Business Eye August 2019

Issue 190 August 2019 £2.50 Voted best Business Magazine in Ireland 2005 and Magazine of the Year for Northern Ireland

Continued Investment...

The Key To Henderson Group Success Features:

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Tourism...

The challenges of the future

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Danske Bank Business Eye Profit 200

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NIE Networks... Powering Northern Ireland business

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•DESIGN •BUILD • C R E AT E

Contents

August 2019 ISSUE 190

Cover Story

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Henderson Group… Continued Investment The Key To Success

Northern Ireland’s electricity industry might be a lot more fragmented than it used to be in the days when NIE, as it was formerly known, ruled the energy roost, but Paul Stapleton, Managing Director of NIE Networks, is responsible for a big organisation by any standards.

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Tourism… The Challenges & The Opportunities The Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance, formed earlier this year, joined forces with Business Eye to stage a Round Table Discussion event held in the impressive surroundings of the The Privy Room at Hillsborough Castle.

There were a few eyebrows raised when top UK legal guide The Legal 500 named Millar McCall Wylie as Northern Ireland’s Law Firm of the Year. The accolade might have caused a few murmurs of disappointment around the corridors of some of Belfast’s bigger law firms, but it didn’t come as a surprise to the partners and 40-strong team at Millar McCall Wylie, a firm with its main base at Belfast’s Donegall Square East and a busy office at Ballyhackamore in the suburbs.

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Gareth Murphy & We Are Vertigo…The Sky’s The Limit

Premier Electrics, headquartered in Bellaghy but with offices in Belfast and Dublin and contracts all over the British Isles and Europe, is a stand out example of a growth-focused company. The firm, over 25 years, has grown from one man and his van to 75 staff and a £50 million turnover.

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Top Property Lawyer Backs Collaborative Approach A collaborative approach to marketing Belfast is paying off, according to one of the city’s leading property lawyers. David Jones, Partner and Head of Real Estate at Belfast firm Tughans, is convinced that the concerted approach built by Belfast City Council and its Chief Executive Suzanne Wylie is the way ahead for the city.

It might have come as a surprise to Gareth Murphy that he was named Northern Ireland’s Tourism Entrepreneur of the Year at the NI Tourism Awards staged in Armagh earlier this summer, but it didn’t come as a surprise to those who watch the industry and its growth.

Leadership & Talent In Today’s Changing Business World

Top Companies

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Business Eye worked alongside leading executive search and selection consultants Narratology to stage a Round Table Discussion event at Belfast’s Merchant Hotel.The subject?

The role of leadership and talent management in today’s fastchanging business world, how companies and organisations are re-defining their approach to human resources and how individuals are changing how they view the world of work.

Titanic Hotel…Part Of The Fabric Of Belfast Life The fact that the Titanic Hotel has established itself as an integral, important and familiar part of Belfast life in the two short years since it first opened its doors says a lot for the uniqueness of the place. We talk to General Manager Adrian McNally.

Eye on Manufacturing

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Eye on Finance

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Eye on Awards

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Eye on Accountancy

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Eye on Financial Planning

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Eye on Family Business

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Eye on Communications

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Eye on Energy

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Eye on Hospitality

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Eye on Leadership

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Eye on Law

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Moving On

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Business Leaders Forum

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Eye on Growth

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Eye on Motoring

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Buckley Publications 20 Kings Road Belfast, BT5 6JJ Tel: (028) 9047 4490 Fax: (028) 9047 4495 www.businesseye.co.uk

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Premier Electrics… Growth & Ambition In A Tough Market

Entrepreneur Focus

Regulars

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Growth On The Agenda For Top Belfast Law Firm

Tourism & Hospitality

The latest Danske Bank Business Eye Profit 200, the most up to date, accurate and informative listing of Northern Ireland’s leading private sector organisations, ranked by the only measure that really matters… profit.

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NIE Networks - Investing In Network Performance

The Henderson Group might be one of Northern Ireland’s largest employers and a major force in the local economy but it remains a family-run company to its core. But it’s also a company for which sustained investment has been a major recipe for success. Business Eye catches up with the company’s Sales & Marketing Director, Paddy Doody.

The 2019 Danske Bank Business Eye Profit 200

Specials

Editor Richard Buckley Commercial Director Brenda Buckley

Business Development Manager Ciara Donnelly

Design Hexagon Tel: (028) 9047 2210 www.hexagondesign.com

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Photography Press Eye 45 Stockmans Way Belfast, BT9 7ET Tel: (028) 9066 9229 www.presseye.com

It defies belief that we continue to head towards a possible No Deal Brexit and all of the potential consequences that the Government itself has admitted might come to pass.

Comment

“Long gone are the days when we could keep our heads down and our political views to ourselves. This issue surpasses politics.”

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hose who’ve described a hard Brexit as a gross act of national self harm on the part of the UK might have sounded a bit wide of the mark in the past. Now they’re on the money.

What is absolutely crucial now is that the business community here in Northern Ireland speaks out.

Long gone are the days when we could keep our heads down and our political views to ourselves.

This issue surpasses politics. To paraphrase the old Bill Shankly quote.....Brexit isn’t a matter of life and death. It’s more important than that.

Our mainstream business organisations need to wake up from their slumbers and start shouting from the rooftops. And the rest of us, in any way we can, must do our bit.

What can you do? You can contact your local MP, for starters. Unless you’re a constituent in North Down, where Lady Sylvia Hermon continues to be a lone voice in the parliamentary wilderness of the Northern Ireland seats, you MP will be a DUP or Sinn Fein politicians. The former will be continuing to support the Tory government despite the expressed wishes of the majority here. The latter won’t be able to do much about anything because Sinn Fein MP’s don’t take their seats.

Despite visits by the likes of Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Sajid Javid over recent times, there’s precious little interest in what we think. We, in their minds, are represented by the likes of Sammy Wilson, Nigel Dodds and Gregory Campbell. MP’s who don’t reflect, in any way, shape of form, the views of hardworking businessmen and women and their employees here in Northern Ireland.

Revelations in the Sunday Times recently made for alarming and appalling reading. Worst case scenario they might be but it’s bordering on the criminal that any government could consider taking such risks with its economy and its people.

Richard Buckley EDITOR Irish Magazine Editor of the Year 2005

And Northern Ireland, as many of us have been saying ad nauseam, will be adversely affected in a way that no other region of these islands will, or may, be. For us, this is very serious stuff indeed.

No Confidence votes in the House of Commons might yet happen, and might yet produce results. The so-called Government of National Unity might be formed under the temporary leadership of an agreed candidate.

Or, of course, something will give and Boris Johnson will manage to strike a deal with the EU, a deal that can dance around the backstop issue somehow and let both sides save face, smile and get on with it.

Around the business community, the uncertainty over all of this has been crippling.

In some quarters, some have started to say that any definite result – even a No Deal Brexit – would be better than ongoing uncertainty.

But that’s a risky view to take. A No Deal Brexit, says almost everyone apart from the hard-liners of the DUP and fringe players like Jim Allister, is likely to be disastrous for businesses of all sizes and the economy here in Northern Ireland.

But for one small exception. The plummeting pound makes this place a value proposition for tourists from anywhere in Europe.

Business must continue to lobby and it must continue to speak up.

In particular, we must keep the pressure firmly on Arlene Foster and all of her ilk. They have ignored the voices of business to date. Can they continue to do so? Will they sit meekly in the back seat while Boris Johnson drives over the precipice?

As for us. We will always remember the lack of support the two main parties here have given to business and the economy.

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Eye on News

Rainbow Communications Back A Winner With Down Royal Sponsorship Deal

Pictured celebrating the partnership is (l-r) Stuart Carson, Director of Sales & Marketing at Rainbow Communications and Emma Meehan, Chief Executive of Down Royal Racecourse.

Northern Ireland’s largest independent business telecoms company, Rainbow Communications, has signed a major multi-year sponsorship deal with Down Royal Racecourse.

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ainbow renewed its involvement with Down Royal by extending its investment with a new three-year sponsorship package, giving the company

exclusive naming rights to two celebrated races as part of a new and exciting calendar of racing fixtures.

This included ‘The Rainbow Communications EBH Median Action

Maiden’ at the Summer Festival of Racing, and the upcoming ‘Rainbow Communications Handicap Steeplechase’ at the Northern Ireland Festival of Racing in November, with a total prize fund of €26,000.

Rainbow will also have naming rights for one of Down Royal’s premium hospitality suites - The Rainbow Communications Suites.

Emma Meehan, Chief Executive of Down Royal Racecourse said: “For decades, Rainbow Communications has become widely known and respected for innovation, delivery and a real commitment to business, so we’re absolutely delighted to secure its continued support as one of our prestige business partners.

“With their backing and investment, we look forward to continuing to make our relationship a great success and to making history during this year’s racing calendar and beyond.”

First created in 1685 by Royal Charter from King James II, Down Royal Racecourse has brought the “Sport of Kings “ to generations since then and today boasts some of the most modern facilities for race goers and corporate clients.

Founded in 1998, Rainbow Communications is one of the UK and Ireland’s most successful providers of telecom solutions to business, with over 10,000 customers in Northern Ireland alone – half of which are among the region’s Top 200. Through investment and expansion, the established family-owned firm employs over 100 staff.

Stuart Carson, Director of Sales and Marketing at Rainbow Communications said: “Our 15 year-long partnership with Down Royal Racecourse has developed over recent years and we are continue to see our investment in grass roots racing as a positive step in the support of not only the sport, but the owners, trainers and jockeys who are involved in driving this outstanding facility and its range of events.

“Being involved in horse racing sponsorship is a win-win for Rainbow Communications as it provides us with the opportunity to promote our brand to a diverse audience and at the same time gives us the chance to be part of a hugely exciting sport.”

GRAND PLANS FOR LANYON Corporate communications firm Lanyon Group has opened new grade A offices in Belfast city centre, paving the way for the future growth and expansion of the business.

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ccording to Founder and Partner Katie Doran, the move to the offices at the Grand Central on Bedford Street comes as part of an “ongoing period of investment” for the firm.

“Having been trading for almost five years now, we have entered a period of significant growth and are investing across all areas of our business,” she said. “From the outset, we set about being the best reputation advisors, always exceeding client expectations and setting new standards. Through the work we have delivered for

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our clients including KPMG, A&L Goodbody, CBRE, Belfast City Council, STATSports and many others, we have achieved that goal and are now planning for a new wave of growth.

“In recent months we have developed a new creative division in the business, enabling us to expand our offering to include web development, design and video production. We have also invested in updating our brand and website and are working closely with Invest NI to further explore opportunities to grow the business internationally, servicing clients from outside of Northern Ireland.”

The firm appointed former Ulster Business editor, David Elliott, as senior client director in January 2018 and has continued to grow its headcount to a team of eight in recent months.

Founder and Partner Jonathan Ireland commented: “Since 2014 we have gradually added depth, breadth and unparalleled expertise to our team to meet continued growth in

Jonathan Ireland and Katie Doran

market demand for our services.

“With ambitious plans for further growth, our move to much larger premises at Grand Central will enable us to not only to further increase our headcount, but to continue expanding and diversifying our expertise and service offering to clients across the

UK and Ireland and further afield.

“The new space will add value to our clients who can also use the city entre location when required, as well as providing a best-in-class working environment with lots of collaboration spaces for our expanding team. It’s an exciting phase in the Lanyon journey.”

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Eye on News

Lidl Scores A First With In-Store Recycling Lidl Northern Ireland has become the first retailer to install customer recycling stations at checkouts across all its 38 branches, in a bid to reduce consumer’s packaging waste bought in-store.

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he scheme is the first of its kind among supermarkets in Northern Ireland and offers Lidl’s hundreds of thousands of weekly customers the opportunity to remove unwanted recyclable packaging at the point of purchase so it can be recycled in-store.

Latest statistics[1] show that Northern Ireland’s councils collected 230,942 tonnes of local authority collected (LAC) municipal waste between October and December 2018, the majority of which consisted of household waste (89.6%), equating to 276 kg of waste per household. The household waste recycling rate was 47.7%.

Deirdre Ryan, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Lidl, said: “The introduction of in-store recycling stations

for our customers is another big step on our journey to tackle important sustainability issues. Lidl is proud to be a sustainability champion and has implemented a number of initiatives to reduce the amount of recyclable materials associated with our products and set ambitious targets for the future.

This checkout recycling station initiative will further reduce the amount of recyclable materials taken out of store and provides our customers with a convenient drop off point for unwanted recyclable packaging.

We’re proud to be leading the Northern Irish retail sector in implementing sustainable initiatives that benefit our environment, our communities and our customers. This scheme will result in tonnes of plastic, cardboard and other materials being recycled across our store network and aligns with our goals and targets set out in our sustainability strategy, A better tomorrow.”

The launch of the new in-store recycling stations was welcomed by Ricky Burnett, Acting Chief Executive of arc21. Speaking at the launch Ricky commented: “We warmly welcome this

Lidl Lover Lewis Armstrong Gets Recycling with Lidl NI and arc21.

latest initiative by Lidl which offers their customers the opportunity to shed some packaging at the point of purchase.

As Government consider introducing detailed measures to make producers more responsible for packaging, this is a proactive and visible demonstration towards embracing this principle.

For each of the last 18 years, householders and councils have incrementally increased recycling rates to the extent we are now just

below 50% for Northern Ireland. It is important that all aspects of modern society contribute to sustaining such improvements and initiatives like this can help to ensure that by next year, Northern Ireland is recycling more than half of the municipal waste it produces.”

The launch of the scheme follows a successful trial of checkout recycling stations within the Republic of Ireland and has now rolled out across Lidl’s 199 stores across Ireland and Northern Ireland.

AROUND NOON CONTINUES INVESTMENT AND EXPANSION WITH SUPPORT FROM BARCLAYS Newry-based ‘food to go’ manufacturer, Around Noon, is investing more than £500,000 in improving its facilities, enhancing its IT systems, and increasing automation, with support from Barclays.

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he innovative company has switched its banking to Barclays to assist it in making the important investments as it continues to grow the products and services it offers its client-base and increase its headcount.

Featuring in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 listing in both 2017 and 2018, Around Noon is one of the fastest-growing food businesses in the UK and Ireland. It supplies a wide range of sandwiches, wraps, salads, bakery items and cold-pressed juices to leading coffee-shop chains, convenience retailers and contract caterers.

In addition to its Newry headquarters, it has a manufacturing facility in greater London and currently employs more than 330 people. It

has acquired two businesses in recent years: London-based Chef-in-a-Box and Sweet Things Bakery, which was originally based in Dublin.

Howard Farquhar, Chairman of Around Noon, says that Barclays’ support will help the company to meet its ambitious growth targets. He commented: “Barclays put together an impressive proposal to support Around Noon’s strategic growth plan, which includes investing significantly in order to increase business with existing customers and to facilitate further acquisitions.

“We feel that the relationship is the right fit for us as a business, given the expertise of the Barclays team locally, as well as the experience and coverage that the bank can offer in a range of markets. Barclays made the process of moving straightforward and the switch to them as our new banking partner has been seamless,” he adds.

John Mathers, Corporate Development Director at Barclays Corporate Banking, said: “We have been very impressed with the growth of Around Noon and the energy and ambition of the team. We worked closely with management to understand their business needs and to put together a package that not only provides their day-to-day banking, but also adds value and

John Mathers, Barclays Corporate Banking, with Gareth Chambers, CEO of Around Noon, and Howard Farqhuar, Chairman of Around Noon.

support from the wider Barclays network. Around Noon is a fantastic business and we are very pleased to be able to play a supporting role in its ongoing growth.”

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Eye on News

BT Director Joins Board of NI Chamber

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aul Murnaghan, NI Regional Director BT Enterprise and Chair BT NI has been appointed to the Board of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NI Chamber). The member organisation currently represents 1,200 businesses across Northern Ireland, employing over 100,000 people.

Mr. Murnaghan became the Regional Director of BT Enterprise NI in January 2017 and was appointed Chair of BT Northern Ireland in April 2019.

This latest appointment will see

him join the Board which currently comprises Allstate NI, Devenish Group, ESB Group, EY, Henry Group, McAvoy Group, Pinsent Masons, Ulster Bank and Ulster Carpets Group.

Congratulating him on the appointment, John Healy, President, NI Chamber said: “We are delighted to welcome Paul Murnaghan to the Board. His extensive experience in business and governance will be exceptionally valuable as we seek to support the growth of our member businesses and the economy.”

Paul Murnaghan, NI Regional Director BT Enterprise and Chair BT NI has been appointed to the Board of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NI Chamber). He is pictured with NI Chamber President John Healy and Chief Executive Ann McGregor.

NIE Networks Launches £500k Investment Project In Belfast City Centre The utility infrastructure in Royal Avenue and the surrounding area of Belfast City Centre is set to receive a boost this month with the commencement of a £500,000 investment project by Northern Ireland Electricity Networks (NIE Networks).

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he upgrade project, which is part of NIE Networks’ ongoing investment plan in the network across Northern Ireland, will see the replacement of 3,000 metres of underground cable ensuring business and domestic customers in the area have a continued reliable electricity supply.

The three month project was scheduled for earlier in 2019 but the fire at Bank Buildings meant the project had to be delayed. The work which has been approved and supported by the Department of Infrastructure and leading business organisations in the area, consists of three phases of implementation, with work commencing on 22nd July 2019.

David Tompsett, Project Delivery

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David Tompsett NIE Networks and Gareth Neill Cathedral Quarter BID at the junction of Royal Avenue a key site of the upgrade project.

Engineer for NIE Networks, said; “Delivering a high standard of service for all our customers is very important to us and we are delighted this critical project can now get underway. Our investment will involve the replacement and upgrade of older cables and ensure the continued resilience of the electricity infrastructure in this area of Belfast City Centre.

“We have been working in partnership with the Department of Infrastructure, Belfast City Centre Management, Cathedral Quarter Business Improvement District and

Translink to make sure the impact on businesses and city centre users is kept to a minimum.”

The first phase of work will focus on the junction of Royal Avenue, York Street and North Street. The second phase will start on 29 July on Royal Avenue towards Dunbar Link and the third phase will start during September running from North Street to Peter’s Hill. All work will be completed by 31st October 2019.

No interruptions to electricity supplies are planned and each phase will be completed before moving

to the next to help minimise the impact to businesses, traffic flow and shoppers in the City Centre.

Gareth Neill, BID Manager at Cathedral Quarter Business Improvement District welcomed the announcement from NIE Networks; “The business community recognises the importance of this much needed infrastructure upgrade and welcomes NIE Networks’ commitment in bringing this work forward. The project will ensure there are continued opportunities to invest and grow in this vibrant part of the City.”

Geraldine Duggan, City Centre Manager for Belfast City Centre Management, added; “Belfast City Centre Management is very pleased that NIE Networks has announced they will be upgrading the network in the Cathedral Quarter area of the city centre, the investment will be a great benefit for local businesses.

Belfast City Centre Management and Destination CQ will continue to work alongside the team at NIE Networks to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum for the duration of the works.”

Eye on Manufacturing

Irish Manufacturing Businesses Showing Confidence Confidence is growing in the Irish manufacturing sector.

With developments in building and infrastructure taking place across the country, the SMEs we speak to are optimistic and investing in their businesses as a result.

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ccording to the latest Close Brothers Business Barometer research, more than a third of manufacturing SMEs across the UK and Ireland say that growth is their main priority. Similarly, 60% of businesses in the sector are planning to take out funding for investment over the next 12 months.

At Close Brothers Commercial Finance, we also feel confident about the future.

Having previously continued to lend during the 2008 recession, and even opening new offices in Dublin around that time, we know our business model is strong and resilient. With a prudent approach and expertise in business finance, we continue to support SMEs regardless of the wider political and economic outlook.

Growth Ambitions Invoice discounting enables a B2B company to unlock cash from their invoices as soon as they are raised.

We pay the company up to 90% of

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the value upfront, and once an invoice has been settled, they receive the remaining balance less an agreed fee.

In the manufacturing sector, invoice discounting can be particularly useful because it means that late payments do not prevent work from continuing and businesses can retain liquidity. Our solutions grow in line with turnover and can improve cash flow immediately.

A good example of how invoice finance can benefit SMEs is a company we worked with that specialises in manufacturing cooking equipment.

Since its formation, the business had grown rapidly and wanted to invest in smart technology which would give them a unique advantage in the market.

However, accessing working capital was a challenge. By introducing an invoice discounting facility, we were able to help them improve cash flow for investment by freeing up over ÂŁ700,000 from their receivable accounts.

Bespoke solutions As a leading provider of asset finance, invoice finance and asset based lending, we are well positioned to help Irish companies thrive and are delighted to help businesses achieve their growth ambitions.

We offer the best of both worlds by combining the flexibility of an independent provider with the strength of the wider Close Brothers merchant banking group. By looking at the bigger picture and considering factors such as long term goals, rather than just turnover, we are able to help SMEs find the right funding strategy for them.

Whether you need to refinance equipment, lease vital machinery or release capital from customer invoices, property or stock, contact one of our finance specialists today.

Close Brothers Close Brothers is a UK merchant banking group providing lending, deposit taking, wealth management services, and securities trading. Close Brothers Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a member of the FTSE 250.

Our core purpose is to help the people and businesses of Britain and Ireland thrive over the long term. To achieve this, all of our specialist businesses have a deep industry knowledge, so we can understand the challenges and opportunities that our customers and clients face. We support the unique needs of our customers and clients to ensure that they thrive, rather than simply survive, whatever the market conditions.

To find out more, visit www.closecommercialfinance.ie or call 02890 995 950

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Eye on News

FUNDING SUPPORT TAKES I.T. FIRM TO NEXT LEVEL Belfast-based IT services firm CMI has doubled its staff numbers to 50 and grown turnover to £5m, since receiving funding from the Growth Loan Fund in 2014.

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inance for the £55m Growth Loan Fund – which provides loans to established Northern Ireland SMEs seeking to access growth finance – was provided by Invest Northern Ireland and private investors, Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee (NILGOSC).

CMI, which was formed in 2009, designs and implements IT structures to SMEs and mid-market companies across England and Ireland. The company also provides

IT support to users across the world.

Ken Roulston, Managing Director at CMI, said: “The business was at a stage where we wanted to grow but didn’t have the right financial backing. The Growth Loan Fund was a key accelerator for our business and the Whiterock team really bought into our vision from day one.

“We received funding of £125,000 in 2014 with a further £200,000 in 2016. The loans provided the working capital the business needed following two acquisitions in England and the doubling of our staff numbers to 50.

We were turning over £2m in 2014 and thanks to the funding, we have increased that to £5m with the goal of reaching £10m in the next 12-18 months.”

He added: “We’re in a position now were we want to consolidate the business and prepare for future growth.

Our recent growth has been organic, but we’ll be looking to complete further

Pictured (L-R) are Ken Roulston, Managing Director of CMI and Andrew Gowdy, Head of Property and Commercial Finance, Whiterock Finance

acquisitions over the next 12 months.”

Andrew Gowdy, Head of Property and Commercial Finance at Whiterock Finance said: “CMI is a prime example of the type of scalable company the Growth Loan Fund was set up to support.

Through strategic acquisitions, CMI has been able to increase its market share across England while providing support to users around the world.

“We’re delighted to have played a part in CMI’s growth story and wish the business all the best for the future.”

WhiteRock Capital Partners LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the FCA, was established in 2012 to manage the Fund and is owned by WhiteRock Finance

Limited and Clarendon Fund Managers.

Companies seeking funding from the Growth Loan Fund must be based in Northern Ireland, demonstrating growth and generally be in the manufacturing, engineering or tradable services sectors.

The loans provided are expected to be complementary to existing sources of finance, including banks, trade finance sources and equity investors. Loans are provided on a fully commercial basis, with monthly loan repayments required over typically a five-year term.

For more information about the Growth Loan Fund’s criteria please visit www.whiterockfinance.co.uk

Danske Bank Appoints Deputy Chief Executives D anske Bank UK Chief Executive Kevin Kingston has appointed two Deputy Chief Executives from within his Belfastbased senior management team.

Vicky Davies is Managing Director of Strategy & Corporate Development at the Bank and Stephen Matchett is Chief Financial Officer. Both will retain their current roles alongside additional Deputy Chief Executive responsibilities.

Vicky Davies was with Ulster Bank for seven years before moving to Danske Bank in 2012, initially to become Head of Business Development. Earlier in her career she worked in London as a Management Consultant. In 2016 she became the Bank’s first ever female executive board member.

Stephen Matchett joined Danske Bank as Chief Financial Officer and an executive board member in 2014, having previously been Chief Financial Officer at Bank of Ireland UK. Earlier in his career he worked for PwC and Deloitte.

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CEO Kevin Kingston, himself a former Deputy Chief Executive at the Bank, said: “As fellow executive board directors Stephen and Vicky have been instrumental to the Bank’s success in recent years. I am delighted to make these appointments, which come at a time when we, as the biggest bank in Northern Ireland, are operating in an increasingly complex and challenging economic and regulatory environment. Through strengthening our management structures in this way, I believe we will be better positioned to address the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.”

Gerald Gregory, the Bank’s Chairman, said: “It is testament to the excellent job that Kevin Kingston and his team continue to do, that the Board has agreed to the creation of these two Deputy Chief Executive roles. The Bank is well positioned moving forward and will continue to play an integral role in supporting the Northern Ireland economy.”

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Eye on Accountancy

Hotel Performance Mixed In 2018, But Remains Strong Overall

L-R: John McGrillen (CEO Tourism NI), Stephen McMullan (Deputy General Manager Jury’s Inn), Adrian Patton (Senior Manager), Michael Williamson (Director)

ASM Chartered Accountants has been publishing its annual hotel industry survey for 21 consecutive years.

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he most recent edition of the long running study has just rolled off the printing press and provides an interesting insight into the performance of the industry across Northern Ireland in 2018.

The headline performance figures from the report show: t VOQSFDFEFOUFE EFNBOE GPS IPUFM bedrooms across Northern Ireland led to approximately 2.363 million room nights being sold during the year which is an increase of 115,000 room nights , or 5%, over 2017 – a new record; t IPXFWFS UIF MBSHF JODSFBTF JO bedroom supply throughout the year resulting from new hotel openings and extensions (+1,100 bedrooms), particularly in Belfast, means that the average bedroom occupancy rate

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across the country actually declined to 75.6% compared to 76.8% in 2017. Nevertheless, this remains a strong performance overall; t PO B /PSUIFSO *SFMBOE XJEF CBTJT the average room rate, which is the price a guest pays for a room excluding VAT, increased by 7.1% to £96.90, another record; t UPUBM SFWFOVFT QFS SPPN XIJDI includes income from all hotel revenue generating activities, increased by an average of 4.4% to £69,158 in 2018. But that growth was not uniform across Northern Ireland; and t UIF VQMJGU JO PWFSBMM SFWFOVFT did not lead to increased profits.

Higher operating costs mean that profit before interest, depreciation, amortisation and tax declined by 2.4% to an average of £13,567 per room.

The increase in bedroom supply in Belfast means that despite improved demand for overnight accommodation (+7% year on year), bedroom occupancy rates declined in the second half of the year leading to an annual average of 79.9% compared to 82.9% in

2017. Average room rates increased year on year by 3.3% to £94.91 but that growth occurred in the first 6 months of 2018. Income from other hotel services declined in the year and with the added pressure of increased operating costs, profits averaged 22.6% of revenues as against 24.6% in 2017.

Hotels in rural settings experienced higher bedroom demand and revenue increases across the board. Bedroom occupancy improved by 1 percentage point to an average of 72.3% for 2018 with total revenues increasing by 5% to £98,654 per room, but increased costs mean the profits were flat at £17,473 per room. At Resort/Spa hotels bedroom occupancy declined by 1.6 percentage points to an average of 74.7% and there was a decline in income from food and beverage operations.

But a 10% improvement in bedroom letting rates to an average of £116.98 means that total revenues and profits were more or less unchanged year on year at £109,000 and £18,300 per available room respectively.

In Derry/Londonderry City, bedroom occupancy for the year was 1% lower than in 2017 at 69.7%, but higher room

rates and improved income from other hotel services mean that total revenues improved by 5.3% to an average of £42,109 per available room. Higher operating costs eroded this advantage and profits actually declined by 6% to an average of £7,391 per available room.

Commenting on the results Michael Williamson, Director of Consulting at ASM noted: “The overall occupancy results for 2018 can be misleading in that the material increase in new supply entering the market place of 1,100 bedrooms, or 12%, completely overshadows the overall increase in the demand for bedrooms which grew at 5% compared to 2017 and which is twice the rate of growth that occurred in the previous 12 months.

Room rates have continued to improve but overall revenue performance has been somewhat patchy. The Brexit issue seems to have sapped confidence in the business community since bookings from this market have fallen and while the decline in the value of sterling has helped drive higher volumes of out of state visitors, the flip side of that coin and the general uncertainty surrounding Brexit is that input costs have increased and the pool of experienced staff from EC countries has reduced. I expect this situation to carry over into 2019 at least.

On balance, while profitability out-turn is a little disappointing it remains quite strong. Visitor numbers continue to grow, so the overall outlook remains positive.

However, the absence of an Assembly and leadership is now starting to frustrate hotel owners and operators.

There is real concern around the lack of progress on VAT, Air Passenger Tax and Corporation Tax and the fear that in the absence of sitting Ministers, key decisions on matters such as marketing and events budgets will simply not be taken, thereby undermining the excellent performance of the industry over recent years. While it is clear that there is considerable momentum in our appeal to out of state markets at present, the sentiments expressed by hotel managers are completely valid and understandable”.

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Eye on Round Table

Tourism...

The Challenges & Opportunities The Participants and careers. We need to attract more people but there are still some negative perceptions around what a career in tourism and hospitality means.

Gavin, how do we counteract these perceptions and what is the industry doing to attract people into the sector?

Dr. Joanne Stuart (Chair) – Chief Executive, NI Tourism Alliance

Dave Vincent – Chief Digital Officer, Tourism NI

Heather McLachlan – Regional Director of the National Trust for Northern Ireland

Gavin Carroll – General Manager, Merchant Hotel, Belfast & President, NI Hotels Federation

Laura McCorry – Head of Hillsborough Castle & Gardens

Catherine Toolan - Chief Executive, ICC Belfast

The Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance, formed last year, joined forces with Business Eye to stage a Round Table Discussion event held in the impressive surroundings of The Privy Council Room at Hillsborough Castle.

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A

wide-ranging discussion took in a number of different aspects of the tourism industry here, including recruitment & skills shortage, the use of technology and the challenges that lie ahead as Northern Ireland bids to double the value of tourism to the local economy.

JS – Tourism has grown by 35% in the last 5 years and with 70% of revenues generated from visitors outside of Northern Ireland, it is now recognised as an important export led economic driver. We have ambitions to double the size of tourism from £1 billion to £2 billion employing more than 90,000 people. Today we are talking about the opportunities and challenges to be addressed to enable us to achieve that ambition. Let’s start with skills

GC – We can’t sugar coat the fact that there can be unsocial hours and some minimum wage jobs but there are real career opportunities. We’re in the middle of a perfect storm with a continued exodus of non-national staff on the back of the Brexit situation, and that’s on top of an existing skills shortage. We’ve put an extra 1400 bedrooms into Belfast in the past 18 months and, on the rough measure of one employee per room, that’s 1400 people we’ve needed to find. So something has to be done.

We need to look at promoting the range of roles available in hospitality.

It’s not just about being a chef or a waiting staff. We can also promote the portability message – if you’re hotel trained, you can work anywhere in the world and there aren’t many careers you can say that about.

Then there’s flexibility, roles which are ideal for parents, for example.

JS – Laura, you’ve had a long career in different aspects of tourism and you’re now heading up Hillsborough Castle & Gardens. How do you look at the career and recruitment challenges?

LM – Tourism as a sector requires a diversity of skills. We now employ 120 people here in a variety of roles and on various contract types. During our recruitment process as well as looking for people with specific technical skills, we were looking for good communications and inter-personal

skills as well as a strong team working ethic. The tourism sector develops those skills in people and does so in an international context. Although based in NI, we’re dealing with visitors from all over the world so our people develop an international cultural awareness whilst still working locally. We need to sell that as a benefit to people thinking about a career in tourism.

JS – Turning to you, Heather, the National Trust are the custodian of a number of our most important tourist attractions, including the Giant’s Causeway and some of our great houses. How do you view this?

HM – We have a range of careers across the tourism sector but also moving into areas like land management and farming. We need skilled people like chefs as much as the hotels need them and Laura needs them. In fact, if anyone asked me for advice on a prospective career, I’d tell them to train as a chef. We can’t get enough of them. But I would emphasise that we can offer a wide range of different careers. We also rely on a lot of volunteers, 3,000 of them, and many of our younger volunteers have used the volunteering route to skill themselves up for future careers.

A lot of what we do is seasonal and our year-round head count of 300 employees will double at this time of the year. But I do think that we have a very strong work ethic here and that stands us in good stead.

JS – Catherine, business tourism has been around for a long time but it’s coming of age here in Northern Ireland now. What kind of skills are you looking for and how do you attract people to these roles?

CT – Business tourism, according to the latest research from the Events Industry Council, generated $1.07trillion of direct spending and $1.5 trillion GDP to the global economy. So it’s very significant. In terms of skills, we have a product that’s a bit different in terms of attracting talent and we have very high quality employment opportunities in areas like digital marketing. Where we have the biggest challenge is in technical roles. The production of world

class business events is crucial to our success and we need some unique skills for that area. It’s something we’d like to explore with our local further education colleges. It’s tough work, it’s not a 9 to 5 job, but it’s an exciting and rewarding career. It’s a career that enables you to work anywhere in the world and I’ve been lucky enough to work across five continents but it’s the natural hospitality that we have here on the island ,and the ‘can do’ attitude to finding solutions that sets us apart from our global peers.

JS – You touched on the digital side.

Dave, from your perspective, how important is technology and how well is smart tourism developing here?

DV - One problem is that we have two extremes in our industry; we have some experienced businesses who understand the benefits of utilising technology on one side and we have the grassroots businesses on the other side that don’t have access to the skills required to do business digitally. The skills gap in tourism is bigger than the technology one and we are lacking technology enthusiasts who understand the business of tourism. It’s less about smart tourism and more about tourism that we re-imagine using technology.

It’s about technology being used well by individual businesses to present themselves in the shop window that our visitors want to shop in. The problem is that we’ve got lots of businesses doing their own thing, and 11 local councils also doing their own thing, all fishing in the same pond. It needs to be more cohesive and we need to be able to persuade technology companies to bring their tourism-friendly solutions to us. But I would underline the fact that we have a lot of work to do with our grassroots businesses and how they use technology. So there’s a big education piece before we even get into smart tourism and all that it means.

CT – We find that the one of the more effective marketing tools is relevant video content. That way you will get engagement. But you must manage the data, the click throughs, the buyer intent and all the key indicators to ensure you follow up with potential customers.

There has been so much technologydriven change, even in the last two years.

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Eye on Round Table DV - And it’s about presenting our products to potential visitors where they want it to be presented. We all need our own strategies but we need to think about how we present as an industry and as a region, and how we pick up the data behind that. We can’t make smart decisions without the right data – who our visitors are, where they’re from, what are they spending......

GC – As hotels, we’re competing in ways with the Online Travel Agents (OTA’s) and the booking sites. We need them to a certain extent but they’re big international organisations and they’ll always manage data better than individual hotels can ever do it. It’s easy for hotels to demonise OTA’s but a lot of properties rely on them. Not everyone can have a dedicated sales department like we have at the Merchant. So technology is a double-edged sword for hospitality. We can manage everything a lot better but I’ve yet to see a computer that can make a customer smile, and a computer that can create a memory that the customer can travel home with. Hospitality means personal contact and we shouldn’t forget that.

LM – I agree. Technology creates choice but we need to choose wisely. From our perspective, people come to the castle and gardens for an experience, to truly connect with the past. Our strength is in telling stories and in creating that emotional connection. For us, it is not about deploying technology for the sake of it, but using the magical powers of technology to open up possibilities and wonderful ways to bring history to life where it happened.

The challenge as I see it, is to make the interface between the technology and the visitor invisible so we don’t break that connection. To deliver this, requires new ways of working and creative collaborations where all organisations play to their strengths.

DV – The most innovative solutions I’ve seen haven’t come from technology companies. They’ve come from creative companies, from storytellers. We have to look at what tourism is trying to achieve and then work out how technology can play a part. In Tourism NI’s strategy, there are no digital transformation priorities or technology priorities, there are only business priorities. And technology will underpin those.

HM – Our uniqueness stems from our ability connect with people.

Technology is there to help us to do that more effectively. But a lot of our sites are outdoor places where people are coming, we think, to escape technology. It’s about reconnecting with nature. Touch screens and other technology jars with that. So we talk a lot about where we should use it and where we shouldn’t. Against that, we also have to consider younger visitors and the fact that technology is a way of life for them.

All of that said, we’ve had to introduce online booking at CarrickA-Rede to cope with the visitor numbers. Increased tourist numbers mean that people can’t just turn up any more. It’s a good thing but it’s a challenge as well. An example where technology has been necessary to improve visitor experience.

DV – Yes, there is a role for new and emerging technology, but our industry is centred around hospitality and that comes from people. The two things need to be complementary.

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JS – Tourism is still a relatively young sector here, we’ve grown beyond recognition and we know that we have the potential for significant growth.

This means increasing visitor numbers which brings challenges to manage and continue to provide authentic experiences. With over a million visitors coming to the Giant’s Causeway each year, that must be a major challenge for the National Trust, Heather?

JS – Staying with technology, what about the rise of Instagram as a means of marketing tourism?

HM – We need to know who’s coming and that they understand what they’re coming to. We also have to have the right infrastructure to get them there and back. We have to manage the experience to make sure that it’s a quality one. I think we need to bring a bit more sophistication into our market, and that’s not very easy.

On top of that, we have to look wider than the honey pot sites like Giant’s Causeway. If visitors are busing up from Dublin and back down again, that’s an obvious challenge for us as an industry. But we always need to be mindful that we’re operating in a community setting. People make this place. The National Trust wasn’t set up to run tourist attractions.

It was set up to look after unique places for the people. We are a young sector but we have to put some thinking in behind our rapid growth to ensure it is sustainable.

GC – I’m not an Instagrammer but I’ve been dragged into it. Amongst younger people it is all pervasive so we certainly can’t ignore it. They see it as the sole means of sourcing information.

JS – Laura, Hillsborough Castle & Gardens is one of our newest tourist attraction. How are you going about developing and managing your visitor numbers?

LM – We are actively learning in these early days of operation but our aim is to ensure we create and deliver high quality, memorable and personal experiences that encourage people to come back. We are regularly reviewing and developing our approach to programming and promotion in response to visitor feedback and remaining agile as we learn is important.

Beyond developing our own value proposition, and to grow inbound tourism for the benefit of the whole sector, the wider Northern Ireland brand proposition is critically important to us all. There is a need to tune into and connect with visitor motivations and in particular the reasons why people are travelling, what they want out of their holiday and not just focus on the showcase of things to see and do when they are here. We must package and promote the destination in a way that will connect with consumer passion points making Northern Ireland a go to short break destination of choice.

JS – Tourism NI have developed a new experience brand for Northern Ireland, the aim of which is to provide a more cohesive and connected brand.

As a region we have 11 councils, all of which have a tourism strategy.

How do we bring all this together?

DV – On the positive side, the overall experience brand has been accepted positively by the 11 local councils.

We have something that we can all come around and support. On the digital side, we’ve had a lot of thinking to do around this. Imagine

Eye on Round Table making locally. Regardless of how we leave the EU, we need devolved government back and an environment in which we can make important decisions when they are needed.

To sum up, we have to aim to make tourism everyone’s business. We have to promote careers, focus on harnessing technology and think differently about understanding data, being sustainable and working in partnership with the communities that we’re part of.

CT – Let’s not ignore the real uncertainties around Brexit. It is extremely challenging for business selling internationally that ten weeks out from the October deadline, we cannot confirm to our clients that there will be no changes to customs, VAT, taxation and visas. if we took all the money that we all spend individually on websites and online activities and pooled it?

At Tourism NI, our role is to support a bigger brand and it’s something we’re always working towards.

JS – From your perspective, Catherine, conference delegates will come here for business but they’ll want to experience the place when they’re here. What progress has been made around developing this total proposition?

Are you seeing a new narrative?

CT – I think we have more work to do to build a business tourism destination. We don’t sell the bricks and mortar of a convention centre.

We sell the experience, the emotional connection and something that’s different than our competitor cities.

Food and local provenance is a really important selling point for Northern Ireland and it’s a big part of the experience. And digital channels and social media is really important.

Visitors don’t post photographs of the seats in ICC Belfast. They post pictures of food and pubs. But we have to keep working and selling.

We’re competing with cities with great air access and established reputations.

Destinations that have up to 60% repeat business. ICC Belfast have a way to go to get to this level and we can’t underestimate the challenge.

JS – Looking at the growth potential that we have, we’ve seen largescale investment from the hotel

sector in Belfast. But do we need to encourage more investment in hotels outside of the city?

GC – Yes, the hotel investment in Belfast was aimed at the corporate market. There are clear gaps regionally. We definitely need more hotels on the North Coast.

We can’t complain about visitors bussing back to Dublin when their overnight options are very limited.

DV – It’s a clustering issue. Invest in hotel accommodation but you also need to make sure that visitors have something to do during the day and at night. It’s about maturity in the grassroots tourism industry.

We hear complaints from coach operators about lack of hotel rooms in certain areas, attractions that can’t be booked online, restaurants that can’t take large parties and so on. So there are questions around infrastructure at a local level.

tourism to enable our growth and competitiveness. The destination has to work as a whole for tourism to flourish. To compete globally, means joined up strategy, partnership and collaboration locally.

CT – An example of that is the Wild Atlantic Way, a great case study in real collaboration. Then there’s Visit Scotland, an organisation that punches well above its weight in developing business tourism. We could double our economic impact if we had a joined up approach.

JS – From a NITA perspective, it’s about engaging the whole of this industry.

There is a draft strategy and we’ll be working with industry to ensure their voice is listened to. What is vital is we must have timely decision-

GC – Absolutely. The border is a crucial issue. Dublin Airport, in effect, is Belfast South. It’s our main tourism gateway by quite some distance. To put any sort of barrier in place would be disastrous.

JS – NITA is now alongside the other industry groups in meeting key people.

We recently met the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Michael Gove, and we put our key points across.

Tourism is recognised nowadays as a key economic driver and we will continue to ensure that the voice of Tourism is being listened to.

HM – That is a challenge. We must work towards a value proposition for the whole region, and a connection between our transport system, our hotels and our attractions and activities. The places that tick all of the boxes are few and far between.

LM – The sector has been saying this for years in Northern Ireland.

The difficulty is that the enabling structures and environment can’t be delivered by the tourism industry alone. We’re reliant on government departments and agencies out with

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Eye on Cover Story

Continued Investment...

The Key To Henderson Group Success The Henderson Group might be one of Northern Ireland’s largest employers and a major force in the local economy but it remains a family-run company to its core. But it’s also a company for which sustained investment has been a major recipe for success.

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ales & Marketing Director Paddy Doody is only one of a tight-knit senior management team of Directors at Henderson’s impressive headquarters and distribution complex at Mallusk, a team committed to that continued investment and to maintaining Henderson Group’s retail brands at the forefront of convenience retail in Northern Ireland.

Doody and his Group Director colleagues, including shareholders and family members Geoffrey and Martin Agnew, can’t be disappointed with the Group’s sustained growth. Turnover ten years ago was in the region of £500 million. These days, it stands at £850 million.

Profit over the same period has grown from £17 million to an impressive £38 million.

“But it’s important to point out right away that our profit might be £38 million but we have firm investment plans for more than £70 million, including our

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current major project, the new £15 million warehouse clearly visible from the M2 Motorway.”

Geoffrey and Martin Agnew are the fourth-generation family shareholders who hold a controlling interest in the business, ultimately majority owned by a charitable trust. It’s well known though that both men have driven the policy of continued re-investment and sustained business growth.

Several years ago, Henderson Group bought the former Marks & Spencer distribution base across the road from its own headquarters and in 2017 unveiled a new state-of-the-art ambient goods warehouse.

“Combined with the new warehouse that we’re currently completing, we’re future proofed for 20 years or so when it comes to storage,” says Paddy Doody.

“Storage is a constant challenge for us. At the moment, while we wait for the new warehouse, we’re using outside storage

facilities. Efficiency in storage and logistics helps us to keep the prices in our stores lower.”

Away from the Mallusk complex, the Group’s investment in store sites continues. Stores across the SPAR, EUROSPAR, VIVO and VIVOXTRA brands fall into two categories – those owned and operated by Henderson Group and those owned by independent retailers.

Recent developments include the opening of a brand new £2.5 million store at Sunnyside Street in South Belfast, the result of a purchase of several small neighbourhood retail units to create what’s seen as a blueprint for an urban convenience retail outlet.

“What’s important for us is that we continue to talk to our retail partners and to our shoppers about what they want from their local store,” says Paddy Doody. “It’s a continual process for us, looking at what we stock and how we do things at every site. We invest alongside our retail partners and we benchmark all the time against our key competitors.”

He describes one of the group’s main convenience retail competitors Musgrave as a “worthy competitor” and one that “keeps us on our toes.” However, he says “We are confident that our business model is superior and consistently

Henderson Group’s Paddy Doody with Stephen Swift of Eurospar Lisnaskea

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Eye on Cover Story

delivers sales and profit to our independent retailers” “Yes, we certainly respect our competitors, whoever they may be. But Northern Ireland is our backyard, and we’ll defend it to the hilt.”

Doody is pictured for Business Eye’s front cover at the new EUROSPAR in Lisnaskea, County Fermanagh, the result of an investment in partnership with Stephen & Sandra Swift, who also own and operate a SPAR outlet at nearby Roslea. The Swifts returned to trading with Hendersons in 2015, after a period with Musgrave Group. “it’s been an excellent move for us” said Stephen Swift. “Our sales are up, our margin is up and the Henderson business model is working really well.

We haven’t looked back.”

Henderson Group’s commitment to local sourcing has been well documented, and it’s a journey that has continued with the highly successful development of its ‘Enjoy Local’ range of products sourced from local suppliers and with the town of origin prominently displayed on the packaging – milk from Coleraine, meat from Ballymena, baked goods from Dromore & Lisburn and so on.

At the other end of the scale,

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Henderson Group and its SPAR/ EUROSPAR brands form part of a SPAR International operation that spans 48 different countries worldwide, more than 100 distribution partners, 13,000 stores, 350,000 employees and 13.5 million customers every day.

It’s a global operation with close to €36 billion in sales and a steady growth rate of more than 5% per annum over recent years.

“SPAR International gives us the opportunity to look at retail operations all over the world.

We’ve been in different European countries, in China and in India over recent years. But we’ve also hosted SPAR retailers and senior executives here in Northern Ireland, giving us the chance to show them how we do things.”

Brexit, he says, means huge uncertainty for the business ... as it

does for so many. “The 31 October date couldn’t really be much worse for us as a large-scale retailer. That’s when we’re gearing up for the Christmas period.

“If we’re expected or called upon to build up stocks ahead of a difficult Brexit, then we’ve got a problem. We don’t know where we’d be able to store everything.”

Brexit also presents clear challenges for the Group’s Henderson Foodservice business which has expanded into the Republic of Ireland marketplace over recent years.

On the SPAR front, Henderson Group is only licensed to operate in Northern Ireland. The SPAR franchise south of the border is held by BWG Group, itself part of SPAR South Africa.

Henderson Foodservice has grown its presence in the Republic

through both organic growth and acquisition. In recent years, it has acquired both BD Foods, based in Monaghan, and Foodco, a foodservice group with depots in County Meath and Lisburn.

“For any business operating across the Irish border, of course Brexit is going to pose threats, whatever final form it takes.

