Post Business - 23rd May 2013

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Featheredfriends whocanprovide staffmotivation

Networker21

thisweek RBAspeaker isrevealed News 3

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Creative11

Exchangeis rightontrack Location 17

Lawfirms honoured

Flying high Spirit of Pegasus inspires college entrepreneurs

Legal14-15

P18 &19

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Thursday, May 23, 2013

Advertising Feature Accountants: Giving business advice

Aiming to offer you advice that’s worth paying for

A

Stuart Kellner, Managing Director at Dufton Kellner

T Dufton Kellner, the firm’s sole purpose is to provide ownermanaged businesses in the North West with the advice and services they need in these challenging economic times and beyond.

The company aims to provide the quality and breadth of advice of the very largest firms, but delivered with the sensational service that only a regional firm can deliver.

Their clients operate across a wide range of industries and sectors, and vary in size from individuals up to multi-millionpound turnover groups.

Every DK client is treated as an individual. The firm will meet with you on a regular basis so that you can

receive personalised advice specific to your business and your sector.

Dufton Kellner want to become your most trusted advisers, and the only way they can do this is to spend time with you, learning about your business and what you want it to become.

You can be confident that you’ll be receiving advice of the highest calibre from a team that has won a multitude of awards and is recognised as one of the most forward-thinking in the UK.

And because most of Dufton Kellner’s clients are similar in size to themselves, you can be sure that they will both understand and value your business.

You’ll benefit from fixed fees covering everything they do – there is no clock ticking, and they never send surprise bills. They guarantee the value of every service provided; if you don’t value it, you don’t pay.

If they can’t answer your question immediately, you’ll get a guaranteed call back

within two hours, and accounts are always produced in less than 30 days so that the essential information they contain about the performance of your business is fresh and useful.

Dufton Kellner will do everything legally possible to slash your tax bill. And their very stable team means that you’ll deal with the same people on each and every occasion.

So whatever your business needs, from building a plan for growth or improved profitability, planning a route to retirement or business sale, reducing your tax bill or simply preparation of accounts or tax returns, Dufton Kellner will be delighted to help.

■ For more information contact 0151 342 6405 or see the website www.duftonkellner.co.uk.

Not just another accountancy firm

M

ITCHELL Charlesworth has been advising a diverse selection of clients, ranging from large organisations to smaller, owner-managed businesses and individuals from their offices in Liverpool and four other North West offices for more than 125 years.

These clients have come to trust that the firm’s locally based team of financial experts will provide a complete financial solution that dramatically reduces the constraints, jargon and bureaucracy holding their businesses back.

There are two main reasons why Mitchell Charlesworth can be more than ‘just’ your

accountants. The first is their ability to offer a large portfolio of services under one roof, including: accounts preparation and audit work, business insurance, tax planning, corporate finance (MC Vanguard), corporate recovery

and insolvency services, an outsourced payroll bureau, wealth management, pensions and investments, trusts and estates services and a specialist VAT advisory service.

Their excellent team is the second reason why businesses

choose Mitchell Charlesworth.

They pride themselves on offering partner-led services based on personal relationships. They are not a large, faceless corporation. A number of Mitchell Charlesworth’s employees are experts in particular business sectors, enabling them to offer industry-specific business advice which ultimately gives their clients peace of mind and greater profitability.

This is why Mitchell Charlesworth can be more than ‘just’ your accountants.

■ For more information, call 0151 255 2300 or visit the website: www.mitchellcharlesworth.co.uk.

The firm can also be followed on Twitter @MitCharlesworth and via its LinkedIn Company Page.

THE POST LIVERPOOL

Don’t miss out, buy the Liverpool Post every Thursday.

The team at Mitchell Charlesworth

Thursday, May 23, 2013

news

Trust seeks new blood to boost Sefton businesses and jobs THE organisation that brought Antony Gormley’s Iron Men to Crosby beach is looking for more trustees to help oversee the next stage of its development.

Bootle-based South Sefton Development Trust’s main focus is supporting new businesses, including social enterprises, pre-employment train-

ing, professional development and business skills training.

One of its business training programmes has been adopted as an example of best practice by the European Union and is being replicated as far afield as Germany, Sweden, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Cyprus.

Against this background,

the Trust is looking to recruit extra board members who can help create businesses and jobs in the area.

Chief executive Cate Murphy said: “In the current economic climate our work is more important than ever, which is why we’re looking to strengthen our team of trustees who play a vital role in the

Top internet entrepreneur to speak at RBA dinner

by Bill Gleeson

POST BUSINESS STAFF

bill.gleeson@liverpool.com

ARIADNE CAPITAL founder Julie Meyer will be the keynote speaker at The Liverpool Post’s Regional Business Awards next month.

One of the early backers of Lastminute.com, Ms Meyer believes that individual capitalism releases people's ingenuity for the solving of the world's problems at the macro and micro levels as well as accelerating the future.

Educated at a university near Chicago, she is now a leading champion for entrepreneurship in Europe and the UK. Since arriving in Paris in 1988, where she studied at top French business school Insead, Ms Meyer has advised technology firms and backed entrepreneurs in Paris and London.

She founded Ariadne Capital in 2000 “to create a new model for the financing of entrepreneurship – entrepreneurs backing entrepreneurs”.

In 1998, Ms Meyer founded First Tuesday, the network of entrepreneurs, which many credit for igniting the Internet generation in Europe.

First Tuesday was sold in July 2000 for $50m.

Ms Meyer has been named one of Insead's top 50 alumni, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, World Economic Forum Global Leader of Tomorrow, appeared in Time Magazine Digital 50, was dubbed one of London's 1,000 most influential people in 2010 & 2011 and one of the Wall Street Journal’s top 30 most influential women in Europe.

Ms Meyer was one of the BBC's dragons in the award-winning

Dragon's Den Online, and is currently setting up a “Dads and Daughters” foundation to support and extend her thesis that women's identities are shaped - for good or bad - by the messages they receive from their fathers as children and young adults.

She is on the board of Vestergaard Frandsen, Insead and Medikidz.

She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities and English Literature from Valparaiso University, near Chicago, in 1988, having spent her junior year in Cambridge University.

It’s essential that you act quickly if you want be sure of securing your place to hear Ms Meyer speak at the 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.

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 dinner that takes place on the evening of June 13.

Hosted by former BBC broadcaster Peter Sissons, the night will see awards handed out to the winners of 11 categories.

Now in their third decade, the awards are an established part of the region’s annual social calendar 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 special awards website at regionalbusinessawards .co.uk.

Alternatively, you can email events@liverpool.com or call 0151 472 2570.

Investment delivery manager Chris Gibbins said: “We are committed to improving customers’ lives and our £11m investment is testament to that. Our improvement programme is ambitious and bold – we are really looking for-

players in Merseyside’s public, private and community sectors would also be very useful to the organisation.

“We’re hoping for a good response to this appeal.

“The new board members will have the satisfaction of knowing that they are making an important contribution to the regeneration of our area.”

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STEP INTO MY OFFICE Charlotte Winby, director of Orion Party Architects

THE POST L I V E R P O O L

REGIONAL BUSINESS

‘It's an attitude - if you go to a party For News, wanting Sport andto have fun, Business you’ll on yourhave fun. you go phone TextIfLDP to a party to 67800 saying ‘entertain me’ you'll find fault’

AWARDS2013

Full video interview, at www. ldpbusiness. co.uk

Renewable spreading the word BROMBOROUGH green energy company Renewable Solutions is taking its energy efficiency messages around the country in a 10-strong fleet of hybrid vehicles.

Its fleet of Honda hybrids has clocked up half a million miles since they first hit the road three years ago.

Managing director Mike Lowes said: “Honda hybrids are a perfect fit for our business with the efficiency of battery power and the many environmental and financial benefits this brings.”

The firm employs more than 40 staff.

Internet generation founder Julie Meyer

Halton Housing Trust £11m upgrade HALTON Housing Trust is investing £11m in improvements to its homes in Runcorn and Widnes.

The Trust owns and manages 6,150 homes in the borough and will take a year to upgrades its homes and flats.

work of the organisation.

“We’re particularly looking for people with experience of commercial operations, new project development or marketing skills. People with an interest in South Sefton’s communities, and young people, would be especially welcome.”

She added: “Applicants with good links to the key strategic

post business

ward to seeing the end result in April 2014.

“We’re already way ahead in terms of delivery and with the warmer months ahead we can really move forward with some of the major improvement works.”

Solicitors on air HAMPSON Hughes Solicitors has embarked on its first TV advertising campaign across the North West.

The campaign will run for three months to promote the personal injury claims service, from accidental injury to road traffic accidents, for the national solicitors with their head office in Liverpool.

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post business big feature

Bill Gleeson Is RSA Insurance’s dividend policy excessively prudent?

WHAT has gone wrong at RSA Insurance?

For many years following the merger between Liverpool based Royal Insurance and Sussex based Sun Alliance that created the present day RSA, the company struggled to find its feet.

In fact, it went through a period of transition, divesting itself of its overseas subsidiaries in places like North America and Australia and its “non-core” businesses.

It struggled to make a worthwhile profit and had to close its life assurance business in Liverpool.

Then under the management of its previous chief executive Andy Haste, the business seemed to make good progress over the past eight years.

So it came as a deep disappointment and surprise to some powerful shareholders when, earlier this year, RSA announced it was cutting dividend payments in response to weak investment returns.

Standard Life, in particular, has objected to the dividend cut. Standard Life has, for many years now, been one of the City’s more vocal and active institutional shareholders.

The Edinburgh based firm’s head of corporate governance Guy Jubb spoke out at last week’s RSA annual meeting against the new dividend policy, saying “excessive prudence was brought to bear”.

While Standard Life has a relatively small holding (about 2.5%) in RSA Insurance, it is nevertheless very influential when it comes to corporate governance issues.

RSA is still a major employer in this town, however it isn’t quite the force it used to be within the local business community. That’s because much of its senior management is now located in London.

SOME commentators are suggesting that there are tentative signs of recovery in the US. The New York stock market has risen sharply in recent months, as has London’s FTSE-100 index, which earlier this week reached levels last seen at the peak of the dot.com boom.

If recovery is on the

way, this is great news for Britain’s beleaguered manufacturers.

There is much I don’t like about American society. It places the rights of the individual too far ahead of the needs of society as a whole. As a result, it has no national health service and its benefits system is patchy between states and ungenerous.

But America is resilient, possibly precisely because Americans are often thrown back onto their own enterprise and endeavours rather than a benefits system. You have to fend for yourself there, if you’re able to.

As a result, the US economy tends to pick up more quickly and more of its people run their own businesses.

We are very keen to promote enterprise in Britain. Our politicians often tell us how we have fewer small firms compared to the US. However, it seems that the recent recessions have begun to change that balance.

One reason UK unemployment has not risen by as much as previously feared is that more Britons have chosen to run their own small, even micro, businesses rather than sign on. I have cited a few examples in my article on Liverpool Community College on pages 18 and 19 of this magazine.

However, small and young businesses are unlikely to be as economically efficient as big firms. Yet, on the other hand, a significant small firms sector has got to be better than an even larger number of claimants.

Without doubt, some of these new businesses will thrive in the years to come and will be the making of the next generation of high profile entrepreneurs. On the other hand, it will be interesting to see whether this sector proves to be a new source of dynamic growth or whether a great many of them fall by the wayside once the economy picks up and big employers start to recruit again.

While many might think being your own boss would be great, others will fear the consequences of erratic and low profits and merciless bankers.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Mixed progress While Sci-Tech Daresbury races ahead, Mersey scheme lags behind Bill Gleeson reports

E

NTERPRISE Zones were first created by the chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne in the Budget of 2010.

They were in part set up to counter the effects of the Coalition government’s decision to abolish regional development agencies, which had been instrumental in the economic development of Britain’s regions during Labour’s 13 year tenure.

The chancellor’s aim was to develop the economies of deprived regions outside London and to stimulate small firms’ growth.

Two enterprise zones were created in the Merseyside area, one at Sci-Tech Daresbury near Runcorn and another straddling the River Mersey and taking in Peel’s proposed massive £10bn developments at Liverpool Waters and Wirral Waters. Three years on, however, there are mixed signs when it comes to gauging progress at the region’s enterprise zones.

Enterprise zones give business rates reliefs and tax breaks to companies setting up in them. These tax breaks include 100% capital allowances on investment in plant and equipment. The zones are also receiving priority treatment when it comes to such things as broadband infrastructure investment.

While the Daresbury scheme, which was in the second wave of enterprise zones announced by the government in 2011, can point to some early concrete achievements in the form of a new building and new tenants, the Liverpool and Wirral zone has still to come off the drawing board.

Daresbury has the advantage of being a long-standing science and technology business park with a considerable amount of science businesses and other organisations, including university departments, already based there.

Daresbury is engaged in the knowledge sector and is seen as offering strong prospects for growth in the future. As a result, it has attracted considerable support from government, including a visit by the Prime Minister David Cameron.

The science and innovation campus, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, was launched as one of the government’s flagship enterprise zones in April last year and quickly attracted £10m of Regional Growth Fund (RGF) money to support development.

As well as supporting the zone, the RGF grant will help with the wider development of the Daresbury site.

The money will be used to construct a 60,000 sq ft office and laboratory building within the enterprise zone which will be known as Techspace. The cash will also be used to upgrade Daresbury’s main power supply system, improve public transport links to and from the campus and enable a number of environmental and infrastructure improvements to take place.

