.

The Quarterly Employment Survey measures the actual number of jobs (one person may have more than one job) whereas the Labour Force Survey (LFS) assesses labour market activity from an individual’s perspective.

The LFS shows, total employment rose by 2.1% year-on-year in Q1 2014. However, within this

increase there was a disproportionate rise in self-employment (+20% y/y) and ‘temporary workers’ (+19% y/y). Meanwhile, the number of individuals with a second job grew by 13% over the year to Q1 2014. Also, one in four of all part-timers, or 51,000 individuals, seeking full-time employment were unable to find it.

36 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

BUSINESSPEOPLE

The Northern Ireland Businessperson who...

... made jeans for Katy Perry The funky denim range customised by Belfast designer Marie Nancarrow has wowed one of the pop world’s biggest stars, writes Maureen Coleman

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BELFAST designer who has worked on the tour wardrobes of some of the world's biggest popstars has launched a ‘jean-ius' new fashion line — after her fashions caught the eye of pop star Katy Perry.

Marie Nancarrow, a former fashion student and part-time model, has set up Titanic Denim, customising clothes made from the hard-wearing fabric.

And her specialised jeans have already grabbed the attention of Perry's favourite stylist Johnny Wujek and her hairdresser Clyde Haygood, who accompanied the I Kissed A Girl star to Belfast in May where she kicked off her Prismatic World Tour.

Marie, who was helping out backstage as part of the wardrobe team, offered to customise a pair of jeans for both men when they admired her handiwork, while Katy was presented with a denim skirt for her recently born niece.

And Marie is now working on a pair of jeans especially for Katy, customised to reflect the highlights of her Prismatic tour.

The mum-of-two, who recently returned to her first love of fashion after a career break, said she was thrilled when the US pop-star's stylist gave her work the thumbs up.

“I was called in to help out backstage at the Odyssey Arena for Katy Perry's Prismatic tour, and because it was the opening night, we were all there for 12 days in total to get everything right,” she said.

“The costumes had been flown over from

America, Italy and France including gorgeous outfits from Roberto Cavalli and Valentino. We were mainly dealing with the dancers' outfits, making sure they fitted, doing the necessary alterations and putting in Velcro instead of zips and snap fasteners instead of buttons to make it easy for quick costume changes.

“I got to work with Gok Wan's tailor Andy Piccos, who had flown over from London.

He altered Katy's Cavalli LED light dress and gave me some great tips.

“We also had to make little mic packs to fit inside Katy's costumes, including the famous shell bikini she wears. At one stage she popped into the room to say hi but we didn't get to meet her.

“I was talking to her stylist Johnny and he was asking me what else I was working on, so I showed him images of some of my jeans. He said he loved them, that they were ‘awesome' and that he'd loved a pair. So, I offered to customise a pair for him.”

Johnny went into town and bought himself a new pair of jeans for Marie to work her magic on. She sliced them, de-stressed them and inserted tartan patches, before getting to work on a pair for Katy herself.

“Her hairdresser Clyde is quite fussy about sizing so he said he'd send me a pair of denim shorts over to Belfast once he got back to LA,” she said.

“I made a cute little skirt for Katy's baby niece and got a lovely message back

Belfast designer Marie Nancarrow, left, got a ‘lovely message’ from Katy Perry, thanking her for the denim skirt she made for the pop star’s niece from Katy herself, saying it was very sweet of me. So now I'm working on a pair of jeans for Katy, almost like a collage of her world tour, with lots of different fabrics, bling and holographics.”

Marie, who also worked backstage at the Odyssey for Miley Cyrus' recent tour, is now hoping her funky denim range will be equally well received in her native Northern Ireland.

“The denim I customise is quite in-your-face, quite out there and colourful, a bit of a throw-back to the 80s, but I

can customise the denim to suit any taste,” she said. “I studied fashion and textiles in Belfast, then computers and web design, and I worked for a while in the fashion industry in Italy as well.

“But then I came home and took a career break to have my two children and only got back into it again when a friend asked me to design a pair of jeans for his band.

“It's all taken off from there and I'm delighted that I've been able to turn a much-loved hobby into a business.”

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 37

FOCUS ON: HOTELS

HOSPITALITY

With the tourism industry in Northern Ireland increasing all the time, hoteliers here are

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ITH Northern Ireland’s burgeoning reputation as a short break destination, food tourism region and now a key filming location for television series and feature films, it’s never been a more important time for our hoteliers.

The eyes of the world were drawn to one of our most luxurious destinations, the Lough Erne resort, when it was chosen as the base for the G8 summit in June 2013, with images of Barrack Obama, David Cameron and Vladimir Putin strolling the grounds, beamed around the globe.

New pictures from the hotel, marking a year since the event took place, show the America President sipping a pint of Guinness on a sofa while German premier Angela Merkel looks on.

Northern Ireland was also in the spotlight last year as the host of the World Police and Fire Games, which followed a whirlwind programme of events in 2012 under the ‘Our Time, Our Place’ banner, including the Titanic Belfast Festival and the Irish Open golf championship.

A key hotel industry study published recently revealed that Londonderry's year as UK City of Culture in 2013 generated 15,500 additional hotel room nights in the city, while Belfast had its best year ever in 2013 for hotel bedroom demand.

Derry has seen a number of new hotels open in recent years, with the Tower Hotel, in Butcher Street, and the City Hotel, at Queen’s Quay, joining more long-standing names like Da Vinci's, on Culmore Road, and the long-standing Beech Hill luxury hotel at Ardmore on the city’s outskirts.

The annual Hotel Industry Survey published by ASM Chartered Accountants also revealed that Belfast had an average occupancy rate of 78.6%, up from 73.2% in 2012, while the occupancy rate in August last year was 91.8% during the hosting of the World Fire and Police Games.

However Michael Williamson, director of consulting at ASM, warned that the industry could have been a lot worse off were it not for the major events of 2012 and 2013 and said that the results should encourage

38 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

TheEurgene and Catherine McKeever with their children Bridgene and Eddie more bids for future sports and entertainment fixtures. Indeed, last month it was announced that Portrush will host The Open golf tournament in 2019, its first visit to the north Down town since 1951.

ASM's findings showed that there was a large improvement in the performance of hotels operating in the five-star segment in 2013, while mid-market hotels typically experienced revenue and profit decline during 2013, suggesting that consumers are now less price sensitive than in previous years.

The renewed confidence has been borne out in the fact that one of Northern Ireland’s fastest growing family-run hotel chains has just made its first foray into the Republic of Ireland market.

The McKeever Hotel Group — which already owns the Dunsilly in Antrim, Adair Arms in Ballymena and Corr’s Corner in Newtownabbey — has begun a £400,000 refurbishment after buying the three-star

Letterkenny Court Hotel in Co Donegal out of administration. Intending to rebrand it as ‘Dillon's’ in honour of a supermarket which once occupied the site, the group — made up of husband and wife team Eugene and Catherine McKeever, and their children Bridgene and Eddie — hopes to have completed work on the 57 bedrooms and 26 apartments by September.

Recent developments in the Belfast area include a new development in the Scottish Mutual building, opposite City Hall, which will be transformed into a 40-bedroom hotel called The Mutual.

