Platinum Business Magazine, Issue 11

The widest-read business publication in the South East

ISSUE 11 . 2015

PLATINUM DIAMOND AWARDS THE WINNERS SPEAK

THE BIG INTERVIEW

STEWART WINGATE

PLATINUM

ANGER MANAGEMENT Bursting at the seams

CEO, GATWICK AIRPORT Plus: Business Funding Guide International Trade Legal Issues Accountancy Wealth Management Business Travel Chamber News Business Style Editorial Opinion Networking Motoring

THE BIG STORY

PHILIP GREEN’S OFF-SHORE EMPIRE

READ ALL PAST ISSUES AT WWW.PLATINUMBUSINESSMAGAZINE.COM

Ahead for Business

Stag House, Upper Bedford Street, Brighton BN2 1GW

WELCOME

ISSUE 11. 2015

The sun is out and summer is around the corner so we all look forward to tabloid headlines that screech ‘Phew, what a scorcher’.

To many businesses summer is a very important

28

trading time. For others it makes little difference apart for the fact that Sussex is a glorious place to work when the sun pops out.

In this issue, we have been nose to the grindstone to bring you in-depth interviews, fascinating stories and news and views from around the region. We spent a day with Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick Airport, to find out what will happen if they are granted the second runway and more importantly, what will

THE BIG INTERVIEW

Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick Airport, has quite a job on his hands, not least the agonising wait to learn if Gatwick has been successful in its bid for expansion.

Read his in-depth interview on page 28.

happen if they are not. John Burroughes, CEO of Uniglobe Travel takes a diversion from his normal airborne route and brings us news on the state of

THE LONG GOODBYE

the UK’s rail network and we chat to the Directors of

We take the last of the Land

Gemini Print about their sponsorship of the diverse

Rover Defenders down to

and creative Brighton Fringe.

Cornwall to get down and We also chat to the sponsors and winners of the

dirty. It’s a turgid old beast

Gatwick Diamond Business Awards 2015 to learn why

but you can learn to love it.

they entered and what winning means to them.

See page 74.

So, enjoy this issue, enjoy the sun and enjoy life – as they say, it really is to short.

Ian & Maarten

74 THE NATWEST ‘HATCHERY’ NatWest have launched a new business hatchery to give new enterprises the chance to grow, read all about it on page 24.

4

24

THE TEAM AT A GLANCE 6 15 16 24 26 28

News

Institute of Directors The Big Story: Philip Green Finance: Natwest Investments: Skerritts The Big Interview: Stewart Wingate

36

Gatwick Diamond Business Awards: Winners and Sponsors

40

Motivational Thinking: Sarah Hopwood

44 46 48 50

Private Clients: DMH Stallard

54 58 65

Business: Bennett Griffin

66 67

Green Business: Ecotech

Credit Unions: Kreston Reeves Coast to Capital LEP Business Interview: Carpenter Box, Alan Edwards Uniglobe Travel Social Media: Media Word Waves Marketing: Big Beach

68 72

Anger Management

74 78 82

Motoring

84

Education Interview: University of Brighton

Maarten Hoffmann – Director maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07966 244046

Growth Forum: Gatwick Diamond Mercedes Benz

Ian Trevett – Director ian@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07989 970804

Author Interview: Kevin Ashton

89 Education 94 Hotel Review: Cornwall 96 Latest Trends: Brufords 98 Brighton Fringe: Gemini Print 100 Exhibitions: Identity 102 Golf: Our competition winner 105 Networking: Emma Pearce 106 Chamber News 116 Working Lunch: The Salt Room 118 Style 120 Secret Sussex:

Callisto Associates

122 Wise Words:

Jonathan Dolding

Lynne Edwards - Commercial Property lynne@portfoliopublications.co.uk Tel: 07931 537588

Sally Wynn - Senior Designer

Julia Trevett – Accounts Manager All rights reserved. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions relating to advertising or editorial. The publisher reserves the right to change or amend any competitions or prizes offered. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent from the publisher. No responsibility is taken for unsolicited materials or the return of these materials whilst in transit.

Platinum Business Magazine is published and owned by Platinum Business Publications Limited.

Directors: Maarten Hoffmann and Ian Trevett

THE BIG STORY PHILIP GREEN

16

Billionaire Philip Green is a fascinating mix of high flyer, canny cockney and bar room brawler. Read our in-depth overview of his life, his business and his ‘take no prisoners’ attitude on page 16.

Front Cover Image Courtesy of: www. harrypage.com

5

{ NEWS }

LOCAL NEWS MEET THE BUYERS The Gatwick Diamond Initiative has revealed that, after just six months, suppliers attending the Gatwick Diamond ‘Meet the Buyers’ event have already generated more than £500k in new business and predict that future orders could eventually total over £8 million.

The annual Gatwick Diamond Meet the Buyers event, now in its 14th year, is sponsored by the Gatwick Diamond Initiative, Arora Hotel Gatwick, Gatwick Airport, Crawley Borough Council, Horsham District Council, the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership and West Sussex County Council. The event regularly attracts over 250 local companies supplying a range of products and services. Also in attendance are the purchasing managers from some of the largest and most influential companies in the Gatwick Diamond such as Gatwick Airport, Canon, Nestlé, Sony, Balfour Beatty and Thales.

Research undertaken at the 2014 Meet the Buyers event found that 96% of buyers believed they would do business with the suppliers they had met on the day, and follow-up research a few weeks later discovered that suppliers had already secured contracts worth over £500k. Rosemary French, Executive Director of the Gatwick Diamond Initiative, says: “These findings send out a very clear message to the leaders of all small- and medium-sized businesses in the area: this is your chance to put yourself in front of some of the most important buyers in the region. You need to be there!”

2015

£137 MILLION UP FOR GRABS Businesses from Kent, Essex and East Sussex are set to benefit from £137 million of European funding to increase competitiveness, reduce unemployment and support rural development.

EU funding plays an important role in creating sustainable and inclusive growth and this is a real opportunity for Kent, Essex and East Sussex businesses to access extra funding. Funds are available by applying to the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Catherine Bearder MEP said: “I want to encourage local businesses and communities to make use of these available funds. They’re yours for the taking.”

“Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember- the only taste of success some people get is to take a bite out of you” 6

BUDGET QUESTION TIME Ever wanted to have your say on the Chancellor’s Budget or on Government fiscal policy? On 25th March Kreston Reeves in Gatwick hosted a lively ‘Budget Question Time’ debate, allowing guests from the Sussex and Surrey business communities to do just that.

In an animated discussion session chaired by Kreston Reeves’ Executive Chairman, Clive Stevens, a panel and invited audience of business people traded views and comments on key questions arising from the recent Budget and on the current tax regime. The Budget Question Time panel comprised Peter Rodgers, MD of Ridlands Ltd, the Redhill based construction company, Jeff Smith, of Sandler Sales Training, and Julian Cioffi, from Brighton Solicitors Fitzhugh Gates (pictured left to right below, with Kreston Reeves’ Clive Stevens second from left).

Questions ranged from views on whether the Budget would be good for investment and employment, attitudes to tax evasion and avoidance, on pensions saving (and release!), the effects of impending tax changes and people’s views on the government’s record on skills training and IT implementations.

The evening’s debate closed with a poll of participants’ views on whether March’s Budget had modified their voting intentions. Only 35% of the audience expressed the view that the Budget had altered – in any way – their voting intentions for 7 May.

{ NEWS }

“ It’s true that hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance”

MAJOR DEVELOPMENT IN LEWES Developers have submitted plans for a major development of 416 new homes, flood defences, public areas and business workspace.

Santon North Street and Lewes District Council jointly filed the planning application to the South Downs National Park Authority to regenerate the North Street and Phoenix Industrial Estate area of Lewes.

The North Street Quarter proposes 40% of the homes will be affordable homes. It aims to bolster town flood defences, develop riverside public spaces and build 140,000 sq ft of flexible workspace.

Rob Blackman, leader of Lewes District Council, said: “We want to create a vibrant, mixed-use

neighbourhood

which

is

designed to reflect and complement the character and industrial heritage of Lewes while delivering benefits to people on this rather hidden and isolated brownfield site.”

The Santon Group, which jointly owns the land with the council, said the development was sympathetic to its setting next to the River Ouse.

IS THE SOUTH EAST MORE CHARITABLE THAN THE REST OF THE UK? A new ‘sports personality’ study from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) has found that hiking is most popular in the South East, which could reveal a lot about the locals. The analysis shows that walkers are likely to be the least materialistic, are more likely to give to charity and like their own company. The research celebrates the launch of the BHF’s 2015 events series, which offers ‘sporting personalities’ a wide range of events to get involved in across the region and beyond.

The psychological study, conducted by Mindlab, surveyed 2000 adults across the UK and highlights that the type of sport we choose uncovers a lot about our personality traits and can reveal how charitable we are, the type of newspapers we are most likely to read and show how we will vote in the next general election.

The survey also revealed that almost half (47%) of adults in the South East were keen to take on a challenge for charity, whatever their ‘sports personality’ type.

THE ‘SPORTS PERSONALITIES’ Cyclists

Runners

Lewes Councillor and Chairman of Lewes

• • • •

• • • •

Community Land Trust John Stockdale

Swimmers

Walkers (Trekkers)

• • • •

• • • •

Construction is mooted to create 100 fulltime jobs and £150 million of investment into Lewes and the South Downs National Park.

Vote Liberal Laid back and calm Least likely to be depressed or suffer stress Materialistic

Vote Labour Extroverts Love being the centre of attention Listen to lively, upbeat music

welcomed the submission.

He said “A £150million investment, more than 400 homes with 165,000 of them affordable housing, will make a substantial contribution to the life of the town.”

Make the best lovers Charitable Happiest Tidy

Like their own company Charitable Don’t like drawing attention to themselves Least materialistic

Olympic Heptathlete Louise Hazel, who is taking on a cycling challenge for the BHF in September, explains: “Whatever your sports personality or level of fitness, I would encourage everyone to sign up to a BHF event. Heart disease devastates too many lives, killing over 22,000 people across the South East every year. I lost my father to heart disease; he was just 50 years old. This is why I’m taking on a cycling challenge for BHF. To see a copy of the BHF’s latest events calendar and to sign up for a challenge, visit www.bhf.org.uk/events

7

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LOCAL NEWS LEGAL AND GENERAL CEO APPLAUDS C2C More than 100 policy makers and business organisations received an update on Coast to Capital’s Growth Deal projects at the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership Forum held on 25th March at the Hilton London Gatwick Airport hotel. An inspiring keynote address was made by Dr Nigel Wilson, Group Chief Executive of Legal & General, which has two offices located in the region.

During his welcome address, Tim Wates, Coast to Capital Chairman, said: “This has been an exciting year for Coast to Capital. Following the announcement of our Growth Deal, a significant projects delivery programme has begun. With our local partners, we have combined to form a strong and united approach which reflects our region’s priorities for investment, infrastructure and business support.” Following a warm welcome from Tim Wates, Dr Wilson talked about the value of constructive collaboration. He spoke of the need for enlightened local government, working with a supportive central government that focuses on the right things and for a proportionate, can-do attitude to economic growth on the part of regulators and business leaders.

He said: “At Legal & General, we believe the LEP’s initiative is a very important way in which to encourage regeneration, development, jobs and growth, and particularly to encourage more local economic decision-making, in partnership between local authorities and local private sector employers. We support Coast to Capital’s approach of long term investment in infrastructure, in R&D and in vocational education to unlock the supply side and create long-lasting prosperity through productivity gains.” The Coast to Capital Forum meets every six months and brings together local authorities, business organisations and academics from West Sussex, Brighton and Lewes, Croydon and the Gatwick Diamond. The focus for this event was Coast to Capital’s Growth Deal projects, which will result in nearly £240 million investment in our region between 2016 and 2021.

HORSE HILL, TEXAS Billions of barrels of oil have been discovered at a site near Gatwick Airport in West Sussex that could controversially become Britain’s Texas.

As much as 158million barrels of oil per square mile could lie underground, according to UK Oil & Gas Investments, the small oil explorer which has been drilling at the Horse Hill site.

The find is one of the biggest in recent years and the firm’s chief executive Stephen Sanderson said: ‘Based on what we’ve found here, we’re looking at between 50 and 100billion barrels of oil in place in the ground.’

He estimated that 3 to 15 per cent of the oil could be recovered, which could mean anything between 1.5 and 15billion barrels. By comparison, the North Sea has produced about 45billion barrels in 40 years.

“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it”

8

Oil has been produced onshore in the Home Counties for decades. There are currently around a dozen oil production sites across the Weald, which spans Kent, Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.

Last year, a report for the government by the British Geological Survey estimated that the region may have shale oil resources in the range of 2.2-to-8.5billion barrels, with a central estimate of 4.4billion barrels of oil. However a number of industry experts have expressed scepticism about the size of this find and it is not the first time the area has experienced hype over a potential oil and gas find.

UKOG also stated that it is not intending to use fracking, which involves pumping water, sand and chemicals into rocks at high pressure to liberate the oil and gas trapped within.

As the Government now seems to own all the land under our homes, our region will not benefit one iota from this find but if it proves to be a real, then I sense a battle coming.

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“ The secret of success is to do the common thing uncommonly well”

GOOGLE PARTNER AWARD Digital Kitbag, the Johnston Press-owned digital marketing service for small and medium-sized businesses, has been presented with a major award at Google’s Premier SME Partner Awards 2014.

At the prestigious event in Dublin, Digital Kitbag won the award for Largest Increase in Active Advertiser Base (Emerging Partner).

Awarded to the company with the biggest growth in advertiser numbers, Digital Kitbag outperformed competition from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, underpinning the important role that the digital marketing service and its parent company Johnston Press play in supporting local small businesses.

The Awards were open to all participants in the Google AdWords Premier SME Partner Program (PSP) across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The program connects Google’s trusted and experienced AdWords partners with small-and medium-sized businesses that want expert help in creating, managing and optimizing their online advertising campaigns.

Ashley Highfield, CEO of Johnston Press, said: “It really is a fantastic achievement and I could not be more proud of the Digital Kitbag team.

This proves what a fantastic product Digital Kitbag is and the importance of its service to SMEs. It is also a testament to the amazing hard work that Digital Kitbag’s MD Chris Brake and the Digital Kitbag team put in to understanding SMEs across the country and their individual marketing needs every day.”

A cutting-edge event will provide business people with the latest insights into how good design, collaboration and innovative thinking can lead to greater financial success.

CATERHAM TO CRAWLEY ...not route directions but the opening of a new flagship showroom in Fleming Way by a British motoring icon. Sports car maker Caterham Cars celebrated Easter Monday with a special launch event to mark the opening of its brand new flagship showroom in Crawley, West Sussex. Formula One car designer and renowned F1 technician Mike Gascoyne officially opened the new state-of-the-art facility before sharing his unique career experiences with guests. The event was attended by over 550 Caterham invited owners and other guests, who were given the opportunity to view Caterham’s complete range of iconic sports cars, including the recently-launched Seven 270, 360 and 420 models, and to experience the thrill of an F1-style tyre change in a live pit stop challenge. Caterham engineers were also on hand to answer questions in an entertaining Q&A. The new 25,000 sq ft premises provide a one-stop-shop for new and existing Caterham owners, including a 40-car showroom, and a hi-tech 6-bay servicing workshop. Caterham Cars CEO Graham Macdonald said: “This is a landmark year for Caterham Cars. With the introduction of three new variants of the Seven, Caterham continues to create a thrilling driving experience for all sports car enthusiasts, and we’re very happy to see over 150 Caterham owners with their Sevens attending this special event.

Caterham Cars South is located at Caterham House, Unit 4 Dialog, Fleming Way, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 9NQ. For more information, visit www.caterham.com.

GROWTH BY DESIGN Business Growth by Design is being held at the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill, East Sussex, on Tuesday, April 28th, from 4pm to 7pm.

Organised by the University of Brighton in partnership with Locate East Sussex, it features presentations from leading speakers and opportunities for networking, collaboration with complimentary drinks. Esther Brown, the University of Brighton’s Economic and Social Engagement Manager, said: “This is the first in a programme of events for local businesses and entrepreneurs, to share knowledge and help foster successful relationships that aid business success. Business Growth by Design’s thought-provoking seminars are aimed at producing new collaborations between educators and local companies, and we hope many business people will come along to learn more.”

Philip Johnson, Director of Locate East Sussex, said: “Business people across all sectors can discover ways of achieving increased success for their organisation by attending this event, which focuses on the benefits of good design, collaboration and innovative thinking. Design is one of the fastest growing creative industries sector in the country, and the speakers include design practitioners who have extensive experience of working in commercial environments.”

Entry costs £10 and booking is required. For more information, phone Esther Brown on 01273 644630. www.dlwp.com/event/business-growth-by-design

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NATIONAL NEWS PROSPERITY PLAN Lloyds Banking Group has committed to supporting an additional 5000 businesses to trade internationally over the next three years as part of the Group’s 2015 Helping Britain Prosper Plan.

Providing support to UK businesses so that they can realise their ambitions to begin exporting and attracting international businesses to invest into the UK is essential to long term economic growth and it is for this reason that this is a new target within Lloyds Banking Group’s 2015 Helping Britain Prosper Plan.

Support will include helping businesses with an export strategy, delivering regional workshops for businesses considering exporting, providing assistance to investors to set up bank accounts in the UK and offering advice and solutions relating to working capital and foreign exchange risk management.

Lloyds Bank currently supports 70,000 clients to trade internationally, and this new target follows the bank’s recent announcement of a strategic partnership with UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) to help UK businesses export and attract inward investment into the UK from overseas.

The strategic partnership will offer insight and introductions for exporters looking at new markets and support inward infrastructure investments into the UK by helping international investors leverage the Bank’s extensive expertise of the UK market.

Ed Smith, Managing Director, Global Transaction Banking, Lloyds Banking Group said: “We know that businesses often have concerns about trading abroad and we have already made steps to assist in this journey through our recent partnership with UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), which will aim to support global cross-sector trade and inbound investment into the UK while co-ordinating work in key markets such as Asia.”

GENDER EQUALITY Sue O’Brien OBE, CEO of Norman Broadbent, the executive search firm, comments on Lord Davies’ Women on Boards Annual Report 2015: “The doubling in the number of women on FTSE 100 boards since 2011 represents a great step forward in achieving gender equality in the workplace. As the 2015 Cranfield Female FTSE Board Report confirms today, Britain’s top boardrooms are set to meet Lord Davies’ 25% women on boards target this year. However, there is still much work to be done.

“Equality will come through nurturing talented women in the earlier stages of their career; boards must work on counteracting the loss of females in the executive pipeline and invest in female staff at chair and executive level. Equality won’t come by forcing companies to put women into executive and non-executive roles; instead, this makes the appointments come across as tokenism. The great progress Lord Davies’ report shows must not be put in jeopardy through artificial mechanisms.

“Ultimately, all firms need to realise that diversity is not only a key component of good corporate governance, but also of successful business. Every board needs to have the right balance of skills, experience, independence and knowledge. The key here is to be brave and ambitious. If firms aim high in this process and appoint those who are most able to add value to the company, business success will follow.”

SMALL AMENDMENT BIG IMPACT The government has sanctioned a Liberal Democrat amendment to the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill to ‘activate’ section 78 of the Equality Act 2010.

This means that private sector employers with 250 or more employees will be required to publish gender pay gap information, revealing the differences in the pay of male and female employees in their organisation. Non-compliance will amount to an offence leading to the imposition of a fine of up to £5,000 and/or enforcement action to ensure compliance. The changes will be introduced no later than 12 months after the passing of the Act. A late amendment to the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill will have a big effect on big business. Employers of 250 or more employees are to be required to publish their gender pay gap information, publically revealing the differences between the pay of male and female employees in their organisation. New regulations to activate section 78 of the Equality Act are to be introduced within 12 months of the Bill becoming law, as a result of the Conservatives giving in to pressure from Liberal Democrat and Labour MPs to force large employers to do more to eliminate the gender pay gap, which currently stands at 9.4% for full time employees and almost 40% for part timers.

“There are two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit.

Try to be in the first group; there is less competition there” 10

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“The politicians say ‘we’ can’t afford a tax cut. Maybe ‘we’ can’t afford the politicians”

DON’T SPEAK LIKE A CHIPMUNK The way business people use their voices during high-level negotiations is critical to determining success. And they could learn a lot from how military and police negotiators speak in extreme situations, such as during hostage negotiations, according to new research conducted by Professor Christophe Haag from EMLYON business school in France. Professor Haag interviewed Christophe Caupenne, a former Research Assistance, Intervention and Deterrence (RAID) Chief and Consultant to professional negotiators. RAID is an elite special operations unit of the French police force, comparable to SWAT in the US. Caupenne’s role was to reason with fanatics, terrorists or hostage takers, many of whom were prepared to kill others and themselves. He successfully negotiated 350 extreme cases, all of which ended without bloodshed. His colleagues called him ‘The Voice’.

As well as this, the research team also conducted specific tests on the tone, timbre and frequency of how he spoke. Five tips were identified to help executives improve their performance in complex negotiations: 1: Don’t speak like a chipmunk: A negotiator with a high-pitched voice may be perceived as less effective and less respected in terms of power, charisma, authority, trust and competency. A negotiator’s pitch must not undermine his credibility – especially in difficult negotiations. Testimony from Caupenne demonstrates the importance he places on the pitch of a negotiator’s voice: “A few years ago I rejected an applicant for a job with RAID. His only handicap was that his voice sounded like a chipmunk, which I thought would irritate the criminal fraternity!”

2: Breathe from your lower Abdomen: To learn how to do this instinctively, place a lighted candle 10cm from your mouth, inhale gently through your nose and inflate your stomach. Then exhale by blowing the air gently toward the flame without blowing it out and until your stomach returns to its natural position. Doing this exercise regularly will allow you to improve your breathing, which will increase your energy levels during a negotiation.

3: The ‘pen exercise’: This exercise will help you to speak clearly during negotiations. Start by putting a pen between the corners of your mouth and grip it between your teeth for five minutes. Then practice saying a few sentences that you are going to say later. This will completely relax your jaw, so that when you take the pen out of your mouth your diction and articulation will be much improved.

4: Warm up your voice before negotiations: With your mouth closed say ‘ohmmmmmmm’ like a Buddhist monk would. Then with your mouth slightly open, vocalize a short vowel such as the ‘a’ in ‘apple’ several times and then move on to a longer ‘a’ as in ‘market’. Finally, imagine you are a strict dance teacher. Project your voice and count ‘And one, and two, and three…’

5: Project your voice: For ten minutes a day read a text aloud with all the consonants removed. So ‘the voice is a second face’ becomes ‘e-oi-i-a-eo-a-e’. This will make you aware of the importance of consonants, and that they make the vowels stand out and vibrate. Then read the text out again, this time emphasising the consonants by opening your mouth wide. This will make your voice resonate more and the listener will understand you better.

“There were a number of other important points raised by this exercise”, states Haag. “Firstly, it is important to listen carefully to the voice on the other side of the table. The ‘intuitive brain’ can quickly construct a first impression about the speaker’s personality, intentions and job performance that is usually accurate. Also, empathy is important in a negotiation - after observing the other negotiators voice, mirror it.

Conveyed empathy makes confessions acceptable and strengthens compassion. In a business negotiation this facilitates dialogue, calms any distressed or nervous party and increases the probability of reaching a consensus.”

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NATIONAL NEWS THE GAGGED UNGAGGED Corporations intent on blunting the whistleblower reforms embodied in the Dodd-Frank Act have long been muzzling their employees with non-disclosure agreements. Restrictive confidentiality agreements are nothing but corporate censorship - and it needs to end in Europe and the US. People working in big financial services industries need to be able to alert the public, and the courts, to questionable practices. The US act was designed to address the fraud that contributed to the massive financial meltdown experienced in Europe, the United States and the rest of the world.

It’s thanks to whistleblowers that we learned about illegal activity at Enron, Bernie Madoff’s offices and Swiss banks like UBS and HSBC, resulting in the collection of billions of dollars in sanctions.

Numerous British companies have developed broadly worded non-disclosure agreements that restrict the release of confidential information to the company’s legal department as a condition of employment, though the exact number is unknown. When leaving the company, employees who have threatened to file a whistleblower claim were also forced to accept non-disclosure requirements as a condition of a settlement or before they could obtain a severance payment after they were fired or laid off. These agreements explicitly prohibit employees from communicating with anyone except attorneys hired by the company.

DOT SUCKS Brands’ and celebrities’ worst nightmares could be about to become a reality this June when hundreds of questionable web domain names go up for grabs. .sucks, .porn and .adult are just some of the TDLs that will become available, and experts are now advising businesses to purchase uncomplimentary names before it’s too late. Web hosting company 34SP.com has predicted that some of the world’s biggest brands could be subject to torrents of abuse from online trolls purchasing unfavourable domain names with the sole aim of tormenting brands and celebrities. Indeed, Taylor Swift has already registered taylorswift.porn and taylorswift.sucks, while Microsoft has reserved Office.porn and Office.adult.

Daniel Foster, Co-founder and Technical Director of 34SP.com said: “Businesses should do everything in their power avoid being associated with negative messages – and it’s hard to imagine domain names like .sucks and .porn will foster positivity. “Clearly, some big brands are already taking this seriously by registering controversial names while we are still in a mandated period. However, after June 1st it becomes a free-for-all, so I’d advise all businesses with even a slight worry about how this could affect their business to scoop up the domains sooner rather than later.

“While some might use domains for good causes, by creating sites such as cancer.sucks for example, I’d predict that many will be scooping up the new names solely for defamatory purposes.”

Those who want to keep an eye on all of the savoury and unsavoury new TLDs being released and applied for can do so on the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers’ (ICANN) website.

LINKED-IN MYTHS DEBUNKED Ever wondered what prospective employers value when looking at a LinkedIn profile? According to new research, it’s not a person’s number of connections, recommendations or their clever contributions to groups, but the description which really matters.

The independent study was conducted among 100 HR heads of some of the UK’s leading employers on behalf of Norrie Johnston Recruitment. The report on the findings, entitled An Executive Recruitment Game Changer?, lifts the lid on the role of LinkedIn in the recruitment process.

When asked to score the various elements that make up a candidate’s LinkedIn profile, the description comes out top, followed by endorsements for skills and expertise, which in turn are more important than recommendations. The number of connections – something people often pride themselves on - is barely valued, scoring just 3.5 out of 10. Updates are also not important.

HR heads are more likely to judge a candidate based on the groups they join rather than their photograph. However, those spending a lot of time contributing to groups be warned: the things you say once you’re a group member don’t appear to matter.

While HR heads place limited value on many of the elements that make up a profile and few (8%) believe all that they see, the research suggests having a LinkedIn presence – especially a good description - is still valuable.

“There’s no reason to be the richest person in the cemetery.

You can’t do any business from there” 12

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“Litigation is the basic legal right which guarantees every corporation its decade in court”

TRAITS FOR ENTREPRENEURS A new study into the behavioural traits of entrepreneurs

has

identified

the

‘perfect

personality’ for business owners to secure finance and expand their enterprises.

A

three-year

study

was

undertaken

by

researchers at Aston Business School with the aim of discovering the differences between successfully

funded

entrepreneurs,

those

who fail in their applications for finance and those not making applications for funding.

What they found contradicts the traditional stereotype of the risk-taking, impulsive, ‘lone wolf’ entrepreneur, with those most likely to secure funding characterised as collaborative, forward-thinking, careful planners.

Geoff Parkes, Head of the Marketing Group at Aston Business School and lead author of the report, said: “The most successful entrepreneurs we studied were those who scored highest in psychometric testing for working with others, communicating, meeting and presenting, working with customers and driving for results.

“We also found that funding applications were most likely to be successful when entrepreneurs used external advisers in their decision-making. This demonstrates the value of taking a collaborative approach in financing and expanding businesses.”

The research comes as latest figures suggest a lack of confidence amongst entrepreneurs in accessing finance; over a third (38%) of small business owners say they are poor at accessing finance.

Government initiatives to boost funding have largely been unsuccessful, with the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme accounting for less than 2% of all commercial loans. Almost half (46%) of SMEs said they had no awareness of Government schemes designed to assist small firms, with over three-quarters (79%) still unaware of alternative finance initiatives such as crowdfunding.

PENSION SPLASH Much has been made of the possible effects of the new rules allowing folk to take their pension pot in a lump sum without the need for an annuity, with even the Chancellor stating that pensioners can splash out on a Lamborghini if they so wish. Now the experts from the car trade ‘Bible’, Glass’s Guide, are predicting that with hundreds of thousands of older people predicted to draw a tax-free lump sum out of their pension pot, some of this money will inevitably be spent on cars Cars ranging from classic convertibles to brand new superminis could be the target of older people who “treat” themselves, using cash released following revised pension rules that come into effect this week.

Rob Donaldson, Car Editor, said: “There is really no precedent for this, so it is difficult to forecast the exact effect that it will have on the new and used car sector, but it seems likely that a proportion of older people will use the new rules to treat themselves.

“The kind of deals that might be made could range from someone buying an expensive new car as their ‘last’ car through to others splashing out on an old MG or classic Jaguar for some summer fun. This could then provide a boost for dealers, especially in areas where a lot of pensioners live.

“We are certainly not saying that the streets of Eastbourne will suddenly be lined with Aston Martins, but there is every reason to expect an increase in business for some dealers which will be quite welcome as we head into the traditional summer slowdown.”

Rob added that these sales would buck the current market trend towards leasing as they would be, by their nature, cash sales. He said: “Clearly, the older generation are much less likely to favour leasing anyway and, by the nature of the purchase, these are cash reserves that they feel they can afford to spend.”

13

Award winning business, tax and wealth advice For a complimentary initial discussion on any of your accounting, tax or financial planning needs please contact Shirley Smith on: T: +44 (0)1293 776152 E: shirley.smith@krestonreeves.com Offices across London, Gatwick and Kent

www.krestonreeves.com

{ INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS }

ARE YOU MINDFUL OF YOUR MENTAL HEALTH ?

By Dean Orgill Chairman of Mayo Wynne Baxter www.mayowynnebaxter.co.uk • www.iod.com

T

his month I would again like to revert to a “just a thought” comment from a previous column to develop a theme of looking after ourselves.

“Sir Richard Branson recently commented that “because I stay fit and healthy, I’m working as hard as I’ve ever worked”. Do you pay enough attention to your health and fitness?”

Were you able to give much thought yourself to that point? Or were you metaphorically and physically running around trying to do so many things that, although the idea expressed did briefly register as interesting as it was processed, you quickly moved on to do several other essential things and the thought soon disappeared ?

It is easy to interpret the quote as relating solely to physical health, particularly bearing in mind the speaker’s “action man” reputation.

On first reading that is probably the default reaction. But I think it applies equally to the mind as well as to the body.

Many of us now have constant availability in terms of communication. We have information fed to us through all sorts of media most of the time – in fact, all of the time if we want it. Lots of people are also trying to juggle several roles

rather than following a single, more traditional, linear career. All of us are probably also trying to juggle these things with having a satisfying personal and family life that does not see us neglecting our loved ones.

Trying to balance all of this is not always easy and can sometimes lead to stress and mental health issues. Reportedly, in Britain alone 105 million days are lost to stress each year. In the view of the World Health Organization mental illness will require more healthcare resources than cancer and heart disease well before the middle of this century.

Earlier this year the IoD commissioned research (by YouGov) into mental wellbeing, and amongst the findings were that : • 93% of businesses say personal worries and stress affect performance at work, • 32% of employees say stress and anxiety make it difficult to get their work done, • Only 7% of businesses have discussed mental health issues with staff, • 82% of businesses say they should make provisions to promote emotional wellbeing BUT • Only 23% of businesses have a companywide mental health policy or programme.

In addition to commissioning the survey, the IoD helped to promote the Time to Talk Day, which asked people to spend 5 minutes talking about mental health.

There is no single simple solution to any issues raised. Often the details can be complex, and each individual will react in their own personal way in response to the pressures they face. Different strategies will help different people.

However, I think it would help everyone to acknowledge that mental health needs to be considered and addressed. I would encourage everyone to try to improve the statistics above - for the benefit of us all.

JUST A THOUGHT Can you identify one thing you should change about your business, and one thing you absolutely should not?

