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Thursday, May 9, 2013
Liverpool hotel gives restaurant and bar a makeover THE Atlantic Tower by Thistle Hotel in Liverpool has unveiled its newly-refurbished Vista Bar & Restaurant on its first floor. Following two months of work, the space has undergone a transformation with a four-figure sum refurbishment that has seen the hotel’s main dining room redesigned. The hotel’s views over the River Mersey and Liver Building are now framed by cream and lilac furnishings, while feature walls and modern lighting complete the new look. The hotel’s general manager, Alistair Risk, said: “Our Vista Restaurant has always been popular, with our great views across the Mersey and the Liver Building, but now we have a product to match. “We are very excited as the refurbishment has created a great space to enjoy special occasions, a meal out, do business or just to chill out and relax in a contemporary environment. “This is more than a redesign to improve our hotel guest’s experience. We have created a destination for all.” The Atlantic Tower by Thistle is currently celebrating its 40th year in the city. It first opened its doors on June 19, 1973.
The refurbished Vista Bar & Restaurant and, inset, hotel general manager, Alistair Risk
Building firm will deliver Age Concern’s free boiler scheme by Tony McDonough
POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
BUILDING firm Fletchrose has teamed up with Age Concern Liverpool to deliver a programme of free boiler replacements for elderly people across Merseyside. Under the Affordable Warmth ECO Scheme (Energy Companies Obligation) homeowners and people living in private rented accommodation are entitled to receive a fully-fitted high performance boiler as part of a commitment to reduce carbon footprints and tackle fuel poverty by the UK’ s leading energy firms. Aintree-based Fletchrose currently delivers heating services to both the commercial and private markets. Age Concern Liverpool & Sefton has
partnered with the firm in a bid to raise awareness of the initiative to homeowners across Merseyside that may benefit from the scheme. Paul Durose, chief executive and founder of Fletchrose, said: “There is a large pot of money that must be spent by the energy companies under their wider obligation identified by the Government. “We want to ensure that people are aware and are able to benefit from this opportunity. “Also, it is not just the elderly who qualify for this incentive – people in receipt of certain other benefits may also meet the criteria and therefore achieve savings through the replacement of their current boiler free of charge. “Alongside Age Concern Liverpool & Sefton, we aim to drive this initiative forward and raise awareness to
the thousands of older people that this affects. ■ FLETCHROSE has appointed Dave Hutchinson as managing director, with Mr Durose taking on the new role of group chief executive. Mr Hutchinson, who joined the company in 2010, will take on wider responsibilities for the contracting and heat teams. Mr Durose will focus on strategic growth for both businesses, exploring new growth markets and sectors. Mr Hutchinson said: “This is a really exciting opportunity for me. “Fletchrose is a fantastic business and one that has weathered the storm of recession, coming out the other side stronger still. “I now want to help take the business onto a new level, building on existing customer relationships and working with a broader client base.”
Seek new markets, manufacturers told THE Manufacturing Institute has urged North West manufacturers to innovate and expand into new markets if they want to survive and grow. The Institute has out-
lined three areas that it believes small and medium-sized manufacturers should focus on – innovation, expanding into new markets and building and developing future talent.
Mike Innes, growth champion at the institute, said: “The most successful companies are those with a clear game plan to grow their business. Innovation is an area which can
really help manufacturers gain competitive advantage. “Understanding the importance of innovation and how to organise your business to support it is key.”
Bio fund backing medical company A COMPANY which has developed an implantable medical device for treating intracranial aneurysms has secured a £600,000 investment from The North West Fund for Biomedical. Cerus Endovascular, based in Oxford and soon to move to Liverpool Science Park, has developed a minimally invasive device for the interventional neuroradiology (INR) market. The North West Fund for Biomedical, managed by SPARK Impact is part of the wider £155m North West Fund, financed jointly by the European Regional Development Fund and the European Investment Bank. The funding, which was part of a £1.5m investment round, will be used by Cerus to help initiate product development and to fund more in-depth clinical trials. J Todd Derbin, executive chairman of Cerus, said: “We believe our device represents the next generation in the minimally invasive treatment of neurovascular diseases, particularly intracranial aneurysms. “The investment means we can further develop our technology.” Dr Penny Attridge, senior investment director at SPARK Impact and manager of The North West Fund for Biomedical, said: “We are delighted to have Cerus Endovascular on board and to make this investment in a high quality service which is an asset to the North West and to SPARK’s biomedical portfolio.” Cerus is The North West Fund for Biomedical’s 52nd investment to date and 37th company to be supported.
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MOBILE Dave Hutchinson
Nursery grows FORMBY-BASED Early Days nursery is set for expansion after securing a £75,000 finance facility from Santander Corporate & Commercial. The nursery, which is run by husband and wife team Steve and Susan Hardman, will provide childcare places for 94 children, up from 58.
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Thursday, May 9, 2013
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Co-operative Bank funds £7.6m expansion at car dealership INDEPENDENT car retailer Halliwell Jones Group has completed a major expansion with the opening of a £5.5m service centre in Chester. The Warrington-based group, which has five dealerships in North West England and Wales, used a £7.6m loan granted by the corporate banking centre of The
Co-operative Bank to extend and improve dealerships in Chester, Southport and Warrington. The most significant expansion was the opening of a state-of-the-art service centre and body shop in Chester on a new 4.3 acre plot. Featuring 26 service and two MoT bays, the new site
increases the company’s service capacity by more than 250% and has led to a 10% increase in staffing. Halliwell Jones Group finance director Glyn Howes, said: “We are very grateful for the support of The Co-operative Bank, who have backed our business strategy. “This is an exciting time for
the Group, in particular with the expansion at Chester. “Success can bring certain challenges and the new development at Chester allows us to deliver the excellent quality of customer service that we aim for. We are now operating more efficiently, but also creating more jobs. We now employ over 350 staff, with
turnover expected to break the £240m barrier in 2013.” The company has banked with The Co-operative Bank since 2004 and Steve Lomax, senior corporate manager said: “We pride ourselves at The Co-operative Bank on building successful long-term relationships with our customers.”
H&M agrees to take space at Birkenhead shopping centre by Tony McDonough
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
STEP INTO MY OFFICE Ian Munro, chief executive of the Castlerock Recruitment Group
Full video interview, at www. ldpbusiness. co.uk
Aquatics venture launched Derek Millar says the H&M letting is a major coup for The Grange and Pyramids its stores are refreshed daily with new fashion items. Its fashions have been spotted adorning top celebrities from America’s first lady Michelle Obama to daytime TV celebrity Holly Willoughby.
Hollywood A-list actress Helen Hunt shunned the world’s top fashion houses and appeared on the red carpet at this year’s Oscars in a navy blue strapless gown from H&M. Mr Millar added: “H&M is a brand
Vauxhall trainee visits inspire pupils UNDERGRADUATES from Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port car plant have visited schools across the region to explain to pupils the opportunities of a career in manufacturing. The aims of the visits are to challenge some of the stereo-
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BIRKENHEAD’S The Grange and Pyramids Shopping Centre has delivered a major coup by securing one of the biggest fashion names on the high street as a tenant. H&M has agreed to take 16,500 sq ft at the centre. Three units will be knocked into one to accommodate the retailer. The new store will be located next door to rival fashion retailer Miss Selfridge and opposite travel agency, Thomson. H&M is one of the biggest fashion retailers in the world and has just launched a new clothing range promoted by superstar Beyoncé. The brand is already well established in Liverpool with outlets in Church Street and Liverpool One. Derek Millar, commercial director for The Grange and Pyramids Shopping Centre, said he was “delighted” to have secured the chain. He added the deal underlined the “commitment” from his management team to bring big names to the town and represented a long-term strategy to improve the choice of retailers at the centre. He said: “We are so pleased to confirm that H&M will be coming to the shopping centre and we expect the new store to open with us by the autumn. “We have been working hard behind the scenes to attract big names to The Grange and Pyramids to ensure we continue to improve the shopping experience for the 14mvisitors we welcome every year. “We will be adding H&M to an existing range of great high street fashion names such as M&S, Next, River Island, Clarks, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge. “H&M is well known for offering the very latest fashions at top quality for good value prices and I think it is going to be a great draw for the shopping centre which can only benefit our existing retailers.” H&M has 216 stores nationwide and
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typical views people may hold about manufacturing. Richard Dolan, undergraduate project team leader, said: “The project has helped us to bond as a group, but more importantly it is really rewarding to visit the schools
and see the pupils interested and engaged in something we are all passionate about. “Out of all the schools we have visited so far over 90% say their opinion of manufacturing has changed for the better.”
which really can draw a crowd because people know and love their terrific value fashion style. “Its arrival is another terrific coup for Birkenhead and follows on from the return of TJ Hughes.”
Hope joins ASTL NETHERTON-based Hope Capital, the privately-funded provider of bridging loans, has joined the Association of Short Term Lenders (ASTL). The ASTL is a trade body formed to protect and promote the interests of its members and give confidence to all those who transact business with its members.
A £16,000 start-up loan has helped Philip Westlake and Sarah Goodson set up their shop Waves Aquatics in Bromborough, which they hope to market nationally. The loan has been granted by Business Finance Solutions (BFS) who are delivering loans in the North West as part of a £112m Government programme. Mr Westlake said: “We are aiming to become the top supplier for the aquatic hobby within our area and also to become a major competitor nationwide, using our marketing, choice of stock and customer service to achieve our business goals.”
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post business regional business awards
Bill Gleeson Let’s not forget that Europe spurred our city’s regeneration IT’S hard to know whether to laugh or cry at the electoral gains made by the UK Independence Party (UKIP) at last week’s local elections. On the one hand, it’s hard to take them all that seriously. On the other, within the context of a mature democracy, the issues on which UKIP campaigns ought to be the subject of sensible debate. The destiny of Europe and immigration policy are important to voters. Nor are these issues unique to the UK. The French, Americans, Germans and many others worry about immigration too. We should never forget why we have the European Union, yet 70 years on from World War II, many do. I recall comments by the German chancellor Helmut Kohl. It was the mid-90s and I was working for a soon-to-be launched pan-European stockmarket. Alluding to negotiations about one of Europe’s many treaties, he asserted that it was important that Europe made progress towards closer integration to prevent war. I recall my surprised reaction. It went something like “Really, war in Europe in this day and age? I think not.” There again, the decade saw widespread conflict and death in the Balkans and three years later NATO deployed 1,000 fighter jets and 50,000 soldiers against Serbia to stop genocide being perpetrated against Kosovan Muslims. Furthermore, the freedoms we take for granted in the Western half of Europe are only recently arrived in the Eastern half and the economies of places like Romania and Bulgaria and Poland lag decades behind ours. The first half of the 20th century should have taught everybody that our national interests are bound together. If Europe doesn’t thrive, then neither will Britain. Indeed, today’s economic crisis should confirm that view. It was only 16 months ago when the news was full of dire warnings about the eurozone crisis having the potential to knock another 7% off UK output. While the IMF has
just published a report acknowledging Greece’s progress in tackling its national debt, the latest predictions are that Italy’s economy will contract by 1.4% this year and unemployment will rise to 12%. In Spain the unemployment rate is 25%. So we are not out of the woods yet. Britain’s manufacturers, many of whom are based in the north of England, need Europe’s economy to start growing again before we will grow our way out of our own slow conditions and reduce our public debt as a proportion of GDP. Europe provides our firms with a huge home market. We can sell our goods and services far and wide. We can travel for pleasure or work whenever and wherever we like within Europe. Long may it last. Furthermore, it shouldn’t be forgotten that Liverpool’s economic regeneration of the past 15 years was spurred by Europe’s money, not British Government money. The rebuilding of places like Princes Dock, Queen Square, Speke’s Estuary Commerce Park, the King’s Waterfront and much else besides was brought about as a direct result of European social and economic policy. Yet Europe’s investment has often been criticised for not spreading out beyond the central area to benefit the inner cities and edge of town estates and that might be one reason why it is that UKIP has some fertile electoral territory. IT was lovely weather over the recent Bank Holiday weekend when the National Trust put on a Tudor display at Speke Hall. There was archery, swordsmanship, jousting, Shakespeare plays and hot food stalls. The number of visitors was also impressive. They had to lay on overspill car parking. The National Trust seems to have learned a thing or two about marketing. They undoubtedly did some good public relations in the local press and used social media to spread the word. The Tudor weekend attracted twice the visitors than a decade ago. Perhaps we could all learn a thing or two.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Time to reveal The judges have drawn up the list of firms going forward to this year’s awards. Bill Gleeson reports
T
HE Liverpool Post is pleased to publish the shortlist of companies chosen to take part in its prestigious Regional Business Awards
final. With scores of entries for the 11 categories, the judging process has had to be long and detailed. However, the judges have now settled on a shortlist of companies that will go forward to the final to be held in the splendid setting of St George’s Hall on the evening of June 13. The black-tie event will be attended by about 500 guests from the shortlisted companies and other business leaders and entrepreneurs from around the region. The event is a well-established part of the local business community’s annual calendar and represents a unique networking opportunity. The Liverpool Post stages this annual competition, now in its third decade, to publicly recognise and celebrate the achievements of the many entrepreneurs and business leaders whose endeavours create wealth and jobs for the region. The shortlist is: Jaguar Land Rover Corporate Social Responsibility Award Shop Direct Group Morecrofts Solicitors Cheviot Asset Management Liverpool Vision Investment of the Year The Contact Company Capital & Centric Hertel UK and Ireland Liverpool Chamber of Commerce Export Business of the Year Bootle Containers Clarke Energy Jaguar Land Rover Green Business of the Year Arriva Merseyside Typhoo Tea Life Technologies University of Liverpool Knowledge Business of the Year Redx Pharma ULTROMEX Intrinsic Technology Employer of the Year Mando Group International Travel Connections Hilton Liverpool 02 Business of the year (up to 50 employees) Bootle Containers Heightsafe Systems Apposing Barclays Business of the Year (51-250 employees) Medicash (Medicash Health Benefits) Secured Mail Taskers KPMG Business of the Year (over 250 employees) Edward Billington and Son Cammell Laird Weightmans No shortlists are published for the Judges’ Choice Award and the DLA Piper
Business Person of the Year award. The Judges’ Choice Award will be given to one of the businesses shortlisted above which, in the judges’ opinion, has demonstrated an outstanding act of entrepreneurial endeavour. The DLA Piper Business Person of the Year award will go to an individual who has been responsible for developing and growing a significant business in Merseyside. Recent past winners of the Business Person of the Year Award include the former chairman of the Mersey Partnership and Grosvenor project director Rod Holmes, Redrow founder Steve Morgan, and haulage entrepreneur Steve O’Connor. Chairman of the Judges and Liverpool Post business journalist Bill Gleeson said: “The quality of this year’s entrants
‘A unique chance to mingle with local businesses’
was very high. There were some very difficult choices to be made. “It is deeply encouraging that, even in these economically difficult times, there are still plenty of examples of great, local enterprises that are continuing to grow and thrive and create jobs for local people. “Many of our former winners have told me what a difference it makes to receive a Regional Business Award accolade and how it can help them when pitching for new business or recruiting new staff. The local nature of the recognition is what seem to matter to them and their employees.” The principal criteria used by the judges includes sales growth and measures of profitability. The local economic impact of a business is also considered, including its investment in capital and local job creation.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
regional business awards post business
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our RBA 2013 shortlist
Former Grosvenor director and chairman of The Mersey Partnership, Rod Holmes, receives the DLA Piper Business Person of the Year award from Philip Rooney
THE POST L I V E R P O O L
Set in the splendid surroundings of St George’s Hall, the black-tie event will attract around 500 guests Liverpool Post editor Mark Thomas said: “We are looking to recognise those firms and entrepreneurs whose endeavours are making a difference to the local economy. “It is all the more important that we do that in these difficult times. “It is precisely the sort of people that will be gathered in St George’s Hall next month who will help this region build for its post-austerity future and create the jobs that will give hope to thousands. “The Regional Business Awards are a fantastic night and always a sell-out event – so don’t be slow to sign up for seats now for the big night itself. We will have a great keynote speaker and the event itself is always attended by some of the region’s most
influential people and provides an excellent networking opportunity. “As always we are grateful to our sponsors for their continued support, without which this event would not happen.” The event is to be hosted by former BBC broadcaster Peter Sissons. Born and bred in Liverpool, he established a reputation as a journalist while working for both the BBC and ITV at various stages in his career. He was also host of Question Time. As well as Bill Gleeson, the judges included Daily Post business journalist Tony McDonough, University of Liverpool Management School academic Professor Tom Cannon, DLA Piper partner Philip Rooney, KPMG partner Chris Fry and Barclays director John Pitchford.
