PLATINUM BUSINESS MAGAZINE

The widest-read business publication in the South East

PLATINUM

SUSSEX EDITION . ISSUE 22 . 2016

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH

SURINDER ARORA BUSINESS TRAVEL Shake hands in... Dubai

DMH STALLARD CSR at its best

PLATINUM

GATWICK DIAMOND BUSINESS AWARDS The results are in

THE BIG STORY

TABLE TALK

New Sussex Food and Drink Feature Wining & Dining across the region

BARACK OBAMA

Yesterday’s Man?

READ ALL PAST ISSUES AT WWW.PLATINUMBUSINESSMAGAZINE.COM

Corporate & Commercial Banking

That’s not just £400,000 of extra finance, that’s another 15 people on your workforce.

Our relationship managers are sector specialists.

So they understand when you need financial support and the difference it can make.

Search: NatWest Commercial Banking Call: 0800 529 8069 Text relay: 18001 0800 529 8069 Open Mon-Fri 9am to 5.30pm

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BMW Business Partnership

THE NEW BMW 7 SERIES. DRIVING LUXURY.

The new BMW 7 Series incorporates exquisitely crafted design, enhanced levels of comfort and an extensive range of pioneering technology, which have all led to it being hailed as the most innovative car in its class.

With CO2 emissions on the BMW 730d model from just 124g/km and fuel economy of up to 60.1mpg (combined), this model offers attainable luxury for your fleet.

Business rates available for the new BMW 7 Series. For more information, contact us on 01293 831 347 or www.vinesofgatwickbmw.co.uk

VINES OF GATWICK

Stephenson Way Three Bridges RH10 1TN Official fuel economy figures for the new BMW 7 Series Saloon range: Urban 24.8-51.4mpg (11.4-5.5l/100km).

Extra Urban 45.6-67.3mpg (6.2-4.2l/100km). Combined 34.9-60.1mpg (8.1-4.7l/100km). CO2 emissions 189-124g/km.

Figures may vary depending on driving style and conditions.

WELCOME

24

THE BIG STORY BARACK OBAMA Do nice guys finish last?

10 71 44 50

GRAY MATTERS Interview with the MD of NatWest Commercial Banking

TABLE TALK Food and Drink across the region

BUSINESS TRAVEL Shake hands in ….Dubai

Spring is in the air as is the Project Fear referendum but we will keep our powder dry on that until next month when we will bring you a major feature with comment and opinion from across the spectrum and across the region. Leading CEO’s will give their opinion and effectively vote in our next issue.

In this issue we launch our brand new Food and Drink section entitled Table Talk. For those with a thirst there is Bar Fly, with news on wines and Champagnes from leading experts. We chat with one of our leading vineyard owners, profile an award winning chef and review restaurants and hotels. We have only just got started but we hope you enjoy it.

But upwards and onwards with another spectacular issue of news and views: Andy Gray, Managing Director of Commercial Banking at NatWest and RBS, chats about the size of the job and the possible effects of the referendum, Kreston Reeves discuss outsourcing your accounts and DMH Stallard offer a view into their CSR activities.

The Business Travel Section continues apace with a focus on Dubai, Global Travel Management bring you news on the accessibility of private jets and we have an exclusive interview with hotel magnate, Surinder Arora.

Not only hotels but now the redevelopment of central Crawley.

Anger Management warns about bears and our intrepid motoring editor puts himself out again, howling around the region in a variety of automobiles and scaring small children.

Our Big Story this month brings you a profile on President Obama as he nears retirement.

As we go to print we have just returned, somewhat groggy, from the Gatwick Diamond Business Awards night, a splendidly organised black tie event, and we have all the results with the images of the evening.

There is so much more that we think at this point you should start reading.

Maarten & Ian ARORA HOTELS Interview with CEO Surinder Arora

Platinum Business Magazine, Sussex April 2016 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

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be reproduced without prior written consent from the publisher.

No responsibility is taken for unsolicited materials or the return of

MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER The world’s greenest SUV?

these materials whilst in transit.

Platinum Business Magazine is published and owned

by Platinum Business Publications Limited.

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Issue 22 - 2016

The Team

Maarten Hoffmann – Director maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07966 244046

AT A GLANCE 6 10

Local News

13

Lewes District Business Awards Launch

14

Entrepreneurial Spark – Start-up Sparks

16

Young Start-up – Palace of Potential

17 19

Meet the Buyers

Amanda Menahem Food & Drink Editor

Rose Dykins Travel Editor

Nick Hall Sales Director

nick@ platinumbusinessmagazine.com

Hannah Monkcom Staff Reporter

Lauren Psyk Event Photographer

Prowse – Take Time for some R&R

20 24

National News

32

Kreston Reeves – A Calculated Outsourcing of Accounts

Ian Trevett – Director ian@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07989 970804

Amanda Spicer Senior Designer

NatWest – Gray Matters

The Big Story – Barack Obama

34

Lloyds Bank – Lloyds Help Production

36

Gatwick Diamond Business Awards – The results are In!

