Business Cornwall July/Aug 19

CORNWALL'S PREMIER BUSINESS RESOURCE FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND OPINION

businesscornwall.co.uk

JULY / AUGUST 2019 | ISSUE 132 | £3.95

BISHOP FLEMING COMPANY PROFILE

TOMORROW’S WORLD

IT & DIGITAL FOCUS

BUSINESS AWARDS

WINNERS INSIDE

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Building on our international success providing clients with a continuous dedicated resource for outsource software development, we are now offering a wider range of services for shorter projects including advanced e-commerce and cloud application development.

Contact our Special Projects Division to find out how we can help you.

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JULY / AUGUST 2019

INSIDE FEATURES 10 CORNWALL BUSINESS AWARDS ALL THE WINNERS

13 COMPANY PROFILE WE MEET BISHOP FLEMING CORPORATE AND BUSINESS SERVICES PARTNER, ALLISON BEER

16 BUSINESS GROWTH GROWING BUSINESS IN A SUSTAINABLE WAY

19 IT & DIGITAL THE RISE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LEADS A BUMPER FOCUS ON CORNWALL’S DIGITAL SECTOR

REGULARS 4 INCOMING HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO HAVE THE LATEST TECH?

6 BUSINESS NEWS £20M SPACEPORT BOOST

36 ON THE MOVE LOUIS MATHERS JOINS MURRELL ASSOCIATES

37 FSB FEDERATION OF SMALL BUSINESSES LATEST

38 CREATIVE & DIGITAL

41 TOURISM NEW TRAVEL BUSINESS LAUNCHES

42 CORNWALL CHAMBER CHAMBER ROUNDUP

44 JUST A THOUGHT WITH SOFTWARE CORNWALL’S BELINDA WALDOCK

45 EVENTS DIARY BUSINESS WHAT’S ON

46 CONNECTED

CE50 COHORT ANNOUNCED

BUSINESS WHAT’S GONE

39 EDUCATION NEWS

48 THE LAST WORD

NEW APPRENTICESHIP CAMPAIGN

PHOTO: FILMING THE FINAL SERIES OF POLDARK SEE PAGE 8 FOR FULL STORY

ISSUE 132

STEAMSHIP GROUP’S SHARON SANDERCOCK

40 FOOD & DRINK OBE FOR CATHERINE MEAD

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 1

CORNWALL'S PREMIER BUSINESS RESOURCE FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND OPINION

businesscornwall.co.uk

JULY / AUGUST 2019 | ISSUE 132 | £3.95

BISHOP FLEMING COMPANY PROFILE

WELCOME

BY EDITOR NICK EYRIEY

JULY / AUGUST 2019

ISSUE 132

TOMORROW’S WORLD

IT & DIGITAL FOCUS

BUSINESS AWARDS

WINNERS INSIDE

07

07 9 772514

842001

9 772514

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ON THE COVER BISHOP FLEMING COMPANY PROFILE

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Nick Eyriey nick@businesscornwall.co.uk

A NEW HORIZON I don’t know what it is, probably my age, but personally I can sometimes be a bit of a Luddite.

Like many people, I rely on technology in the workplace and couldn’t do without it, but tech does seem to move quicker than ever and certainly far too quickly for me. I still remember how fantastically clever (and indispensable) fax machines were, for instance.

I have long since donated the fax machine to the local certified electrical waste recycling centre, but I admit I am still in danger of being left behind. I don’t even have a smart phone for Heaven’s sake!

PUBLISHER Toni Eyriey toni@businesscornwall.co.uk BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Morveth Ward morveth@businesscornwall.co.uk

It doesn’t stop me from being impressed, however, about the magnificent innovations and developments being made and the important role that Cornwall has to play. This month’s Just a Thought columnist Belinda Waldock says the rise of the tech sector in Cornwall could be akin to a “21st century engineering revolution” for the Duchy and she’s probably not too far wrong.

ACCOUNT MANAGER Caroline Hill caroline@businesscornwall.co.uk CONTRIBUTORS PFA Research

This month’s issue very much focuses on Cornwall’s vibrant tech sector and some of these innovations. Cornwall is fast developing a global reputation in the digital sector and is widely acknowledged as having a key role to play in the future of Cornwall’s economy.

DESIGN & PRINT Design by Business Cornwall Printed in Cornwall by Deltor BUSINESS CORNWALL is published 10 times a year by: Tonick Business Publishing Pool Innovation Centre Trevenson Road Redruth TR15 3PL Tel: 01209 718688

The main feature starting on page 19 kicks off with a look at the emerging technology of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, while we also cover the latest work of leading companies such as Piran Technologies and Everest Media and learn about the new Launchpad business incubation programme from Falmouth University.

TONICK BUSINESS

PUBLISHING

SUBSCRIPTIONS subscriptions@businesscornwall.co.uk Registered under the Data Protection Act. All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, stored in an electronic retrieval system or transmitted without the written permission of the publisher. Stringent efforts have been made

by Business Cornwall magazine to ensure accuracy. However, due principally to the fact that data cannot always be verified, it is possible that some errors or omissions may occur. Business Cornwall magazine can not accept responsibility for such errors or omissions. Business Cornwall magazine accepts no responsibility for comments made by interviewees that may offend.

Finally, congratulations to all the winners from last month’s Cornwall Business Awards, in particular Business of the Year, Cornwall Air Ambulance. Full details of what was a fantastic night on page ten.

Business Cornwall Magazine is proud to be associated with

Looking to increase staff mobility and productivity?

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We’ve just won the environmental printer of the year award!

Fresh from the podium (if not hot off the press), we just had to let you know we’ve been awarded a prestigious industry gong. We’re still glowing with pride after the recent PrintWeek Awards – the gold-standard of the UK printing industry – named Nationwide Print as the country’s environmental printer of the year.

We’ll spare you the teary-eyed details of the ceremony, but we will say what an honour it was to be recognised for our soaring solar powered printing talents, knockout green technology (including a rather nifty electric car) and our carbon-neutral record – along, of course, with our lightning-quick litho, digital and large format printing.

So, while we clear space on our mantelpiece, why not take a moment to share our success and get in touch with the eco-friendly printing olympians of the world*.

Selfie, anyone?

Nationwide Print Holmbush, St Austell, Cornwall PL25 3JL T: +44 (0)1726 72548 W: www.nationwideprint.co.uk E: estimating@nationwideprint.co.uk

* Strictly speaking the UK, but allow us our moment of glory.

INCOMING

THE CONVERSATION

The big question According to latest research, 55% of employees think having the latest technology will enable them to improve productivity.

How important is the latest technology to your daily working life? And do you think you and your team get the most out of it, with separate research claiming 47% of residents in the SW lack the full range of digital skills that employers demand. Can there sometimes be an over reliance on tech?

Join the conversation @biz_cornwall

/businesscornwall

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I AM CREATING A NEW APP – WHAT DO I NEED TO CONSIDER? In an ever-digitalised world there is a mobile application for almost every service – from mobile banking to booking a table at your favourite restaurant.

There are endless opportunities for businesses and consumers, but what are the legal issues that need to be looked at? Kathryn Heath, senior associate in the intellectual property and IT team at Stephens Scown explains more.

4 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

THE CONVERSATION

RICHARD WILCOX Falmouth BID

It’s worth highlighting the old adage here, that it’s people not technology that make businesses great and so the primary focus of any organisation that has ambitions to be successful and marketleading, must always be on ensuring that its leaders inspire and motivate a proactive workforce. And of course, any investment in your team should include an investment in technology – the right tools for the job as it were. With digital technology now integrated within the majority of business sectors, again investing time and resource can ensure employees understand its relevance and potential impact. Furthermore, raising the digital skills bar can lead to innovation, efficiency and competitive advantage.

NICK SKERRATT RRL

Having the latest technology is absolutely fundamental to our firm and our future growth. Staying up to date is one of our top priorities, with a rapid pace of change in the accountancy industry, and the advent of cloud accounting and Making Tax Digital, meaning that if you don’t keep up, you can soon be left behind.

We’re lucky in Cornwall to have had significant investment in superfast broadband, however, should the internet ever go down, this can have a major knock on effect to productivity, with so much of what we do reliant on being plugged in.

TREVOR LEE

Trevor Lee Media Making full use of technology can deliver competitive advantage as well as creating time efficiency. My favourite softwares are Audacity, Screenflow and Zoom. In terms of kit, it has to be my iPhone and it’s iCloud syncing to my iPad and Mac. I use it to record videos to promote my Podcast, draft presentations, dictate ideas, listen to podcasts, create instant Linked In posts and use as a digital radio in my office

ANDY TRISH

NCI Technologies Technology advancements are in our every day life. We use and sell a fantastic voice over IP telephone system to schools and businesses that has many amazing features for those embrace new technologies, and for those that don’t, they can still just make telephone calls without worrying about how it all works.

INCOMING

Technology is as hard or as easy as you think it is. I continually have to learn every day at work to advise our customers on advancements in the IT industry yet I still don’t know what all the buttons do on the cooker at home.

HENRY MAPLES Murrell Associates

Tech is definitely important to our business. We are about 75% paperless (some logistical barriers to getting to 100%) and all staff use laptops, some with tablet functionality and where appropriate have mobiles.

The combination has definitely improved our productivity, improved our client service levels and allowed staff to work flexibly from home when they need (a key factor in staff retention and recruitment for us).

However, we still recognise the importance of working together as part of a team and the benefits that a certain level of physical interaction brings to our work. Therefore, I don’t see us moving to a ‘virtual office’ concept any time soon even though the technology would allow it.

It is not necessarily about having the latest and greatest kit that comes at a high price but having the right solution for you that makes a difference to your employees and your business.

In the wider legal industry there is a drive to adopt more AI technology. I can see the benefits in certain situations eg high volume contract review work but generally I think our real value as commercial lawyers is advising on contracts in the context of the wider commercial environment so hopefully the computers will not be able to replace us any time soon!

1. Intellectual property - ensure you own the IP in the App and that this is covered off in contracts with third parties you work with. Take steps to protect the intellectual property in the final product.

3. Legislation - ensure the App’s content complies with all other relevant legislation, such as applicable advertising laws and consumer regulations.

Kathryn has significant experience providing legal support to the technology industry. The team regularly works with businesses involved in mobile and emerging technologies.

2. Privacy by Design - under data protection legislation businesses have a legal obligation to design their services using the principles of ‘privacy by design’. You need to ensure your privacy policy is fit for purpose and easily accessible on a small screen – simply using the privacy policy that is on your website is unlikely to be suitable or GDPR compliant.

4. App Stores - Ensure you follow and abide by the requirements of the App stores where your App is available for download.

For more information, please call 01872 265100, email IPIT@stephens-scown.co.uk or visit www.stephens-scown.co.uk

We have put a lot of focus into training our staff to ensure that they are getting the most out of the technology available to them, and have recently achieved Gold Champion Partner status with Xero, with 21 Xero certified staff, reflecting our commitment to cloud accounting.

5. Terms of Use - need to be clear and accessible.

Kathryn Heath is a senior associate in the Intellectual Property and IT team at Stephens Scown LLP in Truro.

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 5

CORNWALL

BUSINESS NEWS

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SPACEPORT READY FOR LIFTOFF?

Spaceport Cornwall could create 150 jobs and enable the UK to compete for a share of the global market for launching small satellites worth a potential £3.9 billion to 2030.

Cornwall has moved a significant step closer to being home to Europe’s first horizontal launch spaceport, after securing the promise of £20 million of funding.

Science Minister, Chris Skidmore, visited Cornwall Airport Newquay to meet some of those involved in Cornwall’s thriving space sector and hear more about their plans for horizontal spaceflight.

Subject to the business case and final approvals, Cornwall Council will inject £12 million and the UK Space Agency £7.85 million for Spaceport Cornwall and Virgin Orbit as part of the Industrial Strategy spaceflight programme – LaunchUK. A further £500k will be contributed by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP.

He learned more about Virgin Orbit’s horizontal satellite launch proposals from Spaceport Cornwall, and plans by Goonhilly Earth Station to track future deep space missions to the Moon and Mars.

He was also briefed on launch company Skyrora’s decision to base its rocket testing programme at Spaceport Cornwall.

This would allow Virgin Orbit, which itself is investing around £2.5 million in the project, to develop facilities and operational capabilities that would enable small satellite launch from Cornwall Airport Newquay in the early 2020s.

LEP chief executive, Glenn Caplin, said: “Developing the space economy in Cornwall is a cornerstone of the LEP’s emerging Local Industrial Strategy. We welcomed the opportunity to brief the minister on the

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contribution our area can make to the UK’s space ambitions and economic growth, locally and nationally.”

Meanwhile, during his visit to the Duchy, Skidmore also dropped by the Launchpad Programme at Falmouth University, to see how it is supporting the next generation of tech innovators and entrepreneurs and driving the digital economy in Cornwall.

After a briefing from the vice-chancellor, professor Anne Carlisle OBE, the minister toured Launchpad (pictured left) and spoke to some of the businesses currently incubating before receiving presentations from two companies that incorporated last year.

Professor Carlisle said: “We were delighted to have the opportunity to tell the minister about what we’re doing at Falmouth University to help transform the economy in Cornwall by fostering high-value, high-growth businesses and jobs in the tech sector.”

SHOWING YOUR

BEST SIDE Fastnet Marketing MD, Sarah Leverton, explains how to get the best out of boat show season 6 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

For me, the Seawork marine trade show in June always starts the mad rush towards boat show season. Southampton in September, followed closely by Monaco and METS, and generally topped by Boot Düsseldorf in January, not to mention all those in the commercial sector, held throughout the winter months.

Shows are such an expensive investment. It’s essential that you make the most of your time to leverage maximum benefit for your business. Here are my top five steps for success:

BUSINESS NEWS

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CORNWALL

sapc.co.uk

SHOW BRAVES THE ELEMENTS Despite some truly atrocious weather on the second day, last month’s Royal Cornwall Show proved to another great success.