‘Fantastic night and always a sell-out event’
REGIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS2013
Peter Sissons will be the Master of Ceremonies
How to ensure you don’t miss out on your place at this year’s Regional Business Awards IT’S essential that you act quickly if you want be sure of securing your place at The Liverpool Post’s Regional Business Awards gala dinner before all of the tickets are snapped up. Tickets have traditionally been in strong demand in the days following the publication of the shortlist for the popular event.
The awards final will take place in the grand setting of St George’s Hall. Some 500 guests will be present at the black-tie dinner that takes place on the evening of June 13. Hosted by former BBC broadcaster Peter Sissons, the night will see awards handed out to the winners of 11 categories. Now in their third decade,
the awards are an established part of the region’s annual social calendar. To buy tickets for the awards dinner visit our special awards website at www.regionalbusinessawards .co.uk or email events@liverpool.com or call 0151 472 2570. You can also follow the progress of the awards on Twitter at @LP_RBA
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Thursday, May 9, 2013
post business wealth management IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Central banks’ strategy poses risk for investors and savers market analysis
by Mike Taylor
LIVERPOOL OFFICE OF CHARLES STANLEY FORMER US president Ronald Reagan once described inflation as being “as violent as a mugger, as frightening as an armed robber and as deadly as a hit man”. Many savers will sympathise with this view. The spending power of cash has been steadily eroded in recent years with interest rates well below inflation. Even more worryingly, central banks seem intent to carry on printing money via quantitative easing (QE) whilst prioritising growth over inflation targets. Thus far QE has seemingly had little effect on inflation. Yet it can only be a matter of time before its impact is felt. Central banks have printed almost $10trn since 2007 – more than the combined GDP of the UK, Germany and France. The mechanism for transmitting this new money into the wider economy (bank lending) has not been working properly – but if and when it does the consequences for investors could be serious.
For bond investors the risk of inflation is particularly acute. This is because bonds pay a level income that looks less attractive the higher inflation rates are – so in an environment of higher inflation (and interest rates) capital values are likely to fall. A way to counter this is to own bonds whose capital and coupons rise with inflation – index-linked bonds. Yet there are difficulties here too. UK index-linked gilts are often “long dated” and can be vulnerable to changes in interest rates. While investors owning these might think they have insurance against rising inflation, it may turn out to be “third party, fire & theft” as opposed to “fully comprehensive.” Bonds have performed exceptionally strongly since the global credit crunch in 2008/09 and investors are rightly asking whether this performance can continue. Back in 2009 the Bank of England began buying a portfolio of investment-grade bonds to provide funding to UK corporates, to aid liquidity in the corporate bond market and to supplement their QE purchases of gilts. Last Month it sold its last corporate bond. From a profit point of view this has been a great success whilst also helping stabilise the corporate bond market in the UK at this time of crisis. However, empirically measuring these effects is hard to do – corporate bond markets that experienced no domestic support from their central banks appear to have performed similarly, and the debate on the true effectiveness of QE remains. While it is unlikely that bonds will rise this much this fast again, I believe there are still important reasons to hold bonds as part of a portfolio, not least for the benefits of diversification and regular income. It is simply a case of having realistic expectations. While the bond equity rotation may have started albeit slowly, bonds can still be expected to provide a decent return from income as, in my view any capital appreciation in the short to medium term is likely to be small. Yet against a backdrop of low interest rates this could still mean inflation-beating returns.
‘Bonds can still be expected to provide a return’
Mike Taylor
2002. Bankruptcy orders plummeted by 27% year-on-year, with 6,663 in the first quarter of this year. Bankruptcies have generally been falling back since the introduction of debt relief orders (DROs) in 2009. DROs are are often dubbed “bankruptcy light” and are aimed at people with lower levels of debt but no realistic prospect of paying it off. They have been running at higher numbers than bankruptcy orders since last summer. The latest figures showed there were 7,219 DROs in the first quarter of this year, marking a small drop on
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CHILDREN as young as 10 are already saving up for “key milestones” in their lives such as university, buying their first home or starting a business, a report has found. The tough economy has produced a generation of financially savvy children, many of whom are more “switched on” to savings than their parents were at the same age, investment provider Scottish Widows found. With the prospect of university tuition fees and a typical 20% deposit currently put down by first-time house buyers, 11% of children said that they have already begun saving towards the cost of college, university, or buying a home. A further 6% said they are saving up for a car – while 2% of entrepreneurial children said they are putting money aside to start their own business.
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Ronald Reagan was firmly committed to fighting inflation
Number of personal insolvencies falling PERSONAL insolvencies have dropped to their lowest level in five years despite the tough economy, official figures showed. There were 25,006 individual insolvencies across England and Wales in the first three months of 2013, marking the lowest figure recorded since the first quarter of 2008, according to Insolvency Service statistics. This marked a 1.8% drop on the previous quarter and a 12.9% fall compared with the same period a year ago. Within the figure, bankruptcies hit their lowest level since winter
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the previous quarter and a 9% fall compared with a year ago. Individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs), which are agreements which involve sharing money out between creditors, were the only type of personal insolvency to see an increase on the previous three months. Some 11,124 IVAs have been recorded this year so far, which is a 1.3% rise on the quarter but still 5% lower than a year ago. The figures show signs of further improvements in people’s ability to manage their finances.
MORE than 30 credit unions have signed up to a “landmark” expansion drive which will save consumers up to £1bn in loan interest repayments in the coming years. The Government has previously agreed to invest £35.6m to transform the sector and help it to double its membership by attracting around 1m new members over the next five years to add to the 1m who already exist. It wants to see people on low incomes, who often pay a “poverty premium” for loans, becoming less reliant on expensive credit providers such as payday lenders. Estimates have found that the plans will save borrowers up to £1bn in loan interest repayments by March 2019.
Cutting back on saving NEARLY one-third of people will be forced to cut back their saving or stop putting money aside completely in the coming months, a survey is warning. The squeeze from high living costs and stagnant wage growth is continuing to hold savers back from putting cash aside, according to a new quarterly savings index from Lloyds TSB. Around 30% of savers plan to reduce their saving or stop putting any money away in the next 12 months, while four in 10 con-
sumers currently have no cash left at the end of the month to put into savings. Some 84% of those surveyed said they would prioritise paying off debts over savings. Two-fifths of people said that the low interest rate environment means that it is not worth saving in any case – although most (54%) disagreed with this. Savings rates have plummeted further in recent months following the introduction of Funding for Lending.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
news
Communications firm set to grow after MSIF investment A COMPANY which provides engineering services to the telecommunications and mobile network operator markets is expanding following an investment from Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF). And Widnes-based Aerelink says the undisclosed investment will help the firm push annual revenues up from £2m to £5m over the next three years. It provides installation, commissioning and decommissioning of masts and line of sight surveys. The company also offers wireless solutions including network design, supply, implementation and remote management. Customers include mobile network operators, Lancashire Constabulary, Dundee City Council, SIAE Microelectronica, Aviat Networks and Kingston Communications. Aerelink is run by managing director Steve Swift who founded the company in 2004, and co directors Steve Leicester and Steve Morgan. They employ 30 staff across its two offices in Widnes and Fife, Scotland. Mr Swift said: “We are on target to increase the revenue of the business from £2m to £5m during the next three years and are also looking to recruit a minimum of 15 employees over the same period. “MSIF has been great to work with and was able to put together a flexible funding package.”
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Suttons appoints MD to Singapore WIDNES logistics firm Suttons has appointed Graeme Rooney as managing director of its international division. Suttons International operates globally with operations in the Americas, Europe the Middle East and Asia and Mr Rooney will oversee all activities that the group provides to the chemical and petrochemical sectors. He will work from Suttons’ Asian
Graeme Rooney
From left, Steve Morgan, Steve Swift, and Steve Leicester from Aerelink with Malcolm Jones of MSIF
Region’s retailers counting the cost of illicit tobacco use by Neil Hodgson
POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
NEW data on the scale of illicit and crossborder tobacco consumption in the North West shows that the retail trade missed out on about £540m in sales in 2012, equivalent to £43,000 in lost turnover for each of the 5,500 small shops operating in the region. The results are from tobacco industry surveys across the North West which show that 19% of cigarettes and 54% of hand rolling tobacco was either illicit or crossborder shopped in 2012, representing a tax loss to the Government of an estimated £420m. Peter Osborne, regional manager of the Tobacco Manufacturers’ Association (TMA), said: “These shocking figures highlight the impact that the UK’s high tobacco tax regime is having on regional businesses as consumers, faced with higher prices and falling incomes , buy cheaper products elsewhere. “At a time when the economy is stalling and high streets are failing, the Government should be looking to
Jenny Stewart protect small businesses. “An urgent review is needed of this counterproductive tax policy. ” Mr Osborne added: “The Government are currently considering proposals to standardise tobacco packaging, but such a move would make it easier and cheaper for criminals to copy existing tobacco products. “By lowering the bar for criminals
to enter the market, illicit trade would increase and place even greater pressure on struggling businesses.” Just last December illegal tobacco worth up to £500,000 in unpaid tax was seized by HM Revenue & Customs officers during a raid on industrial premises near Ormskirk. Jenny Stewart, chief operating officer at Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, said: “The illegal tobacco trade represents an enormous commercial loss to shop owners in Liverpool. “We welcome the TMA’s efforts in highlighting the wider, adverse impacts of this illicit commerce – not just on business but also on organised crime. “Tax losses from unlawfully traded tobacco constitutes a revenue leakage to HM Treasury of about £2bn per year – money that the country cannot afford to lose, particularly in cashstrapped times. “We hope that the figures will help to underpin a more aligned response by stakeholder groups at all levels of policy and practice by establishing the foundation for a more effective and integrated range of curtailing measures.”
headquarters in Singapore. Mr Rooney has extensive senior management experience in logistics and supply chain, most recently as Suttons director – Asia and Middle East – where he has been instrumental in growing the business. Suttons chief executive, John Sutton, said: “Graeme’s appointment comes at an exciting stage in the group’s development. We have grown by 40% in the last two years and Asia and the Middle East have been key to that growth. We are confident Graeme can build on his successes.”