Geneva International Motor Show

64

Motoring – Peugeot 508 SW GT

65 66

Motoring – Audi S1

68

Burt Brill & Cardens – Second Marriages

70 71 72

Meet Yourself Healthy

74

Table Talk Chef Profile – Steven Edwards

77 78

Bar Fly – Wine School

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Table Talk Producer Profile – The Ridgeview Winery

80 85

Here to Stay

89

Celebrating the Super Growers

90

Business Networking – You never know where it will lead...

Motoring – Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

Introducing Table Talk Table Talk Review – The Curry Leaf Cafe

Table Talk Events – Spring Harvest

University of Portsmouth – Masters learn from Masters

41 42

Travel News

44

Shake Hands in....

Dubai

50

Interview – A very successful mistake – Surinder Arora

91

Chestnut Tree House – Networking at the Grand – March 2016

54

Corporate Social Responsibility – Breaking Down the Barriers

93

Business Scene – the Platinum Business Club

56

Beacon - A Beacon of Security

94

Platinum Style – Style Icons

58

Carpenter Box – Accountants in the Cloud...?

Global Travel Management – Flights of Fancy

60

Anger Management – Beware the Bear

62

Motoring – The 86th

97 Chamber Pages 104 Secret Sussex –

There’s nothing fishy about their corporate events

106 Institute of Directors – Less Means More?

5

NEWS

LOCAL NEWS THE 50TH BRIGHTON FESTIVAL The full programme for the 50th Brighton Festival - the largest and most established curated annual multi-arts festival in England – taking place between the 7th and the 29th of May 2016 has now been unveiled with experimental artist and musician Laurie Anderson as Guest Director.

Renowned for her inventive use of technology, Anderson is one of America’s most daring creative pioneers. In roles as varied as artist, composer, poet, photographer, filmmaker, vocalist and instrumentalist, she has been experimenting, creating and challenging audiences all over the world for almost as long as Brighton Festival has existed.

Anderson takes the helm as Brighton Festival marks its milestone 50th year of commissioning and producing innovative arts and culture by exploring the theme of ‘home and place’ across its 2016 programme.

Compiled by Hannah Monkcom

THE GRAND RUN THE MARATHON

The team at The Grand Brighton have raised £2800 for Rockinghorse Children’s Charity, the official fundraising arm of the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, through running a successful Brighton half marathon on Sunday 28 February.

The 26th Vitality Brighton Half Marathon saw seven members of The Grand Brighton take part in the 13.1 mile run, as well as coming third in the corporate relay, racing against 10 other Brighton businesses and raising £275 in aid of the Sussex Beacon.

MAJOR MERGER Leading accountancy firms Kreston Reeves and Spofforths are planning to merge, with effect from 1 June 2016, creating one of the largest accountancy and financial advisory firms in the South-East from two of its longest established practices.

This is a major step to create a new firm offering clients a greater depth of resource and breadth of service, with additional sector expertise. It will also provide a stronger base upon which to develop a range of new services to meet changing business needs.

Nigel Fright, Managing Partner of Kreston Reeves, said: “We are delighted by the prospect of this merger, which reflects our mutual ambition to expand in the South-East.

Spofforths is a successful firm that shares our values and strong personal commitment to clients.

“Together, the new firm will be able to offer our people better career opportunities, retaining yet developing the teams we know our clients value. We see great potential in joining together in an evolving market where standing still is not an option.

“The result will be a fuller, more innovative, more integrated accounting, business advisory and financial planning service, delivered by 55 partners and more than 450 staff, spread across 10 locations in the South East. Crucially, it will expand our international reach, which was at the heart of Kreston Reeves’ own renaming in 2015.”

Richard Spofforth, Managing Partner of Spofforths for the past six years, said: “The merger is being undertaken by both firms from a position of strength, with each bringing skills and experience to the other. It’s going to be an exciting time for all of us: it’s a joint step forward and together we’re going to build a firm for the future that responds to all the changes around us.

“Our clients will continue to be looked after by the people they have always known. What will change is an increase in the depth and breadth of services we can offer.”

“The only safe ship in a storm is leadership.”

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NEWS

“I’m a leader not a follower.

Unless it’s a dark place, then you are going first.”

TO GIVE OR NOT TO GIVE Supermarket giant ASDA has done a dramatic u-turn that will see the return of permanent collection points for food banks and other charities in Sussex.

Collection points were being removed across the country, and some foodbanks said that this would threaten 25% of their supplies.

Howard Wardle, Operations Director at Eastbourne Foodbank, had said the move was “disappointing” and called on ASDA to rethink, saying it would harm vulnerable people.