15

PHILIP GREEN

RAGTRADE TO RICHES

By Maarten Hoffmann

P

hilip Green is best known as the high street fashion mogul who ripped up the traditional rule book and took over half the high street with his ownership of the Arcadia Group that comprises Topshop, Topman, Burton, Wallis, Dorothy Perkins, British Home Stores, Evans, Outfit and Miss Selfridge.

But, of course, this is not the case. Green doesn’t own the company at all as within 24 hours of purchasing Arcadia, he had ‘sold’ the company to his wife, Tina Green, who, coincidentally, lives in Monaco and is therefore not subject to UK taxation. How terribly convenient, and what faith Sir Philip must have in the loyalty of his dear wife!

Sir Philip Nigel Ross Green was born in 1952 in South London to a successful Jewish property-developer father, joining his older sister Elizabeth in a comfortable middle-class home. At the age of nine he was sent to the now closed Jewish boarding school Carmel College in

16

Oxfordshire, where he was studying at the time that his father suddenly died of a heart attack, leaving Green to inherit his father’s company at the age of 12. Being a naturally sharp and savvy trader, he left school aged 15 and did a spell as a shoe importer before borrowing £20,000, and launching a business buying cheap jeans from the Far East and selling them on to retailers in London at a considerable margin.

This was to be the foundation stone of the Arcadia Group: buy ‘em low and flog ‘em high.

In 1979, Green purchased, at rock-bottom prices, the entire remaining stock of ten fashion designers who had gone into receivership, had the lot dry cleaned and wrapped in polythene to make it look new, and then purchased a shop in which to sell them direct to the public.

He sold out in seven days and realised the public’s appetite for a fashion bargain – flogging schmutter to the masses.

Green has been called a spiv, a brawler and

a former barrow boy – all claims made by his rivals, who have seen their market share and profits slide whilst Green saunters up the high street buying anything he fancies and turning it into a huge success. There were cheers from the cheap seats when his bid for Marks & Spencer was rebuffed, and he was told what to do with his £9bn bid. Green is not establishment and is therefore not deemed to be ‘one of them’. So miffed was he by his treatment over the M&S bid that he allegedly punched arch-rival, Stuart Rose, and then passed him his mobile phone so his wife could have a go at him too.

In interviews, he doesn’t play the game with the usual plutocratic, my-time-is pricelessyour-time-is-worthless exhibitionism. Nor do you get a minute to ask questions; rather, he speaks, and you had better be listening as he ain’t going to say it twice. He recently turfed an entire Channel 4 crew out of his office when presenter Jon Snow pointed his finger at him.

{ THE BIG STORY }

In a recent Guardian interview with reporter Sally Vincent, he offered an insight into his childhood: “‘Let’s give it a whirl,’ he said, taking off his jacket and folding back gleaming white cuffs to reveal a watch with which you could circumnavigate the globe and wipe out the national debt of Africa.

“In short, sharp, staccato bites, he does it his way. Tells you. His way. How he did it. His way.

If a modest interjection amuses him, he’ll take it up before tossing it aside. Otherwise, he goes silent for a count of about four seconds, and then continues as though nothing happened.

At one point he rudely interrupted himself.

‘Gemma!’ he bawled. ‘Can you bring me a cup of tea, darling’ - then, as an afterthought, ‘D’you want anything? No? Right, cheap round.’”

This off-the-cuff cockney banter has always fed into the Establishment’s sniffy attitude, but while they were in their London clubs, and, on weekends, at country shoots, complaining about this upstart, Green was busy beating them all at the their own game in the high street, and now owns more of the capital’s prime real estate than the Duke of Westminster. And the Duke owns 300 acres of Mayfair and Belgravia!

When his father died, his mum carried on the businesses. “She’s a go-getter,” he said. “Still is.

Ring her up and she’s on the other line to her solicitor, telling him do this, do that. She’s still got the properties she had 45 years ago. Still does all her own books at 85 years of age. Back then, she let me help out in the shops and garages.

She opened a self-service petrol station and I’d

work in the forecourt on weekends and school holidays, wiping windscreens and topping up oil and stuff like that. The punters would tip me, sixpence, two bob, half a crown. Half a crown,” he says with a nostalgic smile. “Remember them? Nice heavy coin, that. Saturdays I could make as much as five pounds. Pocket money?

“I think I understand where the risks lie in our business and where the potential potholes are in the road. When I am driving my car down the street I try not to go down the potholes”

What’s pocket money? Having money given to you? No way”.

He earned what he got. At school there were two sorts of boys: those who wanted to stay on and those who wanted to get away. He

was the second kind. “Things have changed; we’re in different times now, light years away.

Education’s high up on the agenda, you know?

Everybody pushing to get their kids in university.

Living standards have changed, values have changed, and the value of money has changed.”

Philip Green got his wish and went out to work when he was 16. “Obviously,” he said, “I was never going to be a scholar.” He laid an emphasis on the “obviously” that is both preemptive and pragmatic.

And what of his early shoe trading days?

“They were what you might call old money shoes. One-ninety nine, two-ninety nine, mostly imported from China and Taiwan. We were one of the first to do business in the Far East.

“Eventually, after about four years, I was allowed to sell. Talk about how things have changed! In those days, they used to set up in hotels. This was in the Mount Royal Hotel, above the Cumberland at Marble Arch. All the importers and buyers would check in for the annual shoe exhibitions. I was standing there and this guy came in and picked up one of our shoes. He liked it. How much is it? I said one ninety-nine. What’s the price of 40,000 pairs?

I said I’d look into it, belted over to the boss.

Which is he? I pointed him out. No, he said, he’s got long hair, he can’t be serious. I knew the guy came from a big group so I said, right, I’m going to get that order. He bet me five pounds that I couldn’t and gave me a deadline. So off I went.

“They wanted them wrapped in a special way, special box, special this, special that, what didn’t

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{ THE BIG STORY }

“If someone offered me 50,000 bottles of this water at the right price, I’d buy them. I’d buy anything. Old stocks, discontinued lines, cancelled orders” they want. I said yes, yes, I’d see to all that, and the weeks went by and the deadline was coming up, so I’m chasing, chasing, dadadada, and I get the order, on the nail. I ran all the way up the five flights, up to the top of our building, slapped it down, said ‘there’s your order’. And he got this old-fashioned leather wallet out of his back pocket, and every note was like it had been ironed. Got the note out, feeling it to make sure it was just the one and handed me the five quid.

That was my first order. Anyway, eight weeks later there had been so much aggravation about what they wanted and didn’t want, the whole thing got cancelled. So he called me and said ‘when you’re passing, call in and give me my fiver back.’ Still, he trained me up ...”

When he is asked if his Fast East importing is exploitation, you can expect to be tossed unceremoniously out of the nearest window, but he pauses and says: “Have you ever been

18

to Hong Kong? It’s very fast moving, Hong Kong.

Very fast. Very quick. Nobody goes to sleep.

They work 17 hours a day and nobody’s tired.

Hong Kong. Very built up. You wouldn’t imagine it. Every inch built up, cram full of people. All working. What’s your definition of exploitation?

Would you go out and pay twice as much for something you could get three doors away at half the price? What Hong Kong and Taiwan were then, the whole of China is today, and China is the fastest growing country in the world. They’ve got the endeavour. That’s why. Is that exploitation, using the workforce of a billion people who want to make produce for the rest of the world?

“Now we have Vietnam and Eastern Europe.

I’ve just helped one of my suppliers build a factory in Vietnam. So what are we doing, are we providing the expertise in these places to help people work or are we exploiting them? It’s

a marketplace and I’m concerned to buy the best products I can in the marketplace we’re in. We’re not looking to exploit, but we are looking to be quick on our feet.” He makes quite a compelling case.

He looked about himself for inspiration to clinch his argument, picked up a small bottle of mineral water (in Arcadia, everyone seems to be sip-sip-sipping mineral water all day long) and declared, “If someone offered me 50,000 bottles of this at the right price, I’d buy them.

I’d buy anything. Old stocks, discontinued lines, cancelled orders. At the right price. Now let’s get on or we’ll be here all day.”

About his first foray into the London high street, Green tells the Guardian of the 10 designer gear outlets going out of business: “The stock was up for grabs. Thirty-five grand’s worth at retail. In like Flynn. I said, ‘I’ll give you Xp in the pound. Deliver it to my warehouse.’”

“Things have changed; we’re in different times now, light years away. Education’s high up on the agenda, you know? Everybody pushing to get their kids in university”

Then he went to have a look at it. “It didn’t look all that bad to me,” he said, “so I sent it all to the dry cleaners, got it put on nice satin hangers and polythened it up so it looked brand new.

Then I thought, why sell it on for a few quid more? Sammy Stewart was retiring, I heard, so I bought his place off him. 41 Conduit Street. Did rather well ...”

Now it’s 1981. He bought a place in Bond Street. “I buy companies like this,” he said. And

spares no detail. “I went to see this guy, Friday afternoon. Said I understand you want to sell your shop. He said, er, well, yes. I said what you want for it? He said 75 grand. I said Monday morning. Boom-boom - 75 for his lease, 75 for his stock, sight unseen. Go round Monday afternoon, exchange contracts. Then the phone rings. Guy says he understands my shop’s for sale. I say he’s made a mistake. Then some other guy phones up. I said not interested. Keeps ringing. Right? Seven and a half grand deposit at this point. I say, ‘You want to give me 250 grand for it tomorrow afternoon, you can buy it.

Take your client round to my lawyer.’ So he did, he bought it. But, I said, you can’t have it for six weeks. Done. Boom-boom.

“Next morning we’re up and running. I only opened the shop in the evenings. Five till eight.

By appointment.

When people think ... hmmm? They come along. I got my money back within a week. Sold the lot. So I phoned this bloke I bought it off - nice man - and said, have you got any more stock? And he said come to Milan. So I

chartered a plane. Leather goods. Some of these designers, they’ve got stock for years. Warehouses big as old aeroplane hangars, full of it. I said how many pieces are there. He said 20,000. I bought the lot. Must have shipped four, five trailers. We filled this shop, floor to ceiling, put up these great big posters and had them queueing all down Bond Street. Wasn’t popular with the rest of the street, but what could they do?”

But this was small beer. The tension is building for the big one. Green draws another long, thin fag from the packet and prepares to enjoy himself. How he made his first million.

“Guy comes to see me, Thursday morning.

He’s got an import business. Jeans. Gone broke, receivers in, dadadada. He’s owed a million quid. Got about 400,000 pairs of jeans. Wants 935 grand. I called my bank, said it’s got to be

19

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{ THE BIG STORY }

done tomorrow night. Next day they say OK. I say good, we’ve got to get to Bristol, pick you up at four. Chartered a helicopter. Off we go, banker, lawyer and me. Spend all night negotiating to buy this company. Five in the morning, one point one million, all done. Not allowed to start the helicopter up after that. Too noisy that time of the morning. Middle of nowhere, pitch black, police car comes by, gives us a lift to the train station, quick kip on a bench, caught the milk train back to London.

“Winning’s better than losing. Happy’s better than sad”

“Monday morning we’re up and running. We’d bought various people who owed money, so we go and see one of them. In Devon, it was. Said we’d like to collect our 250,000 quid. We had a little debate and he signed 10 post-dated cheques. As we’re leaving, he said, just en passant, he wished he could sell his business in three days flat. I didn’t even know what he did. Found out, called him up next morning.

Said was that a joke? Went to see him in Slough.

Big building. He had 65 shops, concessions at Debenhams. He wanted four million quid. Have a look at his books. Didn’t seem to add up right.

Got my accountant to do a bit of a recce. Turned out he owed the bank three and a half million and his suppliers three and a half million.

He’s bankrupt. They’re losing 70,000 a week.

Can’t pay the staff. Call him up on the Tuesday, say there’s good news and there’s bad news.

The good news is I’ll buy it. The bad news is you’re broke. Said I’d take an option for 65,000 followed by another 435 if I get round the bend in six months. He said we’re done and Green is barely pausing for breath.

“I went to see the bank, said the business is broke but I think I can fix it. I’ll give you 100,000 as a gesture of goodwill towards your three and a half million if you freeze the debt for six months. Done. Then I had a look at the business.

I could see what had happened. The usual. Same issues you see today. Bad buying, no discipline, no control, old stock, indecision, time-wasting, corporate thinking. I flew to Paris, shopped the shops, three suitcases of merchandise, went to Hong Kong, got it all copied, flew in, restocked

the shops, got all the creditors reflowed, and got the business back to breaking even in four months.

“Out of the sky the phone rings. These people want to buy me up. I said no, I just bought it.

Don’t want to sell. They went on. And on. I said all right, come and see me. Said look, I want 10 million for it. They said how D’you make that out? I said, well, basically I don’t want to sell, so if you pay me what it’s not worth I’ll sell it. Now I’ve got a deadline with the bank for February 26, 1985 and I end up selling the business on the 25th for seven million. Went down to the bank in Curzon Street, said what do I owe you? They said dunno, er, 3 million 430 thousand pounds, I said right, there’s your cheque. Slapped it down.

Done.” He cracked his palms together, his eyes bright with remembered relish. “So,” he said.

“Can be done is my motto!”

As we all pause for breath, you’ve got to admire the chutzpah of the guy. And money can breed money. Start with a million, a great plan and a great mind and the second million is a tad easier. But the self-made billionaires of this world all have the same can-do, no-bullshit attitude and they graft every hour in the day. It requires laser focus concentration, a work ethic that puts most of us to shame, and luck. But not any old luck. They prove time and time again that you have to energetically put yourself in the way of the stream of luck flowing past - and then know what to do with it when you get it.

Luck breeds luck.

Now that Green has made it, and made it big, he doesn’t skimp on the luxuries of life. Forbes rate him 310th in the world ranking of richest people with £4.1 billion, but that is surely only the tip of the iceberg.

With everything based in Monaco, there is no knowing the depth of the well. There is at least enough to fly a private £20 million Gulfstream G550, sun worship on his superyacht, the £32 million, 208ft ‘Lionheart,’ moored in paradise, and host zillion dollar parties with Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell.

For his son’s bar mitzvah in 2005, he spent £4 million on a threeday party with Andrea Bocelli and Rihanna and then another £5 million on a wildly extravagant soiree at Madame Tussauds with Simon Cowell, Rod Stewart, Tom Jones and One Direction performing, all for

a nephew. For his 55th, he flew 100 guests 8500 miles in a fleet of private jets to the ultra-exclusive Four Seasons Landaagiraavaru Resort, an eco-spa on a private island in the Indian Ocean.

He’s not short of an opinion or two on politics either, quelle surprise, and makes the point that the way government is run is part of the problem. That it should be run like a company: “If you’ve got an annual spend of £700bn and you accept that a percentage of that money has to protect certain services – health, troops, policing, education – within that there has to be an amount that you spend like you would in a traditional business. The Government hasn’t even got central procurement. Imagine if I let my 2,500 store managers buy the stock individually. That would be a good idea wouldn’t it?” he says.

In August 2010, Green was asked by the recently elected Prime Minister, David Cameron, to carry out a review of government spending and procurement. Green’s summary report, Efficiency Review, by Sir Philip Green, published in October 2010, alleged significant failings in government procurement processes, which was largely ignored by the civil service.

Sussex-based Skerritts have won the industry-recognised Citywire New Model Adviser award for the South East for the 5th successive year. The awards were presented by comedian and TV presenter Clive Anderson.

{ THE BIG STORY }

Philip and Tina Green One of the big myths about Sir Philip is that he is a risk-taker. Because he deals in big sums, is a tough negotiator, has a gruff manner and has made a fortune, people assume he takes chances. In fact he is an old-school conservative operator with a remarkably quick brain and access to the right people and vast capital. “It is a considered approach. I am not a guesser, I am a thinker,” he says.

“You might think ‘why am l worried about one store?’ Well, that store might be the first stage of 50, you know what I mean? I am prepared to go and micro-manage these stores down to the hangers.”

He pauses. “I think I understand where the risks lie in our business and where the potential potholes are in the road. When I am driving my car down the street I try not to go down the potholes.”

The one claim that must rankle is that of tax avoidance. Green became the target of activist group UK Uncut for alleged corporate tax avoidance. The group targeted Green specifically as a government advisor.

Taveta Investments, the company used to acquire Arcadia in 2002, is in the name of Green’s wife, Tina Green, a Monaco resident, resulting in a significantly lower tax liability than the £150 million that would be payable if a UK resident owned the company. When Green paid his family £1.2 billion in 2005, it was paid for by a loan taken out by Arcadia, cutting Arcadia’s corporation tax as interest charges on the loan were offset against profits. Under British law, all perfectly legal.

Nor is he too keen on questions about his finances, as the Guardian’s correspondent found

out following such a question. Green responded to the publication’s queries on the subject with a string of expletive-laden outbursts about the Guardian’s financial editor, Paul Murphy. Green said: “He can’t read English. Mind you, he is a f****** Irishman.” He later apologised to the Irish, but not Mr. Murphy, after customers threatened to boycott his stores.

Whether fuelled by a guilty conscience or a philanthropic tendency, his work for charity is undeniable. In 1980, he founded the Kahn Charitable Trust with a vision of ‘putting lost smiles back on the faces of less privileged people across the globe’.

Touched in 2007 by the loss of Madeleine McCann in Portugal, he donated £250,000 for information and gave the McCann’s free use of his private jet. The concentrated campaign to find the little girl was handled by Brighton Pavilion candidate, Clarence Mitchell In 2010, Green donated £465,000 for new beds at the Royal Marsden cancer hospital, after his wife Tina’s mother died there. He also spent more than £150,000 for an Alexander McQueen dress at Naomi Campbell’s Fashion for Relief charity event.

In the same year, Green donated £100,000 to the Evening Standard’s Dispossessed Fund which aims to support London’s poorest people.

Interestingly, he was reportedly the BBC’s first choice to front The Apprentice, however, at that time in 2004, he was too busy with Arcadia’s attempted takeover of Marks & Spencer, and Lord Sugar was retained. It was recently reported that he had sold BHS to a shell company called Retail Acquisitions, a

little known group of investors led by ex-racing driver Dominic Chappell for £1. In fact, one of the Green family businesses companies based in Jersey received £70m from the BHS property deal and there is still the matter of the BHS pension fund that has a deficit of £100m.

“Money can breed money. Start with a million, a great plan and a great mind and the second million is a tad easier” “You’ve got to enjoy life”, he said. He lives in Monte Carlo. Full time. He commutes to work and keeps a suite at the Dorchester with his daughter Cloe. He takes 10 weeks off a year and it’s not a bad formula, that. He relaxes with the wife and kids. Swimming, cycling, tennis, ping-pong, sailing, whatever. Yes, they’ve got a yacht. They’re keen boaters. And ping-pong’s a favourite. He plays to win, none of that nonsense about letting the kiddies win. As with everything he does, he does his best and he likes to come out on top. So far he has made rather a good fist of it.

“Winning’s better than losing. Happy’s better than sad”.

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{ FINANCE }

THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

By Gary Chown ACIB MCIBS - Chartered Banker Director Commercial Banking NatWest Bank Gary.Chown@natwest.com

T

he hunt is on to find Brighton and Hove’s most exciting new businesses as Entrepreneurial Spark, the world’s largest free business accelerator, powered by NatWest, rolls into Brighton this summer.

With a vision to generate positive social change through the action of entrepreneuring, the pioneering Entrepreneurial Spark, is now open for applications for up to 80 entrepreneurs to join their Brighton accelerator, or ‘Hatchery’, which opens its doors in August in NatWest premises at 149 Preston Rd in Brighton.

The completely free ‘enablement programme’ sees entrepreneurs, or ‘chiclets’, based in the Hatchery as they undergo six months of intensive support, as well as benefiting from essential start-up necessities such as superfast broadband, office space and telephones and potentially a further 12 months focus on the business itself.

Entrepreneurial Spark, has been drawn to the story of Brighton and its incredibly vibrant culture, creative industry excellence and innovative thinking.

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Merging the city’s ethos and Entrepreneurial Spark’s ‘secret sauce’, CEO Jim Duffy is

“This is a superb opportunity for budding entrepreneurs and those who have just started on their journey in Brighton and the South East to access some first-class support” expecting big things: “Brighton is undoubtedly a very happening place with an excellent culture

and mindset. What marks out Entrepreneurial Spark is that we focus on the person, not just the business, and ensure their behaviours are complementary to achieving success, and we do this all for free. That is our secret sauce, which has seen us support over 350 businesses with a turnover of £41m in 2014. Bringing together that secret sauce and Brighton’s culture, we can’t wait to see what we can accomplish in Brighton.”

The highly successful business accelerator, founded in 2012, has six other hubs across the UK to date. It has announced plans to set up a further four hubs across the UK after securing multi-million pound backing from RBS and NatWest.

Tim Boag, Regional MD London and South East, commented: “This is a superb opportunity for budding entrepreneurs and those who have just started on their journey in Brighton and the South East to access some first-class support. The successful applicants will get to work in a collaborative atmosphere in our Preston Road offices and will

{ FINANCE }

“The completely free ‘enablement programme’ sees entrepreneurs, or ‘chiclets’, based in the Hatchery as they undergo six months of intensive support”

have plenty of access to the local team from NatWest as well as our wider networks.

“We hope to receive lots of exciting applications from across the city and South East. The local economy is experiencing solid growth and this is reflected in the increasing confidence we are seeing among our business customers. These are the ideal conditions in which to launch this new hatchery, and I’m confident we’ll see some great success stories emerge from it.”

Entrepreneurial Spark is the world’s largest free business accelerator for early stage and growing ventures from all sectors that is completely free for the entrepreneur and takes no equity in supported businesses. Located across four spaces in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Ayrshire and Birmingham, with further UK locations launching over the next 18 months, Entrepreneurial Spark’s vision is to develop an entrepreneurial revival across the UK. NatWest are holding drop in sessions at various local branches in the area where interested parties can go for more information and to register.

Contact www. Entrepreneurial-spark.com for all the information.

Left to right back row – Tony Horn, Relationship Director, Natwest; Mark Reed, Director Business Banking, Natwest; Tim Boag, Regional Managing Director, Commercial and Private Banking, Natwest; Graham Wright, Regional Managing Director, Business Banking, Natwest; Daryl Gayler, Regional Director, Commercial And Private Banking, Natwest; Gary Chown, Director Commercial and Private Banking, Natwest; Front row- Chris Langley, Senior Lending Manager, Business Banking, Natwest; Paul McConalogue, Director Commercial and Private Banking, Natwest; Lucy-Rose Walker, Co-founder and Chief Solutions Officer, Entrepreneurial Spark; Jim Duffy, Founder and CEO, Entrepreneurial Spark; Gordon Merrylees, Director Entrepreneurship, RBS Group; Gayle Heggie, Excellence Engineer, Entrepreneurial Spark; Darren Pirrie, Head of Entrepreneur Development, RBS Group; Chris Harvell, Relationship Manager, Business Banking, Natwest.

25

{ INVESTMENTS }

A BIT OF BREATHING SPACE

By Andy Merricks Head of Investments of Skerritts Wealth Management www.skerritts.co.uk

A

fter a lively start to the year we appear to have reached a period whereby we can catch our breath before, no doubt, the fun and games begin once more. The main event in February was the stand-off between the newly elected Greek government and the rest of the Eurozone which, as we suspected, reached some kind of resolution with each side claiming the upper hand but which has bought that precious commodity, time.

We say we suspected a resolution, not only with the benefit of hindsight, but because we were reminded at a presentation that we gave in early February that the importance of the Eurozone to

26

Germany is often underestimated. Germany calls the shots for the other members, of that there is little doubt, but it is generally overlooked that a break-up of the Eurozone would be disastrous for Germany, arguably more so than for the oftmentioned peripheral states of Southern Europe.

An exit by Greece would be painful for the Greeks themselves – in many cases extremely so – but they would recover on the back of a weaker Drachma and the inevitable surge in tourism that it would bring. The danger would be that other countries that have struggled to appreciate what the single currency has done for them would see short term pain as a price worth paying and an

unravelling akin to the Berlin Wall coming down could ensue. Our favourite image is of Germany being like “the spouse that doesn’t want to leave the dysfunctional family. As much as it complains, it craves the convenience of the union too much.”

A consequence of the Greek deal was a surge in European equities. If we are right on the above, we may expect a similar outcome in four months’ time when the next deadline approaches for an extension or a revision of the bailout terms. In the meantime, let’s bask in the relative calm that the past couple of weeks has offered us.

{ INVESTMENTS }

“We’d be amazed if the election is clear cut, which means uncertainty. And what do markets hate most?

Of course, uncertainty”

WHAT ARE NEGATIVE INTEREST RATES ABOUT? The term “negative interest rates” is one that has been bandied about more regularly of late and we’re having more people question us about what exactly this means. The concept seems weird to anyone who has experienced the type of interest rate cycle that we experienced through the 80s and 90s and is one that takes a bit of getting one’s head around. Negative rates effectively mean that you are paying the lender to lend them money. This is seen most in the government bond markets. Why would anyone do that?

Some commentators have suggested that the move from zero rates to slightly negative is not really any different to a reduction from, say, 2% to 1.5% but there is a difference. Tversky and Kahneman first documented that investors feel the pain from losses far more deeply than the elation that they feel from gains, which accounts for the numerous clients who come to us with a desire to preserve their capital in preference to making piles.

So, in the “risk-free” government bond market, how are negative yields going to work for investors? If you are so low risk as to not

contemplate any loss of capital, how can you invest in a government bond which, with a negative yield, guarantees that you will not receive back all of your capital upon redemption at maturity. Such bonds become uninvestible.

What does this mean? BCA Research summarise the potential better than we can so we’ll borrow their analysis: “It would not be surprising if euro area banks became much more eager to expand credit in order to avoid paying interest on their idle cash.

Of course, one bank’s loan is another’s deposit.

As such, the ECB’s hope is that by making banks play “hot potato” with their excess cash, a lending recovery will ensue. Likewise, if banks try to pass on the costs to depositors, savers may become more eager to spend in order to avoid the pain of seeing their bank balances dwindle in the face of negative rates. The upshot is that the effect of a move to negative rates could prove to be quite stimulative to economic activity. This strengthens our view that euro area growth will surprise on the upside over the next two years.”

It will be interesting to see what actually happens. Is this just another theory that makes sense on paper but doesn’t quite play out as expected or will growth respond positively, with the associated returns that that should produce from the European market that is currently avoided like a 70s DJ at a fancy dress party?

SHALL WE TALK ABOUT THE ELECTION YET? It’s started. Election countdown. Watching the news the other night with Messrs Cameron, Milliband. Clegg, Farage et al it brought to mind that scene from Poltergeist where the little girl sits in front of the TV set covered in crackling white interference (the set, not the girl) and she turns round and announces, “They’re heeere”.

We have taken the decision to reduce our exposure to the UK market in the run up to May. If you recall the last election, it took a few days for the Conservatives and the Lib Dems to come to some kind of an agreement about how the coalition should be formed. That was only concerning two parties. If, as seems entirely possible, the next government is formed of more than two parties then how long will it take to see a new government formed? Imagine the trading that will need to be done between various

combinations of the following: Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems, SNP, UKIP, Greens, Plaid Cymru, Ulster Unionists, Sinn Fein, Respect…..

Even Al Murray’s pub landlord could be elbowing his way onto a back bench somewhere.

“It would not be surprising if euro area banks became much more eager to expand credit in order to avoid paying interest on their idle cash” On a serious note, we’d be amazed if the election is clear cut, which means uncertainty.

And what do markets hate most? Of course, uncertainty. So can anyone confidently expect the UK stock market to ignore what’s coming?

Or the gilt market? Or Sterling? It seems to us a good time to prepare for a short period of underperformance from anything that is UK focused, and hope that the result of May’s General Election does not drag on into something that will lead short term underperformance to develop into something more longer lasting.

Time will tell, and we’re sure that this won’t be the last reference to events due in May. Sources: BCA Research-February 2015

The information contained within this document is for guidance only and is not a recommendation of any investment or a financial promotion.

Skerritt Consultants, Skerritt House, 23 Coleridge Street, Hove, BN3 5AB. Tel: 01273 204 999.

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THE RUNWAY TO SUCCESS Fed up with the election? Then spare a thought for the Chief Executive of Gatwick Airport, Stewart Wingate, who probably cares little about who wins, but just wants the whole thing to be over. For he is waiting for a bigger decision: whether or not his campaign for a second runway at Gatwick Airport has been successful, and there will be no verdict until the election votes have been cast.

The stakes are high. If Sir Howard Davies and the Airport Commission recommend the plans submitted

by Gatwick, the region will see an enormous boost in economic activity and become of far greater strategic importance.

Since we launched Platinum Business Magazine, we have supported the Gatwick expansion plans, as we believe it will be fantastic news for business in the area, but there are questions that need to be answered regarding the impact on local transport and displaced businesses. So we are very pleased to bring you an in-depth interview with Stewart Wingate. It is essential reading for anyone interested in the future of business in the South East.

Interview by Ian Trevett and Maarten Hoffmann

{ THE BIG INTERVIEW }

T

o start, a simple question: Why is there such a lot of fuss over a strip of tarmac?

“It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the UK to get a new runway for London and the South East. The last time one was opened was back in the 1950s, built in the 1940s, so we’ve had 70 years of inactivity. In that time we’ve been very well served by the runways that we inherited, and you’ve seen this network of airports with not only Heathrow but also Gatwick, Luton, Stansted, London City, and recently Southend, serve us very well.

“London has become the best-connected city in the world, today, bar none. We are in an exceptional position at this point in time. For me, when you look at this strip of concrete, it’s really about how we as the UK identify the future trends of aviation and keep ourselves at the forefront of global connectivity.

“The opportunity is there if we make the right decision. But I think we also have to think to ourselves that this isn’t just about the economy and the economic benefits; it’s also about the environment. And increasingly I think people are beginning to see that you’ve got to weigh up those two factors when you make this choice if in today’s society you’re actually going to build an additional runway. This is why, in my opinion, the attempts at Heathrow have failed to date. It’s just in the wrong place.”

Until very recently, Heathrow has dominated

any debate about airport capacity in the South East, with Gatwick very much the junior partner.

In 2009, the year Stewart was appointed CEO of Gatwick, the idea of a dramatic expansion of the airport was barely seen as a credible option. For a start, the airport had signed a deal with West Sussex County Council preventing them building a second runway for 40 years. In any case, up to

“If we’re selected, we’ll get this thing open by 2025. And we don’t actually want any taxpayers’ money” 2009, BAA owned both Heathrow and Gatwick, and any major expansion was only ever going to be at Heathrow. Indeed, in 2003, the Labour Government produced a White Paper proposing a third runway at Heathrow. But this proved to be poisonous politically, and the Conservatives saw there were votes in opposing the plans. In the lead-up to the 2010 election, David Cameron

memorably declared, “The third runway at Heathrow is not going ahead, no ifs, no buts.”

Once Cameron came to power, having publicly declared his unequivocal veto of Heathrow’s plans, was there a point at which Gatwick suddenly realised they could actually take on Heathrow?

“When the Gatwick job became available, the shareholders told me they were going to take Gatwick out of the BAA stable and be absolutely focused on making this their big prize airport asset. The idea was to look at the airport business, increase the capital investment in the airport, correct the service levels by working with our teams, and get out and market the airport and the region, and the key characteristics of the airport in terms of excellent access, particularly in and out of London by rail to drive passenger volumes. And that’s what we did. We just focused on that.

“When the new Government came in, there was a very clear steer at that point in time; when it came to aviation, it was better, not bigger. And that, of course, was the agenda that we were engaged in at the time. As the years went by, up to October 2012, we had a bit of wind in our sails.

We were investing about £250 million a year in those early years. Our confidence levels were starting to grow and the growth in passenger numbers meant there was an increasing need for a new runway.

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“We have now invested over £1.3 billion since the change of ownership, and with the service levels and passenger traffic volumes increasing, suddenly, in 2012, we found ourselves thinking, Well, it’s probably a very necessary move by us, as the business, to make a proposal to the commission about having a second runway.

“Certainly, when the issue was first put on the table, the presumption at the time seemed to be a third runway at Heathrow or an estuarial airport.