At 36,000 sq ft, Vanguard House is already open for business and is more than half let to 13 companies.

However, while all of these businesses will benefit from business rates relief, it’s not clear that some of the technology firms will necessarily benefit from the available capital allowances if they are not all that capital intensive.

Indeed, those firms that do require

some manufacturing may prefer to outsource that activity to contract manufacturers located outside of the zone.

However, the site is attractive to science based firms because of the big science projects located on it.

Daresbury’s reputation and profile means companies will be attracted to it.

Its immediate environment and the presence of like minded entrepreneurs are also attractive to knowledge companies.

The fact that rural parts of Cheshire are within easy commuting distance should also make it attractive to potential inward investors.

The business tenants are actively encouraged to mingle with the scientists and to use the scientific research facilities on offer.

The enterprise zone status at Daresbury is seen as an important stepping stone in the longer term development of the area.

A total of 30 high-tech companies relocated to the wider campus during 2012, including specialists in advanced engineering and materials, biomedical, digital ICT and mobile, and energy and environmental technology.

‘Zone is a key element of wider vision’

In the longer term, it is hoped to build 1m sq ft of office and research space and to house 15,000 jobs.

John Downes, group chief executive of property developer Langtree Group, which is developing the enterprise zone, said: “The Sci-Tech Daresbury Enterprise Zone is thriving.

“We’re witnessing a strong pipeline of high-calibre international and domestic companies looking to relocate to the site’s flagship enterprise zone development at Vanguard House.

“Businesses have been keen to capitalise on the benefits associated with enterprise zone status and Vanguard House has now reached 60% occupancy since opening 18 months ago, with 13 tenant companies employing circa 150 people.

“It’s especially encouraging to us that around half of the companies in Vanguard House are existing tenants who have moved over from the site’s Innovation Centre due to the high levels of growth and expansion they’ve experienced.

“The fact that these expanding businesses are choosing to relocate to Vanguard House is testament to the success of the innovative, collaborative working

Thursday, May 23, 2013

big feature post business

at enterprise zones John Leake, business development manager at Sci-Tech Daresbury outside the fast-letting Vanguard House

Peel’s futuristic vision for Merseyside’s old docklands

Should we be worried by the relative lack of progress at Liverpool and Wirral Waters zone?

environment at the campus, which allows companies to thrive.

“The enterprise zone is a key element of our wider vision to continue the rapid growth already seen over the last two years, creating new high quality commercial and laboratory space and hundreds of high value jobs on site.”

In contrast, the combined Liverpool and Wirral enterprise zone has not shown similar signs of progress yet.

The zone, which includes Peel’s dockland regeneration schemes on both sides of the Mersey known as Liverpool Water and Wirral Waters, has yet to see any tangible development.

The disused docks are undoubtedly a harder sell than the green fields of Cheshire.

Unlike Daresbury, much of the land has lain idle for many decades, particularly on the Liverpool side of the river.

Both the Liverpool and Wirral schemes have also been subject to planning processes, with Liverpool only relatively recently hearing that the proposed £5bn development will not be called in by the secretary of state for a planning review.

Enterprise zone incentives include a 100% business rate discount worth up to £275,000 over a five-year period, for businesses that move into an enterprise zone during the course of this Parliament.

That time restriction means that any further delays to the Peel schemes could cause this benefit to expire before many businesses are able to avail themselves of the benefit.

Another benefit is that all business rates growth within the zone for a period of at least 25-years will be retained and shared by the local authorities in the Local Enterprise Partnership area to support their economic priorities.

Government and local authority help will be available to develop radically simplified planning approaches in the zone and there will be Government support to ensure super-fast broadband is rolled out in the zone. This will be achieved through public funding if necessary. Firms within some of the 22 zones would qualify for enhanced capital allowances. This would mean 100% allowances would be available for plant and machinery investment incurred between April, 2012, and March, 2017.

‘Docks are a harder sell than green fields’

THOSE promoting the Liverpool Waters and Wirral Waters enterprise zones argue that we should not be too concerned with the relative lack of progress to date.

A single enterprise zone straddles the River Mersey to encompass Port of Liverpool owner Peel Holdings’ developments on Liverpool’s north shore and at Birkenhead docks.

Peel’s ambitious schemes, with a combined value of £10bn, envisage a series of tall commercial and residential buildings to be built over several decades on what is mostly idle dock estate.

A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said: “The Mersey Waters Enterprise Zone is a long-term initiative based on Peel’s 30 year vision.

“Working with Wirral Council and Peel Developments, we are making good progress in preparing sites and putting measures in place for future development.

“In March, the Government announced it was giving the go-ahead to the £5.5bn Liver-

pool Waters scheme without the need for a Public Inquiry, which was a major step forward.

“We’re now working with Peel to drive forward the scheme, which will result in 20,000 jobs, 3m sq ft of commercial development and hundreds of offices, hotels, shops and leisure facilities.”

A Wirral Council spokesperson added: “A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes alongside Liverpool City Council and Peel to put in place robust and innovative plans to drive Mersey Waters forward, realising the significant benefits that Enterprise Zone status brings.”

The Wirral spokesperson insisted that there had been some literal and metaphorical groundwork completed, in particular he pointed to the preparations for Peel’s new International Trade Centre, which is designed to stimulate Britain’s trade with China and other emerging countries.

The spokesperson added: “The site of the Peel International Trade Centre has now

been fully remediated and is now ready for the ITC development.

“The West Float site was designated as an area with enhanced capital allowances last year, the only area in the North West to have this, and we have a strategy in place to attract investment from the automotive industry into this part of the site, working with central government, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), General Motors and a number of other top UK-based vehicle manufacturers to progress this.

“In the coming months we expect to see a number of other specific projects all moving forward, enabling new investment and creating new employment opportunities in the region.”

The availability of enhanced capital allowances should make the zone one of the most competitive in the UK. It will include a new cruise liner facility alongside Princes Dock and the new Leeds to Liverpool canal link extension.

Plans include offices and three luxury apartment towers.

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Thursday, May 23, 2013

post business wealth management IN ASSOCIATION WITH

US shifts stance on European Union financial integration market analysis

by Will Roberts

LIVERPOOL OFFICE OF CHARLES STANLEY

LAST week provided evidence that the optimism surrounding any sort of recovery in the eurozone in the near future was misplaced, as several countries reported GDP figures for the first quarter.

While the German economy showed a rise in activity, thereby avoiding a technical recession, the figure was only an increase of 0.1% which represented a year-on-year decline of 0.2%.

This annual drop is not encouraging for the eurozone, although a harsh winter will have had a significant effect on performance, especially in construction.

What was interesting was the comment that this “growth” in the first quarter was led by household consumption which suggests headwinds remain in the broader economy and not just the construction sector.

Meanwhile, French GDP fell for the second quarter running and is down 0.5% on the year.

This has been blamed on a decline in fixed capital investment and a negative contribution from foreign trade.

There was some comfort from the fact that the French figure was not as far off the German figure. but it is still hardly encouraging.

Estimates for other countries’ GDP performance year-on-year are as follows: Belgium -0.5%; Italy -2.3%; Netherlands -1.7%; Portugal -3.9%; Spain

Will Roberts

-2.0%; and UK +0.6%.

Our government may well be encouraged by these estimates, but the UK’s performance was relatively poor in the three-year period from 2009 to 2012 compared to several other countries. While it remains debatable that the UK is on the right track, the evidence suggests most of the eurozone is going the wrong way in terms of GDP growth.

The disadvantages of an inflexible Union are being increasingly highlighted. This has been made even more apparent by the recent observation by the well regarded Pew Research Centre in Washington that “the European Union is now the sick man of Europe”, noting a decline over the past year in public support for the EU project in all the major members of the EU. When Pew conducted its 2012 survey, the median proportion, among these states, of respondents taking a favourable view of the EU, was 60%, with a median of 34% believing that EU integration had strengthened the economy.

Those proportions dropped to 45% and 20%, respectively, in this year’s survey. Most significantly, approval of the EU in France had fallen from 60% last year to 41% this year.

By contrast, the EU still received a 60% approval rating in Germany where, this year, 54% believed economic integration was strengthening the economy, only slightly down from 59% in 2012. By contrast, in France, those taking a positive view of economic integration had fallen from 38% last year to a mere 22% in the latest survey. These observations are not encouraging for the EU and are not going to go unnoticed in the US. Of more interest, however, is the change in stance taken by the US towards the UK relating to our involvement with the EU. President Barack Obama now seems to be endorsing the line the UK Government is taking towards its EU membership, whereas previously the US suggested the UK would miss out if it left the EU. The proposed US-EU trade agreement seems a rich, prize but discussions relating to it could open up gaps in relations between the bigger players in the EU, especially France and Germany, as their governments take differing views over what should be put on the table during negotiations.

Over the coming months we could be set for yet more interesting developments revolving around the EU.

to make a diary of the calls they received.

The bulk of nuisance calls related to payment protection insurance (PPI), which made up more than half (51%) of unwanted sales calls.

Ofcom said complaints figures have indicated that large numbers of nuisance calls are being generated by some claims management companies.

A spokeswoman for Ofcom said the regulator is gathering further evidence and if its suspicions are confirmed it will launch full-blown formal investigations against these

■

THE pressure on household finances has eased to its weakest levels in three years, in a sign that the “gloom is lifting”, a report has found.

Hopes that families’ budgets may be entering “a period of relative calm”, came from a renewed increase in people’s take-home pay as well as a perception that the rise in living costs is easing, according to financial information company Markit, which compiled the research.

Some 9% of people surveyed said their finances improved in May, while almost 28% said that they worsened.

The overall reading of the latest monthly survey into people’s finances was 40.4, marking the slowest deterioration in household finances since May 2010.

■

US President Barack Obama now seems to be backing the UK

Ofcom to clamp down on PPI ‘nuisance’ A FRESH clampdown on claims management firms has been launched by Ofcom after it found evidence of people being plagued with “annoying” and “distressing” nuisance phone calls.

Research carried out by the regulator over a month found that four out of five consumers received nuisance calls, averaging two a week.

A quarter of people who took part reported receiving more than 10 nuisance calls over the period.

Those who took part in the survey were designed to reflect the general UK population and they were asked

notes

firms. Ofcom has also written to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to draw attention to the extent to which PPI claims appear to be driving nuisance calls.

Claudio Pollack, Ofcom’s consumer group director, said: “Two nuisance calls a week is too many and this detailed research will help us understand the root cause of the problem.

“We will use the full range of our powers to tackle abandoned and silent calls, but this is a complex area that requires joint action from a number of different agencies.”

HOUSE sellers’ asking prices have soared to a new high, in further signs of confidence returning to the market, a property website reported.

A 2.1% month-on-month rise pushed average prices to £249,841 this month, with new record prices set in London, the South East and East Anglia, according to Rightmove.

This has been the strongest start to the year since 2004 in terms of asking prices, with average prices rising by 9.1% or more than £20,000 in 2013 so far, the website said.

London asking prices surged past the half a million pound milestone for the first time this month, standing at £509,870 typically.

As well as being more than double the national average, asking prices in London were 8.6% higher than a year ago.

UK rents are on the rise TENANTS are facing further pressure on their finances as rents have increased in every region across England and Wales for the first time in 18 months, a lettings network has reported.

Private rents rose by 0.2% month-on-month in April to reach £736 on average – and for first time since November 2011 rents were up year-on-year across the whole country – according to LSL Property Services, which owns chains Your Move and Reeds Rains.

Rents started edging back up

again month-on-month in March, following a period of falls amid the seasonal winter slowdown.

The further push up in April means average rents have returned to levels not seen since November last year and they are 3.9% higher typically than a year ago.

London saw the biggest annual increase in rents, with a 7.6% rise pushing average rents to £1,110 a month. Wales recorded the second highest spike, with a 5% rise taking rents to £566 typically.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

news

Chester lawyer’s investment and jobs pledge for acquisition CHESTER-based commercial law firm Aaron & Partners announced its latest acquisition and pledged investment and new jobs.

It has acquired niche employment firm Bennett’s Legal in Shrewsbury as part of its expansion strategy.

The acquisition will be rebranded Aaron & Partners and become the firm’s third office after Chester and Manchester.

It is expected to generate fees of more than £1m a year within the next three years.

Aaron & Partners chief executive Andy Duxbury said: “This acquisition will give us a presence in Shrewsbury where our client base has been growing for some time.

“In addition it provides us with a platform to expand into new markets and deliver specialist legal services across Shropshire.

“Above all, though, we want to grow the office by means of local recruitment of specialists in our key market sectors.”

All Bennett’s Legal staff will join Aaron & Partners, including managing director Paul Bennett, who founded the practice in 2009.

He will join as a partner and said: “By joining Aaron & Partners I can now offer my clients a broader range of legal services.”

post business

LFC offers insight to world of business LIVERPOOL Football Club has teamed up with the London School of Business & Finance to form LFC ELITES, an initiative delivering global training and education exploring the transferable skills and strategies between sport and business.

The five-day CPD Management and Leadership programme is for business leaders of any sector.

Designed by a team of LFC coaches and LSBF management academics, and supported by guest lecturers and LFC legends like Ian Rush, the programme includes modules in leading and managing self, high performance teams, strategic design and growth, and leadership in organisations.

The first five-day management and leadership programmes begin at Liverpool FC Academy in Kirkby on Monday June 3 with further dates available throughout June, July and August.