Legal Notice NOTICE OF MAKING OF AN ORDER HIGHWAYS ACT 1980, SECTION 119 THE METROPOLITAN BOROUGH OF SEFTON IRLAM ROAD FOOTPATH DIVERSION ORDER 2013 The above Order, made on 26th April 2013 under Section 119 of the Highways Act, 1980, will divert a footpath over the land situated at Bootle, Merseyside,shown as a bold continuous line A-D on the Order Map running from Irlam Road, Bootle at point A, grid reference SD333675,395473, the path passes through the public green space generally in a east north-easterly direction for approximately 164 metres to the car park embankment at point D, grid SD333827, 395525. The new length of footpath , shown as a bold broken line E-C on the Order Map , commencing at Point E , grid reference SD333683,395449 running generally in a north north-easterly direction for 51 metres to Point F, grid reference SD333707,395494, then generally east north easterly for 92 metres to Point C grid reference SD333796,395518 and then the new length of footpath shown as a bold broken line G-H on the Order Map , commencing at Point G , grid reference SD 3364808, 403948 running in a north-easterly direction for 2 metres to Point H, grid reference SD 333796,395520. A copy of the Order and the Order Map have been placed and may be seen free of charge at the Highways Development Control Department 4th Floor , Magdalen House, 30 Trinity Road , Bootle, L20 3NJ from 9.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. on Mondays to Fridays. Copies of the Order and Map may be purchased. Any representations about or objections to the Order may be sent in writing to the Head of Corporate Legal Services , Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, Magdalen House, Trinity Road, Bootle, L20 3NJ (reference HIGH/1487), not later than 9th June 2013 Please state the grounds on which they are made. If no such representations or objections are made, or if any so made are withdrawn, the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton may confirm the Order as an unopposed Order. If the Order is sent to the Secretary of State for the Environment for confirmation any representations and objections which have not been withdrawn will be sent with the Order. Dated 9th May 2013 J Coule, Head Of Corporate Legal Services Metropolitan Borough Council Of Sefton, Magdalen House, 30 Trinity Road, Bootle L20 3NJ
www.sefton.gov.uk
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Thursday, May 9, 2013
post business the bottom line
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UPMARKET grocer Waitrose has defied the squeeze on consumer spending to deliver an 11.1% rise in first-quarter sales. The supermarket, part of the employee-owned John Lewis Partnership, said most of its growth during the three months to the end of April came from existing stores, as only one new store opened during the period. Its online grocery sales surged 50.1% during the quarter. For the first time more than 5m customers visited its branches per week, the retailer said, and customer transactions were up 8.4%. Waitrose finance director Tom Athron said the chain was competing effectively with its bigger rivals Tesco and Sainsbury’s on pricing, while its extended brand price match helped it win new customers. Mr Athron said: “In a challenging economic climate, these figures are testament to the efforts of our partners.” Waitrose added that warm weather boosted sales in its most recent trading week to April 27, when they grew 8.4%. Customers stocked up on sun cream to send suncare sales soaring 158%, while ice cream sales leapt 21%. Salad sales were up 27% and cider sales rose 26%. The group has been a rare winner amid a stagnant grocery market, with figures from Kantar Worldpanel recently showing its market share hit a record 4.9% in the 12 weeks to mid-April, up from 4.5% a year earlier. The group has 291 shops in the UK and Channel Islands. It recently sealed a tie-up with cross-Channel train operator Eurostar to supply food and drink in its standard-class buffet carriages.
Paper price recovery should help packaging firm’s profits by Bill Gleeson
POST BUSINESS STAFF bill.gleeson@liverpool.com
INVESTORS reacted positively after international packaging firm Smurfit Kappa Group reported an upbeat outlook for its product prices during the rest of year. Smurfit, whose UK operation is based in the Cunard building at Liverpool’s Pier Head, saw profit margins fall, but remained confident about its profit forecasts for the rest of the year, boosting stockmarket sentiment about the firm. Smurfit said pre-tax profits fell 43% to 57m euros on revenues of 1.9bn euros – up slightly on the same period in 2012. Chief executive Gary McGann said he was pleased with the start to the year. Mr McGann said: “The group has seen a strong increase in demand with European box volumes up 4% on the same period last year when adjusted for two fewer working days in the first quarter. “This has been achieved despite continued macroeconomic weakness throughout most of Europe, and bears testament to the group’s focus on high quality, innovative packaging solutions.” Smurfit had previously warned that prices for some of its products would fall this year, but paper price increases and a good inventory position across Europe is creating an environment for corrugated price recovery in the second half of 2013. Shares in the company were up more than 6% at euro11.87 after the announcement. Smurfit’s share price has almost doubled in the past year. The company predicted that demand for corrugated products would improve and paper price increases should continue to support profits in the second half of 2013. The integration and trading performance of its recent US acquisition, SK Orange County (SKOC), were ahead of expectations. Estimates of synergies from the acquisition have doubled to US$28m. EBITDA margins in the Americas have returned to their historical range and the company is proposing a final 2012 dividend of 20.5 cents. Mr McGann added: “EBITDA for the first quarter remained strong at The performance reflects the previously guided margin compression in Europe following OCC and recycled
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Liverpool’s Cunard building is home to Smurfit Kappa’s UK operations and, inset, the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle Challenge Trophy at Cheltenham
paper price increases which are not yet reflected in corrugated pricing. “A euro40 per tonne recycled paper price increase in Europe during the quarter supports corrugated pricing. Input costs including OCC continue to move upwards. Paper price increases and a good inventory position across Europe are creating an environment for corrugated price recovery in the second half of 2013.
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“The performance of SKOC and the progress of its integration into the group has exceeded our original expectations. We have doubled our synergy expectations from $ (US)14m to $28m. Over $9m of this synergy target will be delivered in 2013 compared 241m. calculation. to $6m in the original Additionally, the trading performance of the business has been significantly helped by the implementation of two
paper price increases in the United States within an eight month period, with consequent increases in corrugated prices in the US and Mexican markets. “The overall performance of the Americas segment has resulted in the region returning towards its historic EBITDA margin range. Our objective is to increase our exposure to higher growth markets such as the Americas. “As part of our previously announced strategic investment in the Townsend Hook mill in the UK, we are accelerating the closure of the two existing paper machines at the mill. “SKG’s integrated operations and an unrelenting focus on efficiency continue to deliver a consistent and quality earnings stream.”
Cost cuts lift Direct Line’s profits CHURCHILL owner Direct Line Group’s refusal to get sucked into a price war in the fiercely competitive motor insurance market hurt first-quarter premiums. The UK’s biggest motor insurer blamed its decision to hold prices and cut the number of new young drivers it takes on – deemed a bigger risk - for gross premiums falling 4.5% during the first three months of the year to about £1bn. But pre-tax profits surged 47% to £94.3m from a year
earlier after unusually low weather-related claims, despite freezing conditions. It usually gets about £25m of weather-related claims in its first quarter. The firm, which employs 500 people at its Cavern Walks offices in Liverpool city centre, is also slashing costs, including axing about 1,200 jobs nationally, which helped boost profits. Rivals, including RSA Insurance and Admiral, have already warned over aggressive competition in the car
insurance market in recent weeks, which has driven prices lower. Direct Line’s gross written motor insurance premiums were down 16% to £364.1m during the quarter. Its live motor insurance policies fell almost 7%. The group, which also owns brands including Green Flag and Privilege, said young drivers as a share of its new business fell to 8.3% from 11.7% a year earlier. The fall in motor premiums was partly offset by growth in its international business.
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THE hunt is on for Britain’s most efficient and sustainable manufacturers. EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, and ENER-G, have launched the Environment award category as part of the fifth annual Future Manufacturing Awards with companies eligible to win two prestigious awards at regional and national level. The Award will be for the company that has done the most to improve its own environmental performance and improve its carbon footprint, while improving operational efficiency. Manufacturers should enter this category if they have made changes to their operating procedures to benefit the environment. The Future Manufacturing Awards are recognised as the UK’s leading awards programme in the manufacturing sector. They offer manufacturers and apprentices from across the UK the opportunity to showcase their achievements across seven different award categories: business growth; people and skills; innovation; export; health and safety; environment; and education. The awards are free to enter and will be judged in five regions across the UK. Regional winners will be announced in November and they will then compete for the national awards in London next January. Closing date for entries is July 19. For more information, visit www.eef.org.uk/awards
by Neil Hodgson
POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
D
ESIGNER Diana Heredia got the idea for her business from watching how her two young children moved around their home. She even named her business – Leon+Coco – after them. She said: “I had bought little desks and chairs for Leon, aged seven, and Coco, aged five, but found that they actually prefer to lie on cushions on the floor. “Having children and watching how they behave around our home really opened my eyes to the lack of suitable and affordable furniture accessories for children. “My kids don’t sit normally on chairs, they’re bouncing around. So I designed a foot stool that they could use as a chair or as a toy to play with.” Ms Heredia has designed a range of soft furnishings, like cushions, as well as items of clothing and a backpack with built-in colouring sets. She explained: “I decided to make the backpack after seeing how organised another mother was in keeping her children occupied during a long train journey to Paris. She had lots of crafts for her children and I had brought nothing for mine. We felt like really rubbish parents.” She said she made most things as gifts for her children and friends’ children, until someone suggested she sell them: “I started selling in market places and it just took off.” Ms Heredia is originally from Berlin but studied interior architecture in Bavaria where she met her future husband. He was transferred to England and seven years ago had the choice to move to Rome, Prestwick, Dublin or Liverpool. She said: “We came to Liverpool on a weekend to look around and fell in love with city. I can’t imagine living anywhere else right now.” Ms Heredia set up her venture in 2011 and last year moved to an office within the Women’s Organisation’s purpose-built base in the Baltic Triangle, close to her home and her children’s school. She said: “I came to the Women’s Organisation for advice and to get to know more about starting a business, and before I knew it I was writing my business plan.” She said another bonus is having other businesses around her within the building: “I found it useful here for the encouragement. I thought of starting my business in Germany but you are almost discouraged, but there’s more of a ‘you can do it’ attitude here. “You have all the courses, like business planning, accountancy etc. “I am more on the creative side and don’t think about paper work and all the organisational things, so it is really good to have someone around who knows these things.” Her aim is to design products different to the norm: “Conventional cushions for kids were pink for girls or blue for boys, or movie characters, and I wanted to tone it down so kids could use their own imagination and so they have a bit more space in their minds. Big companies think what would sell to the parents, rather than what kids would like.” Most of her sales are online, but she also sells from the ‘Made Here’ shop in the MetQuarter which features Liverpool-made goods and Things British,
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Diana Heredia, who was inspired by her children Leon and Coco to set up her Baltic Triangle business
Diana learns lessons from her youngsters in London’s Carnaby Street which is a fan of her prints, cushions and badges. Ms Heredia says she has a “book full of ideas” but being a sole trader finds the demands on her time difficult to resolve: “It is a balance about where do I put my energy. Do I start a new product or put it into drumming up interest in the business?” She admits that the process of establishing her business, and the downturn, have limited her progress: “Things are up and down and it is hard work to get known, and get moving. “It is a bit of the recession, but also I didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to get the word out about my business. “I am probably going to have to re-write the business plan, but I feel that it is getting easier.”
Diana Heredia and a selection of some of her products
IBuilding, painting and maintenance specialist Seddon Construction, which has local offices in Aintree, has scooped a trio of national Considerate Constructors awards for its considerate and community-focused approach to three North West projects, including a scheme in Walton for housing association Liverpool Mutual Homes. The Considerate Constructors Scheme National Site Awards are presented to construction teams displaying excellent standards of consideration towards their neighbours, their workforce, the general public and the environment. Seddon Construction secured bronze awards for three projects: Landscaping and boundary works in Walton for Liverpool Mutual Homes; a scheme to build 18 new affordable homes for New Charter Housing Trust at Dukinfield, Tameside; and a re-roofing scheme for homes at the Chesham estate, Bury, for Six Town Housing.
10 post business creative & digital
Thursday, May 9, 2013 IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Home win for Edge Hill team A TEAM of students from Edge Hill University scooped a national award at Liverpool Sound City. Daniel Cain, Charlie Denton, and Sean Stoakes won the UK Student Music Award against competition from universities across the UK. The team developed a concept for a FanBase website for music fans to find out who is playing in their town. They pitched to a panel including Jon Morter, the social media star who helped take Rage Against the Machine to the Christmas number one slot in 2009, and David Bianchi, manager for bands including The Enemy. Mr Stoakes said: “Knowing we got up there and pitched in front of so many successful industry people has given us a boost and I’m sure will help us when looking for jobs. Pitching is very much part of the film and music industry, so it’s great experience.”