Things moved pretty quickly when we started to build and make our case, and by the time the shortlist was declared, at the end of 2013, there were now only two shortlisted airports: it’s Gatwick or it’s Heathrow. So, within a year, we’d actually got ourselves right on the shortlist.”

Interestingly, the timeline disproves the accusation that the owners (a consortium of investors, the largest of which is Global Infrastructure Partners, a private equity firm with headquarters in New York) took over the airport with the sole intention of bidding for a new runway and cashing in on the associated windfall. However, once the opportunity had presented itself, the owners were ready for the fight.

“We’ve been very straightforward with the commission, saying we’re deadly serious about participating in this competition to see who gets the next runway. But we’re deadly serious about winning it, and in the event that we do win, getting on and getting the thing delivered. I think the

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commission recognises that we will be ready to go, whereas there are question marks about the deliverability of the Heathrow applications.

“Recently we announced five guarantees. The project will be privately funded, with no need for public subsidy, airport charges will be capped, we will bear the main risks of the expansion

“Our confidence levels were starting to rise, and the growth in passenger numbers meant there was an increasing need for a new runway” plan, we will compensate residents with £1,000 towards council tax bills if they are affected by a significant level of aircraft noise, and air quality targets will always be met. We’re the only runway option that today meets the air quality limits – Heathrow fails every day. But we also said, if we’re selected, we’ll get this thing open by 2025.

And we don’t actually want any taxpayers’ money.

“This is not going to be done at government risk; we’ll take the commercial risk in terms of the construction of this project because we have done sufficient work to make us confident of that.

And then, environmentally, we guarantee that we will pay the council tax bill for those people who are most impacted by the development, because we think that’s the right thing to do; and then that we can guarantee that we will not breach the air quality limits. And, essentially, we have thrown down the gauntlet to Heathrow to say, ‘We’re not sure you can actually meet any of those guarantees.’

“I think we’ve certainly come a long way, but our point is thatwe don’t think we’re underdogs now; we actually think we’ve built up a massive amount of momentum. We’ve got momentum in ourselves, and we’re going to continue up until the point of decision.”

The Commission is due to report after the election, and most likely before Sir Howard Davies takes on his new position at RBS in September. But even if he recommends Gatwick, it is only a recommendation, not a mandate. The final decision rests with the Government. Does the result of the election have an impact? Could a new administration kick it into the long grass?

“I think that when you look at it politically, no matter which one of those two parties is in power, the most deliverable option for any political party has to be Gatwick. If you listen to some of the

EARLY DAYS THE ENGINEERING APPRENTICE Before you joined the airport industry, you had a successful career at Black & Decker. How did you start your engineering career?

“I grew up in an area that had a lot of industry, and one of the routes you could decide to take, was an apprenticeship.

I did really well at school, and the Headmaster complained bitterly to my parents when I embarked on this apprenticeship route.”

“I wanted to go into the world of work, knowing full well that there was an opportunity on this particular scheme, offered by Black & Decker, to do day release and night class, and there was the possibility of being sponsored full-time through university. When I opted for it at 16, already my ambition was to get sponsored through a degree full-time as well as pick up the training to do the trade. You had hands-on experience as an electrician and a fitter at a very young age, but also got a taste of working in HR, finance, engineering product design and manufacturing engineering. As you got a little bit older you were actually given line accountability to manage different manufacturing areas.”

Do you think this route is preferable to going straight to university?

comments that the mayor, Boris Johnson, has made over the last two years, they pretty much hit the issue right on. He says, ‘Which other city in the world is actually contemplating building a runway that points right at the population centre? You’re going to be flying over a city of eight million people today but 10 million by the end of the decade. Why on earth would you do that? This is politically toxic.’ London is quite unique in that regard.

“If you do the third runway at Heathrow, you’re going to be flying over Shepherd’s Bush, Chiswick, Richmond and Wimbledon as well as the more central London boroughs. That’s 350,000 newly impacted people. Because we are to the south of the city, we don’t directly overfly the city. We’re in a lot more sparsely populated area. We will newly impact people, and I was quite clear on this at the public consultation, but it’s about 18,000 newly impacted people.

As we have so few in the Gatwick area compared to Heathrow, it means that we can look to deal with that issue in a different way. And hence our commitment to pay the council tax bill, or at least £1,000 towards it, for those people who are most acutely impacted by the noise. Of course, Heathrow just can’t match that; it can’t afford to match that.

“I don’t think the report will be kicked into touch. There is a real need in the South East. We are full and Heathrow are full. We’ve grown from 31 million passengers to an estimated 40 million passengers this year; we might get another five million passengers out of the single runway. But we’re already in a league of our own in terms of the utilisation of a single runway.

“My belief is that there is a recognition now across the political parties – hence the formation of the commission – that the time for action has come.

Something has to be done, and we are by far the fastest runway to be delivered when we compare ourselves to Heathrow.

“Even the option of extending the runway at Heathrow has huge implications.

For the communities around Heathrow, they would see that as just another new runway. When you look at the noise impacts of that runway extension, it is very, very similar. The price tag is still up in the tens of billions. The surface access still requires the £5.7 billion of investment. There are questions marks around one of the world’s biggest airports: Do you really want to be

“It’s difficult to see what’s the right way and wrong way.

You’ve got to look at the opportunities that life presents you. I learnt so many workplace skills by going through that route. And when I was at university I was guaranteed work during the summertime that was relevant to what I’d studied.”

“At 22, when I came out of university, my first job was a direct line supervision job in a manufacturing plant with accountability for 100 people in this plant of about 2,000, where we made 50,000 motors every week. I built up very quickly to more senior jobs, and Black & Decker sponsored me again to work part-time on an MBA. By the age of 26 or 27 I completed my MBA as well as a post-graduate diploma in marketing. I lived in Germany for about a year, working in a European marketing role for them. I was European Marketing Manager of the DeWalt brand for cordless products.”

“When I was 30, I was in the Czech Republic, opening up a manufacturing plant from scratch for Black & Decker, setting up a facility which, in two years, went from having me as the single employee to having about 1,500 people on the books and turning over $200 million a year. Black & Decker gave people who had potential a massive amount of responsibility at a very young age.”

“We won a big Inward Investment Award, as it was the country’s biggest foreign direct investment. So it was all quite an exciting time for me. I was a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology.

But at the end of it, the choices I had were to go and do the same thing all over again in China or Mexico.”

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{ THE BIG INTERVIEW } doing a trial of this nature with planes landing on one runway whilst they take off further down the same facility? But, fundamentally, it’s still a runway directed at the West of a city of eight to ten million people, impacting hundreds of thousands of people newly with noise.”

From a worst-case scenario, if you were to lose the decision, what would be the impact for Gatwick?

“I get asked this question a lot, and increasingly more so as we get towards the finishing line. If we win, then my belief is that, firstly, our European network will thrive, which is by far the biggest part of the market, and it’s the low-cost carriers where the growth is coming from. It’s EasyJet, Norwegian, Ryanair and others. They’re the airlines which have the incremental aeroplane orders placed with Boeing and Airbus. We’re ideally poised to meet this demand because we will have low airport charges even with the second runway, and very fast turnaround facilities.

“Secondly, we would also get the connectivity of the long-haul routes, and we will see a return of the long-haul flying, notably back across

to the North Americas. That’s what I hear in our backyard that people want. We want the emerging economies, but we also want the North American routes. So that’s the prize.

“On the flip side, people say, ‘But if you lose, what happens?’ So, my heartfelt position on that is that if we lose, what actually happens is that we get the Davies report gathering dust on a shelf along with the other three or four reports that have been written over the last 30 or 40 years. And unfortunately we’ll not actually get any additional capacity, because Heathrow is just politically toxic, and ultimately will not be delivered. That’s my belief.

“In the unlikely scenario that is does get delivered, you create a monopoly, particularly on the long-haul routes, and have a very expensive airport. While we’ve worked hard to get the longhaul routes, you would probably see those pulled into Heathrow, and the choice, not only for our backyard, but actually for Stansted’s backyard, Luton’s and Birmingham’s, would diminish. The alternative is that, if we are successful and we get the long-haul flights with the Dreamliner aircraft, it has fewer seats on-board so you don’t need the transfer passengers. Not only will we benefit but l actually predict that Stanstead will get more of those flights too. They’ll benefit and Luton and Birmingham will get their share.”

What about the argument that London needs a ‘hub’ airport?

“If you listen to the Heathrow argument, they say, ‘What you need is a hub. You need these big flows of transfer passengers to fill these big planes.’ But if you look at the forward orders of aeroplanes for long-haul, there are 1,800 Dreamliners and A350s on order today. They’re called the ‘hub-busters’. There are only 200 A380s, which is a big hubbing aircraft, and the majority of those are on order by Emirates.

“When we look forward, long-haul services globally are going to be served by the Dreamliner style aircraft, which typically have about 250 seats as opposed to 600.

When you’ve got 15 million people living within an hour of your front door step, which is our catchment area, you have no problems whatsoever filling those planes day in, day out. This technology change of the long-haul aircraft is happening. This data is from the

order books of Boeing and Airbus – we can’t make those up. They are firm orders from airlines. Even for British Airways, about 80 per cent of long-haul fleet orders are hub-busters.

“Even for British Airways, about 80 per cent of long-haul fleet orders are hub-busters. The direction of travel is very, very clear” The direction of travel is very, very clear. And that means that not only could Gatwick succeed but also Stansted, Luton and Birmingham, and you generally get this competing network of airports.

“If you get your price right to the low-cost airlines, you actually stimulate growth in a way in which the traditionally expensive airports such as Heathrow just can’t. If you look at an EasyJet fare, their average ticket price is somewhere in the order of £50-£60. So if you are suddenly going to confront them with a £40+ airport charge, there’s no way they are going to be selling that ticket at the price that you experience today from Gatwick; whereas, with our charge of £15 or less – we’ve guaranteed a maximum of £15 from 2025 up to 2030, compared with £9 today - there’s the opportunity for EasyJet and Norwegian to continue with their success.”

Back in1979, there was a 40-year agreement not to build a second runway here. Would this impact on any expansion plans?

“The 1979 agreement basically says you can’t put a spade in the ground until, I think, August 2019. We said we have no intention of doing that, because we need to get the planning permission.

We’re not prohibited from getting all of the planning permissions and being ready so that in 2020 we can start the construction. So we will keep our promises. Heathrow said on the building of T5 that there would be no third runway. We had EC Harris, who are one of the country’s leading construction consultants, do a piece of work looking at the likelihood of Heathrow being ready for 2025. The probability they attached to that was zero.

“There is also the issue of investment. Our first phase would cost us about £3 billion. About £1 billion of that would be land acquisition; the other £2 billion would be spent over a period of about

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four or five years of building. So our annual spend will be somewhere in the order of about £400 £500 million at peak, and that would deliver, by 2025, the runway, the first phase of the terminal facilities and the automatic people-mover back to the railway system that we have today.

“At Heathrow, their costs are so front-loaded because you’re building on the Bath Road, you’re building over the M25. Their spend in a single year – by their numbers, not ours – from memory, is somewhere in the order of £4 - £5 billion in certain years. That has never, ever been done before, anywhere. Crossrail is £16 billion over several years and they’ve got different geographically dispersed sites. So when we look at the deliverability of what Heathrow is promising, we just don’t believe it, and neither do the consultants.”

One of the questions raised within the business community concerns commercial office space, which is already phenomenally tight. What provisions will be made to prevent this problem becoming even more acute?

“One of the benefits of the Gatwick scheme is that the residential and commercial properties lost are a tiny fraction of the residential and commercial properties that are lost at Heathrow.

As we impact fewer businesses and residences, we are able to talk to each one of our business partners who could be impacted to try to understand from them, in the event that this goes forward, what their plans would be.

“What we’re finding is, you have to do this one-by-one to build up the entire picture. It’s something that we started around about autumn of last year. Our property teams are now tasked with going into all of these different businesses, because everybody has actually got a different

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expectation and a different need. We want to discover what can be accommodated locally that needs to be accommodated locally and identify any further requirement on us. So we’re very open to looking at that.

“We will double-decker the M23 roundabout to Gatwick so you no longer have a traffic light system, and you’ll never have a situation of the cars backing up onto the M23” “We’re quite a pragmatic group of people, and then, once we’ve done that, we paint the full picture. Assuming that we get the green light from Sir Howard and start planning for this, then we’re in a place where this becomes a very real issue that needs to be dealt with. At the moment we’re putting in what I call the ground work of having the courtesy of talking to each one of those businesses as individuals and not just treating everybody as a group.

“We work closely with people such as Jeremy Taylor (Gatwick Diamond Business) and Rosemary French (Gatwick Diamond Initiative), and they were the ones who actually said to us

we should work very tightly with our closest business neighbours. So, actually, by working with them, we’re starting to get the avenues in to talk to all of the businesses and just have sensible discussions.

“What do we offer the business community at large? We have Europe’s most expansive network of connectivity to the European destinations. We serve all of the top business destinations. It’s nearly 50 destinations directly, which is great.

About 20 per cent of our flying is long-haul, some of that to leisure destinations, some of it to business destinations. What we want to offer the business community at large is more choice.

We actually serve more destinations today than Heathrow do, even though we’ve only got one runway.

“If we are successful, we believe that 80 per cent of the routes that Gatwick and Heathrow serve would be served by both airports. And it’s common sense. Because you’ve spread your capacity, you’re going to have more competition between the two airports.

“Competition is always a good thing. If you put the third runway into Heathrow, our analysis says what you’ve really done is recreated the BAA monopoly. That’s not a good outcome for business.”

With regards to access, do you think that Network Rail and the roads can deliver?

“Definitely. Let me deal with the roads first of all. I think if you look at roads, some of the big schemes have either been delivered recently or are planned to be delivered imminently. We need the free-flow crossing through the Dartford Crossing. That’s happening as we speak. Then we need the widening of the M25 on the southern section, so the Sevenoaks to Godstone part

AIRPORT ARRIVAL “One of my previous colleagues at Black & Decker was then the Managing Director at Glasgow Airport, and when he heard that I was at this juncture, he said, “Why don’t you come and have a look at the airport? What we’re trying to do is to get a group of people who have got industrial skills that you’d use in a manufacturing logistics environment and seeing if we can apply those in the airport environment.”

opened last year. The plans are in place to do the Godstone past Reigate section, with a 24/7 four-lane motorway. And then, before the end of the decade, the Highways Agency will do likewise on the section of the M23 down to Gatwick. So that’s really important.

“We’ve put to one side a fund of about £800 million out of our £7.8 billion programme, which is all targeted at transport link improvements. We will double-decker the M23 roundabout to Gatwick, so you no longer have a traffic light system, and you’ll never have a situation of the cars backing up onto the M23. If you’re going southbound, you go over the fly-over and into the airport.

If you want to go southbound from the airport, you go under the fly-over, and if you want to go northbound, you just turn left as you do today.

“The Highways Agency supports us and says not only do those schemes mean that you’ll be ready for 2020, but you will actually be right the way through to the 2040s. They are big schemes.

“From a rail perspective, we’ve seen all the station improvements going in, and some of them are still going in as we speak. We have stations which are now ready for 12-car trains, and that’s really important. When you look at the timetabling benefits that Govia, the new operator, will bring, having combined the Southeastern, Southern & First Capital Connect routes into a single Thameslink operator, then we should expect to see a doubling of the capacity of trains going through the station by 2018. By the end of the decade you should see a train leaving in the direction of London once every two-anda-half minutes. So it’s quite phenomenal what is happening on rail. And that’s happening whether or not we get the second runway.

“If you look at London Bridge, it’s a little bit painful now, but it is investment for the future. Before the changes we had six services going to London Bridge each hour, four going through, two there and back. But the changes should enable between 10 and 12 trains per hour to London Bridge, which is fantastic. So that’s the opportunity that lies ahead.

“You can see that we’ve looked at this in quite some detail because it’s so important to us. We want to get the majority of staff and passengers to and from the airport by rail. That’s our preferred routing. And because we’re an airport, we bring people in right throughout the day. If we grow with the second runway, we actually put £3 billion of benefit back into what’s called the Fare Box from the passengers’ pockets that otherwise wouldn’t have been here. So we actually contribute to the rail system, or rather the passengers do, through the tickets they buy.”

We can only hope you get the go-ahead, because it’s important to the entire business community down here, as far as we’re concerned, that you should get it.

“I think the region is blessed with having an excellent network of businesses and a whole variety of different sectors. But in my personal belief, they should never become complacent about the way in which businesses operate and run. They should always be looking to improve, and in some small way I think the additional runway at Gatwick would increase the connectivity opportunities for the businesses that choose that they do want to go international if they are to grow.”

“We want a number of external people to mould together with some people who have grown up in the airport all of their lives to see whether or not that would be a good outcome for an airport business.” So I went up and just looked at the opportunity, and shortly afterwards I was the OPS Director of Glasgow Airport. I was there from 2004 until the end of 2005.”

“I think I was looking for another opportunity. I was interested to see if I could take the skill sets that we all took for granted in this fiercely competitive world of manufacturing and apply them in the service sector. That’s still what we’re trying to do today. And there are so many applications of a time-based management mindset in this environment, because, if you actually look at an airport, it really is the ultimate logistical puzzle. People are coming en masse. In summertime, we will have 130,000 people per day go through the airport and they want to experience good levels of service in the shortest time possible.”

“When BAA bought Budapest Airport, I was approached by the CEO of the group, who said, ‘We’re going to make this £1.5 billion investment in Eastern Europe, and we want you to go in and lead the charge. We’re taking it from public hands to private hands in this foreign environment, and then we want to start driving the efficiency, growing the business, working with the airlines on more commercial markets and look at the development of the airport as well.”

“I was in Budapest when, in early 2006, Ferrovial took over BAA, and suddenly things changed very quickly. Suddenly, we were preparing the airport for sale to Hochtief, the German group, and within a year I found myself back in the UK, at Stansted. I had three years at Stansted, and then the big opportunity came, which was Gatwick, back in 2009. “

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WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY...

Now that the 2015 Gatwick Diamond Business Awards are over and the winners settle into a contented glow, we asked the victors why they entered and what they feel it might do for their business in the coming year, and a word from the category sponsor as to why they felt the winner worthy of this ultimate accolade.

For the chance to win a 2016 Award, the entry period opens on October 1st, and closes 30th November, so now is the time to prepare. The 2016 Awards Ceremony is on March 17th. Gatwick Diamond Business is always happy to talk to companies interested in sponsoring an award for the 2016 event.

Please contact Jeremy Taylor on 01293 813 888 or mail to Jeremy@gatwickdiamondbusiness.com

BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR

SPONSOR: NATWEST

SPONSOR: ACUMEN BUSINESS LAW

Presenting the Award, Russell Fernandes of NatWest, said “B&CE is a growing and successful business which is evident through the increase in staff levels, doubling in two years.

“A particular strength is how the staff own the company values and there is high staff engagement and low staff turnover.”

Penina Shepherd, MD of ACUMEN Business Law, said “Keith Pordum has led his business to be the premier player in its industry, combining it with an increasing contribution to the local business community through chairmanships and directorships of many local non-for-profit organisations over many years.”

WINNER: B&CE

WINNER: KEITH PORDUM T/A BON APPETIT

Patrick Heath-Lay, CEO of B&CE, said: “We are really proud to have won this award. We were commended for our rapid growth in recent times, having high levels of customer satisfaction, and for having strong values at the heart of everything we do.

“This award reflects the hard work and commitment of our staff. It is them who make B&CE what it is, and they should be proud of their work.”

Keith Pordum told us “I was delighted to receive this award in recognition of my team’s work in making Bon Appetit the leading hot food vending business in the UK. We are passionate about making healthy, tasty hot food available 24/7 through our automated catering service.”

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DIGITAL MARKETING BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

{ SECTION PROFESSIONAL SERVICES FIRM OFHERE THE } TEXT YEAR

SPONSOR: CHICHESTER COLLEGE

SPONSOR: LLOYDS BANK

Julie Kapsalis, Vice-Principal of Chichester College, presented the Award “RocketMill showed great attention to detail and included reams of supporting evidence. The judges were given full access to the whole team and left in no doubt that this is an organisation that understands and leads in the field of Digital Marketing.”

Presenting the Award, David Rawlance of Lloyds Bank, said “This was an excellent application from a strong locally based firm. Carpenter Box scored extremely well across the board and especially on Client Service, Industry Knowledge and Making A Difference to clients and final scoring differential was very fine.

“Ultimately the innovative use of new technologies to attract a new generation of clients and the Rising Star programme were two factors that made the difference.”

WINNER: ROCKETMILL Sam Garrity of RocketMill said “We are delighted to have won this award. It means a lot to receive such public recognition for the hard work our team put into campaigns. I would like to thank Chichester College for their sponsorship and judgement of the award, our clients for their continued trust, and our team for making such a success of their work.”

WINNER: CARPENTER BOX LLP Practice Director, Chris Coopey, is thrilled with the news, commenting: “We are delighted to win this very prestigious award, which is very much a recognition of the excellent, expert service our team of around 120 accountants, auditors and tax advisers delivers to our clients; they are always willing to go that extra mile.

Fortuitously, this has come just as we are about to open larger offices in the Gatwick Diamond which will see us offering our award winning service to even more clients.”

EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR

GREEN BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

SPONSOR: SEARCH

SPONSOR: CRAWLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL

Trish Breach, MD of Search said “1ST CENTRAL has staff that are well aware of the Company values through internal communications, surveys, feedback and an openness to ideas.

“The various programmes and practices which they have in place are clearly aligned to their business strategies and employees and are executed effectively.”

Presenting the Award, Councillor Colin Lloyd of Crawley Borough Council said “This companies’ facilities team sees reducing energy and waste as their key challenge - and is positively gleeful in pursuing it. Their systematic approach and research pays off with real cost savings and innovation and they take a great pride in doing it.”

WINNER: 1st CENTRAL

WINNER: SONY DADC UK

Andy James, UK CEO of 1ST CENTRAL said, “We’re honoured to have been selected as Employer of the Year for the second year running. At 1ST CENTRAL we know that placing our employees at the heart of our business is the best way to improve performance, which is why we have invested so much time and effort in providing them with a positive and stimulating working environment as well as access to a wide variety of training programmes.”

Colin Lammie, GM, said “Sony DADC are really proud to have won such a prestigious award, and it’s fantastic to get the recognition for all the hard work and dedication that goes into achieving such a successful result. It’s not rocket science and doesn’t necessarily need big investment, but with a strong green focus combined with common sense improvements, we’ve delivered an outstanding environmental performance with recycling rates over 99%, energy usage down over 25% and a great boost to the bottom line.”

Sony DADC

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THE AWARD FOR CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY

THE AWARD FOR DEVELOPING PEOPLE FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS

SPONSOR: SOUTHERN WATER

SPONSOR: CENTRAL SUSSEX COLLEGE

Presenting the Award Beverley Thompson of Southern Water said “The winner is an exceptional company when it comes to its CSR offering. Despite recent economic challenges it has maintained its CSR commitment and continued to operate in a responsible and ethical way.

“This top down commitment to CSR, and an ability to demonstrate its value to all concerned is exceptional – especially for a company of this size.”

Sarah Wright, Principal of Central Sussex College, said “A very impressive, broad-ranging organisational approach to learning and development which not only meets the diverse needs of the business but also focuses heavily on talent management, employee engagement, recognition and reward and corporate social responsibility. Clear goals and objectives underpin all activities as do company vision, mission and values.”

WINNER: ILG

WINNER: VIRGIN HOLIDAYS

Grant Ashley, Founder and CEO said “ILG’s CSR strategy is now embedded in the organisation’s culture. It has commitment at a senior level but it is our managers and staff that really deliver the strategy and we are delighted that their efforts and achievements have been recognised.”

Nebel Crowhurst, Head of Learning & Development at Virgin Holidays, said “As a Virgin company, we are passionate about helping our employees reach their fullest potential and this award is a great way to showcase the things we’ve done to achieve that goal. We aim to continue to grow the development opportunities open to our people whist ensuring we have a direct impact on overall business success.”

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

THE AWARD FOR THE PLACE TO MEET

SPONSOR: GATWICK DIAMOND INITIATIVE

SPONSOR: PVL

David Butcher of the Gatwick Diamond Initiative presented the Award “Their meteoric rise in export sales due to their innovation and creativity in design has enabled this company to successfully break into an already well established and difficult to enter global market. Other contributing factors are the opening of offices abroad, the recruitment of foreign language speakers and their employment of young local engineering talent.

“This is a great example of a ‘Made in the Gatwick Diamond’ company.”

Nick Broom, MD of PVL, said “This is a professional, clean and modern meeting venue providing excellent value for money. Offering a unique approach to all your meeting requirements; generous free parking and the wide range of different meeting spaces include all the facilities you will need to successfully host a professional meeting.

“Socially responsible, environmentally friendly and sourcing all food locally, this business represents the quality of services offered in the Gatwick Diamond Business region.”

WINNER: ACRO

WINNER: SOUTHCOAST CONFERENCES

Chris Brady, MD of Acro said, “We’re delighted to have won this International Business award. Everyone here has been working their socks off these past few years and we grow busier each day. We’re always looking for people more able, industrious and inspired than is usual to help us grow and perhaps this award will inspire some of them to get in touch.”

“The Southcoast Conference team are delighted to win the acclaimed ‘Place to Meet’ award, in recognition of our conference centre and services. The Varley Park conference centre was officially opened in 2012 and since then we feel we have achieved a lot and delighted with the ongoing excellent customer feedback we receive which is both encouraging and motivating and that’s why winning this award really means a lot to all involved.“

THE AWARD FOR INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY

THE AWARD FOR SUPPLY CHAIN EXCELLENCE

SPONSOR: RAWLISON BUTLER LLP

SPONSOR: HAYS RECRUITMENT

Tim Sadka of Rawlison Butler said “Avtura is steadily positioning themselves as the leading company in its sector. In a short space of time, they have created, through investment in research and development, a product that serves as a robust solution to a problem faced by the industry they supply. Their products are now establishing themselves as first choice in a demanding business sector.

“Their success reflects a commitment to create innovative solutions to improve business practice, efficiency and safety which is why, in what has been a highly competitive category, they are deserving winners.”

Helen Kirk-Davis of Hays said “Varian has strong values of ethical working, trust and best value were shown with supplier examples.

“This company demonstrated numerous long-standing relationships – some over 20 years old and a high proportion are local. Their mentality of ‘closer to fewer for longer’ was supported by developing multi-level relationships from Senior Executives through to swopping apprentices to gain best practice. We got the overwhelming impression that there was a passionate engagement throughout the supply chain at all levels with a product that is involved with saving people’s lives.”

WINNER: AVTURA

WINNER: VARIAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS

Chris Meeking, Avtura CEO, said “Winning this award is well deserved recognition of the hard work and dedication of all the Avtura team over the last 9 years; it has put a big smile on the face of every ‘Avturian’ – which is fantastic!”

Neil Madle, Communications Director, said “This prestigious award is recognition not just for Varian but for all our suppliers, who play a vital role in helping us to produce advanced equipment that is making a huge difference in the fight against cancer. We place great value in our supply chain because we really are all in this together.”

THE AWARD FOR CUSTOMER DELIGHT

NEW BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

SPONSOR: STORM CREATIVE

SPONSOR: KRESTON REEVES

Matt Saunders, MD of Storm Creative, said “The winner of this award provided convincing evidence of an organised, successful and distinctive way of delivering customer delight, backed up with publically-visible client satisfaction levels that proved their ideas were working. An all-round impressive entry.”

Paul Roe and Shirley Smith of Kreston Reeves said “We were looking for innovation, as well as the quality of preparation, marketing, financial planning and monitoring.

“Target in 1 demonstrated all of these qualities, and huge enthusiasm for their business. “The winner’s best tip for start-up business was music to accountants ears: “Manage your cash flow and get out there and meet people.”

WINNER: MAYO WYNNE BAXTER

WINNER: TARGET IN 1

Chris Randall, chief executive at Mayo Wynne Baxter, said: “I am extremely pleased that we were chosen as the winners of the Customer Delight Award at the Gatwick Diamond Business Awards. For us, providing exceptional service to our clients is at the heart of what we do, and this recognition of our achievement in this area gives us a real sense of pride and accomplishment. We won because of the passionate commitment of our staff to deliver the very best service to our clients, and the very positive feedback we receive as a result.”

Natasha Money of Target in 1 said “We are overwhelmed and elated to have won the award for New Business of the Year 2015. We are passionate about Target in 1 Limited, our products and services and have all worked so hard. “It feels amazing to be recognised for this, especially at this early stage. We are all very excited about the future of the company.”

{ MOTIVATIONAL THINKING }

NETWORKING NIGHTMARES

By Sarah Hopwood, Business Transition expert… driving the change you want. www.sarahhopwood.com

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o there I was, engaged in a great conversation with another business owner – then the interruption. Someone felt it quite acceptable to push their business card at each of us (with a smile) to then ask if they could have our cards in turn. I politely said I didn’t want their card at this point in time as I didn’t know them. Their reply was, “Well, can I have yours then, please?”, to which I tactfully said ‘No’. Thankfully, this doesn’t happen too often, but why are people still getting this networking business so wrong?

If you ever want to know what someone really thinks, look at the position of his or her feet. Our feet will always point to where you want to be.

With this in mind, never interrupt people when their feet are pointing towards each other – they are deep in rapport, so really won’t thank you!

How can we network effectively?

First and foremost, seek to understand before being understood. Quite often, when we are supposed to be listening we are actually preparing to speak …or, in an argument, we are ‘re-loading our guns!’

Remember, God gave you two ears and one mouth – use them in proportion.

Get your database ready, but remember: walking back to the office with a fist full of new cards is not good networking, it is simply collecting a fist full of cards.

Slay some limiting beliefs: • Selling is done by the marketing department (we are all selling) • Networking is a waste of time • I can’t sell • I am hopeless at networking • Salespeople are born that way • Good sales people are interesting extroverts • Build it, and punters will come (they won’t!)

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How we communicate: There are two schools of thought about badge placement: a) wear on left as we always look across diagonally b) wear on right because badges worn on left are masked during a handshake. If your badge is magnetic then I highly recommend you always wear it away from the heart. Approach odd-numbered groups and don’t get stuck - maybe say “Excuse me….” or break rapport by moving your feet or breaking eye contact. Ask and listen (don’t tell). Also, depending on where you network, many prefer to be asked about other things rather than work.

Nurture this, as people buy people ahead of any service or product. Good networking is all about building long-term relationships, and those who just try to sell most often fail. Therefore, sending a different person every time to the same event is not a wise decision.

“Remember, God gave you two ears and one mouth – use them in proportion” Identify the right group: Groups such as The Platinum Club professionally host each event and therefore you have a friend working for you in the room. Not only do they make introductions throughout the evening (so you don’t have to) and just mention ahead of time that there is a specific person you would like to meet and it happens as if by magic.

Be strategic: Identify why you are attending and what outcomes you hope to achieve. Then decide

which of your products or services you are going to promote that day; overwhelming people will just cause confusion – and people can’t buy a foggy picture.

Prepare properly: Look at the list of attendees in advance and note everyone you know so you can say hello. Never, I say never, ignore existing clients or advocates as you seek new contacts. Treat every event as an opportunity to build relationships whereby you are interested to get to know the guests.

Golden rules: Learn names fast and remember that you are the front window to your business. So don’t sell; instead, ask “How can I help this person?”

Event crimes: DO NOT • Turn up without notice or not cancel in advance if unable to attend when registered. This is remembered by the organiser, who is very well-connected, and you might not get an invite the next month • Arrive late / leave early • Make a poor first impression – I recall only remembering how someone ate their food at one event …pastry round the mouth • Talk to colleagues • Drink too much • Ignore competitors • Dominate conversations • Fail to follow up Working your contact programme: This is easier than you think. It can be as simple as asking how they are, or sending a gift to email marketing. Words of encouragement mean a lot, so think about it and keep alert for opportunities.

Good luck, and go for it; I very much look forward to meeting you on the circuit soon!