A Facebook petition was signed by more than 88,000 people and now the supermarket has announced the changes will not go ahead.

Mr Wardle said: “We are obviously pleased at this change of heart, not least because it means we will be able to continue helping so many people.

There is no doubt that a great deal of pressure was placed on ASDA, and to their credit they have listened and realised that they needed to change their mind. Local people were shocked at what was seen as a very negative move. It is very important to people who want to give to others less well off, and these collection points serve a great purpose. In Eastbourne alone, we support more than 750 people each month – these collection points are so vital to society today.”

COPHALL PARKING GATWICK for the owners of Cophall Parking Gatwick Ltd, which involved the sale of the

THE SOUTH EAST WINS AGAIN

business and site to Group First, the investment arm of Park First, who are

Leading South East

renowned for their world-class airport car parks.

financial planners

Cophall Parking Gatwick, a family business with three decades’ experience

Skerritts has been

in providing sophisticated car parking solutions at Gatwick Airport, was

awarded the prestigious

approached by Group First in December 2015 who expressed an interest in

New Model Advisor

buying the business with its quality reputation and excellent position at Gatwick.

(NMA) Award for the sixth

DMH Stallard was first instructed to manage the deal just before Christmas and

consecutive year.

successfully completed the sale on 29th February 2016.

The awards recognise the

Jonathan Grant, the Partner at DMH Stallard responsible for managing the sale,

best financial planning

Award-winning Sussex law firm DMH Stallard has completed a significant deal

explained: “We have a great working relationship with Cophall Parking Gatwick, but that’s not to say that this project didn’t come with its challenges. The nature of the deal required the sale of both the business and the land, but required careful planning to preserve an area of land for our client that neighboured the site sold. We also had to satisfy the buyer’s requirements for site access and

firms across the UK and gives them an opportunity to be rewarded for their progress during the previous year. The judges focus on income, profit and how firms operate.

The annual awards, which are run by Citywire, are split into eight regions nationwide and, despite stiff competition,

that our client had right of way over the retained land.

Skerritts was crowned the best in the South East region.

Emma Beasley from Cophall Parking Gatwick, commented: “We were delighted

The Skerritts team was delighted to receive the award for the

that DMH Stallard’s combined corporate and property teams were able to deliver

sixth time in a row, especially as only one previous winner had

this complex sale involving a number of connected property titles and a trading

been given the award for two consecutive years.

business, whilst preserving the full value of the deal.

Skerritts Managing Director, Richard Skerritt, said: “The

“We had no idea how difficult projects like this can be to coordinate. DMH

financial industry has invited bad publicity in the past because

Stallard supported us through the whole process and approached every query

of unscrupulous advisers and this led to a period of financial

and challenge positively, finding a solution for us quickly and efficiently. It was

advisers not being trusted. At Skerritts, we never wanted

very involved and at times quite stressful, so we were very thankful to have DMH Stallard in our corner. I certainly don’t think we could have done it without them.

If we ever need support again, I will certainly be instructing DMH Stallard.”

to be tarred with the same brush and the NMA Awards are all about doing things the right way. It shows our high level of professionalism and reflects our modern way of doing business. We want to do things differently and our customers stick with us because of that. We always try to be one step ahead of what’s coming and constantly re-evaluate our proposition.”

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NEWS

LOCAL NEWS

Compiled by Hannah Monkcom

ISIS TARGETS SUSSEX BUSINESS Hackers supporting the Islamic State group launched an attack on a small solar energy company in Sussex with just 11 members of staff.

The so-called Caliphate Cyber Army (CCA) said it took down the Solar UK site in revenge for a drone strike, which killed Junaid Hussain, a British hacker in Syria.

It later released a video that boasted of its attack on the firm.

Duncan Lee, a founder of Solar UK, said: “I’m not expecting masked gunmen to appear on my doorstep at any point soon,” he said.

Birmingham-born Junaid Hussain was described as a “top cyber jihadist” and played a key role in radicalising and recruiting others to plan attacks.

The initial cyber attack on Solar UK happened at the end of January, when the company discovered its website was down and replaced with CCA material.

Mr Lee said: “We just thought, ‘ah well, we’ve been hacked, fair enough’. We didn’t know we were on a video at that stage.”

Mr Lee later learned his company featured on a CCA video, which also showed beheadings. The video boasted about recent hacks on other organisations and firms.

“We were number 11 on the list. Can you believe it? Ridiculous,” Mr Lee said.

Mr Lee said the Solar UK site was down for about two and a half hours and the offending IP address had been traced to Kuwait.

He believes his company, based in Battle, East Sussex, was targeted by a search robot trawling the internet looking for websites with a particular vulnerability.

ALBION HOTEL Albion’s proposals for a 150-bed hotel and cancer treatment centre next to the AMEX stadium have been turned down by Brighton and Hove City Council – and the applicant said “we won’t be back”.