But, like lots of others in every business sector, it’s outside of our control at the moment.

We have to wait and see.”

“This is a very professional organisation,” says Paddy Doody. “We’ve got a strong management team and great people. We’ve also got a very strong work ethic right across the board. Our investment will continue and we’re very confident about the future of this company and our brands.”

Eye on Communications

Put Your Mind At Rest And Keep The Hackers At Bay Running a successful business is not easy. Apart from money, a good service or product, talent, strong management and a finance team that keeps you right, everything’s great. Right?

By Stuart Carson, Rainbow Communications

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f course, the reality is a lot different. Even if all these variables are at the best they can be, there’s usually always a few curve balls sent to test your resolve and your patience.

For local SMEs, one of the biggest current challenges is maintaining a stable and secure IT network which has the built-in capacity to expand, the flexibility to innovate and which is capable of withstanding everyone’s worst nightmare – a cyberattack.

It’s already a challenge for many businesses. A recent UK government survey showed that in the last year, 43 percent had experienced a cyber security break or attack and that while three quarters considered cyber security a high priority, a 2018 YouGov poll found that less than 10 percent had a cyber security policy to manage the risk.

It’s not a new problem. Malware, or the software which hackers use to disrupt, damage or gain unauthorised access to your PC, network or device, has been around for decades, evolving from early viruses shared using floppy disks to much wider variety today that can infiltrate websites, databases and even cloud services.

Ransomware, meanwhile, is a type of software that makes data or systems unusable.

So, if your business and its performance rely on a good IT and communications network, there are many great ways to help keep all your digital assets safe – even if they’re in the cloud.

Stuart Carson is Sales and Marketing Director at Rainbow Communications, Northern Ireland’s largest independent telecom provider. For more information on its full range of services, including bespoke solutions, visit www.rainbowcomms.com

Tell your staff: While most malware attacks are perpetrated from outsiders, employees can perpetuate the problem by inadvertently downloading dangerous attachments, clicking links on phishing emails or plugging in infected USB drives or memory cards. Make sure they know the risks and can spot the dangers.

Stay updated: Make sure you have good antivirus and firewall systems (turned on and regularly updated with the latest versions) so that all devices including PCs, laptops and mobile phones are protected with the most comprehensive protection from emerging threats.

Printers and scanners are at risk too, so look at installing firmware updates for extra protection.

Stay alert: Recent high-profile cyberattacks and fears about the financial and reputational implications of a GDPR data breach have made everyone much more security-prone

so stay alert to the dangers and trends and make sure you don’t have a false sense of security when it comes to cyber protection.

your cloud provider to audit your systems – there are several new and readily available solutions which can provide you with extra protection.

Backup your data: This should be routine for any eventuality and if you have backups you can quickly recover, you can’t be blackmailed by ransomware attacks. Check now what files or data you cannot do without and keep it covered.

Secure your Wi-Fi: An insecure Wi-Fi connection can provide hackers with easy access to your data. Review its strengths and get a separate network for customers and guests. Change all passwords regularly for everything and make sure they are strong.

Update Windows: Older versions of Windows, don’t have the latest security credentials to keep you protected.

Windows 7 loses support and updates January 2020 so consider Windows 10 to bring you right up to date.

Consider encryption: Fast emerging as the Holy Grail of cyber security, encryption can provide higher levels of security.

Consider the cloud: You are probably already over this one and have already adopted Office 365 as standard with all the security benefits it brings, but by using cloud storage, it also means that your data is already physically separate from your location. Ask

There’s plenty to consider but there are plenty of small things here that can make a real difference - but there’s no point in locking the stable doors after the horse has bolted.

When it comes to cyber security, it’s a very real and present threat and it’s important to keep on top of it.

Ask yourself. Are you prepared?

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Eye on Round Table

Industrial Symbiosis & The Northern Ireland Economy The Participants

Elaine Kerr, Deputy Director, International Synergies NI

Rachel Sankannawar, Programme Manager, Invest NI

Dr. Mark McKinney, MD, ATG Group & Treasurer, Causeway Enterprise Agency

Richard Buckley, Editor, Business Eye (Chairman)

RB – Elaine, can you set the scene for us. Where are we with industrial symbiosis and how far have we come here in Northern Ireland?

Peter McCullough, Commercial Development Manager, Camden Group

Lisa-Marie Devlin, Founder, Heartship

Industrial symbiosis – often known as resource matching – is a highly effective means of working towards a true circular economy. In short, it turns the waste stream of some industries and businesses into raw materials and valuable resources for others.

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Clare Campbell, City Hotel, Derry/ Londonderry

orthern Ireland’s Industrial Symbiosis Service has been established for longer than any other area of the British Isles and has achieved cost savings of £25.7 million, additional sales worth £16.4 million and created 63 jobs. Operating by consultants International Synergies, the scheme is funded by Invest NI. Business Eye joined forces with International Synergies to stage a Round Table Discussion on industrial symbiosis held at Invest NI Headquarters in Belfast.

EK – The scheme started in 2007 as a three-month pilot to support Invest NI’s sustainability work. After the first 4 years it was so successful that it became a fully-fledged programme. Having been involved in this programme from the start I am proud to say that I have watched it grow and develop into a really powerful programme that continues to contribute to the Northern Ireland economy and to global sustainability.

The programme, which is completely free to businesses, supports the circular economy and aids local companies to become more sustainable in their approach. We focus on material matching between businesses and often the solution lies in a completely different sector.

We have worked with over 500 businesses since the beginning of the programme and together we have achieved economic benefits of over £40 million in economic benefits, which is quite significant. We calculate

Eye on Round Table

that companies can save on average £150 for every tonne of wasted resources diverted away from landfill.

For some its significantly more.

Aside from Invest NI’s support the companies have invested approximately £2 million and we are keen to see this value increase.

In addition to the economic benefits, the environmental benefits include approximately 350,000 tonnes worth of Co2 reduction from materials being given a second life and 400,000 tonnes diverted from landfill.

As well as this, there are societal benefits to consider, with jobs being secured and even generated via this approach. In recent years we have seen the emergence of new businesses whose entire business model is about re-using materials generated by others. So, it hits on every area of life here which is really positive.

Our business mindset doesn’t see a waste product; it sees a valuable commodity.

RB – In each of our cases, what does the concept of industrial symbiosis mean to you and how is your organisation involved?

MM – We engaged very early. A lot of what we do is around waste and environmental solutions. We will be anywhere from a big development site to a domestic oil spill. We’ve worked on projects where very large volumes have been diverted from landfill, and we’ve produced really significant savings for our clients. Elaine has helped us to understand our figures and, last year, we handled 265,000 tonnes of material with just 5% of it going to landfill. When we work out our Co2 savings, we get into millions of Tonnes because of the

lorry trips avoided by re-using materials on site. The redevelopment of Killybegs Harbour in Donegal is a great example of what can be achieved by re-using 50,000 tonnes of dredging’s material. So, resource efficiency is a buzzword for us and for a lot of organisations these days.

In the last few years, we spent £1.4 million on R&D and a lot of that is to ensure that more and more waste material can be effectively re-used. When we started down this road, we had a team of five or six. Now we’re employing 30 and we’re continuing to grow.

RB – Peter, tell us a bit more about Camden Group and your circular economy journey.

PC – We’re fabricating about 7,000 uPVC window units a week and about 80% of the material used is recycled. We bring post-consumer windows into the factory in Antrim, we crush them, we put them through an intensive cleaning process, we take out rubber and metals, we pulverise it into a powder and that goes back into the manufacturing process with a virgin material around it. Our challenge is sourcing enough windows to keep the supply chain going. I’m based in England for Camden and we’ve set up a secondary recycling centre there to supply the Antrim plant. The recycling process produces some material that we can’t use, but we’ve identified a company

RS – From an Invest NI perspective, we’re continuing to fund it because we see it as such a valuable programme that continues to generate economic and environmental benefits for Northern Ireland. The Industrial Synergies programme aims to drive competition, maximise cost savings and increase productivity for NI businesses. The team at International Symbiosis do a brilliant job on the operation of the programme, and we’re very happy to continue our support for it.

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Eye on Round Table CC – We got involved with Invest NI in 2007 to reduce our utility costs and that linked us with International Synergies.

We were sending 140 tonnes a week to landfill and it was costing us £12,500 a year. We’ve homed in on simple things.

We compact cardboard and separate our plastic, but we also have a lot of charity links. Our old furniture, for example, goes to St Vincent De Paul and Foyle Women’s Aid. In the end, by various means, our waste to landfill has been reduced to zero. What we’ve saved over the years since 2007 has given us in effect a year’s worth of free utilities. And I’d add that the staff at the hotel love being involved in recycling initiatives. It gives them a buzz.

in Yorkshire which uses flotation tanks to extract even more useable resources from that waste. The only material we haven’t found a use for, in fact, is the waste rubber from old window seals...but we’re confident of finding someone who will take it.

EK – The IS Service might have a solution for you as we have a partner who is currently sourcing rubber crumb for one of their products.

Another good example of how the circular economy works in practice!

The IS Service has worked closely with Camden Group for over 5 years and another example arose when we helped to source a local company who could sharpen the blades on the recycling machinery on site which is something that was a problem beforehand.

This is the beauty of the process. You start on one project and you continue to find other ways to improve processes and reduce waste. There are real opportunities here and it’s a message that we’re working hard to get across to businesses here in Northern Ireland.

RB – You are from a very different part of the economy, the hospitality sector, Clare.

RS – What’s coming across here is the synergies working right across sectors.

That’s really important and it drives the effectiveness of this programme.

LMD – Heartship is a humanitarian organisation. We divert 2000 tonnes of old medical equipment, from hospital beds to life support machines and ventilators to charities working on the ground in areas of need worldwide.

That saves hospitals and suppliers of medical aid based in NI money but also saves lives. We facilitated a whole hospital in Mosul in Iraq last year, and we’re currently sending containers to Uganda for a hospital there.

We also work with the homeless.

We recently distributed 18,000 heat retaining sleeping bag liners, rejected on a technicality by the intended source in the shipping industry, to homeless charities here and elsewhere. And we are also due to benefit from a number of pallets of bathroom toiletries, donated by a hotel group which is changing brand. To give a maternity patient in Uganda a small bottle of shampoo produces an amazing reaction.

RB – You are all either missionaries or converts. Looking wider, how do we get this message out to more and more companies here?

RS – Resource matching is common sense for businesses but, like all common sense ideas, they’re not always obvious at first glimpse. It’s very encouraging for us at Invest NI to hear about what’s actually happening in this area. We are hopeful that stories like these will encourage more businesses to think about their own processes and get involved in this programme.

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CC – And people think that there is a lot more effort and hassle involved in these initiatives than there actually is. It’s not much of an effort once you start.

EK – A lot of our businesses are SME’s and they’re focussed on the core processes within the business and having enough money at the end of the week to pay the wages, so this can be seen as yet another task for them to try and fit in, which really isn’t the case.

We’re on a mission to find users in Northern Ireland for some of the more difficult resources that we know of. Our coffee shops and restaurants produce more than 700 tonnes of spent coffee grinds every year, and it can be used as a fuel, in beauty products, furniture, even coffee cups. Used soap can be re-cycled and used again. The list just goes on and on.

LMD – I think there is definitely a lack of knowledge around what can be recycled or reused. But things are changing. The current climate change rebellion is getting more and more powerful and there is a real sea change in people and companies becoming more aware of what they can do.

RS – We do communicate with businesses by addressing cost saving and by addressing productivity. It’s crucial to talk in a language that they understand. This is a longrunning programme and we want to take it on to the next level.

EK – I suppose it was the introduction of landfill tax that pushed most businesses into looking at this seriously just as, at a consumer level, the plastic bag tax pushed people into changing behaviour. So, do we need to look at more fiscal moves?

Eye on Round Table

RB – Is there more government could do? If we had a government....

MM – We’re a million pounds down in turnover here in Northern Ireland because we’ve four big projects that we can’t start because they’re held up by the lack of a Stormont administration.

The lack of government is definitely not helping anyone. In terms of Brexit, we’ve set up four different businesses in four different jurisdictions – NI, ROI, England & Scotland - as an effective means of hedging against the effect of Brexit.

EK – It’s a frustration for us. Industrial symbiosis is the oil that makes the circular economy work. But if you don’t have a government to support the businesses and social enterprises involved in recycling, for example, then you have a problem.

MM – Its appalling that we don’t have a government lobbying to get the best deal for Northern Ireland from Brexit.

There is an amazing opportunity sitting on the table and they’re just not there.

EK – And the dangers to the waste sector of having no government for a prolonged period are very clear.

People can be tempted to ignore the laws and move towards fly-tipping and other illegal means of getting rid of waste. Nobody wants to see this region going backwards.

RB – Where does Northern Ireland sit in international terms?

EK – Our industrial symbiosis programme is one of the first of its kind so it is a bit of a flagship internationally. But, on

the ground, I’m not sure how accurate statistics around waste generated or exported really are so I think it is very hard to make comparisons. I know that the Environment Agencies across all 4 regions are looking at how to secure accurate data so hopefully this will be less of an issue in the longer term MM – On landfill, I don’t know how we’ll hit our targets. We managed not to put an incinerator plant in to Belfast and we managed not to build any of the treatment facility that we need. And let’s not forget that we became a big importer of waste, into the port of Derry, over recent years. The same area is also home to one of Europe’s biggest illegal dumping sites, at Mobouy Road, now estimated at up to 1.5 million cubic metres of waste.

RB – Yet we could have been a bit of a poster child for waste management?

EK – In some ways, we are. We’re the only programme in the UK still being funded. I think it is exciting in global terms. There are now more than 30 Industrial Symbiosis programmes running worldwide and they all work in different ways. Real progress is being made. We’re showing that Industrial Symbiosis can make a real difference to the economic and environmental impact of businesses here in Northern Ireland. Last year the EU wrote the application of Industrial Symbiosis into the amendments for the Waste Framework Directive.

This means that IS is recognised as a valuable way to ensure resource longevity and reduced demand on the precious raw materials which we take from the planet.

RB – Can I ask each of you what you would like to see changing in this arena going forward? What is on your wish list?

MM – We need a functioning government to drive things forward for NI Plc. The private sector will solve problems, but they have to help us to do that. None of the big waste management initiatives set up here have achieved what they set out to do, so we’re relying on the private sector to a large degree. I’ve been impressed by what can be done when industry steps up to the mark.

PC – As a company, we have further opportunities to drive this forward.

We’re aiming for 100% recycled energy efficient window products in the future.

But sourcing recycled materials can be a problem for us. We can’t make our products without recycled materials and sometimes that’s a challenge. We have to constantly evolve our supply network in order to bring in the materials we need.

EK – I would be keen to see a shift towards businesses and organisations

designing out waste as part of their operational planning strategies, helping them to become more efficient, save money and do their bit for the environment. I appreciate that this will take time and requires the buy in of all staff, from director to doorman, but I believe that it is an achievable goal, and perhaps one that we might be reaching much sooner than expected with shifting expectations from consumers who are growing increasingly concerned about the welfare of the planet.

RS – The focus of our programme is to embed industrial symbiosis within local organisations so that they can become more competitive. I think the productivity we’ve managed to drive gives us a lot of hope for the future.

MM – Maybe a tax break for companies who put recycling of waste front and centre is something we could work towards... if we had a government, of course. It’s about encouraging and helping companies who are doing the right thing.

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Eye on Leadership

Henderson Group...

A Firm Focus On Leadership Excellence

Henderson Retail was shortlisted for the CPID NI Award for Best Learning & Development Initiative this year for the Clinton Leadership Institute Retail Leadership Programme.

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Eye on Leadership Henderson Group, operators of the Spar, Eurospar, Vivo, Vivo Essentials & VivoXtra retail franchises here in Northern Ireland as well as the Henderson Foodservice business, is an organisation which has become something of a role model for leadership development here.

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he Group, with its 3,800 employees, ranks as one of Northern Ireland’s largest private sector employers so it’s fair to say that the Human Resources function is an important one around the company’s headquarters in Mallusk.

Group HR Director Sam Davidson says that the group’s focus on leadership performance is something that has been gathering pace over recent years. Henderson Group works with a number of training providers, but at leadership level, it’s a big supporter of the leadership training provided by Queen’s Management School’s WJ Clinton Leadership Institute.

“We’ve used the Clinton Institute’s leadership programmes for different levels of management in this organisation, but particularly for store managers from throughout our network. We worked alongside the Institute to establish a bespoke leadership programme complete with its own graduation ceremony.

“It’s proved very successful but it’s also proved very popular with our retail managers. Bear in mind that a lot of them can be put off by the prospect of academic learning.

But they’ve been very much at home with the programme that the Clinton Institute put together.

“From our perspective as an organisation, we liked the way

that the Clinton Institute listened to us and worked alongside us throughout the process.”

But Henderson Group’s close links with the WJ Clinton Leadership Institute go further than bespoke leadership programmes for front-line retail managers. The Group has been working with the Riddel Hall team on programmes for established and developing leaders from throughout the Henderson structure.

“We see real benefits in encouraging emerging leaders throughout our business, and in teaching up and coming managers about their personal development and about how they can assess and improve upon their skills, customer-facing and otherwise,” says Sam Davidson.

“The other positive around effective leadership training is that it helps to create a common leadership culture, and that brings diverse areas like HR, sales, logistics and front line retail together. That kind of cohesiveness is very important in a business of this size and scale.

“Like any organisation, we have our own culture and we have our ways of doing things. Sometimes it’s important to look at those differently and to challenge them.”

But Sam Davidson is adamant about one element of the learning experience. “It’s important that our leaders go out and enjoy the learning

Sam Davidson - Henderson Group.

experience. Otherwise, it’s not really going to work for them. But the evidence we’re hearing back is that they do enjoy the programmes,” There’s been plenty of discussion of late about the changing face of the world of work. How employees are seeking and expecting more flexibility and different ways of working.

“It’s not just about remuneration these days, that’s for sure,” says Davidson. “And training plays a crucial role. As the old saying goes, it’s better to train them and see them leave than not train them and see them stay. Employees expect training in this day and age, and they appreciate the portability of that training.”

He’s also complimentary about the tutors and coaches who deliver the programmes at the WJ Clinton Institute. “They are very good, effective coaches who have real business experience behind them.

That counts for a lot,” he says.

Looking to the future, the Henderson Group HR Director says that, on the leadership training front, it’s a case of looking at how leadership education can be refreshed and built upon in the coming years.

As a measure of the scale of the Henderson Group business, Sam Davidson has been in his HR Director role for 15 years, and during that period the headcount at the group has more than doubled in size.

“Our people have to work at the sharp edge of a very complex and demanding business so it’s important that we support them and get the training and education element of their role right. Our partnership with key training providers like the WJ Clinton Institute is crucial to that.”

For further information on the William J Clinton Leadership Institute at Queen’s Management School: T: 028 9097 4394 E:Leadership Institute@qub.ac.uk W: www.leadershipinstitute.co.uk

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Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Business Leaders Forum Business Eye asks a group of business leaders from across the sectors in Northern Ireland to tackle one of the biggest, most important but toughest questions of the moment.

What is the biggest threat to business and the economy in Northern Ireland? The potential No Deal Brexit being touted by new Prime Minister Boris Johnson or the failure of our local political parties to revive the devolved administration here?

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t’s a hard one to call, isn’t it?

Northern Ireland’s business community faces a unique and one would image never to be repeated double whammy.

We’re hurtling towards a potential No Deal Brexit with the deliberate assistance of one of our largest political parties, the DUP, whilst back at home our political leaders (if we can call them that) can barely look at one another let alone talk.

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But there is always hope. The best we can hope for perhaps is that once the Brexit direction becomes clear, and the crippling uncertainty is taken out of the picture, then perhaps our main parties can try to iron out their difficulties and get back to work. There’s no doubt that business here is crying out for local decisions making and local ministers.

In the same way that it’s crying out against a No Deal Brexit…or any kind of Brexit, for that matter.

It’s a pity that our politicians just won’t listen.

But that’s enough of that. Read what some of our key business leaders have to say on the matter…

Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Richard Kennedy Group CEO, Devenish

Aodhรกn Connolly Director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium

Gordon Milligan Chair of the IOD Northern Ireland

Stephen Kelly Chief Executive, Manufacturing NI

Mark Thompson Partner, A&L Goodbody

Darren McDowell Senior Partner, Harbinson Mulholland

Tom Verner Group Managing Director of The Momentum Group

Adrian Doran Head of Corporate Banking for Barclays and Vice-Chair of the CBI in Northern Ireland

Clodagh Hegarty ACCA Chair, Ireland

Adrian Moynihan Head of First Trust Bank

Michael Bell Executive Director, Northern Ireland Food and Drink Association

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Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Richard Kennedy Group CEO, Devenish

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t Devenish, we have been preparing for Brexit since the referendum result was announced, monitoring the situation closely and adapting our plans as events have unfolded.

But while all challenges present opportunity, a no deal Brexit would be the absolute worst-case scenario for the agri-food industry in Northern Ireland.

Thousands of businesses trade across the Irish border every day. Given the highly integrated nature of these cross-border supply chains, the new tariffs, alongside

other barriers that would be imposed in a no deal scenario, represent a serious threat to the sector.

The challenge is magnified when you consider that in Northern Ireland, for most of the Brexit process, we have been without a functioning local Assembly or Executive able to take the necessary decisions and fight our corner.

The silver lining perhaps is that whereas there has been a lack of leadership from local politicians, the Northern Ireland business community has come together like never before

to speak with one voice and stand up for our industry.

As a company, we are looking to the future and have ambitious international growth plans. Now more than ever we need to be flexible – thankfully that is part of our DNA at Devenish.

Perhaps that is an approach our politicians can learn from.

It is vital that business continues to make its voice heard – to make it abundantly clear to the UK Government that we need a deal and to urge the local parties to get back around the table and safeguard the interests of the Northern Ireland economy.

Gordon Milligan Chair of the IOD Northern Ireland

T

here is no doubt that it when it comes to economic uncertainty, the business community in Northern Ireland is currently contending with more than its fair share.

The double salvo of Brexit and the potential that the UK will crash out of the EU without a deal, and the ongoing hiatus at Stormont has created what could almost be described as the perfect storm.

Certainly, the likelihood of a ‘no deal’ Brexit is the most immediate threat to the local economy while the lack of a devolved administration looms ever large – but never forgotten - in the background.

Frankly, failing to secure a deal prior to the UK’s

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departure from the EU remains the worst-case scenario for local businesses and we have continually urged politicians and others in positions of influence to use every tool in their armoury to ensure it is avoided.

With the Department for the Economy predicting as many as 40,000 job losses in a ‘no deal’ scenario, it does not bear any serious consideration.

Brexit is also set to impact some existing and longendured hardships of local businesses, including skills shortages experienced across all sectors.

Plans to introduce a minimum £36,000 salary threshold for visas will cause huge adversity across the

many industries that rely so heavily on migrant labour.

All this without a Northern Ireland Executive championing our cause and working to create conditions locally that could mitigate against the impact of Brexit.

Think of the difference that could be made if, for example, Northern Ireland businesses were able to access money from the Apprenticeship Levy.

Many of our members pay into the fund but are barred from receiving benefits in line with competitors in the rest of the UK. Addressing this and other key issues requires a political solution – and that requires politicians resolving their differences and getting back to work.

Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Darren McDowell Senior Partner, Harbinson Mulholland

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ight now the threat posed by a no deal Brexit and a lack of devolved government have at their heart the same issue, one of uncertainty. Whilst in Northern Ireland the impact of a no deal Brexit on specific sectors such as agri-business provides a potentially huge issue we still have very little clarity on how an exit will occur and the measures that businesses should be taking.

As an independent accountancy practice based in Belfast Harbinson Mulholland works with SMEs across all sectors. These businesses

are the lifeblood of the local economy here. When we sit down with our clients one thing is evident to us, amid the lack of clarity over the last number of years local businesses have simply been getting on with it. The entrepreneurs behind these businesses set them up many years ago often against the backdrop of fierce competition, of restricted access to finance and of technological changes. These challenges were met and overcome with a resolve that I have every faith will apply to whatever the future throws at them.

So I’d speculate that the underlying threat to local businesses remains as it always has been, giving in to the uncertainty that these events create. However, as in business, I think it’s best to focus on areas over which we can have at least some influence and to that end, the biggest threat must reside in a lack of devolved government being present during the Brexit debacle. If the devolved administration was in place at least the voice of NI as a uniquely positioned part of the UK might be heard more clearly as Brexit continues to evolve.

Mark Thompson Partner, A&L Goodbody

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ur clients are telling us that the increasing possibility of a No Deal Brexit is a significant concern for them, and this is the case across every sector in Northern Ireland. It is particularly concerning firms in the agrifood sector, logistics and those exporting to the EU. At A&L Goodbody we have continued to advise on a strong flow of transactions this year. However, whilst some companies have been keen to get their deals done before ‘exit day’ on 31 October, others have, understandably, adopted a more cautionary, ‘wait and see’ approach.

It is the higher value transactions that have been most impacted by

this, an indicator that FDI participants are watching closely before they decide to close out investments.

A pause in deals, that would normally have been completed by now, undoubtedly impacts on the local economy – whether stalling business growth or job creation. Equally, the implications for trading activity in Northern Ireland of a No Deal Brexit, are causing concerns. Whilst some clients are indicating possible benefits from further fluctuations in the pound in terms of their competitiveness, potential EU tariffs could counteract this upside, prolonging uncertainty within our export-driven local economy.

The introduction of tariff

and non-tariff barriers could mean that many businesses in Northern Ireland find it more difficult to export to ROI – a key market for firms here. Forecasts show that imposing such tariffs could cut Northern Irish exports to ROI by up to 11%, while non-tariff barriers could bring a further decline of 19%. This is forcing our local clients to develop strategies around their global competitiveness and export capabilities in other ways. On a practical level this may include training staff on the completion of customs paperwork or more strategically examine deepening and diversifying their export base through increased R&D and innovation.

At ALG, we are busy assisting clients on preparing for the legal changes and business issues that will arise from 31 October – Deal or No Deal – in the months ahead.

Evolving on an almost daily basis as No Deal takes

centre stage, these will affect a range of areas in Northern Ireland, including regulated finance, energy, procurement, employment law and many others.

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Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Aodhán Connolly Director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium

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sking which is worse, a no-deal Brexit or our lack of government in Stormont, is akin to asking whether I would like to be

repeatedly kicked in the groin or punched in the face. Neither is going to be my first choice and both are going to be painful.

Both a no-deal and

the stalemate have had hugely negative effects and both will have long term ramifications. In fact, I would say that both have been exacerbated by the other. A continuous cycle of stagnation, opportunities lost and the growth of challenges.

The biggest tragedy for me in Brexit is that it has been left to Westminster Committees to scrutinise the impact on Northern Ireland of the various leave scenarios. There has been no-one here to ask the hard questions, to require evidence rather than rhetoric and economics rather than

ideology. And without Ministers, we have been left rudderless during the whole period of negotiation and preparation (not that the NICS has not stepped up to the mark, they have!).

But no-one seems to want to get back into Stormont until they know how much of a nuclear fallout they will be dealing with.

Brexit aside, the lack of government at Stormont has meant that we are falling further and further behind our neighbours in GB and Ireland on a range of issues including reform of business rates and the Apprenticeship levy, as well as industrial

strategies. But this about our people too. We face the very real possibility that our shopworkers will have less protection than those in Great Britain because we have no Assembly or Executive to bring in the legislation that will pass in Holyrood and Westminster, and that is simply unacceptable.

On Brexit and the Stormont stagnation, our politicians need to stop the spin and counter spin and look at how both will and are affecting households and families across Northern Ireland, then find solutions that work.

Stephen Kelly Chief Executive, Manufacturing NI

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ithout doubt, the potential of a deliberate No Deal Brexit presents clear and present danger to the economy of Northern Ireland. It is an existential threat to many firms, farmers and families.

Let’s look at the evidence.

The unchallenged report from the Department of the Economy published on 10 July is sobering reading. It is written based on economic and legal analysis and mostly importantly with direct input from businesses who will be impacted by a sudden, reckless exit from the EU. It makes it clear that a ‘no deal’ would have a profound and long-lasting

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impact on NI’s economy and society. The paper provides a summary which includes a sharp increase in unemployment, with “at least 40,000 jobs at risk” and “immediate and severe consequences for both NI’s competitiveness in the allisland economy and NI’s place in the UK internal market”.

So, it is not just about exports, but the ability to trade in domestic and GB markets which some hoped was there to cushion the negative impact of Brexit.

The impact on communities, particularly in border regions, it says is difficult to quantify, but an increase in non-compliance or evasion would change

behaviours and attitudes in communities, which, over time, “will significantly impact on the culture of lawfulness in NI”.

In summary, jobs gone, markets closed off, supply chains fundamentally undermined to the point it is difficult or impossible to service even domestic markets, a free pass for criminality resulting in the death of legitimate businesses… that’s probably too many words to print on the side of the bus we are being thrown under!

It is not too late to stand up, speak up and be counted.

This is an unnecessary disaster which can and must be avoided.

Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Tom Verner Group Managing Director of The Momentum Group

T

he biggest obstacle in our way is the failure of our local political parties to work cohesively together. Whilst most certainly not muting the (very vocal – and rightly so) voices of our local businesses, the lack of a conjoined political voice in the background is putting NI plc on the backfoot.

Our political leaders must explain what their plans are, rather than skirting around questions when challenged by the media and business leaders. In the meantime, Northern Ireland businesses continue to persist and drive forward our agenda.

We are fed up with the uncertainty, the constant lack of focus and the utter disregard

for peoples’ livelihoods.

Companies – large and small – are managing to grow their turnover despite the threat of Brexit.

A No Deal scenario is a harsh one. We’re working with many companies to help them plan future strategies and the general consensus is that the economy will recover, but no one knows when. Coupling this with increased import and export costs makes for a pretty stark outlook.

But, for nearly three years, NI businesses have been taking the bull by the horns to continually develop, promote and evolve their own products and services. This type of mindset and action is what is going to help us mitigate

the risks posed by No Deal.

Rather than buying parts or goods from the EU, we have come across a lot of firms who have taken the initiative to develop their own. That in itself is innovative, an example of how businesses aren’t just waiting around for a deal to be made. These improvements constitute R&D activity, and for the UK to remain competitive in a post-Brexit world, it’s imperative companies make use of the generous tax incentives available to them to compete not only on a European level, but on a global scale.

Our elected representatives think they know better. Nearly three years on and it’s plain to

see they don’t. They need to get on with their jobs in order to let us effectively get on with ours.

Adrian Moynihan Head of First Trust Bank

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ith the Brexit deadline at the end of October fast approaching, a potential ‘No Deal’ exit represents the biggest immediate threat to the business sector and economy in Northern Ireland.

“While clearly a soft Brexit would be the least worrying option for businesses and the economy, the need for clarity is becoming increasingly important, particularly after over two years of huge uncertainty on both Brexit and political fronts. This is where political leadership is urgently required, but

unfortunately has been severely lacking to date.

“The timing and potential scale of a No Deal Brexit, coupled with increasingly challenging global economic conditions, creates a more unstable business environment. In addition, the lack of any meaningful progress in re-establishing a devolved government in Northern Ireland, over two years on at this stage, creates the conditions for somewhat of a ‘perfect storm’.

“The business community however has been resiliently

navigating these conditions over the last number of years and while this will become more challenging over the coming months, we should not underestimate the adaptability and innovative thinking of business owners across Northern Ireland.

This has been proven over many years and many different crises and where there are challenges, there are also opportunities.

That’s why, now more than ever, we must assume the responsibility and accountability for creating our own collective futures.

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Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Michael Bell Executive Director, Northern Ireland Food & Drink Association

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he threat of a no-deal Brexit is currently the biggest challenge facing the agri-food sector, as the consequences will be immediate and potentially catastrophic, whereas the absence of a local assembly will negatively impact our industry, the wider economy and our society over the longer term.

In addition to significant job losses, Brexit has the potential to severely damage the integrity of our food supply chain and damage our reputation as a trusted supplier of quality, innovative food and drink. Brexit is also threatening good relations

with our neighbours and partners, which are crucial if we are to maintain a peaceful society and a positive working relationship with our most important trading partners.

Brexit must be delivered with minimum disruption to prices and minimum disruption to existing trade relationships, otherwise the economy will suffer greatly.

A no-deal outcome must be avoided at all costs and we continue to lobby the UK government on behalf of our members on this crucial issue.

NIFDA is currently travelling to Westminster on a regular basis to ensure that the issues pertinent to our local food and

drink industry are heard. It is extremely unfortunate that we do not have a functioning local government working together to get the best solution for Northern Ireland.

The inability of our local political parties to reform the assembly is a longerterm strategic threat to the economic prosperity and stability of Northern Ireland.

The lack of a local assembly is also stifling innovation and impeding further investment in industry. Now, more than ever, we need the Executive to fight our corner – to help our vibrant food industry to flourish throughout Brexit and beyond.

Adrian Doran Head of Corporate Banking for Barclays and Vice-Chair of the CBI in Northern Ireland

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his is a tough question – both Brexit and Stormont are hugely important issues causing lots of uncertainty and undoubtedly weighing on consumer and business confidence.

The CBI recently produced an excellent piece of research that estimates the lack of a functioning Executive is costing £425m per annum in lost economic output – that represents a massive loss to our economy. The CBI’s report details 30 initiatives that are currently stalled, including important infrastructure projects such as the York Street Interchange, a longterm funding solution for NI Water and the NI Housing

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Executive (both of which will cost more to fix the longer we wait), the launch of the NI Industrial Strategy, as well as the major reform of our health and education systems (the latter badly needed to address our skills deficit).

However, my personal belief is that this vacuum of decision-making simply cannot be allowed to continue, and at some stage this backlog of decisions will be addressed, whether by a re-formed Stormont or via Direct Rule. The important point is that I believe we will get there eventually, though undoubtedly not as quickly as the business community would like.

The difference with

Brexit is that it represents a permanent change to our trading arrangements with the EU, which together with all the other issues it entails (ie the Irish border question; freedom of movement etc) could cause a fundamental change to our economy.

The Civil Service have estimated a hard Brexit puts 40,000 jobs at risk, which is a truly catastrophic number in the context of our small regional economy.

Everything I hear from business owners, whether corporate clients in Barclays or CBI members right across Northern Ireland, points to a hard Brexit as being the most critical issue at the top of people’s minds right now.

Eye on Business Leaders Forum

Clodagh Hegarty ACCA Chair, Ireland

A

s the global body for professional accountants, supporting 12,000 members throughout the island of Ireland and 219,000 members across the world, ACCA has a deep-rooted understanding of the inter dependent economic relationships between Northern Ireland, Ireland the UK and the EU. Our members in practice, in industry and within the public sector throughout Northern Ireland are supporting businesses and organisations, on a daily basis, as they seek to develop and grow against the backdrop of a very unique set of political circumstances.

We recently wrote to the Prime Minister Boris Johnson to communicate the views of our members throughout the UK and the challenges that they face within the Brexit process. Our ask of him was for continued and seamless trade in services, as well as goods, which are so vital to the economy and that all regions of the UK continue to welcome those wishing to work or study here, helping to close the skills gap and maintain global competitiveness.

Nowhere is that ask more important, than

here in Northern Ireland.

As someone who lives and works in the North West, I know how the local economy and in particular the border region is hugely dependent on dynamic cross border industry which is supported by a number of specific revenue generating sectors. These sectors are being driven by some of the most talented and skilled young people anywhere in the EU, with many having

representatives making local decisions that are in the best interests of local people. A fully functioning devolved administration can agree and deliver a Programme for Government that will build infrastructure, enhance the education system and implement policies that will support future growth, attract inward investment, create jobs and importantly mitigate challenges within the Brexit process.

“Brexit uncertainty remains a downside risk. Only with renewed certainty on both fronts can businesses and the next generation of entrepreneurs thrive, and our economic prospects grow.� the capability of starting their own businesses and creating future employment.

As we approach the Brexit deadline of 31st October, all those with influence must ensure the local economy and our skilled talent are not a casualty of that process.

It is for these reasons, that we need a functioning Executive in place in Northern Ireland now, with locally elected

A no deal Brexit within the vacuum of political leadership locally is a risk to the local economy; as ACCA’s recent Global Economic Conditions Survey says, Brexit uncertainty remains a downside risk. Only with renewed certainty on both fronts can businesses and the next generation of entrepreneurs thrive, and our economic prospects grow.

37

Eye on Leisure Development

Gareth Murphy & We Are Vertigo...

The Sky’s The Limit

It might have come as a surprise to Gareth Murphy that he was named Northern Ireland’s Tourism Entrepreneur of the Year at the NI Tourism Awards staged in Armagh earlier this summer, but it didn’t come as a surprise to those who watch the industry and its growth.

Gareth Murphy with his wife and business partner Lorna.

38

Eye on Leisure Development

M

urphy isn’t a high-profile hotelier or a frontfacing tourism industry player. But, alongside his wife and business partner Lorna, he’s invested heavily in the kind of leisure products that Northern Ireland needs to help entertain its blooming tourist numbers.

We Are Vertigo’s original centre at Newtownbreda in South Belfast, complete with ski slope, climbing walls and a huge 30,000 sq.ft inflatable play park, opened its doors back in 2013 and brought something new and fresh to the leisure offering here in Northern Ireland.

Five years later, Murphy’s company took the even bolder step of bringing indoor skydiving to these shores for the first time, taking over a vast former Harland & Wolff building across the road from Titanic Belfast to house the brand new attraction. Last year, a fullscale Ninja Master Course opened at the same venue and there is more to come on the Titanic site.

From a standing start, the company now employs some 200 people across its two sites in Belfast, and it continues to grow.

So how did it all start? Gareth Murphy was an executive in the fast-paced telecommunications sector, working for Cable & Wireless back in the day before heading to London where he set up his own turnaround consultancy.

But the tragic death of his wife back in 2010 left him as the single parent to two boys and, as any parent will testify, entertainment is an integral part of the parental brief.

“It struck me back then that Northern Ireland didn’t have a whole lot to offer. You can only go the cinema so many times.....! So it started me thinking about how the leisure sector could be improved and that involved a spot of thinking outside the box,” he says.

So he set about learning as much as he could about the leisure business, and learning it on an international basis. “I went to as many trade shows and exhibitions as I could and I travelled to other countries, particularly the US, to see how they did things and what they had on offer.”

The result was the We Are Vertigo centre at Newtownbreda, a venue with a couple of obvious attractions for Northern Ireland consumers.

Firstly, it was all indoors and away from our notorious elements.

Secondly, it was innovative and it was different. And it soon had the customers flocking through its doors.....from ski aficionados preparing for their trips to the real

slopes through to birthday party groups and parents with bored kids.

“Being innovative is what we’re all about,” says Gareth Murphy. “It’s how we set up this company it’s how we’ve grown it and it’s how we’re going to continue to grow it.”

There’s little doubt that this region’s tourism growth has helped to fuel growth at We Are Vertigo. Drive into We Are Vertigo’s car park at its Titanic centre any day of the week and a healthy proportion of the car registration numbers will be from the Republic.

“And we’re also getting visitors here from a lot further afield than that, people who come to Northern Ireland and want to do something a bit different, a bit more energetic, while they’re visiting Belfast.

We’re perfectly located right next door to Titanic, after all.”

Outside of tourists, the Titanic centre is popular with business groups – whether after-work social outings or team building exercises.

And the same applies to stag parties, groups of friends, extended families...and so the list goes on.

None of this has come cheaply, of course. Gareth Murphy hesitates before he puts a round figure of £5 million on the total investment across the two Belfast centres.

But the investment isn’t going to stop there. The huge 90,000 sq.ft former shipyard store building is set to be transformed even further. What visitors to the indoor skydiving and ninja

warrior course don’t see behind closed doors is the fact that there’s another half to the vast structure that has yet to be filled.

A further 25% of the building is due to taken up in the coming autumn when a brand new Inflatapark activity opens for all ages from kids up to corporate groups. The final section of the building requires a spot of structural work to the roof before what goes into that space can be planned and finalised.

In fact, We Are Vertigo has plans in place to transform the entire building – which still looks much the same as it did under H&W’s ownership – into a striking, black-painted part of the Titanic Quarter landscape.

“The whole building has been filled in our heads for quite some time,” says Gareth Murphy. “Space is what it’s all about in this business and we’re fortunate to have a building of this size to play with.”

He believes that Titanic Quarter still needs more facilities and more attractions to make sure that visitors and locals alike are entertained... and attracted back.

But the We Are Vertigo boss is happy with where the company sits. “We’ve built up a great brand, we’ve got brilliant people working for us, we’ve a strong reputation and we can continue to be innovative.

“We’ll certainly not be standing still.”

39

Eye on Finance

Bringing Banking To You Recent research from The Financial Conduct Authority shows a clear link between financial wellbeing and employee productivity, with money concerns having a serious effect on employee mental, physical and social wellbeing, as Lynsey Hughes, Head of Premier and Workplace Banking at First Trust Bank explains.

T

his issue is all the more prevalent in Northern Ireland which has the highest levels of over-indebtedness across the UK (20%), compared with a UK average of 15%.

Some employers and banks however are tackling this problem head on, adopting a range of solutions including financial education and workplace banking support.

Lynsey, “and through Workplace Banking, we can help provide the support and guidance to do so.”

Lynsey added that it’s as much about education as it is practical services. She explains, “by establishing a relationship at an early stage in a customer’s financial life journey, we are well placed to offer support and help people best understand and manage their finances. Our

“In the modern workplace, employee well-being is at the forefront of employer’s minds. Financial education can play a part in shaping internal workplace culture .”

Lynsey explains that its Workplace Banking offering is designed to enhance convenience for busy employers and employees, at a time and place that suits them. “Our Workplace Banking proposition was developed to help make life easier for customers.

We have spent a lot of time researching their preferences and priorities so that we can align our offering to meet their needs. It’s an innovative approach that quite literally brings the bank and its services to you.”

According to the research, Northern Ireland has the lowest proportion of savers in the UK. Around two-thirds of people (67%) admitted they had either no cash savings at all, or less than £5,000. “With the current political and economic landscape, we want to help customers to futureproof their finances” says

40

dedicated Relationship Team provide help and advice on areas including account opening, how to budget, regular saving options, planning for the future, how to improve a credit score and becoming mortgage ready.”

means employees can make an appointment at a convenient time to talk with our team. For example, a particularly stressful time in a person’s life is when they are building or buying their first home, our relationship managers can help alleviate the stress of the process with expert mortgage support, guiding you through the process – even when you are at work.”

“With the current political and economic landscape, we want to help customers to futureproof their finances, and through Workplace Banking, we can help provide the support and guidance to do so.”

“Whether it’s a loan to buy a car, home improvements or saving for a rainy day, we all have concerns in regard to finances. Many people struggle to get to the bank during the working day, so our service

Through Workplace Banking, First Trust Bank aims to add value to its business customers as well as their employees. Lynsey says, “In the modern workplace, employee well-being is at the forefront of employer’s minds.

Financial education and financial fitness therefore can play a part in shaping internal workplace culture to help alleviate the additional stress worrying about finances can cause. Working in partnership with business customers, our team can offer sessions on key topics such as budgeting, mortgage readiness, pensions, wealth management and fraud awareness.”

“Our purpose is to back customers to achieve their dreams and ambitions. We adopt a partnership approach with our customers – and commit to getting to know their strategy, values and longer-term objectives. This approach means we can provide the financial support and services that matter day-to-day and into the future.”

To find out more about Workplace Banking contact lynsey.x.hughes@ aib.ie or joanne.t.earley@aib.ie.

50

Technology Fast 50 2019 IRELAND

Eye on Accountancy

GMcG Chartered Accountants – Defining Success And Planning For The Future A growing client base along with significant investments in people, systems and strategy are just some of the indicators that point to GMcG as a firm going in the right direction. With almost 100 employees across three locations in Belfast, Lisburn and Portadown, GMcG continues to grow and establish itself as one of Northern Ireland’s leading independent accountancy practices.

Susan Dunlop, Director, GMcG Chartered Accountants

“O

ur success is about people, building and growing relationships, innovation and developing the next generation”.

According to Susan Dunlop, that’s a well refined mantra at GMcG. Susan is one of seven Directors at GMcG, having joined the firm more than 20 years ago and who now heads up the firm’s Audit and Business Advisory Services department.

A big part of the firm’s success is its commitment to investing in client relationships and to fully understanding the opportunities and issues facing each business. Susan adds: “Clients demand a level of expertise and service that they can rely on, especially when many are experiencing challenging trading conditions amidst our current economic and political climates.

42

What is important is that GMcG continues to add value, helping our clients to strategically plan, explore opportunities and adapt to change, however that should present itself.”

As an independent Accountancy firm, many of GMcG’s key strengths lie in its ability to get things done, through local decision making, management and accessibility of its people. As explained by Susan: “Business owners know they can lift the phone and speak to any of our management team, at any time of the day. For us, that’s just part of our client service, but our clients appreciate it and they know it can make a huge difference to getting an issue resolved quickly and effectively.”

As businesses evolve through different circumstances and with different requirements, GMcG’s Directors recognise the importance

of being positioned as the complete business advisor and having the expertise, understanding and experience to deliver. Susan adds: “We need to be one step ahead, providing the right expertise at the right time. GMcG can offer this expertise through our service lines which include Audit and Business Advisory, Tax, Forensic Accounting and Investigation, Corporate Finance and GMcG Digital.”

Outside of the Northern Ireland market, GMcG is also able to extend its reach across international business, thanks to its membership of The International Accounting Group (TIAG ®).

Lyn Canning Hagan, who heads up GMcG’s Tax Services and is one of the firm’s TIAG liaison Directors, explains: “TIAG, together with its sister alliance TAGLaw, provides GMcG with credible sources of tax and

legal expertise across more than 70 countries worldwide. This can be hugely beneficial to businesses contemplating international markets or operations. The membership is working particularly well for GMcG, with many of our clients now benefiting from expertise across numerous international jurisdictions.”

Businesses of all sizes and from virtually all sectors benefit from GMcG’s experience and commercially focussed expertise and advice. In working with SMEs and growing businesses, it’s very much a case of ‘been there, done that’ for GMcG, having undergone restructuring, appointed new Directors, undertaken significant investment, experienced dynamic growth and transitioned seamless succession planning.

GMcG draws on this experience to make a real difference when helping shape the plans of growing businesses. Susan Dunlop explains: “We understand many of the challenges and opportunities facing SME clients with real aspirations or plans for business development; we have that insight and experience that has really proved valuable in advising many of these clients.”

The firm today prides itself on being profiled as a modern and progressive firm with a strong focus on developing the next generation of its service team. A younger generation of professional advisors are moving up the ranks in the firm, with other new faces joining the expanding management team.

The future looks bright for GMcG.

For more on GMcG’s full range of services, contact Susan Dunlop on dunlops@gmcgca.com or visit www.gmcgca.com

Expertise that makes a difference

Whether it’s a large corporate, sole trader or not-for-proft organisation, we have the knowledge and experience to bring you expertise that can really make a difference.

For more information on our range of services, please contact your nearest GMcG office or visit gmcgca.com

Eye on News

Northern Ireland Companies Committed To Further Investment In Ecommerce The first Northern Ireland-wide eCommerce survey has revealed that new investment within eCommerce is becoming increasingly important for business in Northern Ireland.

U

ndertaken by Flint Studios in partnership with corporate law firm A&L Goodbody, the survey was completed by organisations from various sectors including Wholesale and Retail, Construction, Computers and Electronics, Lifestyle and Home, and Fashion and Beauty.

Jeremy Biggerstaff, Managing Director at Flint Studios, a Belfastbased web solutions agency which specialises in resultsdriven web design, development and digital marketing, said: “With just over 260 responses to the survey, the results reflect the opinions of businesses of varying sizes across a range of industries.

