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Thursday, May 16, 2013
Technology Strategy Board boosts funding for innovations THE Technology Strategy Board has boosted its annual budget for the year by more than £50m to £440m. The innovation agency will use the funding to support innovative businesses and drive growth across the UK. Universities and Science Minister David Willetts unveiled the board’s 2013-14 delivery plan which outlined
the technology areas that will benefit from investments, such as renewable energy, future cities, advanced materials, satellites, digital technologies and healthcare. Mr Willetts said: “The UK has some of the most innovative business in the world. “The £440m budget means that there will be more funding available than ever before
for businesses across the country to bid for and help turn their ideas into reality.” He added: “The Technology Strategy Board is making a real difference in driving growth and keeping the UK at the forefront of the global race for innovation. “Over 60% of funding is going to small- and mediumsized businesses (SMEs),
meaning that there are great opportunities for businesses to thrive, grow and generate jobs.” The Technology Strategy Board works across business, academia and Government, helping companies take ideas through to commercialisation. Independent research shows that every £1 invested by the board returns £7 to the
UK economy. Board chief executive Iain Gray said: “Everything we do is driven by the desire to help UK business bring new ideas and technologies to market and so support economic growth. This delivery plan outlines the range of ways in which we do that, from direct funding, to access to expertise, facilities and finance.”
Liverpool launchpad in UKTI ‘Export Week’ programme by Neil Hodgson
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neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
MINISTER for Trade & Investment, Lord Green kick-started Export Week in Liverpool. He delivered the keynote speech of UK Trade & Investment’s (UKTI) drive to encourage more UK exports at the city’s Hilton Hotel on Monday before visiting advanced manufacturing firm ChargePoint Technology in Speke. The week-long campaign will comprise more than 50 events nationwide. ChargePoint exports up to 90% of its products and is already one of UKTI North West’s Export Champions – a selection of successful exporting firms working with UKTI to help encourage and advise other businesses. It designs and manufactures high containment valves for use in the pharmaceutical industry. This niche product is used to safely transfer the highly potent active ingredients which make up less than one per cent of finished drugs from one piece of equipment to another. The valves not only protect workers from the active ingredients, but safeguard the products themselves from being damaged by the environment. ChargePoint has been trading since 2008, when it was spun out from pharmaceutical firm PSL UK (Liverpool) where it used to be a business unit. Managing director Chris Eccles and the management team spotted the commercial potential for the valves and bought the company under a £1m management buyout. The business now employs 45 staff and undertakes all its own research and development, manufacture and assembly at its Speke Plant. Its export markets include India, Hungary, Slovenia, Poland, China, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan and Singapore and the company is looking towards trading with Russia, which it believes will become a major market in the future. Mr Eccles said: “As well as the traditional markets of Western Europe and America, we are always looking out for opportunities in developing
Lord Green, left, and Clive Drinkwater pictured at Liverpool’s Hilton Hotel earlier this week markets and believe that, although the pharmaceutical industry in some of these markets is not yet at the stage where they need our products, they will develop in the next few years and prove to be very important trading partners.” Speaking about Export Week, Lord Green said: “High growth markets are changing the face of international business – these are the world’s grow-
ing economies which offer tomorrow’s opportunities. “With so many millions of potential new customers, low-cost communications, and improving infrastructure, the time to act is now. “It is very encouraging to meet businesses such as ChargePoint, who take exporting seriously and have a clear strategy to grow their business internationally, and during Export Week we
BT expands wi-fi coverage for region BT Wi-fi has reached nearly 400,000 hotspots in the North West, with more than 16,100 in Liverpool and more than 16,600 in Wirral. Across the UK and Ireland BT has added
more than 20,000 new hotspots each week over the past year taking the total to five million. It saw over 400m connections across its wi-fi network in the year to March and latest figures
show users’ online wi-fi time is increasing, with minutes more than tripling in the same period. Mike Blackburn, BT’s North West director, said: “We are seeing growing use of our net-
work as wi-fi users spend more time online and use more data.” Hotspots are available at brands like Starbucks, GAME, John Lewis, Network Rail and Hilton.
want to invite more companies to do the same.” Clive Drinkwater, UKTI North West director, added: “The ability to trade anywhere in the world will be a defining characteristic of the most successful business of the future, enabling them to reach many millions of potential new customers and we want to help companies achieve this objective.”
Joy for Kasim LIVERPOOL University graduate Kasim Javed, founder of mobile phone recycling venture Money For Your Phone, has been named as one of the Future 50 Young Social Entrepreneurs of the Year in a national awards programme by Striding Out Community Interest Company.
MP hails Hertel’s record on local jobs
A FIRM which invested £4m in a purpose-built Ellesmere Port site has just created its 20th job a year after its opening. Construction and maintenance company Hertel also employs 11 apprentices at the fabrication workshop in Cloister Way and the success of the operation has been welcomed by Ellesmere Port and Neston MP Andrew Miller. On a site visit he said: “Hertel is one of the vitally important companies in the supply chain which is highly successful in providing support services to local petrochemical sites such as the Stanlow refinery. “They might be hidden from direct view but they have an invaluable role in creating jobs in the area, as we have seen with the new roles. “It is particularly pleasing to see the opportunities being created for apprenticeships in these vital skills for the area.” John Salkeld, Hertel UK and Ireland director, said the company’s decision to invest £4m in Ellesmere Port has proved to be the right one: “We had outgrown our previous workshop and we took our time to find the right location which met our needs as well as that of our clients. “Cloister Way has provided us with a purpose-built facility which also has room to expand. “With the greater efficiency and increased productivity the workshop has allowed we have been able to increase our workforce and offer apprenticeships with training and employment to local youngsters.”
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Thursday, May 16, 2013
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Hope University agrees to sponsor city tennis tournament LIVERPOOL Hope University is to be the official title sponsor for the Liverpool International Tennis Tournament. The event, to be held at Calderstones Park from June 20 to 23, will welcome tennis stars such as Virginia Wade, Fabrice Santoro and West Lancashire’s own Barry Cowan.
Leading up to the tournament will be the “biggest tennis exhibition in Europe”, a three -week Festival of Tennis which kicks off on May 28 to encourage wider participation in the sport. Ian McKenna, director of development at Liverpool Hope University, said: “We are excited to be sponsoring the
tournament. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to support a world-class event in our local community as well as give our students the chance to experience international level tennis. “We are also particularly keen to be involved with the excellent Festival of Tennis at Chavasse Park and help to
promote sport and a healthy lifestyle to children in Liverpool. “At Liverpool Hope we offer a range of degrees focusing on health promotion including health and well-being, nutrition and sport and physical education.” Tournament director Anders Borg added: “As one of
the main warm-up events to Wimbledon, we will be joined by some of the world’s biggest tennis players and new rising stars, combined with legends of the game.” Sponsorship and corporate hospitality packages are still available. For more information visit: www.liverpooltennis.co.uk.
Founders of Scouse greetings cards venture get MSIF funds by Neil Hodgson
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neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
A NEW city business is using Liverpool’s distinct accent and dialect to produce a range of greetings cards. Oneida Enterprises, which is trading as Cards4Scousers.com, has been set up by business partners Gary Carney and John Jacobsen. It will offer a full range of cards on its website featuring local phrases, slang and terms of endearment, such as ‘Happy Birthday Kidda’, or ‘To My Bird on Our Anniversary’, and ‘Ta-ra Lad’ for a leaving card. Cards4Scousers has been set up with support from local funding providers Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF) who provided a £10,000 loan which was used alongside personal investment from the founders to help with start up costs. Mr Carney said: “Scousers have a very strong sense of local identity and we thought that a range of greetings cards featuring distinct Scouse catchphrases would really appeal to people here. “So far, we have hundreds of designs for all members of the family and special occasions throughout the year.” He added: “We are using a range of social media, such as Twitter and Facebook to promote the business, but we also need to invest in some advertising and other marketing which is what we will use MSIF’s funding for.” He also explained that they plan to expand their idea to a much wider audience. “Cards4scousers will be our leading brand but we are also looking for opportunities to bring out a similar range in other parts of the UK where there is a strong regional identity.” MSIF investment director Chris Walters said: “Gary and John have done their homework and know that there is a market for this. I think it will particularly appeal to those sending cards to ‘exiled’ Scousers living abroad or in other parts of the UK. “Other personalised card companies, such as Moonpig, have done very well and this is really a different spin on a similar concept.”
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STEP INTO MY OFFICE Wayne Locke, director of Ashtenne Space Northwest
‘At the moment there's a bit of News, an For institutional Sport and bias in that Business everybody on your has gone phone Text LDP M25-centric to 67800 as to where they want to put their money. I see this as a bit of a brick on an elastic band. We see Liverpool as a great prospect and hence we’re spending a few bob on some of the assets we have up here’ Full video interview, at www. ldpbusiness. co.uk
Lufthansa in luxury offer John Jacobson, left, with Chris Walters from MSIF and Gary Carney with some of their cards
VW centre’s community support LIVERPOOL’S Volkswagen Van Centre is seeking to boost youth sports clubs by offering a number of sponsorship packages. The move is part of a community and family programme supported by the
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Speke-based firm’s parent company, Swansway Garages. Volkswagen Van Centre is inviting local sport teams and clubs to stake a claim for support. Its head of business, Dave Cowan, said: “Whether you’re
a football, cricket, hockey, netball or rugby club and are looking for sponsorship to help increase the number of children playing sport, then we want to hear from you.” To apply go to www.liver poolvwcv.co.uk/sponsorship
Brabners success THE Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) has appointed law firm Brabners Chaffe Street to its new legal business partnership scheme for REC members. Following a tender process, commercial law firm Brabners Chaffe Street was chosen along with specialist debt recovery law firm Francis Wilks & Jones LLP.
GERMAN carrier Lufthansa is trialing a free chauffeur-driven service for its passengers in a 50-mile radius of Manchester Airport. Anyone booking first class Lufthansa or Swiss flights will be driven to and from the airport in style. Lufthansa general manager for the UK and Ireland Christian Schindler said: “This is an added benefit for our premium passengers in the North West.”