Paul Bennett (centre) with Andy Duxbury (left) and Bethan Evans and Emily Price of Bennett's

Fund celebrates its 100th new job

by Alistair Houghton POST BUSINESS STAFF

alistair.houghton@liverpool.com

THE North West Fund for Venture Capital has created its 100th job.

Chris Kelly, from Wirral, has become IT implementation manager at Liverpool-based software specialist Thirsty Horses.

That company won a £500,000 investment from the fund in February to enable it to recruit staff to develop its performance management software system, Inspire.

Mr Kelly is the sixth employee at ThirstyHorses – and the company’s founder Ray Pendleton hopes to create more than 20 jobs in the next three years.

Mr Kelly, who served in the RAF before studying for an IT degree, said: “I’m really pleased to have landed a position that makes use of my IT skills.”

The North West Fund for Venture Capital, is managed by Enterprise Ventures and provides finance to help businesses start up and grow.

Since 2010 it has invested £11.4m, in 30 firms, and attracted £1.6m in extra funding.

It is part of the wider £155m North West Fund, which is financed jointly by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Investment Bank.

The fund has in total invested £55m into over 180 businesses, creating or safeguarding some 1,800 jobs.

Councillor Phil Davies, leader of Wirral Council and a member of the management committee which oversees the delivery of the North West ERDF programme, said: “I am delighted the North West Fund for Venture Capital has secured its 100th job.

Our inspiring location.

Need space to think? Choose our Hope Park Campus for your next meeting or away day.

Wirral Council leader Phil Davies, left, with Chris Kelly of Thirsty Horses “I hope this success will lead to other companies accessing the Fund and creating even more employment opportunities in the City region.”

Richard Young, of Enterprise Ventures, said: “The North West Fund for Venture Capital is playing a crucial role in providing investment for businesses at a time when finance is very hard to come by.

“We are delighted to see the companies we have supported creating much-needed employment in the North West.”

You can enjoy our stunning 45-acre landscaped location, as well as the EDEN Building’s outstanding business facilities.

7

· Bright and airy conference rooms · Excellent AV facilities · Quality in-house catering · On-site exeacutive style accommodation available year round

· On-site car parking · AIM accredited

Your great meeting.

www.hope.ac.uk/conferences l 0151 291 2147

8

Thursday, May 23, 2013

post business the bottom line

Hollyoaks maker encounters tough TV advertising market

by Bill Gleeson

POST BUSINESS STAFF

bill.gleeson@liverpool.com

HOLLYOAKS producer Lime Pictures suffered a small dip in profits last year despite enjoying a sharp rise in turnover.

According to the Childwall based operation’s latest accounts, filed at Companies House earlier this month, profit on ordinary activities before tax was £10.9m in the 53 week period to August 2012, down on the £11.4m recorded during the previous 52-week accounting period.

The 2012 corporation tax charge was £2.7m, less than the £3.1m paid in 2011.

As a result, profit for the financial period ending in 2012 was £8.1m compared to £8.3m in 2011.

Lime Pictures turnover was £58.7m, substantially up on the £48.8m in 2011.

However the gain in top line sales was more than matched by a sharp rise in the cost of sales, which was £47.1m compared to £36.7m in 2011.

Gross profit of £11.6m in 2012 compares to £12.1m in the year before.

Administrative expenses were £776,000, up from £694,000. That produced an operating profit of £10.8m compared to 2011’s £11.4m.

Lime Picture’s balance sheet shows tangible assets of £770,000 as at 31 August 2012, up on the £626,000 recorded 12 months earlier. The assets were fixtures and fittings, technical equipment, computer equipment and motor vehicles. The accounts show no sign of the land at Childwall.

Debtors were £14.5m versus £9.9m and cash in the bank was £12.4m versus last year’s £13.4m.

Creditors due within one year were £24.5m, higher than the £18m 12 months earlier.

Net current assets were £2.3m, down on £5.4m while total assets less current liabilities were £3.1m versus £6m. There were no long term liabilities.

Lime Pictures directors report offers very little narrative analysis. However the company is part of UK based All3Media, which recently published its own consolidated figures that show record revenues of £473m for the year to August 2012. The figure compares to £464.3m in the previous year.

The UK’s largest independent television producer, All3Media’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also hit record levels of £65m, up from £63m. The group made more than 300 programmes a year distributed in 200 countries. Owned by private equity house Permira, All3Media’s library comprises 8,000 hours of programming

Lime Pictures managing director Claire Poyser on the Hollyoaks set in Childwall

available for sale.

At the year end, it had a cash balance of £57.2m, down on the £69m the year before.

Its debt net of cash was £230m.

In All3Media’s directors’ report, the company states: “The economic recovery we benefited from in 2011 was short-lived. The global economic recovery faltered, the eurozone slipped back into recession and the UK experienced its longest recessionary period

in over 50 years.

“These pressures have been evident in the independent production sector where the volume of UK primary commissions has fallen, although revenues from the sale of UK programmes internationally has risen.

“In this context, the group significantly outperformed its UK industry average as a result of both its scale and strong growth in its international activities, particularly primary com-

missions in the US and international distribution sales.

“The commercial environment in which the group operates remains competitive. However the directors believe that its status as one of the leading independent multiplatform production groups will enable it to maintain its market position both within the broadcaster sector and for emerging digital platforms where quality content is needed to build and sustain new audiences.

“The strategy of the group is to achieve sustainable growth both by acquisition and organically.”

Among the key risks faced by the group, the report cites the weakness of the television advertising market, which has caused the group to focus its sales efforts on broadcasters such as the BBC and pay TV channels that are less dependent on adverts.

All3Media says it also faces fierce competition from rival television production firms for both new commissions and to sign up acting talent.

TalkTalk shrugs off fears about BT’s plan to televise football TELECOMS group TalkTalk saw revenues and profits decline slightly in its latest financial year, although it said its business is in a better shape now.

The firm employs about 1,000 staff at its Birchwood business park call centre in Warrington.

It unveiled revenues of £1.67bn for the year to March 31 recently, compared with £1.68bn in 2012.

Pre-tax profits came in at £122m, down from £127m.

Chief executive Dido Harding said: “This has been a momentous year for TalkTalk, which is now a fundamentally better business than it was three years ago.

“In the year we have returned our customer base to growth, successfully launched TV and mobile handsets, grown TalkTalk Business, and returned to year-on-year revenue growth in the final quarter.

“We have the UK’s fastest growing

new TV business and our customers clearly appreciate its comprehensive content and value for money pricing.”

She added: “We will continue to invest in growth and remain confident that having more customers who buy more products and who stay with us longer, puts us firmly on track to achieve our medium term financial targets.”

The group also said that it has entered its new financial year with

growing revenues, a higher gross margin, lower overheads and significant headroom to invest further in growth.

It said it expects 2014 financial year revenues to grow by at least 2%.

TalkTalk shrugged off fears over the impact of its larger rival BT’s imminent sports channel launch of free Premier League TV for subscribers, saying it was firmly focused on “value-seeking customers who want a little more TV, not a lot”.

notes ■

FIRSTGROUP has announced a £615m fundraising drive and cancelled its dividend after plans to turn around the business were derailed by the West Coast mainline fiasco.

The company, which is planning to pour £1.6bn into a four year investment programme and tackle debts of nearly £2bn, told shareholders they would have to wait another year before seeing any pay-out.

It also announced that founder Martin Gilbert was stepping down as chairman after leading the firm for 27 years.

The Aberdeen-based company, which operates First Great Western, First Capital Connect and First ScotRail, has been hit by the botched bidding process surrounding the West Coast mainline.

After initially winning the bid, a review found flaws in the process, causing the takeover of the franchise from Virgin to be put on hold as well as delaying decisions on three other rail operations it already holds.

Underlying pre-tax operating profits for the group - which also has interests in US student and Greyhound buses as well as the UK bus network - fell in line with expectations from £271.4m to £172.4m.

■

LOW-COST airline Ryanair boosted annual profits by 13% but warned this week that the recession across much of Europe will dampen growth this year.

The Dublin-based company, which operates on more than 1,600 routes, carried 79.3m passengers in the year to March 31, an increase of 5% on a year earlier as revenues improved 13% to 4.8bn euros.

Post-tax profits rose to 569m euros and the airline is hopeful of another rise this year, albeit at a slower rate of growth as economic conditions put pressure on average fares across the industry.

Ryanair expects traffic to grow by another 2m passengers to 81.5m in the current year, helped by this summer’s addition of more than 200 routes and seven new bases, including at Eindhoven, Krakow and Marrakech.

It said costs will continue to rise, with higher oil prices again the culprit after its fuel bill increased by 290m euros.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

small business post business

notes

small

business of the week

■

MORE than half (62%) of North West business owners lack understanding of asset-based lending, according to the latest Close Brothers Business Barometer.

The survey, which aims to canvass the opinions of small firm owner managers, further revealed that of those businesses that are aware, less than a fifth would consider using it.

Asset-based lending allows businesses to use a combination of assets such as invoices, equipment, stock or property as security for funding.

Andrew Metcalf, Close Brothers Invoice Finance in the North West regional sales director said: “The barometer showed that many SMEs are anticipating growth within the next year, but many are unaware of the full range of financial options that are available to fund their plans.”

The survey also showed that cash flow is the main day-to-day concern for more than a fifth of North West business owners; and a further 23% claim to have problems accessing finance.

Mr Metcalf added: “With so many SMEs struggling to maintain healthy cash flow, it is more important than ever that businesses carefully review their financial strategy on a regular basis.”

by Neil Hodgson

POST BUSINESS STAFF

neil.hodgson@liverpool.com

B

IG business has been quick to recognise the benefits of renewable energy – but the appetite, generally, is cautious.

That’s the view of Patrick Richardson, founder of Liverpool-based Concept LHP (Light, Heat, Power).

His firm, on Derby Road’s Connect Business Village, works with manufacturers to provide lighting, heating and power solutions for clients using the latest renewable technologies.

Lighting comprises the latest LED systems; heating is generated, says Mr Richardson, from “a very sophisticated infra red source which we believe is state-of-the-art”, while power is generated from solar pv (photovoltaic) panels and wood-burning biomass.

The firm was set up in 2005 in Southport before relocating to Liverpool, and Mr Richardson said: “Bigger commercial organisations like supermarkets are targeting green solutions and making sure people in their supply chains are acting in a responsible way in terms of their energy usage.”

But he said these are the exception and the UK lags behind nations like Germany in its use of renewable energy, despite Government subsidies.

Concept’s clients are split between domestic and commercial, but Mr Richardson said businesses are currently caught in a Catch 22 situation.

“The problem for business is getting finance. They want to make savings, but they can’t get the finance.

“Until business confidence returns to the levels of four or five years ago, it is tough for everybody, although we can provide finance to customers.”

He said the savings from renewable energy are a no-brainer for clients.

The Government is offering a 20-year subsidy under its RHI (renewable heat incentive) scheme for anyone installing renewable energy systems.

Solar panels, for example, offer an 18% return on investment, so after about six years the RHI subsidy can deliver free energy for 14 years.

Mr Richardson says there is talk of a subsidy for biomass: “The return on investment from biomass is phenomenal with payback in three to five years, then it becomes a cash cow.”

The energy saving capabilities are also hugely attractive. He said LED lighting can save 80% on costs, while infra red heating is almost as efficient: “We have heating systems that look like roof panels in a false ceiling.

“We can replace one of those tiles with a unit which would reduce the heating costs for the room by 60%.”

These are areas Mr Richardson is keen to develop: “We have funding available to carry out large scale installations which should be of interest to housing associations and local authorities on Merseyside.

“One of the big issues this local authority is facing is people in fuel poverty. There is a lot of people in social housing in Merseyside who are in fuel poverty, and that ain’t going to get any better because fuel prices are only going one way.”

Mr Richardson previously worked in finance and property development in Ireland and moved into renewable energy systems after recognising how the sector was evolving.

The firm now employs 10 staff and uses sub-contractors, including an apprenticeship scheme, on its installations which cover most of England.

He said the LED market is already

9

■

Patrick Richardson, chief executive of Combined LHP which specialises in renewable energy

Energising renewable energy technologies competitive, but sees opportunities for solar and biomass: “Solar will start to come back as electricity prices increase. Biomass is such an attractive product, with its return on investment, and I can’t see any other way other than it being a big element of growth in the market.”

Mr Richardson said he is hopeful of achieving turnover of £2m in the financial year to April 2014, and is targeting further growth in the region: “We are hoping in the future to develop our own manufacturing or assembly facilities here on Merseyside.”

He added: “If the policy is properly managed, people will start moving more and more to renewable technologies and they will become the rule rather than the exception.”

Solar pv panels can provide a quick return on investment

LIVERPOOL’S Wheelchair Service is hosting a community fun day to celebrate the launch of its ‘Children’s Wheelchair in a Day’ Scheme and is appealing to other businesses and organisations to get involved.

Under the scheme young wheelchair users will be able to be assessed and provided with a wheelchair to fit their needs, all on the same day.

The event, hosted by Liverpool Community Health, will take place at the Lifehouse Centre on Brunswick Dock from 10am-2pm on Friday July 5, and will be attended by youngsters from across the city with disabilities, as well as their teachers and their parents.

Young wheelchair users will also have the opportunity to take part in a wide range of wheelchair-based sports, games and activities and there will be a ‘market stall’ area offering advice about the many different organisations, support services, and leisure/recreational activities in the area.