City back at the heart of the music world with festival showcase Alistair Houghton reports from Liverpool Sound City’s conference
Wave Machines performing at Liverpool Cathedral Picture and front cover image: DAVID MUNN
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CHART-TOPPING artist Dan Smith gave an exclusive insight into how he got signed as part of a star-studded line-up at this year’s Liverpool Sound City music and digital conference. Hundreds of delegates at Liverpool’s Hilton hotel took part in debates last week on subjects from Marxism to marketing and from radio to round-the-word tours. Keynote speakers included former Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham and Tracey Thorn, of Everything But The Girl. And the two-day conference was backed up by three nights of gigs, which saw hundreds of artists perform in venues from a car park in Wolstenholme Square to the refurbished East Village Arts Club in Seel Street. One of the star performers was Bastille, whose album Bad Blood reached number one in the album charts in May. Bastille frontman Dan Smith also starred at the conference when he took part in a Thursday discussion about A&R in 2013 and tried to explain his rise to the top. He said: “People ask for advice, though I don’t feel I’m worthy of giving it. “The only thing I would say to them is just to figure out how to write songs and be really hard on yourself. We found our how we wanted the band to sound and built up a body of work and a body of songs.” A&R manager Nick Burgess, of Virgin Records, said he was tipped off about Bastille by his friend and fellow Sound City panellist Polly Comber, who was managing the band. He soon found out for himself that they were already a popular band, even without a
major label deal. He said: “I went to the show and there were 250 kids singing along to every word.” Burgess said Smith also had a clear identity and a vision for his music, immediately making him stand out compared to other artists. Smith said he had no idea Burgess or any other A&R reps were going to be there. – and said he had been concentrating on his fanbase rather than on record deals. He said: “Getting a record deal would have been nice. But it wasn’t the aim.” Smith explained how he had formed the band and started getting gigs. “We really benefited from the dying wheeze of MySpace,” he said. “I had some friends in a band who had put some songs online and they got some messages off the back of it. They suggested it. “It was weird that in the days following, major lawyers and people who at that time seemed a world away started getting in touch. “ Around that time, Smith met producer Mark Crew, who helped him to shape Bastille’s sound and, in Nick’s words, “made it all come together”. Comber said she decided to let Smith focus on the music, rather than pushing him towards a record contract. She said: “I didn’t necessarily see a major label as necessarily the best thing at he time.” Smith said the lack of “hype and pressure” at that early stage helped him to refine his sounds. He said: “I feel there’s no filler on the album – whether or not you like it.” The panel, hosted by Radio 2 DJ Janice Long, then discussed what it took to be a
Natalie McCool, pictured performing at Leaf, was singled out by BBC 6 Music DJ Chris Hawkins Picture: DAVID MUNN
successful A&R manager. The job, said Burgess, is far harder than many believe. “Anybody can like music” he said. “You have to understand music. I think it takes about four years to learn to be an A&R. “It sounds like the easiest job in the world. It’s like being a football manager – everybody thinks they can pick 11 players. But being an A&R is so complex.” Burgess said A&Rs were under constant pressure not to lose out on acts – and also had to take the blame if an act did not succeed. “Confidence is everything,” he said. “You’ve got to keep hold of it. Even when you have a failure, you’ve got to have the confidence to come back.” Interest in Bastille grew in 2012. Smith had several offers, but his growing working relationship with Burgess led him to sign with Virgin Records. Burgess said: “The hardest part of being an A&R is telling the artist what to do when they’re making mistakes.
How Andrew Loog Oldham learned from LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY took a trip into rock’n’roll’s glorious past thanks to a keynote speech from the man who helped the Rolling Stones become “the greatest rock’n’roll band in the world”. Andrew Loog Oldham managed the Stones from 1963 to 1967 and helped to cultivate their “bad boy” image, generating headlines such as “Would you let your daughter marry a Rolling Stone?” Loog Oldham, who insisted he was a
“hustler” rather than a formal manager, worked with Brian Epstein and The Beatles before discovering the Stones. Talking about Epstein’s relationship with The Beatles, he said: “They changed his life. He changed theirs. Together they changed he world’s life.” He said he was pleased Epstein’s importance to The Beatles was now being recognised, adding: “We should at least be able to put up ‘Epstein Avenue’ somewhere.”
creative & digital post business 11
Thursday, May 9, 2013
www.ldpcreative.co.uk
Ben Hatton
BlackBerry’s surprising sour grapes
Dan Smith, of Bastille, at Liverpool Sound City with, from left, DJ Janice Long and Nick Burgess from Virgin Records “I will fall out with everybody if the CD, that lasts forever, is the best CD that it can possibly be. It’s their career and my career and I’m not going to let them get away with the wrong choice.” But Smith said he was very happy with the choice he had made – and Comber added: “This is one of the best relationships I’ve ever had with a record label and an artist.”
O
N FRIDAY, Janice Long took part in a debate on the power of radio, named after the Nirvana song Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. Music radio DJs were, she said, able to build strong bonds with their listeners. Long said: “People love the intimacy of radio. If you trust a show, you trust the curation of that person. “It’s powerful. It’s exciting. And with music radio, if you don’t like something, you’re only three minutes away from something you might like.” Mike Walsh, of XFM, agreed
successful music radio shows have to win the trust of their audience. Walsh said: “There’s more music being made on Planet Earth than ever before, which is amazing. There’s more being consumed than ever before, which is amazing. But the truth is, it’s not all good. “How do you navigate that infinite ocean of creativity? You need a trusted guide.” Radio is being challenged by online radio stations and streaming services. Nick Calafato, of internet radio station last.fm, said: “It’s going to be interesting to see how the generation coming through will perceive radio. It may come to a stage where something like last.fm is radio.” But Chris Hawkins, presenter of the early breakfast show on BBC Radio 6 Music, added: “It’s an amazing thing to be bringing new
music to your audience. “I played Natalie McCool on the radio this week. Last night I was getting tweets from people who were at the (Sound City) gig, who are regular listeners to 6 Music, saying they were there because they’d heard her on the show. “You do build a great relationship with your audience. You have to trust each other – you become friends, up to a point. “You feel that if they were to recommend a restaurant, you would pretty much trust their judgement.” Julie Cullen, editor at 6 Music, added: “In the 25-45 age group, radio is still the way people find out about new music, which is extraordinary. “It was supposed to be video that killed the radio star, then the internet. But it does seem to be the beast that won’t die.” The conference also
‘I will fall out with everybody if the CD is the best it can be’
included practical sessions where musicians, managers and label owners could learn about the nuts and bolts of the industry. In one Friday afternoon session, Keith Harris, director of performer affairs at PPL, explained how his organisation ensures performers receive royalties for the music they make. PPL is a not-for-profit company that last year collected more than £170m in licence fees. The changing face of the record industry, with more people releasing their own music online, is also changing PPL’s membership. “The biggest group of people who are registering with PPL are owner-operators of record labels,” said Harris. “A lot of people don’t think of themselves as record labels because they’re releasing their own stuff. “ But, he said, registering could help them collect all the money they are due. Other Sound City panels
Picture: SOPHIE WONG
included “360 Degree Marxism”, in which the team behind rock band Enter Shikari discussed how Marx and Engels had influenced their DIY approach to the music industry. Simon Moran, founder of promoter SJM Concerts and one of the most influential men in the global music industry, took part in a closed Q&A session with music students. Wayne Scholes, chairman and chief executive of US technology firm Red Touch Media, visited Sound City to launch the company’s Liverpool office. He said the Mersey event now rivalled the festival that inspired it, South by Southwest (SxSW) in Texas. He said: “Sound City has been brilliant for us. “I likeSxSW, but there’s a lot of politics, and it’s so corporate the music gets a bit lost. “What I like about Sound City is that it’s much more focused on the cultural side of music – there’s fashion, fanzines and sport.”
Brian Epstein and took the Rolling Stones to global domination Loog Oldham first saw the Stones at the Crawdaddy Club in Richmond. He said: “I got there, and when I saw them, this wave came over me.” And he added he was interested in the Stones for their image as well as their music. He said: “There was an advantage that I didn’t care much for their type of R&B. I preferred Leiber and Stoller. “I had no judgement. I couldn’t say ‘they don’t do this as well as Long John Baldry’.
“I presume I was affected in the same way that Brian was when he found The Beatles.” Host Dave Haslam brought up the “British Invasion” of the American music charts, which began 50 years ago with The Beatles. Loog Oldham reminded the audience that the British domination of US music didn’t last long – and that the Stones’ success in the US was not inevitable. He said: “If the Beatles ever looked over their shoulders, they weren’t looking at the
Rolling Stones. They were looking at Herman’s Hermits and the Dave Clark Five. “As early as the autumn of 1966, American music had started to speak to the dilemma of the country. That didn’t really happen in Europe until 1968. “Herman’s Hermits and the Dave Clark Five didn’t survive the next chapter. Those chapters came quickly. Those who were in a penthouse and couldn’t write for the streets couldn’t compete.”
Andrew Loog Oldham
RECENT comments by BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins raised more than a few eyebrows when he predicted the death of the tablet was just a few short years away saying they were “not a good business model”. This may well be a stunt to drum up interest in BlackBerry’s new product offering – I’m hard-pressed to believe that he really has faith in what he is saying. But not acknowledging and ignoring progressive consumer traits makes the company look foolish. Given the company was once at the helm of mobile technology, it seems BlackBerry is still reeling from its disastrous attempt at dipping a toe in the tablet water with the launch of its Playbook in 2011. After selling a paltry 2.4m units of the device – which didn’t have an email function – it has since been lagging behind the likes of Apple, Samsung and Google which have understood the importance of screen size and touchscreens to their users. The statement flies in the face of trends which have seen consumer use of tablets skyrocket – almost 20m people in the UK will use a tablet at least once a month, an eMarketer study showed BlackBerry has carved out a position for itself by keeping the “old-fashioned” keyboard, and this will certainly be enjoyed by those loyal to the brand. But BlackBerry needs to be bigger than just “niche” as it is not a niche brand. While BlackBerry has remembered who its core users are and has continued to cater for them, the outlandish statement by its CEO demonstrates how out of touch with trending technology the company seems. However, I agree. The tablet is a bad business model for a company that can’t do it right. ■ INTERNET entrepreneur Ben Hatton is founder and managing director of digital agency Rippleffect. Follow Rippleffect on Twitter @rippleffected
12 post business big feature
Bill Gleeson meets ALEX BALDOCK, chief executive of Speke-based online retailer Shop Direct
A
LEX Baldock glanced out of his office window at the blue sky with a happy smile. It was May Day and the weather was sunny and warm. “Good weather is good for business,” he said. “That’s certainly true of high street shops, but is it also true for online retailers?” I asked. “It’s quite difficult to persuade a customer to buy a summer frock if it’s snowing outside,” he replied. Mr Baldock was installed as chief executive of Speke-based £2bn-turnover Shop Direct last year. He has been given the job of taking the business through the next stage of its development towards becoming a “world class” online retailer. He acknowledges that much of the groundwork has already been done by the previous management. “What was built before my arrival was some pretty strong foundations,” he said. “It’s important to remember that this business used to be a number of rival catalogue companies. We have integrated them.” Mr Baldock said this integration was achieved at the same time as the business changed from being an old-fashioned print catalogue business into a modern day digital operation with 80% of its sales coming from online channels. He continued: “We moved from catalogues to online without losing scale. We still have 5m regular customers. “We have stayed true to our target customer. Those 5m customers are very much in the heartland of where this business has been for 80 years. They are aspiring people and they tend to be female. “We know them better than anybody else. We have 80 years of data about them. The catalogue industry was rich in data and now, with online, that data is even richer. Add that to our financial services data and we don’t think there is anybody who knows their customer better than we do. There is a real wealth of data that simply isn’t available to bricks and mortar companies.” As well as selling fashion, furniture and electrical goods, Shop Direct has a financial services arm that offers credit to customers, allowing them to spread payments. Indeed, the provision of credit has always been a part of the Littlewoods business model, even in its earliest days when agents collected cash door-to-door. Mr Baldock said: “If you put all that data together you can tell what your customer does, who she is, what she likes to buy and who from. That’s a priceless advantage. “We have done it while building some strong, reliable brands like Very and Isme and we are happy with how the legacy Littlewoods brands have performed. We also have some impressive operations here. “You put all that together and you have some pretty strong foundations. “Clearly, we want to build on that.” According to Mr Baldock it is essential to ground the business’s strategic direction on the answer to the question what makes this business special? He said: “Every business would be well advised to have a clear sense of what would be missing if it weren’t here. It’s emblazoned all over the wall now. We make good things easily accessible to more people. “You can’t spend any time in this building or with our customers in
Thursday, May 9, 2013
What does it take to be a world class digital-age retailer?
Good weather is good for seasonal wear: Myleene Klass models new swimwear for Littlewoods.com focus groups and be in any doubt about how important this business is to the people who shop here. “We are in a position to bring nice things to people they would not otherwise have. There’s a real sense of doing something worthwhile here. It’s more than doing just a day’s work. That’s important – it means you have more engaged people.” As well as a sense of job satisfaction, Mr Baldock believes the firm’s philosophy also makes good business sense. He explained: “It’s good business practice to stick to your strengths and within our phrase ‘making good things easily accessible to more people’ is a promise that we want to keep. “As a department store, we are well-equipped to provide that choice. As an online retailer, we make it easier for them and we make good
things easily accessible to more people through our credit services and value-for-money offer. If we stay focused on that, then every one of our people will do so too and we will be playing to our strengths. “All our strategic choices stem from that. They have to be true to our purpose as a business. You can see that in the market. You have examples of retailers that haven’t stuck to that and the market has been ruthless to them. Take Comet – it’s hard to see what they brought to the market that you couldn’t get from Currys. “We have set ourselves a steep ambition. We are not interested in just ticking along. We want to be a world-class retailer. This is not just my ambition. It is shared by the leadership team in the business and we have the shareholders’ full support.