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post business big feature
Bill Gleeson Have we seen the end of brewing at Stanhope Street? IS THIS city in danger of running dry of beer? Cains, and before it Higsons, were almost a staple of the local diet. For the time being at least, the famous bitters and lagers won’t be brewed after a decision was taken to terminate production at Cains Stanhope Street brewery. As things stand, negotiations are underway with a third party brewer to make Cains products, but that deal has yet to be done. In the meantime, there is no beer being produced. I wonder how many days or weeks of stocks are held in reserve. We knew something was afoot at Cains. The owners had told us so in a set piece announcement. The Dusanj brothers want to redevelop the brewery as a supermarket, flats and hotel. What has come as a surprise is the pace of the closure and the loss of 38 jobs. While we were told that the canning operation on behalf of supermarkets was no longer profitable, the brewing of Cains own beers was to carry on. That, at least, was the state of play just a few weeks ago. My hunch is, however, that we have seen the last of brewing at the historic site. There simply is no profit margin in it. THE recommendations contained within the covers of Lord Young’s report Growing Your Business, published earlier this week, are designed to encourage enterprise in Britain. They have their appeal. It’s the suggestions the Prime Minister’s special adviser made verbally that proved to be controversial. The idea of abolishing an upper limit for enterprise support is a good one. Why have an age limit? Other factors, such as the size of a budding entrepreneur’s bank balance, would be more relevant in determining whether the state should offer financial support to an individual. What didn’t go down so well was the idea that it could be a good time to start a business because certain costs, including wage costs, could be screwed down in these tough times. It is of course true that wage costs have been
held down by difficult economic conditions and businesses have benefited from this. However, some chose to interpret Lord Young’s words to imply that he thought this was laudable. That of course is not what he meant. The fact is many people have already started their own businesses in recent years, not because it is a good time to start a business, but because their only other choice was to sign on for benefits. Small businesses of all types are cropping up everywhere at the moment. The rush to enterprise has contributed to lower than anticipated unemployment. Yes, it’s true that more talented people might be available to recruit than in boom times. Landlords will be prepared to offer cheaper rents. Interest rates are low. Yet recessions are never the best time to start a business for the obvious reason that demand is slack. If I were in business, I would much prefer to have to struggle with problems of boom conditions than recession. It would be preferable to struggle to fill all the orders coming through the door due to a lack of staff than have to pass half the week twiddling thumbs. Businesses don’t want to operate in a low wage market. They need high wage markets. We need people to feel they have spare cash rather than to feel squeezed by opportunistic employers. IT’S like the good old days again. Conservative backbenchers are giving their current leader the sort of treatment they gave John Major 20 years ago over Europe. This time they struck just as David Cameron was in the United States trying to raise the prospect of creating a transatlantic free trade area. The fact is, however, that if there are to be serious negotiations with the US about the opening up of markets, Britain’s hand in those talks will be stronger for being part of Europe. The EU’s economy is a similar size to America’s whereas Britain’s economy is about one-eighth of the size of US output.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Omega project Work on Warrington’s Omega scheme starts – more than decade after it was proposed. Tony McDonough reports
I
N DECEMBER 2000, the Liverpool Post ran a story about a shortlist of “major international property developers” who were in the running to lead the construction of the huge £1bn mixed-use scheme, known as Omega, planned for the site of the former Burtonwood air base near Warrington. In that article, we reported how the development of the 558-acre site would take 10 years and see the creation of up to 12,000 jobs. What we didn’t know at the time is that it would be another 12 years until a spade would enter the ground. Throughout the noughties, the project saw a number of false dawns. Miller Developments was eventually chosen as the lead developer by site owner, English Partnerships (now the Homes and Communities Agency), with its funding partner to be Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). Miller put out regular statements saying it was hoped work “would begin soon” but the scheme hit problems. In particular, the Highways Agency expressed concerns that Omega would lead to congestion on the nearby motorway network. It wasn’t until June 2007 that that Warrington Council granted outline planning permission for phases one and two of Omega which would see the construction of 1.6m of logistics space at Omega North and 1.5m sq ft of office and ancillary development at Omega South. In 2008 it was revealed the Ministry of Justice was looking at building a prison on part of the site with the capacity for up to 2,500 inmates. This sparked howls of protests from people living in the vicinity and that particular project never came to fruition. At this point, the vehicle set up to deliver Omega – Omega Warrington Limited (OWL) – was still confident work on the overall scheme would soon begin. However, as is now well documented, 2008 was the year the wheels started to come off the global economy. By 2009, the credit crunch was a reality and the industrial demand OWL was depending on to make Omega happen collapsed. Andy Farrall, Warrington Council’s executive director for environment and regeneration, explained: “Just as the recession was starting, Miller had signed up a significant number of investors for the scheme. “Then Lehman Brothers (the huge US investment bank) went down the tubes and interest in Omega disappeared overnight – the recession hit it badly.” For the next couple of years after that little was said publicly about Omega and it felt like perhaps it may never happen at all – certainly not on the scale originally envisaged. However, OWL never gave up and carried on working behind the scenes with the support of the council and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), as well as the recently-formed Warrington & Cheshire Local Enterprise Partnership. Late in 2010 it was reported that talks with potential occupiers were under way and just before Christmas last year it was revealed that OWL had struck a deal with grocery and fresh food supplier Brakes to
Workers and dignitaries at the start of work on Omega and, inset, computer-generated images of two of the current projects build a 200,000 sq ft distribution depot on Omega North. The first phase also included a £7m access road into the site. It allowed OWL to announce that Omega was now “open for business”. In early April, there was more good news. Warrington Council approved a £100m plan for a 600,000 sq ft logistics centre at Omega South. The scheme would involve building a warehouse and offices on 28 acres for an as yet unnamed occupier. Two more major deals swiftly followed. It mid-April it was announced that LaSalle Investment Management was to fund a £17m parcel handling distribution depot, measuring 156,000 sq ft, for Hermes Parcelnet at Omega North. Hermes will occupy the facility at Omega North on a 20-year lease. And earlier this month, OWL said it had signed a “subject to planning” deal with building sector supplier, Travis Perkins Group, to build the company a 700,000 sq ft distribution centre. Andrew Sutherland, joint managing
‘Since the recession we have all worked very hard’
director of Miller Developments, said: “The level of occupier success we have achieved at Omega North since Christmas is unprecedented throughout not only the North West but the whole of the UK. The fact that, subject to planning being granted, we have only two small sites left on Omega North demonstrates that we have now created a major logistics hub in the North West.” The two sites left on Omega North are 2.9 acres close to junction 8 on the motorway frontage, and 3.2 acres next to Brakes. Both sites are capable of meeting requirements for 50,000 sq ft of logistics accommodation. There is also still an aim to provide office space on Omega South. Andy Farrall believes the changing retail environment in the UK – with an increasing number of people buying goods online – has been an important factor in Omega’s breakthrough. He said: “Since the recession hit, everyone involved in Omega has worked hard to change the project to make it more achievable. “For example, the original masterplan envisaged a lot more office space and that is not possible in the the current economic environment. We have looked
Thursday, May 16, 2013
big feature post business
5
finally becomes reality
Miller Group director Jonathan Wallis
Andy Farrall from Warrington Council more seriously at change of use and it has taken time because these days it takes much longer to persuade investors to take part. “The rebalancing of the economy towards industrial and logistics has been very important. The rise in internet shopping has meant a greater demand for distribution space and Omega is wonderfully-placed to take advantage of that.” Miller, the Scottish-based property group that is leading the development, has stuck with Omega despite the setbacks. One of its directors, Jonathan Wallis, said the continued co-operation of everyone involved had been a key factor in persuading the company to stay on board. “Having the right blend of public-private partnership has been critical to the eventual delivery,” he said. “This has been coupled with the persistence of OWL over the years. “Working closely with HCA and Warrington Council in particular has been very positive. For example, on planning the turnaround has been very quick. “That kind of certainty is always very
good for developers and has enabled us to deliver this in spite of the worst economic climates we have seen in recent times. “When we commit to something at Miller we do so for the long term – Andrew Sutherland has been involved with Omega from the start.” Mr Wallis agrees that the changing face of retail distribution has been one factor but says the current lack of supply in the industrial market was a more important aspect of the success in getting Omega out of the ground. He added: “If you look at the current market conditions in the logistics sector there is a shortage of immediately-available product, close to prime motorway junctions and with planning permission.” Omega is benefiting from some public funding – some £3m from the Growing Places Fund for the access road – but this will be paid back by the end of the year and it is very much private sector investment that is driving the scheme. Mr Wallis said: “All the projects so far have involved pre-lets and currently there are no plans to build speculatively –
‘Having the right publicprivate blend’
although we do revisit that from time to time.” The success of Omega after such a long wait is testament to the resurgence of the Warrington economy in general. That’s the view of council leader Terry O’Neill who claims the town and its surrounding areas are now “buzzing” with confidence. He said: “Timing in life is everything. Although we have been in a recession we have still been working hard to grow the economy. “From the day I took office in May 2011 I have made business engagement my top priority. As well as Omega we also have investment coming into the town itself.” Omega brings great potential for jobs and Cllr O’Neill says one of his big priorities now is to make sure there is a skilled and educated workforce locally. “I set up a schools commission last October because companies were telling me we had a skills gap,” he said. “I found there was very little careers advice available. Training providers were taking money and training people to be things such as ‘nail technicians’ and they are not the skills we most need. “I am trying to make sure the local supply chain is the main contributor to the Omega project.”
Warrington Council’s leader, Terry O’Neill
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Thursday, May 16, 2013
post business wealth management IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Earning trust is paramount to successful client relations market analysis
by Derek Gawne
LIVERPOOL OFFICE OF CHARLES STANLEY FROM a consumer point of view, a fair exchange is primarily to do with delivery. In contractual terms, the product or service should deliver on the promise made by the provider for the pre-agreed price. In the event it does not, the provider should be bound to either make good on his promise or make redress. This is what consumers expect as a matter of legal right. The trouble is, of course, that buying a financial product or service is different from buying a new car, washing machine or pair of jeans. With the best will in the world, product delivery cannot always be guaranteed; a fixed price cannot always be set; and pre-agreed and negative returns cannot always be corrected. This, however, rather misses the point. The majority of consumers understand there are risks attached to investing and there are limits to which those risks can be mitigated. But in any case, the promise of a positive return is not, in many instances, what they are buying. The confusion that this lack of clarity creates has been one of the prime causes for the UK’s household savings ratio being less than seven per cent, whereas the European ratios are typically 11% to 15%. In other words, Britons save considerably less than most of the rest of Europe. Research shows the chief reasons putting people off saving in the UK are the three Cs: complexity, confidence and cost. Generally speaking, ordinary, non-professional investors do not understand the products or services being sold to them, do not trust the people selling them and think that, whatever they buy, they are likely to be overcharged. Which of these three Cs exerts the most negative influence? We don’t
know, but the fact remains perceived high costs are contributing to putting people off from saving. As a consequence investors should be encouraged to look for a service-led solution rather than a product that, by its nature, is homogenous and designed for the many rather than the one. The most important challenge facing the investment industry is how to rebuild consumer trust. One of the most convincing ways for it to achieve this would be for providers to adopt more equitable pricing structures that respect and reflect customers’ common understanding of what constitutes a fair exchange. If you claim to be an investment expert, then you should be duty-bound to demonstrate that expertise results in performance to the customer’s advantage. They are buying expertise and service. This is what is being promised and paid for and is what investors should be able to hold providers to account for. What type of investment service is most attractive in these circumstances? In our view it is one where the client is the first and foremost part of the deal. Find a provider who listens to you, acts on your specific requirements and builds a solution that is solely destined for you and no-one else. An off-the-shelf product that can be applied to hundreds, thousands or millions of clients may be relatively suitable to you – but not designed as your solution. Similarly, a product for all, or at least the many, will be priced to suit the provider and not the individual. Being homogenised is not a service, it is an easy solution for the provider. Products perceived to be overpriced or unfairly priced are less likely to be bought than products that are perceived to be fairly priced. Remarkably, this unremarkable piece of near-tautology seems to go largely overlooked in the debate on costs, charges and fees that continues to rage post-Retail Distribution Review. However, a service performing to its specific remit and in whatever market conditions and results attuned to the buyer’s requirements will flourish. The era of the client/investor being the most important party is still alive and well – providers of this type of service should be sought after.
notes ■
THE Post Office is launching a new current account aimed at low-income customers who struggle to access mainstream banking. It is designed to appeal to those who are put off by unexpected penalties levied in certain instances for missed payments, which cost some customers £140 a year. The Control Account is one of three current accounts being launched by the Post Office today - in partnership with Bank of Ireland – in a pilot across 29 branches across East Anglia, as it seeks to beef up its presence on the high street as a major financial services provider. A full launch across the network is planned for 2014. Control Account customers will be asked to pay £5 a month to ensure that they do not face further banking charges when payments are returned unpaid for direct debits and standing orders. The minimum deposit for the account is £20.
■
HOME repossessions have remained near five-year lows as record-low interest rates help owners stay in their homes, industry figures showed. While repossessions ticked up slightly in the first three months of the year to 8,000 from 7,700 in the previous quarter, it was the second-lowest quarterly figure since the winter of 2007. The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said the repossession rate remained at 0.07% - meaning fewer than 1 in 4,000 mortgaged properties were taken into possession by lenders.
UK savings lag due to public’s lack of trust. Inset: Derek Gawne
Government action on pension charges
European petrol soaring
WORKERS automatically enrolled into pensions schemes will not see their savings raided to cover advice received by employers under a Government crackdown on rip-off charges. Pensions minister Steve Webb announced plans to tackle “high and inappropriate” pension fees by banning charges for advice given to employers for auto-enrolment schemes. He said it was the first step as part of a clampdown on consultancy charges following a six-month review that found more needed to be done to stop advisers deducting high fees from pension pots.
MOTORISTS will have to dig deeper into their pockets to drive on the Continent this summer. The cost of petrol has risen in most European countries compared with a year ago, a survey by Post Office Travel Money showed. The rise is particularly sharp, at 7.4%, in Spain, while the increase in another country where Britons often take their cars – France – is 4.7%. Of 17 European countries surveyed, only Croatia (down 3p a litre), the Czech Republic (down 1p), Switzerland (down 3p) and Denmark (down 7p) had cheaper petrol in April 2013 than in April
The Government also discovered that employees who move jobs regularly were being hit particularly hard by consultancy charges as they switched schemes. It added that it was looking at capping charges on the default funds within schemes following an investigation of the entire workplace pensions market by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and plans to publish a consultation in the autumn. Mr Webb said: “With millions of people taking up pension saving for the first time under automatic enrolment, we have to give people confidence that they will get good value for money.
“That is why we are banning consultancy charges, where scheme members end up paying for advice given to their employer,” Mr Webb added. Industry experts welcomed the move to stamp out the pension charges “scandal” amid fears of a rip-off for the 11m workers due to be enrolled under the automatic pension saving programme over the next five years. A recent investigation by Which? found that in the worst scenarios, some employers were prepared to pay charges for advice that would see the first year of a worker’s pension savings slashed by 50%.
2012. The least-expensive European petrol is to be found in Andorra (117p a litre), followed by Luxembourg (123p) and Croatia (124p). Spain’s petrol is 130p a litre - 9p more than in April 2012, while petrol in France is 7p up on last year at 156p. The most expensive of the countries surveyed for petrol was Norway where prices at the pumps have pushed up 7.2% to 179p a litre. Diesel, which is generally much cheaper in Europe than the UK, has nevertheless risen in most of the 17 countries.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Computer firm Stack sees high April sales IT AND cloud services provide, Stack Data Solutions, is hailing a record start to its financial year. Sales at the Bootle firm in April totalled £657,000 – an 18% increase on the sales figures for its entire first quarter in 2012. Last year’s total for April, May and June was an impressive £556,000 – a record high for the firm – yet one year on, this figure looks set to be dwarfed. The figures follow a string of client wins across the business, which provides bespoke IT services for a range of businesses and organisations across various sectors. Stack founder and chief executive, Jeff Orr, said: “As you can imagine, we’re all delighted by the sales figures at the start of the year. “To show such a marked leap in the space of 12 months is no mean feat, and is testament to the outstanding team we have here. “I also believe that our positive attitude has gone a long way. “Having been in business for nearly four decades, we have seen the economy pass through different cycles. “Over the last few years we have remained determined to work our way through the current difficult climate.”
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WORKERS at a business park in Prescot have been encouraged to go green to mark Walk to Work Week and Green Office Week this week. More than 1,000 people working at Kings Business Park in Prescot have been invited to find out more about walking or cycling to work, as well as how to save energy and reduce waste at a series of workshops. With a focus on green transport, the environment and health, there have been short workshops taking place with a different theme for each day. Activities for workers on Kings Business Park included competitions, health walks, taster bus passes and health checks.
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Birkenhead engineer IPS doubles staffing and targets growth
IPS Marine directors Paul Smith, left, and Peter Hillan, pictured at the Cammell Laird shipyard
GROWTH at Birkenhead engineering firm IPS Marine Fabrications has seen its workforce double to 30 in the past year. IPS, run by co-directors Paul Smith and Peter Hillan, delivers insulation and fabrication of steel and aluminium products and has enjoyed sustained growth since 2011 due, in part, to its relationship as a supplier to the Cammell Laird shipyard. Other deals in the marine and commercial industrial sectors include work for ferry operators as well as paper mills and hospitals across North Wales. Mr Smith said IPS had built on its success with an £80,000 investment in new equipment, adding: “This productive period has allowed us to invest and provide roles for our skilled local workforce.” He said: “We are now determined to continue driving growth in both the maritime and commercial industrial sectors.” Insulation work currently accounts for around 70% of sales, but the firm aims to grow its fabrication business so that it generates around half its sales. Mr Smith said the bulk of IPS’s workload is based throughout the North West. But he added that they now intend to broaden their reach and extend business operations across the rest of the UK.