To find out more please contact the Communications Team on: 0151-295 3179 or email: LCH.Communications @liverpoolch.nhs.uk

10 post business creative & digital

Thursday, May 23, 2013 IN ASSOCIATION WITH

PR firm Kenyon Fraser merging with two Mersey agencies

Bubblino

Pupils will learn from internet pioneers A PARTNERSHIP of cutting-edge technology companies is going into local schools to show pupils how exciting “internet of things” technology can be.

Hi-tech workspace DoES Liverpool houses several start-up companies working on ways to link objects to the internet. DoES projects include a clock showing where Mersey ferries are and a blue machine, Bubblino, that blows bubbles whenever certain words are used on Twitter.

Bubblino’s inventor Adrian McEwen is now joining a project led by science education specialists Imagication to take “internet of things” workshops to schools this summer. Children will be building a weather station computer from scratch.

Kirsty Sparrow, director of Imagication, said: “Children love being able to build and take things apart and electronics and maker skills make the most of that. Electronics and programming really are a part of everyday life now, and this lets children see how easy it is to get started, and gain a passion for digital making.”

Mr McEwen said: “The Internet of Things frees technology from being trapped behind screens and keyboard, and lets it enhance everyday objects to give them new capabilities and behaviours to make them more useful and playful.”

The project has been backed by “innovation foundation Nesta”, the Digital Makers Fund from the Mozilla and Nominet Trust, and Liverpool John Moores University’s Open Labs project.

Lindsay Sharples, from Open Labs, said: “Liverpool has a thriving community of creative and innovative businesses and as one of only a handful of projects approved by NESTA throughout the UK, this is a further endorsement of the creativity in our local community.”

KENYON FRASER has merged with two fellow Merseyside marketing agencies.

The growing Liverpool agency says it is “business as usual” at its new sister agencies, Southport-based Concept PR and Liverpool digital specialist Edian.

The combined outfit has more than 100 clients and employs more than 30 people.

Kenyon Fraser managing director, Richard Kenyon, will become group chief executive, with Ben O’Brien succeeding him as managing director.

Edian and Concept’s MDs, Nick Holland and Margaret Tarpey, will continue in their roles.

Mr Kenyon said: “Concept and Edian are going about their business in their usual way, it’s just now as part of the Kenyon Fraser family.

“There are obvious benefits in having a larger team in terms of experience and strength in depth, but there will be no noticeable change for clients or staff across the three firms. All three are successful in their own right and provide excellent services to our clients, so we aren’t look- The management team at the expanded Kenyon Fraser, from left, Nick Holland of Edian, Richard Kenyon of Kenyon Fraser, Ben O’Brien of Kenyon Fraser and Margaret Tarpey of Concept PR ing to change much at all.”

Move to Central Village suits Uniform’s plans for growth

by Alistair Houghton POST BUSINESS STAFF

alistair.houghton@liverpool.com

BRAND communications agency Uniform has moved into a new home in Bold Street as part of the £100m Central Village redevelopment.

Uniform, whose clients include Bacardi and the Football Association, moved from its previous base in Fleet Street to give it more room for growth.

The office in Bold Street forms part of the Bold Street entrance to Merepark’s Central Village development. It is more than twice the size of the agency’s previous home.

As well as its nationally-recognised design work, Uniform is also pioneering work on the “internet of things”.

Its Postcard Player, which uses “digital postcards” to play music, has been nominated for this year’s Big Chip awards.

Nick Howe, managing director at Uniform, said: “We were determined to remain within the Ropewalks area if at all possible.

“This was one of the few spaces that fitted the bill, giving us additional meeting rooms, a prototyping workshop and a proper canteen for staff.

“We are expanding rapidly as part of our long term growth strategy, so we needed a studio that fitted our ambitions. It’s a fantastic space for staff to work and relax, and also to bring clients.”

The Central Village units in Bold Street were completed in 2009 and are occupied by leisure and retail operators including That’s Entertainment.

Two units are still available.

The six-acre Central Village scheme, on the site of the former Liverpool Central high-level station, will include

Neal Hunter of Merepark, left, with Nick Howe of Uniform at the agency’s Central Village home three new hotels, offices, shops and restaurants, a six-screen Odeon cinema and landscaped public space.

Merepark says the scheme will contribute £100m to the city’s economy when it is complete and will support some 3,000 jobs.

Neal Hunter associate director at Merepark, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Uniform to Bold Street. The Ropewalks is the creative core of the city and is a perfect fit for a dynamic agency like Uniform which has such a strong connection to the city.

“Central Village is continuing to attract a good blend of high-calibre companies to this area of the city and we’re seeing a strong pipeline of names coming forward to express interest in our two existing units in Bold Street.”

creative & digital post business 11

Thursday, May 23, 2013

www.ldpcreative.co.uk

Theatre firm’s high hopes for Northern base in Liverpool

by Alistair Houghton

POST BUSINESS STAFF

alistair.houghton@liverpool.com

THEATRE and film production company Thirty7 Productions has chosen Liverpool over Manchester for its new North West base.

The Soho-based company’s play Hope, which was written by Liverpool-born Scot Williams and starred Samantha Womack, was staged at the Royal Court Theatre in March.

Following that success and discussions with Liverpool’s London “embassy”, It’s Liverpool in London, Thirty7 decided to open a base here rather than in Manchester or in Salford’s MediaCity.

Thirty7 was founded by Mr Williams and Eric Woollard-White, who first met Williams at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Liverpool last year.

And Mr Woollard-White said next year’s International Festival for Business was another factor that attracted him to Liverpool.

Mr Woollard-White said: “It was clear from meeting with the It’s Liverpool in London team that Liverpool is a city with bold ambitions, a city that was not afraid to take risks and is keen to develop exciting, fresh ideas to ensure business growth.

“World class events such as European Capital of Culture 2008 and the Global Entrepreneurship Congress 2012 have shone a light on the great energy, people and prospects in Liverpool. It’s Liverpool in London itself is a ground-breaking initiative and shows a level of commitment to developing business that drew us to Liverpool.

“We initially approached the It’s Liverpool in London team to help us develop relationships with Liverpool’s creative institutions like LIPA and FACT. But were very interested to learn how forthcoming major events such as the International Festival for Business 2014 will help businesses access new

markets, which is a fundamental strategy for us.

“The scale of IFB is immense and it demonstrates the city’s fierce ambition.

Liverpool presented us with a range of support and initiatives which was central in our decision to establish a permanent base in the city and it is only 45 minutes away from Media City and BBC North.

“Liverpool has been very welcoming and has helped us to establish a fantastic relationship with the Royal Court, where we staged Hope in March. Liverpool works to help businesses succeed. When you couple that with the astounding amount of creative talent in the city it was clear that Liverpool was the ideal location for us to base our North West operation.”

Thirty7 also has bases in Cardiff and Los Angeles.

Chris Heyes, head of It’s Liverpool in London, said he was pleased the embassy was encouraging investment in Merseyside.

She said: “Initially our goal was help Liverpool businesses access markets in the South. But we have also been actively promoting Liverpool to London based businesses that are looking to explore opportunities outside the capital and take advantage of what the North of the UK has to offer.

“As expected Thirty7 Productions has really flourished in Liverpool. Hope got amazing reviews. I can’t wait to see what is in store for them next and I am very pleased that Liverpool Vision’s initiatives have been instrumental in inspiring this development “I am proud to say that Liverpool meets the requirements of a huge range of businesses looking to expand in the North. Liverpool is an amazing city as it suits businesses of all sizes and sectors.

“Ensuring that Liverpool is at the forefront of re-locators or expanding businesses minds is one of the most enjoyable aspects of my job.”

Time for a coupon comeback

Eric Woollard-White, left, and Scot Williams, of Thirty7 Productions

Bolland & Lowe bringing new look to historic city attraction

DESIGN agency Bolland & Lowe is working on a new “creative direction” and marketing strategy for iconic destination the Albert Dock after winning a three-way pitch.

The Liverpool agency has created a series of mixed media dioramas of the dock, which will be used to promote the dock across print and digital platforms.

A website celebrating the dock’s history launched last week. More design work will be launched in late spring, while Bolland & Lowe’s digital and marketing strategy will be launched in early summer.

Bolland & Lowe’s managing director, John Lowe, said: “Albert Dock is iconic across the world – it is undoubtedly one of the most photographed tourist attractions in the UK and encapsulates the very essence of Liverpool.

“We are delighted to be working on such a comprehensive project which will enable us to forge a clear path-

way for the Albert Dock’s engagement with its visitors.

“We believe we have created a concept that is unique and gets under the skin of the Albert Dock.”

Peter Cronin, director of development and marketing for Albert Dock Estates said: “This is a diverse visitor attraction that has a number of different audiences that need to be catered for and engaged. The work Bolland and Lowe presented at the pitch tackled this in a really creative way and we look forward to starting work with the team.”

Jeremy Roberts, chairman of the Albert Dock Tenants Association, added: “Bolland & Lowe’s pitch brought a fresh and innovative direction to how the dock is branded and how it communicates to visitors. This, combined with their experience of leisure and tourism means they are a great choice to represent this award-winning attraction.”

Ben Hatton

Peter Cronin, left, of Albert Dock Estates, with John Lowe of Bolland & Lowe

SOMETIMES the old methods of marketing are the best. Nothing grabs the attention of a potential customer like a freebie or money off a product.

Coupons, traditionally printed in newspapers and magazines, are a well-worn way of generating interest in products and creating brand loyalty. Consumer brands are now catching up with technology and beginning to roll out this method to mobile devices.

One company to trial it is organic food business Yeo Valley, which has announced plans to boost its use of mobile coupons – not only to persuade new consumers but also to better target younger customers as they are a key demographic for the brand and also frequently use their smartphones.

A handful of brands have recently made headway into developing coupons for mobiles.

Whilst supermarkets have been reluctant to get on board with the idea and accept them for now, companies such as Kellogg’s and United Biscuits have been working with Google to lobby shops into accepting mobile coupons across Europe as standard.

A tie-up between Nivea and Tesco earlier this year to offer mobile coupons to customers could lead the way for more such partnerships.

The beauty of the mobile coupon is that the idea is something customers are already familiar and comfortable with, and so are willing to use.

This allows brands to access data and personalise coupons to individuals using details such as their location and what they usually buy.

It is clear that the best direction for smart brands to take is to create convenient experiences that benefit consumers while reflecting the message of the brand.

■ INTERNET entrepreneur Ben Hatton is founder and managing director of digital agency Rippleffect. Follow Rippleffect on Twitter @rippleffected

12 post business big feature

Tony McDonough meets STEVE SWIFT, managing director of Aerelink

h

THERE are few things Steve Swift likes better than proving the naysayers wrong. He says: “If someone tells me I can’t do something then I’ll always look to prove otherwise.”

Swift is managing director of Aerelink, a Widnes-based business which provides engineering services to the telecommunications and mobile network operator markets.

He started the company in 2004 and enjoyed steady growth until the global financial crisis hit towards the end of the decade.

In 2010, Aerelink came close to bankruptcy and when Swift asked the bank for help, he was told his best course of action was to go into administration.

“When we asked the bank for help they just said ‘sorry, that is just not possible’,” said Swift.

“It was very satisfying to prove them wrong.”

In order to turn the business around, Swift had to implement a root and branch reform.

“We had to get back to basics,” he added.

This centred around a process he called “optimisation”, the main result of which was a clearing out of the management team.

Swift explained: “The team we had had been great in growing the business but we needed a new team to take us forward.

“Difficult decisions had to be taken in the best interests of the organisation.”

Three years on and Aerelink is now in a much healthier position. In the last few weeks it has secured an undisclosed funding package from Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF).

The business employs 30 people, both in Widnes and at another office in Fife in Scotland.

The MSIF funding will provide working capital to take on more staff and expand its UK operations.

Aerelink provides installation, commissioning and decommissioning of masts and line of sight surveys.

The company also offers wireless services including network design, supply, implementation and remote management.

It has two separate operating divisions – Network Integration and Service (NI&S) and Network Delivery Services (NDS) which address different markets.

NI&S functions within public sector and enterprise sectors, while NDS focuses on the telecommunications market.

Customers include the Mobile Network Operators, Lancashire Constabulary, Dundee City Council, SIAE Microelectronica, Aviat Networks and Kingston Communications.

Swift, who is about to turn 41 at the end of this month, said: “The mobile operator market has experienced rapid growth with emergence of 3G and more recently 4G LTE technologies following the recent OFCOM 4G spectrum auctions.

“There is a continued need to improve the UK’s communication networks.

“As a result of an increasing demand for data and telecom, operators constantly need to upgrade and refresh their networks to provide better broadband and mobile connectivity.

“We have the opportunity to grow with this market and the funding from MSIF will enable us to be able to do this.

“There is an abundance of work

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Telecoms company founder not afraid to make tough calls

Aerelink managing director, Steve Swift. Inset from left, Steve Morgan, Swift, Steve Leicester and Malcolm Jones of MSIF Main Picture: TAKEASHOT.CO.UK out there at the moment but we need working capital to be able to take it on.

“It can take 150 days to get paid after completing a job and that can impact on revenues.

“We are on target to increase the revenue of the business from £2m to £5m during the next three years.