“This is the first time the current state of the eCommerce industry has been looked at in depth and the findings will assist those already working within the sector and those looking to incorporate online selling into their business strategy in the near future.

“With consumer behaviour continuing to focus on online buying, it’s really important for both b2c and b2b companies to move with the market and be enabled to sell their products and services online where their customers are. It’s therefore really encouraging to see the level of investment and planning to date in eCommerce solutions. It also shows however that there is plenty of potential for growth for companies who are not already online.”

Additional key findings from the survey include: Northern Ireland eCommerce is

44

Mark Thompson, Corporate Partner at A&L Goodbody with Jeremy Biggerstaff, Managing Director at Flint Studios.

overly reliant on Europe with sales at 96% overall selling mainly into the EU. North America, Australia and Asia deliver some sales to area at 25.24%, 20.39% and 16.5% of online traders respectively 30.1% of respondents have been operating within eCommerce for over nine years with almost 50% having operated within the sector for less than four years Time commitment; investment required; and perceived knowledge deficit were identified as the three biggest barriers to eCommerce growth in Northern Ireland Future plans for investment in eCommerce are dominated by new marketing tactics, web design & development and data analytics The survey also identified that whilst there are a number of established players operating within eCommerce in Northern Ireland, it is still a growing sector with 17.48% utilising eCommerce for less than one year.

“Interestingly, many respondents noted the emergence of data analytics as a key tool to be invested in to advance their eCommerce strategy. This is positive to see local

companies being smart with the IT data they hold in relation to customer journey, behaviour and preference.

“Whilst online security remained the biggest concern for entrants hoping to go online with over 47% of respondents believing this was a potential threat to their organisations, this dropped significantly with companies actually online.”

Mark Thompson, Corporate Partner at A&L Goodbody, said: “The findings of this survey shine a light on the local dynamics of what is an increasingly competitive online landscape in Northern Ireland, providing useful context for those operating in the eCommerce space around how their behaviour compares to that of their peers.

“Whilst eCommerce can bring a wealth of opportunities for local companies wishing to sell their products or services online, it can also expose them to some risks. As an international law firm working closely with multi-national corporations, both at home and abroad, we regularly encounter phishing cases, data breaches, fraud and even hacking, for example.

“By seeking the appropriate

legal and technical expertise and implementing a few simple steps, however, companies can mitigate against these risks – enabling them to concentrate on maximising the many benefits that eCommerce can bring their businesses.”

Mr Biggerstaff added: “The survey revealed that a lot of local companies are operating bespoke eCommerce solutions rather than established platforms such as Magento or Umbraco which are very advanced in terms of features and more suitable for a wide range of industries. This was surprising given how expensive bespoke solutions can be in comparison, especially in the longer term.

“50% of respondents said they were satisfied with the performance of their eCommerce platform which is good but there’s definitely room for improvement. As a supplier of eCommerce solutions, whether that be using existing platforms or with a bespoke solution, the survey has painted a great picture of the industry which will allow us to develop our offering and ensure the market knows that we can help with the gaps in knowledge and expertise.”

Eye

onprofit 200

200 Sponsored by

Information supplied by

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Eye on Profit200

Ambitious Profit 200 Companies Thriving Despite Brexit Threat

By Shaun McAnee, Managing Director of Corporate & Business Banking at Danske Bank.

The annual Business Eye Profit 200 list of the most profitable companies in Northern Ireland is a keenly awaited barometer of private sector performance.

I

t is my privilege to congratulate the great companies who have made it on to the 2019 list in what we must acknowledge has been a challenging year for some sectors of our economy.

Danske Bank is forecasting that the Northern Ireland economy will grow by 1 per cent in 2019, with the rate of growth picking up to 1.3 per cent in 2020. But this is based on the assumption that a no-deal Brexit is avoided.

We, alongside the overwhelming majority of the business community, remain resolute in our view that a no-deal Brexit must be avoided.

The companies represented in the Profit 200 come from across the spectrum of local business – from perennial linchpins of the Northern Ireland economy like agri-food, construction, energy and manufacturing, to knowledge economy sectors such as technology, healthcare and pharmaceuticals. The staff and management from all the companies represented should be commended for their contributions to success.

Rather than waiting for Brexit to be resolved, or for the long absent Stormont Executive to get back up and running, these companies are getting on with business. Many of

46

the customers I have visited over the past year continue to plan for expansion, the creation of jobs and the winning of new contracts, while others are extending facilities with us to prepare for whatever challenges Brexit brings.

As you would expect, some familiar names are prominent on the Profit 200. Danske Bank customers such as Belfast Harbour, SHS Group, Almac, Norbrook Laboratories, Henderson Group and Andras House continue to lead the way in their respective industries.

This year we’ve seen Andras House get planning permission for a £6.6m hotel in Portrush, Belfast Harbour announce plans for multimillion-pound cruise facility and film studio investments, and Henderson Group commit £26m to its company-owned stores.

Our customers in the technology space – such as Novosco and Neueda – also continue to grow, which is encouraging in an increasingly digital world. Tech is a sector we are investing in, in particular through our Catalyst Belfast Fintech Hub – a dedicated start-up co-working space in our Donegall Square headquarters, run in partnership with Catalyst.

The Hub currently accommodates 75 business members, and interest is growing as the centre’s reputation becomes more established. It is also a community space and we estimate that over 5,000 people have attended events in it since it opened.

The Catalyst Belfast Fintech Hub is just one of many ways

that Danske Bank is making a positive impact on society, working alongside our various community partners across Northern Ireland.

In May we were incredibly proud to be named Northern Ireland’s Responsible Company of the Year

by Business in the Community.

Responsibility is embedded at the heart of our business strategy, which means focusing our time and efforts on where we can make positive contributions to society through a wide range of initiatives and partnerships.

We are grateful for the contribution our societal partners have made in helping us achieve our goals in the last year and also to the dedication of our colleagues, who have demonstrated true commitment to making more possible for our customers, colleagues, partners and for society, every day.

Danske employees are given a day each year for voluntary work with a number of societal partners that include our charity partner Action Mental Health, as well as:

Young Enterprise, Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful, Ulster Wildlife and Business in the Community.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion is also an increasingly important part of our responsible business agenda.

We have established a Danske Gender Diversity Network, a Danske Rainbow Network and most recently we have introduced Enable – our Danske Disability Network. Each network is sponsored by a member of our Executive committee and has its own committee comprising of volunteer ambassadors from across the business.

At Danske Bank we strongly believe that the way we do business, is as important as the business we do. It is an ethos which we know is shared by many of the successful businesses on this list.

I remain confident that business leaders in Northern Ireland will rise to whatever challenges might lie ahead and will respond with the same level determination, innovation and creativity that earned them a place on this year’s Profit 200.

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Eye on Profit200

Information supplied by

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

1

Northern Ireland Water Ltd

31/03/18

94,478

431,772

102,912

422,412

1302

2

Danske Bank

31/12/18

88,790

265,196

147,477

250,653

1282

3

NI Electricity Networks Ltd

31/12/18

68,000

275,800

52,800

261,100

1203

4

Moy Park Ltd

31/12/17

64,531

1,506,485

59,709

1,400,717

9839

5

Ulster Bank Ltd

31/12/18

53,000

330,000

61,000

277,000

1798

6

W.& R. Barnett, Ltd

31/09/18

51,615

1,231,621

46,833

1,113,399

1567

7

Schrader Electronics Ltd

31/12/17

50,025

333,566

56,322

339,839

1387

8

Terex GB Ltd

31/12/17

45,897

320,072

28,272

394,982

1623

9

Norbrook Holdings Ltd

03/08/18

45,056

275,052

49,238

271,961

1985

10

Belfast Harbour

31/12/18

38,623

68,786

65,769

61,887

-

11

ENCIRC Ltd

31/12/17

36,613

285,582

-3,102

265,890

1207

12

Power NI

31/03/18

34,400

461,400

30,900

445,800

289

13

SHS Group Ltd

29/12/17

24,449

545,698

24,813

467,715

878

14

N.I.I.B. Group Ltd

31/12/18

22,401

39,443

23,689

33,959

121

15

Golden Vale NI Ltd

31/12/17

20,928

-

3,436

-

-

16

John Henderson (Holdings) Ltd

31/12/17

20,040

759,066

20,346

699,321

3387

17

LCC Group Ltd

30/09/18

18,752

990,998

19,863

852,807

256

18

Qubis Ltd

31/07/18

18,302

1,245

25,537

1,191

-

19

Allstate NI Ltd

31/12/17

18,123

113,568

-5,809

76,758

2057

20

FP McCann Group Ltd

31/12/18

17,899

255,025

19,471

215,799

1592 47

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Eye on Profit200

Information supplied by

48

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

21

McAleer & Rushe UK Ltd

31/12/18

16,777

395,167

13,386

334,073

332

22

First Derivatives Plc

28/02/19

16,677

217,351

12,097

186,042

2315

23

T.G. Eakin Ltd

31/03/18

16,078

31,803

18,096

31,129

73

24

Gardrum Holdings Ltd

31/12/17

15,811

100,169

13,700

78,424

3123

25

Clearway Holdings Ltd

31/12/17

15,796

118,914

8,920

81,226

168

26

Dragonglass Belfast Hilton Ltd

31/12/17

15,386

2,935

8,420

1,506

162

27

Severfield (NI) Ltd

31/03/18

14,811

89,849

11,032

77,540

302

28

Denvir Holdings Ltd

30/06/18

14,276

51,241

7,659

52,118

776

29

Agnew Group

31/12/17

13,325

389,284

12,162

470,085

1020

30

Montupet UK Ltd

31/12/17

12,693

87,267

13,283

78,866

569

31

Bemis Healthcare Packaging Ltd

31/12/18

12,659

64,110

10,773

57,929

282

32

Capitia Managed IT Ltd

31/12/17

12,103

101,890

16,564

109,622

651

33

G E Grid Solutions Ltd

31/12/17

11,848

72,854

16,659

82,391

253

34

Fane Valley Ltd

30/09/18

11,573

135,792

8,967

314,013

365

35

Seagate Tech Ireland Ltd

29/06/18

11,543

140,461

8,938

99,887

1329

36

Ulster Carpet Mills (Holdings) Ltd

31/03/18

10,702

76,284

6,683

68,403

666

37

Thompson Areo Seating Ltd

31/12/17

10,665

105,087

4,525

52,111

543

38

Dale Farm Co-op Ltd

31/03/18

10,101

482,775

7,916

388,920

1094

39

Andor Technology Ltd

31/03/18

9,592

63,587

12,678

69,155

282

40

Tobermore Concrete Products Ltd

30/04/18

9,138

42,949

9,968

37,015

273

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Eye on Profit200

Information supplied by

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

41

Progressive Building Society Ltd

31/12/18

9,024

43,109

10,688

43,709

182

42

McCloskey International Ltd

30/09/18

8,860

111,847

2,681

69,109

330

43

Deka Energy (Firmus)

31/12/17

8,594

93,272

10,732

96,454

101

44

Heron Bros Ltd

28/02/18

8,552

74,586

12,798

94,819

248

45

John Graham Hlgs Ltd

31/03/19

8,188

735,008

13,117

767,636

2161

46

B.H.C. Ltd

31/03/19

8,155

67,374

4,435

50,286

393

47

Coca-Cola HBC Northern Ireland Ltd

31/12/17

8,087

189,169

4,181

176,562

434

48

Chain Reaction Cycles Ltd

31/12/17

8,069

127,485

5,703

167,935

384

49

Liberty Infotech Ltd

31/12/17

7,932

45,230

7,021

39,728

521

50

MJM Marine Ltd

31/12/17

7,831

49,525

7,447

61,503

230

51

Kilwaughter Holdings Ltd

30/04/18

7,744

33,655

9,627

32,514

157

52

Nicobrand Ltd

31/12/18

7,738

15,329

5,481

11,981

29

53

Heartshine Ltd

31/12/17

7,706

28,849

5,126

16,536

158

54

Howen UK Ltd

31/12/17

7,699

54,368

7,965

52,126

177

55

Northstone NI Ltd

31/12/18

7,510

374,546

-231

375,226

1388

56

Dunbia Ltd

31/12/17

7,208

676,626

11,779

768,259

4,869

57

Lough Erne Invest. Ltd

27/12/17

7,135

65,426

6,771

43,128

149

58

Charles Hurst Ltd

31/12/17

7,028

478,985

7,726

455,954

809

59

Mantlin Ltd

31/12/18

7,006

16,671

5,250

15,982

2

60

Andras House Ltd

30/04/18

6,998

23,555

3,213

20,075

248 49

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Information supplied by

50

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

61

Mullti Packaging Solutions Belfast Ltd

30/09/18

6,986

26,703

9,866

31,818

162

62

The Old Bushmills Distillery Co Ltd

31/12/17

6,904

31,610

7,101

27,834

110

63

SSE Airtricty Energy Ltd

31/03/18

6,876

205,571

17,696

206,418

98

64

Kilmona Group Ltd

30/06/18

6,850

29,695

13,642

13,830

301

65

UTV Ltd

31/12/17

6,810

29,338

-17,577

32,955

126

66

McLaughlin & Harvey Ltd

31/12/18

6,701

233,853

4,124

267,717

504

67

Geda Construction LLP

31/12/17

6,572

35,383

6,188

31,355

-

68

CDE Global Ltd

31/12/17

6,546

61,932

5,299

53,381

236

69

Harry Corry Ltd

28/02/18

6,459

46,936

4,008

44,369

675

70

Whitemountain Quarries Ltd

31/12/18

6,438

76,565

5,533

63,188

239

71

CB SME Ltd

30/06/18

6,392

37,808

5,713

36,372

89

72

Springvale EPS Ltd

30/06/18

6,295

32,590

5,517

31,700

120

73

Tennetts NI Ltd

28/02/18

6,246

50,299

7,035

55,487

109

74

Belfast International Airport Ltd

31/12/17

6,243

41,000

611

34,797

201

75

Westland Horticulture Ltd

31/08/18

6,205

132,407

5,011

130,512

606

76

Titanic Property Dev. Ltd

31/12/17

6,176

35,375

10,471

10,400

15

77

Mac - Interiors Ltd

31/12/17

6,098

94,724

3,387

56,553

83

78

Omnoplex Holdings

31/10/18

6,033

20,330

3,791

16,725

189

79

SDC Trailers Ltd

31/12/17

6,002

122,205

10,552

189,084

659

80

Wrightbus Group Ltd

31/12/17

5,020

181,329

6,087

214,605

1156

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Information supplied by

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

81

N & R Gordon Ltd

30/04/18

5,883

86,940

5,166

81,333

831

82

BA Kitchen Components Ltd

31/03/18

5,707

27,839

4,198

29,304

230

83

Lynn’s Country Foods Ltd

01/09/18

5,500

77,985

4,044

61,126

444

84

Decora Blind Systems Ltd

31/12/17

5,430

69,684

3,954

58,827

771

85

Huhtamaki (Lurgan) Ltd

31/12/17

5,238

36,001

5,062

33,325

228

86

Seopa Ltd

28/02/18

5,132

14,603

4,227

12,791

48

87

Premier Electrics Ltd

31/03/18

4,859

42,855

3,628

41,760

61

88

DCC Energy Ltd

31/03/18

4,846

169,674

2,876

150,240

152

89

River Ridge Recycling (P’Down) Ltd

30/06/18

4,479

49,869

4,004

34,690

286

90

Haldane Shields Ltd

31/12/17

4,436

111,743

4,034

93,442

541

91

Kingspan Water & Energy Ltd

31/12/17

4,435

100,488

6,142

98,081

715

92

Ballyvessey Holdings Ltd

30/09/18

4,432

620,185

4,412

609,592

2528

93

Western Building Systems Ltd

30/04/18

4,320

34,000

4,151

37,225

54

94

Tullymore House Ltd

31/10/18

4,223

24,125

7,041

22,288

526

95

Eos IT Mang. Ltd

30/06/18

4,116

30,772

1,288

16,623

99

96

Metal Technology Ltd

31/12/17

4,029

18,529

3,803

16,898

82

97

Calor Gas Northern Ireland Ltd

31/12/17

4,005

28,004

5,134

26,413

77

98

Cobo Ltd

31/10/18

3,971

9,565

4,118

9,683

5

99

Foyle Food Group Ltd

31/12/17

3,953

351,998

3,469

306,103

1194

100 Elite Electronic Systsms Ltd

31/03/18

3,876

22,564

2,549

18,599

188 51

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Information supplied by

52

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

101 Regen Waste Ltd

31/12/17

3,823

26,753

4,291

23,109

172

102 Lowe Refrigeration

31/08/18

3,799

25,980

2,978

24,041

141

103 Uni-Trunk Holdings Ltd

31/12/17

3,684

36,033

4,427

34,899

198

104 Calvert Office Equipment Ltd

31/08/18

3,681

11,261

3,777

11,046

54

105 Charles Tennant and Company Ltd

31/12/17

3,526

46,492

2,960

33,070

77

106 Sisk Healthcare (UK) Ltd

30/12/17

3,501

25,554

3,575

23,730

58

107 Controlled Electronic Mgmt Systems

30/09/17

3,487

20,534

3,443

20,847

195

108 K Holdings (NI) Ltd

31/03/17

3,476

14,019

3,438

12,040

119

109 Cranswick (Ballymena)

31/03/18

3,454

92,725

2,900

63,907

260

110 Valpar Mirco Matic Ltd

30/04/18

3,386

17,951

3,425

17,917

92

111 Ballygarvey Eggs

30/09/18

3,325

26,808

2,960

23,274

60

112 Huhtamaki Foodservice Delta Ltd

31/12/17

3,310

50,335

4,409

72,872

334

113 Ducales Capital (Group) Ltd

30/09/18

3,289

8,401

3,965

7,736

67

114 Larne Harbour Ltd

31/12/17

3,233

5,058

2,875

4,760

26

115 Munster Simms Engineering Ltd

31/12/17

3,221

19,992

2,812

17,374

182

116 Mills Contracts

30/09/18

3,218

23,722

3,276

25,321

104

117 Hastings Hotels Group Ltd

31/10/18

3,196

41,185

5,236

39,633

1244

118 Walter Watson Ltd

31/12/18

3,182

55,787

4,035

51,581

238

119 Skea Egg Farms

31/12/17

3,168

66,724

2,993

63,271

136

120 Tracey Concrete Ltd

31/03/18

3,164

19,454

1,938

12,595

127

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Information supplied by

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

121 Diageo Northern Ireland Ltd

30/06/18

3,116

133,356

2,088

122,346

119

122 Germinal Holdings Ltd

30/06/18

3,054

26,231

2,765

26,365

99

123 Woodsie Logistics Group Ltd

31/03/18

3,000

64,407

3,987

61,703

483

124 Diageo Global Supply IBC Ltd

30/06/18

2,993

61,376

3,480

72,857

143

125 James E. McCabe Ltd

31/12/17

2,924

94,795

2,546

92,672

572

126 Dennison Commercials Ltd

31/12/17

2,914

55,077

3,048

52,220

207

127 BSG Civil Engineering Ltd

31/12/17

2,904

29,304

4,611

30,502

53

128 Balloo Hire Centre Ltd

31/03/18

2,883

11,599

2,715

9,261

97

129 C.J. Upton & Sons Ltd

31/12/17

2,763

69,479

4,380

52,108

113

130 Delwyn Enterprises Ltd

31/08/18

2,758

11,225

2,202

10,813

93

131 Lynas Foodservice Ltd *

31/10/17

2,742

131,550

2,743

115,909

490

132 Castle Enterprises

31/03/18

2,699

17,570

3,081

18,215

99

133 Wilson’s Auctions Ltd

31/03/18

2,694

28,137

2,577

24,474

356

134 Avondale Foods (Craigavon) Ltd

31/03/18

2,660

51,480

4,591

50,718

443

135 Maxol Oil Ltd

31/12/17

2,660

186,508

2,026

164,878

15

136 Coonen By Design Ltd

01/12/17

2,650

59,722

6,176

73,762

150

137 Downtown Radio Ltd

31/12/17

2,630

8,602

2,532

8,168

29

138 SSE Airtricity Gas Ltd

31/03/18

2,596

99,801

6,109

85,782

62

139 Conexpo (NI) Ltd

31/12/17

2,459

21,876

233

17,522

36

140 Market Resource Partners

28/02/18

2,425

12,273

3,061

11,860

199

* now re-registered as a non-limited company

No of employees

53

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Information supplied by

Company Name

54

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

141 Trade Muldings Ltd

31/03/18

2,313

20,590

2,413

18,305

159

142 Murray, Sons & Company, Ltd

31/12/17

2,278

2,260

2,466

2,260

-

143 Felix O’Hare & Company Ltd

31/03/18

2,272

48,619

1,760

47,877

135

144 Turkington Holdco

30/12/18

2,247

21,960

817

26,622

81

145 Lagan Homes Ltd

31/12/17

2,243

-

4,035

6,789

-

146 Uni-Trunk Ltd

31/12/17

2,226

25,739

2,878

23,532

126

147 Greiner Packaging Ltd

31/12/17

2,142

40,149

2,778

34,626

235

148 Drinks Inc. Ltd

31/03/18

2,133

66,285

3,257

62,711

119

149 D. Shannon Stewart Ltd

30/04/18

3,417

86,940

4,809

81,334

831

150 Gilbert-Ash Ltd

31/12/17

2,125

165,547

1,416

148,004

174

151 Moyola Precision Engineering Ltd

31/03/18

2,122

15,639

2,922

179,832

114

152 John Hogg & Co, Ltd

30/04/18

2,112

40,484

2,812

37,547

134

153 Philip Russell Ltd

31/12/17

2,061

77,643

1,586

77,408

245

154 Beannchor No 1

30/06/18

2,054

25,812

3,183

23,682

576

155 W.F.B. Baird & Co., Ltd

30/04/18

1,978

7,859

2,258

8,447

2

156 Concentrix Europe Ltd

30/11/18

1,975

28,995

3,868

30,765

1095

157 Wellington Computer Systems Ltd

31/12/18

1,956

8,213

1,673

7,414

62

158 Colerite Europe

30/06/18

1,932

17,416

2,851

16,703

38

159 Ultra Building Products Ltd

30/04/18

1,863

8,922

1,768

7,618

88

160 James F McCue Ltd

30/11/18

1,861

34,877

2,873

35,866

138

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Eye on Profit200

Information supplied by

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

161 Linden Foods Ltd

30/09/18

1,805

206,705

19

199,328

1170

162 Lagan Cement

31/12/18

1,804

25,254

1,562

24,427

70

163 Bulrush Horticulture Ltd

30/09/18

1,791

14,745

1,835

13,698

76

164 M Keys

30/09/18

1,757

24,624

2,984

23,374

103

165 Abbey Insurance Brokers

31/03/18

1,733

19,331

2,507

20,423

364

166 Praxis Care

31/03/18

1,711

33,737

2,185

31,375

1101

167 Fonacab (Belfast) Ltd

31/12/17

1,707

18,667

1,358

14,741

81

168 Brett Martin Holdings

31/12/17

1,680

132,932

7,742

124,419

713

169 Alternative Heat

31/03/18

1,678

16,205

2,773

15,996

70

170 C. P. Hire Ltd

31/05/18

1,645

9,938

1,600

9,372

76

171 Sarcon (No 214) Domino’s

30/12/18

1,643

12,934

2,152

13,105

136

172 Wineflair (Belfast) Ltd

30/09/18

1,623

34,267

1,357

36,643

356

173 UM Storage Ltd

31/07/18

1,620

15,773

3,551

16,222

80

174 Novosco Ltd

31/12/17

1,610

23,662

2,396

23,301

138

175 Hamilton & Kirk Ltd

31/03/18

1,602

6,542

1,387

6,199

93

176 Commercial Court Inns Ltd

31/03/18

1,589

6,506

1,353

5,902

93

177 Windsor Developments Ltd

30/04/18

1,579

17,215

1,491

14,393

4

178 Mutual Energy Ltd

31/03/18

1,575

63,170

10,003

60,795

31

179 Willstan Ltd

26/12/17

1,570

10,975

1,513

10,773

-

180 The Mount Charles Group Ltd

27/09/18

1,509

40,002

543

33,953

1660

9069 DB Business Banking Q3 campaign Business Eye 210 x 20mm PRINT.indd 1

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Information supplied by

56

Company Name

Year End

Pre-Tax (£000)

Turnover (£000)

Pre-Tax Profit previous year (£000)

Turnover previous year (£000)

No of employees

181 McCulla (Holdings) Ltd

31/12/17

1,506

25,041

1,007

21,965

210

182 John McQuillan (Contracts) Ltd

31/03/18

1,504

35,375

1,213

31,044

172

183 R.T.D. Crawford Ltd

31/12/17

1,501

18,781

1,786

13,583

35

184 Edward Dillon (Bonders) Ltd

30/06/18

1,496

10,572

1,488

10,452

-

185 Radius Plastics Ltd

30/12/17

1,471

30,649

1,278

24,242

124

186 T.J. Booth & Sons Ltd

31/05/18

1,461

21,997

1,201

17,808

17

187 Crossbows Optical Ltd

31/12/17

1,454

3,483

1,930

3,396

29

188 Parkelect Ltd

31/08/18

1,452

15,435

1,587

18,619

62

189 Associated Pipeline Products Ltd

30/04/18

1,441

12,285

1,533

12,312

27

190 Teva NI Ltd

31/12/17

1,384

14,178

5,848

19,510

145

191 Abbeyfield Belfast Society Ltd - The

31/03/18

1,345

2,935

211

1,730

60

192 Acheson & Glover Ltd

31/12/18

1,339

17,852

-416

20,156

227

193 Boreal

31/12/17

1,339

50,896

3,087

43,332

319

194 Diamond Corrugated Cases Ltd

31/03/18

1,303

17,908

857

15,845

80

195 Fleming Agri-Products Ltd

31/12/17

1,285

10,411

1,149

8,619

101

196 K. Hughes & Co. Ltd

31/12/17

1,235

29,640

943

26,671

120

197 Johnston Brothers (Belfast) Ltd

31/12/18

1,225

25,274

948

24,903

94

198 Nicholl’s (Fuel Oils) Ltd

31/12/18

1,212

283,108

932

231,556

214

199 O’Hare & McGovern Ltd

31/12/17

1,198

93,576

-8,786

93,385

165

200 P.J. Conway Contractors Ltd

31/12/17

1,197

17,185

3,332

21,729

511

Eye on Management

Why company owners should drop the ‘boss’ tag and start thinking like a shareholder A 45-minute chat could get your business working for you instead of the other way around, writes Conor McCann.

I

n my experience of working with business owners, they spend too much time working for the business and not enough time getting the business to work for them.

Why is that? Often it boils down to sheer workload. As ‘the boss’ you routinely get dragged into a never-ending list of jobs and duties that consume your day.

Hard to see the bigger picture For many, it has become impossible to see the bigger business/financial picture for the daily tasks. If this rings a bell, consider putting a personal financial plan into place.

A good starting point is to ask yourself a question: What is my definition of personal financial success? For some it is about financial independence, and for others it is about the freedom to be able to make bigger decisions without worrying about money.

The majority of clients I work with simply put it down to the volume of tasks required in running a busy company.

This can distract them from addressing important business issues like decisions about how and when to exit the business.

Challenges can often arise on how to handle this transition phase smoothly.

Get your shareholder cap on These issues are too complex to add to your weekly to-do list and require careful consideration, expert advice – and a change of mentality. Forget about working

for your business and focus on working on your business. Think like a shareholder.

As the owner of the equity in a business, you want to maximise the value of your biggest asset (i.e. the business itself). You may be considering selling the business or passing it on to the next generation.

The objective of a financial plan is to align your options and decisions with these long-term targets and focus on: 1. Lifestyle maintenance Building up your pension fund is the simplest most effective way of extracting the maximum amount of money from your business in order to maintain your income and lifestyle when you retire. It removes a great deal of risk if the family wealth is tied up in the business.

A tailored financial plan will calculate your pension funding capacity and tax reliefs available.

2. Business structuring The purpose of a financial review is to ensure the business is structured to deliver maximum value to shareholders, regardless of the lifecycle’s stage your business is at.

There may be an opportunity to move from a single limited trading company to a holding company structure. This move has allowed many owners to ring-fence their assets before selling the business tax free. This is extremely advantageous for businesses with multiple shareholders.

3. Investment strategy A tailored investment strategy will help you build a portfolio that reflects your individual circumstances while avoiding the common pitfalls of having an overconcentrated investment position.

Taking all factors into account, your financial plan will include an investment strategy aligned to your goals while

retaining the flexibility to adapt to any changing circumstances.

How to get the ball rolling?

Flexibility is so important. There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution.

Every business is different and unique – just like its owners.

A personal financial plan takes a holistic view of your current financial position, circumstances and goals in order to map out the individual actions and decisions that will help you get where you want to be.

I suggest you take time out from the ’day job’ and schedule an initial debrief with an experienced financial adviser.

It will only take approximately 45 minutes to sketch out the ‘big picture’.

Start today Redressing the balance so that your business works for you can be made easy if you partner with an experienced adviser so get started today.

Warning: The information in this article does not purport to be financial advice and does not take into account the investment objectives, knowledge and experience or financial situation of any particular person. You should seek advice in the context of your own personal circumstances prior to making any financial or investment decision from your own adviser. There are risks associated with putting a financial life plan in place. There is no guarantee that by having a financial life plan in place, you will meet your objectives.

Conor McCann is Head of Business Development at Davy UK. You can contact Conor directly on 028 9072 8143 or email him at conor.mccann@davy.ie.

J&E Davy (UK) Limited and J&E Davy are part of the Davy Group of companies. Davy Private Clients UK and Davy UK are the trading names of J&E Davy (UK) Limited. J&E Davy (UK) Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. J&E Davy, trading as Davy, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Davy is a member of Euronext Dublin and the London Stock Exchange. In the UK, Davy is authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland and authorised and subject to limited regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority. Details about the extent of Davy’s authorisation and regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority are available from us on request.

58

24 HOUR ACCIDENT AFTERCARE

Had an accident ?

Call our 24hr helpline. 028 8772 6999.

In the event of an accident, Donnelly Group Accident Aftercare are here to help you and your business.

Whether it be ‘fault’ or ‘non-fault’, no matter what car, van or combination of vehicles you operate, our highly skilled team can help keep your business on the road. Our services include;

• / Roadside Recovery • Estimate of damages and repairs • Replacement vehicle • anufacturer approved standards of vehicle repair • Assistance on diminution of vehicle value and other losses such as personal injury or loss of earnings*

Find out more at donnellygroup.co.uk/aftercare

Rela . We’ve got this.

Accident Aftercare from Northern Ireland’s largest family owned new and used vehicle retailer.

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Terms and Conditions ApplyAny applicable incurred charges will be applied to third party insurance company if non fault accident. Any applicable charges may be charged to your insurance for repair if a fault accident.

Eye on Financial Planning

Bloodline Planning Protecting your family wealth When you hear the term ‘bloodline planning’ it automatically conjures images of the huge country estates of the very wealthy.

B

ut this portrayal can be very misleading – especially when it comes to bloodline planning in the financial sense of the term.

Why? Because bloodline planning should be the concern of each and every one of us, not just the rich and famous who own large multi-million pound ‘estates’.

Everybody has an estate no matter how big or small, and it is made up of everything you own – be it a car or a nice piece of furniture.

There are a number of reasons that having a plan for your estate can help prevent your family wealth being lost to Inheritance Tax, divorce or moving outside the family bloodline.

It can help ensure that your property and assets can be passed on to your loved ones or intended beneficiaries in the way that you want them to be when you die, and it can really help your family and loved ones during a difficult time.

But what makes a good plan?

Make a Will The foundation of any good estate plan is to have a carefully drafted Will. A Will, commonly known as a Last Will and Testament, is a legally enforceable declaration made by you, about how you want your property or assets to be distributed after your death.

It can take into consideration such things as making

60

provisions for guardians to look after young children, and you can even make provisions for surviving pets.

However, if it transpires on your death that you don’t have a Will (you die intestate), your property and assets will be shared out according to certain rules. These are called the rules of Intestacy.

Dying intestate means that you may not be making the most of the Inheritance Tax exemption which exists if you wish your estate to pass to your spouse or registered civil partner. For example, if you don’t make a Will, then relatives other than your spouse or registered civil partner may be entitled to a share of your estate, and this might trigger an Inheritance Tax liability.

So, having a properly drafted Will has many benefits – not least ensuring that your estate goes to those that you want to inherit and not any unintended beneficiaries.

Set up a trust In certain circumstances it can also be useful to set up a trust alongside your Will which can provide additional benefits, particularly where there are young beneficiaries involved.

Setting up a trust can help to ensure that your estate remains within your ‘bloodline’ and aids generational planning to ensure that your estate will benefit your family through second and third generations.

It can also help protect your assets from claims

from third parties and save your children from having to pay unnecessary taxation on their inheritance.

Trusts enable the donor to control who benefits (the beneficiaries) and under what circumstances, sometimes long after the donor’s death. Compare this with making a direct gift (for example, to a child) which offers no control to the donor once given. When you set up a trust, it is a legal arrangement, and you will need to appoint ‘trustees’ who are responsible for holding and managing the assets. Trustees have a responsibility to manage the trust on behalf of and in the best interest of the beneficiaries, in accordance with the trust terms. The terms will be set out in a legal document called ‘the trust deed’.

Nobody likes to discuss death, but by taking the time to undertake some effective bloodline planning now, you can help to avoid any potential issues relating to your estate after you have passed away.

For help and advice about your own situation, it is important to seek professional advice from a financial adviser.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for more information or attend one of our upcoming free, educational seminars. T: 02892 605 088 E: events@fairstoneni.co.uk

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Eye on Leadership

Lessons From The Top John Hansen, Partner in Charge at KPMG, asks what we can learn from this year’s Global CEO Outlook

John Hansen and Angela McGowan

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Eye on Leadership

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hief executives are a busy bunch, understandably focused on driving growth for their business rather than revealing their secrets of success.

KPMG’s Global CEO Outlook offers a valuable insight into the mindset of company bosses.

As ever, this year’s survey reflects the mood of business leaders at a pivotal time for geopolitics and for technological change.

For companies to thrive in such an environment, they need a leader who is able not just to keep up with such change, but one who is capable of anticipating and future proofing the business.

Little wonder that this year’s CEO Outlook reflects just that, particularly in Northern Ireland where the survey found a group of dynamic, disruptive leaders who act with agility to meet the demands of the modern business world.

Fast fail culture Crucially, they give their workforce the scope to innovate without the fear of failing, allowing them the space to try new ideas and experiment (“the fast fail culture”).

Nearly all Northern Ireland CEOs in the survey said they celebrated the “fast fail culture” while nine out of 10 said they want their employees to feel empowered to innovate.

That is an essential trait in today’s business world and one which will allow innovation to thrive.

Encouraging employees to try new, untested ideas in your business is more likely to yield a unique, disruptive selling point which will set you apart from the competition and drive your company forward.

Of course, along the way you will have to accept that not all those ideas turn out to be successful but, if you can learn to celebrate those calculated failures, then you’ll create a truly innovative culture which has more chance of succeeding in the long term.

Success often means being able to cope with disruption to your given market and even to make your company a disruptor.

Certainly, Northern Ireland’s company bosses are adopting the latter approach and are now some of the most disruptive in the world, according to the survey.

It showed that around 84% of CEOs in Northern Ireland are actively disrupting the markets within which they operate, a figure which far outstrips the two thirds for the rest of the world.

That bodes well for the future, given the volatile environment faced

by Northern Ireland businesses with the continued stalemate at Stormont and approaching Brexit deadline.

New markets Around two thirds of Northern Ireland’s CEOs said the UK’s divorce from the European Union is the greatest threat to growth, more than the global average – so many are looking to new and unexplored markets.

More than 80% said they are exploring emerging markets to grow their exports, markets which will be unaffected by Brexit no matter how the divorce proceeds.

Even in the absence of a difficult Brexit, expanding the export base will prove a bonus for Northern Ireland businesses in the long run.

Know the risks As well as the political environment, technology is a further huge source of disruption for many companies, whether that be through the development of more competitive processes or through cyber attack.

Cyber attack is a risk Northern Ireland’s leaders know they need to address, not just to protect their business but also to retain the confidence of their stakeholders.

A total of 72% of CEOs here said a strong cyber strategy is critical to build trust with key stakeholders, up sharply from just 16% in 2018.

On a global basis, cyber security has been bumped into second place as the highest threat to businesses. Climate change was reported as the biggest risk to an organisation’s growth and for the first time it was rated a top concern.

But with only a small margin between each, it paints a picture of a complex and ever-shifting risk landscape.

Next on the agenda The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) provides an opportunity to transform organisational performance. Despite that, only a small fraction of CEOs in the global report said they have implemented AI in automating some of their processes.

Given the pace of change witnessed over the last year, there is a good chance next year’s survey will see a more fulsome adoption of AI as it is clear that CEOs aren’t standing still.

They are on the lookout for any and all ways to give their business an advantage and, as this year’s report has shown, are quick to run with a chosen strategy.

By Angela McGowan, Director of CBI Northern Ireland KPMG’s 2019 Global CEO Outlook gives local business leaders some great insights into what is on the radar for chief executives across the globe and raises some important and interesting ideas around what leaders should be doing to maintain competitive advantage despite the uncertainty.

When global leaders were asked by KPMG to name the big-ticket risks on the horizon, they identified climate change, disruptive technology and economic nationalism. It is interesting that while Brexit risk dominates locally, it is not as relevant in the Global CEO outlook. Indeed, it is environment and climate change that tops the international risk agenda. A global economic slowdown is also a cause for concern and so too is the threat to traditional business models from disruptive technologies.

So how do global leaders plan to maintain company growth and competitiveness with unpredictable and fast changing risks? It appears that in 2019 the key to success will be a combination of: agility; utilisation of disruptive technology; transformation of operating models; resilience; skills and customer focus. This report contains some fascinating insights into how companies will need to change the way that they work – making speedy innovation part of the fabric of the organisation, becoming more customer-centric and increasing collaboration across organisational silos.

We see that agile CEOs now need to expand their senior management team and enhance the skills of their workforce. They are bringing the Chief Analytics Officer and Chief Digital Officer to the decision-making table and they need to ensure that all staff across their organisation can incorporate technology into their work practices. In 2019, agile leaders will increasingly support their organisations to use artificial intelligence (AI) to unearth insights from the vast amounts of data that the company has traditionally stored. This will allow for faster and better decision-making and help to ramp up company performance.

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Eye on Energy

Paul Stapleton...

Investment The Key To Network Performance Now over a year into his role, Paul Stapleton, Managing Director of NIE Networks, believes there is reason to be positive about the outlook for Northern Ireland, despite the ongoing challenges affecting the region.

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Eye on Energy

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n independent company within the ESB Group, NIE Networks owns and manages the electricity transmission and distribution networks in Northern Ireland, transporting power to over 860,000 customers including businesses, homes and farms.

It employs 1200 people directly (close to 2,000 when contractors are included), invests in infrastructure and systems at the rate of over £100 million a year and is responsible for some 50,000 kilometres of distribution network across the region.

Paul Stapleton took over the MD’s role at the company’s Danesfort headquarters in May of last year.

He’s a 30-year veteran of the electricity industry who came north after a long career at ESB, where he worked in network, electricity generation and treasury, as well as General Manager at Electric Ireland when the company opened its operations in Northern Ireland for the first time.

“I think there is a real energy here,” he says. “There’s a willingness to get things done and that means we can move things from planning to action much quicker, where possible.”

That said, he’s quick to point to the obvious twin handicap of Brexit uncertainty and the continued lack of devolved government here. “These issues are presenting challenges not only to NIE Networks, but to every business here. We need to get beyond the Brexit uncertainty and find a positive way forward for Northern Ireland. We need devolved government and we need a minister to put policies in place to enable planning decisions to be made on critical infrastructure projects like the North-South Interconnector.

“There are big cost advantages here compared to ROI. The potential for more FDI is enormous. But there is no doubt that progress in this regard is being stalled somewhat by our lack of a devolved government at Stormont. But there are still lots of reasons to be positive.”

Paul Stapleton manages an organisation which sits within the Northern Ireland electricity structure alongside the power generators, SONI (the grid operator), the various companies selling electricity to consumers and all

overseen by the Utility Regulator.

“We invest heavily in the replacement of ageing assets, modernising the network and connecting new customers,” he says. “That’s the core of what we do. It’s all aimed at constant improvement of the network and it is a network that is performing better than it has ever done when it comes to keeping Northern Ireland’s lights on.

“It’s vital because all of us are more dependent now on a reliable power supply than ever before.

Businesses are dependent on it, everyone is dependent on it.”

NIE Networks is responsible for the team that go out in all weathers to restore supply during and after the kind of storms that seem to be becoming more and more commonplace, a result of the global warming that presents many challenges to a business of this nature.

“Key for us is the ability to repair and rectify problems as quickly as possible,” says Paul Stapleton.

“When faults do occur that interrupt power supply, power is restored in less than three hours in more than 90% of cases. That is a key performance indicator for us.

of the UK goal of zero carbon levels within three decades.

It’s nothing if not ambitious.

Currently, 38% of total annual electricity consumption here in Northern Ireland is being generated from renewable sources and the initial 40% target set in the 2010-2020 Energy Strategy for the region will be achieved.

NIE Networks has played a critical role in meeting the target by providing the connections for the renewable sources and investing £365 million in the network to facilitate the generation. The company has led

“We have to keep the network resilient and robust, but we also have to make sure that it is as safe as possible for our workers, our contractors and members of the public who might have to come into proximity with it....farmers working in the fields, for example.”

Climate change, says the NIE Networks boss, is the most fundamental change to affect society since the Second World War. “For us, it is something that will over arch everything that we do going forward.”

The big headline target, of course, is the achievement

the way in connecting renewable generation to its network with over 20,000 customers in Northern Ireland now generating energy from renewable sources.

“The big challenge for this industry is to keep on moving past the 40% mark and onwards,” says Stapleton.

“As we increase the amount of electricity from renewable sources, there is a great opportunity to use that electricity to replace fossil fuels in transport and heating also, so electricity can play a huge role in addressing Northern Ireland’s overall carbon footprint. We’re not power

producers. We run the network infrastructure. But we’re sharing in that industry responsibility and we have a major role to play.”

An example of how NIE Networks has had to face fundamental change lies in the rapid growth of wind farms and wind energy over more recent years. A network which once sent power out to its customers in one direction only is now employed to bring electricity into the grid from wind farms, turbines and solar panels all over the country.

“We have to keep on developing a network that can cope with the continued move away from fossil fuel sources, so it means fundamental changes in the way that we work. And it needs to be planned carefully for years and decades ahead, working alongside the other stakeholders in this industry.”

Paul Stapleton’s concerns over the lack of a devolved administration and minister here are well-founded.

The current Energy Strategy covering Northern Ireland has run its course and it needs to be replaced by a new strategy taking the region ten and even twenty or thirty years forward.

“We need to have an agreed strategy, we need to have a direction of travel, and we need a minister to sign off on it. It’s as simple as that.” he says. “A major industry like this without a coherent and agreed strategy can’t be a good thing.

“And, more seriously, it could easily lead to Northern Ireland lagging behind the rest of the UK and the Republic of Ireland, and that would mean a negative effect on the economy here.”

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Eye on Economy

The NOW Economy: Advisers To Help You Get Ahead Of The Game Laura Jackson, Partner and Nigel Harra, Senior Partner lead the BDO Northern Ireland audit and assurance team, based in Belfast.

We recognise the importance of collaboration, critical thinking and timely communication to your business which is why we try to infuse as much support to those who eventually end up joining our business at early stages.”

TRUST

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he Northern Ireland and UK economy have been at the crossroads of uncertainty for quite some time. New technology for making business processes digital, the potential opportunity for new international relationships, and consideration of the changes required to efficiently provide goods and services to new markets, are all contributing to the volume of new knowledge and decisions to be made for indigenous businesses. BDO NI Partners, Nigel Harra and Laura Jackson, talk about the three core values of their business that they use to deliver value added advice and critical support to entrepreneurially spirited businesses.

There are three key pivots Nigel and Laura have applied to their own business to facilitate growth of the BDO NI audit and assurance service.

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IDEAS Every business starts with an idea and it is building on those ideas that leads to innovation and growth. Nigel and Laura believe in listening to those ideas because a true understanding of the vision of the shareholder is the only way to deliver services to exceed expectations on business services. No idea is ever too big or too small. Incremental changes can be made quickly to realise ideas and with tailored support, can develop globally competing businesses.

“We operate from Belfast, so we can be close to your business however we routinely leverage of our global network of 80,000 experts at 162 locations to ensure we are drawing on the relevant market and sector knowledge that is best for you.”

PEOPLE Working with BDO NI means having access to the right people at the right time. The right person is someone who has a track record of experience and expertise. It is imperative when growing a business that you have a strong, professional and reliable relationship with someone who sees you, and your business, as an individual. We value your uniqueness and want to give you access to smart people that meet your challenges with you.

“We have strong links with Queens University, Belfast, Ulster University and Belfast Metropolitan College as well as many schools. We recognise the importance of investing into education at an early stage and building tangible links with individuals who will join BDO.

Our economy relies on informative and accurate financial reporting.

In order to continually raise standards of audit quality and ensure we deliver advice you can trust, we continue to challenge ourselves to ensure we are delivering the highest standards in our profession. We are keen to ensure that each tailored assignment is robust and transparent. We have created an environment which is conducive to a culture of sceptical thinking and a culture of challenge so that we can ensure we offer an independent audit. Without independence, an audit – no matter how efficient -will be of uncertain value for those relying on the report.

“You might look to existing relationships for advice you can trust. That is why it is so important to us that during 2018 and 2019 to date, when asked “do BDO meet their commitments”, 92% of all audit clients who responded said that we did.”

In the long run, we only thrive if our clients do, and we find nothing more exciting than seeing a fast-growing business realise its ambitions. We look forward to helping you drive and develop your businesses whilst letting us earn your trust.

A full description of the audit and assurance services BDO Northern Ireland provide can be found on our website, www.bdoni.com

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Eye on Media

DON’T INTERRUPT...

ENGAGE Advertising industry guru Tim McKane admits that no one really likes advertising. So how do companies promose their products and services effectively...?

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eople do not like advertising. It is a bit of a blow to someone that has worked all their life in advertising to discover that this is true. That the time I spent developing ads so that people would “enjoy” them, was time, not wasted, but not delivering what I hoped. What I was doing was trying to make the interruption of a programme more pleasant and to impart a message that would change behaviour. And guess what, just like if you are talking and someone interrupts, you don’t like it.

The development of a campaign could take months, from being asked to pitch to the final sign off on a TV production that could have cost up to £150,000.

We examined every second of footage, debated the soundtrack, selected the voice-over artist, and polished the final cut.Then we worked out who we were going to interrupt, and when.

Then for 7 minutes of every hour on UTV or Channel Four, the programme that was being enjoyed would be stopped, and the ads would be shown. We expected people to love them as much as the programme. In fact, we used to say that the ads were often better than the programmes, but let’s be honest, no-one tuned in to see the ads, except people in advertising. Some ads got the seal of approval from the public, and are memorable, but that does not mean that given the choice the audience would not have lived without them.

But the modern media world

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has shown us that people do not want interruptions.

At a recent talk, of 35 people, only one had watched a programme as it was being broadcast the night before. Everyone else had timeshifted or watched Netflix, Amazon or iPlayer.

Why? Because they didn’t want ads and now they could avoid them.

But has the lesson been learned?

I think not.

We are still getting interrupted.

Brands are posting ads on your newsfeeds on Facebook that are doing nothing but interrupting your flow. Ads that look like old fashioned newspaper ads, or not very well produced TV ads pop up all the time. Interrupting your reading of the content that you want to see, from friends or pages that you have selected.