Top line-up announced for city’s Accelerate 2013 festival by Neil Hodgson
Park’s push to go green
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POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
THE full running order for Accelerate 2013 has been unveiled, with the UK’s first festival for fast-growth businesses set to be headlined by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. More than 1,000 delegates are expected at the city’s Arena and Convention Centre on June 27, for a programme of speeches and debates looking at the best strategies for businesses targeting expansion. Highlights include Ajaz Ahmed, founder of international advertising agency AKQA which specialises in creating digital services and products, who will examine the impact of the digital age on British business, as well as Lord Young, the Prime Minister’s enterprise advisor, leading a session on how the Government backs fast-growing companies. General Sir Mike Jackson, former chief of the General Staff, will reveal the secrets of building the teams behind successful businesses, ahead of a panel debating the most effective ways of brand building. The panel will feature Ella’s Kitchen founder Paul Lindley, Betfair founder Ed Wray and Morgan
General Sir Mike Jackson Motor Company chairman Charles Morgan. Former Dragons’ Den panellist and School for Startups founder Doug Richard will discuss the mind-set behind a successful business with Dr Shailendra Vyakarnam, director of the University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School. And recent additions to the programme include former All Black captain Sean Fitzpatrick and Tech City UK chief executive Joanna Shields.
Since retiring from rugby, Fitzpatrick has forged a successful career in business and is widely recognised as being one of the world’s foremost leadership experts. Shields, the former managing director of Facebook, is responsible for the British Government’s mission to boost the capital’s tech cluster, using her 27-years of experience to create an environment where technology companies can flourish. Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, will open the event, which also includes contributions from BBC News business editor Robert Peston, and Michael Cawley, deputy chief executive of budget carrier Ryanair, who will be talking about the inside story of the ultimate challenger brand. The afternoon session will feature the Accelerate 250, which is a new community being created to represent the very best of British business. Accelerate 2013 is Britain’s first annual festival dedicated to high-growth businesses and it builds on Liverpool’s hosting of the Global Entrepreneurship Congress , the world’s largest international gathering of start-up champions which featured speakers such as Sir Richard Branson, Martha Lane Fox and Sir Terry Leahy.
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Thursday, May 16, 2013
post business the bottom line
Losses deepen at Daresbury aviation and surveillance firm by Bill Gleeson
POST BUSINESS STAFF
bill.gleeson@liverpool.com
DARESBURY based Anglo Design Holdings suffered a sharp drop in turnover and continued steep losses in the face of the prevailing tough economic conditions, according to accounts recently filed at Companies House. The group was forced to close its AD Aviation business during the year. AD Holdings, which also provides video surveillance services, reported a pre-tax loss of £6.1m in the year to June 2012, a deeper loss than the £5.3m recorded in the previous year. It renegotiated its borrowing facilities with its bankers last month, agreeing long term banking facilities that expire in March 2015. In addition, the group has secured a £1m overdraft. The directors’ report states: “Based on the directors’ latest approved forecasts, the group expects to be able to comply with its facility arrangements negotiated with the bank and meet its liabilities and attached facility terms as they fall due for a period of not less than 12 months from the date of signature of these financial statements.” AD Holdings’ latest accounts show turnover of £32.7m, down from £40.1m in 2011, itself down 26% on 2010. The drop in turnover was not matched by a similar fall in cost of sales, which were £16.1m in 2012 compared to £17.9m in 2011. As a result gross profit was £16.6m, down from £22.1m. Administrative expenses were £22.2m including exceptional items. This compares to £26.7m the year before. The group, which includes its subsidiary Dedicated Micros, ran up an operating loss of £5.6m for the period, larger than the £4.6m lost in the previous year. Interest charges took the loss before tax to £6.1m, up from £5.3m. The group’s balance sheet shows total fixed assets of £13.5m, down from £16.4m in 2011. This was largely made up of goodwill valued at £9.8m. AD Holdings held stocks of £8.4m, down from £10m at June 2011. Debtors were £7m, down from £9.2m. Cash at the year end was nil versus £790,000 a year earlier. Creditors due within one year were £14.4m, lower than the £15.7m in 2011. The 2012 figure included bank loans and overdrafts of £7.2m. Total net assets were £13.1m, down from £19.3m. The directors report adds: “The loss for the year reflects the economic conditions present in the second half of the previous financial year, which con-
year comparatives. “Since the balance sheet date the board has decided to close the manufacturing facility at Dennard. “The directors don’t recommend a payment of a dividend.” AD Group sells video products and services through a network of agents. Targeted market segments include banking, defence, education, healthcare, retail, process and transport. The directors report adds: “All AD Group companies leverage the unique benefits from 30 years of specialised experience in embedded video innovation resulting in differentiated video solutions which exceed end user customer expectations and provide an exceptional return on investment. The report continues: “The group’s diverse base of operations continues to successfully trade through the ongoing economic challenges in its main selling regions. Dedicated Micro Computers Group remains the most significant revenue generator within the group globally. However the TransVu Mobile vehicle video solution has
already reached parity with Dedicated Micro Computers revenues in some regions where the transport sector has been a focus. “The commonality of the video server software across all group video products ensures the group continues to offer differentiated benefits which competitors can not match such as polymorphic IP video streaming branded “multi mode” by the group.” The group’s loss was after exceptional charges of £2.8m, including impairment of goodwill (£0.4m), aircraft revaluation (£0.8m), restructuring costs (£0.6m) and bad debt write-offs (£1m), mainly due to UK security product distributor Norbam going into administration in 2012. The report concludes: “The directors have a reasonable expectation that, with the continued support of the bank, the group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.”
Difficult start to year for New Britain as palm oil prices fall FALLS in the global price of refined palm oil has caused profits at Liverpool based New Britain Palm Oil to slump 86%. In a first quarter update, the firm said the lower selling price caused pre-tax profits to fall to $4.8m from $34.1m in the same period last year. Gross profits fell from $67.4m to $45.5m. The group, which processes
palm oil at its Regent Road site where it employs 70 staff at its refinery and a packing and bakery plant, said sales were slightly ahead at $147m compared with $146.9m. But it said the average price of $901 per tonne in the first quarter of 2013 compared with an average price a year ago of $1,119 per tonne. “Despite the higher
volumes shipped and the implementation of several cost saving measures, our profitability has been impacted by the lower average selling prices achieved when compared to the same period last year,” the company said. It said palm oil prices during the period had been trading in a range between $800 and $870 per tonne and
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STRUGGLING regional airline Flybe is in talks to raise vital funds by selling runway slots at London Gatwick airport in a move which could hand a further boost to budget carrier easyjet. The potential sell-off sent Exeter-based Flybe’s shares soaring more than 20% on hopes of a much-needed cash injection of up to £20m, should it sell all its 25 take-off and landing slots at Gatwick. The airline confirmed it is in sale talks with a “number of parties” - reported to include easyjet. A successful deal would bolster easyjet’s presence in the London market and help fuel its booming growth. Flybe has endured a torrid time since floating on the stock market at the end of 2010, hammered by soaring fuel costs, falling passenger numbers and higher airport duty. It is axing around 10% of its 3,000-strong UK workforce to cut costs by at least £35 million and is also reviewing its network of 13 UK bases, which include Bristol, Cardiff, Doncaster, Edinburgh and East Midlands.
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Mike Newton, chief executive of Anglo Design Holdings tinued to the first half of the year to December 2011. The trading performance to June 2012 significantly improved but was masked by the first half performance. “In order to combat the difficult trading environment, the group undertook measures to increase efficiency by reducing its cost base whilst at the same time continuing to grow its efforts in targeting vertical market sectors. “The focus on providing video solutions, alongside the traditional channels to market, has stabilised the group’s position. This is despite a continued decline in the security product distribution revenues which traditionally serve the SME market.” It was a year of retrenchment for the group. The directors’ report continues: “AD Group ceased the production of chips at Chipwright Inc in December 2011 and in April 2012 AD Aviation ceased trading. These two businesses have been classified as discontinued operations in the profit and loss account in the current year and prior
notes
remain depressed on the overhang of palm oil stocks in Malaysia and Indonesia. The group has about 53,000 tonnes of crude palm oil sold or priced forward for the second quarter of 2013 at an average price of $887 per tonne. Graham Jones, at Liverpool stockbroker Panmure Gordon, said the figures confirm a dif-
ficult start to the year for the firm which had also been affected by heavy rainfall at its main production site in Papua New Guinea. “Lower crude palm oil prices means that gross profits fell by 32.5% to $45.5m, but even with cost savings, this equates to an eye watering 86% fall in profit before tax to $4.8m.“
ITV has snapped up a controlling stake in US reality TV maker High Noon Entertainment for at least £16.7m as it seeks to bolster its worldwide production business. High Noon makes programmes such as Cake Boss – a behind-the-scenes look at a New Jersey bakery – and Tough Love – a dating “bootcamp” show. The company, founded in 1997 by TV executive Jim Berger, now supplies 18 US cable networks. ITV is buying a 60% stake for its initial $25.65m outlay, with a top-up payment due in 2015 based on the performance of the company, and an option to buy the remainder of the business later. High Noon made a profit of 5.7 million US dollars (£3.7 million) in 2012. ITV’s acquisition follows its £18 million deal last month to buy London-based producer The Garden, maker of fly-on-the-wall documentaries such as 24 Hours In A&E and Inside Claridge’s. In December it bought a controlling stake in Los Angeles-based reality TV firm Gurney Productions for $40m.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
small business post business
notes
small
business of the week
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by Neil Hodgson
POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
W
E’RE the caring comparison website, says Alex Doonan, 30, founder and MD of Hunts Cross-based yoursuresave.com He admits: “We are not unique”, but insists that, in these challenging times, their prime focus is to “put the pound back in the customer’s pocket.” The site specialises in finding the best financial products and energy deals and Mr Doonan said: “There are 2,500 different tariffs and we hear some horror stories about people getting locked into contracts. We are completely independent and favour no brands – we favour the customer. “We will never say ‘we think you should have British Gas or EDF’, we give people the top three and give them the details and if they don’t like them we move down the list so the customer knows exactly what they are getting into.” He added: “We can get people up to £60 a month back. Some of the things we’re talking about could be the tipping point in families.” The business started in 2012 and now employs 50 at its Meridian Business Village site, with the prospect of a further 50 jobs as the venture expands. It is a departure from Childwallborn Mr Doonan’s original plans: “I was academic and there was an expectation I would go to university. I went to sixth form but had my head turned because friends had started to work and were earning money and I thought I was five, six, seven years away from that.” He took a part-time telesales job with BT and excelled: “Some weeks I was getting £200 and for an 18-year-old it was phenomenal – so I didn’t return for my second year of sixth form.” There followed a series of sales and management roles at places like BT Cellnet, Phones4u, EDF and Carphone Warehouse, but he then contracted pneumonia: “I thought, maybe I had been burning the candle at both ends, so I decided to change my lifestyle and had seven months off.” On his return he took a role at a price comparison service, then a telecoms company: “Things didn’t work out and after 18 months I just stood up one day and said, ‘that’s it, I’m leaving’ and two of the guys there, Steven Kelley and Charley Fawcett, stood up and said ‘we will come with you’.” That was the genesis of yoursure save.com. They honed their business model working for a clutch of companies: “We wanted to see can we get the connections we think we can get, and will people do business with us.” When they decided to go for it Mr Doonan got five offers of investment, leading to today’s 50:50 ownership structure between him and a previous client, and a business free from debt. Within nine months of moving into Meridian they had to extend office space to keep pace with growth which, Mr Doonan said, should generate turnover of £7m to £8m in five years. But he is keen the community and staff share in the company’s success. They sponsor The Friday Night Project, delivered by Merseyside Fire Service staff in their own time, working with youngsters in Liverpool 8, ranging from football to healthy eating courses. He said police figures show this has contributed to a 14% drop in anti- social behaviour and a 45% fall in
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Alex Doonan outside the Hunts Cross headquarters of his yoursuresave.com comparison site
Comparison site clicks with local community malicious fires in the area: “It’s not just football, we teach discipline and teamwork.” The firm is also keen to provide job opportunities for youngsters – 24 of its current staff are apprentices and the aim is to have 75% on apprenticeships as staffing expands. When apprentices start they are put on an NVQ with training company Cisco. The next phase of development is equally exciting, said Mr Doonan: “Our plan is to get them to a position where they can become a fully qualified financial adviser. “It gives them an opportunity for a £24,000 basic, and bonuses, and for someone who might have been turned down 20 times for job interviews, that’s phenomenal.”
Mr Doonan and some of the team behind his expanding website
THE 2013 Information Security Breaches Survey, launched by the Department of Business Innovation and Skills in the UK, has revealed that 87% of small businesses experienced a data breach in the past year. On the back of these results, information destruction company, Shred-it has launched a guide for small firms to help them manage their secure information destruction process more efficiently and to ensure they are compliant with UK data protection regulations. Unlike large businesses, SMEs tend not to have the resources for a dedicated information control officer. Therefore, it is even more important to have robust data protection protocols in place so that every employee understands data protection, as each individual has to share this responsibility. However, according to a recent Shred-it survey, more than a third of UK SMEs do not have any protocols in place for storing and destroying the confidential information they hold. Also, more than three quarters provide no training on information security and a similar number (77.4%) do not destroy electronic storage devices properly. Robert Guice, Shred-it executive vice president, warns: “The first stage of ensuring your organisation is safe from the risk of data breaches and is compliant with the law is to draw up an information protection policy. Concentrate on a paper and electronic system to be sure that you are fully complying with the law.”