“We are also looking to recruit a minimum of 15 employees over the same period.”

q&a Age: 40 Highest educational qualification: A handful of GCSEs Biggest achievement in business: Turned around the business after it had come close to going under Biggest regret: Not going to college or university – I feel like I missed out on a big area of life

Best advice received: My first boss said to me ‘there’s no such thing as a free lunch’ Still to achieve: To become a business strategy consultant Hobbies/interests: Ice-skating with the family and helping young people with their educational development – they are the leaders of tomorrow

Swift heads the business along with two other senior directors – both also called Steve.

Steve Leicester is finance director and he joined following the shake-up in 2010. Steve Morgan is operations director and has only come on board in the last few weeks.

Swift outlined the division of responsibilities between the trio: “I will go out and develop the business – winning and negotiating contracts.

“The analogy I use is that I plant the beans, Steve Morgan tends and grows the crops and Steve Leicester then counts the proceeds.

“We never consider a job is done until the proceeds are in the bank.”

S

WIFT was born and brought up on a council estate in Stockport. As a teenager he developed a keen interest in

computers and decided he wanted to pursue a career in technology.

He left school at 16 with “a handful of GCSEs” and enrolled on a Government Youth Training Scheme (YTS).

“I did it through the YMCA and they put me on a 12-week course where I gained a City & Guilds certificate in information technology,” he said.

From there he went to work for a company in Stockport, working on the installation of IT systems for blue-chip companies.

He took on a variety of specialist roles within the IT sector over the following years and eventually moved into telecommunications.

“In 2001, I was headhunted to work for a company that was a distributor of wireless products,” he said.

“I built a great team but I wasn’t

big feature post business 13

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Steve Swift’s Aerelink is benfiting from the roll-out of the 4G mobile network across the UK Picture: ANDREW TEEBAY

Alex

Turner Making the most of the city’s assets LIGHT NIGHT was a great reminder of how valuable Liverpool’s cultural assets are.

The buzz across the city, both in anticipation of the event and afterwards, was palpable, helping to create a great display of civic pride.

It is exactly the sort of event which Liverpool does so well and which showcases the city at its very best.

The reopening of Central Library generated significant amounts of positive media coverage, which is always welcome, but it is really what it represents – as an investment in education, heritage, community and aspiration – and what it can deliver for people living across the region which make it so exciting.

For the same price as a controversial Uruguayan striker, Liverpool has an asset that will be maintain its value for decades.

This month also sees the 25th anniversary of Tate Liverpool, which has consistently delivered such a high standard of artists and exhibitions that it is easy to overlook what a cultural jewel this is.

The cultural renaissance can be dated back to Liverpool ’08, and its legacy has several threads.

The creation of momentum and a deadline gave a focal point to infrastructure and building developments, which we have since reaped the benefits of, while the success of the year moved the city into an elite group of places which are both willing and able to host events of national and international significance.

Equally important, though, was the wide-ranging celebration of culture gave a voice to the often-silent majority’s love of everything other than “the Beatles and football”.

Light Night is definitely a fantastic continuation of that enjoyment.

The only complaint I have heard was that people didn’t get to see all of the things they wanted to One evening was perhapsjust not long enough, and it would be great if it could either be extended or held more often.

The cultural activities which so brilliantly commemorate the history and commend the present are a key part of the long-term, and already well-progressed, repositioning of brand Liverpool.

It is a fantastic evolution that we should all support and encourage.

‘This is an evolution that we should all support’

happy with the way it was run and I could see there was a niche market for providing professional services in the sector.”

Swift started Aerelink in 2004 and his success in getting funding illustrates how very different the credit environment was prior to the 2008 financial crash.

He explained: “There was a loans company called Cahoot around that time.

“I put in my details and applied for the maximum unsecured personal loan – £20,0000.

“Within two minutes it was accepted and that was the money I used to start the business.

“In the first year we turned over more than £200,000 and made a profit.

“It was a huge learning curve and we had some fun times.”

F

OR the past 15 years, Swift has been married to Suzanne, who runs Aerelink’s administration and finance functions.

The couple were childhood sweethearts who met at 15 while they were both on foreign exchange trips to France.

They have a 12-year-old son and the family passion is ice skating, which they practice to a high level.

Swift said: “We do figures skating – the kind of thing you see on Dancing on Ice. “We practice twice during the week and take lessons at the weekend.”

Swift also has a passion for personal development. Both his own and others. He is a Master Practitioner in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) as well as a fully-qualified

time line therapist and hypnotherapist.

He is particularly keen on using those skills to help young people.

He works with the Knowsley Enterprise Academy, Young Enterprise, Business Gateway team at Liverpool Hope University, and the Winsford E-ACT Academy.

“I do quite a bit of voluntary work in the education sector,” he said.

“I am passionate about working with 14 to 19-year-olds and helping them with their development.”

Swift says he has learned to step back from the early days of Aerelink when micro-management was the name of the game.

He said: “We now have a phenomenal management team here.

“When the business first started I micro-managed everything but we now have a middle management

team in place and people are now self-sufficient.

“People can come to me with an idea and and I will ask them ‘what is the outcome you want to achieve?’.

“We will then bounce a few ideas around. My role these days is more strategic than tactical.”

The mezzanine investment from MSIF will help Aerelink move on to the next level of its growth strategy.

Swift himself is targeting an exit from the business in three to five years but for the moment he is fully focused on its progress.

“The roll-out of 4G has reinvigorated the mobile sector,” he said.

“There are now a lot of opportunities out there that the company is ready to capitalise on.

“We are working on a couple of really big deals right now and they could be game-changers.”

■ Alex Turner is the general manager of financial training firm Ambitious Minds

14 post business legal

Thursday, May 23, 2013

www.ldplegal.co.uk

quality legal Michael Sandys, Partner at Jackson & Canter QualitySolicitors, on employment law IF you are a start-up business or first time employer, you may be uncertain of the responsibilities and legal obligations this entails. Here are some helpful basic tips.

A contract of employment must be provided within two months, including information such as the name of employer and employee, the date employment began/begins, whether there is a probationary period, their place of work, pay, working hours, holiday entitlement and notice period. A sample contract of employment can be found at www.acas.org.uk.

You must pay all employees at least the minimum wage. This changes each year – current rates can be found at www.gov.uk. You will agree the hours you would like your employee to work. By law, you cannot ask them to work an average of more than 48 hours per week, unless they have given their consent in writing. Your employee is entitled to regular rest breaks and a minimum of 11 consecutive hours’ rest in any 24-hour period, a minimum 20-minute rest break for every six hours worked and one day off each week.

For young people (under 18) the maximum working hours is 40 and their entitlement to rest breaks is increased.

Your employee will be entitled to a minimum of one week’s notice if you wish to end their employment with you.

This goes up to two weeks after two years’ employment and will increase by one week per year up to a maximum of 12 weeks.

All employees are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday per year (including bank holidays) and the statutory paid holiday entitlement is capped at 28 days.

Employees are also entitled to maternity, paternity and adoption leave and pay. All pregnant employees are entitled to paid time off for ante-natal care and 52 weeks’ maternity leave, which is made up of 26 weeks’ ordinary maternity leave and a further 26 weeks’ additional maternity leave. Fathers and partners (including same sex and civil partners) may be entitled to two weeks’ paid leave.

It is important that you have disciplinary and grievance procedures in place to deal with any problems which might arise during the employment relationship.

You must always have good reason to dismiss an employee, and show that you have been fair in the way you have acted. This means: ■ Informing your employee of any problems you have with their conduct or performance ■ Holding a meeting to discuss the problem ■ Allowing them the right to be accompanied at the meeting ■ Deciding on appropriate action to take, providing the employee with an opportunity to appeal Some reasons for dismissal, such as pregnancy, are automatically unfair and employees can claim unfair dismissal on these grounds regardless of how long they have worked.

For more advice on any aspect of employment law, whether you are an employer or employee, contact Michael Sandys on 0151 702 8760 or e-mail msandys@jacksoncanter.co.uk.

Mersey legal firms honour the cream

You must have good reason to dismiss an employee

In association with

In Business for your Business

Left, Alistair Fletcher, president of Liverpool Law Society with vice-president, Glenys Hunt

Mike Cowburn from Alpha Biolabs, third left, and the Morecrofts team with the Family Law Award MORE than 240 lawyers gathered at Liverpool’s Crowne Plaza Hotel for the biennial Liverpool Law Society Legal Awards 2013, in association with the Liverpool Post.

Guests attended the black-tie dinner to see 13 awards given out.

And the entire room rose to its feet when Elkan Abrahamson, a lawyer at Jackson & Canter, was given the Special Recognition Award for his work with the Hillsborough Justice Campaign.

He accepted the accolade from Alistair Fletcher, president of

Glenys Hunt, fifth from left, with the team from EAD and their Employment Law Award

Liverpool Law Society.

Mr Abrahamson said: “This award is not for me but for the families of the Hillsborough campaign and is a recognition of their fight.”

The other winners were ■ Family Law Award: Morecrofts.

■ Employment Law Award: EAD Solicitors ■ Private Client Award:Morecrofts.

■ Dispute Resolution Law Award: Hill Dickinson ■ Property Law Award: Rowlinsons.

■ Commercial Law Award: Hill Dickinson.

■ Niche Law Firm Award: John Pickering & Partners.

■ Work in the Community Award: DWF. ■ Solicitor of the Year Award: Jonathan Berkson, Hill Dickinson.

■ Small Law Firm Award: The Keith Jones Partnership.

■ Medium Law Firm Award: Jackson & Canter ■ Large Law Firm Award: DWF. Alistair Fletcher praised the work that had been undertaken

by each of the winners.

He said: “There was a record number of entries for this year’s competition from a broad range of member firms and this reflects the status of our city and region as a centre of excellence in the provision of legal services.

“Congratulations to the winners on achieving their very well deserved awards.”

An eminent panel of judges decided upon the shortlist and ultimately the winners.

The judging panel, chaired by Peter Rhodes, past president of Liverpool Law Society

Thursday, May 23, 2013

legal

post business 15

www.ldplegal.co.uk

gather at awards night to of the region’s law sector

Dominic Richmond from Towry with the team from Morecrofts and the Private Client Award

Dominic Richmond from Towry, left, with Jonathan Berkson from Hill Dickinson with his Solicitor of the Year Award

Simon Hewitt from First Title, second left, with the team from Rowlinsons and the Property Law Firm Award

Tony McDonough from the Liverpool Post, left, with Simon Price, associate at DWF, and the Work in the Community Award

Joanna Swash from Moneypenny, second left, with the team from Jackson & Canter and the Medium Law Firm Award

Richard Grayson of QPI, left, with Greg Plunkett of Hill Dickinson and the Dispute Resolution Award

Simon Hewitt from First Title, left, with Matt Noon from Hill Dickinson and the Commercial Law Award

Above, Alistair Fletcher, right, with Elkan Abrahamson of Jackson & Canter, winner of the Special Recognition Award Joanne McLeod from the Law Society, second left, with the team from John Pickering & Partners and the Niche Law Firm Award

Mike Cowburn from Alpha Biolabs, third left, with the The Keith Jones Partnership team and the Small Law Firm Award (1998-1999), included HH Judge Goldstone QC, the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool; Professor Fiona Beveridge, Head of the School of Law and Social Justice at the University of Liverpool, and Jenny Stewart, chief operating officer of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce.

Paul Sharpe from Barlcays, left, with Paul Rimmer, executive partner at DWF and the Large Firm Award

16 post business location

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Changing consumer habits are putting the UK high street under pressure

view point

by Himanshu Wani, an economist at the RICS EMPTY shops – that’s the biggest sight on many high streets around the country, including the North West.

Smiths sees sales of £1.5m WIRRAL-BASED Smith and Sons has generated sales of £1.5m at its latest property auction.

The event, at the Village Hotel in Bromborough, saw 21 lots sold – more than 70% of those on offer.

The volume of properties on offer had increased significantly from previous auctions yet still managed to sustain a high percentage of sales. Auctioneer Chris Johnson said: “This catalogue was fuller, showing a renewed confidence.”

The latest result from the RICS UK Commercial Market Survey bears this out, highlighting the continuing malaise in the retail commercial property space, which in turn comes from our ailing high streets.

Vacancy rates stand at an eye-watering 14%, compared to just 4% in 2008.

This all points to one conclusion – the dynamics of our high streets have changed structurally And this is not just a cyclical issue, as real wages (inflation adjusted) have been shrinking almost continuously over the past five years.

Under-pressure households cannot be expected to increase consumption significantly in the near future.

The harsh reality is that high street retailers are being squeezed from multiple directions, including out of town shopping centres, coupled with the internet and an aging population.

According to the Office for National Statistics, over the next 10 years around 37%of the population will be over 50, while the proportion of 15-29 year

olds will shrink to 17%t.

Online shopping has also come to the fore, and is becoming more widespread amongst the older population.

Over the next five years, almost one pound in every four spent online will be through a mobile device, and total online sales, not just restricted to retailers, will see a fourfold rise over the same period.

This does not mean our high streets have to be left to decay, but rather transformed.

‘Retailers squeezed from multiple directions’

One such reform that would help is the immediate revaluation of business rates, which the government recently postponed until 2017.

This would greatly help businesses in Liverpool and the North West cut costs, as they continue to pay business rates based on 2008 values, when commercial property rents were more than 30% higher.