110,704 people visited the show in total.

Numbers were slightly down on expectation with wind and rain greeting show-goers on Friday.

Show secretary Christopher Riddle said: “Thankfully the weather was good on two of the days but it’s not surprising the attendance wasn’t quite as high as it might have been.

Visitors turned out in force on the Thursday and Saturday and a good number braved the

NEWS IN BRIEF elements on the Friday with many reporting that they still thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

“Come rain or shine we’re really grateful for the support of those who visit, compete and trade at the show. The atmosphere that the Royal Cornwall is renowned for shone through and we enjoyed a very good number of livestock, horse and small animal entries.”

The post show clean-up is underway and planning for next year’s event (June 4-6) has already commenced.

The MBO at RTP Surveyors sees founder Richard Thomas become a consultant, handing the managerial reins over to colleagues Martin Winchester, Martyn Middlewick, Richard Collett and John Darbyshire.

Thomas established RTP Surveyors more than 30 years ago and has since grown the 1. If you do only one thing, make sure that the people manning your stand are friendly, approachable, informative and genuinely enthusiastic about your product.

2. Think networking and conversations, not just freebies. We’ve all seen stands piled high with free branded pens and sweets that everyone just walks by. I was given a free shoulder bag by a stand owner at Seawork, to replace my uncomfortable plastic show bag. It lead to a five- minute conversation, swapping business cards and a really positive impression of their company.

3. Get creative with your stand. One of the best small spaces I saw at Seawork this

Cornwall was celebrating at Wembley Stadium as local firm ARCO2 Architecture was crowned Crannull Architect of the Year at the National Building Awards. ACR02 director, Ian Armstrong, called it a “great night” for the Bodmin-based business. ____________________ Corrina Mauger, an assistant at PKF Francis Clark’s Truro office, has been recognised as one of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) ACA global top performers, after receiving the Railton Prize for her result in the Business Strategy and Technology ACA professional paper. ____________________

MBO AT RTP There has been a management buyout (MBO) at one of the south west’s leading firms of chartered surveyors.

Cornwall Air Ambulance chief executive Paula Martin has been named one of the Institute of Directors’ South West Directors of the Year. Judges commended her for a “clear and impressive statement of mission and values and how they are embedded in the organisation”. They also praised her drive in getting the project underway to raise £2.5 million to bring a faster and bigger air ambulance helicopter to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly by next April. ____________________

practice into a team of over 20 covering the south west from offices in Falmouth and Bodmin and now, following the MBO, Plymouth.

“Richard is a brilliant leader, surveyor and designer and clients love working with him – so we don’t want him to do anything rash like retiring,” said RTP director John Darbyshire.

“As a consultant he will continue his project work while we make sure that RTP continues to thrive and grow.” year was a converted shipping container

by Penryn-based company Workfloat (and they went on to win the ‘Spirit of Innovation’ award - great work!). You don’t need a huge budget - just plenty of imagination.

4. It’s all about the follow-up. Most transactions take place after the show, so take the customer’s information and be clear about the next steps. A good tip is to write a few notes about the conversation; that personal touch is what will get the sale over the finish line.

5. Think about how you can make life easier for your customer. Selling something heavy?

Offer to post it to them for free after the show. Showing people around your yacht?

James and Liz Ferguson, owners of property search and report company X-Press Legal Services in Looe, have been named as joint winners of the Brand Builder of the Year award, at the X-Press Legal Services national conference. ____________________ St Austell-based Sustainable Furniture (UK) picked up the BuyMeOnce Excellence Award in the Most Sustainable in the Furniture and Homeware category and was named Best Eco-Friendly supplier in the UK 2019 Build Magazine Awards.

Keep queues to a minimum by booking personal tours at allocated times, so customers aren’t kept waiting.

Boat show season can be great fun, and incredibly rewarding when done right.

Would you like some help to make your stand a success? Contact the Fastnet team today.

www.fastnetmarketing.co.uk | 01326 250879

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 7

CORNWALL

BUSINESS NEWS

THREE ON BOARD

SPONSORED BY

cornwallchamber.co.uk

Cornwall Chamber of Commerce has appointed three new directors to its board of directors.

Ramon Van de Velde, CEO of St Aubyn Estates; Andy Snapes, senior partner at Ward Williams Associates; and X-Press Legal Services director, James Ferguson, have all joined the board and will help to determine

the strategic vision of the chamber, evaluating its performance, revenue and success within the business community.

Chamber CEO, Kim Conchie, said: “Directors hold portfolios to provide both advice and support in relation to the chamber’s internal operations, external representation and lobbying undertaken on behalf of the members and we are delighted to welcome these three with their breadth of experience and connections across businesses and sectors within Cornwall.”

NEW COUNCIL LEADER

After paying tribute to outgoing cabinet member Councillor Sue James, the new leader confirmed his predecessor, Liberal Democrat Councillor Adam Paynter, has now become deputy leader.

Addressing members in his first speech as leader, Councillor German told the chamber that the good work of the past two years had

provided solid foundations to build on.

“We cannot be complacent,” he said. “We will continue to face considerable social, environmental and economic challenges in the coming years, but, as we have already shown, if we approach them head-on, with confidence and ambition, living our values and delivering our aims and priorities, with our residents at the forefront of our thinking at all times, we will succeed in building a Council, and a Cornwall, that one and all, can be proud of.”

ISO ON THE FAST TRACK ISO Spaces has collected its award for landing a spot in The Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100.

The Fast Track 100 ranks Britain’s private companies with the fastest growing sales.

The Truro-based business joined the other Fast Track companies and leading entrepreneurs in the UK at a special presentation dinner at the Branson family home near Oxford.

MD, Ben Treleaven said: “When Gregg and I started the business five years ago, I was asked about my ambitions for the company, to which I replied ‘featuring in The Sunday Times business section’.

8 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

POLDARK

With the fifth and final series of the BBC One drama Poldark hitting our screens this summer, tourism officials have again hailed Poldark as “a huge boost for Cornwall’s economy”.

Scenic shots of Cornwall have helped propel the county into the international limelight, with tourists travelling from all over the world to see it in the flesh.

Independent group Councillor Julian German has been elected as the new leader of Cornwall Council.

Councillor German, who has been deputy leader since 2017, was voted in by members in a secret ballot, after Conservative group leader Councillor Linda Taylor was also nominated for the role.

FINAL BOW FOR

“After being included as one of ‘10 Rising Companies to Watch’ in 2017 and now to have placed as the tenth fastest-growing company in the UK has exceeded even our own expectations. This achievement highlights the talent and commitment we have in the team that we’ve developed over the last few years and sets us up perfectly for what we know is going to be a period of even faster growth.”

This success comes off the back of a 2018 Crowdcube investment campaign that enabled the Truro-headquartered company to relocate its manufacturing to a larger facility in Kent, to meet demand, in addition to growing the team to 29.

Meanwhile Poldark tour companies have begun popping up across the county, offering visits to some of the now-famous locations in the show.

Visit Cornwall found that 13% of visitors cited the BBC programme as the key, or one of the key reasons for coming to the region. Cornwall makes around £2 billion from tourism each year.

Visit Cornwall chief executive Malcolm Bell said: “Cornwall is often referred to as ‘one of the stars of Poldark’ - I would say that Poldark is one of stars of Cornwall.

“All my colleagues around the UK are so envious that we have had such an amazing high quality programme over the last few years, most if not all would cut off their right arms to have the exposure that Cornwall has had across the world.”

John Marshall set up Poldark Tours four years ago during the first series of the programme. Last year nearly 90 tours were largely made up of people from America, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK – in that order.

“Poldark and Cornwall are synonymous now, it’s enormous business for the county,” he said. “After series one there were already quite a few locations to visit.

Now they are using the west coast, north coast, south coast – almost anywhere you stay in Cornwall Poldark has been there. It’s brilliant for tourism.

“With the show now going on TV in China and Argentina that could mean even more business coming to Cornwall. We’re already taking bookings for 2020.

“They say after a series has ended you have around ten years-worth of tourists still coming in.”

BUSINESS NEWS

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CORNWALL

sapc.co.uk

MARINE START-UP SET TO SAIL

Cornish start-up, Henderson Fletcher Yachts, has received a £39.5k loan from the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF) to support its boat building business.

The Gweek-based firm will manufacture high end, sail powered yachts and motor cruisers to be sold to clients worldwide via an international brokering network.

A 44ft hull, deck and basic superstructure has already been purchased for the first project, ‘Yacht Sofia’, with primary engineering taking place over the coming months. The funding received will be used

to create new jobs, enabling the business to begin its growth journey.

Henderson Fletcher Yachts’ owner, Samuel Foster, said: “Once the initial build is complete the sales process can start, allowing the full fit-out to then be more bespoke. This means however, that the business will have a pre-income period of heavy investment. Getting funding for this type of project is obviously not easy and we are excited to have secured a CIOSIF loan to help us through this stage.”

The deal was handled by SWIG Finance,

LITHIUM PROJECT ENERGISED The Government has granted funding for a new study to assess the feasibility of developing a UK supply of lithium.

The project, Lithium for the UK (Li4UK), aims to help meet the anticipated huge increase in demand for the battery metal from the electric vehicle (EV) industry.

The study will be led by a consortium of three organisations – Truro-based mining consultancy Wardell Armstrong, exploration company Cornish Lithium and the Natural History Museum.

The funding is part of the Faraday Battery Challenge, designed to develop safe and efficient batteries in the UK to power the next generation of EVs as part of a push for

which is working with fund managers The FSE Group, to deliver the small business loans part of the fund.

ACCESS ROAD STADIUM CHEER The Stadium for Cornwall partners have welcomed the announcement that Cornwall Council has been successful in its bid for £47 million from the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund to build the Truro Northern Access Road.

The road, which will run parallel to the north of the existing A390 between Threemilestone and Treliske, has long been championed as a key access route for visitors and spectators to the proposed stadium.

innovative energy solutions.

It forms part of the Government’s drive to ‘maintain the UK as a world-leader in the latest technologies and emerging markets, through its modern Industrial Strategy.’

The consortium will assess the feasibility of extracting and converting a supply of lithium from the UK in to battery-grade material.

Jeremy Wrathall (above), founder and CEO of Cornish Lithium, commented: “This is an historic opportunity for Cornwall to participate in the development of a possible source of lithium for the UK. We are delighted to be part of the consortium and look forward to working with Wardell Armstrong and the Natural History Museum on this exciting project.”

Speaking on behalf of the stadium partners - the Cornish Pirates, Truro City Football Club and Truro and Penwith College Martin Tucker, director at Truro and Penwith College, said: “We would like to congratulate Cornwall Council and Sarah Newton MP for their combined efforts in securing funding for this major piece of transport infrastructure for Cornwall.

“We have long supported plans for the Northern Access Road as it represents much improved access for visitors to the Stadium for Cornwall while also helping to provide a better road and public transport network for the Treliske and Threemilestone areas of Truro.

“We look forward to starting construction on the Stadium for Cornwall as soon as possible and in turn creating a unique destination adjoining the new road of which Cornwall can be proud.”

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 9

BUSINESS

AWARDS

high!

Cornwall Air Ambulance was crowned Business of the Year at the Cornwall Business Awards at St Mellion International last month

Fifteen businesses came away from the evening with honours, many of whom were first time winners, as the best and the brightest were celebrated at the 14th Cornwall Business Awards.

Organised by the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Growth and Skills Hub, the awards saw finalists from Liskeard to Hayle and Newquay to Falmouth come together to share their success.

Trophies were awarded across several new categories as well as some old favourites; Best Family Business, Customer Service and Young Businessperson of the Year awards were joined by Best Business with a Purpose, Product of the Year and Best Marketing Campaign.

And in a first this year, a public vote decided the Business of the Year from the 38 finalists, with the vote going to the Cornwall Air Ambulance.

The Business Leader of Year went Whyfield Accountants MD, Laura Whyte, while Claire Mason from Wadebridge based Kernow Fires was named Young Person of the Year.

Some 350 business leaders attended the colourful ceremony at St Mellion with guest speaker, Olympic rowing champion Helen Glover, presenting the awards.

Paying tribute to the winners on the night, Stu Anderson, operations director for the Growth and Skills Hub, said: “A huge and heart felt congratulations to all of the finalist

10 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

businesses, and particularly to those who took home an award last night. Everyone should be rightly proud of their achievements and it is these businesses that are putting Cornwall on the map, adding weight to the county’s burgeoning reputation for innovation, creativity and excellence.

“We are no strangers to the phenomenal talent of our business community, and this year’s record-breaking number of entries only serves to highlight the amazing work that goes on every day and in every corner of Cornwall. It is an honour for the Growth & Skills Hub to continue to play a part in shining the spotlight on all of the finalists.”

Other winners on the night included Nick Eagles from Sports 4 Tots, who won another new category - Sole Trader of the Year. The hotly contested Exporter of the Year was awarded to Liskeard based Ideal Foods Ltd and Bluefruit Software from Redruth went home with two accolades - Best Place to Work and Growth Business of the Year.