This is not to say that ads are ineffective, but more often than not they now rely on the targeting than the creative elements, so that ads you see online are there because the advertiser knows that you might have an interest in buying what they are selling.

So what is the alternative?

Brands need to get traction for their sales to keep their businesses alive.

Content Marketing.

Content that is actually interesting for the target audience. Content that is created to inform and engage.

Stories that are worth reading,

or videos that leave the viewer better informed and feeling good about themselves.

Images that are relevant or prompt a positive reaction.

To create good content takes time, just like in the golden days of TV advertising, but time spent in thinking about what a particular audience might find interesting. Content about the problems that your product or service solves. Content about how buying from you can make their lives better, how they see themselves, how they can make a difference, how they can get a pat on the back from their boss.

The digital channels are a wide open space for content and we are seeing the results.

People like reading the content on their social channels. How do we know? Just look the next time that you are on a bus, a train or simply walking in the street. People on their phones or tablets, reading or watching content. That’s where you want

to be, in that space where they have chosen to engage with you because the content is not interrupting but engaging.

The new media world is all about content engaging and all about not interrupting, as we see from people’s viewing choices.

So when you are thinking about your marketing, think about what you do, how you react to ads, and then reflect on if your company’s marketing is engaging or interrupting. One produces warm fuzzy feelings, the other annoys, I know what I prefer.

Eye on News

PwC Signs Up For Belfast’s Biggest Ever Office Deal In an historic deal, Oakland Holdings have announced the signing of Northern Ireland’s largest ever private sector office letting.

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usiness advisors PwC, had originally signalled its intention to become the anchor tenant of the prestigious Merchant Square development in the centre of Belfast.

However, the firm has now opted to take the entire building and has signed a 20 year lease for the 201,000 sq ft of Grade A office accommodation.

Merchant Square is being developed by Oakland Holdings at Wellington Place in the heart of Belfast City Centre and represents a £70 million investment.

Upon completion, Merchant Square will provide 201,000 sq ft of Grade A offices spread across nine upper floors, with additional support and amenity areas also being provided to

accommodate up to 3,000 staff.

Speaking on behalf of Oakland Holdings, Gareth Graham said, “We are very pleased to be partnering with PwC in the development of Merchant Square, which is already changing the face of Belfast city centre.”

“This announcement of Northern Ireland’s largest ever private sector office letting is a massive vote of confidence in the Belfast City Centre.”

Commenting on the letting Brian Lavery, the Belfast MD of global real estate leader CBRE said “We have been delighted to work with Oakland Holdings in bringing their vision of Merchant Square to reality, and assisting in securing a global

occupier, PwC, to this exceptional development. Oakland Holdings had the courage and foresight to speculatively develop much needed Grade A office space in Belfast City Centre, a shortfall that CBRE had identified for a number of years.”

“Oakland Holdings, by demonstrating their expertise and ability to develop a building of this size, have been proven right by letting the entirety to a “blue chip” tenant such as PwC, which is great for them and for Belfast.”

PwC Northern Ireland regional chair and head of UK regions Paul Terrington, said PwC was looking forward to the move: “PwC Belfast is currently the biggest and fastest-growing office outside London, with close to 2,500 people supporting a wide range of global clients.

“We have ambitious plans for further growth and Merchant Square offers us an excellent mix of accommodation, convenience and proximity to transport links.

“We are also looking forward to moving back into the city and contributing to Belfast’s own ambitious growth proposals and supporting its City Deal initiative.”

PwC was represented

by Stephen Deyermond, partner in TDK Property, a local Belfast practice.

Mr Deyermond commented “TDK are delighted to have conducted this search and concluded the negotiations

with Oakland on behalf of PwC. Even at the planning stage it was evident that Merchant Square was going to be a strong contender to meet the requirement. As the process developed, the fact that Oakland committed to build speculatively, together with the large floorplates, prime city centre location and overall deal structure, led it to be an obvious choice for PwC.”

Local Retailer Appointed To International Executive Committee Omagh-based SPAR retailer, Peter McBride, has been appointed to the InterSPAR Executive Committee by SPAR International, it has been announced.

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eter, who has over 30 years of retailing experience, runs 12 stores throughout Mid Ulster, is also the President of Retail NI. As one of Northern Ireland’s most prominent independent retailers, Peter is a SPAR Ulster Guild Board Member and was elected to the National Guild of SPAR as a Board Member in 2009.

Paddy Doody, Sales & Marketing Director at Henderson Group, which owns the SPAR brand in Northern Ireland said he was delighted Peter’s contribution to the industry has been recognised; “Last

year, we celebrated 30 years of McBride Retail Group and honoured Peter as one of our most respected independent retailers. Over the past 30 years, the McBride Retail Group has consistently delivered for local shoppers, providing over 460 secure jobs across 12 sites.

“From providing employment opportunities to supporting national and local charitable initiatives, Peter and his team have given so much back to their local communities.

“Everybody at Henderson Group wishes Peter the best of luck and congratulations with the appointment on to the InterSPAR Executive Committee.”

Mr McBride added; “It is a true honour to be appointed to the Executive Committee, the only forum where independent SPAR retailers are represented internationally.

“I look forward to representing retailers at the next event.”

Peter McBride, Owner of McBride Retail Group with Paddy Doody, Sales and Marketing Director at Henderson Group.

The InterSPAR Executive Committee operates similarly to SPAR UK’s and SPAR’s Ulster Guild, with 12 representatives, comprised of five wholesale members from prominent SPAR countries, five retail members and two seats held by SPAR International.

The group gathers twice a year

for a two-day meeting held in a different country, and at Congress during the shareholders’ meeting of SPAR International B.V. They visit stores in the host country to gain a better understanding of the local market and hear firsthand what is happening in all SPAR member countries.

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Eye on Financial Services

FinTrU...

Local Talent, Global Stage

Richard McGuinness (left) and Darragh McCarthy of FinTrU

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A lot can happen in a calendar year at a company like FinTrU, winner of the Company of the Year Award at last year’s First Trust Business Eye Awards and one of the major league stars of the fintech sector here in Northern Ireland.

Eye on Financial Services

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his time last year the company had 240 employees at its main Gasworks base in Belfast and firm plans to open a second base in Derry/Londonderry. A year on and it has well over 400 employees across two established bases, more employees coming through its Academy system soon and it has added more Investment Banking clients to its list. The company’s tagline is ‘Local Talent, Global Stage’ and with its Academy programme developing graduates to work with the world’s largest Investment Banks, it is certainly living up to expectations.

“We’ve always aimed for expansion across multiple campuses so it’s great to see FinTrU well established in two cities,” says the company’s Founder & CEO Darragh McCarthy.

FinTrU has a team of 65 – soon to become 85 – working in the old Welch Margetson shirt factory on Derry’s Carlisle Road and the employees have become affectionately known as ‘The Suits’ around the city centre...the company has a suits & tie/business attire policy across both of its sites.

The company’s stated aim last year was to add just over 600 jobs over a five-year period and it’s already well ahead of schedule to deliver that. More talent is coming through the pipeline currently with the 13th Belfast Academy underway as well as the 3rd in Derry/Londonderry. Both Academies will deliver another group of new members of staff to their desks in early September.

“The war for talent in this sector goes on, there’s no doubt about that,” adds McCarthy. “But we’ve invested significantly into how we attract people, the benefits we can give them and how we can retain them. We’re delighted with the quality of people we have and continue to hire.”

“Other organisations are trying to recruit FinTrU people all the time, every day, so it is imperative that we stay ahead of the curve and demonstrate that we remain the Employer of Choice” The company works with most of the world’s leading Investment Banks and has seen more business come its way due to the quality of delivery and the talent of its

employees. The slump in sterling has also been an unintended benefit given FinTrU is an exporter and majority of clients report in USD. “There are probably only 25 banks worldwide who could potentially be our customers, and we’ve already increased our customer base from five clients to 12 over recent months,” adds Chief Operating Officer, Richard McGuinness. “It might not sound like a lot, but it is a paradigm shift in this market.”

Both men are quick to talk about the frustration of Brexit uncertainty and the lack of devolved government here, but it’s clear that they’re not going to let externals like that get in the way of FinTrU’s continued growth.

“We’ve been developing into a much more sustainable organisation, building up our infrastructure in areas like HR, IT, Finance, Marketing and Office Management, and putting down roots, I suppose,” says Richard McGuinness. “We’ve also been improving layers of management that can allow Darragh and I to concentrate more on the strategic piece.”

But it’s FinTrU’s growth that continues to impress. When McGuinness walked through the door of FinTrU House two years ago, the company had a headcount of 75. Today, it’s well north of 400 and counting.

“And neither of us have any doubt that this company is capable of supporting a thousand people in the future,” he says.

“You can’t do that without having firm roots in the ground.”

Both McCarthy and McGuinness have been taking part in Invest NI’s Ambition To Scale Programme, a high-performance leadership development programme aimed at some of our leading companies.

“It’s been good to get time out from the business, to take part in some really good sessions and to be able to bring ideas back to FinTrU,” Darragh McCarthy adds. “It’s easy to get tied up working IN the business and to forget about working ON the business. It shouldn’t always be about running as fast as we can.”

Never mind external headwinds, the company’s biggest challenge remains hiring and retaining the best people. But the FinTrU CEO is confident that his company is

the best in the market when it comes to employee benefits.

In addition to yoga, fresh food, flexible working, market-leading pensions and a lot more besides, the company has just introduced sabbaticals for its members of staff. Anyone who has been with FinTrU for two years or more can take a year off to travel and return to a job with just four weeks’ notice required. It’s a pretty remarkable leap forward in terms of employment benefits aimed at younger people.

“We’ll also work hard to allow our people to continue their studies on a part-time basis and we’ve an unshakeable commitment to diversification and inclusion.

We will support our employees, whatever type of person they are,” says Richard McGuinness.

And there’s a similar commitment to sustainability and the environment – what with travel offset by carbon credits and recycling right across the board.

A lot has been said and written about the growth of the fintech sector here in Northern Ireland.

Darragh McCarthy and Richard McGuinness have eyes on the

continued rise of machine learning and AI and the massive impact that it could have on their sector.

“Put it like this,” says McCarthy.

“It would be no surprise if we become a much more productfocused company in the future.

“But the important thing is this. We are a financial company harnessing the power of technology. We’re not, unlike some, a tech company trying to solve ‘fin’ problems that it doesn’t really understand.”

FinTrU, he says, aims to continue to build up its sustainability and it will hold the 1,000 people target in its sights. There will be an increasing role for the very latest technology, and the CEO & Founder adds that there will be further development of the company’s C-Suite of senior level managers.

“What’s most important for us, though, is the preservation of FinTrU’s unique culture. We’ll run as hard as we have to in order to preserve that. It’s important never to be complacent.”

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Eye on Law

Growth On The Agenda For Top Belfast Law Firm

Damian McParland, Christopher McCandless, Caroline Prunty and Peter McCall

There were a few eyebrows raised when top UK legal guide The Legal 500 named Millar McCall Wylie as Northern Ireland’s Law Firm of the Year.

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he accolade, announced at London’s Guildhall earlier this year, might have caused a few murmurs of disappointment around the corridors of some of Belfast’s bigger law firms, but it didn’t come as a surprise to the partners and 40-strong team at Millar McCall Wylie, a firm with its main base at Belfast’s Donegall Square East and a busy office at Ballyhackamore in the suburbs.

It was in Ballyhackamore where the firm’s founding partners – David Millar, Peter McCall & Conor Wylie – set up shop back in 1997.

“Looking back, it wasn’t a bad time to set up in practice,” says Conor Wylie.

“The economy wasn’t bad at that time – it was a good ten years before the crash – and Belfast was starting to change and develop as a city.”

“We saw a gap in East Belfast for a

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practice that could look after commercial work as well as the more usual legal work for a suburban office, and that was one of the best decisions we made. We’ve stuck with that twin-track approach as a firm ever since,” adds Peter McCall.

Millar McCall Wylie went on to open a city centre office – at Lanyon Quay – in 2001 and set out to develop a commercial practice based in the city with a strong general practice out in Ballyhackamore.

Today’s firm is a very different prospect. It’s been recording double digit growth in recent years and a staff of over 40 work in the two offices with eleven partners forming the firm’s executive team, Peter McCall, as managing partner, and Conor Wylie remain from the founding threesome.

Like plenty of other law firms, Millar McCall Wylie felt the pain of

the financial crash and, in particular, the devastation that it caused to the commercial property market here.

“That’s when we appreciated the fact that we’d built this up as a firm with both commercial and general practice sides to it,” says Wylie. “When the hard times came, we all had to share the pain as partners, but our saving grace was the fact that we had a strong general practice working away through the difficult period for our commercial business.”

Millar McCall Wylie, these days, swims in the same pond as the big guns of the legal sector here. And it’s different. Apart from one or two notable exceptions, a lot of the larger law firms in Belfast form part of either ROI or GB large-scale practices. MMW remains resolutely in local control and intends to stay that way.

Partner Damian McParland, Head of Corporate, singles out another area in which Millar McCall Wylie differs from the big law firms that it works alongside. “We have extensive sector knowledge, in areas like employment, banking, media and trust law, but we

don’t over focus on specialisation. We much prefer to be able to offer our clients a real diversity of services all of which are delivered at a specialist level.”

When considering the thorny issue of succession, “We have to think about it,” says Peter McCall. “It would be very difficult to run a successful law firm without thinking about what comes next, about how the firm is going to change and evolve going into the future.

“We’re very fortunate to have a longserving and very loyal staff at Millar McCall Wylie, and above almost anything else, that’s something that stands us in very good stead. Our staff retention record really couldn’t be much better.”

That stability no doubt played its role in Millar McCall Wylie’s Legal 500 success. Whilst the firm’s partners, on the face of it, weren’t surprised by the success, they probably weren’t expecting it either. It’s easy to imagine the shock, followed by celebrations, in Imperial House and Ballyhackamore’s Eastleigh House when news of the accolade came through from London.

Eye on Law Peter McCall

Conor Wylie

Jan Cunningham

Caroline Prunty

“It’s hard to over estimate it. It’s an honour that puts us right up there with the big names in the legal sector here,” says partner Jan Cunningham. “We always knew that we were right up there, and could punch well above our weight.... but it’s always great to have that kind of confirmation from outside the firm, and outside of Northern Ireland.

“It wasn’t a bad 21st birthday present either!”

Whilst it doesn’t trade on specialisations, Millar McCall Wylie has developed some key areas where it’s clearly among the market leaders. Media law is one and, within that, the firm has built up a wealth of experience and expertise in Film & Television, a fast-growth sector here in Northern Ireland and an industry which consumes a lot of legal work.

Jan Cunningham, a former Ulster rugby player and member of the 1999

Damian McParland

European Cup winning team, specialises in employment law but has also built up a growing sports law practice, with Ulster Rugby amongst his clients.

In Ballyhackamore, meanwhile, where partner Caroline Prunty leads the Litigation team, key areas include matrimonial law where the team has been bolstered by the arrival of Clare Lenaghan , together will a full suite of legal services ranging from personal injury, judicial review and medical negligence.

Founding partner Conor Wylie leads the Private Client team from Eastleigh House and their commitment to understanding the needs of individuals whether purchasing a family home or advising on trusts and the protection of family wealth is pivotal to their enduring success and a reflection of the firm’s true diversity.

Millar McCall Wylie has also broken the legal mould by bringing in Christopher

McCandless from outside of the legal sector as Chief Operating Officer. A qualified accountant, tax adviser and mediator with 30-odd years’ experience, he was recruited to help cement and build on recent achievements, not least the Legal 500 NI Law Firm of the Year Award.

“It’s important that we focus on shaping, implementing and strengthening the firm’s business strategy, operational processes and infrastructure to support our growth plans,” says Conor Wylie. “And Christopher has a central role to play as part of the executive team going forward.”

Looking at the challenges going forward, the partners at Millar McCall Wylie identify a couple. One is Brexit, a challenge facing just about every business here in Northern Ireland. Conor Wylie says that it’s all-consuming.

“Like everyone else in business here, we just want to see an end to the

Christopher McCandless

uncertainty. I think we’re seeing a lot of nervousness in the market while the uncertainty continues and it’s just not good for any of us,” adds Wylie.

The second, and this one is shared with other law firms, is staff recruitment.

“The big back office legal operations here in Belfast have been taking a lot of available graduates so it can be a challenge to make sure that we get the young talent that we need,” says Damian McParland. “What’s important is that we continue to build our profile as a fast-growing, dynamic law firm offering great careers and real progression.”

“I think we have an ethos and a way of working that appeals to young solicitors,” says Jan Cunningham. “This is a very open, collegiate organisation and it’s a bit different from the some others in what can be a competitive.

It is a great place to work.”

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Eye on Growth

London Acquisition Means New Era For Fast Growing CMI A series of strategic acquisitions in the South East of England have fuelled fast growth for Belfast-based IT services firm CMI.

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he managed service provider (MSP) has doubled its staff numbers to more than 100 and grown turnover to £11 million on the back of its expansion into the GB marketplace.

The latest acquisition for CMI is its purchase of BTA, a similarly sized MSP based in South-West London.

“It’s an acquisition that allows us wider access to the UK market and further cements our commitment to the market and our customers. It also ensures that CMI is up there with the market leaders in the MSP sector in GB,” says Ken Roulston, CMI’s Managing Director.

The marriage of CMI and BTA is the result of an introduction made during a mergers and acquisitions symposium at last year’s Connect IT Europe annual user conference.

BTA has been operating for 25 years in the UK marketplace and offers a range of services, including IT support, security and compliance, disaster recovery, cloud technology, and network and internet services.

The company has a team of 65 employees and a roster of some 250 customers across the financial, manufacturing, and professional services sectors amongst others. ““The acquisition of BTA will create an even stronger IT service provider with multiple UK offices, nearly 100 staff and a

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combined turnover in excess of £11M,” says Ken Roulston.

“In football terms, it lifts us from the Championship to the Premier League in the UK MSP marketplace. The priority for us now is to consolidate that position and work from there. We’re fortunate to have inherited a fantastic team of people from BTA to join an excellent existing staff.”

The BTA acquisition is CMI’s fifth in its ten-year history.

It has acquired two smaller firms in Northern Ireland and a further two in England, one based in High Wycombe, the other in Maidenhead.

BTA is its first London-based acquisition – the company’s base is in Wandsworth in the south-east of the city.

“All of our previous acquisitions were of companies smaller than ourselves,” adds Ken Roulston.

“But BTA was actually bigger, with a £6 million turnover compared to our £5 million and with 65 staff to our 45.

“For CMI, this has been a strategic and carefully managed programme of acquisitions to increase our share of the wider UK marketplace,” he adds.

BTA will be brought under the UK-wide CMI brand this autumn. The company continues to back office as many of its central operations as possible at its Heron Road base in Belfast, but the offices in Maidenhead and London will remain central to its business.

“Mergers and acquisitions have been a big part of the MSP sector over recent years and consolidation has been the name of the game,” says Ken Roulston. “But the MSP market continues to grow as more and more customer organisations want to concentrate on their core businesses.

“It’s very hard to recruit

Ken Roulston, CMI’s Managing Director

in-house IT specialists these days, so the obvious answer for more and more companies is to partner with an MSP who can design, implement and support their IT infrastructures as well as make sure that their all-important data is safe and secure.”

The BTA acquisition has helped to lift CMI as a group into the top 10% of the 1,000-company strong MSP marketplace, no mean achievement for a company formed to service the Northern Ireland marketplace 10 years ago.

“Acquisitions are all about

merging cultures as well as merging systems and technologies,” adds Ken Roulston. “It takes time and the whole process can’t be rushed.

But we’re very confident about the combination of CMI and BTA. As a joint entity, we make a great team and we’re looking forward to growth across all three of our key locations.”

visit newcmi.com

Eye

onCommercial Property & Construction

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Eye on Commercial Property

Challenging Times For Belfast’s Commercial Property Sector Belfast needs to be quicker on its feet when it comes to seizing opportunities in the real estate sector. That’s the view of one of the most experienced operators around in the business here, Brian Lavery, Managing Director of CBRE Belfast.

H

owever, like all of his colleagues in the business, he says that the property sector is holding its collective breath to see what shape, if any, Brexit is going to take if and when it happens at the end of October.

“There’s no doubt that a lot of decisions are on hold and deals are being delayed by the uncertainty around Brexit. It is a risk making big investment decisions in the current climate?” he says.

The CBRE Managing Director

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has a clear view on all of the key sectors within Northern Ireland’s commercial property arena and it’s obvious that some sectors are performing better than others, but also that there is potential across the board.

The property investment marketplace, he says, is coming off the back of a disappointing past six months since the start of 2019. “We’ve seen about £94 million worth of transactions, but approximately

£34 million of those involve the Citi Building sale in Titanic. I don’t particularly like comparing Belfast with Dublin but over the same period Dublin produced £2.1 billion in transactions.

That’s a huge difference and it means that Dublin is racing ahead of us once again.”

He reckons that Belfast has the capacity to cope with four or five major office developments considering the demands of multinationals and

other companies building their workforces in the city. “Arguably, we should have moved a little more quickly to provide more office space but that’s easier said than done. Someone has to make the investment decisions.”

There is also investor demand, he says, for good quality, well-let properties, typically in the sub£5 million price bracket, within the local investment community.

And he goes on to add that some £100 million worth of deals are

Eye on Commercial Property currently at the legal stage.

“In Dublin, meanwhile, there’s been money coming in from Germany, money from Korea and money from GB-based institutional investment houses.”

Moving on to the hard-pressed retail sector, Brian Lavery says that the pressure is on landlords to re-price their space. “We’ve seen shopping centres move from 6 or 7% yields not too long ago to double digit yields now. It’s been well documented that Primark has asked its landlords for a 30% reduction in rents. That’s because of the growing number of CVA’s and the fact that many retailers in those arrangements are being given rent cuts of that nature.”

Investors, he says, have fallen out of love with shopping centres despite the fact that some retailers continue to trade well in that environment. Many investors tend to prefer retail parks, the kind of large tracts of land that can be put to good alternative use if retail continues to struggle.

In the Belfast office marketplace, the landscape has been dominated by two major lettings of late – PwC’s move to Oaklands Merchant Square in the city centre and Deloitte’s decision to move into the brand new Bedford Square development

by McAleer and Rushe.

“Meanwhile, Kainos has announced that it is building a new office and Citi Group continues to have a substantial requirement on the table for suitable office space in the city and its surrounding area. So potentially this is a very strong marketplace, but it’s also one where landlords need to offer flexible leases and be ready to deal with modern tenant demands.

“It’s important to create the right environment for tenants.

We’ve seen the opening of flexible office spaces here in Belfast. River House is a very good example. I think that flexible adaptable space is the way things will be going in the future. As things stand there is a demand for office space and we need to push ahead with development so that the necessary stock is available.”

On the residential development side of the business, Lavery believes that there should be more interconnectivity between the commercial and residential markets. “A good example of how it can work well is in student accommodation. Major investors got involved and we now have proper, good quality student housing offerings in the city.

“As things stand there is a demand for office space and we need to push ahead with development so that the necessary stock is available.”

“But students move on after a few years and there is now a strong demand for private rented properties for young professionals, and it’s a demand that just isn’t being met at present.”

The industrial sector, a bit like the investment space, is quiet, with few large transactions or new build projects. “What we are seeing and will see is a move away from manufacturing towards the development of a sophisticated logistics sector here in Northern Ireland, led by the likes of Amazon as it continues to seek the right properties for its operations.

“What we probably don’t need is any more Industrial development land. What we do need are good quality finished buildings and the right sort of rental terms.”

As for leisure and hospitality, Belfast had a record tourist year last time around but hotel bed nights were marginally down, due to the simple fact that 2018 saw a sizeable lift in the number

of rooms available thanks to a series of new hotel openings.

“What has been encouraging more recently is the fact that we’ve been seeing hotel openings outside Belfast – a new Premier Inn in Bangor, an extension to the Premier Inn at Lisburn, and new hotel investments in places like Ballycastle, Derry, Larne and Downpatrick.”

At CBRE’s busy Belfast office, a new residential valuer has been added to the team to strengthen the commercial/residential linkage and social housing sector whilst a team of building consultants has been drafted in to help with project management and monitoring for CBRE’s clients.

“What we have to do in the current climate,” says Brian Lavery “is to continue adapting to a market that is changing shape all the time through technology and changing working methods.

We can’t continue to do things as we’ve always done them, and expect the market to play to our set roles. It doesn’t work like that.”

Another addition to the CBRE payroll in Belfast is Dudley the Eagle Owl (pictured) who works to keep their rooftop terrace clear of pigeons and seagulls.

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Eye on Commercial Property & Construction

Premier Electrics...

Growth, Ambition & An Eye On Detail

Northern Ireland abounds with stories of companies which have grown from humble beginnings, but it’s even more impressive when this growth is achieved in one of the most competitive of sectors.

P

remier Electrics, headquartered in Bellaghy and with offices in Belfast and most recently Dublin delivers electrical installation contracts all over Ireland, UK and Europe, is a stand out example of the breed.

Established over 25 years ago

by Mark Scullion the business

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has grown organically from a small electrical contracting firm to becoming a specialist in major electrical installations. It has delivered over a thousand projects across Ireland, UK and Europe in the commercial, industrial, leisure and retail sectors. The company now has a

turnover approaching £50 million.

“Whilst the company has grown significantly, both in scale and geographical reach, our core DNA remains consistent and at the heart of the company culture. It centres around a real and genuine focus on our clients and our people. They

are fundamental to everything we do,” says the firm’s newlyappointed Chief Operating Officer, Stephen Cave.

A Chartered Accountant and former Partner with PwC in Belfast, he has recently made the move from professional services into industry and is

Eye on Commercial Property & Construction

“People, Purpose, Performance and Potential.

Those are all key Premier Electrics words and they sum up how we do things.”

clearly relishing the opportunities this new role presents.

“Having enjoyed being a professional business advisor for many years, the timing felt right to move across the corporate table, and this was a great opportunity to join a really progressive and ambitious award winning company and to get involved right across the business,” says Stephen.

“I’m really looking forward to working closely with Managing Director Tony Shivers and the Senior Management Team as we continue to successfully deliver for our clients today, whilst looking to the horizon as we implement our strategy for tomorrow.”

Premier Electrics has worked hard in recent years to be distinctive. One great example of this has been its investment in its brand. It’s brand is everywhere – on its offices, its vehicles, its people’s workwear and a lot more besides.

It’s not unusual to spot smartly dressed Premier Electrics personnel on their way through either of Belfast’s two airport en route to sites in UK and beyond.

Stephen has already touched on the importance of the people agenda within the business and says, “There is a genuine desire to make it more than just a job and to provide the opportunity for all staff to achieve their career

aspirations and potential. The business is fortunate to already have a committed team of very loyal people and I am really looking forward to playing my part in the people development space, a topic close to my heart.

It is also very encouraging that we continue to grow our apprenticeship programme and it will be great to welcome our new intake of apprentices in the coming months”.

Premier Electrics also recognises the importance of playing a role in its local communities and has a dedicated CSR programme which includes sponsorship of local sports teams and a range of community initiatives such as its Charity

of the Year programme.

“People, Purpose, Performance and Potential. Those are all key Premier Electrics words and they sum up how we do things.”

It is clear that Premier Electrics has found a successful mix of building lasting client relationships, empowering its people and delivering projects on time and on budget.

Stephen concluded by saying, “The future is bright for Premier Electrics and we will continue to work hard, today and tomorrow, with our clients and our people to ensure we continue to deliver a Premier experience in all we do”.

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Eye on Construction

Conway Group...

A Multi-Layered Approach To Property & Construction

Brooklands Care Home Antrim, one of Conway Group’s eight care homes in Northern Ireland.

From its headquarters in Magherafelt Conway Group has grown significantly, since it was established in 1974 by its founder and current CEO Mr PJ Conway, to become one of the major players in Northern Ireland’s property, construction and healthcare sectors.

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T

he company recently announced details of its multi-millionpound development strategy, which shall further expand its existing property portfolio.

Conway Group is the name behind many office and retail buildings, hotels, healthcare schemes and residential developments that many of us will recognise. It also has a significant land holding throughout the UK and Ireland for future development

opportunities. Conway Group employs in excess of 700 people across its property, construction and healthcare divisions.

The company recently marked the official opening of its new £8 million Premier Inn hotel in Bangor’s town centre, and this, says Property Director Des Taggart, is the latest scheme in Conway Group’s development strategy.

The new Bangor hotel is an interesting story in itself. “Through the recent acquisition of Ailsa

Lodge Care Home in Bangor, Conway Group has forged strong links within the local area,” Des Taggart explains. “Conway Group didn’t just build the hotel. We took the initial risk by buying over the old and abandoned Bangor Leisure Centre site, secured a long term lease with Premier Inn and worked closely with Ards and North Down Borough Council to deliver a new hotel which would not only bring significant economic benefits to the town but also add to our existing investment portfolio.”

Eye on Construction

L-R: Des Taggart, Property Director, Conway Group; The Mayor of Ards and North Down, Alderman Bill Keery; Kevin Mc Gurgan, Construction Director, Conway Group and Padraig Callaghan, Contracts Manager, Conway Group.

By working collaboratively with Ards and North Down Borough Council and Whitbread, Conway Group came up with a quality design solution for the site that would sit sympathetically within the sensitive landscape area that forms part of Bangor Castle Historic Demesne. The man tasked with delivering the hotel project on the ground was the company’s long-serving Contracts Manager, Padraig Callaghan.

Kevin McGurgan, Construction Director at Conway Group adds, “We had to carefully demolish the disused leisure centre structure with the minimum of disruption, since we were working within a sensitive location, next to a local primary school, Bangor police station and Bangor Castle.

In addition, we had to allow archaeologists on site, as well as working within strict budgets. We were able to bring our many years of experience and expertise to the fore in order to overcome the

project challenges by providing value engineered solutions.

This was a design, build and fit out project for Conway Group and Premier Inn was extremely pleased with the end result. It’s fantastic to see it now trading successfully as a hotel.”

The Magherafelt company has developed a close relationship with Premier Inn hotels, a brand which continues to expand throughout Ireland and the UK. Conway Group developed Lisburn’s first hotel, the Premier Inn, at Hillsborough Road, close to Sprucefield, back in 2007 and subsequently added a 30-bed extension to that property in 2011.

Conway Group also built the Premier Inn at Crescent Link in Derry-Londonderry, and it worked on both the refurbishment of the upper floor at the Premier Inn in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter and the most recent extension of Premier Inn at Carrickfergus.

Away from hotels, Conway Group is due to submit planning

applications shortly for three major Belfast city centre apartment developments. One is at Hill Street/ Talbot Street within the bustling and vibrant Cathedral Quarter, the second is at Corporation Street/ Tomb Street, in close proximity to Custom House Square and the third is at Holmes Street, within the Linen Quarter, between Great

Victoria Street and Dublin Road.

Conway Group also has a strong pedigree when it comes to high profile office developments in and around Belfast. One of its notable schemes is the landmark Centrepoint building, opposite the BBC at the corner of Ormeau Avenue and Dublin Road whose occupiers include Investec, RTE

Proposed mix-use scheme, Cathedral Quarter Belfast.

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Eye on Construction

Proposed 81-bedroom healthcare facility adjacent to Altnagelvin Hospital.

and Financial Times. Centrepoint’s key location within Belfast’s central business district will be further enhanced with the planned redevelopment of the former Movie House Cinema site at Dublin Road for new headquarter offices by Kainos and the redevelopment of the nearby BBC headquarters.

Conway Group has a key development opportunity site located within Cathedral Quarter and the company is actively progressing plans to deliver a major mixed-use scheme that includes Grade A offices, a hotel, restaurants and adjacent apartments over the coming months.

On the healthcare front, Conway Group is one of the largest privately-owned care home owner / operators in Northern Ireland, successfully operating eight care homes, and has full planning permission in place for a further 81-bedroom healthcare facility adjacent to Derry-Londonderry’s Altnagelvin Hospital. Furthermore, Conway Group plans to develop an additional 140-bedroom bespoke care facility, next to its existing 62-bedroom Brooklands Care Home, located at Bush Road in Antrim, opposite Antrim Area Hospital.

It’s also planning to develop a much-needed Neighbourhood

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Retail Centre in Glengormley, comprising of a service station, food court and apartments.

The group’s land and property holding also includes assets throughout the UK, with a prime landmark building at Deansgate, Manchester, a major industrial park at Sutton in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, an industrial/ office scheme in Edinburgh and a multi storey car park in Lytham-St Annes, Blackpool, with part of the site earmarked for a new hotel. As part of its business diversification the company has invested in the renewable energy sector and owns several wind turbines throughout Northern Ireland.

Conway Group is a privatelyowned company specialising in property development, investment, construction and healthcare whose mission is to provide excellence across all their business sectors throughout Ireland and Great Britain, with a specific focus on the end user client.

For further information on Conway Group: Tel: 028 7963 2001 www.conwaygroup.co.uk

Centrepoint, Belfast.

Eye on Commercial Property & Construction

Housebuilding Forges Ahead But Other See Activity Fall The second quarter of 2019 saw further declines in local construction activity in Northern Ireland as all subsectors other than private house building saw marked falls in workloads, according to the latest RICS and Tughans Construction and Infrastructure Market Survey.

A

net balance of 58 percent of Northern Ireland surveyors recorded rising workloads in private housing activity in the last quarter, which is the highest rate since Q1 1999.

Despite this beacon of light for the sector, overall, Northern Ireland remains the only region of the UK where overall workloads are reported to be in decline.

Infrastructure, public housing and public-non housing subsectors continue to be in marked decline, with respondents to the survey indicating that the lack of a NI Executive and Assembly is hindering the allocation of funding for projects.

In addition, Brexit uncertainties are perceived to be affecting investment, with private industrial and private commercial workloads falling.

On a more positive note, the 12-month forecast in terms of employment and workloads has risen, albeit with the latter being low in comparison to the wider UK. Jim Sammon, RICS Northern Ireland Construction spokesman, said: “The new build private housing market continues to perform well. However, construction activity is no doubt affected by ongoing political instability, which has had a considerably negative impact on public works in particular. “The political landscape also isn’t conducive to attracting investors who want to see stable government. It also doesn’t help when firms are attempting to encourage the brightest and best to stay and work in Northern Ireland,� he adds.

David Jones, Head of Real Estate, Tughans said: “Undoubtedly, one of the main external factors affecting the construction sector is the current political landscape.

Projects and works that require the allocation of funding cannot be progressed, and the situation has a knock-on effect on other areas, leading to increased caution when it comes to investment decisions.� “While private housing continues to be a shining light in NI construction, overall the sector is facing a slowdown and we would hope the optimistic outlook for the year ahead is realised, with growth returning to private commercial, infrastructure and other public works. Build to rent schemes and more proactive joint venture activity from the local authorities need to act as the main market drivers over the months ahead�, he adds.

Jim Sammon, RICS Northern Ireland Construction spokesman.

The key headline Northern Ireland findings of the latest survey are as follows (all figures are the net balance of respondents): t 5IF OFU CBMBODF PG XPSLMPBET activity for Q2 was -10%, meaning that 10% more respondents perceived a fall in workload in Q2 2019 than those reporting rises t 1VCMJD OPO IPVTJOH BDUJWJUZ continues to decline according to a net balance of -46% of respondents, with a net balance of -25% also reporting a dip in private commercial works t *OGSBTUSVDUVSF BOE QSJWBUF

industrial activity both experienced a sharp drop further into negative territory according to a net balance of -36% and -64% of respondents respectively (after recording -13% and -14% in Q1) t 1VCMJD IPVTJOH XPSLMPBET continue to suffer, with a net balance of -46% of respondents reporting a decline t )PXFWFS QSJWBUF IPVTJOH has experienced a significant increase as a net balance of 58% perceived a rise in activity t -PPLJOH BIFBE /PSUIFSO *SFMBOE surveyors are quietly optimistic

about the next 12 months and lagging behind their UK counterparts. Expectations for employment has recovered slightly, with a balance of 31% forecasting an onboarding of staff, despite the predictions of workloads being the lowest in the UK (net balance of 25%) t /* SFTQPOEFOUT BSF FYQFDUJOH profit margins to remain in negative territory in the year ahead, with a net balance of -21% (the lowest in the UK)

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Eye on Commercial Property & Construction

Top Property Lawyer Backs Belfast’s Collaborative Approach A collaborative approach to marketing Belfast is paying off, according to one of the city’s leading property lawyers.

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Eye on Commercial Property & Construction

D

avid Jones, Partner and Head of Real Estate at Belfast firm Tughans, is convinced that the concerted approach built

by Belfast City Council and its Chief Executive Suzanne Wylie is the way ahead for the city, albeit still a work in progress.

But he’s realistic about the city’s prospects in a tough real estate marketplace made no easier by the uncertainties around Brexit and the lack of a devolved administration in Northern Ireland.

Jones heads a team of 18 pure property specialists at Tughans, the largest, most experienced dedicated real estate law team anywhere in Northern Ireland, with fellow partners Rebecca Moffett, Joe Moore and James Pringle, alongside additional specialist support from teams in property finance, property litigation, construction, environmental law and planning. A significant number of these lawyers are dual qualified to work in Northern Ireland as well as England & Wales or the Republic of Ireland, an important factor given the nature of a lot of the work that the Tughans team does.

“A large percentage of the work that I’m dealing with is in England or Wales,” Jones explains. “And throughout the team we’re doing a lot of work in GB, while the Republic is also a growing market for us at the moment, perhaps not surprising given what’s happening on the property front down there.

However, it is still worth noting that we have been at the top of the Experian deal tables for NI for the last 4 years and remain top half way through 2019.”

David Jones spent 10 years in England, qualifying as a specialist real estate lawyer at Nabarro, the UK’s leading real estate legal firm at that stage, working on major deals like the Wembley regeneration project (acting for Quintain) and for clients including Tesco and Apple before returning to his native Belfast in 2007.

“I’ve been fortunate to have been involved in complex, high profile projects from the beginning of my career.

You can learn a lot from that kind of experience and it is great to be able to bring that back to Northern Ireland.

“It was not impeccable timing to come back to a new role here on the cusp of the financial crisis,” he smiles, recalling his move back home to work in a real estate team headed up by Phyllis Agnew. More recently, he moved into her role when she retired from the partnership at Tughans, although she continues to work as a consultant within the department.

“As a team we’re very busy with work right across the British Isles including work generated by contacts in London, and an increasing amount of work from the Dublin marketplace. And that’s on top of our core work here in Northern Ireland on behalf of a range of local clients, including some complex deals for local clients across the Irish Sea.

the schemes using complex forward funding models. They’re very welcome, they represent a bit of a sea change in attitudes and there will be demand for more. Despite what some have claimed, the market for purposebuilt student accommodation in Belfast isn’t saturated, it just needs a period of adjustment to allow for a cultural shift anyway from the traditional student accommodation model.”

There will also be increased demand, he reckons, for a lot more private rented accommodation in the city itself.

“The dynamics of student accommodation are moving away from the old traditional houses in South Belfast to top quality accommodation in the city centre, with clear evidence that younger professionals will want to continue to live in the centre of town. And all of that is backed up by the fact that

“I’ve been fortunate to have been involved in complex, high profile projects from the beginning of my career. You can learn a lot from that kind of experience and it is great to be able to bring that back to Northern Ireland.”

“The biggest NI real estate deals in previous years have tended to be retail-based,” says David Jones. “We worked on the majority of such deals.

But then the music stopped.

“The whole retail marketplace needs to have a major price adjustment, combined with a fresh look at business rates” he adds. “Assets are just not as valuable as they used to be, given the vulnerability of traditional retailers and the market is still coming to terms with that.”

Along with others in the real estate sector here, he welcomes the recent development of student housing schemes, led by key players such as Lacuna Developments. “We’ve worked on virtually all of those developments, primarily for the investors who have unlocked

Belfast City Council has set itself an ambitious target to attract 65,000 new residents into the city centre over the next 15 years.

“All of that means that we should see a lot of emphasis on the build to rent sector over the coming years.”

On the office market front, he points to a funding gap where developers with access to good sites are struggling to raise the equity they need.

“It’s very difficult to take the build it and they will come approach here when most institutional funders require at least 40% pre-let, but occupiers increasingly want the certainty of buildings coming out of the ground before signing up.

There are a small number of developers capable of carrying out speculative development,

but not enough, so it turns into a Catch-22 situation.

David Jones says that he and members of his real estate team often play their part in selling Belfast and Northern Ireland to potential inward investors and foreign businesses.

“We’ve seen an increasing number of international investors and foreign businesses coming into the market and I think there’s no doubt that we’ll see more. Some have been put off

by Brexit uncertainties, that is true. But others realise that the work they do should be unaffected by Brexit concerns.

“And, as Dublin hits saturation point in terms of available residential accommodation for staff working in its big commercial centres, Belfast should stand to gain. The fact that Google had to step in and buy an apartment development for its staff says it all.”

If Dublin’s loss means Belfast’s gain, that brings the narrative back to the collaborative approach when it comes to selling this city.

“We are seeing an increasingly joined up approach from Invest NI, the local authorities, the universities and the private sector,” he says. “The collaborative trips over recent years to the MIPIM conference in France are starting to work well for Belfast and now the wider City Deal regions in NI. The obvious gap in all of this, of course, is the lack of devolved government at Stormont.

“But, all in all, we’ve been doing well to get a coherent message out there, even against the headwinds of Brexit and the lack of a local administration.”

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Eye on Construction

Building for the future Developing a brand that supported Henry Brothers strategic growth in attracting and engaging customers and in staff recruitment and employee engagement.

By Heather Dalzell, Client Services Director of The Foundation wearethefoundation.co.uk

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Eye on Construction

As a business that started out as one man’s vision back in the late 1970s, Henry Brothers has grown to be a force to be reckoned with within the construction sector today.

Currently the company has a turnover of over 80 million and a workforce of over 200 across its 3 sites in Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Midlands, with ambitious plans for further growth.

The same values that Jim Henry originally founded the business on still shape their approach today – integrity, dependability, quality and innovation, and their mission is simple – to deliver the best

defence and security sectors but over recent years the profile of their offering has transformed with exciting and innovative projects for clients in education, transport, health and industry.

The brand had to communicate how Henry Brothers had changed but at the core, remain true to the value set that is still very much at the foundation of everything they do.

It was also vital that we created an identity that was attractive to the next generation of school leavers and that could engage young people, enabling them to think differently about construction as a career choice.

“Working with the team at The Foundation, provided insight into our business beyond our own understanding and allowed us to see ourselves from a different perspective. ” David Henry, Managing Director of Henry Brothers construction solution for clients, every time, without fail.

In 2017, following a review of the company’s position and strategy for growth, the board recognised the need for a new brand identity to ensure that customers, staff, prospects and recruits fully understood the extent of Henry Brother’s capability and credential and what they offered both as an employer and a partner in the supply chain.

Traditionally the business specialised in work for the

This was about demonstrating the diversity of skills the industry is looking for and the opportunities to build careers, not just jobs, as the challenge of recruiting for this industry becomes increasingly difficult.

It was clear from the outset that Henry Brothers were very much a people-based business, and everything was built around the relationships that they had both as a team internally and in terms of how they worked in partnership with clients and

suppliers to deliver projects often under very demanding circumstances.

They invest heavily in training and development for staff, working actively with schools and colleges to attract talent and then nurturing that talent through ongoing training opportunities and mentoring at all levels of the organisation.

Henry Brothers are also conscious of giving something back and their investment in sustainability is evidenced by their Sustainable Business Strategy which has enabled them to engage with over 5000 children and young adults in biodiversity and environmental education initiatives since launch in 2014.

The importance of creating something bigger, and being part of a team of people working together came across very strongly in all the workshops we ran with both senior management and staff as part of our research and understanding of the business.

It was this insight that inspired the concept we created of the two hands coming together to form the H of the Henry name and the Altogether Stronger tag line that communicates the brand promise.

The new identity was unveiled to staff first at an event attended by employees from across the 3 regions, family and friends of the business, and has provided a renewed sense of

energy and purpose for Henry Brothers to move forward with confidence and continue to grow and develop their project portfolio in both new and existing territories and sectors.

“Our business is built on our people and the knowledge and experience that we offer our customers is what has enabled us to consistently grow and develop in new sectors. We continue to stretch ourselves, to innovate and push the boundaries and to look for better ways to work for the benefit of our customers and the industry as a whole.

Working with the team at The Foundation, provided insight into our business beyond our own understanding and allowed us to see ourselves from a different perspective.

Vitally the new brand has helped us to visualise our vision for the future, to attract and retain talent and to support our continued growth. “David Henry, Managing Director of Henry Brothers.

To find out more about Henry Brothers, their latest projects and career opportunities visit henrybrothers.co.uk

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Changing Times Mean Time For Change

By Declan Flynn, Managing Director, Lisney

The summer has provided a mixed bag of results and reports for the commercial property sector with winners and losers across the various sub-sectors and one word; “uncertainty” prominently featuring in nearly every article or publication produced.

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s the Brexit deadline of 31st October looms, and politicians on the UK mainland prepare to return to parliament after the summer recess, the only sure thing about the second half of the year is that this uncertainty will continue and the exact effects of whatever happens after 31st October remain a mystery deal or no-deal.

In Northern Ireland, unlike their counterparts across the water,

politicians won’t be returning to our national seat of power as the current political stalemate looks likely to continue into the Autumn and beyond.

Despite an overcast political mood it’s not all doom and gloom.

After a better than expected last quarter, with the recorded £60m of Property Investment Transactions between April and June; 9 per cent up on the same period in 2018, we’re

IS ‘BUILD TO RENT’ THE ANSWER FOR THE NEXT GENERATION It was two years ago this month that plans were announced for Belfast’s first large scale “build-to-rent” housing scheme.

The 16-storey apartment block on Academy Street, in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter, was subsequently granted planning approval in October 2018.

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ork is now underway to provide 60 twobed and 30 one-bed apartments with a proposed completion at the end of 2020.

Following on from the Academy Street scheme, in late 2018 plans were submitted for the development of another central Belfast “build-to-rent” scheme, this time on Wellwood Street. Though still in planning, if council planners approve proposals for the Albion scheme, the nine-storey apartment block will feature 277 “build-to-rent” apartments.

Though popular in major UK cities as well as major Irish cities the “build-to-rent” model; where apartments are built solely for private rental with the building being owned by a large investor or institution, has until now been slow to take off in Northern Ireland.

That said, a recent report by The Homelet rental index shows a 4.7% increase in Northern Ireland rents in June 2019 compared to June 2018. This will be music to the ears of “build-to-rent” developers keen to see Northern Ireland rents move closer to those in mainland UK that saw significantly lower growth of only 1.8% year on year.

The same report estimated that in Northern Ireland rents are typically 26.4% of monthly income. This figure still lags significantly behind mainland UK

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rents that are closer to 30.5% of monthly income.

In mainland UK this type of development has been encouraged by the government, as a potential solution to the lack of quality residential housing stock; particularly in city centres.

Research from 2018 shows the increasing popularity of wholly-owned, professionally managed schemes over traditional “buy-to-let” options. In London particularly, wholly-owned, professionally managed schemes on average achieve a premium of almost 10 per cent for one-bedroom properties and 9.5 per cent for two-bedroom properties.

Concierge services, gyms and residents’ lounges are three commonplace amenities in professionally managed UK mainland “build-to-rent” developments

and UK mainland tenants are prepared to pay for the luxury and convenience that they bring.

Industry figures predict a significant increase in demand for rental property over the next 5 to 6 years as what has been termed ‘Generation Rent’ increases to an estimated six million households by 2025.

As this figure is representative of almost 25% of UK households living in rented accommodation before the end of the next decade it is unsurprising that the traditional ‘rental model’ is moving on.