The building is owned by the Ballymenabased Hill family, who also control the Galgorm Resort and Spa, in Co Antrim, and who sold nearby hotel, Ten Square, for a reported £17m in 2008.

They earlier sold the site of their Tullymore House Hotel in Broughshane, Co Antrim, to a housing developer.

And a hotel is among new plans in the

IS ON A HIGH

playing a crucial role in keeping this sector going strong, writes CLARE WEIR

>> Turn to page 40

Janice Gault, chief executive, Northern Ireland Hotels Federation: “THERE is no doubt about it — big events are the way to drive growth, not only for hotels but for the entire hospitality industry.

“Big worldwide events which have a huge global reach and interest levels — like golf or cycling — will draw people from all over the world to these shores.

“There is also an element of normalisation, that this has become a big destination to come to.

“We had 30 years of conflict, which is what came first to people’s minds when they thought about the region. Now they are thinking of it as somewhere that great events are taking place.

“What is benefiting the hotel industry now is a mix-

ture of this normalisation, or optimism and of opportunity.

“Since the downturn, development was hampered by a lack of access to finance.

“Now the banks and organisations like Nama are actively trying to dispose of properties and they are making things a lot easier for people to develop and grow new hotels.

“We do hospitality really well here and people are spending a lot of money on buying new hotels and improving existing properties but we cannot stop championing the whole region.

“The famous quote is ‘if you build it, they will come’,

but I think one issue we have in Northern Ireland is that we build it, then we forget about promoting it once the initial excitement has died down.

“We have some great attractions and we need to keep promoting them to bring new visitors to the area.

“People also have to realise that Belfast is not competing with Derry which is not competing with Dublin — we have to compete together with the rest of the world.

“Those who come to see the golf in Portrush, for example, may travel all over the island so it is important to invest and promote everything we have in terms of our hospitality and tourism offering.”

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 39

FOCUS ON: HOTELS >> From page 39 City Quays from the Belfast Harbour Commissioners, which has just been given the green light by planners.

In existing premises, the four-star familyowned Malone Lodge Hotel reopened last year after a massive revamp, and industry stalwarts Andras Hotels recently announced a £1m investment in conferencing and banqueting facilities at the Ramada Plaza, Shaws Bridge.

The Andras House portfolio, founded by Lord Diljit Rana, also includes the Express

by Holiday Inn, the Ramada Encore in Belfast city centre, Days Hotel and two Ibis properties in the city.

While the headlines are not always positive, the fact that some of our longstanding hoteliers have come through many turbulent times during the Troubles means that the industry here is definitely resilient.

Northern Ireland's most famous hotel dynasty is Hastings Hotels, founded in the 1960s by Sir Billy Hastings, who remains as chairman.

Credited with restoring the fortunes of the landmark Europa Hotel, famously known as the most-bombed hotel in the world, he was keen to get the show back on the road when the group's Everglades Hotel at Prehen in Londonderry was firebombed in May by a dissident republican group ahead of hosting a PSNI recruitment event.

In Hastings style, the event went ahead a week after the device cause substantial damage to the hotel’s reception area.

40 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

The Everglades Hotel in Londonderry

Key facts from the Annual Hotel Industry Survey: Published by ASM Chartered Accountants É Across Northern Ireland, the average bedroom occupancy rate in 2013 increased to 74.8%, against 73.2% in 2012 É The average rate per room sold was £68.17, a 4% increase on the £65.50 recorded in the previous year É Combining these two measures gives the room yield or REVPAR (revenue per

available room). The Northern Ireland REVPAR average for 2013 was £51 6.4% improvement on the 2012 average and the highest REVPAR on record; É Total revenues increased by 9.8% year on year É The number of bedrooms occupied by of “out of state” visitors increased to 68.4% of total sales compared to 67% in 2012

FOCUS ON GREEN SECTOR

GRASSROOTS OF GREEN BID Sustainablity is the mantra of eco-friendly business. Which is why a project proposing to make use of a freely available raw material is so exciting, writes Jane Hardy

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N business terms, the future isn't orange, as the ad slogan has it. It’s green. In other words, environmental enterprise is the way ahead Northern Ireland is required to meet specific EU targets for reducing the amount of energy consumed from fossil fuels by 2020; 40% of electricity consumption will have to be derived from renewable sources.

If you have a carrier-bag mountain in the kitchen or are concerned about the amount of paper and plastic packaging used on products, there is one green researcher whose endeavours could change things for the better. And if companies and researchers themselves aren’t in the green sector, they can make their businesses more environmentally friendly.

The Northern Ireland Environmental Benchmarking Survey is still open for submissions. It aims to reward companies for their efforts to be green.

Terry A’Hearn, chief executive of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, said the survey was “the province’s leading tool in providing businesses with proof of their green status by analysing their environmental management, improvement and impact.

“By focusing on sustainable action, businesses are reaping both environmental and financial benefits,” he explained.

42 BUSINESS MONTH 7 JuLY 2014

Employees can benefit from a green policy as well as companies themselves. In fact, a research paper presented to the Northern Ireland Assembly at the end of 2012 quoted the Carbon Trust as estimating that between 8,470 and 33,124 jobs could be created within the renewable energy sector alone in our region by 2020.

The massive Dong project in Belfast demonstrates the jobs potential of ambitious green projects. In the biggest development in its history, Belfast Harbour provided the first purpose-built port for the production of offshore wind farms in the UK, working on the assembly and installation of huge turbines and their foundations for Dong projects in the Irish Sea in a £50m deal.

The ‘offshore wind logistics terminal' created hundreds of jobs in construction, assembly

Once the project is funded, the industial process should be up within three years

and the supply chain, with more than 1m tonnes of stone from Northern Ireland quarries being used.

The UK government's Green Investment Bank, worth £3bn, has drawn up plans to help farmers in Northern Ireland fund a series of small-scale anaerobic digestion plants on their land, in order to turn slurry and other organic waste into energy.

Another team is leading the way in green innovation from the Agri-food and Biosciences Institute in Newforge, Belfast.

They are working under Professor Shekhar Sharma, whose research at the Northern Ireland Science Park into converting grass into a biodegradable plastic substitute, could gain commercial backing.

He said: “Our project proposal involves what is called nanocellulose and its compounds.The raw material we use is local grass, and of course it is plentiful. The idea is to use local raw materials. Once we get the project (commercially)

funded, the industrial process should be established within three years.”

What's also significant about the nanocellulose initiative, which involves separating the liquid from the grass fibre and using that to make packaging, is that it won't involve increased costs, according to Professor Sharma. Per unit, each carrier back or piece of packaging should come in at the same price as its plastic, non-biodegradable equivalent.

As Professor Sharma said: “We're targeting the bottom end of the market sector but are not yet sure of the massmarket potential.”

Concerned about global warming, he is “trying to do a little bit to minimise the impact”. He has worked in the field for some time, having been awarded his PhD by

>> Turn to page 44

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 43

FOCUS ON RECRUITMENT >> From page 42 Queen's in 1981. There are seven researchers in his team, with three leaders. They are collaborating academically with researchers in the US, Ireland and the UK. The recession has held back the pace of development. “Industry members are aware of what we're doing but because of the recession, it has taken longer to attract backing.”