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A SKILLS body is calling for tax break proposals that it says would encourage businesses to take on apprentices. The UK Commission for Employment Skills (UKCES) recommends that firms receive money directly from the Government to contribute towards the cost of taking on an apprentice, and then negotiate a price for training with an approved local college. Currently, funding is directed towards the learning providers that support the apprenticeship. UKCES commissioner Scott Johnson said: “Fundamentally, it will move ‘management’ of apprenticeships from supply to demand. “The move will allow a company in Liverpool to pick a local college or training providers and negotiate a deal for their apprentice that ensures value for their business.”
10 post business creative & digital
Thursday, May 16, 2013 IN ASSOCIATION WITH
comment
by ALI SHARIFI
Firms can still find funding TECHNOLOGY is rightly seen as a growth sector for UK plc, having performed well over the past few challenging years. It offers investors a wide variety of opportunity, from companies tipped to be the UK’s Facebook and Google, through to innovative businesses in niche areas upsetting the status quo. With government backing, in the shape of tax breaks and incentives, hubs of like-minded companies have sprung up, offering new entrants access to a pool of talent right from the get-go. However, despite the overall optimism, there are a number of trends that businesses looking for funding need to be aware of. A perfect storm of continued uncertainty in the financing environment and the Eurozone has put obstacles in the way for UK technology businesses to overcome. They must now convince investors and buyers that they are the right choice for financing. Those that do get funding, however, could benefit from a predicted increase in the level of private equity investment in the next two years. A Grant Thornton survey of private equity and VC professionals found that over half were expecting investment to go up, with 10% believing it will increase greatly. Businesses in Merseyside are no different – for the right company, there’s the chance for funding, access to capital and growth. Widnes-based Aerelink, a mobile engineering firm, recently secured funding from Merseyside Special Investment Fund, which will help it expand, bring on new staff and drive revenue growth. Other businesses based in Liverpool, including Hammerkit and Setgo, have all received funding from the North West Fund. The money is out there – the key is to know where to look, what’s right for your business at current point in time, and who you’ll be competing against. ■ ALI SHARIFI is a partner, corporate finance, at Grant Thornton
Midlands trip that inspired app for Light Night and city tourists by Alistair Houghton POST BUSINESS STAFF
alistair.houghton@liverpool.com
A FAILED trip to Birmingham inspired a Liverpool developer to launch a tourist app in time for tomorrow’s Liverpool Light Night. Dave Burrows, founder of tech firm Damibu, teamed up with National Museums Liverpool (NML) to launch free city guide app TicTocTourist. Mr Burrows says the product is particularly suited to helping people find their way around multi-venue events – and so he has teamed up with organisers of Light Night so people can keep the festival programme on their iPhones. TicTocTourist allows people to pick and choose from a list of events so the app can create a customised route and timetable including bus, train or ferry times. The organisers of events such as LightNight and the Threshold Festival have listed their events on the app, effectively creating digital festival guides. Dave Burrows, Damibu’s founder, said: “TicTocTourist was inspired by a trip to Birmingham with my wife. We had an idea of what we wanted to see, but we had no idea of how to see it all in one day – or that certain museums were even closed. “The app tells you what’s on – you just select what you’d like to do and the app does the rest, making sure you get from one location to another in time.” Last May, Damibu won £24,000 funding in the Technology Strategy Board’s Digital Innovation Contest to back the development of a culture-related app. Mr Burrows, who founded Damibu after spending 10 years at Sony, hopes
Charlotte Corrie
Dave Burrows, of Damibu, shows off his TicTocTourist app the app will spread nationwide. He said: “The software’s applicable anywhere, from festivals and airports to cultural attractions and theme parks. “We can create special versions for stag and hen dos, family friendly sites or events like any of the city’s festivals. It’s got huge potential.” This year’s Light Night includes more than 130 free cultural events from street theatre and carnivals to open studio sessions and live music.
The night will also see the reopening of Central Library and the launch of LOOK/13 Liverpool International Photography Festival. Charlotte Corrie, director of Light Night organiser Open Culture, said: “TicTocTourist makes it so much easier to enjoy Liverpool’s bursting cultural scene, whether you’re a tourist or a resident. “2013 is the first year LightNight has had an app, and it’s perfect for our annual late night arts and culture fest-
ival, helping people choose and navigate over 130 free events. “Working with its developer Damibu has been a great experience – it’s a hard-working, professional organisation which has been very supportive.” Threshold Festival director, Chris Carney, said: “TicTocTourist is an incredibly user-friendly app, which allowed Threshold a free and easy way to navigate around our multi-venue event.” Tracey McGeagh, NML’s director of marketing and communications, said: “It’s been great helping Damibu develop this app, and being involved in something that will really help people plan their visits to Liverpool. “The app will make organising a route around the city and its attractions so easy, and I’m sure many other cities would benefit from it too. It’s great that we’re the first, and we look forward to welcoming TicTocTourist visitors to our museums.’
Video firm with webcasting plans moves into Liverpool
VIDEO agency Zut Media has moved from St Helens to Liverpool as it bids to grow its live webcasting business. The company says it has moved to Liverpool Innovation Park to take advantage of the site’s superfast broadband and to dip into Liverpool’s creative and digital talent pool. The company, which has grown every year since it was founded in 2008, is creating a live video webcasting studio and has upgraded its website. Alan Gaffney, Zut’s managing director, said: “We’ve got an exciting vision for Zut Media. As the marketing and communication landscape is changing, video is an integral part of this. “For the rest of the year we’re looking to add new video clients, develop the e-Learning content creation and webcasting sides of the business – we’re going to need help doing this so moving to Liverpool was strategic to attracting new and exciting creative resources”. Zut has recently completed assignments for Northumbrian Water and Helena Partnerships, as well as carrying out work for Knauf Insulation. The Zut Media team at their new home in Liverpool Innovation Park, from left, Amy Dean, managing ■ PROPERTY: Page 17
director Alan Gaffney, Chris Holmes, Jono Taberner and Mark Hancock
creative & digital post business 11
Thursday, May 16, 2013
www.ldpcreative.co.uk
Ben Hatton
Is Google Glass a step too far?
Kate Stewart, director at the newly-renamed studioF. Inset, some of the sheds at studioF’s Baltic Creative home
Name shines a light on design studio’s Baltic collaborations by Alistair Houghton
POST BUSINESS STAFF
alistair.houghton@liverpool.com
A DESIGN consultancy that has pledged to team up with other local businesses and freelancers is launching its new name at Light Night tomorrow. Team a go-go, which specialises in designing workspaces and supplying furniture, has been rebranded as studioF. The name will be launched at tomorrow’s Light Night when the company holds an open studio at its home in the Baltic Creative development. Team a go-go was founded by creative director Steve Threlfall and today has six staff, while it works with many Liverpool businesses and freelancers
in the creative and other sectors. Its sister business, Made-Here, is a gift shop in the MetQuarter that showcases work from local artists and designers. Director Kate Stewart said: “We moved to Baltic Creative last year, and it felt like a rebirth for us. “We wanted to show people we are operating in a very different way to how we have done in recent years. “Being in the Baltic Triangle gives us an opportunity for more collaboration. “Collaboration was actually in our first manifesto from 1996 or 1997, when Steve started it up. We never wanted to be some huge, monolithic employer, but we wanted to work with creative freelancers, and speak to small businesses, to bring our clients a wide range of services.
“Team a go-go is well-known nationally for its work in the education sector. We’re still the same business, and we’re winning work through reputation. “But at our heart, we started as a design consultancy that creates workplaces for people. We’re also dealers in contract furniture for office spaces, leisure spaces, hotels and restaurants. “And now, through Made-Here, we’re designing retail spaces as well.” Ms Stewart said she wanted studioF to be a one-stop-shop for people looking to open or refit offices or commercial spaces in Liverpool. If the company cannot offer any services itself, it will recruit companies or freelancers to help. She said: “We can design the space, and we can bring in somebody to design a website or graphics as part of
a brand management strategy.” And Ms Stewart said the company’s collaborative ethos reflected wider changes in the economy. “The economy is going through a creative renaissance and a business renaissance,” she added. “There’s been a shift in how business is done. “People don’t expect a job for life any more. They earn money doing lots of different things, doing projects and freelance work.” The company’s new name comes from the unit it occupies in the main hall of Baltic Creative. That development consists of a series of wooden sheds, large and small, inside a former industrial unit off Jamaica Street. To promote its new name, the company will use a series of “F words” – including fun, fastidious, free-thinking and fabulous.
Facebook challenge for young web designers
University wins global award for pioneering mobile technology
YOUNG creatives from Liverpool are being urged to take part in a competition to develop a Facebook app for the National Apprenticeship Service. The “Can you hack it as an apprentice” challenge means developers aged 16-24 can bid for up to £13,000 of funding to turn their ideas into reality. The service wants to launch an app or game in August to raise awareness of apprenticeships. David Way, executive director of the National Apprenticeship Service said: “We want to do more to help young people submit high quality applications for Apprenticeships and
A TEAM from Edge Hill University has won an international award for its use of mobile technology. The university’s Learning Services team has been awarded the 2013 Blackboard Catalyst Award for Mobile Innovation to honour its “positive impact on the student experience”. It works with Blackboard, an international e-learning provider, to allow students access to key university services from their mobile devices. Blackboard praised Edge Hill’s activities including mobile- friendly teaching and learning practices in sport, health and education .
Students can bid for Facebook funding this project will support them to do that.” All entries must be submitted by Friday, May 24. For details, see www. apprenticeships.org.uk
Meg Juss The award will be presented in Las Vegas in July. Meg Juss, learning technology development manager, said: “This accolade goes to everyone at Edge
Hill who is involved, engaged and working together to embrace mobile learning. “The mobile landscape continues to shift and provide new opportunities to enhance education and we’re working to build on these strong foundations to explore these exciting new developments. We will continue to invest in a portfolio of mobile facilities and activities.” Ray Henderson, chief technology officer at Blackboard, said: “The winners represent some of today’s finest examples of leveraging technology to improve the education experience.”
WE ARE never far away from our friends, colleagues and the internet with smartphones. But now we are little more than a glance away. The launch of Google Glass is certainly grabbing headlines and attention from businesses and marketers, all keen to see how the public will take to the technology. I certainly applaud their innovation – but I think Glass is an innovation too far. It has already come under criticism for the potential to invade the privacy of others, with users being able to record and photograph whatever is in front of them. Google will have to work hard to find a market for Glass. At £1,500 a pop it is doubtful it will become mainstream. But the idea to free data from the desktop computer and other devices and make it available in front of your eyes is something we will see more of in the near future. Essentially, augmented reality technology will allow brands to create new experiences for their target audiences via apps that just weren’t possible before. This is exciting for brands as it opens the door to a new world of ways to interact with consumers and audiences. Google has said that for the moment it will forbid the use of adverts on Glass. Brands should not be too disheartened with this. I have no doubt that this is an initial policy rather than a rule set in stone – Google still relies on adverts for more than 90% of the income it generates. Brands should pay attention to this exciting time in the evolution of technology. Whilst it is unlikely we will see people walking down the street wearing the headset, Google Glass looks set to open the door for a new type of marketing using augmented reality. ■ INTERNET entrepreneur Ben Hatton is founder and managing director of digital agency Rippleffect. Follow Rippleffect on Twitter @rippleffected
12 post business big feature
Alistair Houghton meets CLAIRE POYSER, managing director of Lime Pictures
W
HEN smash hit soap Hollyoaks is being filmed, even the managing director of Lime Pictures has to stop talking. Claire Poyser, who joined Childwall-based Lime a year ago, is bubbling with enthusiasm about the future of the company – which is now the biggest independent production house outside London. She took me on a whistlestop tour of some Hollyoaks sets, all the while explaining how Lime was investing in new and improved sets to make the show look even glossier. But, in the shopping precinct, some filming was taking place – and the moment the floor managers shouted for quiet, TV veteran Poyser made sure we all fell silent. Locally, Lime is best-known for Chester-set soap Hollyoaks, a mainstay of Channel 4’s schedule. But the company is also responsible for glitzy reality TV show The Only Way is Essex, which is one of ITV2’s flagship shows and is about to enter its ninth series. Lime is also behind Geordie Shore, the full-on MTV reality show following the raucous lives, loves and drinking sessions of a group of young people in Newcastle. And the company is also making its mark in the fiercely competitive US market by producing hit children’s series House of Anubis for Nickelodeon. Once we escaped the filming and sat down in the sunshine outside Hollyoaks Dog in the Pond pub, Poyser’s enthusiasm for her work at Lime poured out. “It’s fantastic, in a word,” she said. “We’re in robust health from a production point of view. “Hollyoaks is on fire. TOWIE is slot-winning. Geordie Shore is channel-winning. In terms of our growth potential it’s a really exciting time. “It would be great to have returning dramas coming out of here. It would be great to grow internationally. Those are our targets. “Our ambitions are huge.”