BUSINESS

AWARDS

roll of PRODUCT OF THE YEAR WINNER: OLTCO

Ambassador of the Year sponsored by Corserv

The School for Social Enterprenuers, Cornwall

Best Business with a Purpose

St Petrocs

Best Customer Service

Blue Flame Heating

Best Family Business

Colwith Farm Distillery Ltd

Best Marketing Campaign

DCA Public Relations

sponsored by the Eden Project

sponsored by St Austell Brewery

sponsored St Austell Printing Company

sponsored by Commercial Estates Group

Best New Business Pitched EXPORTER OF THE YEAR WINNER: IDEAL FOODS

sponsored by Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership

Best Place to Work

Bluefruit Software

Business Leader of the Year

Laura Whyte, Whyfield

Circular Economy Award

Cultivate Cornwall CIC

Exporter of the Year

Ideal Foods Ltd

Growth Business of the Year

Bluefruit Software

Product of the Year

Oltco Ltd

Sole Trader of the Year sponsored by Growth Hub

Nick Eagles, Sports 4 Tots

Young Businessperson of the Year sponsored by Truro & Penwith College

Claire Wilson, Kernow Fires

Pirate FM Brand Builder Award

Odyssey Innovation Ltd

Business of the Year

Cornwall Air Ambulance

sponsored by Cornwall College Business Training sponsored by Unlocking Potential sponsored by Tevi

sponsored by Pall Corporation

“FANS” OF THE AWARDS

sponsored by Access to Finance

sponsored by Business Cornwall

sponsored by Pirate FM

BUSINESS LEADER OF THE YEAR (CENTRE): LAURA WHYTE

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 11

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HELPING THE TECH SECTOR SOAR Advances in the digital and tech sectors are influencing the capabilities of space and aerospace in diverse and exciting ways, and Cornwall is establishing itself as a catalyst for high-tech innovation AeroSpace Cornwall is fuelling the momentum by making funding available to Cornish businesses that contribute to space and aerospace - it’s not just traditional aerospace technologies that are benefiting.

research into pairing the technology behind RoomMate with low energy beacons to extend accessibility to whole buildings, which could include travel hubs, learning institutions, public stadiums and aircraft and other vehicles.”

While recent headlines about deep space communications and Spaceport Cornwall have helped create a buzz of excitement about the space and aerospace economy emerging in the region, there are significant downstream innovations that are also capturing the imagination.

ADi Access, in association with the University of Falmouth, who were involved in initial prototyping, aims to trial proof of concept at Aerohub Business Park.

Part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, AeroSpace Cornwall has given these inspirational businesses the chance to grow, to invest and to collaborate, resulting in some exciting developments for Cornwall and its space sector.

Beyond the line of sight ADi Access in Truro is one such business that has identified where the innovation behind their RoomMate audio description tool for people with sight loss could impact aerospace.

Helen Holyer, MD at ADi Access, explains: “RoomMate provides a listener with a description of their surroundings, and it has found a niche in places such as public toilets where surroundings are unfamiliar and safety paramount. We have wanted to explore the concept of audio description in the confines of an aircraft without the need for external help such as GPS. “Funding from AeroSpace Cornwall will enable us to provide a viable and cost-effective way-finding solution, and additionally fund 12 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

3D elements in the real world, making the two environments superimpose.

This cutting-edge device has allowed Engine House to experiment with ground-breaking content and develop demos and prototypes.

This is paving the way for Engine House to work with other organisations in the space sector to develop unique space content.

Boost for SaaS business Truro’s Ivstitia has created a niche in delivering Secure Software as a Service (SaaS) that provides a method of secure, dedicated Restorative Justice Case Management. Under the banner My RJ (my restorative justice), it has more than 10,000 users globally.

Its software supports the secure transit of special category data across multiple agencies, which promotes multi-partnership working and collaboration. This has clear potential in other markets such as aerospace and space where there is a need for dedicated secure web applications and effective data sharing and work processes.

It received a grant from AeroSpace Cornwall to carry out market research on the ground and build connections in the US to support the final stages of product development.

These business success stories are far from unique, and the funding and support from AeroSpace Cornwall has been instrumental to the growth of the aerospace and space sector in Cornwall, showcasing Cornwall’s capabilities on a global platform.

Support is still available for innovative businesses that could contribute to further growth of this burgeoning economy and play their part in driving Cornwall to the forefront of the global space and aerospace sector.

Visual effects Prototyping is a familiar word in the space and aerospace sectors, but Engine House in Redruth is taking it to a new level using 3D animation and CGI. The animation studio has used grant funding to purchase the Magic Leap One device, which is a headmounted virtual display device that projects

james@aerospacecornwall.co.uk

aerospacecornwall.co.uk

COMPANY

PROFILE

thinking ahead One of the south west’s leading firms of accountants is celebrating its centenary this year.

But as Allison Beer explains, rather than reflecting on the past, Bishop Fleming is very much looking to the future

One of our key values is the relationships we have with our clients, our people and the local community

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 13

succession or moving a business on, or if everything goes pear-shaped, we have a team to help in those situations.

“It is very reassuring for me, having relocated to Cornwall, that we can provide all of those services to our clients here. If we don’t have the right person in the Truro office, I’m confident there is someone in the firm who will be able to service that client either remotely or in person.”

These are exciting times for Bishop Fleming. While its 100-year milestone is a matter of tremendous pride for the firm, it’s the thought of the impact it can have on businesses in the future which truly energises.

Founded in Torbay, Bishop Fleming has since expanded to seven offices across the West Midlands and south west – Bath, Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth, Torquay, Worcester and, of course, Truro which has been in existence for 30 years.

Today the firm employs 350 people across the seven offices with 30 based at its expanding Truro office.

Allison Beer is corporate and business services partner at the firm’s Truro office. She joined in February after a number of senior positions including a three-year spell working in the British Virgin Islands and, most recently, as a partner for Whittingham Riddell in Shrewsbury.

“One of our key values is the relationships we have with our clients, our people and the local community,” says Allison. “And I’m absolutely passionate about that, that’s what keeps me going, building those really strong relationships and helping people for many years.”

The importance the firm puts to building this kind of client service reflects how the role of an accountant has evolved over the years. These days it extends far beyond core compliance services such as management accounts and VAT. Today a modern accountancy firm is much more about business advisory, helping you grow your business, raise additional finances, help with strategic tax planning, and eventually looking to plan for succession within the business or a future sale or management buy-out.

We very much have a one-firm approach.

It’s about putting the right people on the right job

She now enjoys working with core clients in Cornwall; businesses of all shapes and sizes from sole-trader start-ups through to listed companies, public sector organisations, charities and schools, and covering all sectors.

14 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

One thing these different entities do have in common, however, is the close working relationship they enjoy with their business advisor.

“Whenever our clients have an issue, we’re the first person they call,” says Allison.

“And it’s throughout the business lifecycle from start-up through to exit, be it through

Clients also benefit from the wide range of ancillary services Bishop Fleming offers in terms of personal wealth and personal tax and even to the point of charitable expertise if the client has charitable interests.

Prospective new client needs and expectations are all addressed from the outset at a free initial scoping meeting. Bishop Fleming takes care to find out about the business and what the challenges are and ultimately from there, see where it can assist.

“Our ultimate goal is to meet that client’s needs,” says Allison, “so we try to find out as much as we can about them.”

With the banks tightening up on things, one of the most common challenges businesses in Cornwall face, says Allison, is raising finance, be it equity or debt finance.

However, Brexit, she says, hasn’t been such an issue. “It’s not been mentioned that much since I’ve been down here to be honest.

“There is very much a ‘this has been going on for a while, let’s get on with things’ attitude.

People have been moving forward with their growth plans.

“But if there is one practical aspect of Brexit, it is the consideration those businesses have had to make around Brexit planning, importing/ exporting, VAT, or movement of labour. If that’s going to affect your business, we have been helping plan around that. As those businesses grow, we’re well positioned because we have an international network to call upon, being a member firm of Kreston International.”

COMPANY

PROFILE

While Bishop Fleming has developed into one of the south west’s leading and most established business advisory firms, Allison dismisses any notion that it is too big to be interested in smaller companies.

“We’re here to support companies of all sizes,” she says, “and we’re looking to partner up with some of the local innovation initiatives to be there for these businesses as they startup and grow. All businesses have a beginning and we want to be there for that.

“We’re ambitious for our clients and ambitious for ourselves. We want to grow, but grow with them at the same time.”

Another important cornerstone at the heart of Bishop Fleming’s values is corporate social responsibility. It has a number of firm-wide initiatives centred around sustainability and carbon footprint, and since 2012 has been producing an annual report on progress made.

It has just launched BF Giving Back, around CSR credentials, in conjunction with Surfers Against Sewage.

“We have an ambition to become plastic free as a business,” says Allison. “Everyone here is really excited about it. We piloted it at our Exeter office and the team here in Truro have taken it on board.

“It is not just paying lip service; we genuinely want to be purpose led in terms of our performance and make a difference - to get our people involved in that process and that’s where this project was born.”

thought we could do something similar in Cornwall, so we’re title sponsor of the Runway Runaround. These activities help bind the firm together. We had the largest ever corporate team at the Bath Half, 120 runners from all seven offices. We would like to do the same here, bringing all offices together.”

As the old cliché goes, a business is only as good as its people and Bishop Fleming focuses on continual people development and engagement across all seven offices. It has an active in-house training programme with 60 trainees and school leavers currently coming through the programme, with many staff members having been with the firm for many years.

The last 100 years has been forged on great relationships and we intend the same for our future

Everyone has their own ‘CSR day’ which they can put to good use out in the community for a cause close to their hearts, while Bishop Fleming has a firm-wide charity it supports in Young Enterprise.

“Young Enterprise perfectly aligns with our business,” says Allison. “We are the UK’s leading audit firm to Academies in the education sector so education is very much an area of focus for us and aligns with helping young people move up - the start-ups of the future.”

To celebrate its centenary year, the firm has set itself a target of raising £100k for charity.

As part of this, each office supports a regional charity, which in Truro’s case is the Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust. Bishop Fleming is looking to raise £10k for the Air Ambulance’s New Heli Appeal, and as part of this is title sponsor of the ‘Runway Runaround’ which takes place on November 3, at Cornwall Airport Newquay.

“Earlier in the year we sponsored the Bath Half Marathon which went really well. We

And the attention it pays to people engagement is evidenced by the fact that the firm has been named in the Sunday Times Top 100 Best Companies to Work For list for four years running.

“I always wanted to be a partner with Bishop Fleming,” says Allison, “and it has far exceeded my expectations.”

Allison has developed a wide skill set in the accountancy world. After growing up in north Devon, she moved to Surrey to gain some audit experience and proceeded to work with several larger corporates, including as head of a client accounting division for a large law firm in the British Virgin Islands.

“I was doing accounting and corporate advisory work for clients all over the world which opened lots of doors and now have contacts all over the world,” she says. “As Cornwall improves its connectivity and transport links, there is further potential for inward investment but also the opportunity to look to international markets and personally, I have experience in that area.”

And it is exactly this type of wide experience which appeals to Bishop Fleming.

“We want to recruit rounded business advisers and provide rewarding and challenging work for our people. It is not just about giving them great career prospects, it’s about giving them good training, stimulating work and great pay and benefits. And focusing on CSR, those are aspects that a lot of people are interested in”.

“It genuinely is a great place to work which is evidenced by the Sunday Times ranking.

“It’s not a badge. It’s genuinely surveyed, and it tells us where we are going right and wrong.

You can’t buy awards like that. People are proud to work at Bishop Fleming. If you look at some of the companies we rub shoulders with on that list, they’re big companies. It’s quite an achievement to get on the Sunday Times list once, let alone four years. And we’re absolutely committed to staying in it. It helps to keep us on our toes.

“We have some of the highest calibre tax and business advisers and professionals in the region and are really confident there is someone in the firm who can help with any given scenario.

“We very much have a one-firm approach. It’s about putting the right people on the right job.”

Relationships are Bishop Fleming’s biggest USP. Throughout your journey as a business, Bishop Fleming looks to support you every step of the way.

“The last 100 years has been forged on great relationships and we intend the same for our future. It is what sets us apart.”

bishopfleming.co.uk | 01872 275651

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 15

GROWTH

PROGRAMME

PAINTING THE WORLD

green &blue

We explain how the Tevi programme is helping an innovative Cornish business grow in a sustainable way Green&Blue, award-winning manufacturing company of eco-friendly products for the garden and construction industry, is the result of husband and wife team Kate and Gavin Christman’s love for beautiful design and wildlife.

From starting their business in their garden shed in 2005, the company is now established in Perranporth and employs six members of staff. In November last year, the company became one of the first four B Corporation (B Corps) in Cornwall. B Corps are a growing group of companies across the UK who are reinventing business, by pursuing

purpose as well as profit. B Corps receive the certification after having met rigorous social and environmental standards, which include responsibly sourcing their products and being a fair employer.

With sustainability being a core business value, working with Tevi was a natural fit.

Tevi, which means ‘grow’ in Cornish, is an innovative programme that focuses on developing environmental growth and circular economy initiatives across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, helping businesses improve their processes, save money and benefit Cornwall’s natural environment.

Through Tevi, Green&Blue received support with product development as well as, more generally, around enhancing their reputation as one of the county’s flagship environmental growth success stories.

Green&Blue’s Bee Bricks are made from up to 75% by-products from the Cornish China Clay industry. In this context, the company reflects Cornwall’s transition to a more circular economy, as laid out in the official Environmental Growth Strategy 2015-2065.

The strategy aims to encourage businesses, communities and individuals to work together to increase environmental, social and economic prosperity in Cornwall.

“Green&Blue are a flagship company for our programme because their products, including

16 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

GROWTH

PROGRAMME

LEFT PHOTO: GAVIN AND KATE CHRISTMAN WITH THE ICONIC BEE BRICKS RIGHT PHOTO: GREEN & BLUE TEAM AT THEIR PERRANPORTH PREMISES

the iconic Bee Brick, are made from recycled or responsibly sourced materials and, at the same time, are built to bring about large-scale environmental growth within existing and new infrastructure,” explains Tevi’s business-facing manager Edvard Glücksman.

and to develop live streaming on the company’s website.

Faye Clifton, head of sales and marketing at Green&Blue says “Tevi is a brilliant programme for Cornwall, recognising the importance of our environment and supporting businesses in protecting it.”

In June 2019, Green&Blue also received grant funding from Tevi to set up a new packaging project at their headquarters in Perranporth. The project will greatly reduce the amount of virgin grade material the company uses to pack their products and orders and should also remove a proportion of recycling from the supply chain to be repurposed for packaging materials.

To date, Tevi supported Green&Blue with several reports which looked at material choices for new product developments and at possible camera use to enable species monitoring within the Green&Blue BatBlock,

“Tevi have enabled us to progress projects that otherwise we just wouldn’t have had the time or resources to move forward with,” says Faye. “With the support they have given us, we’re confident that we can reduce our

packaging use on a daily basis, lessening our impact there and enabling us to avoid the need for plastics in our packaging. That they can help us to engage a wider audience in supporting our wildlife species via live streams on our website really brings our products to life.”