POST MOBILE

Text LDP to 67800

Industrial and logistics deals boost market in Cheshire Jaguar Land Rover has agreed a letting in Ellesmere Port. Left, Peter Crompton

BUSINESS to BUSINESS COMMERCIAL PREMISES

by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF

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tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com

WARRINGTON and Cheshire’s industrial and distribution property market saw 3.2m sq ft of take-up in 2012 – a quarter of the total for the North West.

The figure, a small uplift on 2011, was published in the latest Cheshire and Warrington Property Report, commissioned by Marketing Cheshire Although just a small rise, it bucked the trend across the North West where take-up was at a five-year low.

The national picture also reveals a very different story with the lowest level in a decade, the report adds.

The study was prepared by BE Group and the firm’s director, Peter Crompton, said: “Our property report findings clearly reinforce Cheshire and Warrington’s position as the powerhouse of the North West economy. Both office and industrial are up on the previous year.

“Looking ahead, prospects for 2013 suggest a continuing upward trend in industrial, investment and office sectors. Industrial deals already signed in

Warrington and Winsford alone equate to half the business generated last year.”

In Ellesmere Port Jaguar Land Rover and horticultural products company, William Sinclair, each took buildings in excess of 400,000 sq ft.

William Sinclair’s move ended its national search for the relocation of its headquarters and consolidation of existing operations into a single site.

The first deal secured at Omega near Warrington played a key part in 2012’s performance and, subsequently, three more deals have been completed since, with a total of 1.45m sq ft taken.

Manufacturing played an important role in the year with large commitments within Cheshire West and Chester.

These included The Box Works and Morrison’s who took buildings in Winsford totalling 307,300 sq ft, as well as engineering firm Cygnet Group, in Northwich, Meadow Foods in Chester and vacuum pump manufacturer Busch Group’s move to Crewe.

The office market saw a 20% increase in the level of take-up and number of deals from 2011 and this was experienced in all three local

authority areas covered by the study.

Headline rents reached £18.50 per sq ft for a letting in Wilmslow town centre but office deals in the sub-region were mainly dominated by out-of-town locations such as Birchwood and Chester Business Park.

The most significant scheme to start during the year was Waters Corporation Mass Spectrometry HQ at Stamford Lodge, Wilmslow.

This will deliver 208,000 sq ft of office, research & development and manufacturing space.

It was also announced that Jodrell Bank will be the headquarters for the international Square Kilometre Array radio telescope programme with the 13,500 sq ft headquarters to be located near Holmes Chapel.

The retail sector was more subdued in town centres, the report said, but Cheshire Oaks, the UK’s largest designer outlet, continued to prosper recording double-digit sales growth for the third successive year and the highest single day trading figure in its 18-year existence.

Debenhams also announced it would be opening a 60,000 sq ft store there in 2013.

Business parks attracting office occupiers TAKE-UP at UK business parks has reached its highest point in five years, a report by GVA says.

And its findings were welcomed by the director of MEPC Birchwood Park,

near Warrington, who says the findings reflect the increasing attraction of out-of-town parks to office occupiers.

Carl Potter, senior director and national head of

offices at GVA, said: “Take-up is largely being fuelled by demand from high-growth sectors.

“Deals are being encouraged by a very flexible approach from most land-

lords with very flexible lease terms.”

Birchwood’s Jonathan Walsh added: “In Birchwood, specifically, we have attracted a number of new companies.”

Thursday, May 23, 2013

location

Interest is soaring in Exchange Station

post business 17

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A computer-generated image of how the refurbished Exchange Station will look

by Tony McDonough POST BUSINESS STAFF

tony.mcdonough@liverpool.com

ENQUIRIES for office space at Liverpool’s Exchange Station complex have gone from zero to double figures since work started on a £5m refurbishment of the site.

Developer and building owner, Ashtenne Space Northwest, has already completed one office suite and it says the 18,000 sq ft first phase will be complete by the end of September.

It is believed negotiations are already under way with potential occupiers and Ashtenne director, Wayne Locke, told Post Business that he hoped a further 50-60,000 sq ft would be ready to occupy by the end of the year.

“We are talking about four suites and their completion will be on the back of deals being completed with occupiers.”

The site, in Tithebarn Street, was one of the biggest mainline railway stations in the North West for 150 years until its closure in 1977.

In 1985, the main station building was converted into an office complex and renamed Mercury Court.

It has now reverted back to the Exchange Station name.

Mr Locke said that conversion was carried out to a high standard by 1980s standards but that the bar in Liverpool had now been raised and enquiries for the space had started to dry up.

He added: “What we had here was a dated product and it got to the point where we had no enquiries.

“However, since we started doing this work we have had around a dozen live enquiries ranging from 800 sq ft up to 25,000 sq ft.

“What we are looking to create here is more than just a box which you put your office in.

“One of the biggest challenges office occupiers face is recruiting and retaining the right staff and offering them an attractive environment in which to work is a big part of that.”

To this end, Mr Locke says Ashtenne Space Northwest, which also owns and operates Liverpool Innovation Park, is creating something at Exchange Station more akin to a boutique hotel than an office building.

Exchange Station will offer meeting rooms, a break-out area, an upmarket coffee shop, a fitness facility and a concierge service.

“We want the concierge to be able to organise things like picking up dry cleaning, calling taxis for people and recommending or booking restaurants and hotels,” said Mr Locke.

Ashtenne has set up a marketing suite on the ground floor of the building and last week it held a launch for North West property agents.

The availability of grade A office space in Liverpool’s central business district is limited – an ongoing concern for agents.

However, landlords such as Downing and Bruntwood offer refurbished space which they claim is as good as new-build.

Mr Locke makes similar claims about Exchange Station where headline rents will be around £15-16 per sq

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He said: “We can’t call it grade A but we believe what we are offering here is at least the equivalent and maybe better.

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18 post business economic development

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Learning companies are focus on

growth

by Bill Gleeson

POST BUSINESS STAFF

bill.gleeson@liverpool.com

L

IVERPOOL Community College is attempting to turn itself into an incubator for new small businesses in Merseyside.

Students of all ages and backgrounds have not only been helped with the basic skill sets they need for their chosen field of work, but also the business skills they required to set up on their own account.

In addition, the college uses what it calls “learning companies” to give students experience of coping with real life problems.

Jayne Worthington, assistant principal commercial and business development, points to the example of bakery business Bread & More based at St George’s Hall. As well as baking the bread, Liverpool Community College students run a cafe business, serving meals to visitors to the hall.

One of their specialities is a scooped out cottage loaf that forms a “bowl” inside which is served soup or stew.

Ms Worthington said: “The Bread & More concept is a learning company. It’s a business and a classroom.

“Over Christmas we had a flood through the ceiling.

“St George’s Hall is a listed building, so the students had to deal with the flood and how we continue to serve customers and deal with loss of business, as well as repair a listed building and they had to deal with people who came in looking for hot food but found we could only serve sandwiches to them. You couldn’t teach that in a classroom.”

Business support is an important part of the syllabus at the college.

“You have your vocational stuff, bread baking, for example,” Ms Worthington said.

“Instead of working in the business, they also work on the business.

“For example, they get to know what a business plan looks like, what’s a profit and loss account and how to deal with things like wastage and stock attrition.

“It should give them a good grounding. They can choose to work on their own business or be an entrepreneur in somebody else’s business.

“The feedback we get from employers is that this understanding is critical.

“The learning companies inculcate this far more effectively than anything we could do in a classroom.”

The Bread & More idea is new to the college with about 15 students directly employed in it through the learning company. Another 70, though, could obtain occasional paid work through Bread & More.

Ms Worthington said: “When they go out to interviews when asked about experience, it gives them tangible things to talk about and that’s a unique selling point that sets them apart from other young people and our plan is to expand that exponentially over the next three years.”

The cafe is open every day seven days a week.

Bread & More also tenders for event contracts such as weddings, dinners, champagne receptions.

Tony Evans next to his Pegasus sculpture Inspiration outside Liverpool Community College As well as catering, one of the Community College’s strengths is car repair, so it has just acquired a garage to house a learning company business on Commercial Road.

Ms Worthington said: “We are about to invest more in that business and grow it.”

There is also a digital marketing company that is a joint venture with public relations firm Kenyon Fraser.

Ms Worthington added: “It’s about social media and digital marketing.

It’s not just print based.

“We are the only provider in the North West doing social media apprenticeships.”

Another type of learning company is in fashion design and small scale fashion related manufacturing.

Learning companies are a relat-

ively new phenomena at Liverpool Community College. However there has been a long tradition of college graduates starting up their own businesses.

Nickie Smith and Elaine Lavelle started their own recruitment and human resources consultancy after completing a six week course.

The two women took redundancy from the Speke based motor insurance operation of Lloyds Banking Group, formerly part of Bank of Scotland. They joined the college’s Response to Redundancy Programme and accessed the PTTLS course.

They now run a business called Smith Lavelle Training.

Ms Lavelle said: “We made a decision to start our own business rather than go back to employment.

“As part of the response to redundancy course, we took a level four qualification called Preparing to Teach in the Life-long Learning Sector.

“We do a mixture of recruitment and development work and consultancy work. We are doing presentation skills next week and we work with smaller companies to put in staff appraisal systems, working with both management and staff so they understand and know how to use it.”

They completed the community college course to obtain a recognised qualification. Ms Lavelle added: “We had worked with BoS for such a long time, but the credible qualification helped for teaching adults.”

Anybody can do the course, irrespective of background. It’s possible,

for example, to do an NVQ in taxi driving. The taxi driver teaching the course would benefit from completing a PTTLS course first.

Business has largely gone well in the three years Smith Lavelle has been up and running.

Ms Lavelle said: “The first two years were really good and really busy. Last year was tough, but we have now noticed an upturn again, so we are quite busy.”

Clients include Speedy Hire and Merseyside Police and they are working with BT at the moment.

Ms Lavelle said: “Obviously there are some days you think ‘Oh my goodness’ because you haven’t got that crystal ball. But I’m definitely glad I did it.

“We both are.”

Thursday, May 23, 2013

set to expand

economic development post business 19

diary of an entrepreneur I FIRST arrived in Liverpool back in 1992. The idea for the business first came about in the late nineties having watched the growth in apartments that were being built and developed.

During the same period I’d been working away a lot in the film business and encountered a lot of new successful delis, so I was convinced Delifonseca would work.

I’m a passionate foodie.

Before we opened, I had always been frustrated by the domination of the supermarkets and the lack of specialist food retailers, given the size of the city.

I’d grown up in Bury with a big food market so was surprised that somewhere of Liverpool’s size had nothing similar.

I’m a bit old fashioned in terms of what I view as ‘good service’.

As a customer, I like being served by knowledgeable staff and getting to know them a little more each time.

I wanted to open a food business that not only had specialist products, but also had specialist food knowledge.

Even now I’m happiest serving behind the cheese counter getting customers to try new products.

I constantly get a buzz looking at what we’ve created so far, but after seven years it still feels like we’re a young company and we’ve still got room to grow, expand and improve.

Food retail is constantly evolving with new trends and interests with accompanying products coming to market.

We use and stock products with known good provenance, many of them traditionally made, but at the same time there are new artisan producers coming to market.

Assistant principal Jayne Worthington

Bread & More students at St George’s Hall

Life begins at 55 for former insurance salesman IT is commonly thought that community colleges and enterprise are for the young. However, that’s not true.

For many people, circumstances at a later stage of life can be amenable to starting a business.

Born and brought up in Wavertree but now living in Frodsham, Tony Evans was 55 when he started attending Liver-

pool Community College having quit his job as an insurance salesman.

After studying Art & Design at GCSE and A-level, he went on to obtain a degree from Wirral Metropolitan College and has since become a leading British sculptor. One of his sculptures is Inspiration, inspired by mythological flying horse, Pegasus, erected outside the com-

munity college's Arts Centre building. It represents the impact the college has made on the lives of Mr Evans and other students.

Sculpture has become a steady source of work and income for Mr Evans, now 68, who said: "I developed that myself after I left college.

"I just applied for everything that was going and got picked up

by an agent in the Midlands. I have had a show at the Atkinson Gallery in Southport. They bought one of my sculptures to add to their collection. That collection also includes Henry Moore, Elizabeth Frink and Sir Alfred Williams.

"It’s not too strong to say I spent nearly all of my working life doing a job I disliked. Now I am doing a job I love."

Candice Fonseca

That still excites me, sourcing and selling new and delicious products and supporting new independent producers.

The recession has clearly impacted on how people spend, though.

Not just the amount, but on what and when and how much, and the business has had to adapt to those changes.

For Delifonseca and for myself the biggest change was the opening of Dockside.

My hands-on management approach that works on a single site had to change and I had to delegate a huge amount to the management team down at Brunswick who, thankfully, more than rose to the challenge.

Just last week Delifonseca Dockside was crowned The Good Food Guide Readers’ Restaurant of the Year for the North West.

It is a privilege to be even entered into The Good Food Guide, so it’s amazing to have been voted Readers’ Restaurant of the Year for the North West by our customers; the whole team is absolutely over the moon.

It’s great when their enthusiasm, passion and skills are recognised formally.

I have a fantastic team that spends every day working hard to spread the word of great food and equally good service.

I’m really proud of them all.

Having your own business means that the time goes far too quickly and you learn new things every day.

Nothing is worth getting overly stressed about and problems are only just another hurdle to jump over in the day.

Candice Fonseca is founder of restaurant business Delifonseca

20 post business professionals

ask the expert

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Riverview Law extends reach with strategic alliance RIVERVIEW Law, the Bromborough-based fixed-priced legal services business, has signed a strategic alliance with South East commercial law firm DMH Stallard.