The Belfast Agenda sets out bold ambitions to make Northern Ireland’s capital home to an additional 66,000 people by 2035 and it if the city follows the route of others it will be unlikely that these two “build-to-rent” scheme will be the city’s last.

entering the second half of the year in a resilient mood with the total value of investment transactions so far in 2019 at £101m and a further £45m worth of commercial property presently on the market.

To put this in perspective the total value of Property Investment Transactions for all of 2018 topped out at £165m despite the unsettled climate, so in spite of these numbers the market remains robust.

Activity in the office market also continues at pace, and we are cautiously optimistic for the prospects in the is sector for the remainder of the year

In the Residential sector property prices are still affordable for workers and the improving global perception of Northern Ireland combined with continued investment in our infrastructure continues to make the province an attractive location for expanding indigenous and FDI companies alike.

The outlook for the retail sector however, like the political climate, is uncertain with the High Street and retailers needing to reinvent themselves.

Some would argue that the retail sector is currently undergoing a period of change similar to that caused by

the industrial revolution a century ago, though it is the impact of technology and changing consumer habits rather than mechanisation that are at the root cause of the change this time.

So as we head towards the end of quarter 3 and towards Autumn, within the fog of uncertainty there are clear patches, with opportunities in the investment and office markets primed and ready to be exploited, while change and reinvention continue to reshape the retail and industrial landscapes.

Declan Flynn is Managing Director at Belfast-based commercial property agency Lisney, which works on behalf of many of Northern Ireland’s most significant investors and developers as well as major retailers and businesses.

The Role Of Technology In Planning For The Future We have never been more connected. The launch of 5G in Belfast at the end of May 2019, as part of the initial six city pilot of the technology before UK wide roll out, heralds a new era of digital connectivity speed and reliability.

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o give the impact of 5G a bit of context consider this; more than a million users per square kilometer will be able to simultaneously use the network, compared to around 60,000 with 4G. Think of the impact when when 4G took over from 3G and multiply it by 1,000; that is the level of effect predicted by tech commentators.

A revolution within the tech revolution; terms like exponential change, game changing connectivity and life-altering applications are common in articles by TechCrunch, Wired and TNW (The Next Web).

The digital connectivity of commercial premises has been a key factor for tenants when considering new office space for some time now, and for landlords and developers these boxes have to be ticked so their spaces are competitive and give their tenants the technological edge they require. Undoubtedly the market for commercial office premises is more occupier-led that at any time in history and occupiers now place connectivity firmly alongside location and cost.

However, as 5G is predicted to influence our connectivity ability further, in order to cater to the technological needs of potential occupiers city stakeholders must now look outside the office doors. Considering the wider environment to understand exactly what is required for seamless connectivity experience means incorporate solutions at the earliest possible stage, which in many cases is that of planning.

This was the topic of debate at Belfast’s premier tech conference last week. At Digital DNA we explored “Building a smart city: Future Planning” and looked at some of the challenges and opportunities of implementing technological improvements to Belfast’s infrastructure now, to prepare the city for the next technologies of the next decade. … and there were a lot of issues raised, in particular ensuring continued occupier demand and economic growth while also considering the safety, security and privacy of the city populous.

The debate was lively and proved to be a multi-facetted with one thing becoming clear; the term ‘SmartCity’ is a broad-brush term for a very

intricate and complicated concept.

Smart buildings are already here and here to stay, with a good example in the city being Causeway Asset Management’s Chichester House; the first building in Belfast to obtain a platinum rating under the globally recognised WiredScore rating system.

As new developments and refurbishments of existing buildings are announced landlords will surely compete to meet the incressing technological demand of occupants.

The imporantance of a ‘smart’ infrastructure to surround, support and connect the next wave of ‘Smart Buildings’ is essential to sell the whole city as a holistically ‘smart’ place, not just a collection of ‘smart’ pieces.

This means that as the Belfast Region City Deal rolls out, the investment of £850 million that is hoped to create up to 20,000 jobs and is predicted to focus on innovation and digital and physical infrastructure, it is crucial that we look at what is coming, and plan for the future while meeting the needs fro the present.

Undoubtedly Belfast can become a leading digital city, we have the talent and in the city deal now we the opportunity. What will be most important now is making the right choices so we ensure our infrastructure and environmental planning is robust enough to cope but flexible enough to adapt to the increased demands that being a ‘smart’ city brings.

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Eye on Construction

Construction Output Statistics The construction output statistics are intended to provide a general measure of quarterly changes in the volume and value of construction output in NI.

Latest results - published 18th July 2019

Volume of Construction Output in NI Quarter 1 - 2019 120

Index (Base=2016)

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Chained Volume Measure Prices

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Eye on Law

TOP COMMONWEALTH JOB FOR BELFAST SOLICITOR A Belfast solicitor has been elected to serve as President of the prestigious Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA).

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rian Speers, a partner at Belfast law firm CMG Cunningham Dickey and a former President of the Law Society of Northern Ireland, assumed the Commonwealth Lawyers Association President’s chain of office at the worldwide organisation’s most recent annual meeting held in the Zambian city of Livingstone, next door to Victoria Falls.

The Belfast property lawyer’s enthusiasm and commitment to the work of the CLA is more than just a professional interest but rather reflects a personal link with the Commonwealth.

As the son of an overseas civil servant, he was born in Kaduna in north western Nigeria before moving back to Northern Ireland with his parents.

As the new Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) President he will oversee a representative body with member lawyers in each of the Commonwealth’s 53 countries, ranging from larger nations like Pakistan, India, Australia and New Zealand to Botswana, Namibia Cameroon and a plethora of Caribbean and Pacific island states.

He is keen from the outset to dispel any notions that the CLA is an international social entity for legal professionals.

Throughout his time with the Association he has been instrumental in the direction of the CLA and closely involved in the CLA’s work on issues including child marriage in developing countries and the Rule of Law. “It is vital that we look at real problems that exist in jurisdictions across the world,” he says. “And there are few bigger

problems than child marriage, which steals childhoods and blights young lives.

Our aim is to encourage adherence to existing international legal standards around issues like this one. It’s important, we feel, that local customs and cultures can’t trump international law.

“But there are other live issues for us as a group of lawyers, issues like the stance on homosexuality taken by the authorities in Brunei. It’s all about sharing experiences and promoting the idea of best practice across the board.”

The Commonwealth includes a lot of small jurisdictions, such as the 17 Caribbean islands whose lawyers form part of the CLA. But Brian Speers is quick to emphasise that Northern Ireland ranks, in itself, as a small jurisdiction and so stands to gain from a close involvement in the Commonwealth grouping.

It’s a role, not surprisingly, that will entail a lot of international travel for the Belfast-based solicitor. Not long back from Zambia, he’s due back in Africa this month for a conference event in Kenya

and is also hoping to attend a function in Zimbabwe. A trip to Asia in the late autumn, meanwhile, will take him to Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

The Commonwealth Law Association has four key regions – The Americas, Europe, Africa and Australasia. The European branch of the Association will hold an event in Belfast on the 13th September this year, with a dinner taking place the previous evening.

And, for those who wonder which parts of Europe are part of the Commonwealth, think Gibraltar, Jersey & Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Cyprus and Malta as well as the “home” jurisdictions.

He is delighted to be able to bring this event to his home shores during his term as President, and he’s also looking forward to an event or two, including a Sports Law Forum, around the next Commonwealth Games which take place not too far away in Birmingham in 2022.

As an influential local exponent of mediation as an effective means of dispute resolution, he’s also working hard to promote the mediation message internationally and plans to take part in mediation training events in a number of Commonwealth jurisdictions.

Next year’s CLA Conference will be in the Bahamas, following on from previous events in India, Cape Town, Glasgow, Melbourne and Zambia.

Each one has a strong charitable element. In Zambia, CLA delegates helped to fund and open a new classroom at a primary school, and Law Society of Northern Ireland members will continue to raise funds for the school going forward.

“As we wait to see what Brexit will bring, it’s possible that the Commonwealth could take on a new and more important role once again,” says Brian Speers. “The strengths of the Commonwealth include the fact that member countries have English as a main language and that they share a basic common law.

“We’ve got plenty of real work to do through the offices of the Association,” he says. “And, with the backing of a 14-strong executive committee of senior lawyers from around the world, I’m really looking forward to being at the centre of that work.”

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Eye on Energy

BIMCert – Belfast Met Drives Construction Industry’s Energy Agenda

It’s not often that the further education sector can claim to be driving business forward, but that’s what is happening in the construction sector with Belfast Met’s BIMcert Programme.

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he BIMcert project is a European-wide initiative which sets out to provide a path for upskilling and increasing the qualifications to help implementation and use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) right across the construction supply chain, enabling a more efficient building environment in order to combat climate change.

Belfast Met is the first FE college in the UK to win funding from the

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Horizon 2020, The EU Framework Programme for Research & Development to deliver the project.

BIMcert will deliver digitisation as a vital enabler of net zero construction delivering efficiencies in energy, materials and time.

The construction sector is a significant contributor to economies all over Europe.

But it’s also one of the largest consumers of natural resources, producers of carbon emissions

and sources of energy waste.

BIM sets out to provide a collaborative design, build and manage process that sets out to change that in very practical and effective ways.

“The partners involved in the initiative want to encourage more energy efficient building stock. BIM is the core construction method that can drive the industry towards a greener future.

That’s what it all boils down to,” explains Paul McCormack, Belfast Met’s Innovation Manager and Programme Manager for BIMCert.

Those partners are a wideranging group drawn from across the EU, with Belfast Met joined by the Construction Industry

Training Board NI, TU Dublin (formerly Dublin Institute for Technology), Future Analytics Dubln, the Institute for Research in Environment, Civil Engineering and Energy Macedonia, Energy Institute Hrvoje Požar Croatia and Portuguese-based Tecnico Lisbon.

“BIM can use big data to help construction to manage its carbon footprint,” adds Paul McCormack.

“It supports sustainable energy in a building life cycle by providing the tools that allow all operators within the cycle to control and reduce energy. So it is all about pushing industry forward towards best practice and about bringing international best practice back to Northern Ireland.”

Eye on Energy The (IAP), Industry Advisory Panel and the (TAP), Technical Advisory panel set the strategic direction for the BIMcert compass.

It’s not the first time that Belfast Met has been at the cutting edge of innovation. In the world of engineering, and automotive engineering in particular, the FE College has been quick to develop programmes for alternative energy technicians.....the motor mechanics of the future.

The BIMCert programme will be right up at the leading edge when it comes to how it will be delivered to its students.

“Learning, assessment and accreditation will largely be done by digital means,” McCormack explains. “We’re realistic enough to know that students who are working in the construction

industry don’t have either the time or the inclination to have to attend classroom sessions.

And we know that employers don’t like the idea either.”

Belfast Met has been working with two local construction companies on pilot programmes – Creagh Concrete in Toome and O’Hare & McGovern, based in Newry.

“The pilot programmes have been going very well and the next step for us is to make any changes that we need to make to the programmes and then take them out to the market and to construction industry companies all over Northern Ireland.”

“Employees working in the construction industry get what they need for their future careers, while employers get what they need... better qualified, forward thinking employees.”

At the heart of the BIM concept is the fact that there are four key parts to the energy cycle in building construction to which BIM can be applied to different extents:Potential – energy savings targeted during the design process.

Embedded – energy savings targeted during the construction phase.

Operational – energy savings made in the operation of the building.

Sustainable – energy saving through the lifetime of the building.

It’s much more common these days for buildings to be designed, built and operated by one company, and the BIM approach is a perfect match in those circumstances.

“If those can all be achieved, it’s easy to see the benefit for the owners and operators of buildings, for those who live or work in those buildings, and for the environment as a whole,” says Paul McCormack.

“That’s what the wider programme is all about and BIMCert is an important part of that wider programme.

“Employees working in the construction industry get what they need for their future careers, they even get transferable skills and their own BIM passport, while employers get what

they need... better qualified, forward thinking employees.”

Paul McCormack admits that it’s not always easy selling a cutting edge concept to an industry that is known for its conservatism.

But he’s confident that the BIM initiative and BIMCert in particular has more than enough going for it to get it across most hurdles.

In fact, a survey by the Construction Industry Training Board has shown that two thirds of construction companies plan to implement BIM within the next three years.

“It might be an industry that is conservative by nature, but it’s also an industry that has embraced and adopted a lot of technological change over recent years and one which has stepped into the digital world,” he adds. “Most buildings nowadays will have their own digital history, for example.

“What’s most important these days is that we harness the power of technology to help our lives... not to run our lives.”

BIM is a tool within the growing digital construction. However it is people and their skills implementing BIM that will make the difference. Providing people with those skills is our objective.

www.energybimcert.eu https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=4oLNUox7-c8

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Eye on Residential Property

Bank of Ireland UK Funding Residential Property Development in Northern Ireland Keen to capitalise on a sustained period of stability in the local housing market, in June 2018 Bank of Ireland UK identified residential development as a strategic opportunity to fund continued growth in the sector.

Ruairi Mussen, Head of Residential Property, Business Banking Northern Ireland

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significant impact of the financial crisis meant several years undersupply of residential property and developers are playing catch-up to meet demand in the local market, chiefly from first-time buyers as well as those trading up from a three to four-bedroom property.

Notwithstanding the uncertainty created by Brexit, the environment is relatively positive. Consumer confidence in Northern Ireland has been relatively resilient, helped by record employment levels and continued wage increases while interest rates are at near record low levels creating a very competitive mortgage

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market for home buyers.

In repositioning itself to become the go-to bank to support residential property development, the bank recognized the need to differentiate itself with a strong, knowledgeable and geographically spread team in Northern Ireland; one capable of establishing and growing a sustainable residential development loan book. By focusing on strong market insight, expertise and working in partnership with customers, the bank has supported deals built on the fundamentals of affordability and demand across Northern Ireland.

Just over a year ago, Bank

of Ireland UK appointed Ruairi Mussen, Head of Residential Property, Business Banking Northern Ireland, to lead out the development of the team and to review, enhance and deliver an improved residential development lending proposition. A Chartered Accountant by profession, Ruairi has been at Bank of Ireland UK for nearly two decades and has held several senior roles including ten years in the bank’s challenged lending division and more recently heading the bank’s distressed land & development and residential loan book.

Ruairi is a property specialist through and through. As a

young student he spent his long summer breaks working on his uncle’s building sites and the experience ignited his love of property and development that continues to this day.

The first six months in role were all about laying the foundations of the new proposition. Ruairi says: “Working with stakeholders in our own business we created a dedicated team of eight development specialists across Northern Ireland, and with the aid of experts in the industry provided enhanced training for the team and vital supporting teams within the bank with a view to delivering best in class service for our customers.

Eye on Residential Property “Working together with colleagues in credit underwriting we strengthened, streamlined and embedded new processes whilst at the same time building relationships within the industry and with customers to ensure the message got out that Bank of Ireland UK was, and is open for business in the sector.”

The message clearly got through. In the first half of 2019 several significant transactions, including the largest in Northern Ireland since 2012, saw funding provided for one borrower which will deliver in excess of 300 individual units across 2 sites.

Recent and current developments stretch from Newry to the North Coast and Omagh to Donaghadee with the funding from Bank of Ireland UK

in place capable of delivering in excess of 2,900 individual units, almost one third of the total number of houses where development got underway in Northern Ireland in 2018.

Ruairi says: “We are proud to be supporting and funding a significant proportion of the Northern Ireland housing market. We are playing our part in enabling growth in a vital sector within the NI economy, which not only provides housing but which contributes significantly in the creation of jobs and spend in local communities.

“In the latter half of 2018 we invested heavily in getting the right people and processes in place in order to meet the expectations, pace and demands of the marketplace. Looking

Heat map showing BOIUK supported Residential Developments across Northern Ireland

CASE STUDY

Crevenagh Properties Ltd. meeting demand for new homes with support from Bank of Ireland UK

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revenagh Properties Ltd is the joint enterprise of Mark Cuskeran, Ian Cochrane and Derek Sawyers, who combined their experience, success and capital from previous roles across manufacturing, engineering and transport to move into residential property development.

The business has been a Bank of Ireland UK customer for a couple of years although their individual relationships with the bank go back much further.

Connor Ward says: “We have a very positive working relationship with Bank of Ireland UK, and we are delighted with their approach to the business.

“While many lenders are reticent to fund residential property development, Ruari and the team have been a fantastic support. They have put in place project monitors to keep track of timings and delivery and from a liaison point of view the team are second to none.”

Two years ago, with funding from Bank of Ireland UK, the company bought a site on Church Road in Holywood, which has long been considered one of Northern Ireland’s most sought after addresses.

There the company has developed three large detached houses with substantial lawns and mature landscaping within a private setting. With prices starting at £775,000, the properties are at the higher end of the market but are designed for buyers stepping up the property ladder who favour a turn-key finish. The first property is scheduled for handover at the end of August.

The bank has also helped to fund one of the largest development schemes, outside of Belfast, currently underway in Northern Ireland, a major development of 78 new properties at Winters Lane, Crevenagh Road in Omagh. It is a mixed development scheme and Phase 1 is currently underway with five detached, thirteen semi-detached and three duplex apartments all under construction. With prices starting at £100,000, each of the properties will be finished to a very high standard.

Connor says: “There have been no major developments in Omagh for more than ten years and Winters Lane is designed to address that lack of development and to meet demand for homes in the Omagh area following years of under supply.

The fact that 19 out of the 21 properties have been sold in Phase 1 even before the properties are completed is testament to that demand.

“We also understand our customers. All of our apartments have access via their own front door which is a small but important detail and we’re proud of the quality we deliver.

“Our developments include starter homes for first time buyers along with homes for those stepping up the ladder as well as downsizers. We directly employ 30 – 40 people at any one time and have ambitions to continue developing. We are exploring further opportunities the bank could support with funding to continue our growth and development in a strong sustainable way.”

Connor Ward, Crevenagh Properties Ltd. (centre), Ciaran Lavery, Relationship Manager, Bank of Ireland UK (left) and Ruairi Mussen, Bank of Ireland UK at Church Road, Holywood.

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Eye on Residential Property ahead, we continue to work together as a team to further improve our offering and we have the exciting prospect of a strong pipeline of deals across Northern Ireland including a new scheme in Fermanagh, our first new housing development deal there since the decade long downturn. It reflects and supports our assessment that there is demand right across the region after years of undersupply in the market. Where the fundamentals of the development proposal stack up in terms of

having a viable business plan demonstrating evident demand in the chosen location with a strong team backing the venture Bank of Ireland UK are committed to supporting our customers.”

Ruairi Mussen’s Top 5 Must do’s for success in Residential Property Development Funding 1. Have a comprehensive business plan 2. Demonstrate your/team track record and credibility 3. Show in depth due diligence is completed on the site, location and market 4. Evidence understanding of costings and contingency on costings

For customer queries and potential funding needs please contact Ruairi Mussen via email at Ruairi.mussen@boi.com or on 07841224475.

5. Build the relationship with your funder through early open and transparent communication from the outset and all the way through the project so any challenges can be addressed early and worked through together

CASE STUDY

Bank of Ireland UK helps the O’Kane Group bring premium homes to Northern Ireland

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ungiven-based developer O’Kane Group specialises in premium, stylish homes. As a customer of Bank of Ireland UK for four years, the company says the bank has been critical in helping to deliver their latest projects.

“If we need anything, I know I can just pick up the phone and ring the bank, even if it’s not between 9am and 5pm,” says owner Gavin O’Kane.

One of the O’Kane Group’s recent sites the bank has helped to fund is The Hatherans in Portstewart. With 48 units completed and 45 more to build, the site is a mixed development including 2-bedroom apartments, 3 and 4 bedroom semi-detached and 4-bedroom detached homes, with a

price bracket of £145k to £230k.

They have recently found success on the North Coast because of its diverse clientele and popular draw for people from all across Northern Ireland.

“There’s a fairly buoyant market around Portstewart,” O’Kane says “Clients come from all over Northern Ireland and within the local area to buy our homes.” Gavin adds that The Open at Royal Portrush has also recently highlighted Portstewart even more.

“We know home-buyers in Portstewart want quality homes, often open plan.

We pride ourselves on our attention to detail and designing homes to a premium spec, so our Hatherans development meets the diverse demand

Gavin O’Kane, O’Kane Group (left) with Ruairi Mussen, Bank of Ireland UK and Danielle Whoriskey, Bank of Ireland UK at The Hatherans, Portstewart.

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of the area and offers buyers beautiful homes in a fantastic location.”

In addition to supporting the Group in The Hatherans development, Bank of Ireland UK has also helped the company in its Abbeyfields development in Dungiven as well as future work planned in Portstewart and Coleraine.

Abbeyfields is a development of 165 houses with 58 completions to date.

The company is excited about its new development at Nursery Mews, Burnside, Portstewart which Bank of Ireland UK have and will continue to support. The site which will offer mostly spacious 4 bedroom detached properties along with some 3 and 4 bedroom semi-detached. is located just a few

minutes walking distance to Portstewart Golf Club, the Promenade and also the hugely popular Strand Beach, with some properties offering sea views.

Another prestigious development Earls Gate which is situated on a prime residential site on the Mountsandel Road in Coleraine is due to start early next year. The site extends to over 12 acres with 135 units planned for development.

“We have to meet deadlines and Bank of Ireland UK always finds a way to help us,” Gavin says. “They’ve truly helped us develop our business and make sure all projects run smoothly. Any situations we encounter, they always seem to find a way to work it out for us.”

Looking ahead, the O’Kane Group team are looking to use their in-house experience to acquire and develop greenfield or brownfield sites, taking these sites through the planning process into development on site.

They are focused on looking for prime residential development opportunities In Northern Ireland and further afield.

“We are always trying to stay one step ahead and deliver a premium product,” Gavin adds. “We’re focused on prestige properties and we put in the effort to ensure they always look their best. We spend a lot of time for each development on making sure we get the details right and most importantly the right product for each development. We work closely with the Bank of Ireland, our suppliers and our subcontractors to ensure we deliver quality homes for our customers.”

COME AND VISIT OUR STUNNING NEW SHOW HOMES

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PORTSTEWART 028 7083 5444 www.philiptweedie.com

Eye on Energy

Electric Ireland...

Putting The Customer In Control Dermot McArdle has been in the electricity industry long enough to remember the days when it was an engineer’s world.

All references were in engineering terminology and even customers were referred to as ‘consumers’.

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Eye on Energy

H

SME Premium Insights

ead of Business Markets for Electric Ireland says, “The industry generated and distributed the power and Available to all Electric Ireland business customers, SME Premium Insights offers greater the ‘consumers’ used it. And that control and provides personal recommendations on how to optimise your energy usage was the market in a nutshell.” and reduce your energy bills - gaining access to the information that matters most.

But Electric Ireland and parent company ESB have long since talked about customers instead of consumers and recognise that the utility market on the island of Ireland has changed beyond all recognition.

“As a company, ESB is 92 years old but I think everyone would agree that there has been more profound change in the past 10 or 15 years than in the 80-odd years before that,” Dermot adds. “But what has also changed is how our customers use electricity, how Businesses like yours can Compare your costs and they interact with us and how understand where and how you consumption to businesses similar they can control their usage.” consume energy, helping you reduce to yours - giving you that all important Electric Ireland is celebrating its coming of age in the Northern costs, now and in the future. competitive edge.

Ireland marketplace. It first entered the market 21 years ago and has shown sustained growth through those years, starting with larger business SME Premium insights offers you a customers, moving on to SME’s detailed breakdown of your energy and then the residential market. usage so you can see what is “We’re delighted with how we’ve influencing your bill. developed and grown in Northern Ireland, particularly when you consider that this is a small but very competitive market. We’ve worked hard to be innovators in “What we’re talking about here,” he Business Online platform. advice on how companies can cut the utilities space and are very explains, “is a partnership with our “We want to partner with our down on electricity usage, but proud that many of our customers customers, we want to help them business customers to help them these recommendations are a SME Premium Insights is available through Business Online. Simply log in have consistently chosen to stay to optimise their electricity usage to succeed and this is another way lot more specific than that. They orsuit register forof Business SME Insights and usto the individual as our partners since we entered to the nature their businessOnline, thatselect we can do that,”Premium he says. come rightlet down the market 21 years ago.” and how they work.for In effect, One facility within the SME characteristics of each business.” start working you.we’re That innovation is taking another providing customers with all the Premium Insights product is likely Putting customers in control Log in today at electricireland.ie/businessonline leap forward with the introduction information they need to make to make customers sit up and of their consumption and usage of Electric Ireland’s brand-new SME the right commercial choices.” take notice more than others. is the latest major change in an Premium Insights service aimed at The SME Premium Insights tool was That’s the fact that the data industry that has seen many over business electricity customers. It’s a developed and introduced by Electric available to them can compare recent years. Another major sea first to market digital platform that Ireland in response to customers their power usage to comparable change has been the move towards Smarter for Business businesses in their sector. allows Electric Ireland customers to research and feedback. “A key the use of renewable energy. understand how they use electricity comment we hear from SMEs is that “It’s part of the new service that “This is something that Electric in their business; whether they they want to be in control of their is getting the most attention,” says Ireland has been right at the forefront use more or less than competitors energy consumption,” says Dermot.

Dermot McArdle. “It means that of over recent years,” adds Dermot in their industry sector as well “So we looked at how the latest the new product has the ability to McArdle. “We know that more and as providing personalised tips on data technology could help us to compare restaurants, hospitality more of our business customers 2768_EI_BUSINESS_ONLINE_TOOL_SPIEIFOTS1206_V6.indd 2 27/06/2018 12:00 reducing energy consumption. enhance our products and services.” and manufacturing businesses with want to be able to use green “Premium Insights uses the Available to SME electricity and their competitors. Any other way, energy, and we make renewably powerful data analytics we can gas customers across the Republic it wouldn’t be relevant for those sourced power available to them. call upon these days to provide of Ireland since last year and already making the business decisions.”

“Both renewable energy and instant and accurate information used by more than 5,000 customers But the other key USP of Premium Insights are examples tailored for each customer,” says there, Premium Insights is now Premium Insights, he adds, is of how we work hard to put our Dermot McArdle. “The electricity being launched in Northern Ireland. the fact that the new service customers in control of their business has come a long way Unique in the Northern Ireland produces specific and tailored energy choices and their energy from customers getting a meter marketplace, it is accessible 24/7 suggestions on improving power consumption. Our ambition is to reading every two months to customers free of charge consumption for each customer. provide real value to customers followed by the bill in the post.” through Electric Ireland’s existing “We’re all aware of general when they choose Electric Ireland.”

Understanding Your Energy

Peer to Peer Comparison

End Use Breakdown

How do I get SME Premium Insights?

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Eye on Energy

Customer Testimonial CES Quarry Products

CES Quarry Products have been in business in Northern Ireland since 1948. It has developed over the years into a modern, dynamic business without losing their identity as a third generation, family run company. As they have moved forward with innovative products, and developing a

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customer base across Ireland, GB and Europe, so has their approach to their energy supplier. The launch of SME Premium Insights was ideal for a company like CES. ‘For any business, energy is one of the most significant overheads.

SME Premium Insights gave us an in depth look at how and where we consume energy.

We have multiple sites and SME Premium insights gives us a detailed view of our consumption on a site-by-site basis. It allows us to be smarter about our energy usage. We were already regular users of Business Online to monitor our account but Premium insights is a whole other level. For our

yearly financial planning and forecasting, it’s a great help.

We can get an accurate view on our proposed spend each year.’ One of the key features of Premium insights is the Peer to Peer comparison. It allows you to compare your energy consumption and costs with businesses similar to yours. ‘Seeing how we compare to our competitors is a great advantage, and a great motivator to be as efficient and green as we possibly can. As a company, we take our environmental responsibilities seriously. SME Premium insights means we can take the same approach with our energy consumption.

AWARDS 2019

FIRST TRUST BANK BUSINESS EYE AWARDS 2019 NI’s Leading Business Awards

Northern Ireland’s leading business awards are back for the 14th consecutive year, with a new name but a well established reputation as the very best of their kind on the local business scene.

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he First Trust Bank Business Eye Awards are an exciting new version of Northern Ireland’s longest running business awards, are the result of a partnership between the experienced team at Business Eye and lead sponsors First Trust Bank.

This year’s awards will be presented at a gala evening on Thursday, 28th November, at ICC Belfast and will offer local companies and business leaders the opportunity to enter a total of 18 categories covering every aspect of business across the region.

The Business Eye Awards have been honouring our leading companies, organisations and business leaders for the past 13 years.

Last year’s awards showcased an impressive array of winners at a memorable awards night held at the showpiece ICC Belfast venue in front of a 600-strong audience.

Belfast-based FinTrU, one of the leaders in the dynamic fintech sector in Northern Ireland, lifted the coveted Company of the Year award, while entrepreneur and business leader Tina McKenzie was named as Business Personality of the Year.

Other key winners included Denroy Group as Manufacturer of the Year, Mash Direct in the Family Business category and PKF-FPM Accountants as the Professional Services Firm of the Year.

First Trust Bank, a key supporter of the Northern Ireland business community, has partnered Business Eye on the annual Business Eye First Trust Bank Small Business

Awards for the past four years, a successful partnership that has moved to a new level.

Brenda Buckley, Commercial Director of Business Eye, says that the Awards are a clear leader in the Northern Ireland business community. “There is no doubt that these are the awards that local businesses want to win, and our annual awards night in November has grown to become one of the best nights of the year on the local business calendar.

“These awards mean a lot to those who win them...to their management teams, to their employees and to their customers.”

“First Trust Bank works with businesses of all sizes and in every sector across Northern Ireland” says Adrian Moynihan Head of First trust Bank. “We are delighted to continue to work with the Business Eye team on these awards. Despite all of the challenges, organisations in Northern Ireland continue to innovate and inspire. We’re looking forward to celebrating a range of business success stories at the awards event in November.”

The closing date for entries will be Friday, 25th October, with the judging panel due to meet in early November.

Companies and individuals will be able to enter no less than 18 different categories covering most aspects of the local economy and business life.

Full list of award categories: Company of the Year Young Business Personality of the Year Tourism & Hospitality Company of the Year Medium/Mid-Sized Business of the Year Innovative Company of The Year Family Business Of The Year Research & Development Project of the Year Community (CSR) Award Executive Support Professional of the Year Manufacturer of the Year Professional Services Firm of the Year Exporter of the Year Employer of the Year Fast Growth Business of the Year Agri Food Business of the Year Award Technology Company of the Year

Entries can be completed online at www.businesseyeawards.co.uk

Green Company of the Year Small Business of the Year

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Enter now at businesseyeawards.co.uk Closing date for entries is Friday 25th October 2019

Company of the Year SPONSORED BY

Executive Support Professional of the Year SPONSORED BY

Northern Ireland’s overall company of the year in the opinion of the judging panel.

Companies can be of any size/ scale, number of employees, and must be able to exhibit exceptional performance, especially but not exclusively during the 12 month period to 31st October 2019.

Medium/Mid-Sized Business of the Year SPONSORED BY

This category will recognise a leading player in the 50-250 employee sector of the Northern Ireland economy, a key sector which includes a number of our leading private sector companies. As with Company of the Year, entrants must demonstrate exceptional performance across the board.

Fast Growth Business of the Year SPONSORED BY A private sector organisation able to show clear rapid growth in terms of profit, turnover and/ or employee numbers during the 12 month period to 31st October 2019. This category is open to private sector businesses of any size and operating in any sector.

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This award will honour one of the ‘unsung heroes’ of the business world here, Northern Ireland’s leading Executive Support Professional, a key member of staff in any organisation providing exemplary support services to management within the organisation.

Innovative Business of the Year SPONSORED BY

Innovation, across every sector, is a key driver of business success. In this category, our judges will look for clear evidence of innovation in action, along with evidence of how innovation has helped to contribute to business success.

Green Company of the Year SPONSORED BY This award sets out to recognise achievement by a private sector Northern Ireland organisation towards the wider environmental cause. This may focus on a wide programme of environment measures, or one specific initiative which improves a company’s environmental contribution.

Family Business of the Year Award SPONSORED BY

Northern Ireland’s economy is built on family business success and this key category will recognise the family-owned business, of any size of scale, which can demonstrate exceptional achievement during the year to 31st October 2019

Professional Services Firm of the Year SPONSORED BY

This category sets out to honour Northern Ireland’s leading accountancy, legal or other professional services firm working with and providing key advice to clients in the local business community.

Technology Company of the Year SPONSORED BY Aimed at recognising impressive performance by one of Northern Ireland’s leading businesses operating in the technology sector, to include hardware, software, telecommunications, technology support and services.

Enter now at businesseyeawards.co.uk Closing date for entries is Friday 25th October 2019

Small Business of the Year

Manufacturer of the Year SPONSORED BY

Community (CSR) Award SPONSORED BY

SPONSORED BY The organisation with 50 employees or less which, in the opinion of the judges, exemplifies best practice and achievement across the board.

Evidence of growth and development, clear vision and strategy to deliver growth, commitment to superior customer service, demonstration of innovation across the business.

Research & Development Project of the Year SPONSORED BY

Manufacturer of the Year is open to all manufacturing organisations, of any size and scale, operating in Northern Ireland. The judging panel will look for evidence of innovation, attention to detail, state of the art engineering and product market success.

Young Business Personality of the Year SPONSORED BY

The Research & Development (Innovation) project which, in the opinion of the judges, is the best example of how companies can harness research, development and innovation to further their business aims and objectives.

Employer of the Year SPONSORED BY

The category is open to senior managers and leaders in businesses and organisations across the private, public and voluntary sectors who are aged 35 or younger at 31st October 2019, and whose leadership and achievement can be clearly demonstrated.

Corporate social responsibility plays an important role for NI companies and this specialist category sets out to recognise an organisation from the private, public or voluntary sectors making a clear and impactful contribution to its local community as a whole.

Tourism/Hospitality Company of the Year SPONSORED BY

The company or organisation making the most valuable contribution to the continued development of tourism & hospitality here in Northern Ireland. Possible entrants might include hotels/hotel groups, other forms of accommodation, tourism development organisations, restaurants, travel facilities, etc.

Exporter of the Year SPONSORED BY This category sets out to recognise those local organisations exhibiting best practice in terms of people management. The judging panel will look for clear evidence of class-leading initiatives designed to make the organisation a better and more caring employer.

The Northern Ireland-based company exhibiting the most impressive track record and recent growth in export sales of goods or services outside of Northern Ireland. Export markets to include ROI and GB, but the judging panel will give special consideration to organisations exporting worldwide.

Agri Food Business of the Year Award SPONSORED BY This category sets out to recognise notable achievement in the wider agri food sector and is open to companies and producers of all sizes as well as to individual products or innovations from those companies.

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Eye on Employment

5,000 People into Work, PeoplePlus NI Celebration event

PeoplePlus NI CEO Tina McKenzie and team

PeoplePlus NI held a special event on Monday, 24 June in Stormont’s Long Gallery to celebrate placing 5,000 people into full-time employment through the Department for Communities’ Steps 2 Success programme.

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eoplePlus NI were awarded the Steps 2 Success contract in 2014, a programme designed to provide an opportunity for those who are furthest removed from the labour market to find employment in the Northern region. Steps 2 Success is a free, voluntary programme which provides clients with the confidence they need to re-enter the job market and support them to continue on their path to employment.

The celebratory event began with a welcome from PeoplePlus NI’s Managing

Director, Paula Quigley, who welcomed assembled guests, which included elected representatives, programme stakeholders and successful clients, to Stormont. She shared how the organisation views 5,000 not just as a magic number, but as 5,000 people who have been supported to change their lives and consequently their families lives too.

Guests were shown a video which showcased the journey of programme participants from unemployment into employment

and demonstrated the support they received from PeoplePlus NI. The audience heard inspiring accounts from people who had varying and diverse stories, including from those who felt paralysed by a lack of confidence, to those feeling anxious at the thought of returning to work after a long period off due to raising a young family.

A real stand out part of the morning was programme participant Shane Carlin, speaking directly to guests about his experience. Shane explained how the programme led him

Eye on Employment

PeoplePlus NI CEO Tina McKenzie, team, Alison Lowry and Dept officials

Peter and Tina

into employment, initially with the PeoplePlus NI team and later into a warehouse, where he has now been promoted to a managerial role. Shane explained how the programme took him from being technically homeless to having the confidence to interact with others on the programme, to applying for jobs and finally to achieving a promotion to his current role.

Closing out proceedings,

PeoplePlus NI CEO Tina McKenzie addressed the audience. Tina paid tribute to the incredible work of the PeoplePlus NI staff, for fearlessly pursuing employment opportunities for some 5,000 programme participants.

Tina said: “Northern Ireland has a significant amount of people who for a variety of reasons are economically inactive, much of this is a legacy of the past, but also has to do with mental

health challenges, educational disadvantage and intergenerational unemployment.

Through this programme we hope to help create a bridge to employment for those who currently require benefits.

Northern Ireland has a lot of talent and every contribution to the economy will have a positive impact on Northern Ireland PLC.” Tina also thanked the Department for Communities for supporting the PeoplePlus NI team and helping them achieve their milestone 5,000 target.

PeoplePlus NI were delighted to celebrate this momentous achievement, which would not have been realised without the strong support from Alison Lowry and the wider team at the Department for Communities.

PeoplePlus NI’s Director of Operations, Peter Craig commented on the celebration, saying: “Today’s event is an opportunity to reflect on how far we have come and inspires the entire team to continue to do everything possible over the coming years to help people find a pathway into work.”

Tina addressing audience

Shane Carlin

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Eye on Finance

The Future Belongs to the Flexible At an uncertain time for UK businesses, technological innovations are enabling businesses to be more agile and adaptable to the needs of a changing and challenging business environment.

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t is a time of exceptionally rapid change for the UK banking industry. Although Brexit may be stealing the limelight in the UK press, there is a new industrial and technical revolution that is quietly emerging in the background which is disrupting the status quo. More broadly, accelerating changes in technology are fostering new, disruptive business models. Meanwhile, the world’s trading relationships are evolving fast as major economies diversify and pivot to enhance their competitiveness.

Gillian Morris, Head of Corporate Banking, Northern Ireland at HSBC described the challenges UK businesses face, “Think of an accelerated industrial revolution, with all the associated business disruption and social upheaval compressed into a short space of time. Then add in Brexit creating potentially the greatest disturbance to the country’s trading relationships in a generation, and you have what could be a perfect storm of challenges and opportunities.”

This can thus be an uncertain and challenging time for corporates, and one in which Finance Directors and their teams will have to play a critical supporting role. Dynamic companies that are able to navigate, strategise and adapt early on can potentially gain immediate competitiveness but as Marty Colvin, Relationship

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Director pointed out , this can only happen if the business is able to maximise their cash management efficiency so that they are sufficiently agile to support these business and operating model changes.

To help businesses drive these changes, new technological innovations and Open Banking reforms will allow modern finance teams to have greater control and ownership of their cash flows on a real-time basis.

The introduction of Open Banking, in conjunction with existing financial and payment infrastructures like Faster Payments and the re-emergence of bank solutions like Virtual Accounts allow companies to view all of a company’s accounts together, getting a real-time view of cash positions, and to make immediate strategic and tactical decisions.

At the same time, Open Banking encourages better and more meaningful collaboration between financial institutions and Fintech companies, enabling the industry to be more creative and innovative. Marty added, “New partnerships between banks and Fintech firms are resulting in new and more meaningful tools, products and services for the benefit of retail and corporate customers. It’s encouraging the creation of new functionality that banks, traditionally encumbered with regulatory compliance costs and

Gillian Morris is Head of HSBC Bank, Belfast.

constraints, have been hardpressed to develop and roll out.”

Gillian further explained, “In a post-Brexit world, where UK businesses may seek a greater proportion of future sales from fast-growing developing economies, this will lead to greater flexibility, adaptability and creativity, enabling them to enter and compete in new markets.”

Treasurers will be able to adapt to an accelerating digital economy, which will only be hastened by the advent of Artificial Intelligence, machine learning and big data. In a new world that’s constantly adapting

and consuming information, the efficient and fast consumption of data and the ability to immediately react in a mobile and less restrictive environment are critical. These new developments will enable treasurers to achieve greater operational efficiency, and free up time to focus on strategic initiatives.

Eye on Motoring

Belfast & Portadown Audi: Premium Brands, Premium Service

you through the Audi range, and tailor financial options to your needs. Dealing directly with Belfast and Portadown Audi ensures you receive the very best and most recent offers available and can fully experience Audi with test drives and vehicle demonstrations directly by your local team.”

Nick continues, “The future is very exciting, with electrification at the heart of the brand. The Audi e-tron, our first ever electric model has successfully launched, providing all the benefits of a large stylish SUV powered purely by electric. The e-tron range will grow further in the future, alongside plug-in hybrid options for many existing models.”

Belfast & Portadown Audi are Northern Ireland’s two full service Audi centres, offering the full Audi product range and comprehensive services that include a dedicated Local Business Development Manager.

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he past 12 months have been the busiest in the Audi brand’s history at both local and national level, with numerous product launches in addition to all-new model upgrades using the latest Audi design language with smart and intuitive technologies.

The new Audi range is more comprehensive than ever before, with a core model mix that has universal appeal to business fleet customers and drivers. The range is built around next generation engines which are cleaner and more efficient, married with advancements in interior design and luxury, including the latest driver safety assist options and infotainment systems.

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Recent launches include the all-new Audi A6 executive saloon which has proved extremely popular since its introduction and shaken up the executive saloon marketplace.

More recently the A1 has seen a complete upgrade inside and out, alongside the Q3 mid-sized SUV which provides space and flexibility in a sleek and sporty design. The ever-popular Audi A4 business saloon is undergoing a refresh and will be available to our Northern Ireland customers from September.

The new model has a raft of updates including a changed front-end design, LED lights as standard and a new range of efficient engines which is likely to continue the appeal of this timeless model.

Local Business Development Manager Nick Gordon says:- “At Belfast and Portadown Audi we know that business and fleet customers require a specialist, knowledgeable, and dedicated service. Therefore, our team of Local Business Development Managers are available to guide

To discuss your business and fleet requirements please contact Nick Gordon at Belfast and Portadown Audi on 078 9987 6653 or view our latest offers at www.agnewcars.com/audi.

Nick Gordon

CHRIS POWER Associate Director, Private Clients

‘Together, we build a picture of your ideal future’ Each of my clients has a different idea of what

We believe it’s our personal approach that delivers

financial confidence means to them. When we meet we have real conversations about their life, their family and their hopes for the future. It can take many conversations to work out what

the best outcomes for our clients.

Let’s start the conversation today. Call us on +44 28 9031 0655 or visit davy6,.co.uk

their real priorities are. But when we get to a true understanding of their future goals, I can build a financial life plan to help achieve them.

Davy Private Clients UK is the trading name of J & E Davy (UK) Limited.

J & E Davy (UK) Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Donegall House, 7 Donegall Square North, Belfast BT1 5GB, Northern Ireland.

Eye on Finance

Upstream... New Era For Alternative Finance Leaders

Upstream, already a clear leader in the alternative finance marketplace in Northern Ireland, goes into the future with a brand new trade finance product for existing and new customers and supported by a unique financing program characterized by stable, scalable and flexible capital.

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he company moves into trade finance after building up a cast-iron reputation in the competitive invoice finance marketplace.

Established in the teeth of the financial crisis back in 2011 as Keys Commercial Finance, the

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Belfast-based company adopted the Upstream brand several years later and, in 2016, moved into impressive new offices in Belfast’s Linenhall Street.

“We’ve been looking at trade finance for some time and when we made the decision to go in that

direction we needed a supportive funder. Our previous funders had already told us that trade finance wasn’t an area that they were involved in,” says Upstream Managing Director, Judith Totten.

“So we had to search the market for a new funder. It wasn’t an easy

process, to tell the truth, and we had to kiss a lot of frogs along the way, but we got to where we wanted to be earlier this summer and we’re delighted to be able to move forward.”

“Our financing partner’s ethos is strongly based on growth,” adds Alan Wardlow, Upstream’s Sales Director.

Eye on Finance “They want to work with, and we want to work with, companies who want to grow and companies who can see the opportunities to grow but need the support of a funder who match their aspirations” The trade finance concept, for those unfamiliar with it, is a simple one. Trade finance facilities are perfect for companies who see or have the need to buy goods or raw materials at an attractive price...but don’t have the necessary funds to hand.

“That’s where we can come in,” says Alan Wardlow. “We avoid the dreaded ‘slow no’, we make our funding decisions in house, we decide quickly and we can effectively step into the supply chain and provide the finance required to buy the goods that the client needs.

“The really attractive factor for most of our customers is that we can make a decision within 48 hours and have the funding in place within a few days. Our customers identify the buying opportunities.

We provide the money.”

“Funding into the supply chain rather than the sales side of a transaction is an opportunity that is being missed by so many N.I. Companies. Imagine the negotiating power of being able to pay cash for goods upon delivery rather than seeking credit terms from a supplier, especially against the background of a turbulent credit insurance market. Many of our clients are now able to secure major discounts from suppliers by changing their payment profile”.

And the team at Upstream is quick to stress that their Trade Finance services don’t impinge on any existing customer/bank relationship. The customer/Upstream relationship sits outside of that.

Over recent months, since launching the trade finance service here in Northern Ireland, Upstream has found itself financing the purchase of everything from fishing gear through to candles and from beer to batteries.

“Our new funding arrangements also mean that we are able to step up a gear when it comes to funding volumes. We still concentrate on the SME space, but we’re able to provide funding right up to £2.5 million and potentially well beyond,” explains Judith Totten. The company also intends to develop into the

“Our new funding arrangements also mean that we are able to step up a gear when it comes to funding volumes. We still concentrate on the SME space, but we’re able to provide funding right up to £2.5 million and potentially well beyond.”

wider UK and Irish marketplace.

Upstream becomes the only finance provider in Northern Ireland to offer a state of the art unsecured trade finance product, as distinct from ‘old style’ trade finance packages backed by security.

“The new product is aimed at new customers for Upstream but it goes without saying that we will be supporting our existing Invoice Finance customers with this product as well,” adds Alan Wardlow.

“There is huge potential,” says Judith Totten. “Trade finance can be put into place across just about any sector of the economy here and it can be enormously helpful for companies who see the opportunities but just don’t have the cash to avail of these – now they can negotiate confidently . We can now for the first time offer true ‘end to end’ finance from supplier to buyer and across the UK and Ireland. That gives us a true edge in these ever changing times and we want to give our customer’s a similar advantage” Meanwhile, Upstream continues to provide its well-proven invoice

finance product to a growing number of business customers across Northern Ireland. Unlike trade finance, invoice finance is a competitive sector of the wider finance market but Upstream is established as a market leader.

Their ability to act quickly, assess in house and deliver flexible and bespoke finance solutions in days rather than weeks has driven Upstream’s reputation and this will not change as they scale with their new funding partners.

“Invoice finance has grown and matured. It’s now seen as a very acceptable and very positive way of delivering working capital to a business, and we’re working confidentially and discretely with a wide variety of companies across a lot of different sectors.”

The team at Upstream are also very active on the acquisition trail and have already engaged with a number of independent funders across G.B. and Ireland with a view to maximising synergies and benefitting from the low cost base in Belfast compared with say

Dublin, London or Manchester.

Judith Totten is quick to pay tribute to a hard-working team at Upstream’s Linenhall Street base.

“We’re really, really fortunate to have a loyal, energetic and committed team like this one.

They don’t always get it easy, but they put the hard work in and they look after our customers very well – not just some of the time – but all of the time,” she says.

“We’ve been through a period of change, we’re out the other side and we’re so excited about what the future holds and what we can now achieve,” she says. “Our existing customers, and plenty of new ones, are going to hear a lot more about Upstream in the coming months.”

Upstream Suite B, Ground Floor 40 Linenhall Street BELFAST BT2 8BA Tel:- 028 9099 9450 www.upstreampositive.co.uk

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Eye on Manufacturing

Trevor McCrum & The Challenges Facing The Northern Ireland Bakery Business Trevor McCrum doesn’t beat about the bush when it comes to talking about the challenges facing his industry.