Thursday, May 16, 2013
The only way is up for TV boss with a success story to tell
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IME’S Childwall base is a maze of imaginary locations twisting into each other, with every signposted door taking you to an unexpected location from a fully fitted-out hospital ward to the company’s staff canteen. But behind that carefully-constructed fantasy world sits a drama production team that, Poyser says, is at least as strong as any in the UK. “One of the big myths about television is you only work on soap when you can’t work on anything else,” she said. “Please blow that myth away. “You can’t work on soap unless you’re at the top of your game.” Lime was founded by Phil Redmond as Mersey Television in 1982 to produce Liverpool soap opera Brookside. It launched Hollyoaks in 1995. A decade later, the business was sold to All3Media and renamed Lime. Hollyoaks is still outperforming its rivals, with its audience share in 2013 up 14% on last year. It averaged 2.3m viewers across its E4 and Channel 4 transmissions, and is one of the most watched shows on the 4oD on-demand service. The show is one of the most talked-about on Twitter, and has 1.5m Facebook fans. “We are absolutely bucking the trend of the other soaps,” said Poyser. “Most of the other soaps are down one, two or three share points year on year. We are up. “Channel 4 is absolutely focused on the 16-34 age group now. We are
A scene from Hollyoaks this month, above. The soap is a cornerstone of Channel 4’s schedule while Geordie Shore, left, is MTV UK’s top show hitting that. And we have also got the oxygen of social media. “That is where we are absolutely at the forefront of driving audience, and engaging that audience when the show is not transmitting.” In 2012, Bryan Kirkwood, who had led Hollyoaks as producer from 2006 to 2009, returned to Lime from EastEnders. The Lime team has since been boosted by more staff from rival soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale, much to Poyser’s delight. “We are absolutely the place to be now,” she said. “What’s fascinating is we are no longer seen as the fourth
soap. We are absolutely up there.” Hollyoaks has long been the most forward-looking of soaps. It pioneered the use of sponsorship to help fund productions, and is currently sponsored by Vo5 and Impulse. It was the first Channel 4 show to use product placement, in which advertisers can pay for their products to be seen on screen. Lime and Channel 4 have sealed deals with Nokia and L’Oreal. “Product placement is still a hugely unmined seam of possibility,” said Poyser. “There’s still a nervousness with regard to how and when you put product placement into pro-
q&a Highest educational qualification: MBA (with Distinction) from Manchester Business School Proudest achievement: Not having (yet) lost my temper with anyone from BT customer services Best advice received: Listen (but I sometimes find it hard to remember this advice) Biggest regret: No regrets. Why would I have, when I have spent
the last 27 years working in TV? You soon work out whether it’s for you, and then it’s up to you to make the most of it Still to achieve: I'm still optimistic that, despite the sheep having massacred my fruit trees in the mini orchard I planted two years ago, I will be able to make a decent scrumpy from the apples within 10 years.
grammes. What’s interesting is that (regulator) Ofcom has said ‘You can actually do a bit more of this’. If done properly, and obviously complying with the strict guidelines, it can add an extra dimension of believability into a drama.” Having to secure commercial partners makes TV production more of a challenge – but it’s one that Poyser, who runs Lime alongside chief operating officer Kate Little, is relishing. “It forces us to look at things in a slightly different way,” she said. “It’s the way that the film business has had to look for years and years in terms of partnerships.” Below Poyser and Little at Lime are three “creative heads”. Kirkwood is responsible for continuing dramas including Hollyoaks, while Rebecca Hodgson – who won an RTS Award for the BBC’s Liverpool-filmed drama Good Cop – is head of drama. And last week Lime announced that Derek McLean, currently creative director for entertainment at the BBC, will join Lime in August to head up its “non-scripted programming arm”, including TOWIE and Geordie Shore. He is charged with growing Lime’s business at home and in the USA.
Reality shows are often treated with disdain by critics, yet are hugely popular with young viewers. “What they rely on is constant innovation,” said Poyser. “The viewers are not stupid. What we are seeing now is – and this links to our narrative expertise – a return to storytelling and an absolute focus on character. “The viewers don’t just want ‘stomp pieces’. They want something they can engage with from a character point of view. That’s absolutely the heartland of what Lime is.” TOWIE, which follows the glamorous lives of a group of young people in Essex, will soon head into its ninth series – a success even Poyser calls “unbelievable”. She said: “It is impressive because everyone thinks these programmes burn like magnesium. They burn brightly and they burn hard. “But I think it’s testament to our production teams and to ITV2 that it is still going strong. It won its slot every episode last series and we are convinced that is going to continue.” Geordie Shore, meanwhile, is MTV UK’s biggest ever show. “It’s absolutely channel-defining for them,” said Poyser. “It’s the
big feature post business 13
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Alex
Turner Looking for that cup final feeling ON SATURDAY, I saw an old man jumping around like someone 50 years younger and singing, mostly to himself. There are very few products or services which can achieve this, but the FA Cup final managed to do it. Wigan Athletic’s triumph was the culmination of their 35-year rise from non-league to sporting elite. And for this septuagenarian spectator, it was an achievement he probably didn’t expect to see in his lifetime. One of the great things about sport is that, distilled down and stripped of the jargon, it is about winning (and losing), with silverware presenting the purest visual way of measuring success of a team. The iconic moment of lifting the trophy provides the raw sense of achievement and produces the acclaim. More than that, it binds the team together in a collective achievement. It is the culmination of a shared endeavour that will, whatever lies ahead for the players and the club, remain forever in the shared consciousness of the club, its fans and the town or the city they represent. Sport creates these moments, of drama, of success, which are tremendously difficult to replicate in business. There are few activities which so consume a company, and where the sense of achievement is dispersed widely, and not just among those staff members who are directly involved in a given project. I have been fortunate enough to be on the inside of cup final wins at a rugby league club I have seen the transformative effect it can have on a business, unrelated to the commercial benefits which flow from such an event. It is because of the recognition and reflected glory which gives everyone a lift. And if there was a way of injecting that feeling into every company, then there would be no productivity worries or the “sloth” of British workers which the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, complained about earlier this week. But finding a way of engendering the sense of collective achievement, acknowledgement and celebration is something that we all must strive for in admittedly more mundane circumstances than in front of 86,000 people at Wembley.
‘Sport can create these moments of drama’
Claire Poyser on the Hollyoaks set at Lime Pictures’ Childwall base Picture: GAVIN TRAFFORD
equivalent of their X-Factor.” Little and Poyser are determined to grow Lime’s wider drama output, using the skills Lime’s staff have developed over the years through shows from Hollyoaks to Brookside. Poyser said Lime was in discussions with broadcasters over future commissions, though declined to give any details. She added: “ If you ask anybody in the UK where they thought the heartland of drama and narrative was, you wouldn’t hear them saying the South of England. It’s absolutely the North West. And that rich heritage needs to be built upon.” Lime employs more than 350 permanent staff, with most of them based in Liverpool, and takes on freelancers in the North West and London depending on its workload. The company works closely with local universities and training providers, including Liverpool John Moores University, to encourage more people into broadcasting. It offers more than 100 work experience places a year, and so far this year five people on placement have won jobs at the company. And, Poyser adds, Lime runs internal training schemes to allow
staff to gain experience in other areas of the business so they can rise up the ranks at Lime or elsewhere. Poyser added: “As a industry, we have to be really focused on funding the maintenance of our skills base. “The North West has been good at that. But we need to be a lot better at it.”
P
OYSER has spent her whole career in the television worlds, starting as a floor assistant at the BBC 26 years ago before spending six years travelling the world with British Forces Broadcasting. She returned to the BBC in Manchester as a production manager and then, in 1998, moved to Granada. In 2003, she became director of production for the merged ITV network, overseeing 3,500 hours of programmes a year. Poyser oversaw shows from This Morning and Stars in Their Eyes to Coronation Street. She joined Lime last year to work under then-CEO Lesley Douglas. But in March, Douglas left Lime to
pursue other projects, with Poyser and Little taking charge of Lime for All3Media. At ITV, Poyser was the driving force behind the decision to move its Manchester base, including the Coronation Street set, to MediaCity in Salford Quays. When MediaCity was being developed, some in Liverpool worried that it would lead to an exodus from the city’s creative scene. But Poyser, who points out that she has come the other way, says the Peel development has boosted the whole North West media industry. “MediaCity is great because it’s actually put a focus on the North West,” she said. “It’s not a million miles down the motorway. “ I can’t see it being anything other than good.” Lime itself has a base in MediaCity for the Digital Fiction Factory, a joint venture with the BBC, Channel 4 and Creative England which explores ways of linking television and online storytelling. But, Poyser believes, Liverpool’s broadcasting and creative sector needs help from government if it is
‘We are bucking the trend of other soaps’
to grow further. She said: “There’s a massively rich seam of expertise and storytelling legacy within Liverpool. It needs a cohesive focus.” Poyser said smaller producers could not afford to kit out studios every time they won a commission – and said even a company the size of Lime could not afford to keep studios open while waiting for work. She said: “It would be great if somewhere along the line someone said ‘OK, here’s a space for you’. “Once you’ve kitted out a space, it becomes cheaper and cheaper and cheaper (to produce there). “What we can’t do is constantly stand up individual spaces. It is prohibitively expensive to do that time and time again. “We’re very fortunate because we’ve got some volume commissions, but other indies will struggle and can’t take that risk. So we – the whole industry – need some help.” The industry may face challenges, but Poyser wouldn’t work anywhere else. She smiled: “It’s the best job in the world. Genuinely. “I can’t think of anywhere else where you get such a diversity of things to do.”
■ Alex Turner is the general manager of financial training firm Ambitious Minds
14 post business legal
Thursday, May 16, 2013
www.ldplegal.co.uk
Chester Uni offers new law degree
REC appoints Brabners as its legal partner THE Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) has appointed Liverpool law firm Brabners Chaffe Street to its new legal business partnership scheme for its members. This will complement its existing legal service offering. Following a tender process, Brabners was chosen along
with specialist debt recovery law firm, Francis Wilks & Jones, due to its expertise within the recruitment sector. REC head of legal services, Lewina Farrell, said: “We’re delighted to have these law firms that can provide excellent services to supplement and enhance the REC’s legal
offering. The support of these two organisations will ensure that, along with the REC’s own legal services, members will have all aspects of their legal requirements covered.” Paul Chamberlain, a partner at Brabners Chaffe Street, added: “We are delighted to have been appointed as the
REC’s legal business partner. Our expertise in recruitment law is recognised nationally and makes us well placed to provide a comprehensive legal service which benefits both the REC and its members. “We look forward to continuing to build on our longstanding relationship.”
Paul Chamberlain
Liverpool’s law sector gathers to celebrate its success stories by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
LIVERPOOL’S legal community will gather at the city’s Crowne Plaza Hotel on Saturday evening for the Liverpool Law Society Awards. The biennial awards are being held in association with the Liverpool Post, which is also sponsoring the Work in the Community Award. This is the fourth time Liverpool Law Society has held the awards to celebrate legal excellence in the city. The competition has been “fiercer than ever” this year with more firms and teams wishing to be shortlisted in one of the 12 categories than before. The winners will be announced at a black-tie ceremony at the Crowne Plaza. BBC Radio Merseyside presenter Roger Phillips is the compere for the evening. Liverpool Law Society president Alistair Fletcher said: “May 18 is an important day for Liverpool and its lawyers. “We have a thriving legal community and the legal awards are a wonderful way of recognising, and celebrating, the success of key firms and individuals.” The nominees for the awards are: ■ Family Law Award: Brabners Chaffe Street; Heaney Watson; Morecrofts. ■ Employment Law Award: EAD Solicitors; Morecrofts; Weightmans. ■ Private Client Award: Brabners Chaffe Street; Hill Dickinson; Morecrofts. ■ Dispute Resolution Law Award: DWF; Hill Dickinson; John Pickering & Partners. ■ Property Law Award: Berrymans Lace Mawer; DLA Piper UK; Rowlinsons. ■ Commercial Law Award: DLA Piper UK; Hill Dickinson; Weightmans. ■ Niche Law Firm Award: Heaney Watson; John Pickering & Partners; Tracey Miller Family Law. ■ Work in the Community Award:
The Liverpool Law Society Awards will be held at the Crowne Plaza. Inset, Alistair Fletcher DLA Piper; DWF; Hattons Solicitors. ■ Solicitor of the Year Award: Elkan Abrahamson, Jackson & Canter; Jonathan Berkson, Hill Dickinson;
Helen Broughton, Morecrofts. ■ Small Law Firm Award: Heaney Watson; The Keith Jones Partnership; Tracey Miller Family Law.
Antony Hodari buys Tandem Law LIVERPOOL personal injury law firm Antony Hodari has continued its diversification strategy by acquiring litigation specialist Tandem Law, via its AVH Legal trading arm. The deal was agreed with the administrators for the business and the current
management team. As part of the deal, all 45 staff and management will be retained. Tandem Law has offices in Preston and Manchester and was established in 2011. Since then it has grown rapidly and now has around 18,000 live cases.
The deal follows the recent pre-pack acquisition of Preston firm Ashton Fox, which had a workload of around 8,000 predominantly mortgage mis-selling and right-to-buy cases. Last year Hodari bought Liverpool personal injury firm Paul Rooney.
■ Medium Law Firm Award: Jackson & Canter; Morecrofts; Rowlinsons ■ Large Law Firm Award – DWF; Hill Dickinson; Weightmans.
Help4LiPs site HELP For Litigants in Person has launched a website – www.help4lips.co. uk – with information for people who want, or need to, go to court without lawyers, in the wake of the shake-up to legal aid. The site provides information about alternatives to litigation and in-depth information about fighting debt court cases.
THE University of Law in Chester is to launch a new three-year undergraduate LL.B law degree next year. The programme will run alongside its existing accelerated twoyear LL.B, which was introduced in 2012. The University of Law’s LL.B (Hons) Law is the first undergraduate law degree to be grounded on practice-based learning designed to prepare students for the modern world of law and is taught by qualified lawyers with experience of practice. In contrast to many traditional academic law degrees, the University’s LL.B has at its heart the teaching of professional skills that are essential when embarking on a legal career, including analysis, problem solving, drafting and research. Employability is a key feature of the course, with workshops built into the curriculum to help students understand and exploit the career opportunities inherent in the fast-changing legal services market, both in the UK and globally. Carol Draycott, head of The University of Law in Chester, said: “We aim to give our students the widest possible choice of law degrees to suit their personal preferences and career aspirations. “From 2014 they can choose between the more traditional three-year LL.B route and the two-year option, which allows them to graduate a full-year ahead of their peers and save on living costs.”