Tevi is a partnership between the University of Exeter, Cornwall Council, Cornwall Wildlife Trust and the Cornwall Development Company. The programme received £2.4 million funding from the European Regional Development Fund.

For more information about Green and Blue visit: www.greenandblue.co.uk

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 17

ADVERTORIAL

head in the

cloud

When it comes to the weather, clouds aren’t exactly everyone’s favourite forecast, but when it comes to accounting, well that’s a different matter … cloud-based accounting, says Truro accountancy firm, is efficient, effective and very much part of our digital future.

From 1 April 2019, VAT registered businesses need to comply with HMRC’s Making Tax Digital regime – smaller organisations will be next along with Corporation Tax and Self Assessment Returns in the not too distant future.

Change really is happening.

In fact, over 1,000,000 more people in the UK now file their tax returns online than they did five years ago.

Globally, cloud accounting has grown by 195.53% over the same period.

Kashflow to name a few and they all are relatively inexpensive, subscription-based systems with no contracts. They all feed off information and data that you the user or us as the accountant input and then the system processes that on secure servers in a completely efficient way.

At some point soon, almost everyone will be using cloud-based accounting

Because we set up Whyfield five years ago, we specialise in working in a modern world – a world where reams of paperwork are a thing of the past and a world where everything is deliberately designed to work just that little bit better.

Cloud-based accounting is at the very heart of this modern world and is already redefining the way that businesses are run. So, if you’re not already using cloud accounting, trust us, you should be and this is the reason why.

All the packages remove the need for you to get too involved in the process resulting in more time to get on with your business and certainly less angst when it comes to financial admin.

Better still, using cloud based accounting creates a much better way for you to work with the likes of us at Whyfield as we can become an integral part of the process which again creates more time for you to focus on the important things in your business.

At some point soon, almost everyone will be using cloud-based accounting and with that in mind it’s better to be an early adopter rather than a follower as that will only increase the risk of being left behind.

As well as saving time, accounting in this way gives you more control of your finances with all-important real-time views, which give you completely up to date, accurate information, essential for the running of any business. This is turn means no surprises and no costly mistakes and actually has the added advantage of being ready for all compliance and mandatory regulations that are heading our way.

There are various packages available on the market today (over 150) including Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, FreeAgent and

In simple terms, it’s a better way of running a business, making future ‘planning’ and ‘growth’ just as important as straight ‘financial reporting’.

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Cloud accounting should be embraced and it certainly shouldn’t be feared. If you’re used to using a smart meter, a Hive control system, Alexa or even Apple Pay then cloud accounting is no more complicated. But the best thing is, we here at Whyfield are always available to help get you get set up, fully trained and ready to go.

So, if you’re fed up of regularly filing your receipts in the glove box of your car, or don’t really know how your business has performed until year end, then you should be talking to us at Whyfield about what cloud accounting system would work best for you and your business.

At Whyfield we will help you take control of your finances and create a system that’s up to date and works ‘where you want it’ and ‘when you want it’.

If you are new to cloud accounting, we can help you choose the right package, set you up, wangle some discounts from the providers and ensure you are entirely happy with how it works. Also, if you are already subscribed to a provider, we can assist you and your team with bespoke training to ensure you get maximum value.

Our door is always open to businesses who are looking to get the most out of cloud accounting so why not give us a call?

whyfield.co.uk | 01872 267 267

IT &

DIGITAL

To introduce our annual focus on Cornwall’s digital sector, PFA Research director Robert Rush looks at how Artificial Intelligence is finally beginning to come into its own

thefuture’s here Artificial Intelligence (AI) may be coming of age. It is not a new concept, its principles in computing were founded over 60 years ago, but there is a new wave of optimism for its application as people become increasingly digitally enabled and thirsty for information that is curated and relevant to them. AI is becoming accessible and understood in the mainstream.

Those businesses characterised by large scale operations and capacity for increasing automation are likely to be AI-ready with components of AI already contributing to processes. Not only are they likely to be driving improved efficiency but delivering greater customisation and personalisation of product, service and communications.

But why should a small market research company in Cornwall be getting excited about it and what are the opportunities for all our businesses here? Why, for instance, could our tourism, food brands or service companies be thinking about AI?

Continued on page 20 BUSINESS CORNWALL | 19

IT &

DIGITAL

...continued from page 19

MARKET TRENDS

then machines with AI can do that too. We are still some time way (probably) from AGI, or artificial general intelligence, the idea that we have computers or machines that are actually as smart as a human. A study by futurist Martin Ford of the most prominent people working in AI today concluded there’s a 50% chance the world will have built AGI by 2099.

For the avoidance of any doubt that AI might have a useful part to play in society, the UK government has just published guidance on building and using artificial intelligence in the public sector, for using it ethically and safely, Research by Accenture and Frontier with case studies. For example, it explains Economics states the potential of AI to how the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency ‘double down on growth’, that it offers the (DVSA) used a more intelligent, data-driven ability to amplify and transcend the current approach to better target their resources capacity of capital and labour to propel and ensure MOT standards remained economic growth. The research forecasts high. Also, how a company responsible a UK annual growth rate in for managing railway 2035 of gross value added traffic used a regression (GVA) of 3.9% if artificial technique to be able to The latest data intelligence is absorbed into increase the proportion predicts global the economy compared of trains arriving at their to a baseline 2.5% if it destination on time artificial intelligence isn’t. Further, it predicts from 82% to 90%. in healthcare to labour market productivity So what are we to increase 25% over the reach approximately talking about? same period compared Artificial $17.8 billion by 2025 to the expected baseline intelligence is productivity levels. the theory and There are also some development large numbers coming of computer out of research into sectors forecasting systems that can perform market growth for AI. The latest data from tasks that would Zion Market Research predicts global normally require human artificial intelligence in healthcare to reach intelligence. Where approximately $17.8 billion by 2025, at humans normally a compound annual growth (CAG) of add knowledge (eg 43.8% between 2019 and 2025. AI in the through external manufacturing market is expected to reach information, approximately $18.5 billion in the same experience and/ period at a CAG rate of 49.7%, driven by the or learnings) escalating need for human-robot collaboration to change in the manufacturing industry for overall cost behaviour reduction. Another report by Zion forecasts and improve that the AI in the construction sector will be decision worth $3,161 million by 2024. making, 20 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

THE SECRET TO SCALABLE IT SUPPORT Every organisation needs IT Support, but what happens when you outgrow the supplier you’ve been with since the beginning?

ITEC has witnessed how damaging it can be when your IT isn’t scaled to your current and future growth.

Whatever your business, you need the right IT support provider for you. You need a managed service provider.

Tell-tale signs your small supplier is overwhelmed • Your IT support frequently slips up and your small IT support provider makes too many mistakes • Gaps in expertise, they no longer have the knowledge to solve all your problems • You worry your IT security is too weak and your current provider doesn’t have the capacity to protect you Maybe it’s time to join the 78% of businesses across the world who enjoy the benefits of outsourcing their IT. By moving to a managed service provider for your IT support, you get a service that rarely slips. You have immediate access to an army of experts, not just those you can afford to hire in-house, and your account manager is always on hand to ensure you receive service levels that exceed expectations.

IT &

ALL LINEDUP A Cornish IT business is continuing to strengthen its relationship with leading ecommerce platform Shopify.

Client support is at the forefront of ecommerce services provided by St Agnes-based LinedUp. Director Jonathan Davies was invited to be Shopify’s agency representative at its recent European Support Summit, to discuss the best working practices between a website agency, Shopify and a client’s support needs.

Davies says: “The key to all successful ecommerce projects is having the confidence that all details are covered and that support is always available, should you ever need it.”

AI IN MARKETING But what does it mean for us, on the ground, going about our everyday business? Recent research from Close Brothers tells us that

DIGITAL

believe that email personalisation yields a higher click-through rate.

AI will support marketers to deliver higher conversion from emails, optimise send frequency and offer valuable suggestions to According to a report by Adobe reports boost performance Statista, there are around and save time. It’s 82% of marketing 3.7 billion email users in no surprise therefore the world, and this is set leaders are adopting that Adobe reports to increase by nearly 20% AI and machine 82% of marketing over the next five years. leaders are adopting AI learning to improve Email personalisation is and machine learning to more important than ever. every aspect of their improve every aspect of their According to research from personalisation strategies. personalisation Adobe, 33% of customers As a case study, tech giant unsubscribe from strategies Dell engaged AI and machine email lists because the learning specialists to optimise companies recommend email copy for each customer them products that segment, resulting in increased they don’t actually like. To cut through the click through by 50% and an average 46% noise, email marketers must personalise increase in conversion. content based on the data around past and predicted activities and what they know of user preferences, purchase history and Continued on page 30 browsing behaviour. 75% of marketers over a fifth of firms are already using some artificial intelligence, such as chatbots and automated processing, and 10% class themselves as dependent. A further 10% said that they planned to start using AI in the following 12 months and nearly a quarter said they expected to invest in the next five years.

We create bespoke e-commerce websites for ambitious brands

The specialist Shopify agency We have been building stunning e-commerce websites for over 10 years and are approved Shopify Experts. Our expertise helps convert your online visitors into loyal customers.

www.linedup.co.uk Wheal Kitty, St. Agnes 01872 555 885

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 21

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DIGITAL

a measure of

success

Business Cornwall catches up with Commercial Internet of Things installer, Ver Facil’s latest project, at the Royal Cornwall Showground

Wadebridge-based Internet of Things installer Ver Facil Ltd has successfully fitted and commissioned into service a water metering solution at the Royal Cornwall Showground to track half-hourly consumption, provide a virtual meter reading and to alert the showground management if a leak is detected.

Founder and owner of Ver Facil Ltd, Rob Cartwright, explains: “It is difficult to monitor water meters that are down a hole underneath a steel cover and distant from a building because you either need to dig up the road and install a cable which is costly and disruptive, or rely on power hungry cellular devices which may only last a few months on a battery pack and will not work if there is poor network coverage.

22 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

IT &

“The advantage of the LoRa radio technology is the very low power consumption which can maintain a sensor for five plus years and the incredible ‘link budget’ for the transmission which sends the measured data across miles to the receiving gateway antenna.”

“If you have to visit the meter,” says Rob, “lift the heavy steel cover and get down to the dial to read the latest reading you may only limit this to a monthly reading. This monthly reading will tell you nothing about the profile of your half-hourly consumption and certainly will not provide any alert of a water leak which may cost thousands of pounds in only a few weeks if left undetected.”

DIGITAL

meters at the showground, the electric meters, security devices, smoke detection, temperature monitoring and many more applications.

During the show LoRaWAN was used to monitor bulk milk storage tank temperature and refrigerant cooling unit temperature/ running status too as well as water tank level.

Ver Facil Ltd based in Wadebridge, established for ten years and is experienced in electrical automation control systems. It provides free consultation on LoRa solutions, can provide presentations to community groups and are a commercial installer of Internet of Things technologies.

Rob says LoRaWAN technology provides the means to connect to remote batterypowered low power sensor devices over great distances, through walls, steel buildings and even below ground, under steel manhole covers as in this example with the water meter at the Royal Cornwall Showground.

The image at the top right is a snapshot of live 1/2 hourly consumption in litres and the image above is logged, stored data that is graphed to detail a profile of consumption. Owners and managers armed with this consumption profile can make better decisions on water saving procedures and our software can identify a leak and alter the client within hours.

The solution is being expanded to all 11

To see more examples of applications, visit the website www.verfacil.co.uk Contact managing director Rob Cartwright iot@verfacil.co.uk

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 23

IT &

DIGITAL

HOW HEALTHY ARE CORNWALL’S TOP WEBSITES? Everest Media, a digital agency based in Pool, has investigated the website health of 12 of Cornwall’s leading businesses that boast a combined turnover of £575 million. It’s produced some fascinating findings!

Did you know that 70% of people don’t look past the first results page on Google? This is exactly why search engine optimisation (SEO) and website health should be the foundation of your online marketing efforts.

Every business will understand the importance of search engine visibility.

However, what may be surprising is the number of big brand websites that are currently letting a few trivial issues badly dent their rankings.

And if potential customers can’t find them – they can’t buy from them.

HOW CLEAN IS CORNWALL’S BILL OF SEO HEALTH? “Using methods that we apply to client projects, we have looked at the websites of Cornwall’s leading retail, manufacturing, and tourism brands to assess their online health,” said Samuele Armondi, Everest Media MD. “Together, these companies employ over 5,200 people and have over 60,000 web pages. Amazingly, our analysis found that only 1.26% of those pages were considered ‘completely healthy’.

“Now, we know that the businesses are very successful. But it just goes to show how much more could be done to tighten up site health and bring in more business.”

During their checks, the Everest Media team found three main issues kept cropping up.

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ISSUE 1: CRAWLABILITY

ISSUE 3: PAGE LOAD SPEED

Crawlability is the ability of search engines to read a website. Essentially, the more pages crawled, the better search engines understand your site, and the more likely you are to rank well for your targeted keywords.

Seven sites were judged to have slow page loading speeds. This affects search engine ranking and how likely users are to buy from a website.

Everest found two key issues affecting crawlability for these sites. A third were either missing or had not specified a sitemap, an essential tool in helping search engines understand website structure.

Meanwhile, a quarter of the sites had HTTPS issues. Browsers will warn users about loading elements on a website not secured with HTTPS, which can harm user experience and reduce confidence in the website.

ISSUE 2: MOBILE FRIENDLINESS Surprisingly, only one site was fully mobile-friendly. This is especially alarming considering around half of all global web traffic is mobile. Two sites didn’t pass Google’s mobile-friendly test, while the remaining nine passed, but with warnings.