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

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1. Front: Mark Cardy, Louise Hearn, Jenny Gibbons and Brendan Patten 2. Donna Pulling and Sara Nevett 3. Fiona Connah, and Richard & Jan Schaverien, plus Lacey 4. Michael & Claire Doffman, and Andy Merricks 5. Sally Gardner and Joanne Hart

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HUNDREDS FLOCK TO STADIUM FOR A PENSION SEMINAR In Issue 9 of Platinum Business Magazine, Richard Skerritt (Skerritts Wealth Management) asked if pensions had suddenly become sexy. Clearly the answer is yes, as well over 200 people attended two pension seminars hosted by Skerritts at the Amex Stadium in March.

It was a phenomenal turnout, and guests listened to an entertaining lecture by Steve Bee, otherwise known as the Pensions Guru. Among the topics covered were the radical changes to pension legislation, which have now gone live, including the freedom for pensioners (over the age of 55) to take out their whole fund as a lump sum.

For more on the pensions revolution, log on to skerrits.co.uk and www.pensionsguru.guru.

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6. Richard & Heidi Skerritt 7. Mike & Yvonne Johnstone and Harvey & Wendy Knight 8. Chrissie Blount and Tom Faulkner 9. Leslie Field and Sophie Newnum 10. Steve Bee 11. Lucy Skerritt and Chloe Johnson

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PC

THE P L AT I N U M CLUB BRIGHTON

We believe that effective networking is all about relationship building in a relaxed and informal environment and The Platinum Club provides the ideal platform for companies both large and small, to come together for an enjoyable evening in luxurious surroundings.

“ ”

Don’t just take our word for it, here is what some of our members have to say

Let me tell you that the Platinum Club “ is no ordinary networking club. For anyone The Platinum Club is all that networking should be, but so “ rarely is. If you attend only one networking event, make sure it’s the Platinum Club!”

Sophia Lee-Spencer, CEO, Callisto Associates The platinum club has proved an excellent forum to network “ with good calibre business contacts. It’s always an enjoyable and high quality event which is down to the rigour with which it is managed, run and hosted. It’s one of the highlights of my business calendar Amanda Menahem - Hastings Direct

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I would highly recommend The Platinum Club if you are “ looking to meet countless new businesses, in a relaxed and friendly environment.”

Becky Sharp – Harvey John Recruitment

who is tired of run-of-the-mill networking events I would suggest you try the Platinum Club.

John Healy – Healy’s LLP

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I would recommend the Platinum Club “ as a fantastic way to meet new contacts in a relaxed evening of networking. Good spread of Companies and they make you feel at Tony Rice – Coulsdon Audi home!

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The Platinum Club is undoubtedly one “ of the most prestigious networking groups I have attended.”

Denise Buchan – Classic Consulting Platinum events are always so well “ organised and attended by the right people.” Keith Jackman – Mercedes-Benz

Call: 07966 244046 • e-mail: info@theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk • web: www.theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

PC

THE P L AT I N U M CLUB GATWICK

PLATINUM IN THE DIAMOND Launches May 14th at the Gatwick Hilton.

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Let the Platinum Club take the ‘work’ out of networking

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There are still memberships available, please contact us today for the opportunity to connect with hundreds of major companies across Sussex. Email: maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com | Tel: 07966 244046 | Web: www.theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

Call: 07966 244046 • e-mail: maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com • web: www.theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

{ PRIVATE CLIENTS }

OPEN, TRANSPARENT - YET ALWAYS PRIVATE

DMH Stallard is a law firm that has a reputation of working alongside successful businesses. However they also have a renowned private client practice with the same level of expertise and approach to client service as the commercial offering. Ian Trevett spoke to Lorna Fairbairn, the Head of Private Client, who is based in the firm’s London office.

D

MH Stallard is a law firm that has a reputation of working closely with successful businesses. However they also have a renowned private client practice with the same level of expertise and approach to client service as their commercial offering. Ian Trevett spoke to Lorna Fairbairn, the Head of their Private Client Department.

Having qualified as a solicitor in 1987, Lorna can already point to an incredibly successful career having spent some 28 years in the legal profession. Starting out as a litigator in a boutique firm in London, she quickly established a reputation as a leading lawyer while working on some of the most high profile cases in the UK, including the Herald of Free Enterprise ferry disaster in the late eighties.

Despite Lorna’s early success it was clear that

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she had bigger ambitions and she soon decided to set up her own firm out of an office based in Farringdon and on the door step of London’s booming legal community.

Lorna remembers, “It was cut-throat at the time and I often wondered whether I was biting off more than I could chew but I’d learnt my trade well and with a little luck, was convinced it was the right thing to do.”

The move turned out to be an inspired one and over the next few years Lorna’s reputation grew, not only as a great lawyer but also someone who was business-savvy, as she steadily built up her practice into a profitable business that was attracting attention from bigger firms.

In 2001, Fairbairn Morris merged with DMH, an extremely ambitious firm that was probably the most forward thinking firm in Brighton at

the time. Soon after that, the joint entity merged again with a London firm called Stallard, creating what is now DMH Stallard.

Lorna is now Head of Private Client and a member of the Leadership Team at DMH Stallard, helping the firm to continue to grow. She splits her time between London and the region.

“Although we are seen by many as a successful commercial law firm, our Private Client operation is in fact a significant part of DMH Stallard - following the merger earlier this year with Guildford firm AWB Partnership, it now contributes to over 20% of turnover and our private client team is significantly larger than many of our competitors in the region. We believe we are the number one choice for successful individuals who want a quality service from lawyers who work hard to support and protect

{ PRIVATE CLIENTS } very important to us that we build a relationship with our clients, and with that, gain their trust and confidence so that we can support them throughout their private and business lives.”

No matter the client or their needs, Lorna and her team are clearly dedicated to meeting them.

They actively focus on working to achieve the best possible outcomes through close personal attention. Indeed, if a meeting at one of their offices is not convenient they will travel to a client’s home or even another location such as a care home or hospital – whatever is most suitable for the client.

But what strikes me most is just how open and transparent Lorna and her team are. They use plain English and offer flexible fee structures, anything from traditional hourly rates through to fixed fee arrangements, depending on what most suits the client’s individual circumstances.

“We know that cost is always important to clients” says Lorna. “We provide accurate

Lorna Fairbairn, DMH Stallard Head of Private Client their success both in business and in their private lives.

“We expect to see growth of the private client practice across all the offices over the next few years. Brighton is still of course very important

“Communication is key and I think this is why 80 per cent of our day to day work comes from longstanding clients or on the basis of their recommendation” to DMH Stallard as it’s really where the firm grew up. We retain an office in the centre of the City in Jubilee Street and we plan to expand our private client team there, given our long standing connection with the people of Brighton and Hove and the surrounding area.

“I also spend a lot of time at the Gatwick office where we work very closely with the corporate

team, who often ask us to offer advice for their business clients. And, of course, we have Private Clients, who want business advice, and we can call on our colleagues in the same way.

“In London our specialist Family practice is gaining more and more plaudits as they continue to undertake high profile and sensitive divorce cases for a range of clients, including senior directors and executives. The London team is set up to cater to individuals who work in and around the City who want the flexibility of being able to meet their lawyers during working hours. Clients can also benefit from our specialist real estate lawyers who have already seen an increase in clients investing in property following the recent pension changes.

“Many of our clients are the owners and directors of successful businesses, and we advise them on the full range of personal matters including divorce and family matters; looking after elderly and vulnerable people; design and intellectual property advice; employment advice; moving house and wider advice covering all property and planning matters; tax planning and insolvency; personal injury; and wills and estates.

Few firms can rvial the depth and breath of our expertise.

“We are committed to enhancing the experience our private clients have with us. In a crowded and highly competitive legal market it’s

estimates and regular cost updates, as well as comprehensive breakdowns to show how prices have been calculated. Prices will always be exactly what we say they will be with none of the hidden extras such as postage, copying or ‘nonstandard circumstances’ which can add as much as 30% to the price of some services.

“Communication is key and I think this is why 80 per cent of our day to day work comes from longstanding clients or on the basis of their recommendation. Clients’ get a rapid response to their enquiry and then we get to know them, identify their personal circumstances and requirements, such as key deadlines, priority outcomes, and how best to communicate with them throughout. We work diligently to deliver their required outcomes working around, rather than being constrained by, technicalities or dated protocols. This might mean, for instance, that conveyancing work on their new home can begin straight away rather than having to wait until the mortgage offer is confirmed.”

This collaboration within a large law firm is crucial, but I wonder if Lorna misses having her own firm. “It was the right decision and I am very pleased to be an equity partner with DMH Stallard. I’ve worked closely with Richard Pollins our Managing Partner for a number of years and it really is a great place to work. I know that DMH Stallard is going places and I really feel part of our success story.”

Tel: 01293 60 5000 Email: lorna.fairbairn@dmhstallard.com Web: www.dmhstallard.com

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{ CREDIT UNIONS }

HIDDEN GEMS James Peach on the growth of credit unions Email: james.peach@krestonreeves.com Tel: 01293 855120 (direct line). www.krestonreeves.com

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ne of the main highlights of working as an accountant and adviser is seeing a client grow and develop from the support and advice that you provide.

At Kreston Reeves this is something we have always excelled at, but it is particularly pleasing when such a client operates in the not-for-profit sector, which itself gives something back to the community. Our team in the Gatwick office acts for a number of charity clients who have excelled over the past decade, despite facing a plethora of challenges. However, the not-for profit type entity in which we have recently seen substantial

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positive growth is that of credit unions.

Despite the generous amount of press coverage given to credit unions since the 2011 Legislative Reform Order, along with the vocal support of the Archbishop of Canterbury (and the Duchess of Cornwall), these organisations continue to be a bit of a mystery, with many people not really knowing what they can offer and the benefits that they can provide. If you are unclear yourself, read on.

In the UK approximately 2% of adults use credit unions in comparison to around 45% of consumers in the United States. It is evident that

they have not caught on in the UK as one might have expected. However, those credit unions that have embraced recent legislative changes have experienced considerable growth.

At the Kreston Reeves Gatwick office we act for a number of credit unions and have witnessed first-hand the significant part that they can play on local communities, both for individuals who may be struggling to find forms of finance, and for those who are looking for a better return on their investments. In addition, a credit union is now able to admit corporate members to whom it can issue loans and from which it can borrow.

{ CREDIT UNIONS }

THE BACKGROUND In general terms, credit unions are not-for-profit financial organisations set up by members with something in common, and for the benefit of their community. That common factor is referred to as the ‘common bond’ and generally covers those living in the same town/county, working in the same industry or belonging to a particular trade union. While, historically, credit unions have generally been quite small and run solely by volunteers, the expansion of the sector has seen its regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority, so that there is now a significant number of credit unions in the UK which have in excess of 10,000 members and are run and managed by professional personnel.

Credit Unions continue to grow, and in total there are currently more than 360 credit unions in the UK, with 1.2 million members (Source: Association of British Credit Unions Ltd - 2014).

Credit Unions are unique in their operation, and although there may be some comparisons to the products offered by high street banks, they are in no way trying to compete with these entities, and instead apply their own business model, aiming to create and provide for a financial community.

The business model is in fact more akin to that of a Building Society, since members mutually benefit and there is no profit for third-party shareholders.

THE FINANCIAL BENEFITS OF CREDIT UNIONS In general, credit unions can offer savings and loans, including current accounts, although they additionally have the ability to offer mortgages.

Our experience has shown that such products are now becoming more competitive in the market place. In the UK press most of the coverage has been about the benefit of credit unions to those

that can’t get access to products offered by the high street banks and to deter individuals from using payday lenders or doorstep lenders charging exorbitant amounts of interest. Credit unions’ charges are capped at 3% per month (which is 42.6% APR) although most charge between 8% and 12% APR (1% per month) depending on the size and length of the loan. In fact, some credit unions are currently offering rates at less than 5% APR.

“There is no denying the benefit and education that credit unions can offer to the local community.

They encourage members to be in control of their own finances and to have a say in how the credit union is run”

What a number of people do not know is that credit unions also have the ability to pay dividends to members dependent on their financial results - meaning they can sometimes be a useful vehicle in which to invest funds for a reasonable rate of return. We have witnessed dividend rates of up to 4.5% in the past 5 years.

In addition, there are a number of credit unions in the UK that have approval to offer ISA accounts

or fixed savings bonds offering favourable rates of up to 2.5% in recent years.

In addition, there is the reassurance that all money in savings with credit unions has the same Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) Government protection as bank savings accounts. This means that the FSCS will pay back up to £85,000 per person, per institution, should anything happen to the credit union. To keep the entire money safe, credit unions are not allowed to lend out all of their members’ savings or invest the remainder into anything that carries too much risk.

Credit Unions can also offer educational services to members and they often provide a wealth of literature to help members take control of their money by encouraging them to save what they can, and borrow only what they can afford to repay. Credit unions encourage communication with members at all times, and this especially includes situations where a member may be suffering from financial stress. In such scenarios, an adjusted repayment plan is devised to assist the member in fulfilling their repayment criteria, and, in contrast, credit unions usually carry no hidden charges or penalties if a loan is repaid early. One additional benefit offered by a number of credit unions is that life cover is included in the loan at no extra cost, meaning that if you die before paying off the loan, the credit union’s insurer repays the loan for you.

There is no denying the benefit and education that credit unions can offer to the local community.

They encourage members to be in control of their own finances and to have a say in how the credit union is run. At Kreston Reeves this in an ethos we continue to encourage as we continue to work closely with our credit union clients and, indeed, charity clients, to develop them and support the local community.

There are a variety of ways of finding out about your nearest credit union, although a good starting place is to use the Association of British Credit Unions (ABCUL) website. Alternatively, this is an area in which Kreston Reeves have gained a wealth of knowledge. So, although we hope the above article goes some way in putting credit unions ‘on the map’, we encourage any questions from readers on this topic.

The Kreston Reeves credit union team undertakes a variety of work for credit unions, including audit services, due diligence and merger advice, internal audit, IT, payroll, risk management and business planning advice.

47

{ FINANCE }

Left to right: Steve Allen, Nigel Wilson, Ron Crank.

COAST TO CAPITAL FORUM

M

ore than 100 policy makers and business organisations received an update on Coast to Capital’s Growth Deal projects at the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership Forum, held on March 25th at the Hilton London Gatwick Airport hotel. An inspiring keynote address was made by Dr Nigel Wilson, Group Chief Executive of Legal & General, which has two offices located in the region.

During his welcome address, Tim Wates, Coast to Capital chairman said: “This has been an exciting year for Coast to Capital. Following the announcement of our Growth Deal, a significant projects delivery programme has begun. With our local partners, we have combined to form a strong and united approach which reflects our region’s priorities for investment, infrastructure and business support.”

Following a warm welcome from Tim Wates, Dr Wilson talked about the value of constructive collaboration. He spoke of the need for enlightened local government, working with a supportive central government that focuses on the right things and a proportionate, can-do attitude to economic growth by the regulators and business leaders.

He said: “At Legal & General, we believe the

48

LEPs initiative is a very important way in which to encourage regeneration, development, jobs and growth, and particularly to encourage

“At Legal & General, we believe the LEPs initiative is a very important way in which to encourage regeneration, development, jobs and growth, and particularly to encourage more local economic decisionmaking” more local economic decision-making, in partnership between local authorities and local private sector employers. We support Coast to

Capital’s approach of long term investment in infrastructure, in R&D and in vocational education to unlock the supply side and create long-lasting prosperity through productivity gains.”

The Coast to Capital Forum meets every six months and brings together local authorities, business organisations and academics from West Sussex, Brighton and Lewes, Croydon and the Gatwick Diamond. The focus for this event was Coast to Capital’s Growth Deal projects, which will result in nearly £240 million investment in our region between 2016 and 2021.

Ron Crank, Coast to Capital Chief Executive, concluded: “We look to the future knowing that our Growth Deal projects are underway and these will provide a fitting legacy for all our collective efforts.”

For further information on the financial support available to businesses, visit: www.coast2capital.org.uk or the Coast to Capital Business Navigator www.c2cbusiness.org.uk.

Sunday 21st June - 9am - 6pm Compete in our annual raft-racing tournament on a beautiful private lake in Chichester - against up to 18 corporate teams from the Sussex business community - in order to raise vital funds for our two chosen charities.

Included in your day: • All raft-building materials (you are welcome to accessorise) • Racing on the lake with your team of 4 paddling as fast as they can* • A delicious lunch for your team served by The Gourmet Chef • Live commentary and music from our compere Tom Foolery • Health and safety equipment (buoyancy aids/helmets) for your team • Snacks and refreshments throughout the day for teams • A sparkling wine award ceremony at the end of the day • 3 teams will be awarded our sought after bath tap trophies!

Spectators welcome to come along and cheer on teams !

Entry Fee £250* For further info visit: www.greatsussexbathrace.co.uk To enter a team, please email: gemma@vividmarketing.co.uk www.facebook.com/SussexBathRace www.twitter.com/SXBathRace

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Registered charity number: 1127779

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*Teams must be mixed sex and commit to fundraising target of £1000 via VirginMoneyGiving.com or via company donation.

MANAGING AMBITIONS Alan Edwards, the new Managing Partner at Carpenter Box has always had a clear vision of where he want to be, as he explains to Ian Trevett

“I

was always very clear that I wanted to be on the Board.”

On the face of it, it’s not an unusual statement. It’s an expression of healthy ambition and a determination to succeed. But what is slightly unusual is that Alan Edwards is recalling his teenage ambitions. Most youngsters have no idea what they want to achieve, but Alan had no doubts at all. He had joined a local firm and he was going to work his way up the ladder.

“I’ve lived in Worthing all my life. And when I made the decision not to go to university, I committed to joining a local practice and felt that I wanted to make a difference, in an independent firm rather than going to join one of the big four, or the big five as it was then, which was a potential

50

“I love client work first and foremost, but I also see the value in being a good Managing Partner”

option. But when you qualify, it is a defining moment in your life and you say, ‘Do I stay where I am or do I move on?’ I was very clear in my mind that I wanted to stay where I was, aspire to become a manager and then an associate, and I was always very clear that I wanted to sit at the Partners’ table. So that’s the decision that I took.”

“I knew that I wanted to be a partner at Carpenter Box. We only had six partners when I joined, and I liked the ethos of the firm which had a family feel, and was always client centric.

I worked for about two or three of the partners, one very closely, and was very focused early and I began to realise that I could bring something positive to the partnership.”

It’s quite unusual for someone so young to

{ INTERVIEW }

have such a clear vision of where they want to go in life, but Alan always had that vison from quite early on.

“From a very early age, I knew I wanted to go into accounting, and I had heard good things about Carpenter Box when I was at college – I was doing an accounting qualification, obviously, and heard a great deal about the firm. When I got the opportunity to join them as a trainee, I hoped it was going to become a career for life rather than just a stepping-stone to get to the next phase.

“I joined the firm and decided to go down the ACCA route – we were an ACCA training practice at the time, we probably had about 10 or 12 trainees on that programme – and I qualified in 1998.”

Fast forward to 2015, and Alan has just stepped up to the position of Managing Partner. Was this a move that had been planned in advance or was it a very pleasant surprise?

“Strategically, as a board we have always talked about succession. The outgoing Managing Partner, John Billings has lead us exceptionally

well, and as he stepped down from that role, the Board felt that it was the right time for me to step up. Having been with the firm for about 20 years, from trainee to associate and having been a partner for almost 10 years, I had a deep understanding of how the firm runs and that was considered one of my key attributes.

“John and I have been working together for the past few months achieving the transition and as a very valuable member of the Board he will continue to help me manage what has become one of the largest independent accountancy practices in the region.”

Now Alan is the Managing Partner, will that mean a move away from client-facing work?

“We’ve always had the view that our Managing Partner still has a portfolio of clients. Whilst I will be focusing very firmly on looking after my existing clients I will also dedicate a reasonable amount of time to the practice as a whole. I love client work first and foremost, but I also see the value in being a good Managing Partner, as did John before me.

“I work within our Business Services Group, so I’ve got quite a varied portfolio – medium and large businesses in terms of our Business Services Group. But I tend to focus on the healthcare sector, looking after GP practices, care homes and domiciliary care providers.”

Carpenter Box has seen considerable growth in recent times. To what extent has the company developed?

“In my time the staff numbers have grown from 40 to 120. We now have 11 partners and the great thing is, whilst we have healthy debate ahead of making decision, once made, we all work towards the same goals – and we all get on exceptionally well.

“We have just opened a new office in Peveril Court in Crawley. That puts us in the heart of the Gatwick Diamond. We originally opened an office in the Beehive in City Place Crawley in January 2014 because we saw a real opportunity to offer our sector driven style of accountancy. The new office builds on the work that Chris Coopey, Rob Dowling and the guys have done in Gatwick raising our profile over the past few years. We’re really excited to have opened the new office after all the hard work that has been going on over the last couple of months. And we’re looking forward to an opening event in June!

Back to the Gatwick Diamond, the firm has already made a huge impact in the region, as demonstrated by the fact that Carpenter Box won the Professional Services Firm of the Year category at the 2015 Gatwick Diamond Business

Awards. Why do you think Carpenter Box was chosen?

“It’s the team of people that we have. We’re very focused on relationships and delivery. Most accountancy practices will tell you that, but we’ve got a very passionate team of individuals, whether it’s tax, audit, business services, wealth management… We’ve got a complete suite of services, and the people who are delivering those services are excellent in what they provide. We are also very innovative in our approach to the market. Business is changing and clients want more from their accountants than a tick box approach. Because we aim to help businesses run more efficiently, make better returns and become tax efficient we are recognised as being different, hence the award.

One thing you notice about Carpenter Box is that a lead is taken on initiatives such as manufacturing forums. How important is it to not be just an accountant as such but also an expert in the industry? Is that essential for an accountancy firm now?

“I knew that I wanted to be a partner at Carpenter Box. We only had six partners when I joined, and I liked the ethos of the firm” “It’s really important, and it’s something that we and MHA (an association of some of the best independent regional UK accountancy firms) members have really focused on. It has been part of the reason why we’ve had the success that we’ve had. Lots of firms profess to be experts in certain sectors but with our sector based approach, whether it’s for property, manufacturing, healthcare, automotive or farming we understand our clients’ business and can give pro-active advice.”

Looking at accountancy firms and legal firms in particular, there has been a real trend over the

51

David Rawlance of Lloyds Bank presents Professional Services Firm of the Year Award to Carpenter Box at The Gatwick Diamond business Awards, 2015.

last ten years to see companies grow or merge. Is there still a place for the smaller guys?

“I’m really, really proud of the team, really proud of Chris and the marketing guys. They’ve done a great job” “I think there’s always a place for the small independent and niche firms, whether they are sole practitioners or two or three partner firms.

As a larger independent firm we have a really good regional presence but have the flexibility to look after clients of every size from the small to the larger corporates.

“In answer to your question about the smaller firms, I think sometimes it’s about succession planning.”

Aside from succession, what can Alan Edwards bring to the role?

52

“That’s a good question, and one I’m not sure I know the full answer to yet! What I do have is a great deal of energy and a hunger to ensure we continue to deliver a quality service that adds value to our clients because at the end of the day, they pay our fees! We also want to continue to develop our staff so that they can reach their full potential.

We must retain our responsibility to our local community, which again John has done some tremendous work on. Along with a number of other people in the firm, he set up the Carpenter Box Charitable Foundation.

“It’s a continual transition. If it isn’t broke, we’re not going to try and fix it. It’s just tinkering round the edges, hopefully.

Good luck in the new position, Alan. Any final message you’d like to get across.

“Platinum Business Magazine is a great read, and we’ve been supporters of the magazine for a long time, and the readership is very wide and far-reaching. For business, it’s just been a tough old time for the past few years, but generally, things are getting better now. It seems a much more active economy. So good luck to everyone in 2015! www.carpenterbox.com

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{ BUSINESS VENUES }

HAYWARDS HEATH HOTSPOT Basepoint opens its fourth business centre in Sussex

B

asepoint Centres Limited has announced that work is well underway for the new business centre in Bridge Road, Haywards Heath. Working in partnership with Mid Sussex District Council and West Sussex County Council, the new centre will offer a range of workshops, studios and offices for small businesses and will form a new business community, creating jobs in the local area.

With centres already in Crawley, Newhaven and Shoreham, Basepoint will be adding another 33 self-contained business units to their Sussex portfolio with the opening of the Haywards Heath centre. This new site will provide over 9,000 sq. ft. of space available for rental on a short, fixed or long term basis, with accommodation ranging between 150 sq. ft. and 500 sq. ft.

Basepoint Haywards Heath will be easily accessible from the A23 and A272, as well as being a short walk from the town centre and the Station, so is ideally situated for travel to and from the business centre.

It will be equipped with the latest technology in internet and telecommunications and will offer all the services required to run a company in its early stages, including; shared reception facilities, virtual offices, hot-desking, breakout areas, business support services and fully

54

equipped meeting rooms.

The business units will be let on Basepoints ‘Easy in - Easy out’ terms, giving business owners flexibility to change their office requirements as their businesses develop.

Along with many other additional benefits, these flexible managed offices can save you time and money when compared to more conventional leased space.

“We will be offering a strong initiative that supports young entrepreneurs in realising their vision” All Basepoint Business Centres also give small business owners the chance to participate in a range of on-site networking

events, affording them the opportunity to connect with other like-minded entrepreneurs.

In addition, businesses will benefit from having free access to Basepoints 24/7 online business support service, MiBase. The service gives users access to experienced business mentors and fellow entrepreneurs via Skype, Messenger and live chat, so business owners can seek advice or exchange knowledge. Users will also have unlimited access to business factsheets and information, be able to create their own profiles, and join or create community groups to connect with other members who share similar interests.

Karen Osborne, Regional Manager for Basepoint Sussex centres, comments: “We are looking forward to opening our latest centre and providing a modern office solution to SMEs in Haywards Heath. We have already received a lot of interest in the units and would ask if anyone would like further details to contact us on 01273 467502 or email haywardsheath@basepoint. co.uk. Amongst other things, we will be offering a strong initiative that supports young entrepreneurs in realising their vision and will work with the local business community to establish fantastic networks in the area. We’re looking forward to welcoming a wide variety of Mid Sussex based businesses to the centre.”

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

GATWICK DIAMOND WINNERS BREAKFAST The winners and sponsors from this year’s Gatwick Diamond Business Awards gathered for a celebratory breakfast at the Copthorne Hotel in April.

Each winner was given a banner to promote their achievement.

“Each year we get more and more interest in the awards and this year, our seventh, saw another record number of entries”, said Jeremy Taylor of Gatwick Diamond Business, founder of the Awards.

“There was also a record number of attendees, all who came along to reflect on and recognise the quality, diversity and achievement of some outstanding businesses and the people who work in them.”

9.

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{ BUSINESS SCENE }

2.

1. The ladies of the Platinum Club and Maarten getting slightly carried away.

2. Elaine Smith & Rob Fawcett (Bennett Griffin).

1.

PC

THE P L AT I N U M CLUB

THE PLATINUM BUSINESS CLUB, THE GRAND HOTEL, BRIGHTON The Platinum Club networking forum met again at the Grand Hotel in Brighton recently and there was much excitement about the launch of ‘Platinum in the Diamond’, the new Platinum Club due to launch at the Gatwick Hilton on May 14th. As with the Brighton event, there are only four memberships per business sector so any company wishing to join the most successful and dynamic networking group in the region should apply without delay. info@theplatinumclubbrighton.co.uk

3. Carol Lewis (Brighton Chamber), Faiza Shafeek (JP South Events) Maarten Hoffmann (The Platinum Club), David Sheppard (Chairman, Sussex Chamber), Sean O’Brian (Thesis Asset Managment).

4. Andy Dunham (Cardens Accountants), Amanda Menahem (Hastings Direct), Becky Sharp (Sharp Insight), Craig Walden (Big Beach Marketing).

5. Gemma King (Vivid Marketing), Louise Lewis-Dowell (Pour Moi), Samanth Wilding (Grace & Style), Lee Baker (Laughton & Co).

6. Kerilis Soryal (KPMG) Chris Sparkes (Baker Tilly).

7. Mark Tully (Gemini Print), Nick Tong (Compare and Share).

5.

3.

4.

6.

7.

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{ TRAVEL }

LET’S TALK TRAINS, and I don’t mean HS1 ½

By John Burroughes Managing Director of UNIGLOBE Preferred Travel T: 0845 180 7817 • E: sales@uniglobepreferred.co.uk • W: www.uniglobepreferred.co.uk

D

on’t think, “Trains...this is going to be boring.” Actually, it is a frightening indictment of the state of transport in this country.

After the recent House of Lords report saying the financial case for HS2 has not been made, the political battle lines are once again beginning to take shape. Although there is general crossparty support for HS2, there are various factions in each party who are against this proposal, and certainly a large number in the House of Lords.

One can’t help wondering how many of these public-spirited representatives might own land and/ or properties that may adjoin or be affected by the progress this country so desperately needs.

As a nation we look on with affectionate pity as the trainspotting anorak brigade assemble at weekends to compare notes. We seem completely

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“Over a decade on, Britain still has only the same 67-mile stretch of track, but China has built itself the longest high-speed network in the world”

unable to let go of the nostalgia of steam. Add that to the traditional UK approach to progress, ‘not in my backyard’ and ‘let’s form a committee, lodge a protest and immediately set up a petition’, and middle-England Victor Meldrew lives on.

40 years ago a railway revolution took place in the UK when the InterCity 125 came into service.

Everybody stood back in amazement and patted themselves on the back for a job well done.

A few years have passed since then; other things have changed, like the removal of slammed door carriages and the loss of the much loved buffet car, which was a whole independent social structure of its own. One thing, however, that hasn’t changed is that the railways are still controlled by ATOC, which stands for the Association of Train Operating Companies, or, as I’ve heard it called, Another Train Obstacle to Commerce.

{ TRAVEL }

“with our roads at bursting point, our runways oversubscribed and our rail network not capable of coping with today’s traffic, yet alone the predicted growth over the next 10 years, we have to get a grip and take bold visionary decisions.”

Set up after privatisation in 1993, the ATOC’s mission is to bring together all train companies to preserve and enhance the benefits for passengers of Britain’s national rail network.

One has to wonder whether the organisation as a whole ever receives an appraisal on whether it meets its objectives.

High-speed rail arrived in the UK with the opening in 2003 of the first part of HS1, which is the 67-mile rail link between London and the Channel Tunnel. Back then China had barely left the station.

Over a decade on, Britain still has only the same 67-mile stretch of track, but China has built itself the longest high-speed network in the world.

At more than 7,450 miles in total, it is well over double the length of the European and Japanese networks combined. So if you want to get a sense of what the future of rail travel could look like, China might be a good place to start.

Even through Europe, thousands of miles of highspeed rail track have been built through France, Spain and Germany, who have invested heavily in new lines capable of operating at over 170 mph.

It really is laughable, when you consider the pace at which some other countries develop, that HS2 Ltd was set up by the Labour government in 2009, the construction phase between London and Birmingham was approved in January 2012, with construction due to begin in 2017 and a predicted opening date of 2026, if the project went ahead today.

Crossrail, HS2 and HS3 will undoubtedly not be popular for people who live close to the construction or will be inconvenienced by the development. Indeed, this has always been the

case throughout history. But with our roads at bursting point, our runways oversubscribed and our rail network not capable of coping with today’s traffic, yet alone the predicted growth over the next 10 years, we have to get a grip and take bold visionary decisions..

I will leave you this month to reflect on a recent survey of business travellers who regularly travel by train on business. The survey found that 80% of business rail travellers typically worked through a large portion of a 50 miles plus rail journey, but they lacked the tools to assist them to be fully productive.

The results of the survey crystallise five key areas requiring government attention: • Government investment in wi-fi connectivity on all rolling stock covering mainline routes; • The provision of free and reliable wi-fi connectivity and the space for business travellers to be productive as a key criteria when assessing any future rail franchise bids;

•

•

•

Collaboration between government, network rail and operators to ensure mainline stations are environments where the business traveller is able to work effectively and efficiently; Prioritising removal of mobile non-spots from mainline rail routes in the first year of the next Parliament; HS2 should be connected to HS1 and Heathrow airport in order to increase accessibility to international markets throughout the UK and minimise the number of times business travellers change trains during long rail journeys.