Council officers advised the planning committee to refuse the application over the design, and a row over financial contributions.

Speaking to the committee Martin Perry, chief executive of Albion Sports and Leisure Limited said: “The hotel is designed by the same people who designed the stadium. We’ve had overwhelming support, no objection from Lewes and no objections from Falmer residents. We already have planning permission on the site for a car park. Which is better, a hotel or a sea of tarmac? If this application is refused – we won’t be back, we can’t.”

But the plans were turned down, after five councillors voted in support of the scheme, and five against. Councillor Julie Cattell, chair of the planning committee, had the casting vote, and sided with officers.

Sue Dubberley, planning officer, said: “One of the issues is the design. The stadium was carefully designed to nestle into the curves of the surrounding South Downs. The rectangular and linear form of the hotel would distract from the stadium.”

There was also an issue over the section 106 agreement – financial contributions from developers. The city council requested £108,250 from developers for transport and a Local Employment Scheme, but this figure had been reduced to £45,000. Ms Dubberley said the two parties had still not come to and agreement, and that conversations with the agent suggested developers believed they had already made significant contributions from the stadium development.

Albion had hopes the hotel could be open by next September, and has already entered into a franchise agreement with Starwoods Hotels to open the resort under it’s Aloft brand.

“Rank does not confer privilege or give power. It imposes responsibility.”

8

NEWS

“The question who ought to be boss is like who ought to be the tenor in the quartet? Obviously, the man who can sing tenor.”

SAVE WORTHING BIRDMAN The famous Birdman event has had its wings clipped after organisers said they could no longer afford to keep it running.

The Worthing Town Centre Initiative (WTCI) have announced it would no longer be organising the Worthing International Birdman contest which sees daredevils diving off the town’s pier with impromptu flying machines.

There are calls for action to find a way to save the beloved competition, which now has a funding gap of around £70,000.

Town crier and councillor Bob Smytherman said: “This has been an amazing asset to the town over the last eight years bringing international recognition to Worthing thanks to the Worthing Town Centre Initiative. I now hope urgent discussions can be held to explore ways of funding the event for 2016 to keep the Birdman in town.”

Chris Spratt, chairman of the WTCI, said they “deliberated at length over whether or not to step aside” but felt the costs were now disproportionate especially in the absence of a big sponsor.

WTCI is a not for profit company which works to raise money from businesses in an effort to market the town, employing a town centre manager, funding the town’s Christmas lights and previously running the ice rink.

The Birdman contest has been run by WTCI for eight years after it was moved from neighbouring Bognor when the town’s pier faced repairs for structural damage.

Councillor Daniel Humphreys, leader of Worthing Borough Council, said: “It is a shame and particularly for the people who have worked really hard for the past eight years, I feel sorry for them after all their effort. I would not be against a business coming and sponsoring it to keep it going.”

OUR VERY OWN Our very own style columnist Samantha Wilding of Style & Grace is hosting an event at Langshott Manor near Gatwick on April 25th. Entitled Dressing for the Occasion, Samantha will talk about the subject followed by a Q&A, drinks reception and a delicious 2-course lunch. There are goody bags for attendees and at £45, pretty good value too. To book your place, go to sales@ langshottmanor. com

MOTHERS RUIN A company founded in a director’s mother’s house has been slapped with a £350,000 fine after a regulator found the worst case of illegal calling it had ever seen.

Louis Kidd, 27, launched Prodial Limited in November 2014 from his mother’s house in Catherine Vale, Woodingdean, before selling it on to business partner Phil Carrington for £40,000.00 in July.

During its last three months of trading it turned over £100,000 a month before the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) stepped in to investigate.

As a result of the investigation, Prodial - a lead generation firm responsible for over 46 million automated nuisance calls – was handed the biggest ever fine issued by the ICO. Christopher Graham, Information Commissioner said: “The volume of calls made in just a few months was staggering. This was a company that knew it was breaking the law. A company director admitted that once the ICO became involved, the company shut down. That stopped the calls, but we want to send a clear message to other firms that this type of law breaking will not pay. That is why we have handed out our highest ever fine.

No matter what companies do to try to avoid the law, we will find a way to act.”

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INTERVIEW

GRAY MATTERS

Andy Gray

Andy Gray, Managing Director, Head of Corporate and Commercial Coverage for NatWest and RBS, on the state of UK business, the referendum, and the resurrection of Williams & Glyn.

Your remit is for the UK. How do you manage such a diverse collection of regions each with their own individual issues?

My business covers the commercial and corporate segments across the UK, from Orkney and Shetland down to Devon and

and colour. I’ve got a very big business in Manchester, which has different needs to the North East or the South West of England, so I’m interested in the whole of the UK performing well. Aberdeen is having a tough time because of oil and gas, and the Northern Irish economy is structurally quite different in terms of public sector and agriculture and food processing

Cornwall and across to Northern Ireland. I

being the dominant elements. So you get some

have six Regional Managing Directors who

regional differences, but my business wants

are very senior bankers in their territories. I

and needs to see business succeeding across

spend a lot of time travelling around, trying to

the whole of the UK.