But the professor said packaging firms that currently use petrochemical-based products are now showing an interest.

Earlier this year, he and his colleagues met with potential backers. A spokesman said a collaborative research project with a commercial partner is now being set up.

Sustainable is the green business mantra and the new material is unquestionably made from a sustainable crop — consistently thriving green grass, helped along by Northern Ireland's damp climate.

Professor Sharma is excited about the prospect of having potentially cracked part of the holy grail of green science — ridding the planet of petrochemically produced plastic.

44 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

OFFLINE SECTION

MOTORING

DAY IN THE LIFE

MAN ABOUT TOWN

SEAT Leon

Belfast Chamber of Trade & Commerce

Inside track on Northern Ireland business

RAW POWER

PAUL MCMAHON

THE CHAIRMAN

GREAT SCOT

Edinburgh's Waverley Train Station at night

RACING ROUND THE HIGHLANDS

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 45

offline

OUT TO LUNCH

Insolvency lawyer Toby’s optimism is infectious With dollops of charming wit, Toby McMurray points out to a bowled-over Joris Minne Belfast’s abundance of top-class restaurants and that ‘it’s not all about commerce’

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OBY McMurray is the most unusual of solicitors. He’s not just an expert in commercial litigation but also an insolvency practitioner and the guy you want umpiring during dispute resolutions. You’d think all this serious stuff would make Toby a dull boy but you would be wrong. His approach is laced with charm, wit, insight and incisiveness. Most importantly of all, he is a great conversationalist.

We are in Hadskis in Belfast and as soon as he arrives I can tell this is someone who likes to squeeze every drop of entertainment out of a situation. As is the norm with men who meet for the first time at lunch, there’s a bit of second-guessing when the server asks if she can get us a drink. If the person I am with is a bit uptight, a large bottle of sparkling water is ordered. For some reason McMurray strikes me as the opposite so a beer for me prompts a glass of wine for him.

He’s a partner in Tughans, one of the Belfast’s top law firms. He enjoys his work, he has a lot of it and he’s optimistic. “This is my first recession,” he says youthfully. “It’s been dragging on in Northern Ireland but the insolvency, recovery and restructuring landscape has been changing in recent months and there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

McMurray, whose good looks could get him an Equity card (he does not take himself too seriously but he does have the poise of a

46 7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH

17th-century Venetian ship fleet owner), has a passion for the job which he unveils with subtlety and enough self-consciousness not to appear over-bearing. But he lights up at the mention of the arts.

He readily admits that in his spare time, he indulges his love for visual arts through a recently established art gallery called James Wray. One of Northern Ireland’s top painters, John Breakey, says the gallery is as good as you’ll get in Bond Street, London.

Isn’t the market at the funeral parlour, I ask. “It’s not all about commerce,” he says a bit sternly. “If I can represent people I admire and spend time with some great works, the satisfaction this generates can far outweigh the trade.”

But the trade must be surviving well enough. The James Wray gallery has been one of the hidden jewels in the city centre’s James Street South, a stone’s throw from City Hall and loads of wealthy business owners. In a clever partnership, McMurray has a nice thing going with Niall McKenna whose restaurant is across the street. Any groups or corporate evenings are steered towards pre-dinner drinks in the gallery where a couple of glasses of champagne must help the retail process.

His optimism for the Northern Ireland economy is infectious. He expresses a confidence in the Northern Ireland private sector and points to the growth in back-office

services being provided to international law firms. “That’s not just because of cheaper rents — it’s because of a skilled workforce which has a desire to succeed,” he says. And this is a common denominator which does not just stop at law firms. He believes the work ethic and the ambition are evident across all sectors and that Belfast and the rest of the country will climb out of the recession in better shape than ever.

And anyway, he reminds me, where in the world would you find a city the size of Belfast with as many good restaurants and bars? Of course he’s right and I banish any further thoughts of emigration. For now.

Hadskis Yardman beers Lrg sparkling water Lrg orecchiette Lobster salad Truffle fries Lemon cheesecake Tart of the day Dbl espresso Americano Gls cabernet

£6.00 £3.50 £11.00 £10.50 £4.00 £5.50 £5.50 £2.00 £2.00 £6.50

Total

£56.50

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SHOP FRONT

Streetview No.48: McCalls of Lisburn Ron McBride

I

N 1956 (now Lisburn) Distillery won the Irish Cup after a second replay before a crowd of 20,000.

In the same year Robert McCall, from a farming background in Co Armagh and with years of experience in clothing all over Ireland, opened up his business. The business has grown steadily, evolving into a major retailer of UK standing with a strong presence both on the high street and online.

The present shop of around 12,000 sq ft is an imposing three-storey red brick building on a corner site. Opened in the late 1980s, it had a refit six years ago. The shop has well-designed window displays and on entering has an attractive carpeted walkway with an open appearance. There is bright lighting, a feeling of space and quality both in the fittings and the stock.

Thirty or so staff work in a pleasant environment under today’s third-generation management. Mark, Chris, Jill and Alastair are directors in what

Mark describes as an “evolving company”. McCalls hold the Investor in People award, recognising good practice, and have been finalists in the UK and Ireland Drapers Award.

McCalls stock quality brands and have branched out into formal wear and shoes. The formal hire department boasts sofas, a range of Magee suits and a coffee machine.

Chris, who runs this department, also oversees the online

service. It has grown massively and has a presence on Amazon.

The IT, which is being streamlined, has boosted trade and made it simpler to monitor not only stock but trends in fashion.

Changing trends in men’s clothing are relatively slow, giving the business time to adapt.

Mark admits to keeping an eye on trends, be they in the media or on the street in London. Buying trips to Dublin, Birmingham and London top

the list with visits to German shows still important. Top brands such as Carl Gross and Remus Uomo are important with McCalls being the only stockist of Tommy Hilfiger outside the Hilfiger store in Belfast.

The same can be said of uniforms for Scouts and Guides.

The trade in school uniforms, albeit largely seasonal, is very strong with 60 schools catered for. Corporate clothing and blazers for golf clubs widen the choice available.

Looking around the shop and going up to the second floor with its massive range of stock, it is easy to see it as a destination store: customers come from all over the province, from Dublin and beyond.

Whether it be for a plastic woggle or a top range suit, McCalls is worth a visit.

McCalls of Lisburn 24 Market Street Lisburn Co Antrim BT28 1AB

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 47

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DAY IN THE LIFE

Meet the man lobbying hard for business in Belfast Paul McMahon President of the Belfast Chamber of

Trade & Commerce and centre director for CastleCourt Shopping Centre

7.30am

It’s coffee, emails and a check of the day's diary to make sure that there are no engagement conflicts and to ensure that I can fit everything in.

8am

With a long day ahead, it’s time to have a final look through papers prepared for the chamber’s executive council meeting, which I chair at 8.15am. On the agenda is discussion on our response a public consultation on planning reform.