11 of the 12 sites had no accelerated mobile pages (AMP). This is Google’s framework for fast-loading mobile web pages, which is prioritised in search rankings. Implementing AMP means you can boost mobile site speed and become eligible for new, rich results in search engines. This is especially relevant for e-commerce and tourism brands, as mobile traffic is expected to account for 67.2% of online sales in 2019!

Research from Google shows that when a page takes over five seconds to load, users are more than twice as likely to leave the site without doing anything.

This is even more pronounced for mobile users, with 53% of users likely to abandon their visit if a site takes more than three seconds to load.

SO WHAT’S THE GOOD NEWS? “While these figures can look alarming, it’s not bad news for these brands,” adds Samuele.

“Most of the opportunities we found as part of our research can be improved upon fairly easily and quickly, allowing businesses to reap even bigger rewards from their digital investments.

“We recently saw a client’s search engine visibility grow by 30% following some very simple changes. Growth like that can really make a difference!”

Do you want to see how your business compares to our research, and read the full report? Give us a call or drop us a line!

www.everest-media.co.uk hello@everest-media.co.uk | 01872 300780

IT &

Payments without borders...

DIGITAL

Open up your business to new markets by utilising Quaife’s payment network of over 250 local payment methods.

+44 330 043 1516 contact@quaife.net www.quaife.net

Future proof your career

Cyber Security University level courses

Truro and Penwith College; working with the Institute of Technology for the South West.

Starts this September. To enrol or for more details visit: truro-penwith.ac.uk/uni or call 01872 267122.

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 25

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PARTNERS IN GROWTH Whichever sector you’re working in, good IT can make the difference - improving efficiency, saving costs and helping you plan for the future. Here’s how Cornish IT company Piran Technologies supported one of its clients through a period of rapid growth with a security overhaul and efficient networking A local, family-owned business established in 2004, the team at Piran have built their success and reputation on their quality of work and holistic approach to their customers’ requirements. They take the time to really get to know their clients, and work with every customer to put together a plan tailored for their needs and budget.

Piran works hard to stay at the leading edge of IT technologies: it is a tier one Microsoft Gold Partner, and the only Cisco Premier Partner in the region. Piran achieved the rare and highly coveted Cisco Security specialisation in 2018 and is preparing for ISO accreditation this year. It is particularly proud of the positive feedback it has received from customers.

Piran’s client Ward Williams Associates is a leading professional construction consultancy, providing services for building and civil engineering projects across all sectors of the industry. It works with over 400 clients in the property and construction sectors, with offices in London, Gloucester, Exeter, Plymouth, Salisbury and Truro.

Piran has worked with WWA since 2013, providing IT support to over 100 users and managing its multi-site network. As an industry-leading organisation, the main concern for WWA was security, so Piran reviewed its systems and set up industrystandard online security measures.

Tanya Brownridge, partner at WWA, says: “WWA is growing rapidly and we need IT systems and support that understand

26 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

our needs and grow with us. Piran quickly identified the best solutions and implemented them effectively.”

With a large team split across several offices in the UK, the team at WWA needed the ability to work remotely, at home or on site, and so connectivity and security were key. Piran set up a secure multi-site network to allow WWA teams to communicate with each other.

Tanya says: “Piran has ensured the whole team are able to work wherever they are and at all times; this was tested to the full during the bad weather conditions in 2018.”

WWA works with many public sector clients, often on confidential projects where IT security is crucial. Piran worked with WWA to ensure that its procedures followed industry standards set out by the Government (including IASME certification and Cyber Essentials accreditation) and that its systems were protected against online threats.

It also looked at other ways to keep WWA’s network safe, like two-factor authentication and PAM, a new password management system that allows for passwords to be managed across multiple platforms.

As with all its clients, in addition to providing ongoing IT support Piran continues to work with the team at WWA to ensure that all of security systems are up to date, and to support its continued success.

GET IN TOUCH In addition to IT security and networking, Piran also offers telecoms and server solutions, help with migrating to the cloud, and can help you save money on subscriptions like Office 365.

Find out more on their website www.pirantech.co.uk. You can also email info@pirantech.co.uk or call 01209 340120 for a no-obligation chat.

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IT &

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BUSINESS CORNWALL | 27

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ON THE LAUNCHPAD Falmouth University’s internationally award-winning business incubation and acceleration programme is going off-campus and out into the community to offer its expertise and insight to local businesses

LAUNCHPAD BUSINESS ENHANCEMENT Cornish SMEs who want an injection of specialist support to boost productivity, identify market opportunities and access new investment can now benefit from professional consultation and bite-sized, accredited training modules from Falmouth University’s School of Entrepreneurship.

Launchpad is a post-graduate programme, underpinned by an MA in Entrepreneurship, which brings together teams of highly skilled software, creative digital and business minds, to develop high-growth, high-value digital companies to meet identified market demand.

Funded by the ERDF, it has been designed to help drive the Cornish economy, primarily through the development of high-value, high-growth businesses in the county. Staffed by specialists, including business development managers, software engineers, and experts in investment opportunities, it also offers business consultation to Cornish companies.

Now, the programme has announced further investment of £1m from the ERDF to provide business acceleration support and accredited CDP opportunities through the Launchpad Outreach Programme.

28 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

The Launchpad programme offers consultation to Cornish businesses, so that they can benefit from the wealth of insight, knowledge and networks that exist within the programme.

Launchpad is seeking to engage with more businesses which want to innovate in new and existing markets, and secure investment and/or grant funding in order to develop new solutions to grow their company.

Delivered by Launchpad business founders and staff, consultation services include a minimum of 12 hours of business support, comprising of meetings and workshops.

The sessions focus on exploring market feasibility, building a product development plan and developing investment readiness.

Cornish businesses that are interested in accessing Launchpad consultation services should contact the programme at launchpad@falmouth.ac.uk.

LAUNCHPAD OUTREACH PROGRAMME Launchpad Outreach has just been initiated. It aims to develop the Launchpad programme, taking the resources and knowledge out into the wider Cornish business community.

The project adapts the on-campus Launchpad experience to offer a flexible programme of business acceleration consultation, the ability to access accredited post-graduate teaching materials to support the process and the option for participants to study for an MSc in Entrepreneurship.

Business acceleration consultation will see Launchpad Outreach staff deliver the core components of the Launchpad programme through one-to-one engagement sessions, workshops and events. The aim is to help businesses become more productive: analysing data to identify new market opportunities; developing internal innovation capacity; understanding how to pivot to the market and potentially launching a new product or service.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD) opportunities provide participating SMEs with accredited, Master’s level modules in Business Entrepreneurship.

Local businesses can build their own journey on a flexible basis; getting access to online packages, as well as access to digital learning materials and all of Falmouth University resources, including the libraries, research collections and industry networks.

To find out more about the Launchpad Outreach Programme email lpoutreach@falmouth.ac.uk

IT &

DIGITAL

Say Hello to Automated Security Compliance Organisational IT has become increasing complex—with the need to support cloud services, mobile devices and remote working. Securing all of this can be tricky, meeting compliance can be even harder.

Focus is proud to add CyberSmart to our service offerings.

CyberSmart is a single platform that allows you to achieve and maintain Cyber Essential certification and GDPR compliance, easily and automatically.

01209 613660 | focus-technology.co.uk BUSINESS CORNWALL | 29

IT &

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A natural concern is that the increase in automation will force workers out of jobs and make certain positions obsolete. Indeed, other research by Nesta in 2017 concluded Developing reliable AI and trust in systems that around one-fifth of the workforce are is not without its challenges. A survey by in occupations that will likely shrink as a Alegion of 277 data scientists involved in AI percentage of the workforce whilst one-tenth and machine learning projects suggested are in occupations that are likely to grow. that it’s still early days for technologies. The A Statista survey of over 3,000 business survey results highlight that, unsurprisingly, executives, managers and analysts were AI systems do precisely what they are taught asked how they expected AI to affect the to do and are therefore only workforce over the next as good as their underlying five years; it found that mathematics and the data on 84% believed existing which they are trained. Two ‘Data engineering’ workers will need to thirds of the respondents stated change their skill sets, jobs are currently in that they had experienced bias and 79% agreed that or errors in the training data. demand in the UK and workers’ current skill sets will be augmented.

There is much work to be done. in the analysis rank 47% felt that their It doesn’t take a complicated highest for growth organisation’s workforce algorithm to work out that would be reduced. to support the huge growth and salary predicted for the AI sector over The chief economist of the next 15 years will demand the Bank of England last people with appropriate skills. year warned that the UK A review of the Making Sense of Skills: A will need a skills revolution to avoid “large UK Skills Taxonomy by Nesta (a fascinating swathes” of people becoming “technologically visualisation from analysis of 41 million job unemployed” as artificial intelligence makes adverts – take a visit to data-viz.nesta. many jobs obsolete. Andy Haldane said the org.uk/skills-taxonomy/) shows that ‘data possible disruption of what is known as the engineering’ jobs are currently in demand in Fourth Industrial Revolution could be “on a the UK and in the analysis rank highest for much greater scale” than anything felt during growth and salary. the First Industrial Revolution of the Victorian era and that people must be given the training If anyone was in any doubt, Facebook has to take advantage of the new jobs that would just announced that it will create 500 new become available. technology jobs in London by the end of 2019 at a new engineering centre in Soho.

The roles will include 100 people working in AI and the new jobs will include building software to fight spam and other Continued on page 32 malicious content.

...continued from page 21

SKILLS

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A DIGITAL FUTURE The first, cutting-edge digital courses designed in preparation for the opening of Cornwall’s new Institute of Technology have been launched.

Truro and Penwith College, the only Cornwall-based partner in the multimillion pound Institute of Technology in the South West, has developed two higher-level cyber security courses.

A two-year Foundation Degree (FdSc) and one-year Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Cyber Security will be delivered at Truro College this September.

Cyber security is increasing in importance in global job markets and the two courses are being seen as pivotal to the region’s ongoing revolution of technical and digital careers.

Andy Stittle, director of Teaching and Learning at Truro and Penwith College, says: “Cornwall’s fastgrowing tech sector was singled out for its impressive growth in last year’s Tech Nation report with an anticipated generation of £93 million to the local economy.

“The college is therefore pleased to support this sector by offering locally-based courses that will help businesses to secure their own IT systems and the privacy of their customers.”

YOUR ENTIRE

Technology Ecosystem ITEC’s Technology Managed Service unites your technology strategy and drives your organisation forward Managed Print Managed IT Managed Mobility Managed Cloud Managed Connectivity Business Communications Modern Mailing Digital Workplace www.itecgroup.co.uk 01209 703998

IT &

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...continued from page 30

AI IN CORNWALL Cornish firm, Hertzian, founded in 2015 as part of the Falmouth University Launchpad programme, is a local market leader and recognised nationally as a UK AI ‘trailblazer’.

Hertzian has built its own artificial intelligence powered free-text analysis platform and its software helps businesses around the world find actionable insights inside large amounts of customer feedback. Through the use of Hertzian’s AI technology, businesses are able to identify consistent issues affecting their customers, monitor the impact of their marketing material and lead data- driven product improvements.

Another Cornish firm developing leading edge solutions is Touchbyte which uses proven face recognition technologies to provide practical solutions to various business requirements of “People in a Place”. Touchbyte generates footfall and demographic information to help organisations improve their understanding of customer behaviour.

At PFA Research, we’re exploring new approaches to gathering and analysing data; for example the use of chatbot systems to improve engagement with survey respondents. Automation will result

in more research being conducted and has the potential to improve speed and reduce costs. With AI approaches, we have the potential to enhance areas of our business previously deep-rooted in labour-intensive methods, such as analysis of qualitative and unstructured data (eg video, images, and

THE FUTURE OF TAX IS DIGITAL As of April 2019, VAT registered businesses with a turnover above £85k are required to maintain their records digitally, and submit tax return information to HMRC through Making Tax Digital (MTD) software.

RRL tax partner Steve Maggs offers a brief assessment of digital taxation and its future 32 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

So far, it would seem that the roll out has been a success, however, there may still be work to do! A recent estimate has suggested that 346,000 small businesses mistakenly believe that they are compliant with MTD. This is because those businesses that keep digital records, but submit VAT returns through a Government Gateway account, will no longer be able to do so. Instead, they will either require bridging software to work with their existing set up or need to upgrade their software.

For the first year, HMRC will take a slightly more lenient approach on penalties for the issue of digital links between software products where businesses are genuinely trying to comply. Businesses are given until at least 31 March 2020 to get these digital links in place between software products. From next year onwards, HMRC will not accept

audio). In line with some of the warnings of disruption to jobs already outlined above, some predict for the market research industry that up to 60% of existing jobs will not exist in ten years’ time, replaced by fewer but more impactful jobs in data science.

returns where the data is being copied and pasted from a spreadsheet, for example.

MTD for Corporation Tax and Income Tax is currently expected to be rolled out from April 2021, though this date is not set in stone, as MTD for VAT faced a number of delays before being introduced earlier this year.

RRL’s team of experts can help with all aspects of Making Tax Digital. We pride ourselves on taking the time to understand our clients’ businesses fully and helping them to find the best solution. We are also able to offer training to get businesses up and running with their software, in addition to providing ongoing client support.

RRL is an independent firm of chartered accountants and chartered tax advisers.

For more information visit www.rrlcornwall.co.uk or call 01872 276116 or 01736 339322

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IT &

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digital stars We profile six of Cornwall’s star digital businesses

HEDGEHOG DIGITAL

FOULDSCRM

We are Hedgehog, experts in marketing for the digital age.

We start by asking questions and finish with a project that exceeds expectations.

“What are you really selling or offering? How does your business make people feel? Who really loves your company - who hates it? Where is your brand most likely to perform best? What problems or needs do your customers have?

When and where are your customers online? How can you grab your audience’s attention?”

We are a marketing agency working with businesses that want to thrive in the digital age.

01736 754747 info@hedgehogdigital.co.uk hedgehogdigital.co.uk

34 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

FouldsCRM is an award-winning digital marketing specialist offering email marketing, CRM and content. We support businesses from Penzance to Sydney to ensure that their one-time visitors turn into long-term customers.