A move towards healthier eating, or perceived healthier eating (as he’d prefer to call it), has led to a drop in sales of traditional loaves of bread.

Trevor McCrum, Commercial Director, Hovis Belfast (photo courtesy of Titanic Hotel, Belfast)

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here’s an over capacity in the bakery industry here and, for an all-island business like Hovis, there’s the small matter of Brexit.

Then there are changing consumer tastes and trends. But the Commercial Director at Hovis Ireland’s extensive Belfast bakery isn’t downbeat. With not one but two strong brand names at his disposal in Hovis® and ORMO® both steeped in heritage, a passionate team and with an emphasis on quality and new product innovation, he’s optimistic about the future.

“Of course we have our challenges, What industry doesn’t face changing

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times? ” says Trevor. “But I know that the iconic Hovis and ORMO brand names, and the products that we bake here, will be around for a long time after I’m gone. Taste experiences may change over time, but bakery products are still a staple for the vast majority of households here in Northern Ireland.”

A veteran of the FMCG sector here, Trevor McCrum started his food industry career with the Kerry Foods Group and worked in the meat sector at Dunbia, in dairy with Dale Farm and crept closer to bakery with United Biscuits before arriving at the Hovis bakery on Belfast’s Apollo Road eight years ago

as Commercial Director – Ireland.

It’s a big operation by any standards, a significant Northern Ireland employer, employing circa 280 people in manufacturing and distribution and working around the clock seven days a week.

Trevor McCrum’s role means that he’s in charge of sales & marketing as well as new product innovation.

It’s a wide-ranging role.

“We are the custodians of two great brands,” he says. “Hovis has a long and proud history right across the UK and Ireland, and the ORMO brand is one with a really strong Northern Ireland

identity.” Hovis, of course, bought the ORMO brand name when the locallyowned company closed the doors of its Ormeau Road bakery back in 2004.

White bread, the mainstay of the bakery industry, might be in decline, but it’s not a sharp decline. Hovis has been quick to adapt to a changing market and consumer, developing lower calorie alternatives, healthier seeded loaves, alongside premium products like a new Buttermilk Wheaten Bread baked with buttermilk from Ballyrashane Co-Op in Coleraine and a potato farl range baked with fresh champ produced by Mash Direct in Comber.

Eye on Manufacturing

(L-R) Mash Direct Marketing Director Jack Hamilton, Hovis Ireland Commercial Director Trevor McCrum, LacPatrick Dairies Ltd. Business Development Manager Brendan Lappin and Mash Direct Sales Director Lance Hamilton.

The new products are examples of how the bakery sector has had to adapt to changing tastes, away from traditional white bread but into more premium and international product lines like bagels, wraps, brioche and waffles.

“We’re fortunate to have, in Hovis, the No. 1 bread brand here in Northern Ireland with a 29% value share of the marketplace, and we’re also No. 1 in the white bread and seeded bread categories,” adds Trevor.

“But we can’t rest on our laurels.

“Our focus over recent times has been on product quality – on softness, freshness, on increasing shelf life – and on making sure that our customers are getting a great finished product each time every time.”

Around one million loaves and other bakery products leave the gates of the Apollo Road bakery in a fleet of Hovis lorries every week bound directly for supermarkets and retail outlets the length of breadth of Ireland. The Hovis Belfast plant sends 20% of its products across the Irish border.

“This is a very competitive industry and that’s not made any easier by the fact that we do have over capacity when it comes to bakery production here. So it’s all about being competitive

but the real differentiation is quality and reputation. Everyone knows the price of bread, so it’s not about price but it is about delivering quality to the consumer,” says Trevor McCrum.

Hovis has worked hard on its innovation and quality programme, both towards healthier bakery products and new premium products like the wheaten and potato farl lines mentioned earlier. Every month existing Hovis and ORMO products as well as NPD lines are independently tested at CAFRE Loughry College campus in Cookstown, as well as working on NPD programmes.

“Innovation is a constant for us.

It has to be,” he adds. “We have to look hard at the marketplace, gain as many insights as we can, talk to our retailers and our consumers and then work alongside the food development experts. We’ve developed a series of new products and there will be more coming along in the future.”

Looking to the future, Trevor McCrum echoes the views of many other business leaders when he talks about Brexit. “We need to get Brexit out of the way, whatever form it is going to take.

We need to get rid of that uncertainty.

“We have to aim to stay ahead of the competition in a very hard-fought

ORMO In Store Activity

Hovis at the 2019 Balmoral Show

industry sector, and we’re in a good position to do that. We have some of the best people in the business working for us here at Hovis.”

The Belfast plant forms part of a UK Hovis Bakery business with its HQ in High Wycombe and employs 2,800 people across its eight UK bakeries.

The company is controlled by The Gores Group, a $3.7 billion global private equity firm founded by Alex Gores in 1987 and headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. Gores took a 51% controlling stake from Premier Foods several years ago.

The Hovis brand built on its heritage.

Just recently, it re-mastered the iconic Ridley Scott TV ad in which a small boy pushes a bicycle up a cobbled English village street to the strains of Dvorak’s New World Symphony.

And Trevor McCrum is a firm fan of that heritage. “Hovis is a strong and trusted brand for the public right across the UK, from north to south and east to west,” he says. “And the very same can be said of the ORMO brand right here in Northern Ireland.

“Brands like that are invaluable, and we’re well aware of that fact. We’ve every intention of looking after them and building on their strengths.”

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Eye on News

Taste And Tour Named ‘Northern Ireland’s Best Small Visitor Attraction’ Taste and Tour has won the title of ‘Northern Ireland’s Best Small Visitor Attraction’ following a competition launched by George Best Belfast City Airport in partnership with Tourism NI.

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he Belfast based company, which hosts food and drink tours and experiences, will now receive £30,000 of free marketing support and brand visibility at Belfast City Airport.

Earlier this year all eleven Councils put forward a shortlist of attractions and experiences who then took part in a public vote on the airport’s Facebook page with the winning attraction from each Council progressing to the Final.

All eleven finalists then received a visit from the judging panel which included representatives from Tourism NI, Tourism Ireland, Visit Britain and TripAdvisor.

Katy Best, Commercial Director at Belfast City Airport, said: “Huge congratulations must go to Taste and Tour and all of the finalists for getting to this stage of the competition. Our judging panel was extremely impressed with each of the attractions, all of which offer a different experience for locals and visitors alike.

“We were thrilled to partner with Tourism NI on this project to really shine a light on some of the hidden gems here in Northern Ireland.

“We hope all the finalists have benefitted from additional exposure as a result of this campaign and will work with our winners, Taste and Tour, to facilitate £20,000 of in terminal advertising and

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Phil Ervine, Co-Founder of Taste and Tour; Cliona Arthur, Media Sales Manager at Belfast City Airport; and Caroline Wilson, Co-Founder of Taste and Tour.

£10,000 of visibility across our popular digital channels.”

The finalists included: Taste and Tour (Belfast City Council); Erne Water Taxi (Fermanagh and Omagh District Council); Carrick Cottage (Newry, Mourne and Down District Council); Clip ‘n Climb (Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council); Kilcreggan Urban Farm (Mid and East Antrim Borough Council); The Somme Museum (Ards and North Down Borough Council); Museum of Orange Heritage (Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council); RSPB Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre (Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council); Siege Museum (Derry City and Strabane District Council); Todds Leap (Mid Ulster Council); and World of Owls (Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council).

Caroline Wilson of Taste and Tour said: “We are absolutely delighted to be named Northern Ireland’s Best Small Visitor Attraction, particularly when all of the finalists were of such a high calibre.

“We have a huge passion for local food and drink and Taste and Tour is all about sharing that with others – whether that’s with people from Northern Ireland or visitors coming into the city.”

Phil Ervine of Taste and Tour said: “The marketing support from Belfast City Airport will help us reach even more people, supporting our continued growth and development and we are so excited for this partnership!

“We have thoroughly enjoyed the process of this competition and have been made aware

of the many other excellent attractions within Northern Ireland that we can’t wait to visit!”

As a partner of the campaign, Tourism Ireland will also be providing marketing support for Taste and Tour NI. The Belfast tour will be promoted to key audiences across Great Britain and Tourism Ireland will work with Taste and Tour NI to build this plan.

The search to find Northern Ireland’s best small visitor attraction followed the success of Belfast City Airport’s previous search to find Northern Ireland’s Best Food or Drink Product in partnership with Food NI. Long Meadow Cider was crowned the winner and enjoyed extensive marketing support and visibility at the airport resulting in their product being sold on site.

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Eye on News

US TECH FIRM INVESTS FURTHER IN BELFAST

An international tech firm headquartered in the United States has invested further in its Belfast base having opened its new city centre offices.

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azaarvoice has taken 10,000 sq ft of Grade A office accommodation at McAuley House in Belfast city centre.

Commercial property agency CBRE acted on behalf of Bazaarvoice to acquire the space.

David Wright, Office Agency Director at CBRE, commented: “Bazaarvoice wanted to acquire space that supported how the company operates globally by maximising the connectivity between its people.

“This meant providing high-end, flexible office accommodation that incorporates many different breakout zones, as

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Pictured (L-R): David Wright, Office Agency Director at CBRE; Fiona Martyn, Associate Director at CBRE; and Stephen Donnelly, Senior Software Development Manager at Bazaarvoice

well as areas for both formal and spontaneous meetings.

“Innovative companies, like Bazaarvoice, demand more efficient and collaborative working spaces to attract and retain stellar talent, which is exactly what this property offers.”

Stephen Donnelly, Senior Software Development Manager at Bazaarvoice, said: “When we sought to grow the Bazaarvoice footprint, opening operations in Belfast was a natural choice.

“The city offers an extremely attractive investment proposition for FDI for many reasons, but none more so than the talent pool.

“There is a huge wealth of

burgeoning talent and a thriving tech scene here and we are delighted with the quality of the indigenous workforce we have assembled.”

CBRE’s Building Consultancy team in Belfast, which was established last year, was also appointed by Bazaarvoice to project monitor its proposed fit-out of its new office accommodation.

Fiona Martyn, Associate Director at CBRE, said: “Through communicating with the team in Austin, Texas, it was clear from the offset that Bazaarvoice had a vision of creating a modern, innovative working environment for its Belfast staff.

“Our brief included bright open spaces that encouraged collaboration, high-acoustic performances in meeting rooms, and the inclusion of a nursing room and comfortable chill out areas.

“We were within weeks of completion when the historic Bank Buildings fire occurred, leaving significant programme challenges as the building was left as part of the restricted access zone in the vicinity.

“We worked closely with Bazaarvoice, the landlord and the design team to split the office move into two phases until we regained full access to the entire office suite.”

Eye on News

BELFAST CITY AIRPORT SIGNS UP WITH ELECTRIC IRELAND George Best Belfast City Airport, which recently achieved Platinum Status in Business in the Community NI’s Environmental Benchmarking survey, have this week taken further steps to reduce their carbon footprint by announcing a new contract for 100% renewable energy with Electric Ireland.

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he agreement with Belfast City Airport means that Electric Ireland, who are the leading electricity, gas & energy solutions partner to Large Energy Users (LEU) throughout the island of Ireland, will provide the airport, now in its 81st year, with approximately 5.2 million kWh of energy per annum to supply power to the 2.6 million passengers who use Belfast City Airport each year.

Chris Horner, Capital Projects and Engineering Manager at Belfast City Airport commented; “The environment has always been a key consideration to our growth strategy. This partnership with Electric Ireland further supports our commitment to implement policies that minimise waste and maximise efficiency.

“These policies include the procurement of our electricity from renewable sources

alongside modern and innovative practices in waste management which have already seen waste to landfill drop from over 40% to just 2% in the past four years.”

David Fusco, Customer Relations Manager from Electric Ireland said: “We are working with clients like Belfast City Airport to support them in their ambition to change and evolve their supply chain and move towards a more sustainable form of energy consumption. Efficiency is key and it is our ambition to create long-term customer relationships that provide real valuable support to business.

“Our competitive pricing means that Belfast City Airport can choose this greener option easily and coupled with our expertise and service we

Chris Horner, Capital Projects and Engineering Manager at Belfast City Airport and David Fusco, Customer Relations Manager from Electric Ireland.

hope it is the start of a long relationship. This partnership with the Belfast City Airport reflects our successful approach to building market share across

a broad range of industries in Northern Ireland by offering competitive prices, premium energy products and positive customer relationships.”

Highflying Partnership Continues For Selective Travel Management And IoD Selective Travel Management, one of the UK & Ireland’s largest and most successful independent travel management companies, has just announced their continued partnership with one of the biggest names in business.

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ome of the major events staged annually by the Institute of Directors in Northern Ireland will now be enhanced with international travel packages provided and managed

by Selective Travel Management which recently earned recognition in the Buying Business Travel Annual Top 50, placed 27th in 2018 and 21st in 2019 as top fast-tracked business in its sector nationally, as well as No.7 in the UK for new business wins.

Announcing this latest association with the IoD, Keith Graham, Managing Director of Selective Travel Management, said, “As a leading local business, absolutely

committed to supporting the economic development of ‘Northern Ireland PLC’, we are delighted to support for the second year the superb portfolio of business growth initiatives from an organisation whose membership includes so many of our leading and most influential business leaders”.

Set to benefit from the new alliance will be the Northern Ireland Young Directors’ Forum, the IoD Annual Dinner, the Women’s Leadership Conference and the Director of the Year Awards.

Heather White, Business Development Manager at the IoD said, “With a vast calendar of events throughout the year,

Pictured celebrating their continued partnership are (l to r) Heather White, Business Development Manager, IoD, Northern Ireland, Keith Graham, MD Selective Travel Management, and Stephen Staerke, Business Development Manager, Selective Travel Management.

the IoD aims to provide a variety of platforms for our members to engage with each other, network and learn best practice from other business leaders”.

“These would not be possible without the support of a strong panel of

business partners and we are pleased that Selective Travel Management has come on board for a second year to enhance some of our most popular events with the provision of international travel packages.”

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Eye on Round Table

Leadership & Talent In Today’s Changing Business World The Participants promote talent in the organisation, and we’ve adapted to bring in skills when and where necessary. We are seeing increasing need for agile capabilities and the ability to lead effectively with uncertainty in the background. It’s a very different skill set from that of the traditional banking manager in the past.

Some things haven’t changed however and an obsessive focus on the customer is still at the heart of good Banking, it’s about digital with a human touch.

Caroline Van Der Feltz – HR Director, Danske Bank UK

Sam Davidson – Group Human Resources Director, Henderson Group

Brian Parkes – Director of People & Culture, Queen’s University, Belfast

Aine Mitchell – Founder & Owner of The Coaching Suite, executive & leadership coaching specialists

Ruth McDonald – Managing Director, Narratology

Richard Buckley – Editor, Business Eye (Chairman)

Business Eye worked alongside leading executive search and selection consultants Narratology to stage a Round Table Discussion event at Belfast’s Merchant Hotel.

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he subject? The role of leadership and talent management in today’s fast-changing business world, how companies and organisations are re-defining their approach to human resources and how individuals are changing how they view the world of work.

RB – Let’s start with a few thoughts from each of you on how the people business, if I could call it that, has changed as you see it?

CV – Banking and financial services has seen a lot of change. It’s grown less retail based and much more digital. So, we’ve seen changes in what is needed at leadership level. The pace is challenging for our existing leaders and that’s not going to change. We work hard to

BP – In some ways, Higher Education has thrived in blissful isolation from market pressures for a long time. Now, with students paying for the privilege of attending University, that has created a lot of pressure to provide an experience which is world class. The sector seemed unprepared for that and there has been mixed success in dealing with it. Our focus is on how we can get more value from the top 50 leaders in the university.

A lot of it is about relearning where they need to focus their own time, and where they need to delegate, as there are more things to deal with than before, so we can show that we are responding, quickly, to all of our stakeholders students, regulators, staff etc AM – I worked in HR at GE and now work in development coaching at director level.

I agree with Caroline, there is so much uncertainty and that is really challenging.

The pace of change is phenomenal and that can present real issues for some people in key management roles, whether it’s in a small organisation or one of the bigger operations coming into the NI marketplace. Then there’s the generational aspect. How does a director create meaning and purpose for people from a range of generations and mindsets? Development for me is much more about team coaching.

It’s all about collaboration these days.

Eye on Round Table

SD – I’m in my role 15 years now so I can indulge in a bit of reflection. We have 12 directors across our business and nine of them were there when I joined. It’s a family business but one which has more than doubled in size over recent years. We’re into the fifth generation of the family in the business so we take succession planning very seriously. We have a very low turnover at senior level. One of our challenges, though, is that it’s not just about the top team. In our business, it’s about translating values across more than 4,000 people in the business.

The other challenge for us is that the talent pools we could have fished in at a management level – other multiple

retailers – have effectively gone from Northern Ireland. The answer to that is to grow our own talent. Apart from that it’s all straightforward.......!

RB – I’d like to bring this towards leadership skills if we could.

What do organisations look for in terms of leadership skills?

RM – I recruit for leaders and for me there has been a big shift over the last few years. Previously, we would have looked at senior individuals from a specific industry who were hired for that industry experience. Now it’s more about the person, their values and their attitudes, as well as how they’re going to fit with the organisation or the senior management team. So, what I look for now has significantly shifted. Even the fact that we talk about recruiting leaders rather than managers tells its own story.

CV – The ability to collaborate and work with and through others can’t be overestimated. It is so significant.

And the leader also has to able to be a catalyst for that way of working. We have a hierarchical culture, but that’s not the way today’s businesses are operating any more. There’s a message there for our universities as well around how they grow that talent .

SD – We all live in corporate worlds and you can get caught up in corporate speak.

But it’s all about not getting caught up in that kind of thing. It’s also about knowing your business, the hot spots, the buttons to push. But it’s also about being genuine with people. That’s one of the cornerstones of our business culture.

AM – I love that. If a leader can be true and authentic, it will enable their people to become true and authentic in their dealings with people.

CV – Absolutely. In these days of fake news and social media, trust and integrity are the one true foundation for really good leaders.

AM – When I think about it, all of the work that I do is around relationships and comes back to trust. It is a pivotal point in team coaching when a team realises lack of trust is preventing them from being the best they can be’

BP – If I could play devil’s advocate, what we’re saying works with robots.

But we’re dealing with people. It’s a bit messier than that. Who really leaves their leadership ego outside the room? The emotions and insecurities that we all have get in the way of what we’re trying to achieve.

RM – Again, I think there has been a bit of a shift in that space. Management used to be seen as untouchable.

Today’s leaders need to be upfront and central, and they have to be approachable. It’s about getting the most out of people. A word I hear coming up time and time again is credibility. Leaders don’t just get respect because they are the leader.

They have to earn it, especially with the new generations coming through.

CV – That’s about self-awareness, emotional intelligence and being true to yourself. I’m sure we’ve all worked with leaders who haven’t necessarily exhibited those qualities.

AM – I agree with what Brian said about leadership ego. But we have to be bold and help them see the blind spots that are holding them back. The soft stuff is the hard stuff when it comes to personal development. None of us can completely let go of the ego, but we need to learn when to step back from it.

SD – To be devil’s advocate to your devil’s advocate, egos are in some ways what drives the energy. If nobody had an ego, nothing would get done.

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Eye on Round Table CV – That’s true. If you don’t believe in yourself, why would anyone else believe in you.

RB – It’s a bit of a cliché are are there born leaders? And to what degree can you teach leadership?

a lot of it is about people you work with, people who mentor you, how open you are to new ideas. But there has to be a kernel of ability and talent to start with.

SD – There are born leaders but they’re not necessarily good leaders.

AM – If the conditions are right and you believe that you can learn and get better, then you will thrive. But if you come at this with a fixed mindset that you’re a leader and always will be, then you won’t.

AM – There are probably some innate characteristics that single some out as a more natural leader than others. But there’s no doubt that leaders can be and are developed.

RM – Can you teach leadership as such in a formal environment?

There are a lot of leadership courses around, but how effective are they in honing the softer skills required?

CV – Years ago, those who could boss and control others might have been considered natural leaders, but that’s not what it’s about. It never has been. But we can still observe the child in the playground who can get others to do things for them. The real characteristics of leadership are around achievement and enabling your people to do their best work.

CV – You can hone an aptitude for leadership but you can’t undervalue experience and learning on the job. It’s hard to factor in the human unpredictability we’ve mentioned in a black and white environment. What really makes a difference is going out, making mistakes and learning from them.

AM – When I worked at GE, potential leaders were identified and they were given the toolkit they needed through training and development. But that didn’t make them leaders. They only became leaders once they’d proved themselves in the workplace.

SD – Maybe we don’t have kids thinking about leadership early enough. It’s something we only tend to think about when we get into adolescence. You can’t be a great footballer just by watching it on TV. You have to get out on the pitch. The same goes for business. Very few teachers know anything about what business leadership looks like.

It think there is a real disconnect and that’s a challenge for the education system. We have to invest more into it and into building bridges between education and business.

BP – We’ve a culture of rewarding individual achievement here. It’s very different in the Far East where it’s more about collective endeavour. You can find the raw materials in some people, but how good will they be at coping with new and ambiguous situations?

How good are they at learning from mistakes? I’m a bit cynical about how far you can develop that kind of ability.

SD – I think it’s mostly nurture. There are a lot of different types of leadership. I think

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CV – Curriculum has a big part to play.

That’s where organisations like Business in the Community and Catalyst have roles to play. Businesses also have to buy into this. They’ve realised that education doesn’t always produce what they’re looking for, so they have to step up to the mark and help to change that in the way that Deloitte has done with its Bright Start Programme.

BP – I don’t think you can teach leadership – there isn’t even one definition on what it is. There are skills that you can teach... how to delegate properly, for example.

But not how to be brave at making

decisions when the stakes are high.

Taking time out to reflect on your own style, and how you can moderate that is very important, but there are different ways to develop that competence, experience being the most important one.

AM – On that international note, I’d add that if we’re going to raise the bar on leadership education, then our leaders have to look outside of Northern Ireland. They need to look at Stanford, at Harvard, Henley and the like. It’s about aiming to be world class.

CV – I think that the most effective way you can grow leaders is to put them through those stretch assignments, to broaden their minds, to let them mess up a bit. And you need to be able to do that without the scrutiny of the entire organisation. We need to reframe our thinking and be able to pluck people and put them into positions that they might not have seemed destined for.

AM – Yes, there is still a traditional approach to who goes into what position here in Northern Ireland. We can and should be more flexible and inventive in how we think about key people and roles.

RM – A lot of global companies do talent management well because they have the resources to do it. It’s a job in itself for someone to co-ordinate talent within an organisation, to manage individuals’ career paths and ensure they have appropriate exposure. There’s more scope to do it a large multinational although there is increasing focus with some organisations locally.

SD – I worked at Nortel, a big Canadian multinational, and we did use the GE Talent Matrix, which is all about developing effective leaders. We consciously filtered out the lowest 10% and brought along the top quartile. But you have to be careful not to push talent around the grid and leave holes where they came from. But maybe that’s the paradigm shift that Caroline is talking about. We have to get away from being scared of making the moves that we need to make.

RB – Is it changing?

CV – It’s not easy but I believe it’s worth the pain. Because this market is so small, the talent matrix needs skillful application. Market demand outstrips supply and there is a balance to strike in growing talent internally and buying in talent where new skills are needed.

CV – I think that we have the desire to get there and the courage to get there, but we’re still bound by procedures and rules which don’t make it any easier.

We have to be dogged. In my industry, the only way we’re going to grow new leaders is to be creative. The banking world has changed beyond recognition and we need breadth of leadership.

SD – There’s a legal and political aspect to all of this. It is much more difficult to get things done now because of the framework we operate in. All of the legislation we have is there for good reasons, but it does drive businesses towards being conservative. That’s why HR departments can be viewed as the teams that like to say no.....!

Eye on Round Table BP – There’s an expectation that we, as HR professionals, should be managing people’s careers for them. But that’s not what it’s about. People need to manage their own careers. They have to create their own opportunities or go and work somewhere else. But I do think that we need to look at our employment frameworks in Northern Ireland to make this region more productive.

CV – But it’s easy to hide behind that.

Putting a rigorous HR operation into place and working it the right way, you can see results. It’s possible to have a dynamic talent process and it’s all about communicating that across your organisation. That’s what makes it successful.

RB – We’ve mentioned millennials.

Do they take a very different attitude to the world of work?

SD – I’d like to think I’m as open to doing new things as my kids, who are millennials. Social media has given everyone a voice and has changed everything. But don’t forget that these millennials will be the baby boomers. I think there’s more overlap between the generations than we sometimes believe.

BP – Loyalty to organisations seems to be in decline. It’s a technology driven thing. People won’t listen to the man or woman in the corner office anymore. They’ll go online onto Glass Door or peer networks and form their own opinions. I’d do that if I’m buying a washing machine, so why shouldn’t the world of work be the same. We need to communicate in a less controlled way.

For me, bringing staff into a room and asking genuinely for their views, and

showing that you act on it has a massive impact, especially to your reputation as an employer. At Queen’s, we have made a formal People Promise to be a Listening Organisation – we’re making real progress now and it’s all driven by the importance of enhancing our reputation as an employer in our sector globally.

AM – That’s where egos can get in the way. Leaders don’t listen to their people nearly enough.

BP – Egos and fears. When you commit to being a listing organisation you need to be prepared for criticism. That’s not always easy.

RB – We’ve talked about growing, teaching and identifying talent. How can organisations best attract talent?

CV – I think we are seeing people coming across from UK but not always permanently. Reverse commuting, if you like. I can think of three or four at senior level. That’s because Northern Ireland has smaller organisations where it’s possible to work in a very senior role. And the quality of life, cost of living and other factors all play into that.

Technology helps too. You could go onto LinkedIn on a Sunday afternoon and build someone’s management structure.

SD – Ask anyone why they buy an Apple product and they’ll say that a friend recommended it. It’s similar in our world.

When we ask an applicant what attracted them to our organisation, it’s invariably because they know someone who works with us and they’ve a good word to say about us. So that’s invaluable. Success also helps. But if you can make every employee a champion of the business,

you’ll have very few problems attracting talent. We recruit over a thousand people a year, so it’s really important that we can use our teams to help us attract such volumes of candidates.

RM – I genuinely don’t think senior individuals join an organisation because of its turnover or the size of the building.

They buy into the story of the business, the people they meet when they go there and the impact that they can make.

Leaders want to make a difference.

CV – Culture and a sense of purpose can be so important. There was more celebration amongst our people around the fact that we won the Business In The Community Most Responsible Company Award than any other award we’ve won in the business arena.

It captured the imagination of our people and it connected with them.

BP – Sense of purpose is very important to employees and job seekers. We’re in the midst of a big cultural change and our Social Charter is central to that - our people are proud of it. We’ve moved away from trying to be all things to all people to differentiate on key areas where we know we are building a global reputation. Should we be prepared to pay above the odds for key leaders in the sectors in which we’re building a global reputation? That brings us back to the old conundrum

– is everyone equally important or are some people more important than others based on strategic direction?

RB – One final question before we let you out. What are the challenges going forward?

CV – Leaders and more of them.

We have great talent at the lower levels but we have to accelerate the process of growing leaders.

SD – We have a diverse range of skills sets and there are real shortages of talent in some areas. Efficiency, the ability to embrace change and continuous improvement are all issues.

AM – In my world, we’re going to see team coaching more often than individual coaching. And coaches, I think, have to have been a leader.

BP – Trying to move away from people seeing leadership as positional towards a more collective networked approach.

Seen as a collective endeavour, the sum is genuinely greater than the individual parts.

RM – We have to work on the sectors where there is a real scarcity of leadership talent. When there are gaps but no immediate internal options, we perhaps need to consider leaders from other industry sectors who may also bring a broader experience and fresh perspective.

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Eye on News

NI Small Business Conference 2019 Focused On Delivering Business Growth

Pictured at the Launch of the NI Small Business Conference 2019 is Newry BID Manager, Eamonn Connolly, Vice President of Newry Chamber, Emma Marmion, Chairperson of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Councillor Charlie Casey, FSB Regional Chair, Brendan Kearney and Head of Regeneration and Business Development at Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, Amanda Smyth.

This year’s NI Small Business Conference will focus on the theme of ‘Delivering Growth’ for small businesses.

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rganised by Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade, in partnership with Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, the Federation of Small Businesses NI and Newry BID, it will be held in the Sean Hollywood Arts Centre, Newry on Thursday 19th September.

This year’s programme has been developed to suit the needs of small business. Topics include Funding for Small Businesses; Delivering Digital Strategies for Revenue Growth; Doing Business Outside

Northern Ireland and managing HR and Legal challenges.

This year, the Chamber has secured International Business Strategist and Leadership Coach, Simon Haigh. As well as being an internationally recognised author and media commentator his clients include the WJ Clinton Leadership Institute at Queens University, Trinity-Dublin Aviation Skillnet and Smurfit Kappa. Simon’s keynote address will focus on ‘Closing the Deal – A Way to Win Business’, which is a vital skill for any business large or small.

Speaking at the launch of the Conference, the Chamber’s Vice President Emma Marmion said: “The small business sector is the life blood of our economy. This year’s NI Small Business Conference will focus on providing the tools to grow your business locally, nationally and globally. Whether you are in retail, manufacturing or the service sector, experts will provide practical information and advice on how to grow your business.

We want businesses to go away with real solutions which will not only help them in the day to day running of their business but also on how to deliver real growth.”

This year’s conference is being supported by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council and speaking at the launch Council Chairperson, Councillor Charlie Casey said: “The Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Area has more than 8,000 VAT registered businesses, which is third highest number in the north. Last year there were 225 new businesses created which was the largest numerical increase of any District Council Area. As a Council, we recognise that small businesses are the heart of our local economy and it is important that we provide support for the small business sector to grow and prosper. The Council is delighted to support this year’s NI Small Business Conference, which sets out an exciting and informative agenda relevant to the growth

interests of businesses operating across all our main sectors.”

This year’s conference has also secured the support of the Federation of Small Businesses NI. Welcoming their involvement in this important Small Business Conference, the Federation’s Regional Chair, Brendan Kearney said: “We in FSB are delighted to work with partners in Newry on this important conference event for small businesses across the region.

At this time of great uncertainty for small business, it’s more important than ever that business strategy is focused on securing sales, driving growth and sustainability and minimising risk and the workshops and networking opportunities on offer through this event will deliver just that. There will be practical advice for businesses in every sector of the economy, so I would urge you to book your place today to ensure you don’t miss out.”

Newry BID is working in partnership with the Chamber to support the event being held in Newry. Speaking at the launch of the Conference, BID Manager Eamonn Connolly said: “The location of the NI Small Business Conference in the centre of Newry recognises the importance of the city and region as a location to do business. Newry has grown based on a spirit of innovation and partnership and we look forward to an informative event to enable further business growth.”

Tickets for the NI Small Business Conference 2019 in the Sean Hollywood Arts Centre are priced at £15.00 + VAT which includes breakfast and lunch. Tickets are available to purchase from Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade or via Eventbrite.

Eye on News

Centra Opens New City Centre Store Centra’s Belfast City Centre expansion is continuing with the opening of a new store at River House on High Street, bringing further convenience options to the city’s Cathedral Quarter.

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he brand-new store, located on the ground floor of this new 13-storey building on High Street, will be the perfect convenience location for the numerous private offices and co-working spaces in the area and is a welcome addition to the business community.

Commenting on Centra’s continued expansion in Belfast City centre, Nigel Maxwell Sales Director Centra Northern Ireland said: “Our focus is on redefining convenience – providing our shoppers with a healthier offering and innovative ranges, particularly

in food-to go and our Frank and Honest coffee brand. Centra River House is the latest example of our stores responding to the changing needs of the busy consumer and we wish Donagh and his team every success.”

With stores in Stranmillis, Malone Road and Donegall Street, River House marks the fourth Centra store for owner Donagh McGoveran.

Speaking today, Donagh said: “We are proud to be opening the doors of River House and look forward to welcoming customers and providing them with a one-stop shop for modern convenience.”

Offering a range of options for breakfast, lunch and dinner including a hot and cold deli and healthy salad bar Green Kitchen, there is something for everyone.

Coffee lovers will be catered for with an in-store Frank and Honest gourmet coffee dock featuring 100% compostable coffee cups.

Nigel Maxwell, Centra Northern Ireland Sales Director and store owner Donagh McGoveran.

With self-service tills available, Centra River House will service those on busy schedules while at the same time cater for those seeking a more relaxed eating experience with a

comfortable seating area, complete with complimentary USB charging ports and WiFi.

Carson McDowell Gets Ready To Face The Music And Dance For NI Cancer Fund for Children Carson McDowell is holding a fundraising dance event in support of Cancer Fund for Children on Friday 15th November at La Mon Hotel and County Club.

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arson McDowell Does Strictly will feature 10 couples, a mix of clients and staff, who are all competing to be crowned champions of the dance floor.

Neasa Quigley, Senior Partner at Carson McDowell, who is taking part in the event said: “We are really looking forward to this glittering fundraiser which promises to be a night of great entertainment. We would love as many people as possible to come and join us for an evening of sequins and sparkle to help to raise vital funds for Cancer Fund for Children.

“There are 20 of us dancing and rehearsals are already in full swing with our fantastic coach, Victoria McAdoo, former professional dancer. Many of us are new to dancing so it’s a lot of hard work but also great fun. The competition is really heating up and battle for the Carson McDowell glitter ball has definitely commenced!

“We are grateful to everyone who has given up their time to take part and do their bit for such an inspirational charity.”

Sarah Clements, Cancer Fund for Children’s Corporate Fundraiser added: “Well done Carson McDowell

for organising such a fantastic event. Best of luck and a massive thank you to everyone dancing as they salsa and waltz it out to support Cancer Fund for Children.

“As a local charity, we receive less than 0.5% of our funding from the government so we quite simply cannot provide essential services without the support of the local community and businesses like Carson McDowell.”

Tickets cost £30 each and are available to purchase at https:// carson-mcdowell-does-strictlynovember19.eventbrite.co.uk.

For more information about the event email marketing@carsonmcdowell.com Neasa Quigley, Senior Partner and Darren Toombs, Partner.

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Eye on News

NEW CRUISE TERMINAL OPENS IN BELFAST HARBOUR Cruise Belfast – the partnership between Belfast Harbour and Visit Belfast - has opened the first dedicated cruise terminal on the island of Ireland to cater for Belfast’s growing popularity as a cruise destination.

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elfast Harbour has invested more than £500,000 on upgrading the quayside facility, which now includes a Visitor Information Centre, part funded by Tourism NI and managed

by Visit Belfast. This investment represents an important step in the development of the city’s cruise tourism infrastructure.

The new terminal is staffed by Visit Belfast’s travel advisors and utilises the latest digital and audio-visual technology to showcase Belfast and Northern Ireland’s visitor attractions.

The newly developed site includes the space required to service the shore side activities associated with cruise tourism for coaches, shuttle buses and taxis, and a berth which has been dredged to accommodate newer and larger cruise ships.

Joe O’Neill, Belfast Harbour’s CEO said: “Cruise calls to Belfast are now up to 148 calls in 2019, an increase of 31% on last year and this investment in a terminal facility will enable us to offer the anticipated 285,000 cruise visitors a positive welcome and first impression of the region. The new terminal will provide the first dedicated facilities for cruise ships on the island, allowing visitors to quickly connect to Belfast city centre or join one of the many organised excursions to a wide range of visitor attractions including the Giant’s Causeway, Hillsborough Castle, Mount Stewart and Titanic Belfast.

“To help attract more visitors, we’ve also invested in new gangways and luggage scanners

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Opening the new cruise terminal at Belfast Harbour are (L-R) Belfast Harbour CEO Joe O’Neill, Captain Domenico Lubrano Lavadera of the Crown Princess and Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor John Finucane.

which will enable us to market Belfast as an embarkation port.

Depending on the level of demand locally, this opens up the exciting opportunity for local consumers to join cruises directly from Belfast instead of flying to Southampton or other regional ports. Cruise & Maritime has already scheduled a number of departures from Belfast for next summer including Norwegian Fjord and British Isles itineraries. In line with our sustainability ambitions we have also installed wind powered quay lighting for the site and a ‘smart flower’ which will generate solar electricity for the terminal building.”

Speaking at today’s launch event, Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor John Finucane, said: “Cruise tourism has been one of the city’s success stories of the last decade and has become an important part of our tourism

mix, contributing significantly to the local economy through attractions, transport providers and retail. I welcome the investment made by Belfast Harbour and Tourism Northern Ireland in Belfast’s new cruise terminal and look forward to welcoming increasing numbers of cruise visitors to Belfast and beyond.

“We’re renowned around the world for our warm welcome and these new facilities will enable us to make the best of first impressions.”

The Lord Mayor joined Captain Domenico Lubrano Lavadera of the Crown Princess to officially open the cruise terminal this morning (Monday, 29th July).

One of the most popular cruise brands in the world, Princess Cruises have been a long-standing and regular visitor to Belfast.

John McGrillen, CEO Tourism Northern Ireland, said:

“Cruise ship visitors contribute footfall to our visitor attractions and provide an opportunity to showcase Northern Ireland to international visitors, many of whom are here for the first time. Allowing cruise passengers to sample Northern Ireland also provides an effective strategy to encourage and generate repeat visits.

“Our investment in this gateway information centre is part of our growth framework which will support our overall ambition to double the value of tourism to Northern Ireland by 2030.”

In the past three years there has been an 82% increase in the number of annual calls. Last year Cruise Critic named Belfast as one of thebest cruise destinations in the British Isles and Western Europe and the Port is now the third most popular destination in the UK and Ireland for one-day cruise ship calls after Dublin and Orkney.

Gerry Lennon, Chief Executive of Visit Belfast added: “Globally, cruise tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in tourism. From a standing start of just two ships in the late Nineties, we are now welcoming 285,000 cruise visitors to our shores. This has been down to the sales and marketing efforts of Cruise Belfast and the significant investments in our tourism offering.

“This means that we can fully showcase the wealth of experiences on offer and enable cruise visitors to make the most of their time in Belfast and Northern Ireland.”

Northern Ireland’s cruise sector has continued to grow and this year Belfast Harbour is scheduled to welcome a record 148 calls from 35 different cruise lines. July will be the busiest month with 32 calls including SAGA’s first ever new build vessel, the ‘Spirit of Discovery’. ‘Disney Magic’ will also visit in September, bringing the globally recognised brand to Belfast for the first time.

Eye on Venues

Belfast Cathedral A new venue with 115 years of history In the last 2 years Belfast Cathedral, known locally as St Anne’s, has taken a commercial direction whilst remaining a committed working Cathedral for the people of Belfast.

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his 115 year old building now welcomes tourists daily and has become the city’s latest and most innovative events venue.

Welcoming events from 50-800 people, the Cathedral has certainly alerted people’s curiosity and has already hosted a range of dinners, gala evenings, performances and awards ceremonies. As an events space the Cathedral does not require a lot of room dressing or decoration to make it look spectacular. Guests have been left mesmerized by its stunning architecture, stonework, stained glass windows and wood carvings.

Sitting right at the heart of the Cathedral Quarter that bears its name, it has a central location which makes

it very accessible from transport links and the Cathedral itself has over 150 car parking spaces that organiser’s and guests are welcome to use.

Holly Wilson, Events and Marketing Manager, says “This is an absolutely unique venue and one that offers event organiser’s the opportunity to choose somewhere completely different from the hotels and conference venues that already exist here in Belfast. What is so wonderful about the Cathedral is that it has such character! There is history and stories in every corner of the building and by hosting your event at the Cathedral you are helping to sustain the building and keep it here for future generations’’.

What many people are unaware of is that the Cathedral has next to no external funding and so all money generated from the commercial activities goes directly back into the day to day running of this outstanding building. ‘’I believe the last time we did the sums the Cathedral costs £1.40 a minute! So it is crucial that we generate that money through tourism, events and kind donations to guarantee the future of the Cathedral’’, says Holly.

For more information or to enquire about hosting your next event at the Cathedral please contact holly@belfastcathedral.org

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Eye on Innovation

The Alpha Hub A Business Class upgrade for passengers at Belfast City Airport

“The Alpha Hub provides an excellent showcase of the type of furniture we offer and is a good example of how we can bring a space to life.”

All passengers flying from Belfast City Airport can now avail of ‘business class’ facilities in the departures lounge free of charge with the launch of a new experiential, luxury seating hub provided by office furniture specialists, the Alpha Group.

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lpha has transformed part of the main departures lounge with comfortable, ergonomic, stylish furniture more often seen in leading workspaces.

The Alpha Hub will offer charge points, enhanced lighting, noise reducing pods and more private seating options for passengers who are seeking quiet spaces to work or simply relax in before travelling.

The innovative marketing campaign will enable Alpha to showcase its product offering to the 1.4 million (approx.) departing passengers travelling through Belfast City Airport every year, whilst enhancing the airport’s existing facilities with a more diverse range of comfortable seated spaces for all its passengers.

It follows the success of similar brand partnerships at some of the world’s largest airports.

Eye on Innovation

(L-R) Robin Black and Paul Black of Alpha Office Furniture

Global furniture retailer Made. com has taken over an entire gate area at Schiphol airport to showcase its furniture designs, whilst IKEA has previously launched pop-up showrooms at Charles de Gaulle Airport and Beijing International Airport.

The Alpha Group comprises of Alpha Office Furniture, Alpha Scotland and Ten Eighty and has offices in Belfast, Oxford, Glasgow and Dublin. In operation for almost 50 years, the group specialises in the education sector as well as private and public sector workplaces.

Paul Black, Chief Executive of The Alpha Group, said:

“Many of our customers are leading businesses across the UK and Ireland, and this partnership with Belfast City Airport is enabling us to target this audience group in an innovative way.”

“We are delighted to unveil The Alpha Hub to the public, a really exciting project for Alpha. Many of our customers are leading businesses across the UK and Ireland, and this partnership with Belfast City Airport is enabling us to target this audience group in an innovative way, whilst effectively upgrading the seating facilities in the departure lounge and enhancing the overall travel experience. The Alpha Hub provides an excellent showcase of the type of furniture we offer and is a good example of how we can bring a space to life. Passengers often have a significant amount of time to

spend in the airport, and we are delighted to be offering a more luxurious, comfortable space in which they can sit, relax, work and ‘re-charge’ before flying.”

Cliona Arthur, Media Sales Manager from Belfast City Airport, said: “In the past twelve months, we have undergone a complete terminal reconfiguration, with our Departure Lounge receiving significant investment to upgrade and increase our retail units, facilities and food and beverage offering. The Alpha Group’s experiential luxury seating hub will further strengthen the comfort and convenience we

provide for our passengers and will be the perfect ‘fit’ for our airside environment. It will also raise awareness of the Alpha brand among our passengers, who are predominantly business passengers, and allow them to experience the brand while they wait to board. This is our first experiential campaign in Departures and I’m sure it will be a great success.

“As the UK and Ireland’s most convenient airport, we continually strive to deliver an enhanced airport experience and exceed the expectations of those travelling with us. We understand that ‘out-of-office’ doesn’t always mean that business stops, and that connectivity on the go is vital for our passengers. We are thrilled to partner with Alpha on this office furniture hub to provide further and much required capacity in Departures, for business and relaxation.”

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Eye on Hospitality

Titanic Hotel...

Part Of The Fabric Of Belfast Life The fact that the Titanic Hotel has established itself as an integral, important and familiar part of Belfast life in the two short years since it first opened its doors says a lot for the uniqueness of the place.

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Eye on Hospitality

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eneral Manager Adrian McNally, one of the very first employees to be appointed as the hotel prepared to open, sums up the property neatly. “This is a working hotel but it’s also a living museum,” he says.

“Guests and visitors who come here love the art, the old posters and the artefacts that we have around the building, they love the way we’ve carefully restored the place and they love the way we do things a bit differently.”

Titanic Hotel Belfast, of course, is built in the historic buildings once occupied by Harland & Wolff’s Drawing Office, the very place where draughtsmen and naval architects designed the Titanic and many other ships destined to roll down the nearby slipways at Queen’s Island.

And the hotel resonates with reminders of its past – from the sympathetically restored drawing office space itself, now the hotel’s main function room and bar area – through to the waistcoats and peaked caps of the hotel waiters and doormen.

That’s in addition to the many artefacts and artistic reminders that Adrian McNally mentions.

“In a lot of ways, it’s not really a normal hotel. This place makes an emotional connection with

both visitors and locals alike.

That’s what sets it apart.

“What has been remarkable,” he says, “is how quickly it became an important meeting place, a real part of life in this city. The bar here is never quiet, and all over the hotel, people are meeting others. It’s all brought a life and spirit to the place from its very early days.”

The Titanic Hotel was part of the new wave of properties that opened in Belfast a couple of years ago...but it was always destined to be different.

Right beside the iconic Titanic Belfast building, it sits in the shadow of the Harland & Wolff cranes and overlooks the port. So it was always going to be a magnet for tourists.

“In the summer months and into the autumn, the majority of our guests are leisure guests,” says Adrian. “But, at other times, we get more than our fair share of business guests especially when the big conference events are in town at Titanic or ICC Belfast.”

The hotel, which has 119 rooms, has also carved a niche for itself in the wedding marketplace. “It’s a different venue for weddings but it’s proving to be a very popular one,” he adds. “Brides love the unique photo opportunities

that we have around this area.

But they also love the way that we do our weddings.”

During the summer just past, the hotel was booked out – mostly by US visitors – around the period of The Open Championship at Royal Portrush, and it’s currently seeing an upsurge in visitors from the Republic, fuelled by the favourable sterling euro exchange rates.

An experienced hotel manager, Adrian McNally is a former General Manager of the Culloden Estate & Spa and was also Hotel Manager at Lough Erne Resort at the time of the G8 Summit several years ago. He’s also been in the hot seat at Powerscourt Hotel & Estate in County Wicklow and cut his professional teeth with the international Ritz-Carlton group in China and Russia.

“But I’ve loved being involved in this place right from the start,” he says. “We worked hard to imprint an ethos and a personality from the very early days. A sense of character, an emphasis on teamwork and a focus on the customer. And it has been great to see it evolving and growing over the past two years.”

He agrees that some rebalancing is needed on the hospitality front in Belfast.

“There is still more supply than there is demand, and it will take a while for that to pan out and settle down.”

The balance is likely to be further complicated when a planned 280-bedroom right next door in Titanic Quarter eventually comes to fruition. It’s still at the initial planning stage with no news on who will be operating it.

“I do think that those who are selling Belfast as a destination and as a venue for business tourism are doing a good job. This place does have a uniqueness and a unique feel, and it’s crucial that we continue to capitalise on that.”

Titanic Hotel has a complement of 158 staff – both full and part-time – and it’s won a couple of major awards in its short lifespan, not least the World Travel Awards accolade for the Best Hotel in Northern Ireland.

“For us, it’s all about personality,” says Adrian McNally.

“Our guests and visitors don’t come here for any kind of corporate feel or facilities. They come here for the uniqueness of the place and they come here for the craic, as they do in Belfast.”

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Eye on Insurance

Lockton Commercial Bolsters SMEs in Northern Ireland

Brian Mullan (Armagh, Newry & Portadown), Ryan Loughran (Belfast), Geraldine Morgan, Michael McShane (North Coast), Kieran Hurley (North West) and Chris Griffin (Belfast)

The Founder of Lockton, now the world’s largest privately independent owned insurance broker, once said, “All we have to sell are the teams that serve our clients: their attitude, their passion, their caring, their skills and their brain power”.

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t is on this bedrock that Belfast-based insurance broker, Lockton, has built its business over the past thirteen years. Since 2006, the team has experienced consecutive years

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of growth and has accumulated over nine million pounds in annual revenue. The broker has gone from strength to strength, growing their specialist team by ten percent in the last six months.