10am

Then it’s over to CastleCourt where I have a meeting with a potential tenant who will be a new addition to the Belfast retail scene. We have the opportunity to stroll through the shopping centre and take a brief walk around the city to give the retailer a sense of what Belfast has to offer. It’s important that I show off the best of the centre and the city. New businesses are its lifeblood and it’s vital we secure new retailers and businesses to the city.

48 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

12pm

I review monthly financials with members of my CastleCourt team. We look at each line in detail and prioritise any actions that are needed to ensure we are on target to meet our objectives. This forms part of my monthly routine and helps keep everyone focused.

1.30pm

I’m now 30 minutes behind schedule so it's lunch on the hoof. A banana and a bottle of water before the next meeting for the chamber, which starts with a presentation from Visit Belfast on a forthcoming marketing campaign.

We partner with several organisations who promote Belfast and our work with Visit Belfast is key in ensuring Belfast is a first-choice destination.

2.30pm

A meeting with the finance minister to discuss the impact of rates on businesses in the city. With the rates revaluation underway it is now time for the

business community to highlight the difficulty rates can cause businesses.

Rates and occupancy costs are always high on the agenda for business leaders and the minister is interested to hear how it impacts on Belfast.

manager to finalise plans for a project we are about to start in the centre and sign documents waiting for approval. A quick review of the next day’s business and a word with my admin team to ensure everything is ready before the office closes.

4.30pm

6.30pm

A meeting at City Hall to discuss the chamber's role with some councillors. It’s important that we share the role of the chamber with our elected representatives and look to forge relationships.

Today’s an opportunity to share with councillors some of the difficulties that new businesses face in Belfast and also to share some of the cities recent success stories. New businesses are opening. We’ve attracted several new retailers, new restaurants and new professional service providers to the city in the last quarter.

5.30pm Back to the office for a final round up of centre business for the day. I meet the operations

I have a briefing with the city centre manager on Business Improvement Districts [BID] and the impact that it may have on the city centre if they proceed in the future. Belfast is one of several areas in Northern Ireland looking at a BID following new legislation coming in.

7pm It’s a quick dash home to change for a black-tie event in Titanic Belfast. With so many distinguished guest and political leaders attending it’s a further opportunity to raise issues that are affecting the city — and, of course, a glass of wine.

12am Carriages — and time for a wellearned rest.

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Saab extends fixed price repair scheme SAAB Parts UK has announced the expansion of its national fixed price repairs offer to include the important cambelt and water pump change, plus a warning light diagnostic check.

Helping to reduce costs for owners, Saab Parts UK is packaging some of the regular wear and tear items into a fixed price, so owners can see the full benefits offered by Saab authorised repairers and be reassured in the use of Original Saab parts.

Participating Saab service centres are now offering a combined cambelt and waterpump change for the 1.9TiD engine for £349, and for 1.9 TTiD owners £399.

Full details on the range of Saab Fixed Price Repairs can be found on the website www.saabparts.com/en-gb/uk.

Jaguar Land Rover supports festival JAGUAR Land Rover is supporting the International Festival for Business (IFB 2014) which is running in Liverpool until the end of July.

The Liverpool City Region is also home to Halewood, one of their major manufacturing facilities where it builds the Land Rover Freelander 2 and award winning Range Rover Evoque.

IFB2014 includes more than 250 events aimed at promoting British business and its place in the global economy.

Exports account for 80% of all vehicles Jaguar Land Rover produces at its three UK manufacturing plants and in 2013 the company sold 425,006 vehicles, up 19% on the previous year.

Maserati celebrates 100 years of excellence THE International Maserati Centennial Gathering celebrating the company’s 100 year anniversary begins in Modena on Thursday, September 18, and ends in Turin on Saturday, September 20.

The three day gathering includes exhibitions, parades, a regularity race, a track test, a visit to the two Maserati factories and a concours d'elegance.

Cars and collectors from all over the world are expected to be in attendance.

There will be an opportunity on Wednesday, September 17, for Maserati collectors to have their photographs taken with their car next to the famous Fountain of Neptune in the historic centre of Bologna.

For more information go to www.maserati100.com.

Mercedes opens door to movie-makers MERCEDES-BENZ is set to help the best and brightest creative minds with the launch of #CLAstory — a programme aimed at supporting fledgling filmmakers which will lead to the commissioning of an online film starring James Corden.

The initiative is a useful first step for budding talent and forms part of an exciting new social media campaign launching on the microsite — www.clastory.co.uk.

At the heart of the project is the Mercedes-Benz CLA — a four-door coupe.

Three high-profile Instagrammers — Jiri Siftar, Alan Brutenic and Allan Edward Hinton — have collaborated with Mercedes-Benz to create a trio of short films featuring

MOTORING NEWS

actor, comedy writer, producer and presenter James Corden.

Their instavids provide a basic framework for the story — six vital scenes from which are missing. Budding film directors will be invited to complete the scenes and the film in the #CLAstory by uploading their videos onto the Mercedes-Benz UK Instagram channel, mercedesbenzUK. The creator of the winning film will then get the chance to direct their #CLAstory starring James Corden and the Mercedes-Benz CLA AMG Sport.

Switched-on Toyota heads for the cloud TOYOTA and Panasonic have been working on a cloud-based telematics service that will let people operate their home appliances from the wheel of their car.

The technology was presented at Smart Community Japan 2014 exhibition in Tokyo, prior to the new service being launched later this year. The concept makes use of the existing cloud-based Toyota Smart Centre, and the Panasonic home appliance control application.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 49

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MOTORING

HOTTEST HATCH H The new Leon combines striking design and a powerful engine, writes Jim McCauley AVING long lived in the shadows cast by their VAG partner Audi, the Spanish brand of SEAT has offered a more basic solution within the group's diverse portfolio. But things change, sometimes slowly and occasionally dramatically, and if recent SEATs merited a second glance, then the new Leon range warrants a linger-

50 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

ing look of admiration.

The company claims that it has one of the most beautiful cars that SEAT has ever made; I would argue that it is one of the best-looking cars the VAG group has ever produced with origami bodywork neatly creased to strengthen the image as well as the structure.

With the standard range now well established, SEAT has opted to take it to the ultimate

level and launch the Cupra performance version which not only tops the Leon range but does so as the most powerful production model ever produced by the company. Featuring a 2.0 litre turbocharged engine with a choice of two power outputs and manual or automatic gearboxes, the model is additionally offered in a choice of two bodystyles, three-door and five-door. But

there is more to the bodystyles than the number of doors as the design of the three-door differs significantly with a 35mm shorter wheelbase, lower roofline, more steeply raked tailgate and greater accentuation of the rear ‘power lines' stepped out over the wheelarches. The revised styling makes a massive visual impact and assigns to the car a more assertive sporting character as opposed to the attractive

SEAT Leon SC Cupra Engine: 2.0 litre TSI turbocharged petrol; 265 PS at 5,350 to 6,600 rpm; 350 Nm torque from 1,750 to 5,300 rpm Drive: Via six-speed manual gearbox to front wheels with Electronic Stability Control and Front Axle Differential Lock Performance: 0-62mph (100km/h) in 5.9 seconds; max, 155 mph (248 km/h) Fuel on combined cycle: 42.8 mpg (6.6 l/100km) CO2: 154 gms/km; VED Band G for annual car tax Trim: SC Cupra Price: £25,695 Insurance: ABI group 49 Warranty: Three year/ 60,000 miles Benefit-in-Kind: 23% Euro NCAP: Five-star Available extras: Space-saver spare wheel in lieu of repair kit, £95; metallic paint, £495; satellite navigation, £525

practicality of the five-door.