At the forefront of what we do is to maximise the lifetime value of our client’s customers, enabling sustainable growth.

We encourage our clients to value their existing customers more by communicating the right message to the right person at the right time with the right frequency. By following this principle, our clients see an immediate positive impact on their revenue.

We offer a flexible approach to our services. With no minimum contract, no cancellation or hidden management fees. So, if you’re looking to grow your business by retaining more of your existing customers, then get in touch and let’s discuss how we can keep your customers happy.

07880 5005777 christinef@fouldscrm.co.uk www.fouldscrm.co.uk

IT &

DIGITAL

FLOWMOCO

QUAIFE

Flowmoco is a Newquay-based software development agency, enabling business transformation through the pragmatic application of technology. It counts global enterprises such as Sky, Vodafone, and Santander and a number of high profile international charities amongst it’s clients, as well as local SME’s that are keen to capitalise on the benefits that well engineered software can bring to their organisation.

Quaife.net is an online payments provider, issuing both online payment accounts, and merchant accounts. The onboarding process is seamless with our easy to use API’s and expert account managers.

Flowmoco architect, design and build cloud-based software and mobile applications. Keen on open source tools where practical, but not averse to getting ‘grubby’ with large vendor platforms such as Oracle, SAP and Salesforce.

More recently, as an AWS partner, it has heavily invested in building a bespoke cloud hosting platform, with a focus on rapid scalability, high availability, deeply ingrained security and no-compromise attitude to reducing the risk of system downtime. It now manages and hosts multiple business-critical applications and high traffic websites on this platform for its clients.

We are especially proud of our newly founded online payment accounts that help businesses send and receive bank transfers via Faster Payment and CHAPs. This product was born out of necessity, after hearing the frustrations of many clients being refused standard business bank accounts.

What sets us apart from other Payment’s Providers is our integrated payment methods and knowledge base. Transacting globally can be a minefield, however our experienced team can assist you with the right local payment methods and help you thrive and open up new markets.

To speak with one of our friendly account managers, please visit our website.

+44 1637 873714 info@flowmo.co www.flowmo.co

+44 330 043 1516 contact@quaife.net www.quaife.net

VER FACIL

GLAS DATA

Commercial ‘Internet of Things’ installer. Wadebridge-based Ver Facil Limited is an electrical automation & control specialist.

Ver Facil designs, manufactures, electrically installs, software engineers and commissions control panels for Building Energy Management Systems. 15+ years’ experience delivering solutions for heating & hot water controls, air handling unit control panels, hospitals & hotels. BACnet, Modbus, MQTT.

Glas Data, founded by Rob Saunders and Colin Phillipson, is the world’s first agricultural data aggregation ecosystem.

Their vision is to optimise farms by advancing efficiency, output and profitability. The project was originally part of Falmouth University’s LaunchPad Programme and received funding from Agri-Tech Cornwall and the ERDF.

Since 2017 Ver Facil has been developing LoRaWAN solutions and May of this year installed a demonstration of this low power long range sensor technology at the Royal Cornwall Showground.

Sensors collect data from water and electric meters, water tank level, temperature, CO2, people counting and “Happy/Sad” feedback buttons in the toilets. The running & fault status of refrigerant cooling in the milk parlour and bulk milk storage tank temperature sensors were installed for a practical demonstration to farmers visiting the show in June.

The Decision Support Ecosystem unites the agricultural industry via an innovative dashboard. Users can navigate, visualise and analyse their data easily. Glas Data’s ecosystem provides a data aggregation service, designed to unify users’ data from any source, without restrictions, uniquely solving one of the major issues in the food supply chain.

Glas Data targets farms, food processors, agri-services and major retailers as the need to reduce data fragmentation in the industry grows. The ecosystem was awarded the Best Digital Innovation in Agritech at the EDGE Awards 2018.

One of only a few controls specialists who offer full LoRaWAN integration into traditional BMS. iot@verfacil.co.uk www.verfacil.co.uk

+44 7485 017 650 hello@glas-data.com glas-data.com

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 35

PEOPLE

ON THE MOVE

SPONSORED BY A Penryn-based naval architecture specialist has boosted its team with the recruitment of a graduate designer, thanks to support from Marine-i.

AN i FOR TALENT

Jack Gifford Marine Design, which provides integrated yacht design and naval architecture services, has appointed designer Charlotte Monks after she completed her Interior Design degree at Falmouth University.

www.sapiencehr.co.uk

While her skill set is not one usually associated with naval architecture, Monks had already decided to work towards a career in the marine industry and had previously completed a work placement at Pendennis Shipyard.

Jack Gifford could see her potential and how she could add value to his business and with the help of the Marine-i salary subsidy, was able to offer her a full-time job as a designer.

MATHERS JOINS MURRELL ASSOCIATES NEW DIRECTOR

ON BOARD

Murrell Associates has welcomed consultant solicitor, Louis Mathers, to its growing commercial property team.

The Isles of Scilly Steamship Group has appointed Judith Piper to its board of directors.

Mathers brings with him a wealth of experience, having worked at Bristol-based law firm, Burges Salmon, before returning to his Cornish roots in 2010 to join Parnalls Solicitors in Launceston.

Before joining the Steamship Group last October as chief financial officer, Piper worked for W Stevenson & Sons Ltd as finance director, company secretary and acting MD.

Alongside his legal career, Mathers cofounded the peer to peer lending company, Folk2Folk in 2013, where he remains an executive director. He is also a nonexecutive director with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership where he is the small business lead.

Her earlier career included positions as finance manager at Unipart Group Ltd and financial and management accountant at Westcountry Ambulance Services NHS Trust.

Steamship Group MD, Stuart Reid, added: “We are pleased to welcome Judith as a director. Judith’s financial skills and experience will be invaluable to the board in its work of guiding the company through the next stage of its development.”

Mathers specialises in commercial and agricultural property dealing with a wide range of non-contentious property matters such as the acquisition and sale of property, development set up, leases, easements and other property and development agreements.

Jenny Harbord, partner at Murrell Associates, said “We are really pleased to welcome Louis to the team and look forward to working with him. His commercial experience and positive approach will be a fantastic asset to the firm.”

FRESH ASPECTS IN FALMOUTH Cornish holiday lettings agency, Aspects Holidays, has recruited a property manager to cover the Falmouth area.

Rebecca Nenning will be based in the Falmouth office it shares with Harding and Wakefield Estate Agents.

Commercial Director, Mandy Spencer said: “Having a property manager based permanently in Falmouth opens up a whole new area of south Cornwall to us, 36 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

bridging the gap between our Penzance and Mevagissey offices.

“Rebecca’s presence in Falmouth offers property owners a convenient local contact to discuss letting their property, and our guests another fantastic location to book their holidays with us.”

Aspects Holidays’ extensive property portfolio now includes more than 600 properties across Cornwall.

NEWS

SPONSORED BY

#FSBCONNECT

FEARS FOR THE FUTURE Business confidence has taken a further hit according to the latest FSB findings.

percentage points compared to the same period in 2017.

The FSB surveyed 982 UK small businesses for the Q2 2019 Small Business Index between 13 May and 27 May 2019, covering a range of economic indicators including: small business confidence, employment and wages, exports, productivity and investment.

Results paint a gloomy picture as seven in ten small firms do not expect their performance to improve over the coming three months.

Four in ten (42%) small firms say profits are down this quarter, and more than a third (34%) of exporters say international sales have dropped-off. Both figures are at a record-high.

The FSB quarterly UK SBI confidence measure stands at -8.8 in Q2 2019, down 22 points compared to the same period in 2018, marking a fourth consecutive negative reading.

Such a sustained slump is a first for the index, which launched in 2010.

The considerable majority (68%) of small firms do not expect their performance to improve next quarter. Four in ten (41%) expect it to worsen.

71% of small firms say the cost of running their business is increasing. A record-high 48% say labour costs are a main cause of this increase. Over a third (34%) say regulation is a primary cause of higher costs, up 12

FSB National Chairman Mike Cherry said: “Small business owners are increasingly being left with our heads in our hands as we’re hit on all sides by fresh costs, reporting requirements, political uncertainty, and the reemerging threat of a cliff-edge no-deal Brexit in just a few weeks’ time.”

FREE GOOGLE WORKSHOPS small businesses the opportunity to gain a wide range of valuable skills, in person, from experts, for free, on the streets of their own towns and cities.

The aim is to help inspire the rebirth of our high streets and a brighter future for our towns by developing new skills and new markets all around the country. And the Federation of Small Businesses is all in favour of that!

The FSB has teamed up with Google to deliver workshops to help high street businesses grow online. This Google Digital Garage tour offers

COULD YOU SUPPLY THE NHS?

The FSB has also teamed up with the NHS procurement team to stage a special event where you can to hear how you and your business could become a product supplier to the biggest employer in Britain. The event is at the Penny Brohn Centre, near Bristol,

Get free training from Google Digital Garage in Cornwall this month on digital marketing, social media, analytics, Google My Business and StreetView and join group mentoring sessions with trainers on the day.

Join us in Truro on Friday 19 July. Book at learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalgarage/ on the afternoon of Wednesday, July 10, and will feature a talk, a Q&A session and an opportunity to talk directly to the NHS procurement team. FSB members in this region should have received an email about this event but if you haven't then please contact lesley.burgess@fsb.org.uk and she will forward one on to you. Please note places are limited and are on an invitation basis after initial expressions of interest.

UPCOMING FSB EVENTS JULY 12 Meet Sarah Newton MP Business Space, Truro Join us for a small round table discussion focused on business issues with your local MP who will be on hand to answer any questions you have as well as bringing you up to date on plans that the Government have for small businesses locally.

FSB/CORNISH PARTNERSHIPS NETWORKING EVENTS JULY 23 Networking with cider Haywood Farm Cider, St Mabyn Join us at a special, not to be missed Cider and Cheese Tasting event at Haywood Farm Cider and enjoy some 'proper Cornish Cider' and some fabulous cheese. We'll also have a tour round Haywood Farm's extensive orchards which is a great way to network as we go!

Book all events via eventbrite.co.uk & search “FSB Cornwall”

FSB Offer for Business Cornwall Magazine Readers at www.fsb.org.uk/join If you want to join FSB after reading this page then please quote BCM30 when you join and save £30!

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 37

CREATIVE

AND DIGITAL

SPONSORED BY

www.digitalpeninsula.org

FROM NZ TO CORNWALL Truro is a long way from home for New Zealand tech start-up SimSage, but company founders Sean Wilson and Peter de Vocht say it’s the perfect place for the early-stage company.

According to Wilson and de Vocht, Cornwall offers a unique opportunity for the New Zealand AI/Search company to grow into the UK market.

“Cornwall offers a thriving tech start-up environment with plenty of commercial support, high-speed connectivity and a growing base of skilled technical people, but with few of the cost or congestion issues you typically find in the more traditional tech centres such as London or Silicon Valley,” said Wilson.

Peter de Vocht, SimSage’s chief technical officer says that AI is still very much in early stages of the hype cycle.

“AI is often over-hyped and is still mostly about automation right now,” he said. “But that is starting to change. Industry analysts are now saying that companies that are slow to adopt AI will find it increasingly difficult to maintain quality customer engagement.”

Wilson moved to Truro, with wife Amanda, two months ago to establish SimSage’s UK base. He says he can clearly see progress in the companies he met during his visit last year and is convinced that Cornwall provides a great opportunity for SimSage and other New Zealand companies looking for bigger markets.

ADVERTORIAL

CREATIVE COHORT Two Cornish businesses have been selected to be in Creative England’s 2019 CE50 cohort.

Every year Creative England announces the 50 most “exciting, innovative and disruptive individuals and companies” across England, working in the fields of games, TV, film and digital media.

solutions to social challenges using strategy, design and technology. Director Robert Woolf said: “It feels great to be recognised

by Creative England. We’ve spent the last 12 months redeveloping our community platform which has completely pivoted our design business.”

Made Open was founded to find sustainable

Also making it onto the list is Falmouthbased Codices, which develops tools for online broadcasters to make, manage and monetise live interactive game shows.

Codices is working in partnership with Amazon and its streaming service, Twitch to develop, Quizkit – a toolkit for broadcasters to create and manage live interactive shows.

ON THE SHORTLIST

The nomination came a few days before FibreCRM secured investment of £750k, including £250k equity investment from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF). The deal will create more than ten jobs over the next three years.

A Penryn-based software company is celebrating the double achievement of being shortlisted for the Accounting Excellence Software Innovation Award and securing significant investment.

FibreCRM founder and CEO Simon Leek said: “With millions being poured into technology across the world it’s a real achievement for a small Cornish company to make the innovation shortlist.”

Previous CE50 cohorts have gone on to receive BAFTA nominations, opened international offices, revolutionised the way western products are sold to the Chinese market, and received the prestigious Nora Ephron prize at the Tribeca Film Festival.

THE SOLUTION IS EVIDENT LEP senior skills officer Clare Harris talks about revolutionising workplace culture through digital innovation One in three of the working age population in England report living with a long-term health condition.

Affecting family, friends, colleagues, business partners, or perhaps yourself - disability and mental health in the workplace is a wide and complex issue, often laced in stigma with a

38 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

level of avoidance from small and medium sized business owners - usually because the information on offer is simply not clear.

However, the good news is that evidence suggests it is something that is becoming more widely discussed and there is a definitive case for providing a better platform for delivering support for businesses.

www.truro-penwith.ac.uk

EDUCATION &

SPONSORED BY

TRAINING

NEW APPRENTICESHIP CAMPAIGN ELEVATE TO A A new campaign has been launched to promote the benefits of apprenticeships to businesses across Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly.

Cornwall Apprenticeships includes a new website, real time listings of apprentice vacancies, case studies and free advice and support to help small businesses discover how apprenticeships can boost skills and business performance.

It is a partnership between Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Skills Hub, Cornwall Council’s Economic Growth Service, and the

Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and is part-funded by ESF.