In general, how is UK business faring?

We’ve had a decent couple of years in terms of growth, seeing business invest a bit more – that manifests for us in terms of lending growth. We’ve worked hard to generate that appetite for getting people back investing and growing, which clearly is one of the wider challenges for the UK economy. I think times are uncertain at the moment, and getting on with running a business, and with investing are challenges for some people just now.

see what we’re doing well, what we could do

The South East is pretty resilient. Being

better and how the business is performing.

so close to London has its downside, but on

Clearly, there are some big regional differences

balance the access to a huge and vibrant

in terms of the makeup of the local economy

market, and the trickle-down from that, is

and prosperity. But we’re the market leader in

very helpful. You get the benefit from a highly

most areas, and with that market share comes

educated population; it’s a place to which

both opportunity and an obligation to support

people will happily migrate, either domestically

that this is a political decision and we are not

business.

or internationally, because the quality of life is

taking a campaigning position. Our number

good.

one priority is to support our customers

I’m always interested in local dynamics

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Do you see the referendum on 23rd June as one of those uncertainties?

Where do you stand on the debate?

Certainly. As an organisation we recognise

INTERVIEW

irrespective of the outcome of the vote.

However, from what many analysts are saying, if the UK votes to leave, there would be a detrimental economic impact, at least in the immediate years following such a vote.

Clearly as the biggest bank for business, this is significant. What we’ve said is that we haven’t seen any evidence that shows there would be any economic benefits in the short to medium term.

So while we are not seeking to influence how people plan to vote, we are and will continue to contribute to the debate and highlight some of the implications and economic impacts for our business and our customers. But obviously this is just one issue out of many that people will be considering before taking a position.

Are British companies exporting enough? Is that something you’re looking to encourage more of?

We’ve got good capability around financing export and educating companies around

Gary Chown speaking at the Connecting for Growth lunch said that the UK has got this cracked.

We are seeing lending growth and we are

exports. I think if you look at the UK

seeing a lot of start-up activity, but it’s still hard

economy since the financial crisis, there

to see what the trajectory will be. Post-financial

have been some really good stories of

crisis there definitely was a big increase in

exporting and innovations, but I think there’s

lifestyle start-ups, with the mind-set: “I’ve got

a whole lot more we can do and need to do.

There are long-term issues in terms of the human capital and the skills base we have, particularly for high-value, high-technology manufacturing. There are concerns about whether we have sufficient people with the capability to drive that growth. I think there have been some really good initiatives around that but there is more to do.

This gets us critically into the productivity challenge. I see manufacturing as an engine of growth, and the multiplier effect from manufacturing fuels into exports. We do have some fantastic natural competitive advantages in areas like financial and professional services and we should continue to support and develop these.

There are various uncertainties at the

a skills set and I’m going to employ myself and maybe one or two people, but am not aspiring for huge growth. I’ll stay where I am because I can manage that risk; that’s not risking my future.” One of the challenges for the economy was that risk aversion; we need to be in a place where people are prepared to take the bolder, braver entrepreneurial decision, the investment decision.

The Entrepreneurial Spark programme tackles some of these issues...

The support in Entrepreneurial Spark is critical. In lots of walks of life you don’t expect people to do something the first time and to do it brilliantly, so we are putting in some

moment that create natural risk aversion.

investment, but critically we give access to

Small companies can think, “We’re doing okay

an awful lot of people who can help these

by selling within the UK. Exporting is a bit

entrepreneurs succeed.

risky.” It’s a natural constraining force. Part of

The unintended benefit has been our staff

our role, along with other professional services

getting involved and actually seeing what

such as the Chambers and the UKTI, is to try

it’s like to be a start-up. Our employees now

and break down the barriers and tackle the

think a bit more entrepreneurially about every

uncertainty. It’s not fixed yet; I’d be deluded if I

opportunity.

What’s the future for the bank over the next couple of years?

From my perspective the key challenges are supporting our customers through lending and being relevant and proactive and having insightful, quality conversations. Our size means that we see a lot of things; we have a great deal of information and we’ve been working hard over the last year or so to deploy that quicker and better to our relationship bankers so that they can then share insight, share understanding and ask the probing questions of our customers.

Poor lending and slack criteria is what got us into the financial crisis, or it certainly was a big contributor to the financial crisis and subsequent economic recession. So I would strongly resist the idea that banks should not have clear and disciplined criteria for how they lend. I think inevitably there will be situations where potential customers want to borrow money from us but don’t meet our criteria, and I think that will always be the case.

The issue we have been dealing with is customers coming to the conclusion that there was no point in asking because banks didn’t lend, before they even asked the question.