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women in business post business 15
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Marketeer Lyn finds her dream job with Daresbury biocidal company by Bill Gleeson
POST BUSINESS STAFF bill.gleeson@liverpool.com
LYN Barnes has a number of strings to her bow. While her official job title at biocidal developer Arcis Altos Group is operational services manager, Ms Barnes’ duties include both marketing and regulatory compliance. Based at smart offices at Sci-Tech Daresbury, Ms Barnes is currently working on developing an e-commerce website selling hygiene packs that kill norovirus to the general public and preparing for a regulatory audit to take place in July. She joined the firm last year shortly after it was formed from the merger of Arcis Biotechnology and United States based Altos Medical. She said: “My key responsibilities are to provide technical support to our licensing partners and act as liaison with contract manufacturers and monitor regulatory compliance.” Arcis Altos has spent £4.5m on product development over the past two-and-a-half years and is now moving into a commercialisation phase. The firm must meet internationally recognised ISO standards for medical devices and biocidal products must comply with European Commission biocidal directives. Ms Barnes added: “And more recently, I have also helped to develop an e-commerce website which is a new skill I have acquired.” Ms Barnes says having multiple roles is challenging. It also offers her an opportunity to develop her career while being very useful within a small business. Referring to the new anti-norovirus product, which aims to combat the virus that is more commonly known as the winter vomiting bug, she said: “It’s a professional healthcare product that is now made available to the general public to buy. “Sales are going very well. We are really pleased with the reception we have had. “We have had enquiries from maintenance companies that want to use it for deep cleaning procedures used in any public access areas.” Norovirus is the most common stomach bug in the UK, affecting people of all ages and can cause the closure of hospital wards and bring cruise ship tours to an early end. Ms Barnes has a background in marketing. She said: “I left school with only five O’-levels so I’m definitely not an academic person.
Lyn Barnes, operational services manager left, with Gina D’Almeida, sales director of Arcis Altos Group “My first job was with Vernacare in Bolton: that’s where my career in the infection prevention sector started. I was in customer services.” She was at Vernacare for 14 years. By the time she had finished she had worked her way up to assistant product manager in the marketing department. “I developed my career in-house with Vernacare,” said Ms Barnes. “Since then, I have worked for several infection prevention companies
but always developing the skill sets I had and always willing to learn new skills on the job. “That’s how I have got to where I am today – always being flexible and jumping at every opportunity to learn a new skill. ArcisAltos has two distinct product ranges. One is called Spoorclear, which instantly kills bugs on a surface. The other is called Bigiene, which clings to the surface and continues
Don’t miss chance to attend RBA 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. This year’s awards final will take place in the grand setting of St George’s Hall. Some 500 guests will be present at the black-tie din-
ner 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 and is one of the local business community’s principal networking opportunities. To see this year’s shortlist and to buy tickets for the awards dinner, visit our spe-
cial awards website at regionalbusinessawards .co.uk. Alternatively, you can email events@liverpool.com or call 0151 472 2570. You can also follow the progress of the awards on Twitter at @LP_RBA Liverpool Post editor Mark Thomas said: “This is always a fabulous event. “We are grateful for the support of our main sponsors DLA Piper, KPMG and Barclays, without whom this event would not be possible.”
THE POST L I V E R P O O L
REGIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS2013
to kill bugs for many hours. The firm’s ingredients are found in foaming hand rub and is non-alcoholic. Ms Barnes said: “Alcohol has a limited efficacy. It can’t kill c-difficile. Ours is nicer to use too. “If you have a cut on your hand its going to sting like hell if you use alcohol. Our product doesn’t give that sting.” Ms Barnes is part of a small team of ten at Arcis Altos. About half of the staff are women, including sales
director Gina D’Almeida. “I have always been lucky in that at Vernacare the chief executive was a woman and I have worked for other very strong women who have been great mentors. “I haven’t had to give it a second thought. It seems natural to me. “We each bring our own attributes to the business and drive it forward. “My plan is to stay with this business and help it grow. “I have found my dream job here.”
Cheshire based A-Plant acquires rival for £28m
WARRINGTON based A-Plant this week announced that it has acquired the entire share capital of temporary access specialist Eve Trakway for £28m in cash. Chesterfield based Eve Trakway will continue to trade under the same brand and will operate as a separate division of A-Plant. Eve Trakway is the UK’s leading temporary access provider and offers products
such as temporary roadways, walkways, pitch coverings and pedestrian and vehicle bridges, together with crowd control barrier systems, traffic management, security and lighting solutions. Sat Dhaiwal, chief executive of A-Plant said: “We are very excited about the acquisition of Eve. We believe the product range and markets served will complement the existing A-Plant business.”
16 post business location
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Legal changes mean the landscape is changing in favour of developers
view point by Bill Chandler, legal director at law firm Hill Dickinson REGENERATION and development has been one of the casualties of the recession. Liverpool has undoubtedly fared better than many areas, with the
First in move to new HQ WARRINGTON technical recruitment agency, First Recruitment Group, has acquired a new office in Birchwood Park. The £100m-turnover company aims to move into the premises in Birchwood Boulevard in September. Director, Stephen Farthing, said: “We came across a 20,000 sq ft building in Birchwood Boulevard that needed a lot of work but we saw it as the perfect opportunity to re-design and put our own stamp on it. “The building will be air-conditioned and we have also included a break out area.”
completion in difficult times of ambitious schemes including Liverpool One, Mann Island and St Paul’s Square. However, the city also bears the scars of stalled and uncompleted schemes. Now that development is back on the agenda for the city region, it is notable that the legal landscape is changing in favour of developers, with actual or proposed changes to each of the three biggest legal obstacles to development: ■ Planning: Many developers have already taken advantage of the much-heralded “presumption in favour of sustainable development”
applications are often used as a tactical weapon to frustrate proposed development, and these pages recently reported the Newhaven Port case where a tidal beach within the operational port was declared a village green. The Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013 received Royal Assent on April 25 and prohibits village green registrations once a planning application has been submitted. In time, that Act will also prohibit applications more than one year
‘‘The city
bears the scars of unfinished schemes’
after the qualifying use ceases and allow landowners to stop the clock by depositing a statement and plan. ■ Rights to light: The Law Commission is currently consulting on proposals to reform rights to light. The genuine risk of an injunction being awarded to demolish a new building which interferes with light to a neighbouring building can inhibit development in urban areas. However, the proposals to prevent the accrual of new rights and enable landowners to serve notice forcing a neighbour’s hand on whether they intend to apply for an injunction will inevitably take years to become law.
Concern among surveyors as number of vacant shops rises by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
Brent Forbes of Pettys
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HIGH streets across the North West saw a rise in the number of empty retail units in the first quarter of 2013, a new study reveals. The latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) UK commercial market survey reports that during the first three months of the year, 13% more chartered surveyors claimed the amount of unoccupied shops across the North West had risen. This was met with a fall in the number of retailers looking to lease new premises, as a net balance of -2% more respondents reported drops in demand. With the high street still suffering – and no apparent respite in
sight – expectations for future rents in the region continued to slip, and a growing number of North West surveyors believe retail premises to be losing value (net balance – 14%). Across the country, every part of the UK saw the amount of unoccupied retail space rise, with London recording the most noteworthy increase in the first three months of the year, followed by the Midlands. The subdued trend in demand is visible in most regions, suggesting little prospect of an early turnaround, RICS added. Other areas of the commercial property market in the North West saw demand for premises strengthen slightly as availability for business-use property continues to remain flat. More surveyors reported an increased need for offices (21% – up
from 9% last quarter), while demand for industrial space remained healthy, with no major increases in empty floor space. This positive movement in these parts of the market has led to the region’s surveyors feeling optimistic for the spring and summer months. Respondents anticipate office and industrial rents should, at worst, see little change going forward and could even begin to edge upwards. Brent Forbes, director at Pettys chartered surveyors – with offices in Liverpool, Manchester and Burnley – said: “There are still serious concerns about out-of-town shopping affecting town centres, but with the continued lack of uptake in vacant units by national retailers, there is a real opportunity for local retailers to negotiate a good deal on a property.”
Bruntwood helping tenants on the move
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introduced under the Localism Act and the National Planning Policy Framework to obtain planning permission for developments which would previously have been unthinkable. The expiry in March 2013 of the grace period for local authorities to update their local plans now gives that presumption even greater weight, whilst the Ministry of Justice intends to reduce the judicial review challenge period to six weeks in planning cases. ■ Village greens: Village green
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Bruntwood is helping firms to relocate
COMMERCIAL landlord Bruntwood has launched a service to help tenants relocate. The firm is offering to pay the removal costs – including cardboard packing cases – of any business that chooses to relocate to one of its nine properties across Liverpool city centre These include Oriel Chambers in Water Street and the Cotton Exchange and The Plaza in Old Hall Street. The range of packages available to businesses also includes rent-free periods, advice on dilapidations and fit-outs and flexible lease terms. Colin Sinclair, who heads up Bruntwood’s Liverpool operation, said: “Bruntwood prides itself on finding innovative ways to help businesses to satisfy their growth needs. “We understand that the cost and hassle of relocation is a major disincentive for many business owners when they’re considering whether to look for new accommodation. “Hopefully, this latest offer will give local businesses the extra confidence they need to make the move and our advice would be to let us know in advance if they have a break or expiry date looming, as we can invariably help to save them money and identify more appropriate office space.”
Thursday, May 16, 2013
location
Al-Murad superstore in Warrington gets £250,000 revamp TILE reseller and DIY supplier Al-Murad has invested £250,000 in a revamp of its Warrington superstore. The Mayor of Warrington, Cllr Steve Wright, was guest of honour at the outlet for a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The store now offers a full range of products including tiles, bathrooms and carpets – all displayed in a purpose-built showroom. At the event leading specialist suppliers such as Rubi Tools, Everbuild and Specialist Tiling Supplies, were on hand to provide advice and guidance to those who were planning to do work on their home. Store manager Ebrahim Laher said: “We’re really pleased that Cllr Steve Wright took the time to support our store launch. “The investment that Al-Murad has put into this store in Warrington shows that we are committed to delivering quality products at affordable prices to those living within the area. “We want to offer a full range of products from tiles to wallpaper and paint.” The Warrington store currently employs four people with more roles anticipated. The Warrington opening is the third successive launch and refit of the store portfolio in the UK.
The Mayor of Warrington, Cllr Steve Wright, cuts the ribbon at the town's refurbished Al-Murad store
post business 17
Property market in UK is flat in April RETURNS from UK commercial property remained broadly flat in April, according to the latest data from CBRE. Its monthly index showed that total returns on all property increased from 0.5% in March to 0.6% in April, with the annual return also picking up to 3.1% for the year to April 2013. However, capital values remained flat, and have declined by -2.8% over the course of the last 12 months. All offices total return increased to 0.5% in April, while capital values remained at the level recorded in March. Overall sector returns were boosted by offices in central London, returning 0.6% over the month. The total return for the retail sector picked up to 0.6% in April. Capital values remained broadly stable with a small increase of 0.1%.
Small firms agree office deals at LIP by Tony McDonough
POST BUSINESS STAFF
tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com
LIVERPOOL Innovation Park (LIP) has secured two new lettings thanks to its “package for start-ups”. Zut Media, which specialise in the production of creative video and animation for broadcast, online and live for a wide range of corporate clients, moved to LIP from St Helens and has taken 1,155 sq ft. Rigel Ship Management, which provides professional management services to cargo, bunker and tanker ship owners worldwide, was previously run from a home office but has now taken start-up space at LIP to accommodate its growth. Both businesses are taking advantage of the new package LIP is offering to SMEs, with an integrated internet and telephone service being provided by Aimes Grid Services and Arrow Communications. Delyth Lloyd, innovation manager at LIP, said: “We are pleased to be able to support the continued growth of small, ambitious companies such as Zut Media and Rigel. “This support is further highlighted by LIP offering crucial services such as super-fast broadband and telephone services within the package. “This offering means that new occupiers can now relocate with the confidence that these vital services are readily available to them as soon as they move in, providing a seamless, convenient service.” Alan Gaffney of Zut Media added: “We’d been looking at new premises for quite a while, and Liverpool Innovation Park really
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Delyth Lloyd of LIP fitted the bill. Superfast internet is a must-have for our core services of video production, digital and live video webcasting. “We’re looking forward to setting up our studio to offer an affordable video webcasting facility to Merseyside businesses.” Liverpool Innovation Park is operated by Space Northwest, a joint venture between Ashtenne Industrial Fund and the Homes and Communities Agency.