NEW LEVEL

Cathie Kessell, employment and apprenticeship officer at the Cornwall Council and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “We are delighted to be launching this fantastic new resource for businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

“Apprenticeships have changed a lot in recent years and we want to encourage small businesses to consider the apprenticeship route especially when 95% of training costs are met by the Government in most cases.”

SPACEPORT NEWS WELCOMED The future of Cornwall’s creative industries is secured if the quality of work on display at the annual Truro College art exhibition was anything to by.

Truro and Penwith College has welcomed the news that funding has been secured to establish Europe’s first horizontal launch spaceport in Cornwall.

Subject to business plan approval, Cornwall Council will provide up to £12 million for the scheme at Cornwall Airport Newquay alongside up to £7.85 million from the UK Space Agency. A further contribution of £500k will come from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership.

The news follows the Department for Education’s recent approval of the new Institute of Technology in the South West (SWIoT), which will establish a range of new buildings and facilities across the region and has Truro and Penwith College as the partner in Cornwall.

The ‘Elevate’ art exhibition, now in its 14th year, attracted a high number of visitors to its Lemon Quay location in Truro.

The college already works closely with private and public sector partners to deliver and develop education and skills training and these include two major partners in the growing space sector in Cornwall, Goonhilly Earth Station and Avanti Communications Group PLC, for whom the college delivers apprentice and other workforce training.

College principal, David Walrond, said: “The Institute and our existing partnership work are ideally aligned to be responsive in helping provide the training pipeline for the spaceport’s technology need. It will inspire young people to gain high level qualifications and skills with excellent career pathways now locally available.”

Mark Dunford, programme team leader for Art & Design, said: “This exhibition flies the flag for diversity and innovation and every single piece of work has a unique story behind it.

We are incredibly proud to celebrate this ambitious event. The energy in this marquee is thrilling and we wish our students all the very best for their creative futures.”

The Beacon Project has contracted with Evident Agency, a leading product design specialist based in Cornwall to develop an innovative digital tool, specifically designed by and built for businesses, which will make essential support more accessible. The aim is to help facilitate a positive workplace culture, support business owners with the management, recruitment and retention of employees with disabilities or long-term health conditions and encourage a positive change.

from a wider pool of talent, retain employees long term, encourage inclusivity and equality and improve overall employee engagement and positive mental health for all.

Using machine learning and artificial intelligence, they are working on a digital platform which aims to ensure business owners and/or managers have exactly what they need, to be able to confidently employ

A diverse range of art and design pieces was on display from Truro College further education, university level and part-time course students.

For Evident, as industry leading digital strategists and design engineers, their ambition does not stop at just getting the solution right, it is something they want to set the industry standard for and continue to push forward within the public and private sector.

If you’re an SME business owner or manager and would like to be involved in testing and shaping the end product, or want to become an early adopter, please get in touch:

info@evidentagency.com

www.cornwallbeacon.co.uk

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 39

FOOD

& DRINK

Fifteen Cornwall has celebrated the graduation of its 13th cohort of trainee chefs.

Almost 200 people gathered at the social enterprise restaurant in June, which is now the only Jamie Oliver restaurant in the country.

FIFTEEN PASSES 13

Fifteen Cornwall, and its charity the Cornwall Food Foundation, has now recruited more than 200 young people to the kitchen, with 131 trainees completing the programme.

Gennaro Contaldo, Oliver’s mentor, presented awards on the evening with Oliver sending a video message for the graduates.

Chief executive of Fifteen and Cornwall Food Foundation, Matthew Thomson, said: “This has been a particular painful few months for us all but when we bring everyone together to celebrate the journey of these young people, it makes it all worth it.”

The wider work of Cornwall Food Foundation was also celebrated with awards handed out to participants on the Food for Change programme, a partnership led by the charity.

Fifteen Cornwall this year welcomed its one millionth customer and has just recruited its 14th cohort of trainee chefs into the kitchen.

ITALY MEETS CORNWALL OBE FOR CATHERINE MEAD Catherine Mead, owner of Lynher Dairies - home of Cornish Yarg - was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

As chair of the Specialist Cheese Association and the Cornwall Food Foundation, Deputy Lieutenant for Cornwall and a trustee of the Duke of Cornwall Benevolent Fund, Mead has been recognised for her services to cheese and her contribution to communities in the south west.

“I am delighted and rather overwhelmed,” she commented. “This really is a shared award, not just in the specialist cheese industry but across the charitable sector here in Cornwall so I am honoured and humbled to be recognised in this way.”

What is being claimed as being the first artisan tiramisu business in the UK, has launched in Cornwall.

TiramisUGO is the brainchild of entrepreneur Ugo Massabò, who works as corporate support officer at Hall for Cornwall (HFC).

Italian national Massabò originally moved to the UK five years ago, working for the

Courtyard Theatre in London, before working his way down to Cornwall and HFC in 2016.

His passion for cooking and the arts inspired him to start-up TiramisUGO, which makes freshly-prepared, high quality tiramisu.

“The idea comes from the strong desire to bring Italian quality and tradition to Cornwall and the UK,” said Massabò.

YOUNG BAKER OF THE YEAR A young Cornish baker from Redruth has been named Young Baker of the Year in the National Bakery Awards.

Owen Morris, 20, who is a team leader at Prima Bakeries of Scorrier, started his baking career as an apprentice at Prima Bakeries in 2016 aged just 16.

MD, Mark Norton, said: “Owen has stood

out as someone who had a real passion for baking from the start. He has developed a wide range of expertise and we had no hesitation in taking him on as a full-time baker once his apprenticeship was complete.

We are absolutely delighted that he has received this recognition, which is very well deserved. We are very proud of him.”

FAMILY BUSINESS OF THE YEAR Paul Andrews, founder and MD of awards organiser, Family Business United, said: “St Austell Brewery is a fantastic family firm and is highly deserving of all the plaudits that winning this award brings.”

St Austell Brewery has been crowned Supreme Champion at the National Family Business of the Year Awards.

The brewery also returned to Cornwall from last month’s London ceremony with awards for Best Food and Drink Family Business and the regional title for the south west.

40 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

Brewery chief executive, James Staughton, said: “This is a fantastic award to win and I am incredibly honoured to accept the award on behalf of everybody at St Austell Brewery.”

Staughton, meanwhile, has been awarded the Trelawny Plate in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Cornwall.

The plate originally belonged to Bishop Trelawny who was arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1688.

The Trelawny Plate Award is made biennially to the person judged by a senior and representative panel “to have contributed most to the spirit of Cornwall”.

The dinner plate made from pewter was the Bishop’s personal property and is kept in the Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro. Recipients receive a replica created by the St Justin company from Penzance.

www.visitcornwall.com

NEWS

SPONSORED BY

TOURISM

BOOM TIME FOR WINE TOURS This summer, more visitors than ever before look set to visit Cornish vineyards as wine tourism comes of age on the south-facing, increasingly vine-covered slopes of the far west.

Cornish Wine Tours, the first travel experience of its kind in Cornwall, is reporting a surge in interest and high booking numbers, thanks to a buoyant English wine scene and improved transport links into the Duchy.

Founder Kate McBurnie said: “We’re certainly talking to people who are

planning their trips to Cornwall based around visiting vineyards, having enjoyed similar experiences in other wine-making counties like Kent and Hampshire.”

She added: “The new routes into Newquay Airport, the improved A30, and the double summer timetable of GWR services all allow more tourists on

KEY ROLE FOR PARK BOSS

SURF’S UP A new travel business has launched specialising in organising bespoke family beach holidays to bucket-list surfing destinations around the world.

Family Surf Co was founded by two Cornwallbased surfing mums, Hayley Lawrence and Celine Bennet, who were finding it a challenge to pursue their passion for surfing when travelling with young children.

The have set about finding the finest family hotels in some of the top surfing destinations – including Portugal, Barbados, Costa Rica,

LAURA ASHLEY TEA ROOM OPENS

a whistle-stop summer visit to the UK to make the journey to Cornwall, and vineyards are high on the list of things they want to experience.”

Sri Lanka and Cornwall.

Bennet said: “The reality is that it can be stressful travelling with a young family,” she said, “especially if you’re driving around looking for waves, while trying to keep everyone happy.

We’ve road-tested every place we sell holidays to, so we can give personal advice to families, and we send them off with a personal travel guide to the area, including surfing beaches, places to visit and recommendations of where to eat and drink.”

The first Laura Ashley The Tea Room in Cornwall, and the sixth in the Laura Ashley collection, has officially opened its doors at The Cornwall Hotel.

The coastal inspired tea room is the sixth in the Laura Ashley collection and the first to open in Cornwall. The tea room is located in the hotel’s main building and has been decorated in signature Laura Ashley style, bringing together the “quintessence of England with elegant country-living”.

Rebecca Coonan, general manager at The Cornwall, said: “We’re so excited that the Laura Ashley The Tea Room is now open.”

A Cornish holiday park owner has been appointed chairman of the British Holiday & Home Parks Association (BH&HPA).

Andrew Baragwanath, owner of Ayr Holiday Park near St Ives, was elected to the position by fellow members of the association to which some 3,000 holiday and residential park businesses in Britain belong.

BH&HPA was formed more than 60 years ago and brings together park enterprises ranging from small farm-based camping sites to major park groups.

Like the majority of parks in membership, Ayr Holiday Park has been owned by the same family for successive generations. Under his stewardship, it has grown to become one of Cornwall's leading coastal park destinations with 80 touring pitches and 50 holiday caravans and apartments to let.

Baragwanath says his election as chairman of BH&HPA is coinciding with a period of significant change within the industry. “It's fascinating to witness how parks of all sizes are today looking to invest in their product with a view to making guest experiences even more memorable," he said.

"Part of the spur for this has been the staycation trend of recent years which has seen many more families opting for a holiday in Britain rather than going abroad.”

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 41

CHAMBER

NEWS

GLASS: WOMEN CRACKING LEADERSHIP Cornwall Chamber of Commerce is delighted to announce its new leadership network: Glass, which is set to be a 21st Century women’s network to promote female leadership in Cornwall. Further details on some exciting new events will follow, but in the meantime, we need your help to answer some pertinent questions:

SPONSORED BY

cornwallchamber.co.uk

CORNWALL FESTIVAL OF BUSINESS As we all enjoyed a successful Cornwall Business Week with our two major events Reimagining Our Towns and the Sustainability Conference, plus Finance in Cornwall and Cornwall Business Awards, the next focus for the business community is the inaugural Cornwall Festival of Business, driven by Cornwall Chamber of Commerce. We’re delighted to see some exciting events, from awards ceremonies to open days and

workshops to masterclasses.

Creating your own event to sit under the umbrella of the week is completely free of charge and offers fantastic marketing power with the promotion Cornwall Chamber of Commerce can offer.

Visit the website for more information www.cornwallfestivalofbusiness.co.uk or contact the Chamber team.

MEMBER FOCUS: ATLANTIC HOTEL

• How do we change the perception that being a member of the Chamber is only for big businesses, or ‘men in grey suits’? We have every size and sector of business from sole traders to national and international companies as members who meet, talk, laugh, become trusted colleagues and do business with each other. The diversity of our membership is astonishing if you only look.

• How do we encourage more women to apply for our Board or other Boards in Cornwall – is there an unconscious bias, are positions advertised in the wrong way?

• Why is only gender diversity singled out? Our Board would have been delighted to see applications from younger entrepreneurs, however the average age for applicants was 45+. Looking at Boards in Cornwall there is a significant lack of younger businesspeople engaged in governance (to our knowledge but we would be happy to be proved wrong and are actively looking for examples).

Please contact Mel Colton-Dyer or Laura Barnes at the Chamber to give us your feedback. mel@cornwallchamber.co.uk laura@cornwallchamber.co.uk

Email: hello@corwallchamber.co.uk Call: 01209 216006 Online: www.cornwallchamber.co.uk 42 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

Four-star Atlantic Hotel in Newquay proves to be a top choice for local Cornish businesses to hold their conference and event functions, with the recent Mayor’s Making inauguration of Rebecca Craze being held in its ballroom as well as the RCHT charity fundraising ‘Come Dance With Me’ event which had a fantastic turnout and included a glitter ball drop for the finale.

appetite it’s your choice whether to opt for a buffet in your workspace or have a change of scenery and enjoy a delicious meal in Silks Bistro or the Sea View Dining Room.

The beauty of the Atlantic Hotel is, its facilities can cater large scale luxury weddings or special dining events for up to 500 people and equally impress those looking for a meeting space for a just a handful of attendees.

The hotel’s experienced event coordinators can take you through each aspect of planning your event, including; understanding your objectives, choosing the right conference or meeting rooms, selecting the most appropriate seating style and menus. They can also organise a multitude of activities including surfing, a round of golf or even a floral crown workshop if you’re looking to include something a little different.

When holding a training session or staging a conference where you need a unique learning environment and a convenient location, the Atlantic is an ideal choice, situated within a 15-minute walk to Newquay train station or a 20-minute drive from Newquay Airport.

The accommodation packages for each event are well worth taking a look at, including a stay in a luxury sea view bedroom, use of their leisure and spa facilities and enjoying an awardwinning breakfast, as voted by the Cornwall Chamber for ‘best hotel breakfast in 2018’.

All rooms offer floor to ceiling windows, spectacular views and complimentary wifi providing the perfect working environment for your attendees. You can let off some creative steam with a walk in and around the hotel grounds and once you’ve worked up an

Their day delegate or evening packages suit all objectives and budgets.

Get in touch with their friendly events team today, for a 2019 or 2020 quote: events@atlantichotelnewquay.co.uk or call 01637872244

Online Job adverts ONLY +VAT

Employment law specialists providing a personal & tailored service for your business.

To book, contact: morveth@businesscornwall.co.uk Corporate & Commercial Solicitors

businesscornwall.co.uk @biz_cornwall

/businesscornwall

policies & procedures * Contracts, takeovers & redundancy * Restructuring, HR legal support * Facilitating exits & settlement agreements * Workplace disputes & tribunal representation *

www.murrellassociates.co.uk

01872 226990

Founded in 1880, Truro School is Cornwall’s leading independent day and boarding school for boys and girls aged 3 - 18.