“As a nation we look on with affectionate pity as the trainspotting anorak brigade assemble at weekends to compare notes” And finally this is a picture of what high-speed rail travel could look like, running at speeds up to 250mph, this could be our bold new world of rail travel, but only if we want it enough. When we look back at the pioneering visionaries such as Shackleton, Stevenson and the Wright brothers, we have to ask ourselves some difficult questions and decide, is this the future we all want?

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{ BUSINESS SCENE }

1.

4.

2.

5.

3.

1. Rob Fawcett, Adriana Scherpenisse, Jeanette Blackwood and Elaine Smith (all Bennett Griffin) 2. Ian Vickers (FRP Advisory LLP), George Burdon (GroundSure) and Peter Reading (Carpenter Box) 3. Rob Alner, Nick Neale (Gardner & Scardifield) and Chris Coopey (Carpenter Box) 4. Pippa Atkinson and Eleanor Harris (both Brighton i360) 5. Nick Malone (Jordan & Cook Ltd), Chris Green (The Property Search Group), Steve Berrett (Michael Jones) and Munim Farid (Consult Build Limited)

PROPERTY MARKET IS SKY HIGH! The March meeting of the Sussex Property Alliance gave an enthusiastic welcome to Brighton i360’s Eleanor Harris, and the consensus was that the world’s highest moving viewing platform would be of enormous benefit to the city and the county. The building of the imposing tower is on schedule and Brightonians will soon see the i360 take shape. The huge cylindrical sections will arrive on Brighton beach this summer and the seafront will never be the same again.

The Sussex Property Alliance events are organised by Carpenter Box, Bennett Griffin, Jelf and Michael Jones.

6. Terry Porter, Rachael Topping (both Carpenter Box) and Paul Marjoram (Bibby Financial Services) 7. Robert Maxwell (RGB Property Group), Lucy Tunstall (Carpenter Box) and Eddi Zoratti (RGB Property Group)

6.

7.

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Hastings Direct is an agile and fast moving insurance company which continues to challenge industry convention and remains one of the fastest growing insurance providers in the UK, with over 1.7 million customers. As an ambitious, industry innovator, we are seeking talented individuals to join our multi-award winning team at our head office based in Bexhill-on-Sea. In a culture which recognises achievement and actively promotes career progression, we can offer you the tools to excel and continue to grow with us in the future.

We have a variety of exciting opportunities across an array of business functions including: Technical engineering manager Accountable for managing the IT Infrastructure team across multiple disciplines including databases, servers, storage and networks.

Claims planning business partner To lead a team responsible for forecasting contact volumes and designing appropriate shift patterns and schedules for colleagues across multiple functions.

Senior systems engineer Overseeing the implementation and support of the Hastings infrastructure services across the systems, storage and virtualisation environments, whether these are on-premise, cloud or hybrid configurations.

Senior finance business partner Acting as an integral link between the Finance Department and the wider business, this role is responsible for planning, analysing and reporting on the financial and operational aspects of the company.

Senior network engineer Assisting in the development strategy for the corporate network, creating and articulating network infrastructure solutions, and addressing the core network architecture and design requirements for Hastings Direct.

Contact centre leaders for sales and customer service Leading the Contact Centre in delivering excellent customer service to Hastings Direct customers.

Head of compliance To be accountable for Compliance throughout the company and ensure that regulatory obligations are adhered to in conjunction with the requirements of the business Customer representatives Starting salary of £15,500 with exciting and achievable career development and the opportunity to earn up to £18,500 as you progress.

We’re on the lookout for great people, so experience is not required as we will invest lots of time up front in our fantastic training environment. All we need from you is the flexibility to work when our customers need us and to enjoy working as part of a team. If that sounds like you and you have basic computer and communication skills, as well as the drive to really go places, we want to hear from you.

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Sat 9am to 5:30pm and Sun 10am to 5pm.

Part time opportunities are also available working evenings and weekends

If you would like to know more about us or any of the above vacancies please visit our careers site at:

www.hastings-careers.com or send us an email to: recruitmentteam@hastingsdirect.com

{ SOCIAL MEDIA }

FACEBOOK FOR GROWN-UPS! Are you reaching the right demographic?, asks Lorraine Nugent

A

s the social media climate grows and its user base increases, businesses are recognising the importance of social media platforms. We’re seeing more companies ask ‘Is Twitter the place to be?’, ‘Does Facebook connect to my target audience?’ or ‘How many of these networking sites will actually benefit my business?’ Building a social media presence correctly can be one of the best marketing tools to hand, but are you reaching the right people?

Let’s look at the facts. For example, Facebook boasts the most online users with 1.32 billion using the social networking site. While many would associate Facebook predominantly with youngsters, research shows that 35-54 year olds make up 31.1% of the user base, making them the capital audience on Facebook. Its lowest age demographic is those between 1317 who make up only 5.4% of the user base and count as only 9.8 million users in comparison to the 56 million people who connect via Facebook in the 35-54 age bracket.

If we focus on the more dominant and influential networking sites, we are looking at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest and YouTube. It’s important to recognise that the age demographic of the predominant users for each platform varies. With a 2014 Ofcom report asserting that Facebook prevails at 96% as the default social networking site for almost all UK

adults who are online, these stats should be seriously considered when creating your online existence. For example, if a company sells one direction handbags, we would presume young

“While Pinterest’s users are 80% female, statistics show that YouTube, although popular across both genders, is accessed more by men”

generation, with 18-29 year olds making up 37% of the user base, while 50-64 year olds compose only 6%. The photo sharing network is a creative, visual podium which has grown 50% in 9 months and is now bigger than Twitter.

Statistics show that there are now 300 million Instagrammers, sharing more than 70 million photos and videos each day and getting 50 times more engagement than Twitter. But companies have a whole pool of visionary platforms to choose from, including Tumblr, Pinterest and YouTube. While Pinterest’s users are 80% female, statistics show that YouTube, although popular across both genders, is accessed more by men.

Keeping in mind the rapid movement of social media, ask yourself what you are trying to achieve and who is your target market.

Once you’ve answered those questions you can decipher exactly what platforms will help achieve those goals, but always keep on the ball.

If you need help with your social media please contact us at: info@mediawordwaves.com or visit www.mediawordwaves.com

girls are the target audience; then, perhaps, Facebook is not the place to market them.

Instagram is a photo sharing network which appeals for the most part to the younger

65

{ GREEN BUSINESS }

HOW TO REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT The Eco Technology Show is back, with ideas on how to slash running costs while helping the environment

B

righton’s Eco Technology Show is back again on 11-12 June and moving to the American Express Stadium to accommodate rising visitor numbers and improved accessibility. For businesses, it will demonstrate how embracing innovation in technology and low carbon solutions can help slash running costs and streamline business processes.

The Show is packed full of free keynotes, panels, talks and networking opportunities spread across three seminar areas, five meeting rooms and a communications hub, where visitors can get free advice from experts.

Speaker highlights include Julie Allen, Energy Manager, Nandos Restaurants, who will explain how to make the business case for investing in energy efficiency, Rupert Redesdale, CEO, EMA & Kev Sankar of Energy and Utility Skills will outline the benefits of the Low Energy Company Opportunity and explain how organisations can reduce their energy consumption; Sandra Norval, Head of Environment, Thameslink will show how an ESOS audit can open up a range of energy and cost saving opportunities, and Alexandra Hammond, Associate Director, Sustainability, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust will relay the benefits of Energy Performance Contracting.

Businesses looking to export should head to the UKTI talk to find out about the ways

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that UKTI can help businesses with export ambitions, and those seeking to start low carbon projects can get a handle on what funding schemes & competitions Innovate UK is running to help finance them from Nick Cliffe, Lead Technologist, Innovate UK. One of the Show’s main features this year is the new Innovation Zone, a showcase of innovative products and solutions in low carbon and environmental technologies where visitors will be able to learn about the brightest and newest ideas from up-and-coming businesses in the sector.

Businesses in the Innovation Zone will cover recycling waste water and food, utilising tidal energy and new ways to insulate buildings.

ReCharge Cargo, Brighton’s new cargo bike courier, will showcase its service at the innovation zone and will be on hand to explain how the company can deliver throughout central Brighton and Hove and also to London at costcompetitive rates using electric cargo bikes.

Joining ReCharge Cargo will be the Solar Cloth Company, which offers lightweight, flexible solar panels that can be easily applied to rooftops, including those which cannot support the weight of traditional solar panels, allowing companies to harness the sun’s energy.

Eco Technology Show Director Nicola Gunstone says: “We are proud to be flying the flag for innovation in the sector. The free

stands we have offered will provide a boost to up-and-coming SMEs in the low carbon and environmental technology sectors, which perhaps don’t normally have a platform to showcase their products at such an early stage in development.

“We see this as an important investment as some of the greatest ideas come from start-up businesses, which sometimes require support to get them off the ground. Plus it means Show visitors will get to see the very latest ideas and concepts that they otherwise might miss out on, so it’s a win-win situation!”

The Eco Technology Show will be open from 9.30am-5pm on Thursday, 11th June and 9.30am-4.30pm on Friday, 12th June.

Register today for free at: www.ecotechnologyshow.co.uk.

{ MARKETING }

RAPID RESPONSE

Big Beach Marketing Tel: 01273 434552 Web: www.bigbeach.co.uk

By Louise Walden Director of Big Beach Marketing

W

hy your website should be responsive - Louise Walden explains A responsive website adapts the screen size, format, navigation and, in some cases, content to suit the size of each visitor’s screen. Whether it’s a large desktop screen or a smartphone, a responsive website delivers the appropriate experience for that device.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

1

Your website needs to be read easily, no matter what device potential customers are using. Visitors to your site will come as a result of a web search, in response to marketing activities you undertake or to find out more about your business prior to meeting with one of your team. It’s not a pleasant or positive experience if they have to pinch or zoom just to read your address.

More people are now viewing websites on mobile devices than on desktop computers.

If you are engaged in email marketing and encouraging recipients to click through to your website, there is a good chance that your email will be read on a mobile.

Google has announced that as of April 21st this year, ‘mobile-friendliness’ will have

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a significant impact on their search results.

This means that if your website does not cater for mobile visitors, your website will begin to

“Potential customers could be viewing your website on devices they could use to contact you with. Make it easy for them” appear lower in the Google search results. Why is this an issue? Over 90% of Google traffic is generated from websites listed on page 1 of Google searches. If you slip to page 2, website traffic drops by 95%. If you want people to find your website, it needs to be responsive.

Mobile visitors are more likely to stay on your website and view more pages if it is

4

responsive. If visitors cannot read or navigate easily to the page they want, they are likely to click straight off and onto another website, potentially that of a competitor. If that isn’t bad enough, having visitors land on one page, then leave causes what is known as a ‘bounce’ by Google, and, again, negatively impacts on your search ranking.

Potential customers could be viewing your website on devices they could use to contact you with. Make it easy for them. A simple bit of code can enable visitors to ‘click to call’ your business. Rather than having to copy and paste the number, assuming it is big enough to read on a mobile, readers can simply click on a ‘CLICK TO CALL’ button to call you. Simples…

5

Here at Big Beach we offer a complete marketing service, but websites do form an important part of the marketing mix. All of the websites we have produced for clients in recent years have been mobile-friendly as we believed this was good practice. Google has now proved that to be the case. The good news is that having a mobile-responsive website no longer costs an arm and a leg.

If you’d like advice or help with updating your website, please get in touch.

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{ ANGER MANAGEMENT }

ANGER MANAGEMENT Failed by Maarten Hoffmann

APPARENTLY I’M A RACIST According to much of the left-wing clamour out there, people like me are racist. This is due to my feelings about mass immigration, and the best method the Left have created to shut down debate is to level a foul and derogatory accusation at anyone who dares to pop their heads above the parapet and voice a genuine concern. It is time these morons were taken to task and free speech was once again allowed to flourish.

I am far from a racist, but I do have a very simple view. I could not give a monkey’s about one’s skin colour, heritage, background, social status or country of origin. I care about the country of my birth and feel a debt of responsibility to protect our culture, our economy and our long-term well-being. And the future of my children.

The one factor that, apparently, makes us racist is the feeling that UK PLC is full up and fit to bursting. We are a very small island nation, and, as with buses, trains and taxis, there is a maximum load factor beyond which it becomes dangerous to operate.

During the 13 years of Labour’s rule, the population grew by 3.6m and the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) demonstrated that pressure on services is not some racist slogan but a reality that is straining some local authorities to breaking point. The EU Freedom of Movement Act sweeps all regional restrictions away and sees Europeans wanting to move to a) where

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there is a strong economy and a chance of a job and b) where they have family or there exists a strong ethnic community.

“We are a very small island nation, and, as with buses, trains and taxis, there is a maximum load factor beyond which it becomes dangerous to operate” And there’s the problem. The more who go to another country, the more who want to go to that country, and our economy is so strong and our culture so embedded that weak EU countries are being gutted of their talent as they flock to our shores. Look at Calais. These poor souls are already safely in the EU but not content with France, Germany or Italy; their journey is not complete until they land in the UK. If we had not suffered the Blair years of

open door immigration, total denial and a smorgasbord of benefits, we would not be faced with the rise of the odious UKIP. Farage and his bunch of single policy wanabees have arrived in response to the fear that many reasonable people feel about what is happening to our country. It’s not racism, its plain common sense!

Mass immigration poses profound questions about the nature of citizenship and rights.

Britain has vastly undervalued the citizenship that the likes of America guard ferociously. In fact, our system often conspires against itself.

The government hands out national insurance numbers like confetti for life, rather than the length of a work visa. It gives out NI numbers to illegal workers and grants indefinite leave to remain, which rapidly becomes citizenship.

Faced with asylum backlogs, Labour simply granted indefinite leave to remain to over 260,000 people they couldn’t find.

The UK system also does things that sound perfectly sensible, such as giving students a two-year work visa after graduation. But human rights law count that as a three-year degree plus two years’ work, therefore five years of residency, whch establishes proof of a family life, and therefore they become impossible to remove – ever.

The numbers speak for themselves. 16% of the UK’s working age population and 38% of inner London’s is now foreign-born. I don’t care where our citizens hail from, but l do have a

{ ANGER MANAGEMENT }

major concern with the total failure of the Blair and Cameron governments to plan for this influx.

Imagine the CEO of a major British company employing 3.6m extra staff but forgetting to ensure they had somewhere to live, a desk, wage packet and actually something to do!

They seem to work on the basis of stick your head in the sand and it will all go away. Well, it will not and we all suffer from criminally overcrowded schools, jam-packed GP surgeries, an NHS in meltdown and a ludicrous housing shortage. But according to political spin, we will all benefit from a higher population with more people paying taxes, thus preventing us going the way of another island nation, Japan, with their falling birth rate and knackered economy.

Good point, but where are all these extra tax revenues? Why has the NHS not benefitted from an extra £20b every year just to keep up; why are they not building an extra 150 schools across the land and training a further 50,000 teachers; and why has our transport network not benefitted from billions of renewed infrastructure to keep pace? We have all the extra people but absolutely none of the taxation benefits, it would seem.

And the irony of all of this is that the loudest voices against such mass, unrestricted immigration are the hard-working immigrants themselves, who did not come to this country to see the very thing that attracted them destroyed.

Some politicians seem to fear that to demand

tighter controls or welfare reform risks the immigrant vote. Yet the people who are most

“And the irony of all of this is that the loudest voices against such mass, unrestricted immigration are the hard-working immigrants themselves, who did not come to this country to see the very thing that attracted them destroyed” hostile to these suggestions do not reside here but in Brussels.

Jose Manuel Barroso, former president of the

EU Commission, warned that David Cameron’s plan to deprive low-paid EU migrants of inwork benefits would face stiff resistance. “If the principle of freedom of movement is not put in question, I think a solution can be found to address the abuse of social benefits”, he smarmily stated.

This is a slip of the blandly imperturbable mask, a glimpse into the fear at the very heart of Europe. Barroso knows full well that Germany and Italy face unsustainable levels of immigration, even higher than in the UK. He knows the people of these countries are losing patience with their politicians. He knows this is not about racism but about logistics, the destruction of culture and the assertion of individuality. He must surely see that Europe needs an emergency brake, a pause, time to rebuild and settle. Politicians who played down the scale of immigration for their own purposes also failed to plan for the impact it would have.

The grand plan was to unite the Continent to prevent a repetition of the devastating wars that ripped across Europe and to create an economically powerful United States of Europe.

With the rise of the likes of UKIP, France’s National Front, Golden Dawn in Greece, True Finns in Finland, Jobbik in Hungary, LDPR in Russia and the Armenian Revolutionary Party in Armenia, we are more at risk from a war of anger, frustration and racism than we have ever been before.

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THE LEWES & WEALDEN Order your tickets now for the magnificent Lewes & Wealden Business Awards Event at the East Sussex National Hotel 19 June, 2015 The gala black tie event will be hosted by celebrity comperes with live entertainment

Tickets include:

• A welcome drink • A three course dinner • Entertainment

PRICE PRICE

£55pp £50pp + VAT VAT

Numbers are limited, so book early to avoid disappointment

Contact Faiza Shafeek on 01323 414493 faiza.shafeek@ipress.co.uk or email: faiza.shafees@jpress.co.uk Little Horsted, Little Horsted, Uckfield, Uckfield, East East Sussex Sussex TN22 TN22 5ES 5ES

HEADLINE HEADLINE SPONSOR SPONSOR

S O L I C I TO R S

MEDIA SPONSORS

EXCLUSIVE MEDIA SPONSOR

L L P

BUSINESS AWARDS 2015

Enter now to have a chance at winning. This years Categories are: INDEPENDENT RETAILER OF THE YEAR

YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR

Award for the retail business that can best demonstrate strong growth, an innovative approach to customer and employee relations together with creativity to enhance sales.

Award for an exceptional individual aged under 30 has set up or developed a new business, product or service.

BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR An individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the business community.

Award for an exceptional individual whose effort and determination has made an exceptional contribution to a business resulting in a positive gain for the organisation.

HOSPITALITY, TOURISM & LEISURE

QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD

A business that has best demonstrated exceptional financial returns, innovation, strong growth and market leadership in the field of tourism, leisure or hospitality activities.

Award for a company who exceeds customer expectations in its service.

SMALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR (1-10) Open to all businesses with less than 10 employees that can demonstrate exceptional performance, growth and market leadership.

MEDIUM BUSINESS OF THE YEAR (10-50) Open to all businesses with between 10-50 employees that can demonstrate exceptional performance, growth and market leadership.

LARGE BUSINESS OF THE YEAR (50+)

EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR

SERVICE AND SUPPORT COMPANY OF THE YEAR A company that is committed to providing a quality service and support to their customers, to the general public or other businesses.

ENVIRONMENT AWARD A business or organisation, irrespective of its size or sector, that can demonstrate environmental awareness and responsibility in all aspects of its work and output.

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Open to all businesses with 50+ employees that can demonstrate exceptional performance, growth and market leadership.

An exceptional individual whose effort and determination over time has made a significant contribution to a business and the wider business community resulting in a positive gain for both.

MANUFACTURING AND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY OF THE YEAR

EDUCATION TRAINING AND MOTIVATION AWARD

A company that has best demonstrated exceptional financial returns, innovation, strong growth and market leadership in the field of manufacturing and/or construction.

Award for companies demonstrating outstanding commitment to training in Lewes and Wealden.

EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR

All short listed applications will be entered into this category Award to any business in the Lewes and Wealden area that has demonstrated innovative strategies to bring about exceptional financial returns, strong growth and market leadership in its sector.

Award for a business that has great staff relations, good staff retention, with excellent training and who cares for their employees. The best company to work for.

OVERALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR

COMPANIES OR INDIVIDUALS CAN NOMINATE THEMSELVES OR YOU ARE FREE TO NOMINATE ANOTHER WHO YOU FEEL WARRANTS RECOGNITION. AWARD SPONSORS AWARD SPONSORS

ORGANISED BY

MADE IN THE

GATWICK DIAMOND

THURSDAY 4TH JUNE 2015 THE ARORA, CRAWLEY

Be part of the future of our important economic region!

Book by 10 May to get your Early Bird discount!

SPONSORED BY:

ORGANISED BY:

www.gdegf.com

{ GROWTH FORUM }

POLISHING OUR DIAMOND Ross Sturley on the Gatwick Diamond Economic Growth Forum

T

he Gatwick Diamond Economic Growth Forum, now in its third year, is a business summit which brings people together to discuss how we can protect and nurture our precious regional economy.

Because of Gatwick Airport, we have a concentration of aviation, logistics and export employment, but the Diamond is not a one-trick pony. For example, there is a bigger proportion of larger employers than any other part of the UK; companies choose the region for their UK or European headquarters because of its excellent connections to London, the UK, and Europe.

The region is also strong in ‘Advanced Manufacturing’, producing high-tech, lowvolume, high-value goods for sale in the UK and overseas. Manufacturing is big around the region. It is a source of competitive strength and a big tick in the box for other such companies considering locating here – something we need to encourage in what is a fast-growing sector in the European economy.

Similar new companies moving in would bring fast growth in jobs, and in particular in skilled employment; so, as well as looking at how we can drive even more economic benefit from our Airport, whether it expands or not, the Gatwick Diamond Economic Growth Forum will be looking at building on the Gatwick Diamond’s established and successful advanced

manufacturing cluster.

The event – on June 4th this year at the Arora in Crawley - has a combination of speakers, interviews, and panel sessions, all with strong audience participation and debate. It is now an annual fixture for the region’s business community and for the public sector, who also attend in numbers. It is a great opportunity for employers with a stake in the region to take part in the debate around key issues.

In previous years we have discussed airport expansion, road and rail infrastructure improvements, and improving the skills base. These issues will still be on this year’s agenda, but our 2015 theme ‘Made in the Gatwick Diamond’ unashamedly pushes our manufacturing expertise and opportunity to the fore.

We’ll be looking at how we can grow this sector still further, and at what we can do to provide the right conditions – particularly infrastructure and talent – to ensure it continues to thrive.

Last year’s Gatwick Diamond Economic Growth Forum brought 200 leaders from the public and private sector together to identify and discuss opportunities, debate threats and celebrate success in the £17.5 billion Gatwick Diamond economy, geographically positioned between Croydon and Brighton and home to

45,000 businesses. The Gatwick Diamond covers the Council areas of Epsom & Ewell, Mole Valley, Reigate & Banstead, Tandridge, Crawley, Horsham and Mid Sussex.

Visit www.gdegf.com for more information.

A selection of companies and institutions who attended in 2014: WSP; Reigate and Banstead Borough Council; Mid-Sussex DC; Surrey Chambers of Commerce; Elekta; Horsham District Council; Canon (UK); Epsom & Ewell Borough Council; Homes and Communities Agency; University of Surrey; Mayo Wynne Baxter LLP; Arora Hotels; Vietnam Airlines; Giant International; Crickmay; Liberty Property Trust; Menzies LLP; Assurity Consulting; Stiles Harold Williams; Gatwick Airport; LoveLocalJobs. com; PwC; West Sussex County Council; HSBC; FD Outsourcing; Royal Bank of Scotland; Platinum Business Magazine; EDF Energy; KPMG; Thakeham Homes; Parsons Brinckerhoff; Network Rail; The Wilky Group; Crest Nicholson; W T Lamb Holdings; Wates Group; Sweett (UK); Coast to Capital; Faithorn Farrell Timms; Rawlison Butler LLP; Pellings; Carpenter Box LLP.

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{ MOTORING REVIEW }

Motoring Editor: Maarten Hoffmann

Land Rover Defender

THE LONG GOODBYE

TECHNICAL STUFF: Model Tested: Defender 110 Station Wagon Engine: 2.2 litre diesel Performance: 0-62mph in a week and a half Top Speed: 90mph Economy: 25.5mpg Combined Price from: £23,100 As Tested: £33,405

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The Land Rover Defender has been as much a part of this nation’s heritage as bangers and mash and jellied eels, but we are about to wave a tearful farewell to this stalwart of the Empire.

Originally called the LR Ninety and LR One Ten, which represented the wheel base in inches, it launched in 1948, with the Defender name arriving in 1990. Best known as the workhorse of the British Army, it has assisted the armed forces in wars, tactical raids, troop movement and has been dropped from more than a few helicopters in its time.

During the Iraq war, it was favoured even by the Yanks over their Humvee as it was better suited to the terrain and far more capable in urban areas. It was known as the Snatch Land Rover in Northern Ireland during the troubles, for obvious reasons.

It is a firm favourite of the Queen, has been mounted with rocket launchers, used as police cars, controlled riots, driven up mountains and down dales and conquered half the planet, but no more.

The last Defender will roll off the line at the end of the year, killed off

by EU regulations. Said regulations are designed to halt the production of any vehicle with character, style and any hint of individuality and ensure that by the end of the decade, we are all driving bland, dull Euro boxes.

As I am not about to invade a country or plant a flag atop Ben Nevis, I was in two minds as to what this car would be like in everyday situations, and as I had been cajoled into taking the family for an Easter trip to Cornwall, the Defender was my carriage. I was not too keen on this when I realised that the 800-mile round trip journey was mainly motorways, and the one place the Defender is not at home is a motorway. Yikes!

It is a turgid old beast at low speed, with the turning circle of a small planet, a first gear good for 5mph and a 0-60 time of about a week and a half, but it did actually start to grow on me. It took the first 100 miles before I had stopped tutting, but once it gets going it is really quite rapid. Getting it to motorway speeds is not a joyous event, but once there it will cruise at 80mph quite happily, and as long as you go through the gears at a rate of knots, it has remarkable pulling power in the range between 60mph and 80mph.

You need the left thigh of an All Black, the left arm of a tennis pro and absolutely no further use for your ears, as this thing is noisy at speed. So noisy that I couldn’t hear a thing my wife was saying, and in the hope that she doesn’t read this, that is a major selling point!

The interior configuration is great, with a full seven seats, of which the distant rear two fold in a very clever way, and with the rear three seats down, it has room for bales of hay, the odd poorly cow, or, as in my case, the kids and all their junk. It is basic and utilitarian with very few mod cons or frills. The wipers go back and forth like a Morris Minors,

the heater fan bellows like a rabid bull seal, there are exposed bolts all over the place and absolutely zero sound proofing. But it does have one thing, and that is character. You really can learn to love it after a while, and it is no wonder that the vast majority of Defenders built over the last 67 years are still going. It’s tough, it’s durable and it does what it says on the tin.

After roaring across the South West of England, we headed for Bideford in Devon, where we were to stay with some friends who run the absolutely fabulous Café Collective, with the best artisan pizzas l have ever tasted, before roaring down to St Austell for a review visit at the Cornwall Hotel and Spa, a report of which you can read in this issue.

As a great fan of mud plugging (off-road driving), I was keenly anticipating doing what this thing is designed to do – drive off-road better than just about any car that has ever been manufactured.

With the luggage and family safely deposited with our friends, I was off to a place called Instow, where, I had been tipped off, I could get off-road and actually onto the beach. Having finally located the path, I was in heaven: deep muddy tracks, huge pools of standing water and a gradient that made me feel dizzy as the windscreen filled with sky, and I lived in hope that the front end would eventually return to earth. Then I spotted the very steep path onto the beach and the smile was now plastered to my face. Driving on a remote beach offers a great sense of freedom, knowing that you can chuck the thing around with gay abandon and at any speed you choose.

And here you start to realise why the Defender has the reputation is has. It is supreme on the

rough stuff and affords you the confidence to go anyway, over anything. It absorbs the ground, gives you enough gears to always have the right one available, is incredibly well balanced so even the steepest hill is tackled with panache, and it will not stop. That is unless you go down a narrow muddy track, realise it is a dead-end and try to reverse through a metre of sticky, glutinous mud.

“Having finally located the path, I was in heaven: deep muddy tracks, huge pools of standing water and a gradient that made me feel dizzy” I mused on the thought that I had found its limit and then worked out what it would now cost me on a bank holiday to bribe a farmer to pull me out with a tractor. I studied the various gear sticks available to me, 6 normal gears, high, low and neutral gears and the all-important one – the diff lock. The locking differential allows you to command both wheels on the same axle to rotate in tandem and therefore work as a team. Engaged, and on full power, I spun for a moment or two and then the glorious bite came and the beast crawled itself out of the mire. Phew!

It does make you realise that the Defender has one role it plays exceptionally well, and is reasonably competent at the rest. If you need to go off the black stuff anywhere in the world, there is only one vehicle you want to do it in.

And whilst risking life and limb, it is a nice place to be. The seats are well structured with plenty of support, the dash layout is pared down to only what you need and there are no annoying bleeps and pings going off all the time; when you unfasten your seat belt, open a door or nearly roll it onto its roof all is quiet but for your silent scream.

It is quite nostalgic in that way in that it is a bit of a throwback to the cars of the 70/80s, before the digital age barged in and added all the stuff that we don’t really need and is becoming increasingly audibly annoying.

It is surprisingly narrow, with little room for your right arm. I know of people who simply cannot close the door once aboard. One such was Richard Skerritt who wanted one but simply could not fit. It is very narrow.

There is news of a reborn, unrecognisable Defender in the future, and the company has just produced the Defender Celebration Series with three limited edition models: the Heritage, Adventure and the Autobiography. I would suggest that in the long-term these cars will greatly increase in value and would make a very sound investment.

It has a real presence on the road, a sure-footed ability off the road and possesses that rare thing that l continue to bang on about - character. I quite missed it when it was gone and we will all miss it when it is gone forever.

{ MOTORING REVIEW }

I MERCEDES-BENZ SLK250 CDI

SMOOTH OPERATOR

TECHNICAL STUFF: Model tested: SLK 250 CDI Engine: 2,143 cc Performance: 0-62mph 6.7 seconds Top Speed: 151mph Economy: 56.5 combined Price from: £33,150 As Tested: £36,965

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have always been a fan of the SL Mercedes models as they are full of style, luxury and, best of all, speed. Therefore, the compact version of the SL, the SLK, is an interesting review as when I spot them on the street, from the front I instantly think SL until it pulls alongside and you see the shortened length dictates the SLK. It’s very pretty, but until now l have never driven one.

Let’s start with the power plant range. The four petrol engines are a very diverse bunch: 1.8s, 3.5V6 and the gorgeous 5.5V8. The V6 and V8 are strong units that will pull you up the road at quite a lick, although l do find the 1.8s a little underpowered and short on performance. Like the BMW Z4 1.8, I find them a tad disappointing, but they sell well enough, proving that, for many, the looks are more important than the get up and go. It is a bold move from one of the world’s leading manufacturers, who for the first time have dropped a diesel engine into the range which is impressive in terms of stats, such as 56.5mpg from a twin-turbo-charged four-cylinder, but I am not a huge fan of the usual diesel rattle on

start-up, and with the mandatory stop/start on all models, you will be hearing this more often that you might have thought. But putting my prejudices aside, it is a very impressive engine with great pulling power and more than enough to satisfy.

Refinement has always been the hot spot for Mercedes as they do it very well, and the SLK does not disappoint. The cabin is spacious, very well laid out and comes with lots of standard goodies, such as A/C, alloys, Bluetooth and a balletic powered roof, and the list of optional extras makes you salivate just a touch. The boot space is a respectable size and the cabin has quite a few storage areas, and, as with all two-seater convertibles, taller drivers might find the tops of their heads in the wind stream

Mercedes-Benz of Gatwick

Mercedes-Benz of Eastbourne

when the roof is down, although at 6’1” it didn’t bother me in the slightest. The drop top is very well insulated, meaning that at speed you don’t suffer the whine and whistle found in many of its rivals, and the Airscarf wafts warm air onto the back of your neck, which can be rather sensual.

It will come as little surprise to my regular readers that I love front engine, rear wheel drive as it makes a car very ‘chuckable’ and really offers feeling through the steering wheel, and the SLK’s multi-link suspension, all-round passive dampers, coil springs and a clever little dashboard switch marked Sport that allows the driver to sharpen up the steering and a torque vectoring system that allows the car to activate any of the brakes individually to aid cornering are all clever stuff.

Mercedes-Benz of Brighton

Mercedes-Benz of Tonbridge

The AMG versions also get a 10mm suspension drop that feels like cornering on rails.

A novelty I found that I am now fully convinced of is the ‘vario roof’, which is a sunroof in the convertible top. “Daft!”, I hear you say, but it really does lighten up the cabin and is a stroke of genius.