It is designed to satisfy the changing legal needs of business customers and, says Riverview, reflects the growing demand for its services, such as its legal advisory outsourcing model.

The alliance will cover a variety of areas including dispute resolution, mergers and acquisitions, and property.

In the coming months a number of new fixed-fee services and products will be launched to the commercial market which combine the expertise of both businesses.

Riverview chief executive Karl Chapman said: “Signing this alliance reflects the huge potential we see in the legal market, particularly for our legal advisory outsourcing solutions.”

Wayne Dunning, lead health and safety consultant at ELAS, on how to keep drivers safe

Q

AS an employer, a large proportion of my workforce drives as part of their job. How do I make sure that my employees are kept as safe as possible on the roads on a day-to-day basis?

A

FOR employers that rely on meetings at clients’ respective places of business, having a mobile workforce is absolutely essential.

However, with benefits of employees with their own cars, also comes liability.

The Health and Safety Executive states that health and safety law applies to driving in exactly the same way as all other work activities and, statistically, driving is the most dangerous business activity that employees can undertake, with 220 people killed every week as a result.

Companies are responsible for all workers while they are driving for business purposes, whether they are in a company car or their own vehicle. This means employers must manage the risks associated with driving within a comprehensive health and safety system.

In order to ensure the risk to your employees is minimised, there are a number of recommended actions companies should undertake. The employer is ultimately accountable for ensuring the cars used are roadworthy and that the employee has sufficient insurance coverage, which means making sure each vehicle is properly taxed, has a valid MOT, valid insurance for business use and is serviced according to manufacturing recommendations.

It is also beneficial to have agreed minimum safety features and conditions for use. The minimum conditions for use can include an agreement for drivers to show documentary proof of the roadworthiness of their vehicle and insurance on request, to conduct regular vehicle safety checks and to not carry unsuitable or hazardous loads. If any employee suffers a collision while on business, however minor, it is important that you have a procedure in place for them to report it to the company.

A major issue is mobile phone use while driving; 39% of car drivers admit to using a mobile phone on the road, rising to 55% of company car drivers. But research indicates mobile phone users are four times more likely to crash, regardless of whether or not they use a hands-free device.

The law says it is an offence to ‘cause or permit’ a driver to use a mobile phone while driving, which means as an employer, you can be held liable if your policy requires employees to use a phone on the road.

Even hands-free devices do not completely resolve the issue, as the driver could still be charged with ‘failing to have proper control of their vehicle’ while using them in certain circumstances.

Make sure the dangers associated with mobile phone use In association with are properly communicated in the same manner as other driving risks, and your mobile phone policy is fully compliant with the law.

It is also beneficial to have agreed minimum safety features

Tim Aspinall, DMH managing partner, left, and Karl Chapman, CEO of Riverview Law

AA Projects continues its expansion in South East

by Neil Hodgson

POST BUSINESS STAFF

neil.hodgson@liverpool.com

Paul Allen of AA Projects

AA PROJECTS, the Prescotbased management and property consultancy, has announced the acquisition of Fitton Associates in central London.

The takeover is part of AA’s expansion drive to strengthen its position in the London and Southern market.

Fitton Associates is an established and highly regarded project management and building surveying practice and its team will join AA Projects and continue to work with its existing clients, while supporting the growing workload that AA has developed with clients in London and across the South of England.

AA Projects has an expanding team of 20 staff based at its Prescot office and the new London office brings its regional office count to six, including Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

It says further expansion is planned this year to extend its national coverage for its project delivery.

The company says it continues to buck the trend across the industry, with growth in all of its offices, together with the recruitment of more than 30 new staff members over a 12 month period.

AA Projects managing director Paul Allen said: “These are exciting times.

“Our move to Soho Square opens up tremendous opportunities and allows us to strengthen our London-based team and

build on our existing client base in the region.”

AA Projects specialises in providing bespoke solutions ranging from strategic consultancy to project management, property strategies, facilities management, cost consultancy, building surveying, environmental consultancy and health and safety expertise.

Its client base is spread across a diverse range of sectors which include commercial, education, health, heritage, regeneration, industrial and manufacturing, arts and leisure, government agencies, residential, retail and transport and infrastructure.

It has also established a track record for providing specialist consultancy services for a number of international projects that span Europe and the Middle East.

on the move ■

EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, has appointed specialist manufacturing consultant Linda Harrison to head up its new Manufacturing Growth unit, covering the North West.

The unit is aimed at helping manufacturing companies in the region grow by improving their efficiency and effectiveness and is focused on manufacturers that cannot gain Manufacturing

Advisory Service funding due to their size or connections with a larger group, but the team will also deliver MAS-funded offerings.

Ms Harrison has 20 years’ experience in leadership and production and operations management.

David Ost EEF’s North West director, said: “I am delighted to have such a skilled lean practitioner and trainer as Linda in

our team. Every manufacturing company can be more efficient in some way and Linda will provide significant expertise to companies to help them on their continuous improvement journey.”

■

JANE Moss has been appointed as general manager of the recently opened Z Liverpool located on North John Street.

Part of the Z Hotels portfolio, Z Liverpool is the third property in the UK hotel chain and joins its sister properties in London: Z Soho and Z Victoria.

Ms Moss has held a variety of senior management positions in the hospitality sector. Prior to joining Z Liverpool, she was conferencing and finance manager at The Life Conferencing Centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Linda Harrison – heads new EEF unit

style post business 21

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Trainers who happily ditch the flipcharts

Tony McDonough looks at some of the more unusual ways companies try to motivate their staff

M

ENTION the phrase “team-building day” to people in your office and you may well get a roll of the eyes as they contemplate eight hours cooped up in a function room in a hotel with a flipchart and a bloke spouting corporate nonsense.

However, some companies like to be a little more adventurous in the ways they choose to get their teams “bonding”.

Action Adventures was set up near the waterfront in south Liverpool just over a year ago and specialises in pushing people out of their comfort zones.

The business was established by Dan Kirkham and Keith Perryman and their 2.5-acre site oasis comprises a high-ropes course, one of the largest military-style obstacle courses in Europe, bootcamp sessions and zipwires.

It caters for school parties, youth groups, corporate team building sessions and even stag and hen parties.

It is also the culmination of an eight-year mission by former Royal Marines physical training instructor Keith Perryman, 38, who saw potential

on the council-owned land.

Having met business partner Dan Kirkham, 31, a former restaurant manager and personal trainer, through family friends, they succeeded in clinching the site just over a year ago.

Mr Kirkham says companies find a dat at the centre invaluable for teaching their employees the importance of working as a team.

“When people arrive here at the start of the day they can be initially apprehensive,” he said.

“But when they manage to complete tasks they thought at first would be insurmountable then they feel a tremendous sense of achievement.”

The facility includes the “PI Area”, so-called because it is shaped like a the Greek symbol PI. Here, team members are given problems to solve that are best achieved using teamwork.

Mr Kirkham added: “They learn that the best way to achieve results is by working together.

“We have research that says that companies undertaking these types of activities can reduce their rate of absenteeism by 40% and increase productivity by up to 45%. We are now working with an organisation called Self Smart so we can measure the result more clearly.”

Psychologist Anita Morris, visiting lecturer in psychology at Liverpool John Moores University, offers another very different alternative to the usual motivational away day.

Last year, she launched a Knowsley-based Community Interest Company called Hack Back.

She uses birds of prey in therapy, education and training for corporates.

‘Research shows firms can raise their productivity by as much as 45%’

Keith Perryman and Dan Kirkham and, below, Anita Morris with Aaron, a white tailed sea eagle She has been using birds of prey in leadership and management development for a number of years.

Since Hack Back’s launch it has been commissioned by Knowsley Council to take part in a project aimed at reducing crime in the borough – worked with a homeless charity; and with a young ex-forces man with acquired brain injury.

In a recent interview, Ms Morris said: “If you look at the over 4,000 year history of falconry, it was used to develop leadership skills in different cultures around the world.

“Often royalty were trained in falconry not only because it was considered a sport of Kings, but also because Kings and Princes were leaders of armies as well as countries and needed to develop leadership skills.”

past business – nostalgia Hallowed status of city’s ‘store number one’ couldn’t save it from the axe

Staff battling the 1983 closure of Woolworths in Church Street

WHEN recession-hit Woolworths closed its doors in 2009, it was the second time the city had been left without a “Woolies”.

Woolworths’ founder Frank Winfield Woolworth opened his first UK store in Church Street, Liverpool in November 1909. The store was an instant success, and dozens more opened around the country.

In 1923, Woolworths moved to a larger store across the road, where it stayed for 60 years.

In 1928 the sales area was extended to include a basement, and in 1935 a cafe was opened.

Online archive the Woolworths Museum (www.woolworthsmuseum.co.uk) says the shop was known as “store number one” and was considered “hallowed ground” by staff.

But that could not save it when, in 1982, investment consortium Paternoster took over the Woolworths chain from its US parent.

Paternoster soon decided to sell off some of its less profitable UK stores so it could pay off debt and invest elsewhere in the business.

In total, six of the first ten stores to open in Britain were closed during the reorganisation, including stores in Hull, Leeds, Bristol – and Liverpool. Woolworths also pulled out of the Republic of Ireland.

Staff in Merseyside launched a campaign against the closure, with thousands of shoppers signing a petition against the decision.

Helen Langley, the store’s longest-serving assistant, told the ECHO: “It’s impossible to think of Liverpool without a Woolies.”

But those protests were to no avail and, on June 4, 1983, the store was closed. Today, the space houses Top Shop and serves as an entrance to Liverpool One. But the restructure programme helped breathe new life into the Woolworths group, which already owned B&Q and went on to buy Comet and Superdrug.

And, in 1990, the renamed Kingfisher group opened a new Woolworths store in St John’s Shopping Centre.

ALISTAIR HOUGHTON

Woolworths, in Church Street, shortly before it shut in 1983

22 post business end piece

Thursday, May 23, 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.

Malmaison Extra Extra! Find out what Sundays are really about with the delicious 4 course Sunday Brunch menu at Malmaison.

Including our renowned hors d’oeuvre buffet, eggs and pancake station, the incredible Mal Roast and a delicious selection of desserts from £19.95 or £7.95 for children under 12.

William Jessop Way Princes Dock, Liverpool, L3 0BG

■

THE LiverpoolManchester train line may be historic but it’s hardly picturesque.

Luckily, a guard on one service last weekend livened up the journey with his commentary.

In Widnes, he said: “If you're leaving the train

here, please mind the gap between your expectations and reality.”

Warrington was dubbed “the jewel in Cheshire’s crown”. And finally, in Manchester, he mused: “Please remember any baggage – wives, children, mothers-in-law, alpacas, zebras, livestock...”

It all brought smiles to the whole train on a grey day – customer service managers, take note.

City solicitor with a brief to be on the ball

Liverpool Restaurant: 36 Castle Street, Liverpool. L2 0NR Tel: 0151 236 8080 www.vivabrazilrestaurants.com

Lightning Lunch Offer £6.95 per person

Radisson Blu Hotel Liverpool Tel, 0151 966 1500 Email: info.liverpool@radissonblu.com 107 Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9BD

CROWNE PLAZA Princes Dock Pier Head T: +44 (0) 151 243 8000 enquiries@cpliverpool.com

CROWN PLAZA BRASSERIE Our Chef and his team have a passion for food and offer a wide variety of dishes that draw on modern international flavours and ingredients.

The Hotel Restaurant is very stylish and recently refurbished. Bar Lounge serving a mouth-watering range of food, speciality coffees and teas and a huge variety of cocktails, wines and beers, the lounge provides a stylish, comfortable environment in which to do business or simply to relax

Thistle Liverpool City Centre The Vista Bar & Restaurant is the ideal location for any gathering.

Displaying spectacular views over the River Mersey and Liver Building,

please call Tel: 0151 559 0111

MORE than a hint of irony in the latest conquest by the seemingly world-devouring Costa Coffee chain.

Its latest expansion is the former Brew Tea Co tearooms in the city’s St

nationwide, but now focuses on coffee shops and, until recently, health clubs – and they call that progress.

Viva Brasil The award-winning Viva Brazil restaurant is situated in the heart of the business district in Liverpool’s Castle Street. It is a firm favourite for business lunches providing fast and efficient service. With a menu to suit all tastes, including more than 15 cuts of meat and 20 salads, you are guaranteed not to go hungry.

Radisson Blu Radisson Blu Hotel Liverpool launches brand new Lightning Lunch menu. Indulge in a main course and a drink for just £6.95.

Best of all is the guarantee: if the meal has not been served within 15 minutes, it is completely free!

Enquiries/Reservations, please call: 0871 376 9025

■

Paul’s Square, from where co-founder Phil Kirby had plotted the fightback against the corporate coffee set before swapping bricks for clicks last year.

Not content with the high street, railway stations and petrol stations, where next will the pervasive brand turn up?

It doesn’t seem that long ago that parent company Whitbread was a leading operator of pubs

the restaurant offers a wide choice of dishes to suit all palates.

Your experience here will be an unforgettable one Hotel Indigo Marco in Minutes - Express Lunch Menu Time may be of the essence but that shouldn’t mean you have to compromise on quality. With the new Express Lunch Menu, you can feast on the finest cuisine using the freshest of ingredients, and still have time to meet all those deadlines! With two courses for £10 or a main meal and a drink for £10 It’s a menu with little fuss - just good, honest, simple food for those who have very little time to stop.