“It’s not an empty ambition because we have planned it over the last six months with a degree of rigour. “We have to stick within some clear boundaries. For now, we are a UK and Ireland retailer. There may come a time when we have international ambitions, but for now we are going to stick to what we know best. “We have made some choices about how we intend to be a world class retailer for our customers, our people and shareholders. All three are important. That’s the way to build sustainable success here.” The danger is that the phrase “world class” can be nothing more than a slogan. What does it mean in practice at Shop Direct? Mr Baldock said: “We aim to be the best in the world at three things: personalisation, product and credit.” Personalisation refers to using all
of the data the business holds about its customers to target them with specific products and offers at the right time. He explained: “We are building with our partners IBM an ever improving systems infrastructure. Put those things together and you can build the world’s best personalised e-commerce experience for our customer so that she can find exactly what is right for her at any time on any device. We think that’s a really powerful thing to do. “And when you put those three things together, personalisation, product and credit, it’s a very powerful proposition for our customer and that’s how we intend to win. “We have set ourselves a lengthy agenda about how to make this the best place to work. Happy employees are best for business. And we are
big feature post business 13
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Alex
Alex Baldock, chief executive at Shop Direct Group, Speke
Turner Concept of value is a moot point “THE reality is that they will encourage unrealistic and unrealisable local expectation to the detriment whilst imposing an unwelcome additional administrative burden on local authorities.” That’s the assessment of a barristers’ chambers, who specialise in property, about the concept of an “asset of community value” (ACV) which has been created by the Localism Act. The early signs are not promising. It has already been bandied around in relation to Liverpool FC’s stadium, Anfield, and the Caledonia pub in Catharine Street. In both instances they are commercial organisations whose community benefits are a secondary consequence. The Spirit of Shankly (SoS) organisation has made the argument that “football clubs and their stadiums are of vital importance to their local communities”. But no-one is making the case that, say, the Goodrich factory in Huyton – where 350 jobs will be lost when the site is closed at the end of next year – should be given protected status. As SoS has admitted, the aim is for the designation to act as an early warning mechanism of any future sale of the club, which is something of a red herring, given the long and protracted nature of the sale process previously. In truth, all of our region’s sports clubs are up for sale at any point, the only difference being the levels of publicity and urgency around each transaction. You don’t need to apply for ACV status to know that, for example, both Everton’s Goodison Park or St Helens’ Langtree Park can be yours if you can raise sufficient funds – and without a six-month deadline to pull together a bid. The ACV status will be used by politicians and lobby groups as a threat to force negotiations (which are unlikely to prove satisfactory), to create delay and to gain access to information which would otherwise be private but has little public value, other than prurience. It will be interesting to see how often the ACV concept is used properly, to enable the community to purchase playing fields, a community centre or the scout hut, rather than just to influence or infect the sale of a commercial operation.
‘All our region’s sports clubs are for sale’
planning to make this business a model of process excellence. “This isn’t a pipe dream – this is underway. All of this is planned and costed and organised. We have set ourselves the task of being the employer of choice in the North West. “We have worked hard to develop a set of values, a common set of expected behaviours that means one Shop Direct person knows what to expect from another. “We invest in recognising people’s contribution and people’s professional development so they can see a career path here. “It’s also got to be fun. It’s an interesting business. We are not banging out widgets here. The range of products is fascinating. “We intend to be at the vanguard of the digital revolution in this coun-
try and it’s a heady mix. “I enjoy getting up in the morning and coming here. “People need to buy into the ambitions for the business and that those ambitions are credible and that there is a clear part in it for them. “Nobody’s business is immune from the market and competitive pressures. We are no different.” Shop Direct has yet to make a sustained profit in the 10 years it has been in the ownership of the Barclay family. In that time it has lost more than £750m. Surely being sustainably profitable is an essential requirement before any business can deem itself world class? However, Mr Baldock becomes cagey when the issue of financial performance is raised. He wouldn’t commit to any time scale for achieving a profit. He would only talk in
general terms, saying: “The plan we intend to deliver here is a plan for the profitable growth of the business and that’s a good place to be if you are an employee here. “What we have here is a long term vision for this business. We are not claiming to be all the way there today, but it’s important to have a destination in view and a clear sense of what that success looks like. “It’s that clarity and common sense of purpose that gives this place a sense of excitement. “We want to be a world class business for shareholders as well as customers. We intend to be a profitable business and we are satisfied with our trajectory towards profitability today. “We have ambitious plans in all three categories: clothing, electrical and home furniture. World class
product is part of those plans. “We aim to build at least three world class own-brands in clothing and footwear over the next few years. We already have Ladybird and we have ambitious plans for Savoir and Definitions, to name but two others.” The last five years have been very tough for all retailers. Will the economy and consumer spending need to improve before Shop Direct can sustain profitable trading? Mr Baldock said: “It’s a very challenging environment out there. Consumer sentiment is pretty subdued. “We are not banking on a pick-up in the economy. We have been cautious in our plans. “Like everyone, we would prefer a more benign economic environment. “The plan we have settled on is a plan to build enduring, sustainable success at Shop Direct.
■ Alex Turner is the general manager of financial training firm Ambitious Minds
14 post business legal
Thursday, May 9, 2013
www.ldplegal.co.uk
Leading barrister calls time on ‘rewarding’ 30-year career A PROMINENT North West barrister has been given a “rousing” send off by her chambers in Chester as she retired after a successful 30-year career. For the last couple of years, Jeannie France-Hayhurst has led the family law team at Linenhall Chambers. She started her career in London – at the Temple – and later in Cardiff, Liverpool and finally Chester. Barristers, solicitors and judges congregated in Stanley Place for a champagne reception to see her off. Ms France-Hayhurst established a strong reputation in the North West and North Wales for for her commitment to child protection and family dispute resolution. She has four children with husband, James, whom she paid tribute to. “Without the support of my long-suffering and patient husband, James, it would just not have been possible,” she said. “He has coped with my late-night brief-reading and weekends surrounded by a sea of papers -– and was always ready with a glass of decent wine. “I have been immensely lucky to have had the opportunity to work in such a rewarding field.”
Anthony O'Toole of Linenhall Chambers speaks at the retirement party for Jeannie France-Hayhurst, right
City’s legal sector gears up for international festival in 2014 by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
LEGAL firms in Liverpool will have access to “huge opportunities” during next year’s International Festival for Business (IFB). That was the message to firms gathering for the legal sector’s Spring Lunch, organised by Liverpool Law Society. Around 60 members of the profession attended the lunch at the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company boardroom in the Port of Liverpool building at the Pier Head. The many firms represented included Brabners Chaffe Street, DLA
Piper, DWF, Morecrofts, Jackson & Canter and Weightmans. They were addressed by Max Steinberg, chief executive of Liverpool Vision, who told them that IFB 2014, taking place in June and July, will be “global showcase of business”. It is projected to attract more than 250,000 visitors from across the globe to take part in 61 days of events, exhibitions and celebrations. Mr Steinberg said the festival will connect UK businesses with the “best international business opportunities”. Alistair Fletcher, president of Liverpool Law Society, said: “This is a fabulous opportunity. “We will be hosting a massively important international event when we can demonstrate not only our
status as a destination of choice for flagship conferences but also the commercial excellence of our region and the legal community that serves it.” IFB 2014 was launched earlier this year by Prime Minister David Cameron with the full support of the Government and UK Trade and Investment. Last week a delegation from Liverpool travelled to the US cities of Boston and Atlanta to spread the word about the event. Members of the delegation made a presentation at Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Sox. In Atlanta, they met with Mayor Kasim Reed, as well as taking part in a round table event at the World Trade Centre offices.
Brabners’ big effort for Guide Dogs STAFF at Brabners Chaffe Street have already raised £10,000 for their chosen charity this year – Guide Dogs. The charity came top in a staff vote with the Liverpool law firm pledging to support fundraising and volunteering activities local to each of its offices in Liverpool. Brabners has a well-established fun-
draising calendar and over the last three months has raised money through a series of initiatives These included a Brabners Bake Off competition, a moustache-growing contest and a sponsored bungee jump and swim. And Helen Mawdsley and Marc Whittaker, from the IT
department in Liverpool raised more than £2,000 by having their heads shaved. Sal Chapman, business development manager at Guide Dogs, said: “We are delighted to be working with Brabners Chaffe Street – they have been a real pleasure to work with and their fundraising is invaluable to us.”
Changes at the top of Mersey law firm WEIGHTMANS has unveiled its new senior management team, the addition of a fourth business line and a series of internal promotions. John Schorah and Dan Cutts have now taken over as Weightmans’ managing and senior partners, as previously reported in the Liverpool Post. Partners Tim Lang and Kieran Jones replace Mr Schorah and Mr Cutts as head of the commercial and insurance business lines respectively. Also joining the board is partner and head of costs, Rob Williams, who becomes the head of a fourth business line – solving disputes. Mr Schorah said: “We’re delighted to announce the introduction of solving disputes. “This brand new department has been set up to directly address the biggest changes to civil litigation we’ve seen in years, introduced by the Jackson Report. “As a firm we are always evolving and 2013 is becoming a year of huge legal reforms for our clients, and all of our changes gear us up to face the next chapter alongside them.” Weightmans has also announced 19 promotions, with the appointment of four new partners and 15 new associates over five offices nationwide. A 20th promotion is also in the pipeline as the firm awaits confirmation of an ABS licence before planning to make its first non-lawyer a partner in the coming months.
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Alistair Fletcher
Marc Whittaker and Helen Mawdsley of Brabners
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women in business post business 15
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Jane’s success story can help inspire other entrepreneurs by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
A FORMER insurance sector executive who spent 15 months out of work has now spent two years running her own consultancy. Wirral entrepreneur Jane Richards was made redundant from her insurance job in 2009. She then spent more than a year, without success, searching for a job. However she decided to use her experience of business administration management to set up her own venture. Third Sector Thinking (TST) has now been up and running for two years. TST offers now offers development expertise and hands-on support, to charities, community groups and small businesses. Her first client was a local scout group in Birkenhead and now she works with organisations as far afield as Sheffield and London. Her turnaround began with a speculative application to join the Vodafone World of Difference project and a visit to her local Jobcentre Plus. She explained: “Vodafone has an annual scheme that gives people the chance to donate time to a charity of their choice – and get paid. “Nothing else seemed to be happening for me so I thought ‘why not give it a go?’ “Around 11,000 people applied and I was one of 500 successful applicants. The charity became my first client and things just took off from there. “But I couldn’t have got where I am without the support of Enterprising Merseyside.” Enterprising Merseyside is a project funded by the European Regional Development Fund and delivered by Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral Chambers of Commerce. One-to-one advice and support is available at venues across Merseyside, and is available to anyone living in the city region and thinking of starting a business. Jane added: “When you are unemployed you don't know where to turn to find out about starting your own business, but I was amazed at the support
‘Charity was my first client and it just took off’
Jane Richards was unemployed for 15 months before starting her own business that the chamber had to offer. “They helped me to write a solid business plan and I completed a series of start-up workshops covering essential business topics such as finance and marketing. “I was allocated a volunteer busi-
ness mentor, Elaine Owen, whose enthusiasm and support over the crucial first few months was incredible. “We met once a month for the first six months and she helped me set up my website.” Now a member of Wirral Chamber,
Thumbs-up for Pier Head event ALMOST 1,000 delegates from around the UK descended on Liverpool’s Pier Head for the first ever private event to be held on the recently regenerated waterfront piazza. A giant glass-sided marquee appeared directly in front of the famous Liver Building for the event, entitled Reflections on the Waterfront. The event, which took eight months in the planning, was staged as part of the annual Association of
Corporate Treasurers (ACT) conference being held at the BT Convention Centre. It was the brainchild of North West event and party specialists Charlotte and Karl Dolan of Orion. The temporary pop-up pavilion took more than a week to construct and measured an 1,700 sq m. Creative director Charlotte said: “I am delighted to say that the event we designed and delivered was a huge success. So many of the guests commented on the
fantastic location in front of the Three Graces and on the scale of the luxurious marquee that we created for their important social event. “The food by Paul Askew and his team from the London Carriage Works at Hope Street Hotel was outstanding.”
Karl Dolan and Charlotte Winby of Orion in front of the wall of water they created at the Pier Head
Jane is mentoring other budding new entrepreneurs. ■ Call Enterprising Merseyside on 0845 340 9980 or visit facebook.com/ enterprisingmerseyside for more information on starting your own business..
Women can fill skills gap, says study A NEW report says UK manufacturers could tackle their skills shortages by hiring more women. The 2013 Harvey Nash Manufacturing Leadership survey reveals that 73% of manufacturers had no plans to increase the number of women in their workforces. And of the 27% who are, only 40% are looking to increase the number of women employees throughout the entire organisation, with 15% focusing purely on board level appointments and 3% focusing on senior or middle management appointments. The overall report highlights an “exodus” of skilled people from the manufacturing and engineering sector. Sector skills organisation Semta, which helped produce the study, claims firms could be missing out on talented workers. Semta chief executive, Sarah Sillars, said: “It is puzzling that when only 20% of the sector’s workforce is female, so few companies are actively trying to increase the number of women within their business. “While no one is suggesting that candidates should be selected on anything other than merit, perhaps employers facing skills shortages should consider how to nurture this untapped talent. “The Government is encouraging employers to take ownership of skills and thankfully help is at hand not only to recruit, train and retain top talent, but also to prevent a lost generation of young people who need enthusing.”