Test choice is the lower output option, its 265 PS just 15 PS short of the more powerful engine, but performance has to be considered against price and while the note of this engine may be a little lighter, it is still sufficient to confirm its sporting abilities.

As expected a 15 PS difference is not going to make a lot of difference and in the benchmark 0-62 mph sprint the penalty is a mere one-tenth of a second at 5.9 seconds with both cars capable of an identical top speed of 155 mph. Similar torque outputs of 350 Nm from 1750 rpm through to 5,300 rpm further narrows the gap between the two engine

choices with impressive pulling power to hand across all six ratios.

Handling is supported by a dynamic chassis control package (DCC) and a front axle differential lock which maintains excellent cornering traction and eliminates torque steer, enhancing the performance appeal of the car. Riding on 18-inch wheels the suspension deals more sympathetically with varying road surfaces than the set-up on the larger output engine and confirms the appeal of the 285 PS model for everyday use. To increase the performance edge, the DCC package allows the driver to alter the responses of steering, accelerator and suspension with

the three fixed menu settings of Comfort, Sport and Cupra, while an Individual setting permits more precise options.

Accommodation-wise, the new Leon SC is a full five-seater with good rear access and despite the narrowing of the cabin compared to the five-door model, there remains adequate shoulder room in the rear. Snug sports seats up-front hold the occupants comfortably, and while the cabin reflects the quality finish of the exterior which has tighter panel fit than Audi, the instrumentation and dash design are more Teutonic and a little at odds with the flair and flow of the exterior lines.

However, there are no shortcomings in terms of equipment

with cruise control, DAB radio, dual-zone climate control and front and rear-parking sensors all standard. Also standard are seven airbags, including a driver's knee unit, automatic LED headlights, rain sensing wipers and heated door mirrors with kerb-view function when reversing.

The new Leon is a serious advance design-wise for SEAT, and the Cupra derivative is a fitting model to top the range.

Despite its performance, the model has a combined fuel consumption of 42.8 mpg and with a CO2 emissions of 154 gms/km is in Band G for annual car tax.

The model tested is listed at £25,695 with attractive finance deals currently available.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 51

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TECHNOLOGY Toshiba Satellite Click 2 Pro P30W, £899 @ www.toshiba.com Toshiba’s premium ultrabook, Satellite Click 2 Pro P30W, is designed to transform seamlessly from laptop to tablet, offering the choice between a fully featured UltrabookTM and a media savvy tablet. It is ultra mobile and designed for use anytime, anywhere — measuring just 11mm thin in tablet mode and from 20mm thin when used as clamshell. Slim, lightweight and aesthetically pleasing, the satin gold aluminium chassis with brushed design is stylish and professional.

With a full HD 13.3” touch display and DTS sound audio enhancement tuned

by Harman Kardon, the Satellite Click 2 Pro P30W is perfect for all your entertainment needs.

Sony Smartband Fitness Tracker Band, £80 @ www.sony.co.uk There are a host of fitness trackers on the market, but Sony says its offering is more of a ‘life logging’ device. In other words, pair it with the partner Lifelog Android app, and it’ll track your movements, communications, photos and social activities. Other functions include controlling media on your phone and waking you up. Of course, it has plenty of fitness skills too, such as tracking your steps, calories burned, and how well you slept. It rewards activity with points to encourage good behaviour.

52 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Tado Cooling System, approx £90 @ www.tado.com This is the latest energysaving device to try to make your home super connected, as well as helping to save the planet. It works like a personal heating assistant, allowing you to control your air conditioning unit with a smartphone – aiming to reduce heating costs by 12 to 40%.

The Tado Cooling wall plate takes over the functions of your home system and once that’s done, you just connect your smartphone to it using Bluetooth or WiFi, and set the temperature using the Tado Cooling app. It takes sleeping times into account and reduces the temperature to a lower setting.

It also make use of current weather forecasts: if the sun is going to shine the next day, Tado will automatically take this information into account and turn the heat to a lower setting.

Save time with property app: Busy letting agents will be aware of the headache associated with property management admin. Help is at hand from a new product called ShowHouse, which is geared towards letting agents and property professionals to help manage their lettings, property sales and block management. It works by reducing the time and resources required for admin and associated management tasks by, on average 80-90%, freeing up their time to provide extra services. It is also available to users in multiple languages, as well as being able to assist with various tax rates and legislation. www.showhousesoftware.com GMcG

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FASHION

DRESS TO IMPRESS Grainne McGarvey

T

HE summer social calendar is in full swing, and for many of the lucky ones, this means a chance to enjoy some VIP events. The secret to occasion wear is to dress to impress without upstaging the party host. Floral is a perfect summer trend for both men and women and different size prints are all over the high street, as are pastel tones. If you want to play it safe, you can’t beat the classic navy with neutral hues, but add a bit of detail such as a fascinator or bowtie for just the right amount of outfit bling.

Light blue jacket, £75 @ Next

Sartorial blazer, £199; Sartorial shirt, £45; Sartorial tie, £19.50

Peep toes, £39 @ Miss Selfridge Hammond & Co by Patrick Grant, £16 @ Debenhams

Fascinator, £35 @ Accessorize

Lucia weave clutch, £49 @ Phase Eight

Cocae dress, £169 @ Ted Baker

Lighthouse straight-fit chinos, £39.95 @ Lands’ End

Geo-print jacket, £70; shirt, £30 @ Next

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 53

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TRAVEL

HIGHLANDS AT SPEED How easy is it to enjoy Scotland’s finest scenery from behind the wheel of a Ferrari 360 Spider? Matthew Bell was glad he braved some local amusement to find out

N

OBODY warns you about the sniggers. In my experience of driving old cars, I am used to being stared at. I like the waving, the pointing, the flicker of recognition from old maids as you trundle by in a Morris Minor. But in a Ferrari, a stonking, fat, rear-engined monster that gobbles rainforests for breakfast, the reaction isn't so favourable.

The most embarrassing moment came on the Isle of Skye ferry. I was in the Highlands for three days, driving a Ferrari 360 Spider.

Not an obvious choice of hire car, but it was all they had left. Only kidding. This is a new initiative by a Glasgow-based travel firm to show you Scotland's finest views from the cockpit of a supercar. For the price of two nights at a luxury hotel, you get two nights at a luxury hotel, plus the use of the Ferrari.

Skye seemed the perfect destination for a day trip from my base, just north of Fort William. It's a 25-minute boat ride from Mallaig, which is 45 minutes from Fort William, and you can loop back via the swooshing Isle of Skye bridge and the A87.

The conditions for our crossing were perfect: a clear blue sky and a reassuringly still sea. In the Western Isles, you park your car on an open deck and trot up a level to take in the view. The surrounding hills, russet and grey in the glow of a warm autumn day, seemed close enough to touch.