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18 post business economic development
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Colleges fuelling region’s focus on
skills
by Alistair Houghton POST BUSINESS STAFF
alistair.houghton@liverpool.com
A
NEW generation of schools will train the next generation of workers for the sectors that will grow the region’s economy in years to come. Officials at the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership have identified four key growth sectors for the region: low carbon industries, the knowledge economy, the visitor economy, and the superport. Regeneration officials believe they can help to create thousands of jobs in those sectors by attracting investment from around the world through promoting Merseyside as a great place to do business. But creating jobs is little use unless local people have the skills they need to take them. So three “University Technical Colleges” (UTCs) are being founded in the region to help train the workers of the future. UTCs are business-sponsored colleges for 14 to 18-year-olds that focus on the employment needs of particular regions. They are formed by consortia of educational institutions and businesses, who are able to shape the curriculum to ensure that graduates have the skills they need to win jobs in growing industries. Liverpool Community College, working with Liverpool John Moores University, the City Council, Peel Ports and the Eldonian Group are developing a UTC in North Liverpool focusing on the low carbon and superport industries. The Life Sciences UTC, which will be based in the former Contemporary Urban Centre in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle, is being developed by North Liverpool Academy, the University of Liverpool, and the Royal Liverpool Hospital. It will focus on helping students find work in the healthcare and life science industries. And, in Wirral, plans to create a UTC specialising in engineering studies won Government approval last year. The plans have been created by a consortium led by shipbuilding giant Cammell Laird. Cllr Nick Small, Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for employment, enterprise and skills, said the UTCs would also help to tackle youth joblessness. He said: “If you look at when young people start to become disengaged from school, it’s often when they’re 14 or 15. “These schools have a high-quality vocational focus. If we can link young people with the growth sectors where the jobs are going to be, that’s going to be good for them. “I think the UTCs are going to have a big impact on youth unemployment in the city.” Liverpool Low Carbon and SuperPort University Technical College is set to open in September, 2014. Students will spend around 60% of their time on core academic subjects, and the rest of their time learning technical skills and qualifications.
Andy Brayne, senior site manager for the Liverpool Life Sciences UTC, shows principal Phil Lloyd around the building currently being converted into a home for the college. Inset, how one of the labs will look Main picture: GAVIN TRAFFORD The school is being backed by major employers, including construction giant Laing O’Rourke. Carrie-Ann Huelin, senior community and regeneration advisor at Laing O Rourke said: “Large scale redevelopment and economic growth in the city region will develop many new employment opportunities for local people over the next decade. “The UTC will play an important role in providing the right training and skills for young people to progress and maximise these new career opportunities. “As the lead employer of the UTC, Laing O'Rourke will be working closely with the college and LJMU to help shape the curriculum offer and ensure it is providing the most relevant industry standard training for its students.” Among the key superport developments is Peel Ports’ creation of the new in-river container terminal, Liverpool2, that will allow the Port of Liverpool to handle some of the world’s biggest ships. Howard Sloane, group head of human resources, for Peel Ports said: “The proposed UTC in North Liver-
pool will be crucial to the city’s economic growth and to the future of the young people in our region. “Liverpool stands to benefit enormously from growth in low carbon industries, as well as from Peel Ports’ new in-river container terminal, Liverpool2. “These developments are expected to generate in the region of 35,000 jobs by 2020, which makes the UTC in North Liverpool a really exciting opportunity for local young people. It will allow them to access the specific skills and qualifications they need to benefit from jobs as they come on line, and to pursue successful careers in the superport and low carbon industries.”
‘UTC will be crucial to city’s economic growth’
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HE Life Sciences UTC has also been developed in close consultation with the companies who will eventually employ its students. Its sponsors and partners include Novartis, Unilever, Siemens and Nutricia, as well as fast-growing Liverpool pharmaceuticals group Redx Pharma and the University of Liv-
erpool. Redx’s chief executive, Dr Neil Murray, has told the Post in the past that the region’s life sciences sector needs a supply of skilled young people if it is to keep growing. Building work is well under way at the former Contemporary Urban Centre building in Greenland Street, and it will open in September. Principal, Phil Lloyd said: “Students attending the UTC will work on projects and placements with some of the best in the business, learning skills and techniques to help them secure a job in the sector when they finish their studies.” Those partners have shaped the school’s curriculum by creating a “core skills list” of the disciplines students will need to master if they want a job in the sector. The centre will boast 5,000 sq ft of laboratories for students to carry out research projects in areas from chemical synthesis to cell biology. It will also house state-of-the-art equipment allowing students to analyse DNA, proteins and small molecules. The school will be so well-equipped that students will be able to recreate much of the work done by its partner businesses in areas from developing new antibiot-
ics to researching cancer drugs. As many students are likely to work in healthcare, the UTC will also include a fully-equipped hospital ward. The students will also be able to test their skills on “Sim Man”, a dummy patient from Royal Liverpool Hospital that displays vital life signs and systems. All students will be able to gain first-hand experience of the biotech sector by doing work experience at partner organisations and by carrying out projects at the school with industry professionals. Lyndsay MacAulay, the UTC’s director of enterprise, said: “Pupils at the UTC will have had the chance to work alongside people in the industry for two or four years. They will know what’s expected, be skilled to deliver it, and have had the time to show employers what they can do. “It also gives our business partners confidence to recruit young people – particularly those that are not graduates – as they’ve had an extended trial period, the opportunity to nurture and observe the talent pool and can then select the right candidates. “For us, the measure of our success will not just be the traditional league tables, but delivery of our
Thursday, May 16, 2013
growth sectors
Peel Ports, developer of the Liverpool 2 container terminal, above, is backing the superport UTC
economic development post business 19
diary of an entrepreneur WHEN I left school at the age of 16 with very little academic interest and little ambition, I could never have imagined where I’d be today. The mid-80s were a time of unemployment and poor job prospects for most school leavers, especially in Merseyside. University was certainly never discussed at home or at school, and this was the case for the majority of people from my background. I was lucky as I got an apprenticeship as a technician for a start-up electronic security company, which eventually became one of the largest independent firms of its type in the UK. Working directly with the two founders as an apprentice, I soon caught the entrepreneurial bug and realised there were no barriers to success if you had the right attitude and were prepared to work hard. I left the company aged 20 and returned four years later to head up a new communications division. The company was eventually sold to Chubb Locks and I could have stayed on as a manager, but decided it wasn’t for me. Instead, I left and formed a software company with a successful local electronics entrepreneur who had an innovative idea for improving procurement. We had limited success with our cloud-based procurement tool called MultiQuote, and by 2007 I was at a crossroads in my career. I had a number of options but because I believed in the product, I decided to form a new company to try and build on the work we’d done in the NHS. It was a big decision because, although I’d been on the board and a minority shareholder in my two previous roles, this was the first time I had taken complete control. We received investment from a Norwegian software company and moved to Sci-Tech Daresbury in
June 2007. Using customer feedback, MultiQuote developed into a market testing and benchmarking tool with particular applications in the public sector. At first it was tough trying to sell a new concept and convince people that there was a need for it, but two major changes allowed us to turn the corner. The first was gradually building a team of talented, like-minded people and the second was the insight that on its own, our software was only half the product. We also needed a support team with expert procurement knowledge to drive the system and make it work for our customers. Our main selling point is savings because we enable an organisation to check millions of products lines against the market so that they can renegotiate prices or find alternative sources. We are now in a position six years later where more than 40% of the NHS is saving millions of pounds every year through using MultiQuote. Other entrepreneurs I know have said that they wish they had made the decision to start their businesses earlier, but I’ve never felt that way. The experience I gained working in a number of diverse roles over the years has been invaluable and has certainly made a major contribution to our current success. Individual entrepreneurs are often portrayed as the main reason a business succeeds, but I’ve learned that the most important ingredient for a successful business is the people you surround yourself with. The main advice I’d give to anyone starting a business would be to focus on creating the right team and do whatever you can to keep it together. David Marley is managing director of Daresbury-based MultiQuote
Lord Baker and Lord Heseltine take part in a science experiment with Tinotenda Chinembiri on a visit to North Liverpool Academy in November to discuss the life sciences UTC promise of securing a job, apprenticeship or university place for every student who successfully completes their programme of study.” Nigel Ward, chairman of the Liverpool Life Sciences UTC Trust, said: “We are at a very interesting point – we've taken two years to bring together a group of world-class institutions. The net result will be a world class science school in the North West, leading the way in re-shaping and re-defining vocational education.” Geoff Wainwright, director of Crown Street-based biosciences incubator 2Bio said: “By developing the next generation of employees, the Life Sciences UTC will underpin a key component of Liverpool’s strategy and support the UK’s leadership position as a global biotech nation. “In the past 10 years I have helped to develop 45 new life science businesses. I fully expect that students from the Life Sciences UTC will help grow and staff the next 45.” The Life Sciences UTC will share its building with another North Liverpool Academy-backed school, The Studio, that will offer a curriculum focused on the needs of the digital and video games sectors.
UTCs ‘will fill the UK skills gap’ THE Baker Dearing Trust was founded five years ago to lead the push for University Technical Colleges (UTCs). The UTCs are designed to allow businesses to get involved in the education system to ensure that students have the skills needed by industry. Each school will focus on at least one technical specialism. The trust said: “They are a radical solution to the totally inadequate number of technicians and engineers in the country.” And it added: “by providing high quality training for technicians and engineers, UTCs help to fill the UK skills gap”. It wants UTCs to be distinct from other schools in three ways: ■ They are 14-18, not 11-18 schools ■ Each must be supported by a university and local employers ■ Employers will be involved from the start in designing and delivering the curriculum The trust says the school day at
UTCs will typically run from 8:30am to 5pm, giving more teaching time so students can be taught industry-specific skills as well as the core curriculum. Five UTCs are already open, including the JCB Academy in Staffordshire. Another 12, including the Liverpool Life Sciences UTC, are set to open in September. Visiting North Liverpool Academy in November to discuss its plans for the Life Sciences UTC, Trust founder and former Education Secretary Lord Baker, said: “This is going to provide huge opportunities and revolutionise the lives of young people in Liverpool and is one of a growing number of vocational specialist schools.” Lord Heseltine added: “It is good for the employers as they get the people they need and good for the young people as it means there will be a job for them when they come through the education system.”
David Marley formed MultiQuote in 2007 to focus on the NHS
20 post business professional
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Winterhill Largo in takeover expansion
The original Beatles line-up pictured at the city’s Cavern Club which, decades on, is now inspiring business leaders of the future
Beatles-themed training guru ‘gets back’ to encore project by Neil Hodgson
POST BUSINESS STAFF
neil.hodgson@liverpool.com
WIRRAL management expert John MacCarfrae is encoring his unique Beatles-themed training course to deliver team building projects. His Maverick Training company pioneered the course a decade ago and, with Liverpool University, developed an eLearning version in 2004. He built up an impressive client list throughout the UK and worked on translating the course into several other languages. But a client from 10 years ago, Denise Williamson, returned to Liverpool and asked Mr MacCarfrae, now trading as John MacCarfrae Business and Enterprise Coach, to use the programme to develop her six-strong team from Staffordshire-based software development firm Bookwise Solutions. The team underwent training at the city’s Radisson Blu hotel on Monday and took part in the Magical Mystery coach tour to back up the module. Mr MacCarfrae said: “Denise atten-
ded one of my presentations for an NHS annual conference in 2003 and was impressed with the content and found it really inspiring. “I was delighted when I received the call and that she had remembered the training. I guess that is the legacy of the Fab Four and their potential application in the business world.” Beatles fan Mr MacCarfrae explained the thinking behind his programme, saying that when former Beatles drummer Peter Best left the band shortly before they hit the big time it was a major blow for his career. But for the band, who went on to global domination, it was all part of the business process. According to Mr MacCarfrae they were actually “storming” – one of the key stages in carving out a successful commercial strategy. Mr MacCarfrae uses five stages in the Beatles’ career to highlight the benefits and pitfalls on the way to creating the right conditions for a successful workforce. The different levels range from forming, to storming, norming, per-
forming, and mourning. trip taking in Fab Four landmarks. He explained: “Forming is obvious, Mr MacCarfrae said being where it storming is where people are jostling all began was vital: “Great theories or for position, such as when original stories about inspirational people such drummer Pete Best left the band, and as the Beatles by themselves may lead norming is establishing goals, such as to stimulating discussions during Ringo joining and manager Brian training sessions, but unapplied and Epstein mapping the way forward.” untransferred to the real world make He added: “The Beatles successfully little contribution to daily productivillustrate the main elements of team ity back in the work place. working – to improve productivity by “Likewise, good practices and new working together skills that lack sound theeffectively; to identify ory are hollow and mechindividual strengths of anical and are soon overteam members in whelmed by old habits order to maximise proand everyday demands. It ductivity; and finally, is always a real balancing to allow team members act.” to take more responsHe said the scheme is ibility for their actions unique: “People are doing and to benefit from courses based on things freedom from control.” like Ready, Steady, Cook, Beatles music is and outward bound ideas used during the course for team building, but I to help people underthought ‘This is on my stand the five stages of doorstep, I know about team development, as the Beatles, and I know a well as the Magical lot about training, so why John MacCarfrae Mystery Tour coach not go for it’?”
WINTERHILL Largo has acquired field services company Chase Solutions for an undisclosed sum in a buy-in management buy-out. The asset valuation and recovery specialist and financial outsourcing group, which has offices in Liverpool, said the addition of Chorley-based Chase will boost its turnover by £1m and increase overall staffing to more than 90. Chase provides a range of specialist field services, including data gathering and home visits, principally for the utilities sector but with clients across a number of industries. It employs 20 people internally, and operates a nationwide field force of more than 600 agents, who will remain with the company under its new name of Winterhill Chase Solutions. Winterhill Largo chief executive Neil Duckworth said: “The acquisition of Chase Solutions marks a stride forward in our ambition to become the leading provider of asset valuation, disposal and recovery services in the UK. The business fits well within the Winterhill Largo group and strengthens our offer, operating as it does in the utilities sector, but we also have mutual relationships with a number of clients.” Chase managing director John Wolfenden, added: “We are excited at the prospect of joining the Winterhill Largo group and the whole team are looking forward to the new opportunities the deal promises to bring to the business.” Winterhill Largo now operates from seven UK offices in Liverpool, Manchester, London, Blackburn, Wakefield, Horsham and Chorley.
on the move ■
ASSET recovery and insolvency support group Winterhill Largo has appointed Rob McArdle as a director in the firm’s machinery and business assets team. An asset valuation and disposal specialist with almost 30 years’ experience in the corporate recovery and asset-based lending sector, Mr McArdle worked for Edward Symmons in the North West for 17 years
and went on to play an integral role in founding the property and asset consultancy David Currie & Co, bought by Winterhill Largo in 2011. He will head the firm’s Liverpool machinery and business assets division.