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16 post business location
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Energy efficiency no longer optional for commercial property owners
view point by Joe Davison, Paul Crowley & Co Solicitors CONCERNS and issues surrounding energy efficiency are increasingly shaping the landscape of media, politics and industry. Gone is the blasé, “live for the
Two city sites go to auction EDDISONS is offering two fully tenanted LIverpool residential properties at its next auction in Manchester on May 21. These include a six-bedroom student property in Salisbury Road in Wavertree, which generates £23,400 per year. The guide price is £140,000-plus, a potential return of more than 16.7%. And two tenanted semi-detached houses in Upper Hampton Street, close to Liverpool city centre have a guide of £170,000-plus. The Markden Mews properties generate annual income of £20,400, a potential return of 12%. Eddisons is offering 27 lots at the Premier Inn, Trafford Park.
now” attitude towards consumption. In, is the meticulous, scrutinous culture of conservation, protection and sustainability. There is an influx of new legislation and Government schemes designed to facilitate a greener prospect for the UK. And there are a number of developments that commercial landlords need to be aware of if they are to continue operating successfully in sustainable Britain. The Energy Efficiency Act 2011 is set to be a game-changer. The most onerous requirements for commercial landlords are due to
come into force by the beginning of April 2018. This allows a further five years to ensure that provisions are in compliance with the act, or esle you will risk possible fines and constraints on the legality of letting your properties. The time to begin converting is now. Commercial properties will be expected to hold a minimum specified Energy Performance Certificate rating in order to fall in line with the act and the alterations required to do
so will vary depending on the type of property – for example an industrial property may require less heating than an office space. What is certain is that bringing a non-efficient property up to scratch is likely to incur high one-time costs. In the long-term, having energy efficiency will lower the cost of power and heat but the equipment required to do this can be expensive. Modern innovations in the field do not come cheap and there is the installation to think about too.
‘The time to begin process has to be now’
The Green Deal has been billed primarily as of benefit to residential buildings in improving performance, but it might be worth checking the details to see if it can benefit you as a commercial landlord. Providing that the expected savings outweigh the cost of the improvements, the work can be done on finance and paid back through monthly energy bills. It is unique in that the finance is attached to the property as opposed to the owner. This means you’ll no longer be responsible for those repayments if you decide to sell.
£5m Exchange Station scheme sees the first suite completed by Tony McDonough
Refurbished office suite at Exchange station and, right, Wayne Locke of Ashtenne
POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
BUSINESS to BUSINESS COMMERCIAL PREMISES
FOR SALE / MAY LET
Freestanding Chester City Centre Office Building 14,000 sq ft with car parking Potential for Re-Development
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY T J THOMAS 0151 708 6544 ERSKINE ST close to City centre Business units 850sqft £550pcm www.tjthomas.co.uk
147
auction
commercial properties to include (unless previously sold or withdrawn)
INDUSTRIAL UNITS To Let. South L’pool 500 to 4000 sqft, monthly tenancy, competitive rents. From £50pw Tel: 0151 427 5051 C H E A P S T O R A G E Space 3,600 sqft. £125pw. 486 0004
INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY INDUSTRIAL UNITS 3,000− 20,000 sqft. 0151 486 0004
1-3 Grimrod Place, Skelmersdale
Lot 133: Vacant industrial building of 137,650 sq ft.
Further information please contact Neil Dryburgh or Euan Ross at
80/80A Mostyn Street, Llandudno
Lot 142: Vacant shop of 3,407 sq ft.
22 Derby Road, Huyton
Lot 53: Let to Albermarle & Bond and Nobles Amusements. Whole let at £91,000 p.a. Reserve not to exceed £500,000 p.a.
Tuesday 21st May 2013 020 7543 6803 www.allsop.co.uk
DEVELOPER Ashtenne Space Northwest has completed the first office suite as part of the £5m refurbishment of Liverpool’s Exchange Station. The last trains ran from the station in Tithebarn Street in 1977 and in the 1980s, the main building was converted into an office complex known as Mercury Court. In December, Post Business revealed that Ashtenne Space Northwest, a partnership between the Homes and Communities Agency and the Ashtenne Industrial Fund, was to give the site a major revamp. The fully refurbished space on the third floor of Exchange Station extends to 11,105 sq ft. The office suite completes just as Ashtenne launches the marketing suite and together they will give visitors an accurate representation of the final product. Exchange Station comprises a total of around 200,000 sq ft and current tenants include commercial property agents GVA. the project will feature “grade A equivalent” office space and behind the 1888 façade, a new concourse will feature a full concierge reception, meeting rooms, informal seating and a coffee shop/bistro. Wayne Locke, director of Ashtenne Space Northwest, said: “Completion of the first suite at Exchange Station marks an exciting turning point for Liverpool's office market. “We can now see for ourselves the huge potential Exchange Station offers its resident business occupiers, through ultra-speed broadband connectivity, concierge service and on-site lifestyle amenities, scarcely matched anywhere else in the UK. “The office suite is a great space and complements the development’s commitment to celebrating Exchange Station’s rich heritage, whilst transforming the building to exceed the technology and networking requirements of 21st century businesses, even including mobile phone coverage in the lifts. “In short, the redevelopment promises to revive the building’s heritage as a hub of connectivity for commerce in the North West.” Commercial agent for the scheme is Keppie Massie. For more than a century, Exchange Station was one of the biggest railway terminals in the North West, providing train services to places as far afield as Leeds and Glasgow.
‘We can now see the huge potential it offers’
Thursday, May 9, 2013
location
Whitehall relocations could boost the city’s office market by Tony McDonough
No4 St Paul’s Square is one of the few buildings left with available grade A space in Liverpool city centre
POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
RELOCATING Government departments from London to the regions could give a major shot in the arm to Liverpool’s city centre office market. That’s the view of Stuart Keppie, one of the key contributors to the city’s annual commercial office market review. Liverpool’s remaining grade A office space totals just over 200,000 sq ft at St Paul’s Square, 20 Chapel Street and Mann Island with no significant new space in the pipeline. The headline rent for grade A currently stands at £21 per sq ft – a rate which is not high enough to convince most developers to build speculatively. Over the past decade or so the city has benefited from millions in state gap funding for such projects but the amount now available is greatly reduced. What could encourage development and push up headline rents is an increase in the number of requirements from potential major occupiers. Direct Line and Barclays are believed to be looking for space but Mr Keppie says the Government could also help the situation. He told Post Business: “The issue has been one of attracting inward investment. “There seem to be inquires in the pipeline. Manchester has around 750,000 sq ft on inquiries where in Liverpool it is probably closer to 250,000 sq ft. “And those of more than 50,000 sq ft have been quite long-standing and have taken a long time to come to fruition. “There needs to be more of a concerted effort by the Government to transfer services out into the provinces. “If we don’t have higher rental levels then we don’t achieve the growth. “Liverpool has grown up through a grant culture in the last 20-25 years where the market has been supported and that step up to viability, particularly in this climate, is a difficult one.” The office market review is produced by the Professional Liverpool Property Group, which is chaired by Mr Keppie. His firm, Keppie Massie, contributes to the report, along with other agents in the city. It showed that in Liverpool’s central business district (CBD) last year, lettings totalled just under 260,000 sq ft. This was just a little down on 2011 and ahead of 2010. Although it was
Picture: TONY McDONOUGH
post business 17
The Heath agrees to put down rail track A RAILWAY track is to be laid at The Heath Business & Technical Park in Runcorn to accommodate the needs of a new occupier. Training company Akona, which specialises in the event management, security, close protection and railway engineering sectors, is to locate its northern office at the 50-acre site. The base will be focused on offering security and rail overhead electrification training and development qualifications. So The Heath has agreed to install a 50-metre railway track,
Steve Ashley
below the five-year average the report suggested the market was stabilising after several years of disruption since the financial crash. What was notable was a lack of deals in the CBD above 30,000 sq ft. The biggest deal was the 22,275 sq ft of refurbished space taken by ServiceSource at The Plaza and the biggest grade A deal was the 14,155 sq ft taken by banking giant Santander at No4 St Paul’s Square. While there is concern about the lack of grade A for potential major lettings, Mr Keppie said there was evidence of a steady “churn” of small business lettings in the 1,000 sq ft to 5,000 sq ft bracket. This category made up two-thirds of the total of 61 deals in 2012 – up from 44 the year before.
He added: “Liverpool’s biggest lettings last year were around 22,500 sq ft and the same applied in the Manchester market. “What that tells you was that it was almost exclusively churn in the Manchester market last year as well. “If you look at the sector take-up, in 2011 around 60% of the market was financial and professional and that dropped to 34% in 2012, although it was still the biggest sector. “The interesting thing is that you have had the re-emergence of certain types of user – shipping and distribution for example – and also the call centre and office provider market. “There is a far greater spread of sectors now. There is no real dominant user which you might say is a good thing.”
with associated tools and materials, to make the firm’s training even more realistic. The willingness to create such a facility proved a key incentive for Akona’s director Steve Ashley to locate the company at The Heath. He said: “The Heath site really lends itself to our style of training courses as it offers our trainees, consultants and assessors a number of realistic scenarios.” Akona counts Bourne Rail, Chelsea, Leighton Orient and Fulham football clubs, Wembley Stadium and The Oval cricket ground among its list of clients.
Stuart Keppie of Keppie Massie
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TVP starts on 500,000 sq ft facility
Computer-generated image of the new warehouse
WORK has started on a 500,000 sq ft distribution centre at Liverpool International Business Park. Bolton-based construction consultancy, The Vinden Partnership (TVP), has advised UK Land & Property on the project, acting as quantity surveyor, employer’s agent, and construction, design and management coordinator. The distribution site will be
one of the largest in the UK and has been tipped for occupation by a national budget retailer. The warehouse includes 25,000 sq ft of office space, plus 3,500 sq ft transport control facility and additional office space. TVP is coordinating construction, infrastructure and landscaping works. It is also advising UK Land
on its construction regulation compliance and health and safety issues. Martin Bennett, regional director at TVP, said: “The construction of a facility of this size and quality cements Liverpool’s status as a key distribution hub in the UK. “Growth of the distribution network across the region has expanded rapidly over the last 12 months.”
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18 post business economic development
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Python joins battle against focus on jobs
by Alistair Houghton POST BUSINESS STAFF
alistair.houghton@liverpool.com
W
HEN policymakers debate solutions to the youth unemployment crisis, it’s unlikely many of them will think of using pythons and tarantulas. But those creatures have played their part in a project to ensure disaffected young people in Liverpool don’t find themselves on the job scrapheap at 16. The scheme, led by the Resource Development Centre (RDC), is just one of a number of projects backed by Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson aimed at tackling the youth unemployment crisis in the city. And it, in turn, is being mirrored across the region as local authorities work to help young people into work. Youth unemployment in this region soared as the UK plunged into the credit crunch. The total number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance (JSA) across the six city region boroughs rose from below 12,000 in late 2007 to a peak of 18,675 in February 2012. The latest figures, for March 2013, show the total stood at 15,405. But the figures for long-term youth unemployment remain high. The number of under-24s in the city region claiming JSA for more than 12 months rose from just over 400 in late 2007 to a peak of 3,245 last September. Politicians, local authorities and training bodies are working hard to tackle the problem – and the number of long-term claimants has since fallen slightly, to 3,010 in March. But all agree there is still work to be done and that this is no time to be complacent. When Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson was elected a year ago, he pledged to make tackling youth unemployment a top priority. Among the schemes Liverpool City Council has supported is the RDC’s Liverpool Schools Employability Programme, which helps young people into work so they do not become part of the NEET (not in employment, education or training) statistics. The project, led by Antony Stagg, sees a group of students from Alsop and Archbishop Beck High Schools take part in a 20-day programme to help build their confidence and give them the skills they need to get a job. On day one the students learned how to tackle their fears by holding pythons and tarantulas. Mr Stagg said: “The whole goal is to prevent NEET before it happens. “These are guys who have not succeeded at school. Most have been excluded or left the education system. But here, we’ve had pretty much 100% attendance. “They’ve been learning to build websites, and all about enterprise. “They’ve also learned about negotiation and presentation skills from global experts.” The group had conversations via Skype with entrepreneurs including Rick McMunn, who has made millions of pounds selling books on Amazon.