The stillness felt therapeutic.

Then the ferry lurched into action. Off went a car alarm, shattering the calm. A woman who had seen me clamber out of my

54 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

ludicrous slab of bling turned and said: “That would be the Ferrari!” Cue gales of laughter from the whole deck.

Never mind. You get used to it. The day before, on arriving at Fort William, I set off to explore Glen Nevis. This is Ben's little brother, the valley at the foot of Britain's highest mountain. A rocky path through the steep Nevis gorge broadens out into a wide valley and takes you to the Steall Falls, the third biggest waterfall in Scotland. It was unusually warm, and because the option had been available to me, I had spent the day driving with the hood down.

Putting it up in the car park was memorable. In a 360 Spider, it is a two-stage

I tiptoed to the car and strapped myself in for another wild ride action that one motoring journalist called a “stunning 20-second mechanical symphony”.

That's one way of putting it. Slow and fiddly is another, as the drizzle sets in, and the Czech tourists roar with laughter.

Still, I had the last laugh. Because for all the embarrassment of a car that some see as a statement on your manhood, the pleasure of driving it is worth it. It takes a little getting used to: the paddle gears; the impossibility of seeing anything while reversing; the ease of hitting 100mph by mistake. But once you adjust to these foibles, you find yourself relaxing into a relationship

of mutual respect between man and beast.

Actually, relax may be the wrong word.

Voltaire said that when he lost his libido, it was like being freed after a lifetime of being chained to a madman. By the end, I felt something similar. This is a car that demands to be driven fast, that overheats if you dare to pootle. This actually happened once on Skye, after I stopped one too many times to take photos. A warning light came on, and after some reading of the manual, I discovered the car's emissions sensors had got too hot. They needed a good blast of rushing cold air to cool them down. So, with a heavy heart, I put my foot to the floor, and the problem soon cleared.

My trip had started in Edinburgh, a city I usually can't wait to get to, rather than speed out of. Flying into Scotland from London makes it seem like a foreign country which, if the referendum goes Alex Salmond's way, it soon will be. The drive from Edinburgh to Fort William was a brisk three-hour introduction to what lay ahead: moors, lakes and looming grey hills. The M9 peters out at Stirling, the end of the motorway network. In Doune, the first town on the A84, graffiti on a sign begs you to “Please Drive Car Fully.” If you insist! But it isn't until you pass through Callander, and get on to Rannoch Moor, that you start to involuntarily say “wow!” every couple of miles.

I did wonder, faced with three days of a 60mph speed limit, whether a Ferrari is quite the right car for the Highlands.

Wouldn't it get frustrating, having

Visit ing t McKi here 873 nlay ently 6110; sees Kidd (084 .co.uk cotla 4 brea ) n two n k starting offers a t ddifferfrom ights at In from Edinhree-day v £ b shari 1,215pp, b erlochy C urgh, with a n a g days , with b sed on t stle Hot e ' hire r w of a F eakfast a o people l nd th errar re i 360 Spide e More r. visits informat i cotla nd.co on m

Wouldn't it get frustrating, having all this power and nowhere to vent it?

But one of the pleasures of driving this squat wide toad is how tightly it grips the road — you don't have to slow down for corners. When you get stuck behind a caravan, a little blip of the throttle quickly turns it into a speck in the mirror.

My base was Inverlochy Castle, a Victorian country house in Torlundy, two miles north of Fort William. Once the home of Lord Abinger, it sits in a quiet valley, commanding views of the surrounding hills and its own lake. Plenty more “wows” here.

This is the sort of place where you toss the keys to a flunkey when you pull up. So, I duly handed them over and tried to keep cool as the baby-faced porter skipped away. Happily, neither he nor the chef could get to grips with the immobiliser, so we all agreed Sir would park his car from now on.

Chef more than made up for it in the kitchen. Philip Carnegie has a well-earned Michelin star, and in between dishes of locally sourced fare, such as parmesancrusted scallops and veal sweetbread ravioli, waiters bring out amusing little mouthfuls he has dreamt up. Cauliflower panna cotta is certainly hard to forget.

You could easily spend a week without leaving Inverlochy. Drinking gin and tonics in the bath was a high point. Log fires roar as lunch gives way to

tea, to cocktails, to dinner. But the West Coast demands exploration. As Jefferson Davis, the American statesman who stayed at Inverlochy in 1869, wrote in a letter to his wife: “The scenery about here is the grandest of all the sublime spectacles I have met in Scotland. You would find a wide field for your imagination in the mists and changing lights and shades which characterise the Scottish mountains.”

The trouble is the excess of possibilities, especially with a Ferrari at your disposal.

You would need a week to acquaint yourself fully with the entire coast and a couple more to see the islands.

But I had come armed with an ambition. I wanted to fulfil a childhood dream of seeing an otter. The West Coast of Scotland is supposed to be the best place to see them, and the good news is that, after generations of decline, the population has enjoyed a revival in recent years.

Disembarking from the Isle of Skye ferry, I pulled into a filling station. “Where's the best place to see otters?” I asked. “You can usually spot them on the rocks along there,” said the man, pointing to half a dozen spots on the map. “You have to be patient. And if they see you first, you won't see them.”

It was a beautiful day, perfect for mooching about on Skye's empty beaches.

Ferrari 360 Spider

Hours slipped away clambering over rocks, then taking up position, to watch and wait. Gannets, egrets, cormorants and herons were plentiful. Occasionally, they would catch a fish. But otters there came none. Only when dusk began to fall did I see a spot on the map marked “otter sanctuary”.

A sign by the hut at Kylerhea tells visitors to be very quiet, and says it's the best place in Britain to see otters. Built by the Forestry Commission halfway up a wooded hill, the shelter is fitted with free binoculars and overlooks the Kyle Rhea, the narrow sound of water between Skye and the mainland.

Down below, you can see the ferry chugging between Kylerhea and Glenelg. It's the last turntable ferry in Scotland, a handoperated shuttle of a kind once seen all over the Western Isles.

Darkness comes later in Scotland, but when it did, I was still watching and waiting. On the mainland across the water, Gavin Maxwell spent the late 1950s with Mijbil, the otter that inspired his book, Ring of Bright Water. Maxwell died young in 1969 (the centenary of his birth is next month), and if Mijbil's descendants were here, they had already seen me coming. I did spot a seal: a big, black, flubbocking chap, lying on a rock, flapping his fins.

He was there when I arrived and, as night enveloped us, he was there still.

Tomorrow, I was heading home, and my three-day dream would be over. I tiptoed back to the car, and strapped myself in for another wild ride.

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TRAVEL

Five ways to: go caravanning in Britain Forget mile-long tailbacks and dashboard-thumping frustration — caravans are cool. They have crept into all sorts of unknown territory, from summer festivals to boutique short breaks. Now you’ll find models that have been stylishly retro-fitted, others in bucolic settings and traditional gypsy caravans kitted out with mod cons.