NURSERY | PREP | SENIOR | SIXTH FORM

Upcoming Open Events:

www.truroschool.com

Sixth Form

24 September 2019

Senior

5 October 2019

Nursery

23 November 2019

Prep & Nursery

9 March 2020

Guided tours are available throughout the year.

Please visit our website for more information.

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 43

OPINION

JUST A THOUGHT

NO LIMITS Our county has historically been the source of engineering innovation, disrupting global mining, marine, communications, railway sectors with new technology, developed in Cornwall and exported across the world. Many may think of Cornwall as a tourism destination – and it is one of the best – but I believe we are at heart still an engineering county.

When I left Cornwall at 18 to explore what was across the Tamar and study for my degree, my eyes were opened to the opportunity of modern engineering, and a new perspective of the challenges we face in a rural area compared to cities. At that point I just wanted to get a degree that meant I could return to Cornwall with good career prospects and help people.

It was just a thought - an idea of what could be!

communities need. Our young people have creativity and engineering in their DNA; we have the opportunity to harness that talent and see a new 21st century engineering revolution where there’s no worry about running out of raw materials in the ground!

There has been fantastic investment into tech over the years; superfast broadband connecting us to the rest of the world, and every college and university in the county now offers a range of technology career pathways.

From the more creative games design and digital media courses, to the logics of software development, whether you love art, science, maths or English there’s an array of careers to choose from in our evergrowing tech community.

Cornwall has gone from having almost no technology companies or career pathways into technology, to having a thriving and world class tech community

Since then that idea has grown and Cornwall has gone from having almost no technology companies or career pathways into technology, to having a thriving and world class tech community. Now hosting major players across technology, from Goonhilly’s deep space comms and the exciting new spaceport, to innovations in eHealth, agritech, marinetech, games and more, all leading the way globally from their beach and moorland offices.

I believe the technology sector is a critical pathway for Cornwall if it is to build an economy that provides our young people with career pathways, and the rewarding jobs our 44 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

There is the opportunity to do more, or rather ‘be more’ open to these opportunities.

Recognise that we don’t have an unemployment challenge, we have a work poverty challenge.

The average salary in Cornwall is so low for many, this means a constant challenge to pay the bills and get by despite working long and hard hours. We need to further shift our mindset to a better and more modern way to help our economy grow. We need to support our schools and teachers to raise awareness and help students learn about the opportunities technology brings for their futures. Build an inclusive and diverse community that welcomes all. Since everyone uses technology, it makes sense that we need a mix of people to build the best technology.

The tech sector has a critical role to play in Cornwall’s economy, says business author and Software Cornwall director, Belinda Waldock We have to challenge the old ways and bring in the new if we are to truly recognise the potential economic opportunity that is before us. Trust in our young people and give them the resources and the support they need to take advantage of the huge demand and supply of technology there is and will continue to be in the future. By being agile in our approach, we can enable people and organisations to invest and grow their skills, resources and aspirations.

EU funding has seen some amazing investments into technology over the past 20 years. With Brexit on the horizon, realistically we face huge cuts in funding to the fantastic work so many are doing, but change brings opportunity, too. We must be agile to ensure we navigate the uncertainty.

While I cannot predict the outcome of Brexit (which i’d like to see us taking a more agile approach to this too - but that’s a whole other thread of thought!) I do believe that strong investment into the knowledge economy and technology is a good thing to help us through these uncertain times; a key, if not critical component, to Cornwall’s economy if we are to ride the wave of uncertainty. Afterall, in tech we are used to dealing with constant change and uncertainty as tech evolves ever faster.

At any given moment we have two options: to step forward into growth, or, to step back into safety (Abraham Maslow). We need to take more risks, trust the next generation, support innovation and push our limits if we are to build an economy and ecology that provides sustainable and long-term growth for our future generations.

UPCOMING

JULY/AUGUST EVENTS 11

18

JULY

PRINT POWER!

19

CORNWALL CHAMBER BREAKFAST

23

FSB/CORNISH PARTNERSHIPS

St Austell Conference Centre

St Austell Printing Company and Business Cornwall magazine are pleased to invite you to our second Print Power event. This free half-day event, run in partnership with NatWest, will feature presentations and workshops full of useful advice and tips to help ensure your printed marketing is engaging, cost-effective and as sustainable as it can be. sapc.co.uk/printpower

CORNISH PARTNERSHIPS OPEN HOUSE Victoria Inn, Roche

This is the original Open House.

Always has 40 plus businesses in attendance. This is now a Cornish Partnerships and Devon Partnerships combined event as well. Book early to ensure a seat and bring a stack of business cards and leaflets. cornishpartnerships.co.uk

24

CORNWALL INNOVATION CLUB Lanhydrock Hotel, Bodmin

The Cornwall Innovation Club facilitates bi-monthly networking breakfasts which feature inspirational guest speakers. These mornings are designed to inspire ideas and create the opportunity to mix with other influential business leaders. aticornwallinnovation.co.uk

EXCELLENCE IN BUSINESS TRAINING AWARDS

Cornish Tipi Weddings, St Kew

Hosted by CCB Training, the Excellence in Business Training Awards showcase the very best businesses across the south west.

The winners of the ten categories will be announced at a festival-style awards evening. Tickets cost £60 plus VAT. E: hello@ccbtraining.co.uk

25 2

Truro High School

Cornwall Chamber of Commerce would like to invite you to Truro High School.

Join us to meet and connect with a range of businesses of all shapes and sizes from all over the county. cornwallchamber.co.uk

Haywood Farm cider, St Mabyn

Networking and cider. Not to be missed cider tasting event at Haywood Farm Cider. There will also be an opportunity to have a tour round Haywood Farm’s extensive orchards so you can learn about the varieties of apple they grow for cider and juice, and tips on growing apples.

The cost is £6.50 per person for a tour, cider tasting and tour. cornishpartnerships.co.uk

2

CORNWALL CHAMBER LUNCH

6

BODMIN BUSINESS BREAKFAST

7

BANK OF ENGLAND BRIEFING

KING NETWORKING Victoria Inn, Truro

The Kernow Independent Networking Group gathers over breakfast at the Victoria Inn in Threemilestone every other Wednesday. king-networking.co.uk

FALMOUTH BUSINESS CLUB

The Carnon Inn, Carnon Downs

The club meets on alternate Thursday mornings over breakfast, where a lively and welcoming group of local business people awaits you. falmouthbusinessclub.co.uk

Heartlands, Pool

The Heartlands Networking Breakfasts are an excellent opportunity to meet other local businesses in the area, gain contacts and establish mutually beneficial relationships. heartlandscornwall.com

For further details of these and more networking events visit businesscornwall.co.uk To publicise your event for free, email news@businesscornwall.co.uk

Fowey Harbour Hotel

Join the chamber for a networking lunch with picture perfect views over the Fowey's Estuary in the vibrantlyrestored, Victorian boutique that is Fowey Harbour Hotel. cornwallchamber.co.uk

Westberry Hotel

The breakfasts are open to all and provide an opportunity for business people to network and catch up with each other over a top quality breakfast. There are speakers at some (but not all) meetings.

E: em@sproullllp.co.uk

St Austell Conference Centre

There has never been a more important time to find out how our economy is coping with the uncertainties around the UK's future position out of Europe. This event provides you with an opportunity to meet with the Bank of England's South West Agents, hear the Inflation Briefing and discuss the economy, business and Bank of England policy.

E: southwest@bankofengland.co.uk

27

CONSTRUCTION PARTNERSHIPS

28

CORNWALL CHAMBER BREAKFAST

AUGUST

HEARTLANDS NETWORKING BREAKFAST

EVENTS

Penventon Hotel, Redruth

If you are an individual connected to the construction industry or its supply chain, why not network with other like-minded industry professionals over a construction breakfast at this Cornish Partnerships-hosted event. cornishpartnerships.co.uk

Heartlands, Redruth

This month’s Cornwall Chamber Big Breakfast comes from Heartlands.

Heartlands respects and builds on its history, but looks to the future by combining economic, social, environmental and cultural development in a balanced and sustainable way. cornwallchamber.co.uk

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 45

CONNECTED

CORNWALL

SPONSORED BY

www.cioslep.co.uk

FUTURE FOCUS

Cornish business leaders attended Unlocking Potential’s latest Future Focus event at Princess Pavilions to hear insights from two influential speakers on consumer trends

DAVID BONE

PAUL TRUDGIAN (FISH FOR THOUGHT)

KEYNOTE PAUL LINDLEY OBE WITH UNLOCKING POTENTIAL PROGRAMME MANAGER, ALLYSON GLOVER

KEYNOTE WILL HIGHAM

DELEGATES AT THE CONSUMER REVOLUTION FUTURE FOCUS EVENT

ISABELLE HOUSNI (UNLOCKING POTENTIAL)

SENIOR EXECUTIVES’ FORUM

The Alverton in Truro provided an inspirational backdrop for the Senior Executives’ Forum (SEF) hosted by CCB Training breakfast.

Guests heard from Kate Kennally, CEO from Cornwall Council

KATE TALKING TO SEF MEMBERS AND GUESTS

46 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

ROB INSALL - THE CORNWALL COLLEGE GROUP, ELAINE MCMAHON - THE CORNWALL COLLEGE GROUP & KATE KENNALLY – CORNWALL COUNCIL

EWAN MCCLYMONT – BISHOP FLEMING, ALISON MORDEN-HAWKE – WOMBLE BOND DICKINSON & ALASTAIR CARNEGIE – TOTAL ENERGY SOLUTIONS

CORNWALL

CONNECTED

EDEN SUMMER PARTY

Cornwall’s unpredictable weather was never going to be an issue as guests gathered in the biomes for the Eden Project’s summer party

KATE KENNALLY (CORNWALL COUNCIL), EDWARD BENTHALL (EDEN PROJECT)

JACKIE HARDAKER, ALAN STANHOPE, BECKY HUTCHENS

ALESSIO DI CAPUA (EDEN), PAUL STONE (EDEN), SANJEEV GANDHI (CHAIR, EDEN PROJECT BOARD), ARI ISO-RAUTIO (EDEN ASSOCIATE)

EMMA ROWSE (VOLUNTEER CORNWALL), JESSIE HAMSHAR (CORNWALL COUNCIL), CAROLYN CADMAN (CORNWALL WILDLIFE TRUST)

PHIL LE GRICE (BICTON COLLEGE), EDWARD BOLITHO (LORD LIEUTENANT OF CORNWALL), HYLKE GLASS (EXETER UNIVERSITY)

CARRIE GILMORE – FALMOUTH HARBOUR COMMISSIONERS

IAN DOBLE – CHAIR ROYAL CORNWALL MUSEUM, ALAN STANHOPE – TRUSTEE CHS & SCOTT BENTLY – FRANCIS CLARK

PETER MOODY – ST AUSTELL PRINTING COMPANY

JACKY SWAIN – CEG AMPERSAND HOMES LTD

LAURIE TROUNCE – STEPHENS SCOWN

PAUL HOBSON - CSW GROUP

BUSINESS CORNWALL | 47

THE LAST

WORD

SPONSORED BY

www.paddleandcocks.co.uk 01872 672072

SHARON SANDERCOCK The Isles of Scilly Steamship Group marketing & communications manager tells all

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU WERE YOUNG?

WHAT’S THE BEST THING ABOUT CORNWALL?

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST FULL TIME JOB?

IF YOU COULD BUILD A HOUSE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WHERE WOULD IT BE? Northern Rome.

An air steward, I wanted to travel from such a young age… then it was a travel writer/explorer!

PR assistant in a multi marketing agency in Plymouth.

WHAT’S IN YOUR POCKETS?

Right now, £5 note and half packet of chewing gum.

HOW DO YOU LIKE TO RELAX?

CrossFit, read, walking, listening to music is a great way to relax.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE BEST MOMENT IN YOUR CAREER?

For me, the one thing that stands out currently is in this role as marketing communications manager at the Steamship Group, taking the company into the digital age, developing and implementing digital infrastructure across the group that’s not only helped with bookings and ease of accessibility, but has also helped to streamline and improve operations.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE WORST MOMENT IN YOUR CAREER?

Working on a conference in the Middle East, where the lead speaker and sponsor had a heart attack on stage; dealing with that, plus handling around 200 delegates in that situation was a little stressful!

48 | BUSINESS CORNWALL

Beaches and the cream teas!

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE HOLIDAY DESTINATION?

Mauritius was amazing for relaxing and South America was great for exploring.

IF YOU COULD BE GOD FOR A DAY, WHAT MIRACLE WOULD YOU PERFORM? To help those with mental health issues and to find a

cure for cancer, oh and to install some sense into Donald Trump and our Government…!

WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST MISTAKE IN LIFE? Turning down a job with Nestle…

WHAT WAS YOUR LUCKIEST BREAK?

When I left university, I went looking for a marketing mentor, one that was supportive, well experienced and constantly hammered home the importance of data and strategy! Having a mentor pushed me, gave me confidence and opened doors to some large blue-chip freelance contracts in marketing & PR - that’s where it all started!

FIND A BUSINESS SPACE ...

S P E C I A LI S I N G I N B R I N GI N G YOU BUS I N ES S S PAC ES L AC U N AB US I N E S S . C O M If you’re looking for the right space to host your next conference, workshop or training session, then Lacuna Business is the website that makes this process easy. With listings that cover the whole of Cornwall and venues that can accommodate a range of meetings for any number of guests, Lacuna Business ensures you only have to search in one place to find exactly what you need.

If you have a great space that is available and awaiting bookings, then a listing with Lacuna Business helps to ensure that you reach businesses looking for the right meeting space.

SOUND GOOD TO YOU?

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GET IN TOUCH TODAY

hello@lacunabusiness.com

01209 718688

www.lacunabusiness.com