Kane Richardson, left, learning to conquer his fears at the Liverpool Schools Employability Programme project in Liverpool Last week they did work experience at organisations ranging from Everton FC to Liverpool Mutual Homes. And this week, they focused on their CVs and on learning the skills they need to win jobs. The students even took part in mock interviews with senior managers at Merseytravel in Mann Island. Alex Rome, 16, had created a website promoting the Audi R8 V10 Spider. He said: “We didn’t like school. It wasn’t for us. “This course has been helpful. Before I came here I wouldn’t have had anything on my CV.” Kane Richardson, 16, added: “We didn’t do anything like this at school.” Alsop student Kyle Scott, 16, had never made a video before joining the course. But, within 24 hours of making his video and putting in online, it was already one of the top results on YouTube when searching for “engineering in Liverpool”. Kyle, who did his work experience at the North West Training Council, said: “It’s been brilliant. My confid-
ence has improved. You can see you’re getting things done.” Cllr Nick Small, cabinet member for employment, enterprise and skills, said the council had focused on issues including promoting apprenticeships and helping young people into training schemes. “We’ve guaranteed every young person aged 16-17 who’s not in education, employment or training a training place or an apprenticeship, which has worked really well,” he said. “We are then supporting schools through the work Antony Stagg is doing, specifically working with young people who might be disengaged from school and giving them the skills they might need to enter the jobs market.” Cllr Small said he was confident the council’s work was having a positive impact. He said: “The focus we’ve put on apprenticeships for young people has been a big part of that. “The city council has directly helped to create 816 apprenticeship
‘You can see you’re getting things done’
opportunities through its joint venture companies. In itself, that has made a big impact. “But we work across the city region with other authorities to make it easier for firms to take on apprentices. We advocate for apprenticeships. And that’s having a big impact – there’s been a big take-up. “If you look at the youth unemployment figure, yes, it’s too high. We’re going to continue working to bring that down. But there is some really great news and some positive signs.” The council is also backing the city’s two University Technical Colleges (UTCs), which will offer pupils the skills they need to find work in the low carbon, Superport and life sciences sectors. Cllr Small said the council would continue to work to encourage employers to move to the city, and would also help existing firms to improve productivity and employ more. But he said part of the challenge for local authorities was to encourage more business start-ups that can then employ more of the city region’s young people. He said: “We cannot just look at
private employment opportunities. We’ve also got to look at enterprise and encourage people to not just take a job, but to create jobs.” Other local authorities and training providers, including Liverpool Community College, are also working to tackle youth unemployment. In Knowsley, the council works with Connexions, the Youth Contract, the Youth Service and local college and training providers to operate the “NEET Gateway”. Young people who use the Gateway are offered personal and social development support to help them find employment or to complete training courses. Knowsley Community College is also developing courses, in subjects including art and design and “radio station operations”, aimed at NEETs. The council has funded a basic motor vehicle engineering introduction course, through training provider Adapt4work, for pupils at risk of disengagement. As well as working on cars, the students also learn employability skills. The council is also offering a £3,000 subsidy for an employer who has not had an apprentice in the last 12 months.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
unemployment
The four-week Liverpool Schools Employability Programme covers subjects from CVs to websites
Staff at Jaguar Land Rover’s Halewood site, above, are working closely with All Saints School, in Kirkby
economic development post business 19
diary of an entrepreneur MY FATHER opened Liverpool’s first Indian restaurant in the early 1960s and I was surrounded by the theme of cooking in our extended family from a very young age. I suppose I was always either going to adopt the family mantle of becoming a restaurateur or completely reject anything faintly connected. I learned so much from my father once I was old enough, as a young teen, to understand what it took to do what he did. There’s no doubt I would eventually strike out on my own and that was in 1986. In my early career within the business, I was setting out a template of what I wanted to do with the Gulshan brand. I always saw it as just more than a restaurant. That gave me the inspiration to create what has become a multiple award-winning venture, albeit still sticking to its original goal of listening to our local suburban customers. We ran the business as a small eatery with around 40 covers until we began to witness a national change in the market for dining out, city centre living and Indian cuisine. I’ve always looked at national trends in our industry, in spite of our parochial focus on Merseyside. Over the first 20 years, guests had repeatedly told me how important ambience and character were along with a price that they could afford. I was also strongly aware that if we carried on doing the same thing, we’d get the same results so change was inevitable if we were going to compete with the rise of the Liverpool restaurant scene, especially given what impetus Liverpool One had provided as a multiplier for the sector. We began charting our plan in the late nineties once we saw swanky high rise apartments emerge in the city centre. There were thoughts of moving into town
but we decided that we could not only retain our suburban niche, we could enhance it through the existing opportunities presented by the building and our growing customer base that was drawn from across Merseyside by this time. Repeated appearances in the Good Curry Guide and a focus on publicity helped us achieve our growth. This eventually led to what we have now developed. The restaurant has quadrupled its covers, includes a mezzanine floor that serves as a separate bar and tapas restaurant and the entertainment competes well with city centre offers. We’ve also catered for a number of illustrious events since our expansion. Our focus is also still building the status of Indian tapas as a cuisine, maintaining our profile nationally having won Best in Merseyside at the Good Curry Guide Awards for 2013 and remaining true to my father’s values of honest hard work. I’m unsure what he would have made of us serving guests from celebrity soap stars to Premiership footballers and the general public with sophisticated cocktails and tapas in 2013, but he was a pioneer. Gulshan is very much a family business and those pioneering restaurant values are deeply rooted in us. We’ve managed to transcend several decades, adapt to people’s changing tastes and be an innovator in our field – and we’re proud of that. Ultimately though, we know success is thanks to our loyal guests and a new army of followers who seem to have an insatiable appetite to eat out. People know how to enjoy themselves here. They work to live and our growth and that of the industry is testament to that. Mustafa Rahman is owner of the Gulshan restaurant in Aigburth Road, Liverpool
Steve Granite, of Abbey Logistics, is working with his old school, All Saints in Kirkby, to help young people into the logistics sector
How Kirkby school is helping students find work A KNOWSLEY school is playing its part in improving the borough’s joblessness figures by helping every one of last year’s sixth formers into education, employment or training. Of last year’s 56 sixth formers, 31 went on to study at university, with 12 going to further education and 13 winning apprenticeships or jobs. All Saints RC Centre for Learning, in Kirkby, launched a Careers Academy in 2007 to help young people into work or education. Through the academy, pupils can do work experience at local companies and win mentor-
ing from people who work at those firms. The two-year academy programme also covers skills from CV writing to interview practice. Academy partners include RSA, Santander, Lloyds Bank and the Walton Centre. This summer, 21 students will take part in paid internships. Margaret O’Neill, director for learning, said: “It puts them head and shoulders above other people who are applying for employment or studies.” The school has also teamed up with Bootle transport group Abbey Logistics, which was
founded by All Saints old boy Steve Granite, to develop a programme to encourage people into the logistics sector. Each year one person wins an apprenticeship at Abbey under the Think Logistics scheme. Last year’s successful candidate was 18-year-old Luke Whitehill. The school’s work has been so successful that Jaguar Land Rover asked to work with it. The school has now signed a three-year partnership with the car giant, and year 11 students have already visited the site. Deputy principal Brendan Chorley said: “JLR has agreed it’s
going to help us design our engineering curriculum at Key Stage 4 and 5. The intention is that anybody at the school who follows that course would be really well-prepared to take some of the prestigious apprenticeships on offer at JLR.” The car company has also been holding mock interviews for students. Mr Chorley added: “A massive part of our school’s ethos is raising aspirations for all our pupils, and raising their ambitions as well. We want to show them what’s available to them, whether in Liverpool or the wider world.”
Mustafa Rahman opened Gulshan in 1986
20 post business professional
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Osprey Capital shifting focus from London to Liverpool by Neil Hodgson
Ronan Kearney is the founder of Osprey Capital
POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
VENTURE capitalist Ronan Kearney cut his teeth in London and now wants to bring investment opportunities to Merseyside. The 42-year-old financial specialist ran his own company, Fresh Options, for four years working with other venture capital companies. He said: “I did some business development consultancy, but didn’t have enough capital behind me. “It’s one of the business models they call ‘dependent on your own genius’. There’s only so much time you can work, so it is a capped model.” In 2008 he set up Osprey Capital, based in his home town of Warrington but working mostly in London, looking for small firms at the seed, or founder stage. He used all the family’s £50,000 of savings to make his first investment in a financial products company in 2009. “I focused on financial services because it is what I know.” After two-and-a-half years he exited his first investment with an 11.9-times return. Mr Kearney said: “Starting with a small amount you are very, very focused and you have to make sure the first bet works.” Since then he has made two further investments and said: “It has been a pretty successful run.” Last month he opened a Liverpool office in Exchange Flags aimed at pursuing opportunities in Liverpool. He said: “You have to go where the business is when you start, but over the next five years I want to try and shift the focus out of London to the Merseyside region and make the mountain come to Mohammed. “You have to build your reputation, so if you say, ‘these companies here (Merseyside) are worth backing’ then hopefully people in London will say ‘if you think it’s worth it we will back it and buy it’.” He added: “I am going to invest for 30 years, so I don’t think, I have to do this in one or two or three years, because I have a really long investment horizon. I have a long term view on a company, but a short term view on cash, so they have to return – I roll my sleeves up and work in the company.” He said people thought he was mad to set up at the start of a downturn, but explained: “This was the bottom, when you buy low. “2008 was probably the time to invest when everything was at the bottom and had gone to hell in a hand-
Sir Michael leads the line-up at IoD event SIR MICHAEL BIBBY, managing director of logistics-to-financial services group Bibby Line, and Bruntwood chairman Michael Oglesby, head the bill for this year’s Institute of Directors (IoD) North West annual conference. The all-day event features business leaders revealing the secrets of their success and sharing stories from their careers with other entrepreneurs. It will be held at the Lowry Hotel in Salford on Tuesday, May 14. Sir Michael joined Bibby in 1992 as finance director following
Sir Michael Bibby
cart. When big businesses are making so much money in the good times why should they change what they do? In times like this you get an audience.” His growth strategy could involve recruiting a couple of partners, to diversify: “I know nothing about the fashion industry, for example, but if I brought a partner on board with those
skills we could start investing in that area.” One area he has identified is the links between the region and China, specifically Peel Holdings’ plans for an international trade centre in Wirral Waters: “I would like to think in the next five or 10 years I could establish businesses as the partner of choice for
Chinese companies looking to come here who are looking for help, expertise and capital. “Even if it works in a very tiny way it would be enough to open the door and it is the door opening that you want. Make the first one a success and you will be doing it the rest of your life.”
several years as a chartered accountant and later at Unilever. The Liverpool-based firm is now one of the largest businesses in the region. Mr Oglesby founded Bruntwood in 1978. The company, still family-owned, is now one of the leading property owners in the North, with more than 100 sites, including several in Liverpool, worth more than £1bn. Darrell Matthews, regional director of IoD North West, said: “We have assembled a great line-up. “These business leaders will be revealing the secrets of their success, but they will also be reflecting on challenges they have faced and how they overcame them.”
on the move ■
NORTH West law firm Birchall Blackburn has appointed Clive Mackintosh as its new head of employment law. The 52-year-old, from Liverpool, has more than 25 years’ experience and joins Birchall Blackburn from Hattons solicitors where he was head of employment. Mr Mackintosh is an experienced employment and commercial lawyer who also specialises in
insurance fraud. He will oversee the firm’s employment team across its 10 offices, as well as develop the firm’s insurance related products. The firm’s offices include locations in Southport, Formby, Chester and Formby.
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BARCLAYS has strengthened its Liverpool team by appointing corporate financier Steve Butler to the role of relationship director.
Mr Butler is part of an 11-strong team covering Merseyside from their offices in Chapel Street. He will specialise in clients in the manufacturing sector with a turnover in excess of £5m.
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SALLY Carron has joined the marketing team at data8, the Chester-based data enrichment specialist. One of her key objectives will be developing
and implementing core strategies to promote Integr8, the real time data validation side of data8. A CIM qualified marketer, Ms Carron said: “I am pleased to be joining data8 at this exciting time and look forward to helping data8 reach new markets and expand existing ones. My role will be to look forward and deliver the brand to a wider audience.”
Clive Mackintosh – Birchall Blackburn
Steve Butler – new relationship director
Sally Carron – will be promoting data8
style post business 21
Thursday, May 9, 2013
A growing taste for personal grooming sweeps the city
Neil Hodgson finds that personal grooming is high on the list of aspiring businesspeople
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Laura Scaife @RegardingLaw wrote: “Extremely important it’s a first impression, however it should not overshadow your professional image.”
T
IME was when a few splashes of Brut 33 – as recommended by boxing icon ‘Enery Cooper – and a handful of Brylcreem through the hair made you feel like the bees knees. How times change, though. Today, the more fashion conscious in the office are more likely to favour the odd waxing, some serious cuticle action, or a good old eyebrow plucking to raise spirits and confidence. There has been a proliferation of beauty salons and hair salons expanding their offer for clients in the city over the past decade in response to more image and fashion conscious consumers, including many in the business world. Liverpool salon Voodou, which serves men and women, began its personal grooming service eight years ago and has seen a growing appetite for it. Voodou PR and marketing manager Emma Allison said its clients range in age from young students to middle-aged businessmen and women, perhaps driven by the 20% discount the chain offers to students and corporate clients. “Companies sign up and we get a lot of corporate clients,” she said. The grooming menu includes the full range of waxing, nail treatments, massages – from full body to legs, shoulder or head – facials, and the old-fashioned wet shaves using a cut throat razor which is favoured by the older generation: “The callus peel for feet is also popular, to remove dead
Twitter view on personal grooming
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Paul Moran @PaulMoran56 wrote: “First reaction? Oh, come on!! But...lack of personal grooming did Steve Jobs no harm in early days. If you're good enough....?”
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Mitch Poole @TheTweedCladCad wrote: “Sartorial elegance shows respect”
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Michael Black @blackymb wrote: “People make opinion on looks in first 20 seconds. I have some shirts ties for power meetings!!”