There was a very unhelpful macro narrative saying that “Banks don’t lend,” and therefore businesses stopped asking. We’ve worked hard over the last two to three years to change our mind-set to one of “We want you out there

11

INTERVIEW lending money, seeking opportunities.”

Last year my business issued 12,500 customers with statements of appetite – that is, for non-borrowers, an appetite to lend to them if they want to borrow, or the offer of a significant increase in the amount we would lend them over and above what they currently borrow.

We’ve got some great stories of relationship managers going out to customers and saying, “Here is a statement of appetite for £1 million. What would you do if you could borrow this? What difference would it make to your business, to your plans, to your growth in terms of productivity, in terms of growth, in terms of efficiency if you could invest £1 million?” It is part of our role in the economic ecosystem to make sure that we are deploying our capital effectively and using that to create prosperity for our customers and the wider community.

RBS was required by the EU to divest a portion of its business, which will now become Williams & Glyn. How is this process progressing?

We have a legal obligation, based on the EU ruling from a number of years ago, to divest ourselves of the Williams & Glyn franchise. RBS remains committed to full divestment by the end of 2017, although it continues to face significant challenges and risks in separating the Williams & Glyn business, some of which may only emerge as various separation process phases are progressed.

We are working through the technology changes to make it a vibrant and effective competitor. We’ve always said that the separation timetable should allow us to be absolutely sure that all of our systems and processes are thoroughly tested and robust. We will only complete separation when we know we’re ready to do so for our customers. As a bank, we are spending a lot of time making sure we execute and deliver on that.

I work pretty closely with Jim Brown, who is the CEO of Williams & Glyn, and his team to make sure we are doing what is necessary and appropriate to deliver a divested Williams & Glyn. We’ve made good progress to date. We submitted our banking licence application and we continue to work with the PRA and FCA towards obtaining this banking licence and separating from RBS. We need to be fully focused on our customers and on delivering our strategy for RBS and NatWest to become the UK’s favourite Retail and Commercial bank by running, simplifying and separating the bank. It’s very much about continuing to put our customers first.

CONNECTING FOR GROWTH

Above and right, pictures from the Connecting for Growth lunch

12

Andy Gray was the headline speaker at a Connecting for Growth lunch held at the Long Room at Sussex County Cricket Club. Organised by Gary Chown, NatWest Director of Corporate & Commercial Banking, the event brought together business leaders, charities and politicians to discuss ways in which business growth can be encouraged and facilitated.

BUSINESS AWARDS

LEWES DISTRICT BUSINESS AWARDS LAUNCH FREE TO ENTER

T

he Lewes District Business Awards are now open for business following a launch at Lewes House in March. Celebrating excellence amongst the district’s business community, the awards are free to enter and open to organisations of all sizes and sectors.

The awards create a fantastic opportunity for many different types of businesses to come together and celebrate the success of the district’s business talent and achievement.

Leader of Lewes District Council, Councillor Andy Smith, said: “Following the huge success of the last two years, the Lewes District Business Awards continue to go from strength to strength.

“We would like to urge all businesses

across the district to put themselves forward, no matter how small or large, as we believe every business should shout about its successes.”

For the third year, Hugh Burnett OBE, DL, FCA will chair the judging panel.

Applicants can be entered online at www.lewesdistrictbusinessawards. co.uk. Businesses can enter up to three categories, and the deadline for submissions is 4 May at 17:00.

The awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, 14 July at the Lewes Town Hall.

Around 200 of the district’s leading businesspeople, sponsors and judges are expected to attend, giving guests the perfect opportunity to network with peers, celebrate with colleagues and find out those all-important results!

All sponsors with Andy and Ruth

Platinum Business Magazine and Basepoint

The Categories • Company of the Year - sponsored by Santon North Street • Small Business of the Year - sponsored by Swindells • Businessperson of the Year - sponsored by Cheesmur Building Contractors

• • • • • • • • •

LEAP Entrepreneur of the Year - sponsored by LEAP Best Business Growth - sponsored by Platinum Business Magazine Business in the Community - sponsored by Brooklyn Hyundai Best Green Business - sponsored by Veolia Hospitality, Leisure & Tourism - sponsored by Harveys & Sons Ltd Best Independent Retailer - sponsored by Viva Lewes Best Customer Service - Sponsored by Cavendish Communications Best International Business - sponsored by Basepoint Best Employer - sponsored by Richard Soan Roofing Services

The Awards are supported by Peacehaven Chamber of Commerce, Seaford Chamber of Commerce, Newhaven Chamber of Commerce, Lewes Chamber of Commerce, Locate East Sussex and The Argus.