The family owned local office has a solid track record of serving corporate businesses across Northern Ireland for almost 40 years. It started off life in 1980 as Bradstock Blunt which was driven by insurance specialists who had identified a growing need for corporate risk expertise in their local market, offering risk identification, in house risk management team and claims management.

Bradstock Blunt was subsequently acquired by Alexander Forbes

in 1999 and less than a decade later the business was taken over by Lockton, in 2006.

Just over a year ago Lockton identified the need to bring these specialisms to the SME sector in Northern Ireland and has invested heavily in a new team, Lockton Commercial, to serve this sector.

Lockton Commercial’s team leader Geraldine Morgan explains the key to their success to date: “Investment in the right people is our differentiator. We employ

Eye on Insurance

Ryan Loughran, Carol Marshall, Brian Mullan, Naoishe McCallion, Geraldine Morgan, Emma-Jane McGrath, Michael McShane, Kieran Hurley, Claire Markey, Mark Feeney, Rebecca Robinson and Chris Griffin

Account Executives from each region, to serve that region.

They live and work in the same area and possess the local knowledge, business acumen and reputation that means they are best placed to deliver standout results for our SME clients.”

the brilliant work of our dedicated Account Executives and Account Managers but Lockton’s strong worldwide reputation in the market also gives us leverage to obtain even better deals for our clients.

We can provide the same high levels of expert risk identification,

“We work hard to fight SMEs’ corner and get them the best deal so they are paying a fair price for the cover they need.”

Morgan says her transition to Lockton was seamless: “When I joined Lockton, it was a natural step forward for me.

As a family-owned business, Lockton’s attitude to business and serving clients was aligned to my own values and principles.”

There are however advantages to belonging a global entity.

Morgan comments that “Without a doubt, our success is down to

in-house risk management and claims services, but now with an even stronger market position.”

The Northern Ireland SME market continues to hold significant risk factors and Morgan identifies underinsurance as a key issue.

SMEs have history of purchasing low cost insurance to detriment of cover and ultimately the business if it suffers major loss.

The importance of holding

correct and adequate insurance cover has never been greater. This was most recently highlighted by what is known as the Primark Fire last Summer. The fire at the centre of Belfast burned for three days, destroying the historic Bank Buildings which housed the Primark flagship Belfast store. The subsequent protective cordon put in place meant that fourteen nearby businesses were unable to trade for months.

While the cordon has since been scaled back, allowing many of the neighbouring shops to reopen, the fire is a clear indicator of the impact of accidents on surrounding SMEs. Without the right cover, the potential to shatter the sustainability of businesses looms large.

Lockton Commercial’s Account Executives specialise in these and other types of threats that face modern businesses. They know the ins and outs and are expertly placed to articulate the key global business issues that face SMEs

today including Management Liability, Cyber and Crime.

More often than not when the Lockton Commercial team acquires a new client, its first order of business is to restructure the existing insurance program.

The team exists and is driven by the desire to ensure businesses receive cover they need to stay fully protected. Morgan puts it best when she says: “We work hard to fight SMEs’ corner and get them the best deal so they are paying a fair price for the cover they need”.

It is this winning formula that will undoubtedly see Lockton Commercial and the businesses it protects continue to thrive in the decades to come.

Lockton Belfast, 8th Floor, The Clarence West Building, 2 Clarence Street West Belfast BT2 7GP T 02890 248989 www.locktoninternational.com

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Eye on Motoring

Agnew Belfast Volvo: Another Big Year Ahead

2018 was a milestone year for Agnew Belfast Volvo and Volvo UK, with the dealership’s move into a new stateof-the-art showroom at Boucher Way in Belfast.

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t’s a showroom site which reflects Scandinavian design values, effortless luxury, and the unique culture that has made the Volvo brand so popular in Northern Ireland and across the globe for many years. Agnew Belfast’s first year in the new showroom culminated in the prestigious award of Regional Retailer Of The Year from Volvo UK, recognising the Belfast dealerships achievements in sales, servicing and customer satisfaction.

Last year was a record year of growth for Volvo in the UK, over 50,000 new cars were sold, up 9% on the previous year with business and fleet sales delivering a spike in growth. One of the reasons for this success has been many years of investment in the

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Volvo range… a genuine alternative in the local luxury car marketplace.

The much improved range has culminated in 43 UK awards in the past year, and Volvo hasn’t stopped there. Just recently, the XC40 is the first ever SUV to be awarded New Company Car of the Year at the Fleet News Awards 2019.

From a business viewpoint the new Volvo range has something for everyone.

Sandra Roberts

The ever popular XC60 mid-sized SUV now comes with a front wheel drive diesel option, creating an even more attractive package. The recently launched S60 saloon stands apart in a segment filled with traditional fleet cars, as it combines the thrill of performance driving with its unique Scandinavian heritage.

Agnew Belfast Volvo understands that businesses require specialist knowledge

and expertise to understand your mobility needs. The dealership has its own Fleet & Business specialist, Sandra Roberts, with nearly 20 years’ experience to help customers navigate through the model and financial options available.

2019 and beyond promises to be another exciting chapter for Volvo on a local and national level. Further product innovations are in the pipeline that have electrification at its heart. Volvo have recently introduced mild hybrid powertrains on XC60 and XC90 models designed to deliver a 15% improvement in economy. In addition, the plug-in hybrid range has been upgraded with new models added, plus looking further head we look forward to the first pure electric vehicle launch from Volvo.

To discuss your business and fleet requirements from Volvo in Northern Ireland please contact Sandra Roberts at Agnew Belfast Volvo on 028 9068 6000 or view our latest offers on www. agnewcars.com/volvo.

BUSINESS EYE COMPETITION

COCKTAIL MASTERCLASS

WIN THE ULTIMATE COCKTAIL EXPERIENCE AT THE FITZWILLIAM HOTEL

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e have joined forces with the five-star Fitzwilliam Hotel, Belfast to offer one lucky organisation the chance to win the ultimate corporate team building experience.

The winning entry will enjoy a luxury, bespoke cocktail-making masterclass for 8 people hosted by the Fitzwilliam Hotel’s master mixologist team.

Over the last decade the award-winning hotel has been renowned as a stylish urban hangout, extremely popular with those wanting to sip perfectly balanced

cocktails after work and as one of the top venues in the city to host business meetings due to its modern facilities and perfect city centre location.

To celebrate ten years of serving the most delicious and innovative cocktails, the expert team of mixologists at the Fitzwilliam have launched a brand-new Cocktail Menu.

Drawing inspiration from The Grand Opera House, these new cocktails each have their own unique style and flavour and the winning group will have the

opportunity to learn how to create these cocktails at home as well as learning some tricks of the trade and mastering some cocktail making flare!

To be in with a chance to win this amazing prize simply email your name & company to info@businesseye. co.uk before 17.00 pm on September 30th 2019.

For more information about the Fitzwilliam Hotel or to book a cocktail masterclass, telephone 02890 442080 or email enq@fitzwilliamhotelbelfast.com

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

- Cannot be used on a Saturday and must be booked in advance.

- Prize must be used by 31st March 2020 and MUST be pre-booked.

- Prize is subject to availability and is for 8 people only.

- No cash alternative.

- Prize is non-transferable.

- All other expenses must be paid for by the winner.

- Cannot be used in December 2019.

- Usual Business Eye competition terms and conditions apply.

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Eye on Family Business

McKinstry... A Family Business With Innovation At Its Heart

Mark & Darren McKinstry

The Northern Ireland Family Business Forum, created as a hub for family firms to connect with each other, share experiences, and exchange ideas, heads into a new season with an event planned for November in Belfast.

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nd the Forum, managed by family business specialists Harbinson Mulholland, continues to spotlight some of Northern Ireland’s many family business sector success stories.

The McKinstry group of companies stands out as an example of what can be achieved when innovation is delivered alongside the traditional

strengths of the family business.

The group of four companies has its roots in a very traditional business sector. Darren McKinstry, the current Managing Director, recalls that his father set up the original business more than 25 years ago when the early moves towards recycling were gathering pace.

Eye on Family Business

“It’s a global business these days. We’re sending our recycled product to end customers as far away as Sweden and India.

Residual material is also an exportable commodity. It goes as far away as Vietnam.”

Bradley McKinstry

“Back in those days rubbish was rubbish and no one really thought about recycling anything,” he says. “But I remember my dad separating wood from the rest of the refuse in his yard with the view that it could be recycled. So, in a lot of ways, he was a pioneer.”

In later years, recycling became the norm with the move towards greener waste management fuelled by initiatives like the introduction of landfill tax.

Nowadays, McKinstry Group employs 125 people across four different sites – its Nutts Corner headquarters, a recycling site in Newry, one in Belfast Harbour and a new metal recycling operation in Mallusk. And it’s active in skip hire, waste management, biomass and metal processing.

“We built the business around skip hire at a time when skips were a growth area,” says Darren McKinstry, who runs the core business alongside brother Mark.

“Nowadays, we concentrate on supplying skips to customers in the construction sector and that’s all about being flexible,

being responsive and always focusing on quality of service.”

It’s a competitive business and McKinstry competes against some well-established names, but Darren reckons that it’s the clear focus on quality that helps to sit his company – and its service – apart from the chasing pack.

“It’s been a natural progression from there for us as a company. We developed the skip hire business, moving into larger roll-on skips, and then we started to move towards the recycling side of the industry.”

The company’s first departure was to move into the collection of waste wood and other materials for the production of biomass as a fuel. More recently, it diversified into the specialist metal recycling business, working with both ferrous and non-ferrous waste metals.

And that’s where the latest stage of the McKinstry family business development comes in.

Darren’s 20-year old son Bradley is heading up the metal recycling venture based at Mallusk.

Bradley went on to FE college after leaving school but admits

that he was itching to get into the family business. “I can’t say that I was a big fan of further education. I just wanted to get stuck into the business, and I’ve been really enjoying running the metal recycling business and watching it grow and develop.”

“It’s a global business these days,” he explains. “We’re sending our recycled product to end customers as far away as Sweden and India. Residual material is also an exportable commodity. It goes as far away as Vietnam.”

The McKinstry group’s growth mirrors the sea change in the waste management sector over the same number of years. Darren McKinstry well remembers the bad old days of waste, when almost everything went to landfill.

“Nowadays, we’ve moved about 80% of the waste we process away from landfill and that is a significant achievement,” he says. “But there is still work to be done, and we’re making more progress all the time.”

But what are the challenges facing the business going forward.

Darren McKinstry doesn’t

hesitate in singling out the thorny subject of Brexit. “We’ve developed a substantial crossborder business, and we’re also working with customers in other European countries, so it’s a real potential problem for us.

“But, like others, we just don’t know how it is going to pan out. We have to wait and see, and that’s very frustrating.”

That said, he’s adamant that further growth is top of the agenda for McKinstry. “We’re in a dominant position in skip hire and we’re growing very well in our other markets,” he adds. “But I’m very confident that, as the recycling sector continues to grow and develop, we’ll also grow and develop as a company.”

The Future of Family Business, Conference & Showcase will be held at W5 Belfast on 8th Nov. More information and tickets can be found at www.nifamilybusinessforum.com

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Eye on Hospitality

Bishop’s Gate...

A Haven In The City

Richard Buckley samples the unique surroundings of Derry’s Bishop’s Gate Hotel...

Like any other city of its size, Derry (or Londonderry, if you prefer it) has a healthy assortment of hotels to choose from, many of them part of the ubiquitous brand groups familiar in just about any other city centre around these islands.

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Eye on Hospitality

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ut there’s an exception to that corporate rule and it’s right in the middle of Derry’s historic city centre, a short stroll to the city’s walls and – perhaps more importantly for some – right on the doorstep of some of the city’s best shops, restaurants and pubs.

The Bishop’s Gate Hotel has become part of the fabric of life in the city within a few years of opening its doors, well known amongst locals for its food and its lively Wig Bar. But it has also cemented its position as the place to stay of choice in the centre of the city.

The first thing to note about the Bishop’s Gate is its obvious historical connections. The Edwardian building which now serves as a hotel was once the Northern Counties Club, a sanctuary for the great and good of the Londonderry of old. A gentlemans’ club, in effect, with its own library and billiards room.

Famous visitors, apparently, include Winston Churchill, Field Marshal Montgomery and WB Yeats.

Sympathetic restoration under the guidance of Derry’s Inner City Trust created the boutique hotel that is Bishop’s Gate, and it has an atmosphere all of its own.

Let’s start where a good hotel review should start...with the rooms. Our’s was an excellent junior suite – a sizeable living room area with a sofa, armchairs and table, a separate double bedroom and ensuite bathroom.

Plenty of space, as we found out, for an impromptu spot of entertaining with a nicely chilled bottle sent up from the bar below.

The rooms around the hotel don’t have the corporate feel of other hotel properties. Whether branded Deluxe or Luxury, they’re individual but all of them designed in that plush Edwardian style that never seems to date. Little touches (and a good hotel is all

about little touches....) include vintage phones in every room.

The hotel, by the way, also has a self-contained apartment property just across the road in London Street.

local produce. Fresh fish from up the road at Greencastle in Donegal, for instance, and great steaks from McAtamneys in Ballymena.

Meanwhile, a few steps away in the all important bar and things are exactly as they should be. Whether it’s a pint of the black stuff, a craft beer, glass of wine or something from the more than decent cocktail list, you’d be hard pressed not to enjoy the craic in this place. And, on the busier nights, there’s often some live music to drink along to.

Ciaran O’Neill and his team at the Bishop’s Gate won’t thank me for saying it but it’s well worth venturing out into the streets of Derry. A wander round some of the brilliant pubs that Derry has to offer is well worth it. For this is a true pub city.

“The rooms around the hotel don’t have the corporate feel of other hotel properties. Whether branded Deluxe or Luxury, they’re individual but all of them designed in that plush Edwardian style that never seems to date.”

This isn’t the kind of hotel where you head off to your room and watch TV for the evening. You can, of course, and you’d be very comfortable but you’d be missing out on an excellent bar and restaurant on the ground floor... and the delights of Derry outside the distinctive revolving door.

The Wig & Gown bar and restaurant, so named because the building used to be frequented (and maybe still is) by lawyers on a break from the nearby courthouse, always seems to be something of a hive of activity.

First up, breakfast is legendary. Or legenderry, as they say in Derry’s advertising campaigns. One of the best around, without a doubt, and I count myself as something of an authority in these matters.

And it’s just as good in the evening when the woodpanneled, subtly lit dining room comes into its own as a venue for eating and drinking. The menu is traditional, but all the better for it, and has a very strong emphasis on

Don’t misunderstand, there are some first class restaurants around too. But, for me, it’s the pubs that make the place.

So here’s an idea. Enjoy a hearty meal at the Bishop’s Gate and, well fortified, head out for the night. You’ll not have to walk too far for a decent pub and you’ll not have to walk – or crawl – too far to get back to the haven that is the Bishop’s Gate.

One final and very important word. It’s not bars, restaurants or rooms that make for a really great hotel. It’s the people. And the Bishop’s Gate has some of the best around. From attentive bar staff through to marvellous waiters and waitresses and on to fantastic concierge and front desk staff, the men and women of the Bishop’s Gate are pure class.

As they say in Derry.

www.bishopsgatehotelderry.com

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Eye on Business Leaders

Sir John Parker...

Back Where It All Began

Sir John Parker with Sara Venning, Duncan Tait of Fujitsu and Lynn Cooper CEO Institute of Water.

There’s no more appropriate place to interview Sir John Parker than Belfast’s Titanic Hotel.

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e meet the 77-year old former Harland & Wolff Chief Executive and captain of British industry in one of the meeting rooms at the hotel. Two doors down the corridor in the old Harland & Wolff Drawing Office is the exact room where he began his working life in 1958 as an apprentice naval architect.

“The room hasn’t changed much,” smiles Sir John. “Look at those high ceilings, the heavy wood, the skirting boards....it looks very much the same.”

Given that his long career in industry began more than 60 years ago in this very building, it’s not surprising that Sir John Parker seems a little emotional. But his professional instincts soon kick in and he’s back on a firm business and economic track.

He’s back in Belfast as the keynote guest speaker at the Institute of Water’s annual conference, being held in the city for the first time and hosted by Sara Venning and the team at NI Water. He’s in the city to talk about the importance of investment

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in infrastructure and about the crucial role the water industry has to play.

But he’s a man who can talk about almost any sector of industry given his remarkable CV. He has served as CEO, Chairman or Non-Executive Director in more than 20 UK and overseas companies, including his spell in the hot seat at Harland & Wolff

Sir John addressing the conference audience.

back in the 1980’s and early 90’s.

He left Belfast to become CEO at engineering group Babcock International for seven years, but his directorships and chairman’s post have spanned a number of different industries. In shipping – where his professional roots lie – he remains a non-exec at Carnival Corporation, a former Chairman of P&O and a former Deputy Chairman at DP World, one of the world’s largest container port operators.

In aviation, he’s recently left the board of Airbus. And, in mining, he’s just stepped

down as Chairman of Anglo American.

And, on the infrastructure and utilities front, he’s been Chairman of the National Grid, a director at British Gas and remains Chairman of the Pennon Group Plc, the Exeter-based owners of South West Water, one of the UK’s biggest water companies.

“I’m impressed by how much Belfast has changed as a city. It’s a lot more vibrant now than it was back in the days when I was based here, and it strikes me as a great location for business.

I’m struck by now many really strong small businesses are being developed here, many of them born out of strong links with the universities,” he says.

He reflects also on Belfast and the cruise ship industry. Belfast Port is due to welcome more than 140 cruise ship visits this season, and it certainly wasn’t like that back in the 1980’s and 90’s when the figure was a round zero.

But Sir John lists as one of his career disappointments the fact that the British Government didn’t back his view then that Harland & Wolff should move wholesale into cruise ship building.

“Look at the cruise industry nowadays.

It’s growing steadily. At Carnival, where I’m on the board, we have 105 ships and another 20 on order, all of them with Italian and German shipyards.”

Moving on to infrastructure and the water industry, he emphasises the importance of embracing change and talks about how technology has helped to transform this and most other industries.

“Innovation is always, and should always be, the key priority for any business and innovation is just as crucial in water and utilities as it is anywhere else,” he says.

“We tend to take an industry like water for granted, but sometimes it’s essential to sit back, take stock and realise how vital it is to everything that we do in business.... here in Northern Ireland and elsewhere.

“That means that we have to invest, but it also means that we have to keep our end customers front and centre of what we’re doing as companies.”

And, perhaps not surprisingly, it’s clear that he pays close attention to the management capabilities of companies that he touches upon. It’s also clear that he rates NI Water’s CEO Sara Venning, who has impressed a lot of people since she took the reins at the utility back in 2014.

“Good management is everything in a business like NI Water and I’ve been impressed by what I’ve seen,” he says. “It is a great privilege to lead, and that’s something that every business leader should always bear in mind.”

Eye on Motoring

Agnew Volkswagen:

Tailored Service For Business Customers t "T XF BSF CBTFE JO UIF dealership we have unrivalled Volkswagen product knowledge and can provide immediate test drives and product demonstrations. t 8F BSF FOUJSFMZ GMFYJCMF BOE mobile and can met your needs whether this is in our showroom or out on location at your business, we ensure our service is always high quality and seamless.

Agnew Volkswagen offers a unique service to business customers through its Belfast & Mallusk showrooms and a dedicated business services team led by John O’Reilly.

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he bespoke service is aimed at business owners, fleet managers and individual company car drivers, with advice available to ease customers

through every step of the contract hire process.

There are numerous benefits to dealing with Agnew Volkswagen directly to manage your business vehicle needs:

t %FEJDBUFE MPDBM CVTJOFTT team based in Belfast and Mallusk providing a specialist, personal and tailored service for our customers. t "U "HOFX 7PMLTXBHFO we have unique access to the very latest and best Volkswagen contract hire offers and provide tailored quotes.

John O’Reilly

Volkswagen have invested extensively in their model range in recent years. The Volkswagen SUV range has been recently updated with refreshed models and completely new additions, so there is now an SUV to suit any need. The range includes VW’s latest compact edition, the T-Cross, as well as the T-Roc, Tiguan, its seven-seat sister Tiguan allspace and the flagship Touareg.

Complementing the SUV range is an extensive choice of everpopular models including the Golf, Polo, Arteon, and newly refreshed Passat which has been updated inside and out with a wide range of efficient engines now available to order in Northern Ireland.

And a full range of electric vehicles is soon to be launched.

Volkswagen has already welcomed the e-Golf, a fully electric version of this iconic hatchback, and brandnew electric models will soon be released under the iD model range.

For more information or to discuss your business and fleet requirements please contact Agnew Volkswagen Belfast on 028 9023 4477 or Mallusk on 028 9034 2111 or see our latest Business Contract Hire offers at www.agnewcars.com/volkswagen

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Eye on AirTravel

BRITISH AIRWAYS’ FIRST A350 TOUCHES DOWN AT HEATHROW Last month, British Airways’ first Airbus 350 registration G-XWBA, featuring the airline’s newest generation business class seat, Club Suite touched down at London Heathrow.

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he airline will take delivery of 18 A350s, with four of the new aircraft joining the fleet before the end of the year.

Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer Experience said: “We

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are delighted to welcome the first of our A350s to the fleet.

This aircraft marks a significant and exciting milestone in our £6.5 billion investment programme and is even more special as it comes with our new Club Suite. The A350

is a fantastic aircraft and an excellent showpiece for British engineering. Our customers are going to love the space, light and comfort on board.”

The newly-branded ‘Club Suite’ offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy

and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. Boasting 40 per cent more storage, including a vanity unit and mirror, WiFi, enviable 18.5-inch inflight entertainment screens, high definition gate-to-gate programming, and PC / USB

power; every aspect of British Airways’ Club Suite has been designed for today’s customer.

The A350 promotes a feeling of well-being, space and calm due to its reduced noise levels, high ceilings and ambient lighting which is intended to compliment the time of day and outside light. Customers will leave their flight feeling rested thanks to higher levels of humidity and refreshed air as the cabin pressure is equivalent to an altitude of just 6,000 feet.

There are also environmental benefits to flying on the stateof the-art A350 as 25 per cent lower fuel burn significantly reduces CO2 emissions.

As well as a new 56-seat Club World cabin, the three-cabin A350 features the latest World Traveller Plus cabin (56 seats) with new furnishings including a plush new pillow and warm quilt, new amenity kits and

an enhanced service and an improved dining experience. The World Traveller (economy) cabin offers 219 seats. Customers will also benefit from high-speed WiFi, allowing travellers to browse the internet on their personal electronic devices.

Over the last few weeks the first A350 aircraft has flown short-haul between London and Madrid to allow the airline’s teams to perfect their customer service delivery

and familiarise cabin crew with the aircraft layout.

In phase two, which starts during September, the aircraft will begin long-haul flying to Dubai, followed by services to Toronto, Tel Aviv and Bangalore this year. During this period another three A350 aircraft will join the British Airways fleet and two Boeing 777 aircraft will also be retrofitted with the new cabin.

At the start of 2020 phase three will begin which will see

British Airways rolling out its Club Suite on further long-haul aircraft across the network.

The arrival of the A350 is part of the airline’s £6.5bn current investment programme and forms part of an exciting year for the airline as it celebrates its centenary. Other activity includes the airline’s BA 2119 programme exploring the future of fuels, the customer experience of the future and the aviation careers in the next 100 years.

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Eye on News

DELOITTE RENEWS SPONSORSHIP OF ULSTER WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM

Pictured are Jackie Henry, Office Senior Partner at Deloitte NI and Ulster Rugby players (L-R) Beth Cregan, Shannon Buller, Neve Jones and Kelly McCormill

Deloitte has committed to a further twoyear sponsorship agreement with Ulster Rugby as the lead sponsor of the Ulster Women’s Rugby team.

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s part of the new agreement, Deloitte has also secured the naming rights to Ulster Rugby’s women’s domestic competitions for the next two years.

The Ulster Women’s team are currently tapering off their preparations for the Interprovincial Series, which begins this Saturday 17th August with an away trip to Munster. The Ulster Women will then host Leinster (24th August) and Connacht (31st August) at City of Armagh RFC and Queen’s Sport respectively. Each of the

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Inter-pro fixtures will be played as a double-header along with the Ulster U18 Girls team, who are also sponsored by Deloitte.

Jackie Henry, Office Senior Partner at Deloitte, said the sponsorship deal is in keeping with Deloitte’s strong track record of supporting sport at all levels.

“We are delighted to renew our sponsorship of the Ulster Women’s Rugby team for a further two years. Female participation in the sport continues to grow steadily and we believe our backing can further develop the game in Ulster. Securing the

naming rights for all domestic competitions means we’ll be able to support the game at a grass roots level, introducing rugby to a younger demographic.

“The recent Women’s Football World Cup showed how popular female sport has become and this sponsorship renewal reinforces our support for diversity across all levels of sport. Diversity is one of Deloitte’s core values and we are committed to playing our part in helping to raise the profile of women’s sport and helping to get more women and girls take part.”

Deloitte has demonstrated its commitment to gender equality by implementing an inclusive leadership culture founded on fairness and respect that has seen the firm set an ambition of having a 50 per cent female leadership by 2025.

Jonny Petrie, CEO at Ulster Rugby, said: “We are very pleased that Deloitte has committed their support for the Ulster Women’s team for another two years.

The Ulster Women’s team have been making significant progress both on and off the pitch since Deloitte first came on board in 2017, which certainly wouldn’t have been possible without such an invested and enthusiastic partner.

“Within the domestic game, female rugby is currently the fastest growing area of the sport in Ulster, so we are delighted that Deloitte has pledged their support to our women’s club competitions, as we seek to develop opportunities for even more females to get involved in rugby.”

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Eye on Enterprise

Ambitious Three Year Strategy as Ards Business Hub Celebrates 30th Birthday

David Blevings, Chair of Ards Business Hub, with Nichola Lockhart, the centre’s Chief Executive.

Ards Business Hub is celebrating its 30th anniversary with new branding, a name change from Ards Business Centre and publication of its new three year strategy.

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he organisation’s chair, David Blevings reflects on the successes of the past 30 years and looks ahead to a vision of increasing the spirit of enterprise and innovation in the area.

As Ards Business Hub celebrates the creation of more than 2,500 SMEs over the past 30 years, its chair David Blevings explained that the organisation is very much focused on the future.

This independent social enterprise run by a board of nine voluntary directors has developed an ambitious strategy that will see it support 1,000 individuals

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and businesses in the next three years.

“We will concentrate on enterprise promotion and support to increase both existing business start-up activity and the growth of existing local businesses.

In addition we have acquired another site on the Jubilee Road and will look at development options that provide suitable and flexible accommodation for the next generation of new and existing businesses in the area,” he said.

Mr Blevings, who has been on the board for the past ten years, is a chartered surveyor who set up East Belfast Enterprise Park in 1994 before moving to manage Lisburn Enterprise Organisation. He then set up the NI Oil Federation and currently manages three trade associations active in the Irish home heating sector.

He said that becoming a board member had been an opportunity to give something back: “My career has been good to me and I have had many twists and turns. I had been in the enterprise network and knew how it worked and had set up my own business and knew some of the pitfalls and

benefits that came with that journey.

I had an obvious interest in property and was a customer of the business centre first and was asked would I have an interest in joining the Board. “ As a business owner himself, he believes the biggest achievement of the organisation, which is based in the town’s Jubilee Road, was helping to develop more than 2,500 SMEs over the past years.

“It is great to see a small idea turn into a reality, then a viable business that grows and employs local people and then exports their product or service. The success of the Business Centre has been built upon good personal business advice from good staff, an open door policy to help people and our offer of easy in, easy out accommodation which suits the demands of a new and growing business.”

They have targeted agri-food and the creative industries as potential growth areas and their first venture into retail space, the Handcrafted Gallery will celebrate its first anniversary in September.

Mr Blevings added: “It has been a steep learning curve at a time when the

high street is under severe pressure.

The successes are easy to demonstrate.

We have provided a retail platform for over 30 home businesses/crafters that rely on trade fairs or other events to promote their products. We have given these businesses advice on marketing, social media and finance.

They are now armed with the tools to take their business to another level and for some, contemplate a move to self-employment.”

The chair believes there are many challenges for local business ahead but there is little doubt that the biggest fear currently is a no deal Brexit.

He said: “I don’t think anyone knows what the situation will entail following such an event but we will be there to give advice and guidance to local businesses when and if it happens. We will continue to encourage innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship at all levels to ensure individuals have the correct skills to build a better entrepreneurial culture in the area that will encourage more business start-ups and growth in established businesses.”

Eye on Finance

GRANT THORNTON: HOW IPOs CAN SUPPORT YOUR GROWTH PLANS With a myriad of avenues available for ambitious businesses seeking to fund their growth plans, Richard Gillan, Managing Partner at Grant Thornton Northern Ireland, talks to Business Eye about the often overlooked option of stock market flotation.

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ompanies across Northern Ireland have a broad range of funding opportunities available when seeking expansion capital to grow their business.

The recent flotations of Northern Ireland-based firms Diaceutics and Fusion Antibodies on AIM have cast a new spotlight on the idea of launching an IPO (initial public offering) in a bid to raise investment.

It is a process with which leading business advisory firm Grant Thornton is already highly familiar, having completed more new admissions to AIM on the London Stock Exchange last year than any other independent nominated adviser.

Richard Gillan, Managing Partner of Grant Thornton in Northern Ireland said: “For many businesses, even those that would be considered larger organisations, the idea of floating on the stock market can seem like a pipe dream.

“However, the recent admissions of Diaceutics and Fusion Anitbodies illustrate that companies in Northern Ireland with a compelling growth story, coupled with a credible management team, should not rule out the potential of a public listing.”

Since it was launched as the Alternative Investment Market

in 1995, AIM has become the most successful growth market in the world. In less than 25 years, more than 3,600 companies from across the globe have chosen to join AIM, raising in excess of £110 billion.

Grant Thornton has been the leading independent nominated adviser (NOMAD) to AIM companies in recent years with the firm’s AIM-listed clients raising in excess of £3bn in the primary and secondary markets in more than 250 transactions.

Richard added: “Companies typically come to us because they anticipate significant expansion and are seeking to raise capital in a timely manner.

“As an established market, AIM can prove to be a strong proposition for such companies. It is sector agnostic and caters for businesses with market capabilities from circa £1m to £5bn.

“Investors, meanwhile, look to AIM to target the sort of strong growth on their investment that is not always available on the FTSE. They understand that the potential of the higher return is typically accompanied by an increased risk profile.”

The benefits of entering the public markets go far beyond accessing capital, however, as Richard explained:

“First of all, it significantly raises the profile of the firm externally, and is seen as adding credibility to the business.

“There is of course a heightened degree of scrutiny that comes with flotation, but that can also bring benefits through an increased level of rigour and discipline to operations as management seek to run an efficient business that will attract further investors. The ability to pledge shares and cash as consideration for a potential acquisition is also advantageous for these organisations.

“Further, by offering share options to senior staff, it is possible to provide a welcome incentivisation scheme for management that can further

boost productivity and also aid in the recruitment process.”

Recently Grant Thornton in Belfast hosted a seminar exploring the benefits and challenges of a listing. The firm anticipates seeing more companies from Northern Ireland follow in the footsteps of Diaceutics and Fusion Antibodies, and will be working in conjunction with their specialist Capital Markets Team in London to help ensure that the businesses are “IPO-ready” as they move to the next stage on their journey of expansion.

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Eye on News

Young Enterprise NI Alumni Take a bite of the Big Apple

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ix talented 18 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 25 year old entrepreneurs, who have established their own business here in Northern Ireland, went head to head with 40 other young Entrepreneurs to win the chance travel

and stay in NEW YORK CITY for a full week, to experience the US culture of entrepreneurship. The Young Enterprise NI initiative, included local and international visits to start up & global companies including Twitter,

From left to right: Dennis Bree Head of Sales Twitter New York, Eve McLelland, Matthew Thompson, Joel White, Niamh Scullion, Naomi Charters, Mason Robinson, Dan Healy Chief Operating Officer Prolific Interactive, Jennifer Cuthbert Head of Fundraising Young Enterprise.

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JP Morgan Chase and Bloomberg.

Carol Fitzsimons MBE, Young Enterprise Chief Executive said: with support of Funders US Embassy and Friends of Young Enterprise NI Foundation Inc we are delighted

to give these talented young people the chance to widen their ambitions to a global stage and continue to nurture their passion for entrepreneurship ignited by their own Company programme experience.

Naomi Charters, Mason Robinson, Matthew Thompson, Niamh Scullion, with David McAllister and Ciaran Sheehan.

Eye on Economics

STORM CLOUDS AHEAD FOR THE UK ECONOMY UK temperatures reached record highs last month, but the UK economy has not been heating up this summer. Instead, as world trade tensions and worries about a no-deal Brexit have risen, the economy has been slowing down.

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n 1 August, the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept Bank Rate at 0.75% and lowered its forecasts for UK growth this year and next.

Businesses in major foreign economies are investing less because trade tensions have made them less certain about future demand for their products. As foreign economies slow, so does foreign demand for UK products.

Meanwhile, in the UK, uncertainty surrounding Brexit has been having an especially negative effect on business investment.

I’ve been asking my business contacts here in Northern Ireland about these issues, and my fellow Agents have been doing so in the rest of the UK. Across the UK, around three in every ten of our contacts

fastest pay growth since 2008 and the lowest level of unemployment 3.1% in Northern Ireland since the mid-1970s.

The path the UK economy takes over the next few years will depend mainly on what sort of Brexit there is.

If there is a no-deal Brexit, then UK economic growth would probably slow further.

Even though three quarters of the business contacts we have asked say they are “as ready as they can be” for no-deal scenarios, they still think investment and demand for their products would fall in the first year of a no-deal Brexit.

The increased risk of a no-deal Brexit has already caused the pound to fall to its lowest level in two years against other major currencies in recent weeks.

In no-deal scenarios, inflation could be pushed up by tariffs on

“Across the UK, around three in every ten of our contacts are now even more uncertain than they were ahead of the extension of Article 50.

Only one in ten is more certain.”

are now even more uncertain than they were ahead of the extension of Article 50. Only one in ten is more certain.

We reckon that investment this year has been as weak as it’s been in almost a decade, and this has been acting as a drag on the economy.

That’s despite solid household spending, supported by the

imports and further falls in the pound. But lower investment and slower growth could push prices down. The MPC would have to judge how best to act given the balance of these effects.

On the other hand, if there is a deal that allows the UK to move smoothly to a new trading relationship with the EU, then business investment

Frances Hill.

would probably rise, causing growth to accelerate.

If there is a Brexit deal, the MPC’s judgement is that gradual and limited increases in Bank Rate would be appropriate to keep inflation from being above the 2% target in a few years’ time. Bank Rate is likely to remain substantially lower than before the financial crisis.

But no matter what sort of Brexit there is, the MPC will always act to promote the good of the people of Northern Ireland and the wider UK by keeping inflation on target while supporting jobs and growth.

Frances Hill is Agent for the Bank of England in Northern Ireland. @BoENIreland

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Eye on News

BUMPER YEAR FOR NI HOTEL INDUSTRY ASM Chartered Accountants has released the 2018 edition of its annual hotel industry survey.

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he headline performance figures from the report show that: VOQSFDFEFOUFE EFNBOE for hotel bedrooms across Northern Ireland in 2018 led to approximately 2.363 million room nights being sold during the year which is an increase of 115,000 room nights , or 5%, than in 2017; IPXFWFS B MBSHF JODSFBTF JO bedroom supply throughout the year resulting from new hotel openings and extensions (+1,100 bedrooms), particularly in Belfast, means that the average bedroom occupancy rate across the country actually declined to 75.6% compared to 76.8% in 2017.

Nevertheless, this remains a high level of occupancy overall; PO B /PSUIFSO *SFMBOE XJEF CBTJT the average room rate, which is the price a guest pays for a room excluding VAT, increased by 7.1% to £96.90, another record; DPNCJOJOH UIFTF UXP NFBTVSFT gives the room yield or revenue per available room per day. The Northern Ireland average for 2018 was £73.28 which is a 5.4% increase year on year; UPUBM SFWFOVFT QFS SPPN XIJDI includes income from all hotel revenue generating activities, increased by an average of 4.4% to £69,158 in 2018. But that growth was not uniform across Northern Ireland. Belfast hotels and those in the Resort/Spa segment experienced a decline in food and beverage sales.

Adrian Patton, Senior Manager of Consulting at ASM added: “Overall, the hotel industry had a solid year, but the second half

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Stephen McMullan, Deputy General Manager Jury’s Inn, Belfast is pictured with John McGrillen, CEO Tourism NI, Adrian Patton, Senior Manager, ASM and Michael Williamson, Director, ASM Chartered Accountants.

of 2018 was not kind to hotels in Belfast. Most of the new room stock coming to market did so in the Capital City from the summer onwards and our research shows that room and occupancy rates declined as that supply entered the market. During this period, income from bedroom sales slipped by 4.1% year on year and there was also a decline in food and beverage sales. Consequently, I expect overall hotel performance in Belfast to decline further in 2019 since all of the new supply will be available for the full year and even the most optimistic growth projections of bedroom demand in the City are less than the increase on the supply side.

For now, the addition of new room stock in Belfast has largely ended and this will give the industry a chance to recover lost ground. It is easily forgotten that Belfast faced a similar issue when a large volume of new room stock entered the market

just as the financial crisis was taking hold in 2009 and 2010, but underlying growth in demand meant that the impact was not as severe as it may have been and the City soon returned to higher occupancy and room rates. There is no reason to believe that the same will not occur this time.”

Michael Williamson added: “The absence of an Assembly and leadership is now starting to frustrate hotel owners and operators. There is real concern around the lack of progress on VAT, Air Passenger Tax and Corporation Tax and the fear that in the absence of sitting Ministers, key decisions on matters such as marketing and events budgets will simply not be taken, thereby undermining the excellent performance of the industry over recent years. While it is clear that there is considerable momentum in our appeal to out of state markets currently, I

fully agree with the sentiments expressed by hotel managers.

While the return of The Open has delivered outstanding exposure in international markets beyond those interested in golf, we need to include and use this as a platform for developing a more comprehensive world class events programme to be delivered over the long term. Tourism is a highly competitive global marketplace and we are now competing on that global stage, so the development of a broader based programme of world class events will ensure that we get ongoing international exposure that will deliver wide ranging economic benefits across the industry and wider society. One only has to look at how The Open engaged, energised and embraced a wide range of organisations within and peripheral to tourism and hospitality across most of Northern Ireland to see the impact such events can have.”

Eye on Arts

Arts in Northern Ireland – Thriving Through Partnership Northern Ireland’s cultural landscape is dynamic and vibrant. Tourists from all over the world come here to visit the home of literary giants like Seamus Heaney; screen icons like Jamie Dornan and Conleth Hill; rock stars like Van Morrison and of course Game of Thrones, which is not only a global phenomenon but has been transformative for the country as a tourism destination.

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nd despite all this, as Niamh Flanagan from TheatreNI points out, public funding of the arts via Arts Council NI has reduced by £23 million over the last 6 years, and Northern Ireland currently has the lowest per capita spend on the arts in Europe. She adds: “It is not only massively shortsighted considering the huge social, economic and health benefits enjoyed by a vibrant arts and culture offering, but also because public funding has been instrumental in launching the careers of so many of our great legends.”

For the Lyric Theatre, which is not only a theatre venue in Belfast, but is a full time production company – creating around 10 full-stage productions every year – the funding deficit is a constant concern. The Lyric’s Executive Producer, Jimmy Fay, describes running a theatre in today’s constricted financial climate as trying to wrap a present with an A4 page.

He says, “You are always trying to stretch resources, to create the impossible out of what seems like – literally – impossible”.

One way the Lyric have evolved their business model in recent years is to engage more formerly in partnerships with other organisations to help share resources. Of course, the arts are already an innately collaborative industry, constantly working together to make a little go a long way. In October the Lyric are co-producing J.M.Synge’s brutally hilarious The Playboy of the Western World with

the Dublin Theatre Festival. This follows a very successful year of collaborations with NI Opera on their sell-out production of the musical thriller Sweeney Todd in February and Bruiser with the Alfred Hitchcock classic The 39 Steps in March.

Economically, the benefits of co-production are obvious. The more co-producers, the cheaper the pre-

each other, exploring new horizons.”

This is also true when it comes to partnerships between the Business and Arts sectors. Allianz CEO Sean McGrath, who have sponsored the Allianz Arts and Business NI Awards for the last 13 years, firmly believes in business supporting arts and cultural projects to achieve a bottom line while benefitting

“Benefits to business of arts partnerships have become increasingly more tangible, ranging from raising brand profile to reaching new audiences, innovation and meaningful staff engagement. Arts organisations in turn have been allowed to flex their creative muscles and ultimately achieve things they could not manage to do without business support.” production costs to each partner. But the mutual benefits of collaboration run deeper than the bottom line of the budget. By combining their distinctive strengths, there is greater access to a wealth of ideas, experience and energy.

As Fay explains, the partnership has to achieve more than the sum of its parts: “The best partnerships are creative, where each partner complements and enriches the quality of the opposite partner.

Partnerships are about shared ambitions, achieving something not possible without

society as a whole in Northern Ireland: “Benefits to business of arts partnerships have become increasingly more tangible, ranging from raising brand profile to reaching new audiences, innovation and meaningful staff engagement. Arts organisations in turn have been allowed to flex their creative muscles and ultimately achieve things they could not manage to do without business support.”

Arts and Business have been advocating for more arts-business partnerships

in Northern Ireland since 1987. As principal funder of Arts & Business NI, the Arts Council believes their role in forging these partnerships is more essential than ever. Roisin McDonough, chief executive of ACNI says: “Conditions for arts organisations in Northern Ireland are generally more challenging than elsewhere in the UK and Ireland. Where other governments are now reinvesting serious money in the arts, in recognition of the social, cultural and economic advantages associated with cherishing and growing a strong and vibrant arts sector, we in Northern Ireland are not yet so fortunate. Partnerships - whether that is between the worlds of arts and business or between organisations, venues and artists – are an essential way of maximising the resources available to us. By combining our strengths we can unlock enormous potential and place ourselves in a much stronger position to achieve our ambitions and continue to produce creative work of outstanding quality and originality.”

The Playboy of the Western World from the Lyric Theatre and Dublin Theatre Festival running from 8 Oct – 2 Nov. Tickets from £12.00 available now at www.lyrictheatre.co.uk or 028 9038 1081.

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Eye on AgriFood Two Springbok rugby stars are making a mark on the Northern Ireland food scene. Sam Butler talked to Ireland international Ilse Van Staden of the award winning Ke Nako Biltong in Ballyclare and Belfast-based Ulster Rugby’s versatile Louis Ludik about Hellbent Sausages.

Springbok Rugby Stars Set To Score In Local Food With Distinctive Homeland Flavours

Ilse and Alanagh Van Staden of Ke Nako Biltong in Ballyclare have launched South African biltong and other products in Northern Ireland

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pringboks Ilse Van Staden and Louis Ludik are both passionate about rugby…. and food. It’s no surprise, of course, that successful rugby stars are careful about what they eat. Both now run their own small food enterprises influenced

by South Africa, their homeland.

Ilse and Louis are helping people here to share their love of biltong, a dried, cured meat, and boerewors, spicy beef sausages.

A qualified butcher Ilse (35) hails from Pretoria, South Africa’s capital, and runs Ke Nako Biltong with wife Alanagh, a nutritionist, while Louis, a management graduate and a native of Kempton Park, an industrial hub near Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city, runs Hellbent Sausages in Belfast.

Ilse, a front row forward who has

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represented both Ulster and Ireland – she has six Ireland caps to date including at the Women’s World Cup in 2017 – has been the butcher at Ballylagan Organic Farm, near Ballyclare, since 2015.

Wife and business partner Alanagh has also played in the front row for Ulster. They currently prop up the women’s forward pack at Cooke club in Belfast. “Our work with Ke Nako is predominantly done after our normal day jobs have finished and when we are not training at Cooke,” Ilse explains.

“We make biltong to demand and depending on what markets or current orders we have,” she adds. Business, especially from internet orders, has soared since the enterprising couple won BBC’s Top of the Shop series, headed by top chef Tom Kerridge, last year.

Ilse began her career in food in Pretoria

Ke Nako has won national awards for its unique biltong

in a steakhouse and was subsequently kitchen manager of another restaurant in the area. She moved to Northern Ireland after meeting Alanagh during a Cooke rugby tour of her homeland.

She joined her in Northern Ireland and worked as chef in The Parson’s Nose in Hillsborough. In August 2015, she then joined Ballylagan Organic Farm in Ballyclare as the butcher. “The best part of my job is definitely that I get to work with some of the best organic produce in Northern Ireland. Farmers and producers here are so passionate about what they do and it really sparks us to be an essential link in the organic field in Northern Ireland,” she adds.

Impressed by the high quality of Northern Irish beef, Ilse decided to create a new taste using her knowledge of techniques in South Africa to dry

and cure meats. She found Alanagh an enthusiastic supporter. “I looked at the local food industry and spotted an opportunity to create authentic biltong and other cured meat products from my homeland using the great beef here,” Ilse explains.

“Biltong has long been popular in South Africa as a snack in particular because it’s rich in protein and especially popular with rugby players and other sports people as an aid to recovery after training and games,” she continues. “This is because it’s an excellent source of vital minerals like zinc, iron, magnesium and vitamin B-12; all essential for the body to function.

“Biltong, in addition, is made from twice the finished weight of meat and so is a super concentrated source of nutrients.

Beef biltong, for instance, has 57.2g of

Eye on AgriFood

Hellbent on success in food are Louis Ludik, left, who plays for Ulster Rugby, and former team mate Schalk Van Der Merwe, second left, with Ulster University’s Dr Amy Burns and chef Bruno Etienne

natural protein in every 100g. And since biltong is cured and not cooked, it retains more of the nutrients than cooked meat as the cooking process can break some of these down,” she says. Biltong is also wheat and gluten free,” she explains.

Together they have created a unique biltong recipe using organic beef that’s been cured in organic red wine vinegar with a rich blend of spices from salt, black pepper, coriander seeds, nutmeg, and cloves before being air-dried in premises on the Co. Antrim farm. Ke Nako has developed into a leading player in the charcuterie sector here over the past five years and has deservedly won Great Taste and Blas na hEireann food awards.

“While the curing tradition remains strong in South Africa, it’s been expanded by a strong focus on different flavours and by the growing trend towards healthier products.

Biltong is now seen as a nutritious and healthy snack,” Ilse says.

The biltong is currently being marketed to delis and farm shops in Northern Ireland and to Britain through internet sales. The small business has also developed other traditional South African cured products including Droewors, a dry, spicy thin sausage, chorizo and bresaola. ___________________________ Louis Ludik teamed up with then Ulster colleague Schalk van Merwe to bring a winning mentality to the development and marketing of Boerewors, the chunky beef sausages they grew up loving in South Africa and are now producing here. Van der Merwe subsequently returned home

when his contract with Ulster ended.

The identity they’ve chosen for their recently launched business, Hellbent, reflects the gritty determination they’ve been showing on rugby pitches around the UK, Ireland and further afield to ensure success. “We sat writing down ideas for the new business with our branding company on a full-day session, brainstorming what we would like the product and company culture to be,” says Louis (34), a native of Kempton Park, an industrial hub near Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city.

Louis joined Ulster in 2014 from a club in France and is proving to be among the most skilled and popular of a long and distinguished line of Springboks at the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast.

“We chose Hellbent because it reflects our belief in quality first with no compromise,” Louis says. “This means using the best locally sourced ingredients, along with a tradition of boerewors making (and eating) handed down through generations in my homeland,” he explains. “We felt that as we are hell bent on delivering quality, hell bent on creating unique and amazing flavours and thus the quirky brand was born,” he adds.