To promote your location please email : neil.johnson@trinitymirror.com

Mark Pollard is passionate about his work and his football

myday off Mark Pollard is a solicitor and the managing director of Liverpool-based Vantage Law. In his spare time he is a qualified FA coach for local football club Woodstreet FC

W

E SET up Vantage Law just over two years ago and it has been hard work but ultimately, it has been very rewarding.

We are delighted with how far we have come and have just moved for the third time to larger offices and taken on a full time member of staff.

Having a passion outside of work is really important to help stay focused and enthusiastic in the office.

I love football. I am from Leeds originally and, for my sins I’m an avid Leeds United supporter.

But it goes beyond just supporting league football. I love playing the

game but injury has gotten the better of me and has limited my time on the field.

I had to find a way of redirecting my love for the game and found I am really passionate about encouraging young people to play and make the most of their skills.

My time at Woodstreet FC began in 2006. I’d contacted the Liverpool FA to recommend a club and they put me in touch and I’ve never looked back.

The club was founded in 2004 when a group of BT employees decided to take the nucleus of their successful five-a-side team and enter an 11-a-side league.

We are an FA Chartered Standard which means it has met strict criteria to carry the mark of excellence for grassroots football and now have three teams who play at differing standards.

I started coaching in 2011 and as well as my coaching role I am also on the club’s committee and get involved with grant applications, club sponsorship, competitions and social media, which is vital to keep the club going and broaden our offering.

Vantage Law is sponsor of the club and it has worked well both ways – we have raised our profile locally and won new business on the back of it.

Local children’s hospice, Zoe’s Place, is our affiliated charity and as well as raising its profile by exposing them to our 500+ weekly website visitors and 1,700+ social media followers, we help raise money by making donations to their clothes recycling campaign, attending events as well as donating money from funds raised through competitions and club events.

We find out in April 2013 if we have

been successful in our latest grant application and if we are, the intention is to fund the further develop our existing coaches.

The age of the players range from 17 to 48 and we are hoping to introduce an under-14s side next season.

After that we want to introduce an academy team, specifically aimed at 16-21 year olds. There is a huge gap between open age football and U16’s, which is when most leagues seem to stop and young people lose interest.

This setup would bridge the gap and allow young players to take the step up when they feel comfortable and not because it is the only option.

I firmly believe that encouraging youngsters into a sport and, in particular, a team sport has positive benefits for them in later life.

It also gives them confidence and a sense of purpose and belonging which is very important.

We get lads from all walks of life and nationalities here. We have had Scandinavians, South Africans and Spanish players to name but a few – usually foreign students – who have played for us which is fantastic for introducing different cultures and playing styles.

Many will never have had the chance to mix with people from such different backgrounds, particularly in such familiar surroundings so it’s a great benefit to everyone.

We have had players go on to play for larger non-league clubs such as Marine FC in Crosby and Bootle FC. Others have spent time abroad doing football scholarships and many have at one time or another been part of Liverpool, Everton or Tranmere’s academy.

‘We have raised our profile and won new business’

Thursday, May 23, 2013

end piece

23 post business

networking

Piccolino in Liverpool city centre

my favourite lunch

Going green

LIVERPOOL’S business community attended the ECHO Environment Awards 2013, organised by the Post’s sister paper, the Liverpool ECHO. Above from left, city

councillor, Gary Millar, BBC presenter Dianne Oxberry and Jack Stopforth from the Big Partnership. And left, Laura Furlong, Wirral Council and Maresa Molloy, Liverpool Chamber.

City food festival THE Liverpool Commercial District BID organised a food festival in Exchange Flags.

The area was buzzing, with produce from some of the best restaurants, bars,

Gusto has faith in Rob GUSTO Heswall hosted a dinner last week with entertainment provided by one of Europe’s leading tribute artists, Rob Lamberti.

Since winning Stars in Their Eyes in 1994, Lamberti

MONDAY, MAY 27

THE Employability and Skills Group of companies is holding a series of open days at its Liverpool operation. It invites schools and pupils, parents, teachers, heads of departments and careers advisors, training providers, job centres, and employers to its events, from 10am to 4pm, on the second floor of Link 19 in Bold Street’s Central Village. It says the open days will provide an opportunity to find out how to obtain full time jobs via the apprenticeship programme. Contact Jules Westbrook or Pauline

O’Brien on 0151-702 6111.

THURSDAY, MAY 30

SOUTH Liverpool Business Network’s breakfast briefing at Enterprise South Liverpool Academy, Garston, features Cllr Nick Small, cabinet member for employment and skills, as guest speaker. The event starts at 8am and costs £5 for members, or £10 for non-members, which includes breakfast. To confirm your place ring 0151-203 3429.

THURSDAY, MAY 30

EXPORT Sales – winning

Q What is your favourite lunch venue?

A APiccolino, located on Cook Street in Liverpool’s commercial district.

Q Why is this your favourite venue?

A It has a welcoming atmosphere from the moment you step through the door and is an ideal venue for spending time over lunch swapping ideas with colleagues and entertaining business associates. It somehow seems to liberate the thought processes.

hotels and coffee shops in the city. Pictured are, from left, Paul Dixon, Liverpool City Region LEP, Kevin Whittaker, Commercial District BID and Duncan Frazer, from the LEP.

business diary

Carol Head, a director at law firm Maxwell Hodge

orders overseas, is a course offered by Liverpool Chamber of Commerce that is aimed at companies involved in the manufacturing or services sectors; business development or sales managers and senior personnel responsible for identifying and winning international business; and those new or inexperienced in international marketing as well as more established exporters looking to develop their sales techniques and learn practical new skills.

Examples and exercises are used throughout the workshop to illustrate the key elements, and consideration is given to the individual objectives of participating companies

has become one of the UK’s best-known George Michael tribute acts.

From left, Laura Jane Hall, of Gusto, Rebecca Foster, of Olive Liverpool, and Jasmine Jackson.

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.liverpool chamber.org.uk/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

Q What is your favourite dish and why?

A There is a lot to choose from on the menu, both modern and classic Italian dishes but I must admit to usually reverting to a good fillet steak followed by chocolate fondant and salted ice cream. Not good for the waistline but to die for!

Q What is the best bit of business you have done over lunch?

A We cover lots of legal services from inheritance planning, to clinical negligence and personal injury but it’s the commercial law, our fastest growing department,

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 nonmembers. Visit www. sthelenschamber.com/ booking to book.

THURSDAY, JUNE 6

PRIORY Business Forum is a free monthly business breakfast event for entrepreneurs and businesspeople and has been running on the Wirral for nine years. The event takes place at MEC North West,

Carol Head where business lunches have paid dividends. Recently we’ve won some big business clients over a nice bite to eat.

Q Who would you most like to have lunch with?

A It would have to be Judi Dench or Maggie Smith.

What an inspiration they are to us older ladies.

Q Where else do you like to go for lunch?

A For a quick catch up and just enough time to keep the wheels of business moving, McGuffie’s on Castle Street is the answer. It has a friendly, informal atmosphere and the sandwiches and cake are seriously good.

Monks Ferry, Birkenhead and starts with registration and networking at 8am, with the presentation starting at 8.30am. Visit http:// priorybusinessforum.event brite.co.uk/ to register.

THURSDAY, JUNE 6

LIVERPOOL Hope University has organised a business breakfast event, from 7.30am to 9.30am, on the impact of the Atlantic Gateway. Aimed at the construction, charity, creative, international trade, environment, retail, tourism, manufacturing, professional, and transport sectors, it will feature as keynote speaker Susan Williams, executive director of Atlantic Gateway, who will

talk on “The Potential of Atlantic Gateway”. For further information please contact Becky Rawlinson at rawlinb@hope.ac.uk or 0151-291 3005.

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. For further information call: 0845 340 9980.

■ Send your diary events to neil.hodgson @liverpool.com

24

Thursday, May 23, 2013

ESCORTED HOLIDAYS

readertravelholidays.com

Great Value Escorted Touring Holiday

10 days from

£1,279

India – Tigers & the Taj Mahal

Tour Highlights

●

Discover the historic Red Fort and Jama Masjid Mosque, the India Gate war memorial and the ruins of the Quwwat-ul-Islam in Delhi

●

Enjoy a rickshaw ride through Old Delhi

●

See ‘Pink City’ Jaipur’s ‘Palace of the Winds’

●

Climb to Amber Fort – by elephant or jeep!

●

Go in search of Ranthambhore’s tigers

●

See Chand Baori, Abhaneri’s stepwell

●

Enjoy a cookery demonstration

●

Marvel at the incomparable Taj Mahal on two unforgettable visits BIRMINGHAM AIRPORT Departure Date Per Person 19 Nov 2013, 11 Mar 2014 £1,399 Outbound: 14:15/09:15 • Return: 04:15/12:35 GLASGOW AIRPORT 12 Nov 2013, 11 Mar 2014 £1,399 Outbound: 17:15/09:15 • Return: 04:15/21:40

This classic tour of northern India features the great cities of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur, and Ranthambhore Park, one-time hunting ground of Indian princes, and standing atop a landscape of grasslands, streams and lakes. The park is home to the legendary ‘Tigers of Ranthambhore’ and you’ll enjoy two half-day ‘safaris’, hoping for sightings of these beautiful endangered creatures.

In Delhi, ancient and modern worlds collide, the grandeur of the colonial Raj in the city’s centre literally sandwiched between the past of Old Delhi to the north, and the future – fast-growing south Delhi. All over the teeming, colourful, enthralling metropolis are reminders, in the shape of great monuments, of the six cities that predated the present Indian capital.

Agra is known as the ‘City of Love’, its greatest treasure the world-renowned Taj Mahal, one of the planet’s most recognisable landmarks. Other highlights include Agra Fort, the onion-domed Jama Masjid mosque and the nearby tomb of Akbar the Great at Sikandra.

Explore Jaipur, the fabled ‘Pink City’, with its ‘Palace of the Winds’, its colourful bazaars and famous Amber Fort, the latter reached atop an elephant’s back or by jeep. Ranthambhore is, of course, a highlight of the tour and said to be an inspiration for some of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘Jungle Book’ stories.

This is a perfect introduction to one of the world’s most fascinating, alluring and exotic destinations.

Excellent hotels with names you can trust...

Equivalent to at least European four-star standard, all hotels provide modern conveniences, a choice of regional or international cuisine, and well-equipped, comfortable bedrooms.

LONDON HEATHROW AIRPORT Departure Date Per Person 10 Sep 2013 £1,249 1, 9 Oct, 5, 12, 19 Nov 2013 £1,399 14, 21 Jan, 11 Feb, 4, 11 Mar 2014 £1,349 13, 20 May 2014 £1,299 Outbound: 21:50/11:50 • Return: 13:50/17:55 MANCHESTER AIRPORT Departure Date Per Person 10 Sep 2013 £1,279 1, 9 Oct, 5 Nov 2013 £1,469 12 Nov 2013, 11 Mar 2014 £1,399 19 Nov 2013 £1,429 14, 21 Jan, 11 Feb 2014 £1,379 13, 20 May 2014 £1,329 Outbound: 14:10/09:15 • Return: 04:15/12:25

●

Ranthambhore Fort – £12 per person

●

Taj Mahal at Sunrise – £19 per person

✈✈Delhi

This city centre hotel boasts spa rooms and outdoor pool. Ranthambhore

Radisson Blue Dwarka – Delhi

Regency – Ranthambhore (nights 6 & 7) This hotel also has lovely gardens and a pool. Geejgarh Village Retreat – Geejgarh (night 8) Lodge accommodation with a modern twist – and proper beds!

Radisson – Agra (night 9) Close to the Taj Mahal, with pool and fitness centre.

Jaipur

Postcode

Geejgarh

India

For your FREE India, China & the far East 2013-14 brochure, complete this coupon and send to: Newmarket Promotions Ltd, FREEPOST KT2720, Worcester Park, KT4 8BR (NO STAMP REQUIRED) Tel

Ranthambhore

Address

Connecting flights are available to London Heathrow from the following airports, for a supplement: Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow & Newcastle

Email

www.newmarket.travel/lpe11372 Feb v2 2013

Optional Excursions

Radisson Blu Dwarka – Delhi (nights 2 & 3) Enjoy a relaxing swim in the hotel pool. Four Points Sheraton – Jaipur (nights 4 & 5)

Name

Regional connections

Price includes ● A city tour of Old Delhi ● A tour of New Delhi ● An elephant or jeep ride to the Amber Fort ● A guided city tour of Jaipur ● Two safaris at Ranthambhore National Park ● Visit to Abhaneri ● Lodge accommodation in Geejgarh with an included cookery demonstration ● A city tour of Agra ● A visit to the Taj Mahal ● Eight nights’ half-board accommodation plus four included lunches staying in Delhi, Jaipur, Ranthambhore, Geejgarh and Agra ● Return scheduled flights to Delhi ● One suitcase allowance per person ● Air-conditioned coach travel throughout ● The services of a Tour Manager upon arrival at your destination

LPE

0151 559 1590 quoting code LPE

These holidays are organised & operated by Newmarket Air Holidays Ltd. ABTA V7812, ATOL Protected 2325. Subject to availability. Calls cost 4p per minute.

Information shown is taken from our India, China & the Far East 2013-2014 (September 2012 edition brochure). Please contact us for the latest prices and availability.