Rock ’n’ roll up If you can’t face that little two-man tent anymore, you can book a caravan ticket at most of the UK’s music festivals, from Womad (24-27 July) to Bestival (4-7 September). Take your own or hire a ‘boutique’ caravan from Festival Caravans (festivalcaravans.com) which has a fleet of restored 1980s models. They cost £500 plus a delivery fee that varies for each festival: for Glastonbury it’s £400, for Latitude £300.

Festival tickets and campervan access tickets not included.

A head for heights The Rooftop Rockets are silver, vintage-style, but modern purpose-built caravans –on the roof of Brooks Guesthouse (0117 930 0066; brooksguesthousebristol.com) in Bristol. With all the mod cons you’d expect from a contemporary hotel, there are four caravans in all — two for couples and two for families, starting at £99 per caravan per night for two sharing including breakfast.

Horse power If you’re going to cause a traffic jam, do it in style — with a horse-drawn gypsy caravan in Cumbria. Barny the driver and Charlie and Bob the horses will 56 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

take you to your first campsite.

There are three to choose from including Little Salkeld Watermill, an organic working mill with bakery and café. From £150 per night for two adults (0117 204 7830; canopyandstars.co.uk/wanderlusts).

Glampervan Beryl is a 1963 Cheltenham sable caravan. Kitted out with retro fixtures and fittings, she’s offered by Kent-based The GlamperVan Hire Company (0800 035 3454; theglampervanhirecompany. com). You can tow Beryl yourself, but if you’d rather have her delivered to a campsite then this can be arranged for a fee. A glamping package during August for Beryl at Dogwood campsite costs £550 a week including set up on site at Brede in Sussex, pitch fees, gas and bedding.

Hire costs from £150 for two nights including barbecue and outdoor table and chairs. On the Isle of Wight, Vintage Vacations (07802 758113;vintagevacations. co.uk) has a fleet of 13 restored Airstream caravans dating from 1946 to 1966.

Two-night breaks cost from £255 this summer.

Silver service The ultimate in designer caravanning is still the sleek, silver Airstream (0845 070 5990; airstream-rentals.co.uk).

Airstream Rentals offers the luxury option, delivered to the site for you, pitched and ready, with wine in the fridge, towels warming on the heated towel rail and beds made.

From £1,000 a day for a minimum of three days, £400 per day after that, including a gourmet welcome hamper and flat-screen plasma TV.

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Appointments

OUT AND ABOUT

with The

CHAIRMAN Our man about town attended the centenary celebrations of the Progressive Building Society and the CIPR Media Awards

Carly McCracken has joined Hanna IP as a marketing and sales executive. With an honours degree in event management, she assists with social media marketing, event coordination and campaigns. She is an affiliate of the Chartered Institute of Marketers and Women in Business NI.

Amy Black has been appointed as a client executive at Lighthouse Communications.

She has an MSc in communication, advertising and PR from the University of Ulster, a BA in English from Queen’s University Belfast and a diploma in classical singing from the London College of Music.

Robbie Milliken has joined Bank of Ireland as a manager within the business banking Belfast growth team. He is a chartered accountant having qualified with PwC, with over six years of experience in corporate and business banking.

58 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

T

HE CHAIRMAN has been observing for longer than he cares to remember how everyone, from police officers to GPs, is getting younger.

And he looks back fondly on the era of feeling like a young thing while attending 80th birthday parties.

For once, he was able to feel relatively sprightly on attending the centenary celebrations of Northern Ireland lending institution the Progressive Building Society.

There could be no more fitting a venue than the Great Hall at Queen’s for such an important birthday, and the grandeur of the surroundings was certainly not let down by the sumptuous dinner and fine wine.

Talking of people who make The Chairman feel grizzled and old, the ever-young looking society chief executive Darina Armstrong addressed attendees, who ranged from staff who have served with the society — many for decades — plus members of its board and friends and acquaintances.

The Chairman was delighted to rub shoulders with the Belfast Telegraph’s Lesley Houston and Margaret Canning — while he also chinwagged with Simon Cunningham of the Irish News, Roseann Kelly of Women in Business and Ann McGregor from the Chamber of Commerce.

There was a robust, wideranging address from Ulster Business School economist Neil Gibson, who was later spotted in a cordial chat with Ulster Bank counterpart Richard Ramsey and BBC Northern Ireland’s John Campbell.

Having enjoyed his account

Author and commentator Don Anderson, who has written a history of the Progressive Building Society, joined Colin Jeffrey from the society and former chairpersons Joan Smyth and Timothy Quin at a dinner marking its centenary

Don Anderson, chairman John Trethowan, chief executive Darina Armstrong and economist Neil Gibson at the dinner, which took place at the Great Hall at Queen's of 50 Years of UTV, The Chairman was excited to learn that commentator and author Don Anderson is currently putting the finishing touches to a history of the Progressive — and an address from Don gave a preview of the lively tales which

his tome will contain.

Two gentlemen with no less sparkling anecdotes from the business world were John Trethowan, the new chairman of Progressive, and Timothy Quin, who was John’s predecessor.

Appointments

Rosemary Gormley has joined Capita Managed IT Solutions as a business operations director, following a career which has included positions with BT Ireland and Banc Santander and Lloyds Banking Group/HBOS.

Howard Hastings, managing director of the Hastings Hotels Group, joined food and beverage assistant Taylor Reid and Jeff Tosh, head of NI on-trade at Tennent's NI, at the Culloden Hotel to make a new five year contract between the hotels group and the drinks firm

Tony Rice has taken up the post of sales director for Ireland for Capita Managed IT Solutions. He will be responsible for developing and delivering sales strategy. With an indepth knowledge of both the public and private sectors, his experience spans all aspects of client relationship management and service delivery.

The team from airline Flybe were joined by Ann McGregor, Lord Mayor Nichola Mallon and Kevin Kingston, president of the chamber

Colm O’Neill of BT with guest speaker Wendy Houvenhagel, Lord Mayor Nichola Mallon, guest speaker Stephen Ferris, Danske Bank's Kevin Kingston, who is the new president of the chamber, guest speaker Pat Jennings and chamber chief executive Ann McGregor

Louise Scott, founder of French Vintage Vie, has opened a new showroom in Belfast city centre stocking antique furniture, vintage home decor and collectables from France. For further information, visit www.frenchvintagevie.com

>> Turn to page 60

Sean O’Neill has joined Bank of Ireland as a manager within the business banking Belfast growth team. He holds an economics degree and advanced diploma in credit and has 16 years’ experience infinancial services industry.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 59

offline

THE CHAIRMAN

Appointments

Stephen Murphy has been appointed as a trainee patent attorney at Hanna IP to develop his skills in patent matters covering telecoms, software, analogue and digital electronics and control systems. His Queen’s University Masters’ thesis focused on the development of a converter interface for a photovoltaic array and battery energy storage system.

The Belfast Telegraph celebrated at the CIPR Awards. Back row, l to r: Paul Connolly, Claire Cromie, Mike Gilson, Ed McCann and Heather Byrne. Front row, l to r: Clare Weir, Linda Stewart, Joanne Sweeney, Margaret Canning, Victoria O'Hara and Kerry McKittrick

>> From page 58

Mervyn McCormick has been appointed head of AX business with IT firm, Equiniti ICS and will lead the firm’s delivery of PeopleAX, a human resources and payroll software solution, with associated services, which is Microsoft accredited and HMRC recognised.