So what competition does the SLK have to deal with? The Porsche Boxster and the BMW Z4 are the obvious contenders. For my money, the Boxster will always leave you feeling silly when a 911 pulls up alongside and makes you realise you bought the wrong car, while the Z4 is ageing and is not as spacious or as well-built.

According to a report from motors.co.uk, the SLK was the best-selling convertible in the UK in the past quarter. The SLK it is then.

Mercedes-Benz of Ashford

Mercedes-Benz of Maidstone

CONTACT: MERCEDES-BENZ OF GATWICK, EASTBOURNE, BRIGHTON, TONBRIDGE, ASHFORD AND MAIDSTONE ON 0844 659 7503

LOOKERS MERCEDES-BENZ BUSINESS FLEET

HELPING YOUR BUSINESS GROW Whatever your business needs, you can trust our experienced and professional approach at Lookers Mercedes-Benz to help you arrange your business vehicles. Whether you require a fleet of cars for your business or a single car, our knowledgeable corporate team can help find the best solution for you.

We feature a great range of Mercedes-Benz finance options for businesses, so you won’t need to worry about how to balance your cashflow. Choose from the broad range of cars on offer at our comfortable showrooms, which allow you the space and time you need to make the best decision regarding your vehicles. We know how important efficiency and emissions are to your business too, so ask our team for details on any of our models.

All our servicing and aftercare services are available to our corporate clients. From MOTs to manufacturer-standard paintwork repairs, our experienced team will help you find a solution to your business needs.

Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet team is available via telephone, email, or alternatively you can visit us in person at our Brighton or Maidstone showrooms to discuss how we can help you.

For more details, visit www.lookers.co.uk/mercedes-benz

Mercedes-Benz of Brighton Victoria Road, Portslade, Brighton, East Sussex BN411DY 01273 426 728 Mercedes-Benz of Maidstone Bircholt Road, Parkwood, Maidstone, Kent ME15 9YN 01622 623 711 Images for illustraion purposes only. 57767

STAR PERFORMERS Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales

W

hen it comes to corporate motoring, Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales really is a driving force behind local

business.

With two dedicated Fleet Sales teams now serving Kent and Sussex, the group offers the largest fleet operation of its kind in the MercedesBenz retail network. Being part of Lookers plc, one of the largest motor retail groups in the UK, the Mercedes-Benz team has a big reputation on which it continually delivers to companies across the South East and beyond.

Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales’ size provides clients with benefits over the sourcing and supply of vehicles, the availability of demonstrator models and extended test drives, and product quality with every car passing through a state-of-the-art, 250-vehicle, predelivery inspection centre prior to handover to ensure everything is in order.

However, in a competitive marketplace the teams certainly haven’t lost sight of complementing their prodigious presence with a highly personal service, which is tailored to the specific needs of their clients.

From their respective Maidstone and Brighton bases, the Lookers’ teams are adept at looking after the individual requirements of firms, whether they are a multi-national, blue-chip organisation or an owner/operator. With many years of motor industry experience and expertise, the departments include Business Development Managers to nurture relationships with small to medium-sized fleets, promote the benefits of running Mercedes-Benz vehicles and offer the best possible advice on funding packages and Benefit in Kind options.

Now is certainly the perfect time for businesses to consider a vehicle bearing the famous three-

Mercedes-Benz of Gatwick

Mercedes-Benz of Eastbourne

pointed star as the award-winning model line-up and engine choice has never been so extensive, with drivers able to take their pick from petrol, diesel, petrol-electric Hybrid, and diesel-electric Hybrid. What’s more, there are some exceptional, low monthly payment leasing packages to choose from that mean a Mercedes-Benz is more affordable than ever. With its sporty styling and superb performance, the acclaimed A-Class is a much in-demand hatchback, which achieved an 84 per cent increase in fleet sales last year nationally.

Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales is now offering the A 180 CDI ECO edition, which features weightsaving measures, powertrain refinements and improved fuel consumption of up to 78.5mpg (combined) together with 92g/km CO2.

Across the Mercedes-Benz range, the rate of efficiency gains has been relentless. Five years ago a C-Class (C 350 CDI) emitted 154g/km of CO2, whereas the equivalent model today, the C 300 BlueTEC Hybrid, produces just 98g/km.

Showcasing the brand’s most advanced hybrid technology, the C 350 Plug-in Hybrid will be welcomed in April, offering the opportunity for local emission-free driving with a range of 19 miles in purely electric mode as well as sports car performance of 279hp and 600Nm via its fourcylinder petrol engine.

The diversity and innovation within the C-Class range have made it a firm favourite amongst company car drivers and the motor industry as well. It was recently named Top Executive Car in the UK Car of the Year Awards, with the C 300 BlueTEC Hybrid scooping the 2015 SME Company Car of the Year Award for Best Company Car for Tax for its low running costs and tax-efficiency.

Another model with enduring executive appeal is the E-Class, which has been enhanced with a raft of recent improvements, including new standard

Mercedes-Benz of Brighton

Mercedes-Benz of Tonbridge

equipment, more power and lower emissions with the E 220 BlueTEC SE Saloon emitting a mere 116g/km of CO2. The introduction of the new 9G-Tronic gearbox, which is twinned to the E 350 BlueTEC engine and is available in Saloon, Estate, Cabriolet or Coupé form, reduces CO2 emissions by up to 17g/km and boosts power to 258hp.

Ongoing engine advances are demonstrated in Lookers Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales’ latest offering, the B-Class Electric Drive – the first volume electric car from the manufacturer. Not only capable of travelling 142 miles on a single charge, the newly-arrived hatchback can reach 62mph from standstill in 7.9 seconds and produce 180hp and 340Nm of torque, making it the fastestaccelerating and most powerful five-seat electric car in its class.

“The Mercedes-Benz model range continues to evolve at quite a pace, and this shows no sign of abating,” said Fleet Sales Director Nigel Barber.

“At Lookers Mercedes-Benz, we have ensured that we have a Fleet Sales team in place that is ready to meet the demands resulting from MercedesBenz’s ambitious plans for growth in terms of its prestige market share, but also deliver the highest standards of service and support to our clients,” he added.

“With the latest state-of-the-art automotive technology at their disposal and unprecedented opportunities to lease the latest Mercedes-Benz models, the three-pointed star is shining out brighter than ever to the business motorist.”

Mercedes-Benz of Ashford

Mercedes-Benz of Maidstone

CONTACT: MERCEDES-BENZ OF GATWICK, EASTBOURNE, BRIGHTON, TONBRIDGE, ASHFORD AND MAIDSTONE ON 0844 659 7503

Mergers and Acquisitions Commercial Property and Development Planning advice Commercial Landlord and Tennant Employment Law Intellectual Property Litigation Charities Debt Collection

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

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1. Adventurers, Rupert Jones-Warner with Neil Laughton 2. Hazel and Derek Mumford with Archdeacon of Chichester, Douglas McKittrick 3. Rupert Jones-Warner with friends from Ditcham Park School 4. Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby 5. Andy Munro and Calum Murray 6. Cool music from Lady Grey

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CLIMBING EVEREST FOR CHESTNUT TREE HOUSE - TWICE! Around 100 guests attended a special fundraising dinner at South Lodge Hotel, organised by intrepid mountaineer, Rupert Jones-Warner, prior to his attempt to be the first Briton to achieve a double summit of Mount Everest.

The 23-year-old from Chichester has been preparing for the 84-day expedition, which will see him attempting to ascend the summit from both the north side, and then again from the south side, of the mountain. As well as attempting a world record, Rupert is also raising funds for the children’s hospice, Chestnut Tree House, and the fundraising dinner raised over £17,000 towards his goal of raising £50,000.Guests included the Archbishop of Canterbury and Neil Laughton, Sussex explorer and entrepreneur, who has also faced the challenge of climbing Everest.

To support Rupert and to donate to this amazing challenge, visit his JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/Everest-2K15

7. Rupert Jones-Warner with his climbing suit for high altitudes 8. Rupert Jones-Warner cuts his Everest cake… with an ice pick!

9. Hannah Welby and Gemma Hall 10. Molly Jones with Harry and Romilly Dent 11. Rupert Jones-Warner with his family and Esden, Luton, Welby and Eaton families, all supporting Rupert in his adventure

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{ INTERVIEW }

THE MYTH OF GENIUS The light bulb moment? The inspired dream? This is just not how it works, says Kevin Ashton, author of ‘How to Fly a Horse’. According to Kevin, the world’s greatest innovations came from good old-fashioned hard work. Is he right in saying there’s no such thing as a genius?

Interview by Ian Trevett.

I

t can all be summed up in one word. Eureka!

The definition is a cry of joy or satisfaction when one finds or discovers something, and it came into use after Archimedes jumped out of the bath in a state of pure delight. Inventors fantasise about having their Eureka moment, the Holy Grail of creators and thinkers.

“Yes, let’s look at the Eureka story,” says Kevin.

“Archimedes took a bath and was trying to figure out if the king’s crown had silver in it, as it was supposed to be all gold. He had this idea in the bath and leapt out running through the streets naked shouting ‘Eureka’, which is Greek for ‘I have found it!’, meaning ‘I have found the answer.’ We know that’s not true, we know that didn’t happen. That’s a story that was first told by a Roman architect called Vitruvius 200 years after the fact. And Galileo pointed out 500 years

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ago that the solution to the problem was not one that Archimedes would have found in the bathtub. He actually would have applied some principles he’d already written about. So, he already knew the answer, and that’s well known.

It was just the simple joy of solving a problem with ordinary thinking.”

It seems that Kevin quite enjoys exploding myths, and there are plenty of examples in the book of famous sparks of invention, that were actually created through laborious, patient processes. Does he entirely dismiss the concept of dramatic insights?

“Do people have insights? Well, there have been enough psychological studies over the last 100 years to show that people don’t have insights.

What happens is, we think through problems step by step, and sometimes that happens very

quickly, and sometimes we are so excited when we put the last piece of the jigsaw in that we kind of forget about the other puzzle pieces. But if you get people to solve problems by thinking aloud rather than thinking in their head, and you record what they say, you will always see the step-by-step process, but they forget this.” (The classic example of this trial and error process is the Wright Brothers’ attempts to create a flying machine - which is the inspiration for the book title) “One I mention in the book is Coleridge, the poet, who has this story about how he went to sleep by the fire one afternoon and during his dream the whole poem Kubla Khan came to him complete, and as he was writing it down he was interrupted by a visitor from Porlock. This is the story, and he tells this in the introduction to the

{ INTERVIEW } cleaner companies and said, ‘How about we make one like this?’ And they rejected him outright. He got a bit of a deal with a Japanese company at one point but really he had no option.

It was almost his last resort to start a company called Dyson that made vacuum cleaners. But here is a guy who is principally thought of as an inventor because he is kind of the engineer behind his product. But he also managed by surrounding himself with other brilliant people and letting them do their thing. He managed to build an incredibly successful company that manufactures and markets that product, and now Dyson’s worth like three billion pounds or something. He’s hugely successful. So, that’s a model of someone who is probably one of the greatest entrepreneurs in the world, not just in Britain.”

poem, explaining why it’s not finished.

“Well, the problem with that is Coleridge was an opium addict who used to fall into an opiuminduced state, who often failed to finish his work.

He had used the excuse of being interrupted by someone before. The subtitle is A Vision in a Dream, and he creates this romantic mystique about his unfinished poem. Unfortunately somebody found an earlier draft of it, which disproves his whole story.”

One of the things that struck me about the book is that you could probably replace the word creativity with enterprise or entrepreneurship and you probably wouldn’t even know the difference.

“It’s all the same thing, I agree. The best example in the UK for me is James Dyson who I talk about in the book. Here is a guy who had a somewhat successful product with the vacuum cleaner with a big rubber ball instead of a wheel. But then he was thinking about how much he was pissed off by his vacuum cleaner getting clogged up, and he saw a cyclonic saw mill – a saw mill that got rid of the saw dust with a cyclone – and he wondered if he could make a vacuum cleaner that worked on cyclone.

“Now, cyclone maths is incredibly complicated.

It’s three-dimensional, you’ve got fluid mechanics, there are particle energy transfer functions… it’s hellishly complicated. No-one had never made a cyclone that size before, and here’s a guy wanting to build one into a consumer product. His famous story that I mention in the book is that he made 5126 prototypes. Quite how he counted that many I don’t know, but I have no reason to disbelieve him – I’m sure it was thousands.

“Also, he did what any sane and sensible person would do with that idea, he went to vacuum

“We are all contributing to a community that creates in one way or another. There are people who put in a few more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle than others, and there are people who put in the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle - and get all the credit for making the jigsaw”

In the book we talk of how your own personal experience helped develop your viewpoint “Through trial and error, hard work and overcoming lots of rejection I came up with

a method of tracking stock levels on shop shelves for Proctor & Gamble. As a result I got a place at a university in America called the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which is one of America’s foremost engineering universities. That was the transformational experience for me because I went there feeling like a bit of a fraud. I knew I was going to be surrounded by highly qualified, highly successful engineers, scientists, professors of science and engineering, in other words geniuses. Then I was there and I looked around, and I realised that for these incredibly successful, productive, creative people – that wasn’t how they did it.

“They may have been operating on a higher level, they may have had more skill and certainly more education and training and so on. But they got in early and they worked hard, and they didn’t waste their time, and they built things in a way that they expected bits not to work and fail, but they knew they could fix that. They wanted to see what was working and what wasn’t. If they tried something and it worked, then good.

If it didn’t they were going to try something else.

And I realised that there was no fundamental difference between the process of these highly successful, even Nobel Prize winning scientists and engineers and me. That happened gradually but that was a revelation.

“As the programme that I was leading at MIT became more successful and more famous, people started asking me to give talks about how to lead innovation, and that forced me to think about how to communicate what I had learnt. At that point I had a choice, I guess. I could have reiterated the old chestnuts and said what people had probably heard before, maybe in my own way, or I could recognise the truth of my experience, which was not like the ones I had read about.

“My feeling about that is that none of us really have the ability on our own, by ourselves, to make a difference on a big scale. We are all contributing to a community that creates in one way or another, and so there are people who put in a few more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle than others, and there are people who put in the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle and get all the credit for making the jigsaw. But the experience that I’ve had, and all the research that I’ve done, is when you look closely enough it’s not this one heroic, dead white man, that someone built a statue of, who did it all by himself. There is this constant community of people, many of whom are unrecognised and unknown, who, together, help get something over a finish line.

How to Fly a Horse by Kevin Ashton is published

by William Heinemann. www.howtoflyahorse.com

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THE UNIVERSITY OF BRIGHTON’S

NEW MANOR

The University of Brighton has opened an office in Manor Royal to ensure it is in the heart of the county’s business district. Debra Vice-Holt, Head of Economic and Social Engagement (Gatwick Diamond), explains why it is so important to have a presence in the Gatwick Diamond. Interview by Ian Trevett

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his is an important new initiative for the university. What was your background at the University of Brighton?

“I’ve been with the University of Brighton for about 15 years. I started working in the student recruitment team, working with schools and colleges, attending all the big UCAS fairs, where we could recruit students and talk to them about our courses. It gave me a really solid understanding of all the different aspects of the university.

“My remit changed to widening participation within the university, which is about working with

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students from non-traditional backgrounds.

“I then became the Director of Aimhigher Sussex, which is part of a national programme.

I had staff in Brighton, Sussex and Chichester Universities, as well as the Open University, and we worked closely with schools and FE colleges in Sussex to develop programmes which supported non-traditional students in preparing for, and applying to university. After that, I worked as part of the Community University Partnership Programme within the university, teaching on a new Community Engagement module.

“Alongside my role in the university I am

a Director of the social enterprise Work & Learning Opportunities, specialising in education and employment services. I also make use of the university’s staff volunteering programme through which staff are eligible for 5 working days per year to put our time to volunteering. I use my time from this scheme towards my role as Chair of Trustees for Brighton Women’s Centre.”

How did you become involved in working with businesses in the Gatwick Diamond?

“When I returned from maternity leave there was an opportunity for a secondment to develop the university’s Economic and Social engagement

{ INTERVIEW }

strategy for the Gatwick Diamond. Following this secondment I was appointed as Head of Economic and Social Engagement (Gatwick Diamond). I am working with a newly formed team and we’ve just moved into our new premises on the Manor Royal Business District.

“In terms of working with businesses, I looked specifically at us being on Manor Royal and having a presence here. We wanted to show that we were serious about working with businesses in the area. We have opened our Research & Enterprise Office on the business district and are sharing the space with the Manor Royal Business Improvement District.”

What are you looking to achieve in the Gatwick Diamond?

“We have four main areas of focus. In terms of what we deliver in this area, the first is about curriculum development and delivery as a

university, and we are working specifically with businesses to develop new curriculum. We’re working with the Open University to develop an online qualification, through which companies can develop their managers. We have had great support developing this proposal from Gatwick Diamond Business, Gatwick Diamond Initiative and Love Local Jobs.

“Secondly, we lead on developing collaborative research. 92 per cent of our research is rated as world-leading or internationally excellent for its impact. We are running a series of seminars in partnership with businesses in the Gatwick Diamond, highlighting our research with the business community to demonstrate ways in which the university’s research can support business in terms of development and growth.

The first of these seminars is about innovation and will be held at Elekta on May 6th.

“The third element is about working with schools.

Six of our top 50 recruiting schools are in Gatwick Diamond, so a lot of our students grow up here.

We have over 7,000 alumni within the Gatwick Diamond, and we continue to engage with them individually, as well as with the businesses they work in. Our work with schools and colleges includes a programme called Compact, which provides students with support on putting UCAS applications together, choosing the correct university and handling their finances. Alongside this we run Compact Plus, working with students from a wide range of backgrounds to help support them into university, throughout their studies and into their careers. The Compact Plus programme is designed to support students through activities, advice and impartial guidance, from primary school age through to graduation and beyond.

We also have STEM Sussex and Big Bang Sussex, which run in Crawley and encourage interest in science and engineering.

“Our fourth area is community engagement, part of which includes our work with schools where as part of our commitment to do something profound for the future of our university’s communities, the university formed the University of Brighton Academies Trust. We have four schools in the Gatwick Diamond in consultation to become academies. Our engagement with the local community is key to our development. As part of opening an office in the area we have undertaken to work with the local community to understand the needs of Crawley and ways in which we can work with organisations as part of our community university partnership programme.”

How are you directly engaging with the business community?

“We are very active in the business community.

I represent the university on a number of different groups within the Gatwick Diamond. We are working in partnership with many different business organisations, for example we’ve been working closely with Rosemary French, Executive Director of the Gatwick Diamond Initiative.

Rosemary recently organised a conference for women running start-up businesses which was enormously successful. We’re now working with Rosemary and other partners to be involved in the next event to work with the women who attend, both on the day and after the event. Another example is our Profintet programme - we created a group just for businesses based on Manor Royal, and we have another Profitnet group running in

“We have over 7,000 alumni within the Gatwick Diamond, and we continue to engage with them individually, as well as with the businesses they work in” Reigate. We have businesses within the Gatwick Diamond who are members of the Green Growth Platform, and who are part of our Knowledge Transfer Partnership programme.

“Within the Gatwick Diamond there are over 200 different organisations where our students are doing placements. Many will be schools, colleges and teacher training, but we also work with businesses in terms of being able to offer and support our students with internships. So, for example, we have students in Gatwick Airport who are doing an industrial placement year.

“This is all about being open for business, working with businesses in the Gatwick Diamond, and saying, ‘We’re serious about being here.’”

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{ INTERVIEW }

THE GATWICK DIAMOND UNIVERSITY OF BRIGHTON TEAM Debra Vice-Holt, Head of Economic and Social Engagement (Gatwick Diamond), Shona Campell, Knowledge Transfer Partnership Manager, Liz Johnson, Knowledge Transfer Partnership Adviser, Susannah Davidson, Business Development Manager, Daryl Parsons, Training and Development Adviser, Ceri Davies, Development Manager Ciara Gray, Marketing and Communications Officer.

UNIVERSITY OF BRIGHTON - IN NUMBERS • •

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Top 25% of universities for world-class research impact (2014 Research Excellence Framework).

Top 5 UK university for world-leading research impact in Business and Management studies (2014 Research Excellence Framework).

92% of our research is rated as world-leading or internationally excellent in terms of its impact (2014 Research Excellence Framework).

63% of our degrees are linked to professional bodies, demonstrating our focus on employability for our graduates.

SUCCESSES AT THE GATWICK DIAMOND BUSINESS AWARDS 2015 Southcoast Conferences, the University of Brighton’s conference and events team, won ‘The Award for Place to Meet’ for creating successful meetings and events for a variety of customers. Four companies who have worked with the University of Brighton also won prestigious business awards for their work in the Gatwick Diamond area.

Keith Pordum, of Pordum Foods, was awarded Business Person of the Year and has worked with the university over many years on various programmes including a Knowledge Transfer Partnership, the university’s business growth programme Profitnet, as well as recruiting a graduate intern.

“92 per cent of our research is rated as worldleading or internationally excellent for its impact. We want our engagement to be about helping business”

B&CE, who won Business of the Year, worked with the university on a waste management programme with the Manor Royal Business District and Crawley Borough Council.

Former Profitnet members, Rocketmill, won Digital Marketing Business of the Year, and Carpenter Box won Professional Services Firm of the Year.

If you would like to find out more about how the University of Brighton can work with you, contact their Business Helpdesk at businesshelpdesk@brighton.ac.uk.

Nick Broom, MD, PVL presents The Award for Place to Meet to Southcoast Conferences, University of Brighton at The Gatwick Diamond Business Awards, 2015.

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OPEN FOR BUSINESS in the Gatwick Diamond

“We have a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with the university to help us develop accurate temperature measurements”

My Profitnet peers have helped me tremendously with training and business strategy. I found the action learning part of the programme really valuable”

Paul Barnard, Director, Ceres Power

Debbie Orme, Founding Partner, Clearstone

“We’re investigating how we might extract and re-use the polymers from clinical waste” Stuart Brittle, Managing Director, Medisort

We can help your business with: • • • • •

Research and product development Knowledge Transfer Partnerships Graduate internships and placements Business development and growth programmes Developing opportunities for Corporate Social Responsibility

Contact our Business Helpdesk on 01273 643 098 or at businesshelpdesk@brighton.ac.uk.

Alternatively come and see us at our new Research and Enterprise Office at 7 Magellan Terrace, Gatwick Road, Crawley, RH10 9PJ.

{ YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR }

George Lengyel, Nick Musto, Bianca Miller and StartUp Sussex 2015 winner Chris O’Hare.

YOU’RE HIRED The Apprentice finalist crowns Sussex’s top young entrepreneur

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hris O’Hare is the University of Sussex’s top young entrepreneur, beating more than 50 opponents to win the 2015 StartUp Sussex award.

‘The Apprentice’ runner-up Bianca Miller gave the keynote address at the 2015 StartUp Sussex awards.

His digital platform, Checkpoint, streamlines communications between manufacturers, retailers and end customers and provides realtime analysis of customer demand.

Chris, who is studying for an MSc in IT with Business Management at the University of Sussex, said that he would use the £10,000 prize money to hire more staff to his fledgling business – which has already created five jobs.

Presenting the awards in the Creativity Zone on Tuesday night (24 March), BBC TV’s ‘The Apprentice’ finalist, Bianca Miller, said: “There are people who make things happen, people who watch things happen and people who wonder what happened,” and that entrepreneurs were firmly in the first category.

Bianca, a Sussex graduate and herself the Managing Director of her own start-up, personal branding enterprise Be Group, said: “Having a dream is by definition something you want to do, be or have very much.”

She added: “The way to start turning dreams into reality is to write them down and convert them into something tangible, which sets the subconscious mind into planning mode.”

Entrepreneurs need a “thick skin” and to be unafraid of setbacks, she said.

“The way to start turning dreams into reality is to write them down and convert them into something tangible”

The runner-up, winning £5,000, was George Lengyel for his smartphone social media app GeoNet, which connects users to people with similar interests in the same locality.

George, who is studying an MSc in Advanced Computer Science, said the app works like

Twitter but targets what the user is currently doing. The system is already being piloted by SussexFood in the Library cafe.

In third place, winning £2,500, was Nick Musto, a second-year Maths and Economics undergraduate, for ClubRadar, a smartphone app to help students have more fun while spending less at clubs and bars.

More than 50 candidates entered the competition last year and the six finalists were chosen in January this year. The six finalists all received an intensive programme of mentoring and workshops to help them develop their business plan and pitch their idea to the judges.

StartUp Sussex is delivered in partnership by the Careers and Employability Centre and the Sussex Innovation Centre. Linda Buckham, Director of the Careers and Employability Centre, said, “StartUp Sussex demonstrates just how highly employable Sussex students are.”

Mike Herd, Chief Executive of Sussex Innovation (SInC), the University’s business incubator, said: “There is a thirst for knowledge to understand how to be more entrepreneurial.”

Checkpoint will soon move into Sussex Innovation and all the winners will receive more business coaching. “I am looking forward to getting my idea out there,” said Chris.

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{ EDUCATION }

STUDYING HELPS PROPEL CAREER

K

ate Grogan, 25, works in Human Resources at DP World Southampton. Kate landed a more senior job shortly after beginning her postgraduate diploma in Human Resources Management at Portsmouth Business School.

She said: “After graduating with a psychology

degree, I spent my spare time trawling the jobsites trying to figure out what I wanted to do with myself.

“I liked the idea of HR but my mum works in this sector and I didn’t want to be following her path! I still applied for a few jobs in the sector and, amazingly, got a temporary position. It was a perfect role for me to start in as I was able to learn how business functions as well as learning about HR. “Although it was a good place to start, it was important for me to gain qualifications in order to further my career. Thanks to my mum’s background, I knew the next step was to get qualified with the CIPD. “I attended Portsmouth’s open event to learn more about the Human Resources Management course. Margaret Mackay, the course leader, was hosting the stand and it was very useful to talk to her about the course as she knew everything about it. I found Portsmouth very welcoming.

“I love the fact that I am studying alongside other HR professionals – the stories about others’ experiences are invaluable and the lecturers’

previous working experience really helps with our learning.

“I updated my CV soon after joining the course and uploaded it to all the jobsites that I could.

“Soon after, I was offered a job working in HR for DP World Southampton. This was the perfect next move for me.

“Studying hasn’t been an easy ride. The pace of work has definitely stepped up in my second year and, at the same time, I have had to learn a new business. But I’m enjoying it and I can see progression. Overall I’m feeling really positive and happy I took the leap.

“I want to do well, I want to have a career and be considered as someone who makes a difference.

Everyone has the same struggles of motivation but we all know that if you keep going you will achieve that qualification that opens up new opportunities.”

Kate started her course in 2013 and will graduate this summer.

To find out how studying can boost your career, come along to Portsmouth Business School’s open evening: www.showyoumeanbusiness.com

You’re a professional – so prove it Project Manager

HR Practitioner

Whether you are responsible for projects, HR, marketing, risk management or have ambitions for a top-level executive role, Portsmouth Business School offers part-time and professionally recognised postgraduate programmes for busy working people.

A first degree may not be essential, as long as you have the right attitude and work experience which will have prepared you to succeed. You’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain, so come along to our next open evening – for details please visit www.showyoumeanbusiness.com.

Sales Manager

Head of Programme Transformation

We’ve got our credentials – have you got yours?

T: +44 (0)23 9284 2991 E: pbs-studentrecruitment@port.ac.uk W: www.port.ac.uk/pbscourses

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{ YOUNG START-UP TALENT }

LEARNING CURVE FOR YOUNG START INTERN “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at YST, have learnt an array of different skills and discovered my strengths, and gained heaps of experience and confidence”

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ara Dawson has been working in the role of Media Assistant at Young Start-up Talent for the past three months, writing press releases, manning social media and helping co-ordinate the events, among many other roles, as part of a graduate internship.

Having spent the past three years completing a degree in Film and Drama studies at the University of Sussex, where she was given an insight into many different aspects of media, Cara wanted to expand her knowledge in this field. She hoped the internship would allow her to gain a better understanding of what she may want to do in the future.

“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at YST, have learnt an array of different skills and discovered my strengths, and gained heaps of experience and confidence.” This was Cara’s first time working in an office and naturally it took her a while to familiarize herself with the new environment. On the other end of the spectrum,

Cara was extremely confident and natural at working with the young people who enter YST and has improved her writing skills along the way.

Cara was enthusiastic about working for YST and particularly passionate about working for a company that encourages young talent and growth in ability. As a recent graduate and young person herself, Cara understands the importance of fantastic opportunities such as the one that YST offers to young entrepreneurs.

“I think it’s incredibly important that young people are able to take part in events where they can gain expert advice and recognition for their skills.”

As the weeks and months have passed, we have seen a growth in Cara’s abilities. Cara explained that she has “really enjoyed working in the office with both the YST, Media Word Waves and Creative Pod teams.” She went on to say, “Some of my greatest lessons have come

from those in the office and they have all made my time here fantastic. I’m incredibly sad to be saying goodbye to some lovely people.”

“I would certainly recommend this internship to anyone starting out in their career. If, like me, you are slightly unsure of what it is you want to go into, this company gives you the opportunity to try your hand at a spectrum of duties and really get stuck in.”

Lorraine Nugent – Director of Young Startup Talent said “We hope Cara can take all she’s learnt with her on next stage of her journey and we wish her the very best in her future career.”

Platinum Business Magazine is the media partner for Young Start-up Talent.

The deadline for the Croydon entries has just closed. The Brighton & Hove 2015 competition will be open for entries soon - watch this space. To find out more about Young Start-up Talent visit www.youngstartuptalent.co.uk

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COMING SOON NEWLY REFURBISHED GUEST ROOMS AT HILTON BRIGHTON METROPOLE 185 en-suite rooms will be refurbished, along with some communal guest areas, and will be transformed into comfortable, stylish spaces which effortlessly capture the Arts and Crafts movement, with historical styling alongside feature artwork paying homage to William Morris. The rooms will be redesigned in calming, harmonious tones complemented by highly functional, beautiful lighting. Guests will be able to refresh and revitalise themselves in renovated bathrooms, featuring a large walk-in shower.

For more information or to book please call 01273 775432 or email enquiries.brightonmet@hilton.com Hilton Brighton Metropole, Kings Road, Brighton, BN1 2FU facebook.com/hilton.b.metropole twitter.com/brightonmet

{ BUSINESS SCENE }

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1. Ian Trevett (Platinum Business Magazine).

2. Henry Smith MP, Nick Herbert MP, Nick Handley (Chairman of Sussex Chamber of Commerce), Ashley Shackleton (Head of Public Affairs at the British Chambers of Commerce).

3. Nick Herbert MP, Nick Handley (Chairman of Sussex Chamber of Commerce), Ashley Shackleton (Head of Public Affairs).

4. Sharon Philips (non executive board member Sussex Chamber of Commerce).

5. Anna Mitra (Gatwick Airport) and Dave Bridges (Fruit Design).

SUSSEX CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AT WESTMINSTER Sussex Chamber of Commerce hosted its first MP Forum at the QEII Centre in London immediately after the budget announcement in March. The forum allowed Sussex businesses the opportunity to discuss the budget and the British Chambers of Commerce Business Manifesto for Britain. The main points discussed were infrastructure, the A27, Gatwick Airport’s 2nd runway, the skills gaps and devolution. It was agreed with the Sussex MPs present that an event on devolution should be organised by Sussex Chamber. It was felt that we must make sure that Sussex has some local autonomy/devolution over decision making and that businesses are part of that process. If the north is worthy, then why not Sussex?

It was also announced that Sussex Chamber is piloting Young Chamber in Sussex through the British Chambers of Commerce. This will help bridge some of the gaps between education and businesses.

6. Maarten Hoffmann (Platinum Business Magazine), Lorraine Nugent (Media Waves), Matt Turner (Creative Pod).

7.Nick Handley (Chairman of Sussex Chamber of Commerce), and friends.

8. John Spence (Southern Water), Penny Hodge (Southern Water), Conor Brindley (Thomas Eggar).

9. Ana Christie (Sussex Chamber of Commerce), Ian Trevett (Platinum Business Magazine).

10. Sharon Philips (non executive director of Sussex Chamber), Geoff Mee (East Sussex County Council).

8.

6.

7.

9.

9.

10.