A table from last year’s event

M A G A Z I N E S

www.lewesdistrictbusinessawards.co.uk 13

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

START-UP SPARKS

Entrepreneurial Spark ‘chiclets’ excel at the Brighton Young Start-Up Talent contest

S

EALIFE Brighton, with the help of Avensys AV, played host to Young Startup Talent’s eagerly anticipated Brighton

and Hove showcase, where it was revealed

by some 34 local businesses to the winning

“It’s been really interesting to see the variety

entrepreneur each year in order to kick start

of personalities and business ideas develop

their business.

from the beginning through to the final process,

Gary Chown of NatWest, judge and headline

which has all been very impressive.”

from the glass bottom boat that University of

sponsor of the initiative, said, “I’m thrilled to

The Sealife Centre arcade was occupied

Sussex student (and Entrepreneurial Spark

see such a high standard of businesses enter

with contestants’ impressive industry stands,

Chiclet) Nick Musto has been awarded this

this year. This truly stands as a testament

created with the help of YST sponsor Face

year’s £50k prize fund.

to the fantastic young talent we have across

Media Group. Jim Cunliffe, Director, Face

Brighton and Hove and we look forward to

Media, said, “This is our first time working with

working with Nick.”

Young Start-up Talent, and it’s been fantastic.

The 22-year-old, whose app Radar is designed to allow students to save money on nights out, said, “The process has been

The process for Nick and the other finalists

What we offered each of the contestants was

incredible. I’ve learnt so much and had a blast.

got serious back in December 2015 when

a print pack to support them for the showcase,

This is an app made by students for students.

applicants where whittled down to eight

so we’ve been working closely with them and

I’m very proud.”

promising hopefuls who participated in a

have really learnt a lot about their businesses.

The initiative, which is aimed at 16-25-year-

speed networking event, where the young

They’ve been absolutely fantastic.” Among the

olds who want to start up their own businesses,

entrepreneurs took the plunge and faced

finalists were:

gives away a £50k prize fund worth of business

a group of business professionals. Dan

• Sussex University students Joseph Chan

products and services, which are donated

Simpson of Hartley Fowler and judge said,

14

and Phillip Streicher, who branded the

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

“I’m thrilled to see such a high standard of businesses enter this year.

This truly stands as a testament to the fantastic young talent we have across Brighton and Hove...” experience “Extremely inspiring,” entered the initiative with Augmind, a company trying to make affordable and portable neurofeedback to treat ADHD and anxiety; • Jasper Menzies, who came to the den with his product, JazPouch, a multi-purpose, custom, handmade leather pocket pouch.

• Aadam Patel, the youngest contestant at 14, and an Entrepreneurial Spark ‘chiclet’, stormed the Den with his business, Chit Chat Celebrations, which publishes and distributes quality greeting cards and crackers for all faiths and cultures.

• BACA students Jordan Back, Tristan Kibble, Callum Sexton and Robbie Down were passionate about using their business to educate the gaming community through video games themselves.

Supporting their fellow entrepreneurs were YST alumni and finalists from across the South East. Nicky Salazar from PSD Ice Art, who provided an outstanding Ice Sculpture for the evening, said, “I’m pleasantly surprised by the talent of the young people, their ideas, enthusiasm and just how mature they are for their years. Seeing these young, smart people wanting to set up their own businesses is very encouraging to others.”

Guest speakers for the night delivered their speeches beside some of the aquarium’s most majestic creatures from the famous glass bottom boat. Speakers included Ben Towers, listed recently as No1 Teen Entrepreneur in the Times, Martin Hess, Director of Hewlett Packard, and Max Leviston, General Manager of the Sealife Centre Brighton, who said, “I think entrepreneurial spirit is relevant everywhere. It’s great to encourage this kind of talent from the earliest age. It was really tough to come to our decision, but I’m really pleased with our worthy winner.”

Penina Shepherd of Acumen Business Law said, “It was a very difficult judging process; it wasn’t easy to find the winner because they were all brilliant. When the winner was announced it was great to see the joy along with the prospect of so many opportunities ahead of them.”

To find out more visit www.youngstartuptalent.co.uk.

You can download the Radar app today on android and iOS. (Radar: Brighton’s Best Guide).

APPLY FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK Entrepreneurial Spark is the world’s largest free business accelerator for early stage and growing ventures. Businesses in the ‘Hatchery’ receive free IT & Wi-Fi, access to business enablement and support from a pool of over 50 business mentors.

Applications are now open for the August 2016 take-up at Entrepreneurial Spark If you...

• Are a start-up, growing and scaling business with turnover up to £2m • Have been in business 4 years or less • Want to grow and scale and are open-minded and open to challenge, then Entrepreneurial Spark can boost your business.

Interested parties can apply at: http://portal.entrepreneurial-spark.com/ ESpark_Registration.aspx www.entrepreneurial-spark.com

15

YOUNG START-UP

PALACE OF POTENTIAL T

he entrepreneurial initiative for 16-25 year olds in business, Young Start-up Talent, has launched its first year in Chichester.