Steven Galbraith has taken on the position of Northern Ireland sales/account manager of AX Business with Equinit ICS, a specialist IT firm. With over 15 years’ experience at Equiniti ICS, Steven will manage the sales function for the Northern Ireland market.

60 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

The Chairman knows what side his bread is buttered on, and is only too aware he’s indebted to Business Month for providing a platform for his ramblings. So he was glad to bask in the success of its sister publication the Belfast Telegraph at the annual CIPR Media Awards in the MAC theatre, hosted by an ebullient Ea monn Holmes.

While unaccustomed to events unfolding other than in the august surroundings of a four star hotel function room, the Chairman threw himself into the more informal proceedings and enjoyed rubbing shoulders with the leading lights of the media world.

It was a great night for the BT, as it was named newspaper of the year, while editor Mike Gilson received the overall journalist of the year award and Joanne Sweeney won the scoop of the year gong.

Political editor Liam Clarke was newspaper journalist of the year, while environment correspondent Linda Stewart was features journalist of the year.

Consumer correspondent Claire McNeilly was highly commended in the same category.

Businessss journalist of the year award was snapped up by Margaret Canning, with business desk colleague Clare Weir swooping in to claim the highly commended honour in the category. And not forgetting Martin Lindsay, the former BT editor who was given a lifetime achievement award, Also highly commended were health correspondent Victoria O’Hara, for campaigns, David Kelly in sports journalist of the year, Heather Byrne for production journalist of the year and David Fitzgerald, who was highly commended in the photographer of the year category.

There was delight when the Chairman clapped eyes on Chris Thornton, formerly of the Bel Tel but now in the bosom of Auntie, while Kathryn Torney, now at the Detail — and a double award-winner on the night, no less — was eagerly greeted by her former Bel Tel colleagues.

Her Detail co-workers Barry McCaffrey and Steven McCaf fery may continue to vex subeditors with the contrasting spelling of their surnames, but were on sparkling form on that fine summer’s night.

The Chairman was pleased to make the acquaintance of the Irish News’ newly-appointed so-

cial media editor Maeve Connolly, and to discuss developments in the hospitality industry on the city’s Ormeau Road with Irish News editor Noel Doran. The Irish News' Allison Morris was named columnist of the year — a category in which Ms Connolly was highly commended.

There was also time for a chinwag with the Green Party’s Joanna Braniff, and the Chairman also got chatting to Suzie Fisher of DCP PR. The Chairman isn't normally a soccer fan but decided to bend his ‘cricket, rugby and volleyball only' rule by attending a World Cup social event hosted by his friends in business.

And what an event it was.

The Chairman bravely battled his vertigo to enjoy a wonderful soiree in a sumptuous penthouse apartment on the 27th floor of the Obel in Belfast.

The CBI was out in force, including representatives Colin Walsh, David Fry, Anthea Savage and Kirsty McManus, in one of her final showings for the CBI before taking up her new role at the University of Ulster.

Economist John Simpson was also sharing his tips for the World Cup with an eager audience.

Appointments

Mike Gilson, editor of the Belfast Telegraph received his award for overall journalist of the year from Chris Love, Bob Satchwell, executive director of the Society of Editors, and Nicci Gregg of event sponsor Coca-Cola

Scoop of the year winner Joanne Sweeney from the Belfast Telegraph was presented with her award by CIPR chairman Chris Love and Mark Stewart, chairman of category sponsor Pubs of Ulster coach firm Logan’s Exec

Nicci Gregg and Chris Love were also on hand to present Belfast Telegraph political editor Liam Clarke with his award for newspaper journalist of the year

Michael McKinstry has been appointed CEO of Phoenix Energy Holdings. He is currently finance director of Phoenix and will assume his new duties at the end of September. He succeeds Peter Dixon who will continue to assist on a range of activities for Hastings and its managed investments.

Margaret Canning has been appointed business editor of the Belfast Telegraph. Ms Canning has worked for the newspaper's business unit for five years and has worked as freelance journalist for the Irish News and Irish Times.

She is a graduate in Law and French from Queen's University.

Darwin Templeton has been appointed deputy editor of Belfast Telegraph sister publication Sunday Life. The 44year-old joins the paper from the BBC. He previously worked as head of news in UTV and editor of the News Letter.

7 July 2014 BUSINESS MONTH 61

LEESON’S LAST WORD

with Nick

Leeson

As small and medium-sized businesses turn to alternative sources of finance it is clear that David Cameron’s appeal to the public conscious of banks fell on deaf ears

P

RIME Minister David Cameron gave a speech to the Tory faithful in October 2010 reiterating the need for aggressive measures to reduce the deficit.

In his address, he said: “There’s another way we’re getting behind businesses — by sorting out the banks. Taxpayers bailed you out, now it’s time for you to repay the favour and start lending to Britain’s small businesses again.”

The government realised at that time that it needed to take a more central and proactive role but the idea that banks might lend to small businesses in order to “repay the favour” does seem a little far-fetched.

Wind the clock forward nearly four years and you would be forgiven if you thought the banks were lending great amounts — given the current marketing campaigns.

The truth is that over the past month a number of credible institutions have pointed out that the funding by banks of firms has continued to contract.

The Bank of England published figures recently that are somewhat alarming as net lending to businesses by banks participating in the Funding for Lending scheme fell by £2.7bn, with lending to SMEs falling by £723m over the first quarter of this year. The Bank and the Treasury introduced the scheme jointly in July 2012 to encourage banks to lend more in return for cheap funding.

John Longworth, the director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said these figures show that Britain’s business finance system is broken. I have to agree. Even though the scheme is focused on business lending it would seem young companies are not able to get the finance they need to grow.

So what are the SMEs doing?

Where are they going for funding? A SME Finance Monitor

62 BUSINESS MONTH 7 July 2014

Treasury’s joint Funding for Lending scheme is not working as intended

found that 33% of small firms used external finance, including bank loans, overdrafts and credit cards in the first quarter.

Twenty-seven per cent said they regularly use trade credit, while 30% said they had used personal funds. There is a clear mistrust of financial institutions.

As a result of this, and with additional difficulties resulting from rigorous SME loan applications, alternative finance options such as crowdfunding and peerto-peer lending are increasingly becoming the financial choice of SMEs in need of capital.

There is a surge in popularity in alternative ways of raising money, whether it be through private equity, crowdfunding or venture capital companies.

Northern Ireland has big challenges in this regard and at the time of writing there are no lenders in the UK prepared to lend here.

The last bridging company which experimented with the Northern Ireland marketplace lost some £25m — however, I

The last bridging company to experiment here lost £25m would argue the route to market, by employing sales executives, was completely wrong .

For SMEs who have struggled to raise capital the traditional way, the fact that there are other ways to raise capital must be good news.

One thought though, if by some chance David Cameron is reading this perhaps he can have more than a quiet word in the banks’ ears, although I question what good that might do. But banks also need to lend — it’s just another vital part of ensuring growth in the Northern Irish economy.