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{ HOTEL REVIEW }

THE GETAWAY DRIVER

By Maarten Hoffmann at the Cornwall Hotel, Spa & Estate

I

have one particular view of vacations and that is ‘go big or stay home’. Unless it is at least 600 miles south of Sussex in scorching sunshine, why bother, just to return to hundreds of e-mails accompanied by a total lack of interest in work, yet the need to get up to speed in an instant, having suffered a week of rain, wind and bad food? I can get that at home!

You might be surprised to learn that my wife and children do not agree. Due to extreme work commitments I had been leaving pictures of myself at home to remind the kids I really did exist.

Therefore, I caved into my good lady’s winning ways and agreed to an expedition to Devon. Such an expedition would not be complete unless I had arranged a few ‘assets’ with which to liven up the affair. That means an interesting car to review on the way and a cracking destination to target.

Then I screwed up. Having duly ordered the latest luxury Range Rover from my friends at Jaguar Land Rover, I ticked the wrong bloody box and duly witnessed a Land Rover Defender turn into the driveway. Now, don’t get me wrong, this is not an undesirable mode of transport with which to explore the nether regions of the South West, but a motorway car it is not, and I am faced with an 800-mile round trip, mostly on motorways. “Her indoors” is not going to be best pleased.

Then, as if the sun’s glorious rays shone just for me, I receive an invitation to visit a beautiful hotel in Cornwall and know I have the trump card required to settle her down over the blasted farm truck that will be our carriage.

It worked. The Cornwall Hotel, Spa and Estate is located in St Austell, Cornwall, and one whiff of spa treatments, infinity pools, gourmet dinner and me with no iPad attached to my hand won the day, and we have smiles all round. A save, I think that is called.

My review of the last of the Defenders can be

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found in this issue, therefore I will concern myself with the destination rather than the journey, although that was an adventure in itself!

The Cornwall Hotel is a beautiful old mansion set in 43 acres of glorious Victorian parkland in St. Austell. Not so ‘old’ anymore as, with a total redevelopment, the estate now boasts 65 bedrooms and a selection of 2- and 3-bedroom Woodland Homes sleeping up to 8 guests, set into the mature trees that surround the estate.

“In walked a very courteous gentleman with a stack of food so high that, were I capable of embarrassment, I would have blanched” The estate harks back to the reign of King Alfred and legend has it that one of the famous Anglo-Saxon treasure hoards was buried on the estate back in 875AD. Not so much of a rumour, as in 1774, what became known as the Trewhiddle Hoard was discovered in the grounds, having lain undiscovered for 900 years. This comprised a silver chalice, scourge, pin box, two rings, a brooch and 114 coins. And all this without a metal detector!

Other old sites are the Meat Cellar, Granite Rubbing Post (for cows asses, so I understand) and the Trewhiddle Cross, believed to be from the 13th century. You get the point. This place has been here a long time.

Now it is a 4-star Hotel with award winning restaurant and superb spa, and my tired old bones are about to arrive with a missus in tow

who needs to be impressed. What you will only understand when you read the Discovery review, is that her spine and ears are the worst for wear for the journey and we are back to square one on the husband/wife trade off stakes. I implore the spa to be good.

We arrive to be shown to our room overlooking the parkland and having just bought the kids three rabbits, we open the sliding doors to the balcony to be faced with a wild rabbit busy with the grass not a metre from our room. I have to check to see if this has been nailed there to impress me. It wasn’t, and shot away in disgust. The rooms are spacious and very well equipped and the shower has a huge head that rains forth with width and power, and that is a big must for me, but the focus is on the spa treatments, and we head off to the infinity pool to await our allotted time.

Great pool, and although the weather was less than sublime, the infinity edge looks over the ancient walled garden and bat hotel, and in the summer would be a site to behold. Then into the steam room followed by a very short visit to the sauna. Is it just me or are saunas uncomfortable places to be? Steam is so much better for you, and they had added some eucalyptus that make your airways feel free of traffic, grime and smog without the suffocating heat of a sauna. Anyway, I digress, and the time has come, and we proceed to meet Kirsty and…… for the Lava Shell Treatment.

This 70-minute massage comes complete with Pacific sea shells that have been fused to make one homogenous shape that, when heated, they rub all over your body with the obligatory new age musack playing in the background (at least it wasn’t whale song). With his and hers side-by-side beds, I was informed in a testy manner that I was snoring from minute three to the finale.

Best 67 minutes sleep I have had in ages. Then I tried to stand up.

{ HOTEL REVIEW }

I was all a-wobble and had to be steered to the bar for the first of quite a few glasses of chilled Chablis as I recovered from the marvellous feeling of the totally non-alcohol induced state of euphoria, last experienced on a scuba dive in the Blue Hole in Dahab, Egypt at 70 metres when the nitrogen narcosis kicked in.

The Clearing Spa, so named, I presume, as it was located in a clearing in the trees, offers a smorgasbord of treatments, with full gym, manicures, facials, tennis courts, juice bar and much more. It boasts it’s ‘the ultimate destination for beauty, health, fitness and relaxation’ and I absolutely cannot argue with any of that.

Having recovered my bearings, I attempted to lose them again at the bar before dressing, and proceeding to dinner. The Arboretum restaurant sits amidst rare paintings by Plymouth-based artist R.O Lenkiewicz (1941-2202) who’s huge Vagrancy Project caused such a storm, and his death had the hankies out in the London art aficionado circles. Most leave me cold, bar one self-portrait, which was quite mesmerising.

The food was superb, with ‘her that must be obeyed’ ordering goats cheese set terrine with beetroot and hazelnuts and my ‘beef’ (yes that was its name), with rare rump strips, braised shin, rocket, parmesan and balsamic, was quite superb. Followed by hake with samphire, purple sprouting broccoli and crayfish butter. Excellent, and the samphire was a taste explosion.

My pork loin with savoy cabbage, potatoes, prune and apple was a great combination and happy faces abound. The GM has obviously put a lot of effort into staff training as the service was effortlessly excellent throughout.

Pudding? Oh Christ, really? Well, for the editorial professionalism of this worthy journal, we endured and ordered a chocolate fondant with mango ice cream and a cheese slate with a lovely Cornish blue with homemade tomato and mint chutney. The white flag appears and I can take no more.

Full surrender beckons and I retire.

Bed, and a damned comfortable one it was too. I can’t stand noise in the morning. No slamming doors, no refuse trucks and no bloody chirpy builders at six in the morning, slamming van doors. I awoke in perfect silence with a few birds twittering and only a slight head buzz from the night before. Not to be deterred, I had inadvertently ticked every box I could find on the breakfast room service menu, and, at 9am, in walked a very courteous gentleman with a stack of food so high that, were I capable of embarrassment, I would have blanched.

Papers, multiple full English’s and enough butter and juice to supply the Empire, we tucked in.

Oh joy. I might actually be unwinding and starting on the long road to relaxation. Who’d of thought?

The Cornwall Hotel and Spa Pentewan Road, Tregorrick St Austell PL26 7AB T: 01726 874050 W: www.thecornwall.com E: enquiries@thecornwall.com

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WATCHING THE LATEST TRENDS Ashley Pugh, owner of W Brufords, reports on the news from the most prestigious watch brands at Baselworld, the premier event for the watch and jewellery industry.

H

aving just returned from our annual buying trip to Baselworld, we are full of excitement about the latest models to arrive from Rolex, Tudor, Breitling, Omega, TAG Heuer and Longines.

Rolex announced a new Calibre 3255 movement with a 72-hour power reserve, along with an updated Day-Date 40 model, a new black and 18-ct Everose gold version of its nautical Oyster Perpetual Yacht-Master and new case sizes for the quintessential Oyster Perpetual model. Also announced was the re-designed Oyster Perpetual Lady-Datejust featuring an enlarged 28mm case.

Following the brand’s UK re-launch in September 2014, Tudor watches showcased their first in-house chronometer-rated movement, MT5621. The Tudor North Flag is the first model to be fitted with this new movement, which also features a 70-hour power reserve. The North Flag model is the epitome of tool watches for adventurers, technical and reliable. The Pelagos diver’s model has been updated with a Manufacture TUDOR MT5612 movement in two new colour combinations, blue and black.

Breitling announced a collection of six limited-

edition watches this year, and W Bruford are proud to announce that we will be stocking four of these exclusive models, including the Transocean Chronograph Limited Edition, Navitimer Blue Limited Edition AOPA, Aerospace Evo Night Mission Limited Edition and the Galactic Unitime SleekT Limited Edition.

Omega’s 2015 offering was nothing short of spectacular with the brand once again creating the Official James Bond Spectre Watch in collaboration with the new movie, released in November 2015.

The Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m, inspired by the Bond family coat of arms, is a limited-edition watch of 15,007 pieces as this timepiece is resistant to magnetic fields greater than 15,007 gauss. We are anticipating a huge interest in this watch, so if you would like the chance to own one of these incredible pieces, contact us as soon as possible.

Omega also announced the ceramic Speedmaster in dark, grey and white versions as well as a new Ladies Constellation Pluma with a coral-coloured dial.

An additional noteworthy announcement from Omega came in the form of the Speedmaster

Apollo 13 Silver Snoopy Award, a tribute to the 45th anniversary of the legendary Apollo 13 mission and the Silver Snoopy Award that Omega received from the astronauts upon their safe return to earth.

TAG Heuer’s big statement at Baselworld 2015 was their collaboration with Intel and Google to create the ultimate connected watch. Further details are yet to be released, but this is the biggest collaboration between a Swiss watchmaker and tech giants. Their flagship timepiece this year was the Carrera Calibre Heuer 01 featuring a new generation TAG Heuer case, made from light titanium for greater shock resistance. TAG Heuer also released a new Formula 1 McLaren Special Edition alongside the new, darker Monaco V4 Phantom, now in carbon matrix composite.

Longines’ main point of focus came in the form of their Heritage Diver 1967, drawing its inspiration from a divers’ watch produced in 1967. Updates to the eponymous Ladies Dolce Vita have been made in the form of new softer lines, and a new collection, Symphonette, with a unique oval case shape, brings together elegance and modernity.

W Bruford are celebrating their annual Watch Event throughout May 2015.

To find out about any of these models, visit W Bruford at 11-13 Cornfield Road, Eastbourne, BN21 3NA. 01323 725452. enquiries@wbruford.com. www.wbruford.com Photos courtesy of Baselworld

FRINGE BENEFITS Gemini Print is sponsoring the chaotic, diverse and creative Brighton Fringe for the third consecutive year. Mark Tulley, the Group Sales Director explains to Ian Trevett why they value the partnership so much.

Y

ou never know quite what you are going to get with the Brighton Fringe, and that’s just the way they like it. Staged throughout the month of May, the dates roughly coincide with the Brighton Festival, but they are most certainly very different. The fundamental distinction is that the Brighton Festival is meticulously planned and programmed, with performing arts commissioned from across the

98

globe. The Brighton Fringe is a free-for-all, a manic mix of the weird and wonderful. But it is also an opportunity for creative talent from the city itself to showcase their talents. And that’s exactly what appeals to Mark Tulley.

“You have to be open to exploring the diversity of the acts,” says Mark. “But the relatively inexpensive pricing of the events means you can take in a lot of shows. It creates

a vibrant atmosphere and you are aware of the camaraderie when you go to a Fringe event.

“This is our third year as a print sponsor for the Fringe. We had partnered with Brighton Festival for about ten years, but we thought it was time for a change, liked the community focus of the Fringe, and the fact it is pertinent to the people of Brighton. It actually came about after a chance meeting with the Fringe

{ BRIGHTON FRINGE }

“Equally, the Fringe have been fantastic at promoting us to their venues and participants.

Managing Director, Julian Caddy, at the Brighton Business Curry Club, and I was surprised to learn that they didn’t have a print sponsor.”

The inclusive nature of the Brighton Fringe, is best explained in their own words: “It is a vast celebration of all things creative that has grown out of and is inspired by homegrown talent: more than 36% of participants are based in Brighton & Hove. It is also a completely open-access festival, which means anyone can put on an event and be included in the festival programme on payment of a fee. By definition, Brighton Fringe can include any art form. No artistic judgement or selection criteria are imposed on participants, enabling the development of both new and established work to attract fresh audiences, press and promoters.

“Our vision is to be an internationally acclaimed open-access arts festival and yearround professional resource, that stimulates, educates and develops audiences and artistic communities.”

The numbers are impressive. Already confirmed this year are 760 shows, 172 venues, 170 free shows, 233 World Premieres - and a total of 3423 performances.

Which means the print run for the programmes is huge. Gemini Print produce a staggering 130,000 programmes and 80,000 copies of the Family Guide, as well as the guides for many venues, such as The Warren.

Based in Shoreham, West Sussex, Gemini Print has been providing outstanding print solutions and customer care in Hove and Brighton and throughout the South of England for over 40 years. They are widely regarded as one of the leading eco- friendly printers in the UK. For Gemini, the partnership is more than just printing. “We run print and design workshops for the artists and venues,” says Mark, “as many won’t have had any experience in producing marketing material. We also promote the Fringe whenever we can, for instance at Brighton and Hove Chamber of Commerce events.

“It is a vast celebration of all things creative that has grown out of and is inspired by home-grown talent: more than 36% of participants are based in Brighton & Hove” We have had great support from Kimberly Butler, Rosie Blackwell-Sutton and Julian Caddy.”

So it’s a good business deal all round, but what about the events? What are the top recommendations for this May? “I always go for the live music events,” says Mark, “though Steve Cropper, our Managing Director is more adventurous in his choices. I enjoy going to the Spiegeltent, and The Warren and The Brunswick are great music venues. I can definitely recommend the South Coast Soul Revue and Willie and the Bandits.”

Which leaves one question, just what was Mark doing on the beach dressed for Flamenco?

“I’m not sure! I do remember that was a very cold day. I have had comments and some legpulling, but it’s always good to get in the spirit of the Fringe Festival.” brightonfringe.org gemini-print.co.uk

99

{ EXHIBITIONS }

EXHIBITING an ideal source of lead generation

In the run up to major exhibitions, including the Let’s Do Business events throughout Sussex, Michael Gietzen, Director at Identity Group (www.identitygroup.co.uk), offers an overview of his industry, as well as some top tips on how to gain new business enquiries, nurture client relationships and raise your business’s profile as an exhibitor…

The first exhibition was created by Queen Victoria in 1851 in London, as an event to showcase industrial, economic and technological advancements. The ‘Great Exhibition’ attracted over 6 million visitors and 13,000 exhibits, clearly paving the way for international exhibitions of manufactured products.

Ever since then, trade and public exhibitions have become a business staple, with companies continuously investing and developing bigger, better and more attention-grabbing displays to promote their brand and more importantly to

100

engage with potential clients.

Last year in the UK alone there were over 1,600 exhibitions welcoming over 13m visitors and 265,000 exhibitors contributing over £5.5 billion to the national economy and supporting over 150,000 jobs. Furthermore, business growth strategy consultancy, AMR forecasts in the GLOBEX: 6th Edition market report that the global exhibitions market will continue to grow and exceed £26billion by 2018.

So, not only is there a lot of money being spent on the continuously growing events market – over 80 per cent of trade show attendees are purchasing decision makers and 99 per cent of marketers value unique aspects of exhibiting.

(Source: Trade Show News Network) These statistics provide definitive proof that being an exhibitor remains one of the best methods of measured ROI and the creation of successful business partnerships.

However, before you decide on which exhibition or trade event to invest in, there are a few essential tasks that you need to consider carrying out in order to formulate a realistic ROI expectation…

1

Research: Spend some time researching events in target markets that you wish to generate new business enquiries/interest. Useful sources may include trade publications, the internet and recommendations from local and regional trade association leaders and members about the best events for your industry/market sector. Then think about how you would like to welcome visitors to your stand: would you like to offer a competition experience, such as a virtual reality game that ties-in with your latest product/solution, or simply a space for information sharing? As technology continues to

influence new trends and gadgets are created to entertain the masses, new opportunities arise for exhibitors to make a significant impact. Although still in the early stages of development, Bluetooth, wearable technology, RFID and 3D printing will be increasingly used and trialled in different ways to enhance people’s experiences at events through personalised content.

2

Plan: Once you’ve made a list of potential events, refine it by asking yourself whether the event type, topic and visitor audiences are right for you. You can do so by finding out whether the visitor demographic matches your ideal client profile via the event website, exhibitor brochure or by requesting a previous delegate/visitor list from the organiser directly. Also, consider: are you hoping to achieve new lead generation at the event; does the event suit your own company brand; would your existing clients come to the venue; and have any of your competitors sponsored/exhibited in the past?

3

Budget: Does the exhibitor package match your marketing budget range (quarterly or annual) and what other costs will you need to cover for promotional items, marketing campaigns and printed and/or digital collateral, pre-, during and post-event? Most event organisers are willing to negotiate to a certain extent, so be prepared to haggle for the best possible deal you can get. A key tip to remember is to request reliable Wi-Fi connectivity at the event and ask to receive the attendee list post-event – and prior if available.

4

Publicise: Once you’ve secured your space, consider how much time your company can give to creating a buzz at your stand. Events are just part of the marketing mix, and realistically

{ EXHIBITIONS }

Altro at the Eurobus Show 3D Visual and finished stand above.

an event organiser won’t just be promoting your company at their event – so be sure to plan a campaign before the start of the show. Useful methods include email marketing campaigns inviting prospects, clients and partners to your stand, and during the show task staff with posting photos and videos and encourage hashtags via social media. Also, make sure you have fool proof data capture methods (e.g. business card bowl, badge scanner, business card capture via mobile application, e-newsletter sign up forms etc.). One trap many companies fall foul of is poor post show follow up activity. Aim to contact new business leads within 24 to 48 hours of the event by email / phone call as well as a LinkedIn connection request, if you feel this is appropriate.

5 Travelers at the BIBA Show

excellence in events

Plan some more: Have a comprehensive checklist of your exhibition stand requirements prepared at least three months before the actual event date (some printing lead times may be longer than you think!) and be sure to know who else (companies, visitors, presenters/speakers, hosts, etc.) will be there.

Of course as far as I am concerned the most important thing for your business is to ensure you have an enticing exhibition space / stand, displaying plenty of relevant collateral, as well as having your logistics, suppliers, colleagues and organiser contacts on speed dial. With 20 years’

experience designing and constructing exhibition stands and conference sets, Identity Group has the expertise and skills to help you create an impact and lasting impression to exhibitors and visitors.

Will Rogers’ famous quote “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression,” is even more relevant nowadays, when in-bound enquiries come from digital, telephone and direct methods of communication. However, face-toface meetings remain one of the most significant ways to win new business, because regardless of the technology used to create that initial contact, people buy from people.

The way in which you and your team present one another, the brand, products, services and solutions is absolutely paramount to earn trust.

You could therefore consider going the extra mile for visitors by offering an overview of the venue location economy vs. demographics of your market sector, as well as your opinion on best local lunch/dinner places, and what cultural events are happening in town on the night. Finally, increase your business network by visiting other exhibitor stands for extended business collaboration opportunities. You’re all there to do business after all.

For further information visit www.identitygroup.co.uk or call 01323 469111.

101

THE BALANCE GOLF COMPETITION Back in September, 2014, we ran a competition in partnership with Balance, Las Colinas Golf & Country Club and Hilton London Gatwick Airport. We were delighted by the number of entries; the Directors at Balance pulled a name out of the bag and the winner was Fiona Anderson, Senior Relationship Manager of NatWest Bank, based in Brighton.

“Every detail was thought through from start to finish making for a stress free, simple and memorable time�

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{ OUR COMPETITION WINNER }

Fiona lining up her shot “Thank you very much for the recent ‘Balance Experience’.

When I entered the competition in the Platinum Business Magazine in September, I never expected to win. I am so pleased that I did as what a fantastic experience.

Ahead of the trip, and indeed throughout, it was extremely helpful to have a personal travel assistant on hand who was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable.

The usual pre-break research and planning was therefore minimised as everything was already taken care of. It was simply a case of turning up and enjoying the break.

The luxurious break began with a night’s stay at the Hilton London Gatwick Airport. After booking in to the Executive Suite, what better way to start to unwind, than to enjoy the Happy Hour canapés and complimentary Open Bar in the Executive Lounge.

Dinner followed in the famous Amy’s restaurant.

The restaurant has a modern, yet stylish feel.

The staff are extremely attentive and can’t do enough for you. The food was delicious and beautifully presented. The head waiter, Biju, could not do enough for us and was incredibly attentive and suggested some fantastic meal options.

The breakfast menu is vast and certainly caters for all tastes and appetites. After checking out, it was a short walk to the North Terminal to board our flight to Murcia. No last minute stresses or rushing to the airport, which was very welcome.

Upon arriving at Murcia, San Javier Airport, Sam, a very helpful club staff member, was already waiting to chauffeur us the short journey to Las Colinas Golf and Country Club. The drive up to the entrance has a feel of entering an oasis and one gets fantastic views of the course.

We were shown to our 2 bed/2 bathroom apartment, which was very spacious, clean and comfortable. Free Wi-Fi and two televisions give

.... golf away helps you work, rest and play

one access to all the channels you would wish for.! Although you won’t want to watch TV with the fantastic activities the resort has to offer. A short distance from the back patio and lawn was an inviting swimming pool with views extending over the surrounding hills and forests.That evening we enjoyed a sumptuous three course meal, with complimentary drinks at the ‘Unik’ Café. A very relaxing atmosphere, with lovely views over the 18th green, lake and fountain.

The next day it was time to hit the course. The weather was on our side and it was a lovely 28 degrees with a nice breeze. The complimentary buggy was already loaded with the hire clubs – brand new Taylormade. Driving range balls were provided and waiting for a warm up before setting off to the course. And what a course, full of variety and a challenge for all standards with its 5 different coloured tees. The Lakes, whilst a challenge, were a lovely feature in amongst the surrounding natural greenery and forests.

The greens ran true and were exceptionally well maintained. After the round, it was lovely to watch the sun set over the 18th green, whilst enjoying a Sangria or two on the ‘Unik Café’s exterior terrace.

A fantastic few days were enjoyed. Every detail was thought through from start to finish making for a stress free, simple and memorable time thanks to ‘Balance’. A definite recommendation and course to return to.”

Fiona Anderson

balance@rsvpr.net | 01273 806 950 | 07976 973 951

2015

SOUTH EAST BUSINESS SHOW www.b2bsoutheast.com

wledge o n k s i n u e b s e r s o f e r t s n a e t h v o e s network, make new contacts and nal a professio

The South East’s premium business-to-business event is back for 2015

Book Your Stand Now - ONLY ÂŁ299 b2bsoutheast.com/reserve

+VAT

Copthorne Hotel, Effingham, Gatwick Friday 25th September 2015 10.00am - 3.00pm This is a unique event as it unites all sectors of business and is the only marketing medium that brings the buyer, seller and products together at the same time and in the same place.

{ NETWORKING }

THE CHAIRMAN’S BUSINESS & COMMUNITY BREAKFAST CLUB Emma Pearce reviews a new network in St Leonards-on-Sea, Hastings

By Emma Pearce, Marketing Consultant outsourced marketing services and social media training www.pearcemarketing.co.uk

M

ost networking events focus on encouraging a range of SME businesses to attend. Some may have lock-outs (one person from each profession), while others focus on company size or sector. Now there is something slightly different...

On 1 April a new networking breakfast was launched (and no, this is not a belated April Fool!). The difference with this group is that it welcomes business-to-business (B2B) companies and community/charity groups.

There are no joining fees, you just pay-as-yougo (£8 per visit, including breakfast).

The Chairman’s Business & Community Breakfast Club was founded by Lord Brett McLean. “We want to add an extra dimension to networking. Of course, our event is a great opportunity for B2B businesses to connect, but here they can also meet charities and community groups that could also need their services. Plus, of course, a business can find out about great local causes to support and collaborate with for team building and other corporate social responsibility activities.”

Brett went on to explain that he was delighted to witness a deal between two attendees in the first few minutes of the meeting ending. The Bexhill Furry Friends charity ordered business cards and t-shirts from Luna Prints.

The topical speaker at this first event was Amber Rudd. She was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of

Energy and Climate Change on 15 July, 2014 and elected Conservative MP for Hastings & Rye in 2010. Amber talked about her focus being on helping businesses to flourish so that they can employ more people, as well as skilling up candidates for those jobs. She said the Government should not get in the way, but provide businesses with support and a stable environment. She also gave dates for local election hustings that she will be attending.

The format of the meeting each month will be: • 30 minutes open networking with everyone attending the event • Sit down for breakfast (hot and cold buffet) • One-minute round - each person can speak for 60 seconds (with a call to action if you are maximising this opportunity!)

• Listen to a speaker for 15 minutes • 1-2-1s - two 5-minute individual conversations with other people in the room to get to know them better • More open networking if you wish to stay.

Another way in which this network is aiming to differentiate itself is that anyone attending can bring a single pop-up banner to promote their services, and everyone will receive a list of who came along with their contact details.

The businesses represented at this wellattended first event ranged from air conditioning suppliers and business process improvement

consultants to financial forecasters, recruiters, will writers, marketers, IT specialists and wine producers. There were also representatives from business funding organisations such as Locate East Sussex, plus apprentice services and a great range of charities such as The Sussex Association for Spina Bifida & Hydrocephalus, St Michael’s Hospice, Bexhill Furry Friends and Gizmo.

Key Facts • Location: Azur at the Marina Pavilion in St Leonards-on-Sea, near Hastings, East Sussex • Frequency: first Wednesday of each month • Size: average of 40-50 people • Time: 7.15 am - 9.00 am • Lock out: no • USP: welcome businesses and community groups/charities, plus everyone can bring a pop up banner to be put up around the room and all attendees are sent a list of those who were at the event • Minute round: yes • Speaker slot: yes - typically an external speaker • Cost: £8 per visit - pay on arrival - no other fees enquiries@azurmarinapavilion.com or lordbrettofhastings@aol.co.uk 01424 447461 or 07838 241222

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } ACES

WHAT CAN ACES DO FOR ME? To become a Member of ACES just join your local Chamber of Commerce in East Sussex. Full details at www.acesalliance.org

THE ALLIANCE OF CHAMBERS IN EAST SUSSEX ACES IS THE ALLIANCE OF CHAMBERS IN EAST SUSSEX, LINKING 4,000 BUSINESS MEMBERS ACROSS THE COUNTY. If you belong to one of the Chambers of Commerce in East Sussex, you are automatically a member of ACES. This means that you can share your company news in these Platinum Business pages without charge. Just email your news item to your local

Chamber with a high resolution picture and they will pass it on to the ACES press office.

Alternatively, if you would like to network with progressive business people from across the county, you can attend one of the varied ACES events or the BEST4Biz Conference in October, 2015.

ACES has a strong voice with local policy makers and can lobby on your behalf to remove barriers to business. Just call ACES on 01323 641144 or check www.acesalliance.org to see how we can help.

NEW APPROACH TO BOOST EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS IN EAST SUSSEX ACES has joined Skills East Sussex, an influential body aimed at bringing together leading figures from education and industry to boost employment and skills.

Established as part of East Sussex County Council’s employability and skills strategy, Skills East Sussex was launched last year and includes representatives from schools, colleges and universities, careers services, business networks and employers. It plans to meet regularly to discuss how they can ensure that employers can access skilled staff locally.

The first Skills East Sussex meeting focused on the construction sector, with representatives from companies large and small from across the county.

Subsequent meetings will have different business sector focuses. The next will take place in April and will focus on the engineering sector.

These meetings allow businesses to explain the obstacles they face to recruiting skilled staff, influence the type of training provision available and clarify how they can help by offering work experience, apprenticeships and supporting careers guidance.

Graham Peters, chairman of Skills East

Battle Chamber of Commerce www.battlechamber.org.uk

Bexhill Chamber of Commerce 01424 842892 www.bexhillchamber.co.uk

Crowborough Chamber of Commerce www.crowboroughchamber.co.uk

Representatives from business and education attended the inaugural meeting of Skills East Sussex.

Front (from left): Gene Payne, (Head Teacher Causeway School), Becky Shaw (East Sussex County Council Chief Executive), Graham Peters (Chairman of Skills East Sussex), Christina Ewbank, (Alliance of Chambers in East Sussex) Back (from left): Martin Ellis (Recruitment South East), Melanie Hunt, (Principal, Sussex Downs College), Sonia Plato (Horizons), Paul Mitchell (Sussex Council of Training Providers), Amanda Menahem (HR Director Hastings Direct)

Sussex and vice chairman of the South East Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “It’s vital to the economy of East Sussex that businesses based in the county are able to tap into the skilled workforce they need from within the local area.”

Becky Shaw, County Council ChiefExecutive, said: “Making sure people in East Sussex, and in particular young people, have the skills that

Eastbourne UnLtd Chamber of Commerce 01323 641144 www.eastbournechamber.co.uk

East Sussex County Council 01273 481570 www.eastsussex.gov.uk

Federation of Small Businesses 01424 754686 Reg Office: 01323 482018 www.fsb.org.uk/eastsussex

businesses need is vital to ensuring existing companies can thrive and to attracting new investment in jobs into the county.

“Skills East Sussex, which will meet quarterly, will set priorities and provide direction for the county’s approach to employment and skills, informed by labour market and skills analysis being developed by the county council. “

Hailsham Chamber of Commerce 01323 310531 www.hailshamchamberofcommerce.co.uk

Hastings Chamber of Commerce 01424 205500 www.hastingschamber.co.uk

Heathfield Chamber of Commerce 01435 865858 www.heathfieldchamber.co.uk

{ CHAMBER NEWS } ACES

Ben and Lucy

Tay

THE STORY OF GREAT COFFEE IN EASTBOURNE When Lucy and I married in August, 2009, it was the start of a special journey for us. We chose to honeymoon in Canada.

Purely by fortune, we decided to spend a few days in Nelson. As we stepped out of our hire car, a stranger smiled and said a warm hello. He took time to ask where we were from (Eastbourne, in southern England) and to suggest a few terrific places to visit. He also recommended the speciality coffee at Oso Negro Café.

Wow! We never knew coffee could taste that good: sweet, smooth and unforgettably chocolatey. The café seemed to reflect the friendly, enveloping spirit of this wonderful town.

Back home, full of memories of the sun glistening across Kootenay Lake, we went to work on a decision we made that day to open our own speciality coffee shop, beside the sea, in Eastbourne. It took us just a moment to decide that it had to be named after Nelson!

In Nelson’s honour, and with our thanks, we promised that our coffee shop would reflect their spirit. Everyone is made welcome, we source the finest ingredients and work tirelessly to perfect and deliver excellence.

Every day we raise a cup to Nelson. If a Nelson citizen is ever in England and finds themselves in Eastbourne, we hope they’ll come in and tell us how we’re doing.

The Institute of Directors 0207 766 8866 www.iod.com

Lewes Chamber of Commerce 07919 382316 www.leweschamber.org.uk

Locate East Sussex 0844 415 9255 www.locateeastsussex.org.uk

As a new start-up business, it is rewarding for the Edeal team to see the business thriving and taking on new staff. If you’ve visited Nelson, the chances are you’ve been served by the wonderful Tay. Ben and Lucy had some amazing news recently when they found out Tay was chosen to enrol on the UK’s first ever Barista NVQ apprenticeship in Brighton. Tay is now being trained by some of the best baristas in the UK on some of the top equipment you can get your hands on. It’s a year-long programme that will teach Tay the skills required to be one of the finest speciality coffee baristas in the UK. Tay is chuffed to be a part of this awesome apprenticeship and Nelson’s is incredibly lucky to be benefiting from the expertise that she’s bringing back with her.

To document and share her coffee journey, Tay has started a blog that covers everything she’s learning on the apprenticeship. So if you’re new to coffee and want to learn along with Tay, it’s definitely worth a visit. Her introductory post, where she tells you a bit more about herself and the start of her speciality coffee journey, is now available to read here: https://tayscoffeeblog. wordpress.com

Newhaven Chamber of Commerce 0800 107 0709 www.newhavenchamber.co.uk

Peacehaven Chamber of Commerce 01273 586222 www.peacehavenchamber.co.uk

Seaford Chamber of Commerce 0800 881 5331 www.seafordchamber.co.uk

NELSON COFFEE CO – A SUCCESS STORY FOR THE BUSINESS START-UP PROGRAMME RUN

BY EDEAL ENTERPRISE AGENCY “Nelson Coffee Co” is a new coffee shop opposite the station in Eastbourne which has benefitted from an excellent, fully funded startup and business mentoring programme. The programme included business and marketing planning and was offered by the local enterprise agency Edeal.