POST
MOBILE Donika Weston gives Ross Ball-Cargg a manicure at Voodou in Liverpool skin,” said Ms Allison. “We get middle-aged gents coming in regularly to have their nails tidied up and sporty gents for massages, as well as students studying sports.” Perhaps, understandably, women account for much of the client base,
but Ms Allison revealed the men are no slouches when it comes to a bit of pampering: “We’re looking at HD Brow treatment, which provides threading, waxing and plucking services to create the perfect brow shape. “It’s very popular in Liverpool, espe-
Picture: ANDREW DAVIDSON
cially with girls, but a couple of gents that come in to have their eyebrows plucked have enquired about it.” She added: “Grooming is a growing part of the business and we’re putting a lot of the marketing budget into beauty and grooming.”
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past business – nostalgia
How Typhoo’s top team made sure Mrs Jones’ tea always tasted the same
Typhoo’s tea tasting team in 1982, from left, supervisor John Rogers, with Bill Aitken, and Wendy Neale
MAKING a cup of tea many seem like a simple process – but for some staff at Typhoo in Moreton, it’s an art and a science rolled into one. Typhoo is one of the region’s hidden success stories, with many people in Wirral and beyond unaware that such a famous brand is based just round the corner. That might be down to the fact that Typhoo production at Moreton started relatively recently, in 1974, when the tea brand was part of Cadbury Schweppes. Four years later, all tea production was moved to Wirral from Cadbury’s Bournville plant. While the whizzing conveyor belts and packing machines are the most visible signs of the plant’s success. the tea tasting room was and remains at the heart of the business. In 1982, the Echo wrote: “The tea tasters’ job is to maintain a check on these blends so that Mrs Jones’ favourite brand of tea will taste and look the same, week by week, wherever she purchases it.” Explaining the tasting process, supervisor John Rogers said: “You have to ‘slurp’ it into your mouth.
“The action sprays the tea onto the back of your mouth, breaking down all the characteristics and hitting all your taste buds at once. “You should not leave the tea in your mouth too long. The first impression is always correct.” The Echo added: “John is an impressive sight as he passes along the line of bowls spooning, slurping and spitting with machine gun rapidity”. In 1985, Cadbury finally moved Typhoo’s blending department from Bourneville to Moreton, giving the Echo the chance to describe the precision of the tasters’ blending. It explained: “Half a pint of vigorously boiling water is poured onto 5.65 grammes of tea. “The tea is then brewed for exactly six minutes (it is stirred once after three minutes). The tea is then milked ready for tasting.” Teas were tested both with Moreton soft water and hard water from London, while a tailored computer counted how many perforations there were in individual tea bags.
Pictured at Typhoo’s expanded tea tasting department in Moreton, Wirral, in 1985 are, from left, John Tugman, technical manager for tea, with Cadbury Schweppes’ chief ALISTAIR HOUGHTON executive Dominic Cadbury and director Geoff Hancock
22 post business end piece
trading gossip ■
LOW-COST airline Ryanair has had another difficult week with complaining punters. The airline has agreed to pay out £400 to Simon Couzens who discovered that a flight he booked from Stansted to Croatia discovered that he would have paid less had he booked it from Croatia. However, it looks like Ryanair is aiming to distract its potential Liverpool customers away from such issues by calming them with sweet music. To promote its flights from Liverpool to Cork, Derry, Dublin, Shannon and Knock, the carrier organised a traditional music session, below, at the Liverpool One retail development. The music was arranged in conjunction with Tourism Ireland and Ryanair’s Lisa Cashin said: “Ryanair was
delighted to treat the huge Irish community in Liverpool to an outdoor traditional music session.” But will it strike the right note with passengers?
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LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY organisers could have been forgiven for having a 19th nervous breakdown after a technology failure left a star guest stranded. Former Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham was the keynote speaker at Friday’s music business conference. Loog Oldham, who worked for Beatles boss Brian Epstein before helping the Stones to global domination, was due onstage at 4.30 at, appropriately enough, the Epstein Theatre. By 4.45 he still hadn’t appeared, and the audience started wondering if they’d ever get no satisfaction. But then, Sound City boss Dave Pichilingi bounded onto the stage to reveal that the guest speaker had in fact been stuck in a lift for the past 15 minutes. And, to warm applause, the star man then strode onstage for a revealing, if sometimes prickly, chat with DJ and author Dave Haslam. Trading Gossip wonders if that will be the last time Loog Oldham relies on a lift to get to his speaking engagements.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
City restaurant manager who loves to be in at the deep end myday off Jesney Chong is general manager at Liverpool’s Sapporo Teppanyaki restaurant and in her spare time is a keen scuba diver
I
WAS born in Malaysia and I began working at Sapporo Teppanyaki eight years ago, starting as a head attendant and working my way up through the business to my current position as general manager. I have now been in this role for three years. Sapporo is an award-winning restaurant based in Duke Street and is known in the city for its fun and entertaining Japanese teppanyaki concept. More than 1,200 people flock to the restaurant each week to experience the theatrics of the chefs who cook food in front of diners whilst creating dramatic flambés on the teppanyaki grill and juggle with ingredients before serving up Japanese-themed cuisine. I manage a 35 -strong team of chefs, bar and waiting staff and am responsible for the impeccable running and growth of this busy restaurant. In 2011, I discovered a passion for scuba diving and have never looked back. I was on holiday with a friend in Portugal and stumbled across a scuba diving school on the beach. I’ve always been pretty adventurous and was inspired by the opportunity to learn a new skill, so my friend and I decided to give it a go. I was instantly hooked on the tranquillity of life beneath the surface of the water and knew I had found a new love. Diving in Portugal was an illuminating experience and I took pleasure in every opportunity to get my apparatus on and embrace the unique feeling of breathing underwater – it’s incredibly peaceful and relaxing. The most fascinating thing about diving is that it gives you access to a whole new world beneath the sea and I love discovering marine life that I’ve never seen before. From big fish to tiny amoebas (elegant sea horses are my favourite), it’s inspiring to observe this hidden environment that’s absolutely full of life. When I returned from Portugal, I was incredibly keen to get back to diving and complete my Padi Open Water course. I now dive at Aquaventurers in Liverpool every week to maintain my stamina and overall fitness. Being fit and healthy is essential for scuba diving – running around the restaurant all day and night does help – and it’s always key to be a team player
Jesney Chong with her scuba diving gear – she says staying fit is essential and keep a level head at all times. These skills were put to the test when I was diving with a close friend of mine in the UK. She got into difficulty and her regulator was knocked out. The regulator is responsible for supplying air on-demand. This was a little scary but I had been trained in my diving qualification to react to this situation and shared my breathing apparatus with her until it had been secured back in place. My dream would be to explore land and sea in stunning countries such as the Maldives and Malaysia, where the sea life is amazing and there is the real oppor-
tunity to discover something unique. The Maldives is known for having a huge diversity of marine life, with stunning corals and more than 2,000 species of fish, as well and being home to the whale shark. The warm tropical seas of Malaysia are peppered with shipwrecks, including some of the most storied of World War II, which would be a mesmerising experience. I am travelling to Malaysia in October this year and can’t wait to uncover the delights there. For me, scuba diving is one of the most fulfilling activities out there and I am delighted to have discovered it. I recommend it to everyone.
Picture: COLIN LANE
‘My dream would be to go and dive in the Maldives’
Sapporo Teppanyaki
Thursday, May 9, 2013
end piece
23 post business
networking
The brasserie at the Malmaison Hotel
my favourite lunch
Sounds of the city
LIVERPOOL Town Hall hosted the official launch event for Liverpool Sound City. Conference speakers including former Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham, left, attended to hear
music from performers including The Hummingbirds. Phil Blything, above left, of Glow New Media, and Paul Corcoran, above right, of Agent Marketing, were among the attendees.
Olé to wine tasting DIANE BURBIDGE, service development manager with Chinese Wellbeing, left, and Julie Johnson, practice manager at Morecrofts Solicitors, raise a glass to a Spanish wine tasting held upstairs at Hardman Street’s
Mark Blankstone, director of Blankstone Opticians Q What is your favourite lunch venue? A The brasserie at Liverpool’s Malmaison Hotel. Q Why is this your favourite venue? A Its ambience sets it apart from the rest plus it’s an innovator. You wouldn’t necessarily think of a hotel brasserie as first choice to eat but once you’ve experienced Mal, as it’s known, you keep going back.
Fly In the Loaf pub last Thursday, presented by Ian Clarke of Morgenrot Wines. The venue, owned by Isle of Man brewer Okells, is planning to launch a series of supper clubs in its function room.
Q What is your favourite dish and why? A The wild mushroom risotto with tarragon and mascarpone is a delight. It reminds me of sunnier climes. It’s on the Sunday lunch menu, which is awesome.
Bodega launch night
CUSTOMERS “old and new” gathered for the relaunch party of the Bodega Bar & Tapas in Waterloo. Food drinks and entertainment, flamenco dancers, were all provided for guests
at the event at the South Road venue. Pictured, from left, are Katie Brown, Mareen Gledhill and Keith and Shirley Duell. Ms Gledhill is the owner of the venure
Q What is the best bit of business you have done over lunch? A Meeting legend in his field, Oliver Goldsmith, who has since given us exclusive right to his collection in Liverpool. He has spent half a century designing for celebrities and royalty and now we have his beautiful yet affordable collection in our showroom. Q Who would you most like
business diary MONDAY, MAY 13
BUSINESSES in the North West are being encouraged to take part in a UK Trade & Investment (UKTI)-backed week of events aimed at boosting the region’s exports to a wide range of high growth markets. In the North West this will include free events focusing on India, Eastern Europe, Central and Latin America, starting with a launch in Liverpool showcasing opportunities. Visit www.exportweek.ukti.gov .uk for further details of events.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 15
ENTERPRISING Merseyside has organised an evening session entitled Be Your Own Boss, for the Knowsley area. The free workshop, from 6pm to 8pm, is aimed at anyone who has a great idea for a business but isn’t sure what to should do next. Hosted at Our Place, Longview Drive, Huyton, the event is informal, and, say organisers, is the best way to find out everything you need to start your own business. For further information call 0845 340 9980.
MONDAY, MAY 27
THE Employability and Skills Group of companies is holding a series of open days at its Liverpool operation in Bold Street. It invites schools and pupils, parents, teachers, heads of departments and careers advisors, training providers, job centres, community agencies, and employers to its informal events, from 10am to 4pm, on the second floor of Link 19 in Bold Street’s Central Village. Refreshments are included. It says the open days will provide an opportunity to find out how ESG staff can help individuals to obtain full time jobs via the apprenticeship programme. For
further details contact Jules Westbrook or Pauline O’Brien on 0151 702 6111.
THURSDAY, MAY 30
EXPORT Sales – winning orders overseas, is a course offered by Liverpool Chamber of Commerce that is aimed at companies involved in the manufacturing or services sectors; business development or sales managers and senior personnel responsible for identifying and winning international business; and those new or inexperienced in international marketing as well as more established exporters looking to develop their sales techniques and learn practical new skills. Examples
and exercises are used throughout the workshop to illustrate the key elements, and consideration is given to the individual objectives of participating companies with delegates encouraged to share their own experiences. The course takes place from 9.30am to 4pm at the chamber’s Old Hall Street offices and costs £200 for chamber members, or £250 for non-members. For more information visit www.liverpoolchamber. org.uk/ eventitem.aspx/ show/473 or to attend email export@liverpool chamber.org.uk
TUESDAY, JUNE 4
ST HELENS Chamber of Com-
Mark Blankstone with his wife Lisa to have lunch with? A My wife, Lisa, is always who I would most like to lunch with, followed by Kenny Dalglish or Steven Gerrard. Q Where else do you like to go for lunch? A I also like to go to lunch at Challains in Derby Square, Liverpool city centre. The food and service is excellent, they have a great outdoor vista and it’s a great place to watch the world go by.
merce is staging an advanced online marketing workshop aimed at people who already possess a basic understanding of online marketing and wish to build on it. It will help attendees understand how to design and build a truly search engine optimised (SEO) website and discover how to maximise the number of relevant website visitors through advanced SEO techniques and practices. It costs £49 (excl VAT) for chamber members or £99 (excl VAT) for non-members. Visit www.sthelens chamber.com/booking to book.
THURSDAY, JUNE 6
LIVERPOOL Hope University
has organised a business breakfast event, from 7.30am to 9.30am, on the impact of the Atlantic Gateway. Aimed at the construction, charity, creative, international trade, environment, retail, tourism, manufacturing, professional, and transport sectors, it will feature as keynote speaker Susan Williams, executive director of Atlantic Gateway, who will talk on “The Potential of Atlantic Gateway”. For further information please contact Becky Rawlinson at rawlinb@ hope.ac.uk or 0151-291 3005. ■ Send your diary events to neil.hodgson @liverpool.com
24
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Come and celebrate the dynamic, passionate and inspirational businesses from across the region at a gala awards dinner and awards ceremony. Hosted by Peter Sissons onThursday June 13, 2013 at St George’s Hall the awards are a must attend event. To book your table call 0151 472 2570 or to request more information email events@liverpool.com For more information about the awards visit www.regionalbusinessawards.co.uk or follow us @LP_RBA Thursday June 13, 2013 is about business in our region.