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MITCHELL Charlesworth chartered accountants and business advisors has promoted Chester-based Marlon Armstrong to partner.
He joined the company in 1995 and was appointed associate in 2008. He has experience across a broad range of sectors, from smaller owner-managed businesses to large group firms and not-forprofit organisations. Mitchell Charlesworth has offices in Liverpool, Manchester, Chester, Warrington and Widnes.
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PHIL Goodwin has joined the North
West office of PwC from Bradford-based Morrisons, the UK’s fourth largest food retailer. Mr Goodwin has 24 years’ experience implementing IT systems in both blue chip and consulting organisations and at PwC he will have responsibilities in technology across all sectors throughout the North West region. He worked for PwC 10 years ago.
Rob McArdle – new director’s role
Marlon Armstrong – promoted to partner
Phil Goodwin – returns to PwC
style post business 21
Thursday, May 16, 2013
What the cool heads wear in the office when the heat is on Bill Gleeson asks what should we be wearing now that warm summer days are almost upon us?
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Dougal Paver @DougalPaver wrote: “A light linen suit, tieless white cotton shirt, brogues and a fedora. Nothing else will suffice, sir.”
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FRIEND recently told me that a sure sign summer is almost upon us occurs when her husband starts to iron the back of his shirts, not just the front panels. This set us talking about what to wear in the office during the hot summer months. One colleague says the only adjustment he makes is to take his jacket off. If it’s really hot, he might roll up his sleeves. Another colleague, recent recruit Chris Carden, gets out his short sleeve shirts. Mr Carden, who is responsible for selling an exciting new digital product currently under development at The Liverpool Post, said: “They keep me cooler and its cool. Also, I find cufflinks a pain when working on my laptop on the train because they catch everything.” So where can the dapper man about town find a short sleeved work shirt? Gieves and Hawkes, in Liverpool’s Metquarter, doesn’t display any short sleeved shirts suitable for the office, though it does have casual versions priced at £95. On inquiry, it turns out that G&H will alter one of its long sleeved shirts to turn them into a short sleeve. The service costs an extra £20 on top of the £125 price of the original shirt. This might work. The shirts on offer are smart, light-weight Egyptian cotton in a wide variety of colours and stripes. G&H has plenty of other suggestions about how the smart set should dress for summer, tying in their offering to the forthcoming film The Great Gatsby.
Summer attire at the office?
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Suzanne Elsworth @SuzElsworth wrote: “Blokes shouldn’t bare feet or shoulders (unless on the beach). Women shouldn’t resort to stringy straps or go bra-less (ditto).”
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John Shaw @JohnWAShaw wrote: “If it’s fit for the beach it isn’t fit for work.”
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Suzanne Davies Smith @MissSDavies wrote: “No flip flops, no strappy tops, no shorts, no sandals and socks, no sun glasses on your head!”
■ New recruit Chris Carden with colleague Nick Moreton enjoying the recent spell of warm weather The store’s literature however assumes you have a yacht. It states: “Step ashore into summer at Gieves & Hawkes. Naval blazers, crisp tailored linenes and Gatsbyesque glamour take you back to the heyday of luxury when summers were long and the parties
were endless . . . Dine on deck in midnight DJ, the white collar starched, Oxfords polished . . . Whether moored in Cape Cod, Capri or Hong Kong harbour.” Oddly, G&H makes no mention of the Mersey. Marks & Spencer sells easy to iron
and non-iron short sleeve cotton rich shirts for £12.50 and £17.50. The chain’s “Collezione” all-cotton brand sells for £32.50. John Lewis stocks its own brand non-iron half-sleeve shirts on sale for £30 and available in a wide variety of colours and patterns.
Caroline Oates @caloatesy wrote: “Cotton shirts smart jeans or t-shirts with collars menswear I’m talking about :))”
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Estelle cartlidge @Stelc81 wrote: “My office is the @bikramliverpool hot room so strictly shorts hehe #locktheknee :0) xxx”
past business – nostalgia
The ‘long bobs, suede shoes and spiv ties’ that lifted famous store’s sales
How the customers dressed: Church Street shoppers in 1959
WHEN it comes to workplace fashion, it seems Liverpool has always been ahead of the game. In the Day to Day on Merseyside column in January 1960, the Post reported that the long, hot summer of 1959 had “toppled one of the few remaining bastions of formal wear in the retail trade” – the black coats and striped trousers worn by partners at John Lewis in London. But, the Post reported with pride, the sister George Henry Lee store in Liverpool had made the same move two years earlier. Mr H.G. Hargreaves, general manager at the Liverpool store, explained that partners at provincial branches of the partnership had suggested that the shop-walkers’ uniform was “outmoded”. They won permission to switch to “mid or dark grey lounge suits” – and, the Post said, the Partnership had since seen provincial sales rise by 12%. The paper added: “It is an interesting instance of what Liverpool does today, London does tomorrow”. Since the summer of 1959, a debate had been raging in the John
Lewis journal about whether the national dress code should change. One correspondent said the campaign for a change was simply a “fidgety hankering for variety” – adding that it was “all part of the general lowering of standards which was responsible for road accidents, petty dishonesty, litter in parks and the Light Programme of the BBC”. A correspondent called “Worried partner”, meanwhile, complained about the appearance of his colleagues and urged that something be done about their “long bobs, suede shoes and spiv ties”. Eventually, the partnership decided it would introduce a new dress code to “bring London in line with the provinces” and get rid of the short black coat. The Post’s correspondent found one unnamed Liverpool tailor who believed the change in dress code lowered the tone of George Henry Lee. He said: “I’d like to see it made a rule again. You could tell the staff from the customers in those days.”
A historic image of George Henry Lee – but with all the
ALISTAIR HOUGHTON smartly-dressed assistants hidden from view
22 post business end piece
Thursday, May 16, 2013
trading gossip
LIVERPOOL POST BUSINESS LUNCH DIRECTORY
Call the brasserie 0151 299 5000 to book and quote ‘The Daily Post’.
£10 full rodizio lunch between 12 noon and 4pm, Monday to Friday. Terms and Conditions apply.
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LIVERPOOL Mayor Joe Anderson’s first anniversary bash raised the bar for the humble charity auction at his special night in the city’s Hilton Hotel last week. There was a cracker of a top prize, donated by the University of Liverpool for
a trip for two, flights and accommodation included, to CERN, the site of the large hadron collider scientific project in Switzerland. A silent auction produced a winning bid of £3,000 for the ultimate fantasy of geeks – from Joe Morris, of the retailer Home Bargains. Not that we’re suggesting Joe is a geek, of course.
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IF YOU hadn’t already guessed it from his
company’s name, Red Touch Media boss Wayne Scholes is a lifelong Liverpool fan. Scholes may be based in Salt Lake City, but he is an LFC season ticket holder and still manages to make most games at Anfield. And now he is opening an office in Liverpool for Red Touch, saying it was an “easy decision”. He added: “It wasn’t down to me being a big Liverpool fan. But it helps. It’s ended up being a bonus.”
And he smiled: “It did push me to buy a box at Anfield.” Mr Scholes also proudly discussed Red Touch Connect, which he says allows advertisers to target individuals. He explained: “I like Range Rovers. I love Halo. Show me an advert about Halo or Range Rovers and I’ll watch it all day long. “But show me an ad about dentures and I’m not interested – give me 30 years.”
Emma is an advocate of the ‘gentle way’ myday off Emma Rogers works at Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF) and also helps run her local judo club
W
ITH so many funds under management and multiple investments made each month, my working day is always very busy. MSIF currently has a portfolio of around 170 clients which is growing all the time – since January we have made 28 investments totalling almost £1.1m. Although I love my job, it is always nice to switch off and spend time doing something I feel really passionate about. I became involved with our local judo club – AYAC Judo Club – about 12 years ago when my daughter, Becky, wanted to take up the sport. I used to take her along and soon enough got roped into taking the subs. As with most children, Becky’s interest soon waned and she wanted to start something else, but I stayed on and over time became more involved. The club is based in Fairfield Day Centre in Kensington, which is a lower income area so we keep our subs low to ensure it is accessible to everyone. A lot of the youth clubs in the city have closed so after school clubs and activities are the only way parents can keep their kids off the street. It provides children with a safe place to go and learn a useful skill that stays with them forever. In the world we live in it is good for everyone to be able to defend themselves. It also builds confidence, instils discipline and improves fitness. Judo means ‘the gentle way’ and is a defensive martial art, rather than an attacking one. I am a qualified British Judo Asso-
Emma with other members of her judo club ciation table official and help to run competitions all over the North West. For this I have had to pass exams to become a timekeeper, so I am responsible for keeping track of the contest time, scores and penalties awarded to each player, and also a contest recorder, which means I record contest results and call players to the mat. I’m also the secretary and events organiser for the club which involves mostly admin work and organising fundraisers, other events and days out for the members. I also oversee the gradings – how the players progress through the different belts and ensure that all our licences up to date. Our members range from eight-years-old and our oldest honorary member is 82. We have approximately 40 members at the moment with an even mix between juniors and
seniors, but are always looking for more. The club trains on a Monday and Friday and includes a range of players from novices to black belts. Last year the club was nominated for Club of The Year by the British Judo Association, with which we are affiliated. We didn’t win but it was an honour to be nominated and an excuse for a party to celebrate the nomination. Judo is an Olympic and Paralympics sport so it is available to everyone, which is what I love about it. Children can start from around five-years-old, although we only take them from eight. We haven’t produced any Olympians or Paralympians yet but there is still time. Last year’s Games have certainly helped to inspire our members, particularly the girls as it was female players who won the two medals for the sport in London 2012.
‘Members range from eight right up to one who is 82’
Thursday, May 16, 2013
end piece
23 post business
networking
Moose Coffee in Dale Street, Liverpool
Flamco UK event ST HELENS firm Flamco UK hosted an Energy Efficiency and Low Carbon Trade Fair last week. Pictured above from left are Katherine Burden and Sue Gibson (Gyron), Charlie Browne (IKEA), Ian Roberts
(Flamco), Sue Waller (St Helens Chamber), Kenny Currie (Solar King), and Roy Plumbley (Energy UK), while left are Phil Derbyshire (Starbank Panel Products), and Paul Barrow and Andy Craig (Paragon).
munity and members of Knowsley Chamber of Commerce were given a tour around the scenes. Vantage head of PR, Robin Tudor, is pictured, far right, with members of Knowsley Chamber.
Retailer backs Mayor
SPEKE online and catalogues retailer Shop Direct was one of the many business sponsors of Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson’s first anniversary dinner at the Hilton Hotel last Thursday.
business diary 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;
Colin Sinclair at commercial property firm Bruntwood Q What is your favourite lunch venue? A Moose Cafe, Queen’s Arcade, Dale Street. Q Why is this your favourite venue? A It offers hearty portions of wholesome Canadian food with plenty of veggie options and the surroundings are really homely. You feel you could happily spend hours there, sipping on a mug of coffee and watching the world go by.Mind you, we’re so busy in Liverpool right now, it’s a real positive how fast and helpful the service is at Moose.
Members take tour LIVERPOOL John Lennon Airport (JLA) is a vital cog in the Liverpool city region economy. JLA, owned by Vantage Airports UK, maintains strong connections with the Merseyside business com-
my favourite lunch
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/
Pictured, from left to right, are the firm’s corporate PR manager Cara Newton, head of HR, Sarah Willett, and Retail Trust corporate partnerships manager Penny Hamer.
eventitem.aspx/ show/473 or to attend email export@ liverpoolchamber.org.uk
TUESDAY, JUNE 4
ST HELENS Chamber of Commerce 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
Q What is your favourite dish and why? A Manolito – tortillas topped with two eggs over-easy, and lashings of salsa, cheese and sour cream – what could be better? They also offer a range of specials which have been known to catch my eye if I’m looking for something a bit different. Q What is the best bit of business you have done over lunch? A Devising our new Move for Free campaign. Jamie (Bruntwood digital marketing manager) and I had the idea of not only giving rent-free periods but also paying people’s
non-members. Visit www. sthelenschamber.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
Colin Sinclair moving costs as well. Q Who would you most like to have lunch with? A Brunch with the Brownlee brothers, the Olympic and world triathlon champions, would be fun. I imagine they could put away a fair amount of food between them. Q Where else do you lik to go for lunch? A For a quick lunch I also really like the new Salad Bowl in St Paul’s Square. It was founded by two young entrepreneurs and they’ve got a great business idea – not only serving up a fantastic range of salad, soup and breakfast options, but also where possible using Fair Trade produce.
rawlinb@hope.ac.uk or 0151-291 3005.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19
ENTERPRISING Merseyside is staging a free workshop aimed at helping people become their own boss. Be Your Own Boss is being hosted at the St Helens Chamber of Commerce offices, in Salisbury Street, from 6pm to 8pm. The session will be informal, and is designed to offer the best way to find out everything needed in order to start your own business. For further information call: 0845 340 9980.
TUESDAY, JUNE 25
A WORKSHOP aimed at helping firms do business in
Russia is taking place at the Old Hall Street offices of Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, from 9.15am to 1pm, including breakfast. Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organisation last year will open markets further – tariffs are already being lowered for imported goods. This event will give an overview of the practical considerations to start exporting, or increase current exports to Russia. It costs £10 for chamber members and £15 for non-members. Visit www.mychamber.co. uk/liverpool/event/view/id/ 3252#book to book. ■ Send your diary events to neil.hodgson @liverpool.com
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Thursday, May 16, 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.