The name boerewors is derived from the Afrikaans/Dutch words ‘boer’ meaning farmer and ‘wors’ meaning sausage. And for health-conscious sports stars like Louis beefy sausages are preferred to the average Ulster fry porker. Containing at least 90 percent meat, and never more than 30 percent fat, the spiral shaped sausage is completely free from additives and is gluten free. They also feature a

Boerewors, spicy beef sausages from South Africa are being made in Northern Ireland by Hellbent

blend of spices, usually coriander seed, black pepper, cloves and nutmeg, for a distinctive taste. It’s a blend Louis understandably is keeping to himself.

The recipe for the beef sausages they used to create the Hellbent version came from the parents of prop forward Schalk (30) who farm at Tzaneen, a fertile agricultural region - beef cattle country - that’s almost 300 miles north of Johannesburg.

“What I bring to the business is experience in management and accountancy,” continues Louis, who has successfully played full back, wing and centre for Ulster. “We’ve tweaked Schalk’s family recipe a bit for the local market with the help of Ulster University’s Business School and Dr Amy Burns in particular. Dr Burns did a marvellous job and has encouraged us in developing our start up business.

“My job is to help to bring the new sausages to market in the months ahead.

And it’s a different kind of challenge that I am really tackling hard,” he adds.

As a professional sportsman Louis appreciates the nutritional value of foods but was eager to incorporate much-loved flavours from home in the sausages, according to Dr Burns, director of the Food and Consumer Testing Suite (FACTS) on the university’s Coleraine campus. She Helped get the small business moving.

Dr Burns and her team of food specialists introduced the entrepreneurial duo to Jason Hamilton, managing director of Carnbrooke Meats in Dromara, Co Down, last year for the further development of the sausages and their processing for

the local marketplace. Carnbrooke is among the most successful meat processing businesses here and has an extensive clientele in leading hotels and high-end restaurants.

Louis is also hoping to launch additional foods such as spicy cocktail sausages, hotdogs, burgers and meatballs with Carnbrooke. “While we’ve a number of ideas for future products, our priority now is to ensure the success of the boerewors, a completely new type of sausage to Northern Ireland.

It’ll mean investing our time and other resources in measures to increase awareness here about the taste and benefits of our sausages,” he continues.

Among the first to taste the new sausages were Ulster rugby fans attending a Pro 14 league match at the Kingspan stadium, according to Louis, currently side lined by a leg injury.

Louis explains: “We set up a stand to cook the sausages for supporters to enjoy. We were keen to get some honest feedback from fans here largely raised on thick pork sausages and received an immensely positive response. This has encouraged us to move to the next stage.

“We were sold out shortly after we began with fans being drawn by the distinctive aroma of the sizzling boerewors. Fans were keen to find out how they are produced and what our long term plans for the sausages are,” he adds. They’ll be on sale again at the start of the upcoming season.

Ilse and Louis are now focused on scoring with local shoppers and in creating a platform for growth into other markets.

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Eye on Infrastructure

‘Creating Waves’ as Institute of Water Conference comes to Belfast H

osted by Sara Venning, Institute of Water President and CEO of NI Water, the theme of ‘disruption’ was explored - how changes to the environment, pollution and the emergence of new technologies are causing ‘disruption,’ to populations around the world.

Distinguished speakers included Sir John Parker, Leo Johnson, Duncan Tait, John Mahony and the BBC’s ‘The One Show’ reporter Lucy Siegle.

Chaired by Wendy Austin MBE, delegates had the opportunity to network with speakers from businesses and key sponsors including Fujitsu, Visit Belfast, Kier Construction, GRAHAM, Geda Construction, Neueda, Meridian Utilities, Atkins, Arup, EY, Lowry and AECOM. The 2-day conference comes at a significant time for NI Water as the company needs to invest ca £2.5 billion pounds of investment in 2021 – 2027. This will be a huge boost as every £1 invested has a £2.50 ripple effect on the economy.

All eyes were on the water industry when the Institute of Water conference arrived in Belfast.

Duncan Tait, Fujitsu, John Mahony, Reputation Inc, Sara Venning CEO NI Water, Leo Johnson, PwC, Sir John Parker

James Leverton, AECOM, Jake Rowland, Igloo, Sam McManus,AECOM, Jessica Davey, Igloo, David Dukes AECOM

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EY team & colleagues with Sara Venning at Meet the Leaders event

Eye on Infrastructure

NI Waterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ronan Larkin and CEO Sara Venning with sponsors Leo Martin and Mark Little GRAHAM Group

Marsh Mercer, sponsors of National Innovation Award 2019 at Presidents Dinner with winners from Wessex Water and IoW President and CEO of NI Water Sara Venning

Exhibitors SwiftComply

Geda Construction at Presidents Dinner, City Hall

Exhibitors from Water Solutions Ireland

Exhibitors Eliquo Hydrok

Exhibitors and sponsors Atkins

Exhibitors Invest NI

IoW Rising Star Charlotte Rhodes, Wendy Austin MBE, Lucy Siegle, BBC One Show Broadcaster & Journalist, Mandhy Senewiratne, Fyrefly Global & Angela Halpenny NI Water

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Eye on News

Loganair To Launch Derry-Southend Route

Scottish airline Loganair has been awarded the public service obligation airlink between City of Derry Airport and London Southend – following a competitive tender process – with tickets on sale already. The route to Southend will replace the former Derry-Stansted service.

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lasgow based airline will provide daily services between Northern Ireland’s North West and London Southend Airport – billed as one of the most convenient gateways to the UK’s largest city and the South East.

While Loganair has operated the

PSO route since February when it was appointed as interim operator following flybmi entering administration, the service will move from London Stansted to London Southend – from October 27.

London Southend Airport is a short 52-minute train journey into

central London’s Liverpool Street, served by up to six trains per hour from the airport’s dedicated train station – only 100 metres walk from the terminal. Meanwhile, on the return trip the compact airport is extremely easy to navigate compared to other London transport hubs.

Loganair has designed a 26 service per week schedule which enables a full day of business in London, with services departing at 7am on weekdays and returning at 7.25pm. The airline is also operating a 9am Saturday service and two well-timed Sunday flights, allowing for Friday to Sunday weekend breaks either side of the Irish Sea. Awarded by the UK Government’s Department for Transport in partnership with the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland, the route will be served by a 49-seat Embraer 145 aircraft – with every ticket including 20kg of complimentary hold baggage, 6kg of cabin baggage and an inflight refreshment.

Loganair managing director, Jonathan Hinkles, said: “Following a competitive tender process, we are extremely pleased to have been awarded the

PSO route between London and the City of Derry – extending Loganair’s excellent long-standing relationship with City of Derry, where we were the first airline operator over 40 years ago.

“London Southend is a highly convenient entry point to England’s capital and the South East, serviced by its own dedicated train station only 100 steps away from the airport terminal.

“Together with our business focused schedule, generous inclusive baggage allowance and attractive frequent flyer scheme, this latest phase of partnership between Loganair and London Southend Airport will significantly enhance air connectivity in Northern Ireland’s North West, generating lasting benefits for both the region’s economy and our customers.”

Loganair already provides regular services from Glasgow, Aberdeen, Carlisle Lake District and Stornoway to London Southend Airport, carrying almost 10,000 customers each month into the airport.

It also operates services between City of Derry and Manchester as well as Belfast to Carlisle Lake District Airport.

Work Begins on Beannchor’s £4m Haslem Hotel at Lisburn Square Construction work on the development of the Beannchor Group’s new £4m Haslem Hotel in Lisburn Square is now under way. It is anticipated the new hotel will open in spring 2020 and, when complete, will create 75 new jobs.

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he highly anticipated new 52-bedroom property will be the first hotel in Lisburn city centre.

The Haslem will epitomise urban style and reflect the needs of today’s hotel guests, with a vibrant, contemporary open plan ground floor reception, lobby bar and restaurant, accessed from the central piazza. The development will

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also include a residents’ gym, conference room and an underground car park.

The property, which is aiming for 4* status, is an entirely new concept for Beannchor, which owns and operates some of Northern Ireland’s leading hotels and hospitality venues, including Belfast’s 5-star Merchant Hotel, Bullitt Hotel and eight Little Wing Pizzerias.

Artist’s impression of the Beannchor Group’s new £4m hotel, The Haslem at Lisburn Square. Work has now begun on the construction of the highly anticipated new 52-bedroom property, which will be the first hotel in Lisburn city centre. It is anticipated the new hotel will open in spring 2020 and, when complete, will create 75 new jobs.

The food and beverage offering will focus on all-day casual dining for residents and non-residents, whilst spacious, well-appointed guestrooms will greatly enhance the accommodation offering in Lisburn city centre.

A development loan to support the delivery of the wider project, which includes flexible workspace, was

provided by the Northern Ireland Investment Fund, managed by CBRE Capital Advisors on behalf of the Department of Finance and the Northern Ireland Strategic Investment Board. The Fund, which was launched in November 2018, provides debt finance for real estate, regeneration, low carbon and infrastructure projects.

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Eye on AgriFood

Outstanding Global Success For Tyrone’s Pet Food Innovator

Husband and wife team: Anthony and Blathin Mackle

Macahl Animal Health in Moy, Tyrone now exports an original rehydration drink for pets to over 40 global markets and is recognised throughout the UK as a major player in veterinary products. Sam Butler talked to Macahl’s founder and managing director Anthony Mackle.

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oy businessman Anthony Mackle began work on the creation of an original drink for pets and other small animals in 2006. Today, Oralade, the drink he developed with significant input from his late father John Mackle, founder of the industry leading Mackle Pet Foods, is a world beater that’s on sale in almost 45 international markets, the most recent success being in South Africa.

Other substantial Oralade sales have been racked up recently in markets as diverse as Chile, Poland and Hungary, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Bahrain.

As a result, the ambitious local company is now among the most successful small business exporters in Northern Ireland and Oralade a widely respected and recognised pet industry brand. These are

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remarkable achievements for a company which employs just eight people.

Led by Mr Mackle, a recognised pet industry specialist who’s focused on innovation for international markets, Macahl Animal Health has become an impressive role model of what a smaller business can achieve through a sharp focus on original and authentic products for global markets. Wife Blathin Mackle has joined the family business to run its social media and internet marketing.

Reflecting on the early days of the family business, Mr Mackle says: “My father had an idea to develop a new, innovative, practical and functional rehydration drink for pets. We looked at the US and other markets and realised there was an opportunity to improve the plain electrolyte type drinks or reconstituted

powder formulas then on the market.

We were influenced by the growth of energy drinks for human consumption and set out to create a product that would work in particular with pets.

“With meticulous research we discovered it wasn’t just what went into our formula that mattered but also what we didn’t put in. Palatability is extremely important, especially when working with animals that have been sick or nauseous and don’t want to drink and replace essential fluids and nutrients,” he explains. Oralade is also now widely used to rehydrate pets recovering from surgery.

That exhaustive and essential market research, he continues, indicated that “dogs and cats are reluctant to drink treated tap water due to impurities or chloride”. “And we also discovered that many rehydration formulas contain citric acid as a preservative but this again is unpalatable to pets,” adds Mr Mackle.

So, they came up with an original recipe using purified water, simple glucose, amino acids and a careful balance of electrolytes to make it isotonic.

They then added hydrolised chicken for taste. And Oralade was born.

“Oralade is a convenient ready to serve

solution that helps quickly to replenish lost fluids and electrolytes and nutrients pets need during and after periods of vomiting or diarrhoea,” Mr Mackle continues. “The unique formula contains specific amino acids Glutamate and Glycine which enable veterinarians to administer microenteral nutrition during acute illness within the first 24 hours, which no other product worldwide can offer,” he continues.

The rehydration drink, especially beneficial to pets recovering from intensive surgery, is also hypoallergenic and has zero contraindications making it suitable for any cat or dog and in some markets hedgehogs and wildlife. It will now be used by vets to treat lions in South Africa!

The company began life in 2006 as JAM (John Anthony Mackle) but moved to become a name synonymous with the family heritage by forming MAC Animal Health Ltd (Macahl) in 2015, an independent enterprise outside the longer established Mackle Pet Foods that’s now run by brother John. Anthony is fiercely independent and focused on the growth of Macahl Animal Health in global markets.

The local market is also important to Mr Mackle and he’s been busy increasing awareness here and the Republic. Oralade has a strong presence in Britain which he is also keen to expand over the next year.

Over the years Macahl has worked closely with some of the leading veterinary critical care specialists and nutritionists and continually strives to improve its products offering and quality and effectiveness. The development of Oralade, for instance, was assisted by leading Dutch chemist Simon Van Dalsem whose previous experience in pet product development and also working in a world famous human isotonic sports drink from the US. Macahl’s pioneering Oralade and other products are developed, manufactured and marketed internationally from the company’s modern production plant just outside Moy off the main Dungannon road.

With more new products in the pipeline and some more exciting export markets soon to open the future is looking exceptionally bright for the enterprising Macahl Animal Health and its energetic and dedicated leader.

Eye on Management

Why NI businesses should enter the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards Ambitious companies in Northern Ireland are encouraged to join an elite network of Ireland’s top businesses by applying for this year’s Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards programme.

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un in association with Bank of Ireland, the programme showcases the success of indigenous companies across the island of Ireland and recognises the contribution they make to the all-island economy.

The network of Best Managed Companies developed over the last decade now stands at more than 130 businesses, including 27 from Northern Ireland.

The list includes companies from a diverse range of industries, including construction (Creagh Concrete, Henry Group, macgroup) manufacturing (CDE Global, Edge Innovate, Hill Engineering), housebuilding (Braidwater), technology (Neueda, Seopa) and food and drink (Around Noon, Henderson Foodservice).

At the 2019 awards, held earlier this year, 12 companies achieved Best Managed status to join the network for the first time, including three from Northern Ireland. Leading hospitality group Beannchor, the owners of The Merchant Hotel, precast concrete and construction products maker FP McCann and precision hydraulic cylinder manufacturer Northern Hydraulics were awarded the Best Managed designation following a qualification and judging process that evaluates the entire management team and their business strategy.

Celebrating being named as a Deloitte Best Managed Company for the first time are (L) Don Mullholland, Finance Director of FP McCann and (R) James Sinton, Finance Director of Beannchor Group with Deloitte Partner Glenn Roberts.

The Best Managed Companies judging panel considers companies from every perspective, using a wide range of criteria including strategy, capability, commitment, financials and management performance and practices. They also evaluate companies and their performance in relation to their peers, and the industries that they are operating in, to determine management success.

Bill Wolsey, MD of Beannchor, said: “We entered the programme initially for the publicity, but they ask absolutely piercing questions about your business.

The process has been well worthwhile in making us reassess what we’re all about. Having Deloitte giving you this advice and guidance is hugely beneficial.”

In addition to new entrants and those that requalified as a Best Managed Company for the first time, 13 companies were last year presented with the “gold standard”, having secured Best Managed

status for four consecutive years, including NI companies Denroy Plastics, Learning Pool, Combined Facilities Management and Novosco.

A further 13 were awarded “platinum standard”, having won for seven years in a row, including Kestrel Foods and McCue Fit-Out. It’s fair to say that once companies gain Best Managed status, they tend not to want to give it up, with a number seeing value in going through the requalifying process to maintain their “platinum” status several times, such as Wilson’s Auctions, Portview Fit-Out and the Mount Charles Group.

Trevor Annon, Chairman of Mount Charles said: “The mentoring and coaching we received has encouraged us to think more strategically, and this will be invaluable as we map out a plan for the next phase of our development”.

Glenn Roberts, partner at Deloitte added: “For more than ten years now, we have met and worked alongside some of the finest

companies across the island of Ireland. Some were established after spotting opportunities during the downturn and others are long term family companies that have adapted to changes in the local and global economies to achieve significant growth. Their success provides encouragement at a time when there is undoubtedly some uncertainty in the business community over Brexit and other global political and economic issues.

“We’re proud of the contribution Northern Irish companies have made to the network and hope that more will join the three who achieved ‘Best Managed’ status for the first time last year.”

For further information and details of how to enter the awards, visit www.deloittebestmanaged.ie.

The closing date for entries is September 27, 2019.

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Eye on News

Tourism & The Arts Combine To Embrace The Place ‘Embrace The Place’, an exciting new partnership between Tourism NI and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, will animate four key tourism sites across the region by using the arts to tell the stories of that particular area, offering visitors something new and inspiring to enjoy.

Pictured (L-R) launching the programme are Kerrie Sweeney CEO Titanic Foundation, Dumbworld’s Brian Irvine , Damian Smyth, ACNI, Angelina Fusco (Tourism NI) and Dumbworld’s John McIllduff.

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ollowing an investment by Tourism NI of £150,000 and an open call, Dumbworld, Kabosh, The Armagh Pipers and Snow Water, were commissioned to present an original art work that reflects the heritage of some of the Northern Ireland most special locations including, Belfast’s Maritime Mile, Seamus Heaney HomePlace in Bellaghy, Navan Fort in Armagh and The Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh.

Tourism NI Director of Product Development, Rosemarie McHugh, said: “We have a very vibrant arts sector here.

We want this project to enable the best talent to create new innovative content

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to animate key tourism sites across Northern Ireland. Visitors want to engage with the authenticity of the destination and its people and the best way to get an emotional connection with place is through the arts. This creates memories and gives visitors even more compelling reasons to visit, return and encourage their friends and family to visit.

“We have had a phenomenal response to this project from the arts sector and were overwhelmed by the quality of entries, given it was a new initiative. We are very excited to have supported the creation of the four projects and look forward to our visitors experiencing them over the

coming weeks,” Rosemarie added.

Noirin McKinney, Director of Arts Development, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, added, “The Arts Council of Northern Ireland is proud to partner with Tourism NI on this thrilling programme of arts and heritage events to be held at some of Northern Ireland’s most scenic locations. There is so much to look forward to and all four projects promise to be wonderful, immersive experiences for the thousands of visitors that will engage with them.”

The multi award-winning, Dumbworld along with project partner, Titanic Foundation, will present, All The Things We Are, a striking piece of audio-visual contemporary art that uses three shipping containers to reflect the comings and goings of this unique coastal location. The art work, which is located at the Titanic Slipways, is free to access and marks the beginning of a new multi-purpose art installation that will remain in place for six months, drawing local people and tourists to the Maritime Mile.

Theatre company, Kabosh and Seamus Heaney HomePlace, will present, A Bellaghy Tale, across three weekends in September. A Bellaghy Tale is a theatrical walking tour, beginning at HomePlace and linking key sites throughout the village of Bellaghy that are closely related to the life and works of Seamus Heaney. Written by Vincent Higgins, the 60 minute experience consists of 6x7 minute long dramas featuring local songs brought to life by Jane Cassidy. Inspired by the history of each location, these original short plays will give voice to the spirit of each site and how they impacted on the life of Seamus Heaney, ultimately

inspiring his life’s work. The dramas and music will be available to download from the HomePlace and Kabosh websites with the scripts made available in a number of different languages.

On 6-7 September, the Armagh Rhymers and Armagh Pipers Club will present Macha at Navan Fort, a spectacular multi-media performance featuring music by renowned composer, Niall Vallely. Macha is a unique musical and dramatic celebration of the myths and mysteries of Eamhain Macha, the ancient seat of the rulers of Ulster.

Commencing at the Navan Centre, the two evenings includes a dramatic performance by Armagh Rhymers, musicians from Armagh Pipers Club and audio-visual displays together with a promenade to the Fort itself.

Snow Water has created Live at the Folk Park, which takes visitors on a musical journey charting the stories of those who had to leave Ulster over the course of 300 years. It involves some of Northern Ireland’s finest musicians and singers (including Gareth Dunlop, No Oil Paintings, Jack Warnock, ROE, Eilidh Patterson, Niall Hanna and Maurice Leyden) with Neil Martin as Musical Director and Joe Lindsay as Presenter.

Live performances filmed in locations throughout the Ulster American Folk Park include songs from home and songs written from afar about home; Scottishinfluenced fiddle music and piping; Appalachian music; religious songs; fast, lively, energising dance music and slower, reflective pieces. It will culminate in a new permanent online exhibition, a piece of vinyl, and an innovative app which will be used as a guided tour of the Park and as part of a treasure hunt.

For tickets and more information on Embrace The Place events visit www.titanic-foundation.org/riverbox www.seamusheaneyhome.com www.visitarmagh.com www.nmni.com/our-museums/ulster-american-folk-park/Home.aspx

Eye on Internet

The Death Of Context

By Gareth Dunlop, Fathom.

The interconnected globalised village within which we all live is complex, messy and multifaceted. The majority of us spend most or all of our lives trying to understand it and our place in it, and are rightly suspicious of those who claim they already do.

T

he concept of a global village is more than a hackneyed cliché. It is the result of unimaginable technological and communication advances in the last decades, themselves the inevitable conclusion of humankind’s single most distinguishing characteristic, our ability to collaborate in huge numbers. This ability singles us out from the animal kingdom; indeed our near relatives, chimpanzees, start to struggle when they need cooperation from more than 6 to 8 buddies.

While nature has capacity for both serenity and violence, it has a predictable rhythm and order to it – it is often referred to as “the natural order” after all. The human ability to cooperate at scale means that we have unique power to influence or disrupt that rhythm, as witnessed by the pace at which we accelerated to the top of the food chain, or our impact on global climate patterns.

The challenge of understanding and managing that power in a world becoming “smaller” is further exacerbated by the inconvenience that none of us know enough to justify almost anything we believe.

Professor Thomas Landauer from Department of Psychology of the University of Colorado famously ran an experiment in the 1980s which involved asking test subjects to recall different forms of information over varying amounts of time. He discovered that recall turned out to be surprisingly consistent even across varying intelligence levels, and when converted to a value for the total amount of data a brain could store over a lifetime, produced a figure of around 200 megabytes.

It is pretty sobering to recognise that in an environment where

information can be ambiguous and the world is complicated, our brains give us no more than a third of a CD of capacity over our lifetime to navigate and understand the world. Yet somehow, on a daily basis we need to extract black and white (to make decisions) from the grey (the ambiguity of the data we use to do so).

Bringing all of these threads together, we can conclude that humans have the ability to influence a complex world dramatically despite our naturally finite brain capacity. It seems to me self-explanatory therefore that we should be acutely aware of the shades of grey and actively pursue the knowledge we need to make good decisions.

Therefore, the last thing which the truth needs to express its fullness is a 280-character limit. Or somewhat more alarmingly 33 characters, if you consider the average length of a Tweet, as opposed to the maximum length of a Tweet.

Recent high-profile Twitter battles illustrate the challenge.

When Conservative Foreign Office minister Mark Field manhandled a female climate protester at the Mansion House in London in June 2019, his entire life was summarised and judged in a 35 second video clip. Somewhat predictably, Twitter split down the predictable party-political and gender lines in assessing what happened.

You may recall homeless Manchester man Chris Parker heroically running into the Manchester Arena in May 2017 during the bombing at the Ariana Grande concert, having witnessed the blast, saw white smoke and

heard screaming. In his own words “It knocked me to the floor and then I got up and instead of running away my gut instinct was to run back and try and help.” So delighted were the Twitterati that they organised a fundraiser for him, raising £50k for him in the process.

The only problem with all of this is that the reason he went back inside was to steal from the weak and vulnerable. CCTV showed him stealing iPhones and debit cards. Subsequent evidence illustrated that he ignored dozens of calls on the phones from distraught relatives, and casually bought himself a McDonalds with a stolen debit card.

Also, in May 2017, security researcher Marcus Hutchins was NHS hero supreme when he halted the spread of NHS WannaCry ransomware by finding its kill switch. Immediately feted by all, he enthusiastically embraced the “I was only doing my job guv” trope. All was well until it transpired that his expertise in the area was the result of years of writing Malware when he was a teenager, for which he was arrested in the US in April 2019.

Fortunately, editorial policy in this column precludes me even considering how this applies to either the ‘B’ word (Brexit) or the ‘A’ word (Trump).

The Daily Mail is rightly ridiculed for its perpetual pursuit of categorising everything in the world as something which either causes or cures cancer (or both), but social media is playing the same zerosum game with right and wrong.

We have lost sight of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s perfectly expressed truth that the battle-line between good and evil runs through the

heart of every man. We all have capacity for right and wrong, good and evil, and frequently do both.

We therefore need to resist our impulse to rushed virtue signaling and public tribal alignment. We need to fight our ever-shortening attention spans to pursue context to make sense of the grey. It is neither our job nor responsibility to Tweet moral judgement within minutes (or seconds) of skim-reading an article which supports our worldview.

Context is the tool which enables us to embrace the complexity and ambiguity of the world, and to live well within it. It cannot be found in a 30 second video or a 33-character Tweet. We silence it at our peril.

Gareth Dunlop owns and runs Fathom, a user-experience consultancy which helps ambitious organisations get the most from their digital products by viewing the world from the perspective of their customers. Specialist areas include UX strategy, usability testing, customer journey planning and accessibility.

Clients include BBC, Bord Bia, firmus energy, Kingspan, AIB and Tesco Mobile. Visit Fathom online at fathom.pro.

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Eye on Events

Pictured at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park where Electric Ireland and the Irish FA announced an expansion of another 3 years to their partnership are Cerys Madden and Marissa Callaghan with Manchester United first team coach Casey Stoney.

Electric Ireland Soccer Boost

E

lectric Ireland and the Irish FA have announced a further expansion to their partnership that will see the energy provider become the title sponsor of the Northern Ireland senior women’s international team as part of a broad commitment to women’s football.

Electric Ireland’s support now covers the youth international teams as well as the elite pathway for the female game.

In addition, the company is lead sponsor for women’s and girls’ grassroots football and competitions like the Electric Ireland Women’s Challenge Cup and Schools’ Cup

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as well as the Shooting Stars initiative.

In Northern Ireland participation rates have grown exponentially over the last few years with 10,000 girls and women now playing football every week. That figure has risen by 25% over the last two years alone according to statistics collated by the Irish FA and Electric Ireland and it is the belief of Clare McAllister of Electric Ireland that it is the integrated approach across the various strands of women’s football that seems to be paying direct dividends to the game’s growth.

New Channel 4 Commisson For Waddell Media

H

olywood-based independent production company, Waddell Media has been commissioned to produce a new twenty part series for Channel 4 to air in Spring 2020.

The series, which is part funded by Northern Ireland Screen, follows vets, veterinary nurses and volunteers who have given up their day jobs in the UK and moved to South Africa to rescue, care for and help save the lives of some of the extraordinary animals who live there.

Jannine Waddell, MBE, MD of Waddell Media and Executive Producer of

Work on the Wild Side says: “The idea behind this series came to me while I was filming in South Africa just over a year ago. There seemed to be no end of international experts and volunteers of all ages, particularly Brits, who had made the lifestyle choice to pack up their lives and move there to help and protect these endangered animals. I am absolutely delighted that Channel 4 shares my enthusiam to bring these wonderful stories to life and for the support from Northern Ireland Screen to make it happen. “

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere

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Eye on Events

Tourism NI Launches New Food & Drink Initiative

The partnership was announced at Kingspan Stadium by Openreach’s Director in Northern Ireland, Mairead Meyer, who was joined by Craig Gilroy, Alan O’Connor and Sean Reidy from Ulster Rugby.

Pictured at the launch which took place at Life Centre, Belfast are Tourism NI Chief Executive John McGrillen, Chef Paula McIntyre, Tourism Ireland’s Louise Finnegan and Failte Ireland’s Tracey Coughlan.

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ourism NI has unveiled an exciting new programme of food and drink experiences as part of ‘Taste the Island’ campaign.

The special events, which will be held throughout September, October and November, are a celebration of NI’s finest food and drink products.

‘Taste the Island’ is a three-year initiative developed in partnership between Tourism NI, Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland that aims to significantly enhance Northern Ireland’s food and drink reputation.

The programme aims to build on the highly successful Year of Food and Drink campaign in 2016 which saw an increase in demand for local produce in international markets, and resulted in Northern Ireland being named an awardwinning food destination. The latest research estimates visitor expenditure at £968m of which approximately one

third, £350m, is spent on food and drink. Tourism NI’s Chief Executive, John McGrillen, believes this new initiative will deliver even more growth.

“Food and drink accounts for 30% of the total visitor spend here.

Internationally, our reputation for great food and drink is growing as demonstrated by the global Best Food Destination award in 2018. “Research tells us that our visitors position food and drink as one of the top five factors when choosing a destination and they value local produce highly.

“We have been working with our industry partners to bring our food story to the world. Taste the Island will celebrate the quality, innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship within our industry and offer a compelling programme of authentic food and drink experiences to motivate visitors to travel to Northern Ireland,” he added.

Openreach To Back Ulster Rugby O penreach has announced a four-year sponsorship deal with Ulster Rugby – becoming one of the club’s official title sponsors from the beginning of this season.

The sponsorship, the first of its kind for the company, will give Openreach a visible presence with branding across Kingspan Stadium as well as appearing on the playing kit. The company has secured exclusive rights to have the Openreach logo on the righthand sleeve of the Ulster Rugby team’s playing shirt, which is due to be unveiled

by Ulster Rugby in late August.

Openreach is the engineering team that builds, maintains and manages the broadband network in Northern Ireland. Most Communications Providers in the region use this open access network to connect their customers to landline, mobile, broadband, TV and data services.

Openreach’s ambition is to drive Northern Ireland’s digital future through its ‘Fibre First’ programme and it is in the process of rolling out its new future-proof ‘Fibre to the Premises’ (FTTP) broadband technology to homes and businesses.

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14/01/2019 11:57:32 Morrow Communications has made three senior 1 appointments. Annette Small becomes Communications Director. Annette joined Morrow Communications in 2015 from Temple Street Children’s University Hospital, Dublin and is a Fellow of the European Institute of Communications and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations.

2 Robyn McMurray is appointed as Senior Communications Manager. Robyn joined Morrow Communications in 2016 from Channel 4’s Press and Publicity department at its London headquarters.

3 Michael Magill is appointed as Communications Manager. A member of the Morrows team for the past three years, Michael was previously Marketing Officer for South Eastern Regional College (SERC).

1 Annette Small

2 Robyn McMurray

3 Michael Magill

4 David Wright has been appointed General Manager at Tricord. He will oversee all aspects of Direct Mail and Fulfilment services for clients.

David has extensive experience of multi-channel fulfilment and has been with Tricord for four years.

5 Jayne McKee has been appointed Senior Finance Manager at The Momentum Group. A Chartered Accountant and Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland, Jayne gained much of her professional experience with PwC before launching her own professional services platform. Since joining the Momentum team, she has developed a specialism as a R&D financial expert.

4 David Wright

5 Jayne McKee

6 David Holmes

6 Warrenpoint Port has appointed David Holmes as its new Chief Executive Officer.

David joins the harbour, the second largest in Northern Ireland, from Irwin’s Bakery where he has been Operations Director for the past six years. Previously, David has held senior positions at Kerry Group, Unigate, and Premier Foods.

7 Becky Mercer becomes Head of Business Consulting at Zymplify Belfast. Becky is a former team leader at Convergys and Sales and Marketing manager for Bannatyne Fitness.

She joined Zymplify in September 2018.

8 At Hastings Hotels, Scott Weatherup becomes Deputy General Manager of the Stormont Hotel.

He has 14 years experience in the hospitality industry and previously worked at the group’s 9 Ballygally Castle and Everglades Hotels. Donna Barton is appointed as Digital Marketing Executive, having previously worked for Killyhevlin Lakeside Hotel and Blessingbourne Estate.

7 Becky Mercer

10 Denise McMahon

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8 Scott Weatherup

11 Niamh O’Neill

9 Donna Barton

12 Paddy Marshall

10 Denise McMahon has been appointed as Chair of the Construction Professionals’ Council for Northern Ireland (CPCNI). She is also the Regional Representative of Engineers Ireland and a Chartered Engineer by profession. Denise has substantial experience of delivering major highway and traffic engineering schemes across Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and GB. Cransford Health Insurance Brokers, based in Belfast 11 have made three new appointments. Niamh O’Neill joins the Cransford team with over seven years of experience in business to business and retail selling, specialising in both the finance and 12 insurance industries, while Paddy Marshall will work with SME and corporates in finding the most suitable healthcare cover and benefits to help care for their employees. He is well experienced in developing value-adding long-term relationships with clients, advising them on the products and solutions best suited to their aspirations & budgets.

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14/01/2019 11:57:32 13 14

15 16

13 Paul Clarkin

14 Aidan Larkin

15 Craig Walker

Wilsons Auctions has made four senior level appointments. Paul Clarkin becomes Finance Director. He joined the company 10 years ago as a financial controller. Aidan Larkin is appointed as Asset Recovery Director, having headed up the Asset Recovery Department for the past five years. Craig Walker becomes Contracts Director, responsible for operational delivery while Nigel Binks is appointed as UK National Vehicle Sales Manager. He joined Wilsons Auctions in 2016.

17 Henry Daly has been appointed Head of Marketing at Glandore. Henry brings a wealth of marketing experience to the role from his time as Head of Brand & Marketing for Aura Holohan Group, a Dublin based Consultancy and prior to that as Marketing Manager for Press Up Entertainment Group, Ireland’s fastest growing hospitality group.

18 Karen Clifford becomes Business Engagement Officer at Belfast One. She previously worked for the Galgorm Resort & Spa and as a Duty Manager at Belfast City Airport.

19 Audrey McStraw joins CBRE as Associate Director and RICS Registered Valuer. With over 25 years’ experience as a chartered surveyor, Audrey has worked predominantly providing valuation advice and services relating to both commercial and residential property, on behalf of lenders, local authorities, investors and property owners.

16 Nigel Binks

17 Henry Daly

18 Karen Clifford

Millar McCall Wylie, has strengthened its family and matrimonial offering with the strategic hire 20 of a former barrister. Clare Lenaghan brings more than 25 years’ experience as a barrister and has now qualified as a solicitor. She joins the Belfast firm as Head of Family and Matrimonial to lead an established team specialising in all aspects of family and matrimonial law, alongside longstanding litigation partner Caroline Prunty.

Also in the legal sector, TLT has announced 21 the appointment of Caitriona Morgan as legal director in Belfast. Morgan, who joins from Cleaver Fulton Rankin, specialises in insolvency and business restructuring and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to further enhance TLT’s insolvency offering.

19 Audrey McStraw

20 Clare Lenaghan

21 Caitriona Morgan

Charles Hurst Group, Northern Ireland’s biggest car retailer, has appointed company stalwart 22 Alan Thompson as Head of Business at its signature £8 million Jaguar and Land Rover base. Thompson, who joined Charles Hurst in 2005 as franchise manager for Nissan across multiple sites, joins the Jaguar Land Rover team almost a year after the company first opened the impressive 40,000 sq. ft. luxury showroom.

23 At Kingsbridge Health Group, Kathryn McKegney becomes Sales and Marketing Assistant. Her role will be to support both the sales and marketing departments focussing on a variety of marketing aspects including brand management, digital marketing, events and visual communications.

22 Alan Thompson

23 Kathryn McKegney

24 Bryony Chapman

24 Bryony Chapman has taken on the role of Account Manager within the award-winning Massive PR team following an outstanding first year in the consultancy where she has led on a range of accounts across the Island of Ireland.

Her new role will see Bryony take a strategic lead in the development of client projects, acting as the first point of contact for a full portfolio of consumer and business clients.

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New Job. New Opportunity. New You. Eye Moving On

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14/01/2019 11:57:32 25 Liam Nagle has been appointed as Executive Chairman of Norbrook Holdings Ltd succeeding Sir Ian Gibson, who will continue to serve as a Non-Executive Director. Nagle will continue in his role as Chief Executive Officer.

26 Expleo has appointed Andy Morrison as Head of Automation for the group’s Digital Labs in Belfast.

Prior to joining Expleo, Andy held the position of VP of Engineering for Vela, the e-trading software developer. He has also held the positions of Quality Assurance (QA) Manager for CVS Caremark and Technical QA Manager for NYSE Technologies.

25 Liam Nagle

26 Andy Morrison

27 Liam Moran

27 At Morrow Communications, Liam Moran joins as a Junior Designer. He is a graduate of Ulster University and has previous experience working in a busy print and design studio. At 28 the same company, Ben Robinson becomes Video Editor/Camera Operator. He is a Queen’s University graduate who has completed a three29 month internship with Morrow. And Abbie Henderson is appointed as Event Manager having worked on the Morrow event team for three years. She is an Ulster University graduate.

30 Danske Bank has appointed John-Paul Coleman as Head of Treasury & Markets, managing the Bank’s funding, liquidity, FX and interest rate risk and leading a team of specialists in Foreign Exchange (FX) risk, hedging interest rate risk and fixed term deposit portfolios. John-Paul is a Chartered Financial Analyst with over 20 years’ experience in national and international banks working in Dublin, London and Belfast.

28 Ben Robinson

31 William McSorley

34 Oliver Johnston

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29 Abbie Henderson

32 Donna Daniels

35 Jonathan Tate

30 John-Paul Coleman

33 Rosanne Briggs

36 Tom Donnan

Millar McCall Wylie has promoted personal injury 31 and commercial litigation specialist William McSorley to partner following a period of significant growth at the Belfast-based firm.

Originally from Armagh, he has extensive experience advising clients on issues relating to all areas of civil litigation and has represented a wide range of claimants, insurers and local businesses. Dual-qualified, he studied law at Trinity College Dublin and practiced in the Republic of Ireland for several years before relocating back to his native Northern Ireland. He has been with Millar McCall Wylie for four years.

32 Donna Daniels has been appointed to the Board of Belfast One. Donna is Operations Manager at Glandore Business Centres and holds a BA Hons in International Studies and Diploma in Industrial Studies. She has diplomas from Chartered Institute of Marketing in Digital Marketing and Marketing.

Lambert Smith Hampton has announced 33 four key promotions. Rosanne Briggs has been promoted to director. She has 22 years’ experience working in property management accounting and oversees the entire property 34 management accounting function. Oliver Johnston has been promoted to the position of associate director of valuation. He is a RICS Registered Valuer, with over 5 years’ experience working across the UK and Irish property 35 markets. Jonathan Tate is appointed as a senior surveyor. Jonathan is a RICS chartered building surveyor, with over 6 years of commercial building 36 consultancy experience. And Tom Donnan has been promoted to senior surveyor. Tom is a RICS chartered commercial property surveyor with over four years of commercial agency experience. He specialises in the disposal, acquisition and letting of commercial property for a range of both public and private sector clients across Northern Ireland.

Eyeon Motoring

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Eye on Motoring

What to look for in a family car Whether you’re just starting out, or you already have a family finding a suitable car can be no easy task. Read on to find out what to look for when looking for a family car.

Safety Rating

Space

When travelling with family safety is a priority. Therefore, one of the first things you should do is check the Euro NCAP rating. The Euro NCAP works on a five-star safety rating system where 1 star means there’s marginal crash protection compared to 5 stars which mean overall good performance in crash protection and well equipped with robust crash avoidance technology.

Another priority is the space you have.

You will want to make sure you can fit the whole family in so in some cases you might need to consider an MPV with extra seats. What’s also important is that you can fit plenty in the boot or else you’ll find yourself making more than one stop to your destination whether that’s shopping or taking the family on a day out. Furthermore, you’ll want to make sure when it comes to picking a family car that there’s plenty of storage compartments as it will come in handy with children’s toys, food, drinks and any electronic devices.

Doors Doors in a family car need to open wide enough so you can install a car seat easily or help get children into the car. In most cases, 5 doors is a no-brainer over 3 doors. Also, consider sliding doors that are often found on MPV’s. These are convenient as they can be opened up fully plus you’ll avoid denting the door against other cars or objects you’re parked beside.

Extras!

You will want to make sure any extras are child-friendly features!

For instance, have you considered sun-blinds or UV filtering tinted rear windows for your children?

When it comes to interior think about opting for dark interior as it will help disguise any stains or spills. Plus, you will also want to consider the material of your upholstery. Leather is easier to wipe down than nylon/polyester upholstery.

In terms of technology, parking sensors can be a handy addition as well as making sure you have plenty of power sockets in the car to keep your children entertained with their gadgets, especially for longer journeys.

To find out more about the great offers we have on all makes and models call us on 02890 734222 or email sales@dfcbelfast.co.uk

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Eye on Motoring

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All Rentals Include: RAC Telematics Breakdown Cover Accident Management Road Tax For Contract Duration

This finance example is for a Contract Hire agreement, a contract mileage of 8,000 miles per annum applies. All figures include Road Fund Licence* (RFL) for the term but excludes maintenance. A quotation for our maintenance package is available on request. This is a contract hire option and you will not own the vehicle. Failure to make payments may affect credit rating. This introduction does not amount to independent financial advice. Excess mileage charges will apply at contract end if you exceed your contracted mileage. Contract may be subject to further charges depending on the condition/mileage of vehicle when returned Picture for illustration purposes only.

To request your personal quotation please call us on 028 9073 4222 or email sales@dfcbelfast.co.uk or visit dfcbelfast.co.uk 167

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Eye on Motoring Motoring

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Eye on Motoring

Motoring with Derek Black dbmotoring@btinternet.com

Cupra Makes A Powerful Statement As A New Brand Of Car! Let’s face it - SEAT is not a particularly inspiring name for a car brand. What about Cupra? Now that has a bit more jazz to it! So Cupra has become a performance sub brand of the Spanish car maker.

W

ith access to the VW range of advanced engines, this is a mouth-watering prospect. Their first model, the Cupra Ateca, is a cracker. Fancy putting the 300BHP engine of the top Golf R in a SUV? They have done just that - and it works rather well!

This is simply the best performing SUV for less than £40K! It will embarrass other makers such as Porsche and, indeed, Audi. It can heft the roomy SUV to 60mph in 4.7 seconds. I was unable to verify the claimed top speed of 152mph but don’t doubt it!

What about handling and ride comfort? While it is no sports hatch, the Cupra Ateca is good to drive and much better that most SUVs. Adjustable suspension takes the edge out of most bumps except in the hardest ‘Cupra’ setting which is strictly for the masochists.

Those are the real surprises - this is a car you could comfortably drive all day without tiring. Despite its tremendous urge, the engine is subdued most of the time. Hatches and saloons with similar performance can’t touch the practicality and spaciousness of the Ateca.

The copper badge on the grille and repeated on the steering wheel are re-minders that this is a rather special Ateca. But, personally, I think it is a bit dull and does less than justice to what is under the skin.

Inside, you get digital instruments and a big central 8-inch screen.

Easier to navigate than some others, it has smartphone mirroring

for both Apple and Android, plus a wireless phone charger.

At prices starting from £35K, the Cupra Ateca is in a class of its own.

It is not ‘cheap’ in any way but there is nothing like it at the moment. The SUV that goes like a hot hatch will cost more in running costs but could do the busi-ness if you are looking for performance and practicality.

An SUV That Drives Like A Jag The F-Pace Was Just The Start!

I don’t get to drive many Jaguars these days but a recent driving day allowed me to catch up with their newest SUV range. I know, the very thought of a ‘Jaguar Jeep’ would have been anathema to the purists just a few years ago. Now they are amongst the company’s best sellers.

I

took a drive in the F-pace, their first venture into the new world of the per-formance SUV. It uses light metals such as aluminium are for the suspension and steering to keep the centre of gravity as low as possible. While it is dif-ferent to the low and lithe saloons, this is about best an SUV can feel to drive.

Such have been the sales that

Jaguar now offers three ‘pace cars’.

The starter E-pace costs from just under £32K but is a bit less drivable than the F-pace. But the all electric I-pace, already hailed as a champion of low emission driving is in a class of its own, as you might expect as it costs from £74K! My F-pace car had all-wheel drive and a superb eight-speed automatic gearbox - the gear selector is the round knob familiar from the XF saloon. T The two-litre turbo petrol ’30t’ engine is both powerful and refined. It can move this hefty car from rest to 62mph in just over 6 seconds and on to a top speed potential of 145mph.

Other power choices include two-litre and 3.0 V6 turbo diesels to appeal to high mileage and business drivers. These can be ordered with

a six-speed manual gearbox and rear-wheel drive for best economy.

The 2.0 diesel offers up to 51mpg.

Safety features are five star with automatic emergency braking and lane de-parture warning. Options include blind spot monitoring,

a driver tiredness monitor, lane keep assist which steers you inside the white lines, self parking and a bird’s eye view camera!

Priced from £36,800 the F-pace is a great blend of luxury, engineering and technology.

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Motoring with Derek Black dbmotoring@btinternet.com

Ford Raises Its Game With The ‘Festooned’ Fiesta Active!

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If you think a SUV is too butch, or commonplace, but would still like a roomier car that is easier to get into and out off then the Fiesta Active might just fill the bill.

t stands 18mm higher and has a slightly wider track than the standard item and, in the case of my test car, is festooned with equipment.

Not having driven a Fiesta for a few years, I was pleasantly surprised by its enthusiastic driving personality and the apparent higher quality of the finish. Whether you would be prepared to pay the £750 extra for the vibrant yellow paintwork is a matter of taste. It certainly gets you noticed and must be a safety factor.

My car had the 1.0-litre, threecylinder turbo petrol engine tuned to deliver a lively 125PS. This is great to drive and is rated at 49mpg - if you can get it. But it is such a willing engine that you are tempted to push it on and this re-duces the consumption down in the 40s.

Emissions of 114g/gm are fairly tax friendly for business users.

The 1.5 turbo diesel gets a more abstemious (and more achievable) 64mpg rating. With emissions of 112g/km this is the rational choice for most compa-nies. The heavier diesel engine might take a bit of edge off the handling, but will be cheaper to run.

The impressive spec includes driving modes to maximise economy or deal with slippery conditions.

Other executive touches on the X spec include cruise control, lane keeping aids, auto wipers, hill start and stability control.

Mobile phone syncing is the simplest I have experienced.

There is keyless entry and sat nav on this little limo.

Could it be a downsizing option for you? Admittedly the or which is upsized on the standard hatch.

The petrol versions start from £18K and the top diesel with B&O sound comes in at just under £22K.

PARTY TIME AS MAZDA MARKS 30 YEARS OF THE MX-5!

The continued sales success of the Mazda MX-5 two seater in the age of the SUV is something remarkable. Mazda has good reason to celebrate its 30th birthday with a bright ‘Racing orange’ special loaded with gear.

U

nashamedly impractical here is a wee car dedicated to the joy of driving that is succeeding against the trends and has kept the spirit of the once British sports car alive over three decades. There have been four generations of MX-5 but they have not deviated from the simple sports car formula of rear-wheel drive and near perfect balance.

The package has all the buzz items that the enthusiast will enjoy.

We are talking Recaro seats, Brembo brakes, Bilstein shock absorbers and

170

RAYS forged aluminium wheels. Just 550 will be on sale in the UK each with its own numbered plaque.

The MX-5 has evolved subtly and become more refined. Last year it got a re-tractable hard top version (RF). More recently they increased the power out-put of the 2.0-litre petrol engine on the top models.

Not that the MX-5 has ever been about outright performance rather it is about fun. The entry-level 1.5litre car with 130PS which pleases in the sweetness of its running.

Upping the output of the 2.0-litre

engine from 160 to 184PS makes it more competitive. It feels beefier and has more torque when you are not in a hurry. But it can be rorty too and revs like a trooper when you hit the loud pedal.

A central colour screen atop the dashboard adds a modern touch to the traditional round dials and switches. There is

satellite navigation and a ninespeaker BOSE sound system.

Both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Android are compatible.

The new Mazda MX-5 30th Anniversary Edition is priced from £28,095. It is the crowning jewel of a range that starts at from £18,995 for a 1.5-litre car in trim. So it can be affordable to buy and to run.

When it comes to From a fleet of one looking after your vehicles, to a fleet of many, we’re driven. we’re here for you.

Whatever your company requirements, be it one car or many Whatever your company requirements, be it one car vehicles, at Fleet Financial we pride ourselves on managing your or many vehicles, at Fleet Financial we pride ourselves needs, so you don’t have to. on having the right solution for your business.

CALL US ON NI 028 9084 9777 OR GB 0161 291 9030

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