Similar programmes are available throughout Wealden and Eastbourne – go to www.edeal.org. uk for full information.

“Wow! We never knew coffee could taste that good: sweet, smooth and unforgettably chocolatey”

South East Local Enterprise Partnership 01245 431469 www.southeastlep.com

Uckfield Chamber of Commerce 01825 722607 www.uckfieldchamber.co.uk

Wealden District Council 01323 443322 www.wealden.gov.uk

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } BRIGHTON

FANCY A BITE? A Brighton Chamber bite-sized session, that is.

By Jill Woolf, MD of Chimera Communications

Fancy a bite? A Brighton Chamber bite-sized session, that is. They do what they say on the tin … two- hour gatherings of Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce members and nonmembers in seductive surroundings like Sussex County Cricket Ground, led by an expert giving a taster of their training. You can learn quite a lot in two hours, and the ‘taster’ bit is a forerunner to deciding if you want to know more.

As these sessions are also designed for delegates to meet new people and to network, it’s definitely value for money. As a trainer, it’s endorsement for your expertise and an opportunity to publicise what you do. Look what’s coming up: Twitter for retail businesses, Your networking system, SEO Primer, Business Landscape Mapping, Measuring and reporting performance in non-profits, Finding your G-Cloud Spot.

My ‘PR Can Be Free’ bite-sized session is back by popular demand. If you think it’s somewhat counter-intuitive for a PR consultant to choose this title – or if you’re one of the other PRs in the city who frown upon me doing this session – think again. Lots of PRs offer free information sheets or videos on their websites, so what’s the difference?

I’m passionate about PR and about developing people to make the most of themselves and their businesses. I’ve been in PR and sales and marketing for a very long time, so it seems perfectly natural to me to share some of my skills and knowledge if it

means local businesses improve, develop and grow through any ideas I can offer. Of course, I’m running a business myself, so at the point when you want us to work for you, you’ll have to pay!

“They do what they say on the tin… two - hour gatherings of Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce members and nonmembers in seductive surroundings” It’s vital that businesses – commercial, social enterprises, not-for-profits or start-ups – understand the value of communicating with their publics and managing their reputations effectively. Thinking it’s all going swimmingly and undervaluing the power of message delivery just won’t cut it in a competitive marketplace.

Chimera Communications has just celebrated its 12th anniversary, and our range of services is huge: PR, sales and marketing strategy and implementation, media handling, sponsorship, exhibitions and events, social media management, training for appearing on TV and radio, social media training, internal communications, corporate communications, stakeholder perception surveys, corporate social responsibility, branding and much, much more.

PR can be free – find out at my sessions.

There’s plenty you can do as an SME while your business revenue increases to a point when you need a professional (and there are many good local PR companies). As a start-up, it makes sense to have a budget available to market your products or services so people know who you are and what you offer; yet some people feel they need to try to do everything themselves.

Ultimately, you’ll appreciate there’s no substitute for PR and marketing support from an expert with skills, knowledge and experience while you work on making your business the best it can be!

To contact Jill email jill@chimeracomms.co.uk To find out more about Brighton Chamber’s Bite-sized Learning programme, see the calendar at www.businessinbrighton.org.uk

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } EASTBOURNE

PARENTAL PROBLEMS? Eastbourne UnLtd Chamber of Commerce www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk | Tel: 01323 641144

One in six small businesses is concerned about the impact of shared parental leave. Member Advice from Serena May

E

ast Sussex small business owners are concerned about the impact of new rules regarding Shared Parental Leave (SPL), which came into effect in April.

Over a quarter say they are aware of the new rules but unsure about how they will handle the issue, while only half are both aware of the implications of the new legislation and unconcerned about the impact it will have.

Those are the findings of a survey by the HR Dept, which has a network of licensees operating across the UK. In Eastbourne, the company is run by Serena May, HR advisor to the Chamber of Commerce.

The HR Dept’s survey of almost 400 small businesses has shown that only 51 per cent are both aware of the implications of the new legislation and unconcerned about the impact it will have.

The SPL regulations that came into effect on 5th April this year mean that anyone who is due to give birth or adopt after Easter Sunday is entitled to split their leave with their partner.

Under the rules, after an initial two weeks of compulsory leave by the mother or adopter, up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay can be shared, as long as employers agree. Factory workers are subject to four weeks compulsory leave and therefore 48 weeks of leave and 35

weeks of pay can be shared. Parents can divide the time between them however they like and can also take time off at the same time as each other.

“The difficulty comes when we start looking at people’s eligibility, because there are certain qualifying rules, such as length of service, employment status and earnings” Comments on the issue show that the main concerns are from the smallest companies, where the temporary loss of key skills could have a huge impact.

Some respondents said the new rules would affect their recruitment policies, with one saying

they would “move towards employing older people”.

Serena May, Director at the HR Dept in Eastbourne, said the new rules were good in principle but that businesses and employees needed to establish clarity over eligibility.

She said “The difficulty comes when we start looking at people’s eligibility, because there are certain qualifying rules, such as length of service, employment status and earnings, so all employers need to develop a clearly-worded policy.

“Much of the administrative burden will actually fall on the employees: requesting leave within required timescales and co-ordinating between employers. Employers will be entitled to see the birth certificate and details of the partner’s employer and NI Number.

“Communication between businesses and their employees and workplace planning will be key, as potentially anyone in an organisation could be off for up to 50 weeks and employers will have to prepare for that.”

For more information, contact Serena May on 0787 570 2914 or email Serena.May@hrdept.co.uk

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } CRAWLEY & GATWICK

PARLIAMENTARY MEMBERS’

QUESTION TIME

T

he March Chamber members meeting was hosted at the Sandman Hotel in Crawley with four parliamentary candidates attending. The four representatives had the opportunity to formally present their proposals to member businesses. These included Henry Smith MP, Conservative candidate, Cllr Chris Oxlade, Labour candidate, Chris Brown, UKIP candidate and Guy Hudson from the Green party.

All of the above candidates have had experience of, or are currently running, their own businesses within the local area.

Henry Smith MP, the current Conservative candidate, has lived in Crawley for 21 years and ran his own business in the financial services sector for ten of those years.

Henry commented “I’m grateful to Crawley & Gatwick Chamber of Commerce for hosting such an important election debate. Local firms, large and small, are expanding, exporting and contributing to record-high employment levels, thanks to business-friendly policies and lower taxation of Conservatives in government. In my time as Crawley MP I have sought to actively represent my corporate constituents because they are the ones creating jobs and wealth that benefit my resident constituents. My pledge is to continue that work if re-elected.”

Chris Oxlade runs a business in the local area and believes that a fairer system should be in place for SMEs, with funding made easier for businesses to grow.

Chris told members that he has been visiting constituents, who all have a common theme

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www.crawleychamber.co.uk

– “People care about local issues such as the growing number of potholes across the area, particularly in Manor Royal.” Chris believes the aesthetic look of Crawley town centre should be addressed and said, “There should be more control over the look of Queen’s Square with a mix of business, retail and leisure facilities. It is important to people, along with the reliability and infrastructure of public transport.”

Additionally, Chris commented on the gaps in vocational training: “There should be more emphasis on quality apprenticeships and not using them for cheap labour. Younger people should be allowed to vote, with the age lowered to age 16”.

Chris Brown, the UKIP representative, runs a small business and has previously run a business in the US. Chris mentioned: “There is half as much red tape for small businesses in the States.” He believes that “We should put a stop to corporate bullying for unpaid invoices and a late payment directive should be put in place.”

Chris pointed out “Entrepreneurs are not supported by the government or the big banks.

There are £20bn worth of unpaid invoices owed by large companies to smaller suppliers. UKIP will keep and enforce the late payment directive of 2011. Oppressive EU legislation such as VATMOSS is stifling our businesses. UKIP will liberate SMEs from EU shackles. Our forthcoming manifesto will set out exciting tax cuts for SMEs. Local authorities will be encouraged to provide, ideally, free or cheaper parking in high streets.

Chris also commented on UKIP’s focus on

younger people “They should be able to start an apprenticeship in place of four non-core GCSE subjects. UKIP will be scrapping tuition fees for those studying Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths & Medicine.”

Guy Hudson, the Green candidate, also runs his own small business, has encountered problems when raising finances for his company and therefore does understand the problems encountered by SMEs. Guy started his career as an apprentice engineer with Land Rover and worked his way up. Guy would like to see a longer-term and sustained apprenticeship programme for the future.

Guy stated that “Local authorities should have more power. Currently, Councils are strapped for funds; they should have more funds to invest in the local society and the young.”

CHAMBER EVENTS April 29th – 8.00am Spire Gatwick Park inspirational guest speaker Robert Groves May 20th – 8.00am Taj Mahal, Crawley speaker Ron Crank, Coast to Capital LEP Please check the website for the latest updates and more planned meetings.

To book visit: www.crawleychamber.co.uk or email: jose@crawleychamber.co.uk

{ CHAMBER NEWS } SUSSEX

CHAIR OF THE CHAMBER Ana Christie, Chief Executive of Sussex Chamber of Commerce, welcomes David Sheppard as the new Chairman of the Sussex Chamber of Commerce.

D

avid lives in Hove and has served on the Board of Sussex Chamber of Commerce for two years. He qualified as an engineer and economist and is a founder-Director of D-RisQ Ltd based in Malvern, Worcestershire. He has been managing his start-up company, which he can now proudly claim to be an established SME. David’s background has been in large automotive, aerospace and defence companies as Director and CEO. He has held top-level positions with The Smiths Group, Racal, Thales, QinetiQ and Ricardo. This gives David the knowledge needed to relate to the needs of businesses, both large and small, and during his tenure as Chairman it is his intention to get to know as many businesses and business needs as possible in order to shape the business agenda collaboratively.

David aims to ensure that businesses see the benefits of membership of the Sussex Chamber of Commerce, whether by helping to form Sussex’s business policy agenda for

“I am delighted that David has been appointed as Chairman and I look forward to working with him to develop the Chamber further to benefit businesses across Sussex”

government, or by taking advantage of the export, HR or training services, or indeed the wide range of other business services delivered by the Chamber or business partners. The wide range of business events through the year is ever expanding, and taking advantage of them will benefit businesses.

We remain the BCC accredited Chamber for Sussex, and through this David believes we have a great responsibility for leading a regional business agenda for Sussex and perhaps the South East. Together with the local Chamber friends and partners, David does not want to stand and watch the devolution debate without having a say ourselves. It is this policy agenda which Nick Handley, as Honorary President, will actively pursue on behalf of the Chamber.

I am delighted that David has been appointed as Chairman and I look forward to working with him to develop the Chamber further to benefit businesses across Sussex. www.sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk

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{ CHAMBER NEWS } WORTHING

COFFEE CANVASSING Election candidates get up early in Worthing

W

orthing and Adur Chamber of Commerce were pleased to host an Election Breakfast at Northbrook College recently, giving their members the chance to question potential candidates about their policies and local business issues. Each party was given the opportunity to outline their main points for election and then questions were taken from the floor.

TIM CROSS - UKIP CANDIDATE FOR WORTHING WEST “We should not be afraid of leaving the EU at all; on the contrary, we should embrace the opportunity to trade with the whole world and not be imprisoned in a straight-jacket under the control of the EU and its laws. In simple terms we would not have to pay £55 million per day as our contribution, be subject to EU laws and directives which cost business at least £30 billion per annum, and with control of immigration we would be able to bring in quality skilled migrants instead of unskilled migrants, which we do not need and who push down wages.”

JAMES DOYLE - GREEN PARTY PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE FOR EAST WORTHING & SHOREHAM “Political support for businesses should be as local as possible, responsive to their needs, and should help them look to the future with their own plans as well as the government. Our workforce needs to be educated and skilled to compete with other countries, and paid well enough to live.”

TIM LOUGHTON MP - CONSERVATIVE CANDIDATE FOR EAST WORTHING & SHOREHAM “The Chamber of Commerce has shown again what a thriving business community we have locally, and it is incumbent upon all elected representatives to have policies in place to make Adur & Worthing good places to do business.

Whether it’s through improving infrastructure such as the A27 upgrade at last, raising skill levels of school-leavers or making ultra-fast broadband as standard, this is an exciting place to invest and expand - so look out, Brighton.”

HAZEL THORPE LIBERAL DEMOCRAT CANDIDATE FOR WEST WORTHING “Our Local Manifesto: “Economy - to support SMEs in surviving, thriving, being sustainable, via lobbying for Government and EU funding and networking.

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“Education - to support our schools & colleges to prepare young people for the jobs, skills and vocations needed.

“Health and Social Care - to support the hospital and NHS by raising awareness of public opinion, needs, experience and speaking out.

“Real life solutions - highlighting the need for emotional intelligence, caring support and training between apprenticeships and full-time work .

TIM MACPHERSON – LABOUR CANDIDATE FOR EAST WORTHING “Small businesses are the engine room of our economy. They currently get a raw deal from this Government, which tends to classify ‘business’ as the large multinationals, over which they have little control.

“We will cut business rates which burden small businesses and cancel the planned cut in corporation tax, a cut which mainly benefits big business.

“Stop late payments, as cash flow is king for a small business and 90+ days is too long. Labour would like to encourage business lending and introduce a shipping economy as they don’t believe there is one currently. We’ll boost the status of apprenticeships, particularly for the 16 - 24 age group, which leads to a real job.

“Finally, we’ll legislate against zero hours contracts being used by companies to hire people on the cheap.”

FUTURE EVENT If you would like to hear more on the prospects of what a new government will look like, our Patron, Gillian Fielding, will give us her vision at our forthcoming AGM on Wednesday 29th April.

GILLIAN FIELDING, SECRET MILLIONAIRE AND CHAMBER PATRON.

Once again we are lucky to have our Patron, Gillian Fielding, with us. She has her finger on the pulse of the wider picture and always gives an entertaining and inspiring talk. Gill will give us her vision as to how things may look, depending on who manages to win the election. At past AGM’s she has shared her insight as to the décor of the cloakroom in 10 Downing Street …… will this change? Just what do the politicians think they are doing with the economy, or will it all go down the pan?

CHRIS TOMLINSON – EON Will be telling us about the progress on the Rampion Windfarm, which is about to start at Brooklands. There will also be information on the procurement process for this project.

ALEX BAILEY - CEO ADUR & WORTHING COUNCIL Alex is determined to lead us into prosperity and growth, whether we like it or not. Alex will update us on ‘Underground Sussex.... Unlocking the value in our visitor economy’.

It’s always an informative and well attended evening, with excellent networking opportunities, so book now via www.worthingandadurchamber. co.uk. Non-members welcome.

{ CHAMBER NEWS } HAILSHAM

CHAMBER FOCUS H

ailsham & District Chamber of Commerce was formed in 1984 and exists to support and encourage growth and prosperity within the business community of Hailsham and its environs. Membership of the Chamber gives you opportunities to network with local organisations and other Chamber members.

Out of this networking grow contacts and friendships from which we can all draw benefit.

Through our regular meetings we are able to discuss key issues and concerns which members may have and decide on supportive action. We occasionally have guest speakers in attendance and also maintain strong links with both Wealden District Council and Hailsham Town Council. As a Chamber we believe it is our responsibility to do everything we can to support our members and to encourage and help local businesses to the best of our ability.

REGULAR EVENTS Chapter 12 Business Networking Event Every last Thursday of each month - 6.00pm Location: Chapter 12 Wine Bar, High Street, Hailsham - Cost: £6 - includes a glass of wine (or soft drink) and a selection of canapés & nibbles.

Each evening there will be a guest speaker to discuss their particular business.

If you’d like to book a slot to speak, please email info@chapter12winebar.co.uk

Farm Hotel on the first Thursday of each month. It is open to both members of the Chamber and nonmembers. The only criterion is that attendees should have a genuine business or personal connection with Hailsham. Everyone is given an opportunity, if they wish, to introduce themselves and their business. After this, one of the regular members, or the occasional guest speaker, is invited to give a ten-minute talk. Invitations and replies are all by e-mail only; send an email to arannie@hartreade.co.uk with the name and nature of your business. www.hailshamchamberofcommerce.co.uk

Hailsham Networking Breakfast Club Every first Thursday of each month - 7.00am to 8.45am, Cost: tba Boship Lions Farm Hotel, Lower Dicker, Hellingly, BN27 4AT. The Breakfast Club meets at the Boship Lions

Our services include: • Accountancy & bookkeeping • Audit services • Tax returns • Tax planning

Passionate about business.

• Payroll services • Financial and investment services* • Wealth management We love to make your profits larger and tax payments smaller!

Go to www.carpenterbox.com to see what our clients say or get in touch on 01903 234094

*Carpenter Box Wealth Management LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

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THE SALT ROOM Maarten Hoffmann samples the delights of the decor, food and the great view

B

righton has long been known for its great variety of vibrant restaurants. Some come and go, some shut up shop in a heartbeat and some stand the test of time. The Coal Shed is one such establishment. Tucked away in the Lanes, it has a reputation for great steaks, great service and a great vibe. The owner, Raz Helalat, has grown in confidence, stuck his neck out again and taken over the old 106 Bar at the Hilton Metropole, right on the seafront, with 340 rooms atop and a view to die for.

The Salt Room is the antithesis of the Coal Shed, as its main attraction is what comes out of the briny over the road. Fish is the order of the day, and when you say that, then by George

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“I loved the sound of their Taste of the Pier dish. I know what goes on under that pier and did not really have any burning desire to taste it, but wow!”

your fish had better be good. Now this’ll make you laugh – I don’t eat fish! I know, who’d have thought? A restaurant critic who doesn’t eat fish.

The reasons are complicated and I will explain them in next month’s Anger Management, cos it makes me very angry and I don’t ‘manage’ it very well.

This is the reason I always take a crew with me, so that everyone else can relay their views on the fish and I can rampage across the rest of the menu.

So, in tow today we have Lynne and Fiona from sister publication Portfolio (available at over 800 locations across Brighton – Promo?

Wot promo?) Accompanied by Ian, my partner in this mighty organ, we were seated in what

{ WORKING LUNCH } As I attempted to gain control, Ian tucked into his black bream, purple potatoes, pickled cockles and samphire, and although he said the flavour was superb, the colouring on the plate was a little off-putting as the purple merged with the juices and created a murky purple goo.

This is one time when I advised him not to eat with his eyes.

With order restored, we ventured into the pudding menu and I loved the sound of their Taste of the Pier dish. I know what goes on under that pier and did not really have any burning desire to taste it, but wow!

What arrived was a long board with two sticks standing upright, wrapped in rhubarb candy floss, two small hand-made 99 cones with an array of pebbles, stones and rocks dotted around. These turned out to be salt caramel, rum and coconut marshmallows, petit ring doughnuts and pebbles made from honeycomb. It was not only a treat for the eyes but the flavours were sublime. The rhubarb really came through in the candy floss, which was odd but sensational, and the assorted stones and pebbles were all different, all superbly made and all gone in a flash as my accompanying horde laid waste to my pudding.

is a great location, and they have done a very good job on the décor - subtle but there if you look, and the gorgeous ladies serving us made the occasion all the better.

The set lunch menu is £12.50 for two courses and £15.00 for three, and they all went with the set, apart from me, and my 3-courses came to £48.50, of which the fillet steak comprised £27.50.

The grilled mackerel with tartare, apple and miso, Ian assured me, was scrumptious.

Lynne’s cured salmon, miso, crème fraiche, burnt cucumber and truffle really was a glorious sight, but I cannot convey her opinion as she refused to speak and just sort of glazed over. I ordered the pork rillettes with pear, beer chutney and toast. Great presentation, with the well-seasoned pork in an old fashioned jar, sea salted melba style toast and a totally brilliant beer chutney that I could have carried on eating all afternoon.

Oh, this is going well, and I am quite excited about the main course.

Our table was at the window overlooking the terrace that fronts the sea. Well, the main road first but then the sea.

Lynne’s spiced monkfish with pickled cauliflower, yogurt and ginger and Fiona’s mussels with lemongrass, chilli, coriander and lime were both superb in terms of taste and presentation with the lemongrass really complimenting the flavour of the mussels. Then I totally lost the plot and laughed so hard I had tears streaming down my face.

They brought Fiona a finger bowl accompanied by a saucer with two white discs in the centre. I was at this point tucking into my fabulous 200g Black Angus fillet steak with a smooth béarnaise sauce and salt baked potatoes when I noticed this little piece of theatre occurring. What on earth were they?

The charming waitress arrived with a teapot of hot water and proceeded to pour the water over these odd things. Well, blow me down – they suddenly started to grow and expand upwards like manic earworms until they were sitting there like two small tampons, and the event took me so much by surprise that I lost it. Turns out they were the hand towels for the mussels, but the performance was the oddest I have seen in a while and I had to ask them to repeat it several times, and it got funnier each time.

“The Salt Room is the antithesis of the Coal Shed, as its main attraction is what comes out of the briny over the road” When you dine out as much as I do, you are seldom taken aback, but this was one of the most original desserts I have ever experienced and wrapped up a great meal in a great location with great service.

I would heartily recommend the Salt Room.

The Salt Room 106 Kings Road, Brighton BN1 2FA T: 01273 929488 W: www.saltroom-restaurant.co.uk

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A

THE DEVIL IS INDEED IN THE DETAIL….

merican financier Sanford Weill once proclaimed that ‘details create the big picture’. Now, Sanford may have been talking about pounds and pence (or dollars and cents), but the same holds true for your wardrobe. The details – your accessories - are vitally important to your overall picture. Applied well, they contribute to the creation of a coherent whole, adding colour, texture and individuality. Worn badly, they can wreak havoc with your look and render elegance an elusive pipe dream.

MEN: MORE OPTIONS THAN YOU THINK Accessories add much-needed colour, texture and personality to otherwise conservative clothing. I would go so far as to assert that adding carefully chosen accessories to a gentleman’s business or casual look can have more of an impact for a man than for his female counterparts, as he has fewer overall outfit options. At first glance, you may think that there are limited accessories to choose from. I would disagree. Let’s take a closer look.

Jon Snow lifts his overall look with bright ties and socks; they have become his immediately identifiable ‘trademark’.

I spent the morning at Simon Clarke’s Brighton boutique recently, and the team there told me that tie clips are also big sellers. They are another small way to add an element of individuality (and old-school elegance) to your overall look.

Watches are an obvious starting point. Even in these days of gadgetry, an elegant watch speaks volumes about a man. It’s worthwhile having more than one: a watch for daily business wear, a dress watch and a sporty version for weekends.

Socks (plain, striped or spotted) are an easy way to add colour and fun without undermining your professional credentials. Braces are another way to add interest – but you must be comfortable wearing them or you will not be able to pull off this look successfully !

Photo credit: Simon Carter

The cufflinks market has exploded, and there are so many designs and materials to choose from. You can choose cufflinks that reflect your personal interests, hobbies and passions: horses, anchors, propellors, playing cards, etc.

When considering ties and belts, it’s always best to go for contrast, so that at least one element stands out. If you’re wearing a striped shirt, go for a completely contrasting tie (a solid colour, or even a contrasting pattern). The stronger the contrast, the greater the impact. Newsreader

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Photo credit: Simon Carter

Wallets, although not often on display, can add pizzazz as you pay for your morning latte. Paul Smith and Aspinal of London make leather wallets with iconic British designs – union jacks and classic Minis – to liven things up a bit.

When selecting your accessories, choose carefully. Remember to invest in a few simple pieces that work with a number of items in your wardrobe.

“The details your accessories - are vitally important to your overall picture. Applied well, they contribute to the creation of a coherent whole, adding colour, texture and individuality”

{ PLATINUM STYLE }

Samantha Wilding Tel: 07833 084864 Email: Samantha@styleandgrace.eu Website: www.styleandgrace.eu Twitter: @alwayschicUK

WOMEN: LISTEN TO COCO One of Coco Chanel’s most famous (and probably most ignored) pieces of advice was this: ‘before leaving the house, remove one accessory’. So many women either wear too many and end up looking fussy and overdone, or not enough, and so look bland and lacking in any individual style.

Focus is the key to success. Pick your point of focus and let it shine, whether that is your statement necklace, your fedora hat or your chandelier earrings. Heed Madame Chanel’s words, as it’s usually a rogue accessory that is the offender when you’re not sure if you’ve got it quite right.

Scarves are underrated in this country (which is always a surprise to me, given our unpredictable weather). They add instant polish and ‘je ne sais quoi’ to a casual outfit of jeans and simple cashmere knit, for example, but also add panache to a white work shirt or dark suit. Buy silk wherever possible, and consider

TIMELESS ACCESSORIES WOMEN: • diamond or pearl stud earrings • a silk scarf (Hermes is, of course, the ultimate…)

BOTH: • an elegant watch • a Smythson notebook or passport holder • a Mont Blanc pen • Aspinal of London business card holders or iPad cases

the dominant colours in your wardrobe, as you want one that works with a number of pieces.

When wearing a scarf, keep earrings and other jewellery to a minimum to avoid elements fighting for attention.

Belts can lift an otherwise plain outfit; think of a ponyskin belt with jeans and a shirt, or a chain belt with a black, fluid shift dress. A monochrome suit for the office is instantly transformed by a skinny belt in a bright colour.

Turning to jewellery, an elegant watch and a pair of diamond stud earrings will take any well-dressed woman a long way. It’s also very modern to mix gold, silver and rose gold; don’t be afraid to combine and layer your pieces (without going overboard).

Turning to hosiery, nude matte tights or stockings are essential as we move from spring through to summer. And no shine, please – you are not a showgirl, and they make legs look heavier. Invest in the best: Wolford Naked 8’s are fantastic, sheer and transparent, with a sandal toe. If you do go bare-legged, exfoliate, moisturise and give your skin some help; MAC face and body foundation is great for this.

Brooches are often overlooked and can add a fun vintage vibe to hats, scarves or cardigans.

Hats can make a stunning statement, but people tend to either be a ‘hat person’ or not (I am, by the way). If you want to give them a try, bring a friend and take photos to find the shape and height that works for you. Please, please avoid pastel-coloured stiff straw hats (the bane of wedding season), which look frumpy and are instantly ageing.

Both men and women can also add individuality through other accessories and small leathers, for example pens, notebooks, glasses cases and business card holders. All of these details say something about you and contribute to your ‘bigger picture’.

“Before leaving the house, remove one accessory” Coco Chanel

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{ SECRET SUSSEX }

SECRET SUSSEX VIRTUALLY FABULOUS

O

ur world has increasingly moved to the virtual and we have rapidly, in most cases, become aware that what we say personally on-line will be there forever.

Ironically, in business, if we say too little we don’t get noticed. It’s a fine balancing act that many companies have not definitively cracked, and, as they say, ‘If you can’t do it, find someone who can!’

They have popped up all over the place.

Companies that can deal with all your social media needs, even if you don’t know what they are, and take all the confusion away, but, in reality, it is a minefield comprising those who can and those who just say they can.

One company that certainly can is Callisto Associates. Founded by the captivating Sophia Lee-Spencer, Callisto is a marketing communications company (Marcomms, apparently) who specialise on working with

owner managed businesses of all sizes and individuals such as coaches and consultants to position their brand for optimum growth.

The Callisto team get to know your business and then coordinate the brand message across all platforms that interact with the stakeholders.

But it’s more than that.

Sophia and her team work on all aspects of SM, press releases, seminars and events. They even have a division that prepares their clients for business awards.

We caught up with Sophia to ask how this all came about. “I chose to get into the business of helping others promote their brands for two reasons, actually. Firstly, I love the passion that fires people who manage their own businesses and, secondly, I love a story. That’s what Marcomms is all about – how to tell a story so that it captures the imagination. I do it because I love words, language, stories and business and I found a great way to combine them!”

“I was an early adopter of social media, both for my personal use and for business and I’m fascinated by the speed at which it has exploded into our daily lives. It has also evened up the marketing playing field for small businesses or those with lower marketing budgets, and I get a kick out of enabling my clients to maximise the opportunities that SM presents. I’d never say it’s free marketing – I’m not sure there is such a thing – but it’s certainly much cheaper than radio or TV advertising.”

Callisto seem to have found that perfect

balance of having an in-depth knowledge of the on-line world, the ability to relate their passion to the client, and understand that small companies do not have huge budgets to throw at the matter.

Every company needs a sound, well thought out virtual presence, but it takes trust to place one’s ‘baby’ into the hands of an external company in a world that is changing so rapidly that one wonders if anyone can really keep pace.

“I love a story. That’s what Marcomms is all about – how to tell a story so that it captures the imagination” A few minutes with Sophia and you know that this is one of those companies that a steady succession of business owners park their babies with. Her enthusiasm is infectious: “Callisto Associates creates great content that helps our clients to engage with their target audience and generate more business. We provide

Callisto Associates www.callistoassociates.com

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{ SECRET SUSSEX }

“I was an early adopter of social media, both for my personal use and for business and I’m fascinated by the speed at which it has exploded into our daily lives”

better engagement with clients and staff, more revenue from happy customers and freedom to concentrate on your business.”

“For me it all comes back to the story. People triumphing over adversity, people discovering unknown talents, people achieving their dreams, and it is these stories that I hear whenever I speak to people who manage the businesses they own. It is amazing actually; people will show you a side of themselves they would rarely show a stranger and tell you the most intimate details of their lives when they talk about their businesses.

They share their passion, and that makes it easy for me to hear their unique voice and understand what sets them apart from their competition.”

Callisto is a moon of Jupiter and perhaps this is an apt name for a team that deals with companies’ ‘out-of-this-world experiences’, or the virtual world, as it might better be known.

Galileo Galilei got there first in 1610, but it looks like Sophia now claims it as her own.

“People triumphing over adversity, people discovering unknown talents, people achieving their dreams” 121

{ WISE WORDS }

Words

Issue 11 Wise

By Jonathan Dolding, Head of Marketing Let’s Do Business www.letsdobusinessgroup.co.uk

DON’T LOOK TO BLAME Sydney, August 2000. So there I was living in Australia – the Olympics just round the corner.

Sun and surf. Sydney languishing just outside the top 150 most expensive cities to live in (oh, how times have changed). Life was rosy, or so I thought!

Within 2 weeks – the day before the Olympic flame was to be carried down my road - I was on a plane back to London, heading for the first of what would be many appointments at the Royal Marsden. Operation, scans, x-rays, endless blood tests and chemotherapy followed.

It was a tough old year - tough for me, as well as my immediate family, friends, colleagues. A lot of emotions surfaced in the early days, and, in all honesty, I looked to blame someone or something. It took me a while to realise that it wasn’t anyone’s fault.

WE CANNOT CHANGE THE CARDS WE ARE DEALT In his final lecture, the late American professor Randy Pausch said, “We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” Life is messy. It’s not always black and

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white. There’s plenty of grey thrown in there too.

A bad hand will hit us all at some stage in life – be it in our personal or professional lives.

I learned to accept the present moment, much of which was totally out of my control.

During my illness, well-meaning “experts” tended to appear from every point of the compass.

Advice on the cause, alternative treatments, my diet and lifestyle were commonplace, some of which were helpful, others less so.

“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand”

DON’T OVERREACT Another important lesson. Others will always want to have a say. I recognised that they had my

best interests at heart and I began to realise that my job was to accept that was just the way people were. I tried not to get too worked up about it and became a dab hand at knowing when to say, “Thanks very much – that’s very kind of you.”

I made a conscious decision not to overanalyse.

When you try to rationalise and analyse every last detail, it can leave you going round in circles and paralysed by inactivity, making the job before you of coming to terms with the situation ever more difficult. I had to keep my focus and accept that I was at one of the best hospitals in the world, receiving the best advice and treatment from some of the best minds.

Almost a decade and a half on, my visits to Fulham Road and Sutton are no more. I’m as fit and healthy as a 40-year-old can be and am staring at the next chapter in my life. Bad hands will continue to be dealt to us, to some of us many times over. Sometimes there’s no one to blame.

ACCEPT THE SITUATION. Seek wise counsel and keep your focus.

All the best for your journey.

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