Councillor Gillian Keegan, Cabinet Member for Commercial

Services at Chichester District Council, said: “This is great news for young people across Chichester District. Young Start-Up Talent is such a worthwhile project and I am really pleased that it is expanding its work here in our district. It has already helped inspire many young people to develop their skills and set up their own businesses. I would urge young people across the area to find out more and see how it could change their lives.”

The launch took place in the charming grounds of the Bishops Palace in the Sherborne Room, famous for its beautifully painted ceiling. We heard from an array of inspirational speakers including: Revd Stephen Ferns of The Bishops Palace, Gary Shipton of Chichester Observer series, Stephanie

Sponsors/supporters and those in attendance at the launch event

Kane of STUDIO 14 and Cllr Eileen Lintill of Chichester District Council, who told the room, “We want to encourage students to stay in our district and create their own businesses.” The councillor went on to say, “I already feel very inspired from what I’ve heard today.”

The project has been running successfully across several other regions for the past six years and with the help of a grant from Chichester District Council and sponsorship from NatWest, Chichester Chamber of Commerce and the Chichester Observer is expanding into Chichester for 2016. With the region thriving with young people and talent, the initiative is thrilled at becoming a part of the entrepreneurial flair within Chichester.

Multi-award winning, and recently listed as No1 teen entrepreneur in the Times and non-executive director of Young Start-Up Talent, Ben Towers, featured in a video at the launch, said, “It’s great to be moving into Chichester, where there’s such a diverse mix of people. As we move into different regions we see different types of businesses and schools. By being able to access the students across Chichester we can really promote what YST is all about and demonstrate that everyone can benefit from it,

Charles Taylor - first entry from Bishop Luffa School

Stephanie Kane - Studio 14 - young entrepreneur and previous finalist

even if you do or don’t win the amazing prize fund.”

Past winner from the Croydon region and artist – Stephanie Kane of STUDIO 14 - served as a shining example of what the process can achieve.

Reflecting on her time with YST, the young talent said, “The whole process has been a huge bubble of support.” She said, “I look forward to meeting plenty of new talent and other like-minded young entrepreneurs.”

Gary Shipton of Chichester Observer, who has been a supporter and previous judge of the initiative for many years, said, “In my experience, every youngster who participates will find that necessary support and guidance from Young Start-Up Talent. There is something about the initiative that ignites a spark!” He went on to say, “I am proud to be a part of this initiative, where we can make such a difference.”

Chris Deans, of long-time sponsor NatWest, said, “Young Entrepreneurs need support. This is an opportunity to receive some superb guidance.”

This year is set to be an exciting one, with local businesses, schools and aspiring young entrepreneurs from the area already becoming involved in

Revd Stephen Ferns who spoke on behalf of the Bishops Palace

16

the initiative.

Cllr Eileen Lintell - Chichester District Council

To find out more, please visit: www.youngstartuptalent.co.uk

BUSINESS EVENT

MEET THE BUYERS

Gatwick Diamond provides vital link in the local supply chain

F

or small and medium enterprises, one of the biggest supply chain challenges is getting their products and services seen

Diamond Meet the Buyers event is the longestrunning event of its type in the UK and is

business.

ST*R Learning is a family business based in

sponsored by the Gatwick Diamond Initiative,

Oxted which specialises in work-based training,

by the right people within large companies.

Gatwick Airport, Crawley Borough Council,

development and consultancy and attended

The Gatwick Diamond Initiative has tackled

Horsham District Council, the Federation of

its first Gatwick Diamond Meet the Buyers

the issue head-on through its support of the

Small Businesses (FSB) and the Arora Hotel

event fourteen years ago, returning every year

highly successful annual Meet the Buyers

Gatwick/ Crawley.

since. Commercial Director, Carolle Thompson,

event, bridging the gap between large buyers

In attendance are the purchasing managers

explains: “The event provides a unique

and smaller suppliers to drive local economic

from some of the largest and most influential

opportunity to get in front of a wide range of

growth.

companies in the Gatwick Diamond, such as

high-quality buyers. The excellent organisation

Home to 45,000 businesses, the Gatwick

Gatwick Airport, Canon, Nestlé, Sony, Balfour

and atmosphere of the day never fails to open

Diamond is a powerhouse of the UK economy,

Beatty and Thales. Stewart Wingate, CEO of

up opportunities for ST*R Learning.” She

generating £22.3 billion in GDP. With access to

Gatwick Airport, explains: “The annual Gatwick

estimates that they have won new business

world-class skills and a highly supportive, open

Diamond Meet the Buyers event is an invaluable

business environment, the area has attracted

opportunity to forge relationships with new

many of the leading global brands as well as

suppliers and to build on relationships with our

a host of entrepreneurial, innovative smaller

current suppliers. Gatwick’s involvement over

enterprises.

the past fourteen years has generated greater

However, despite these natural advantages,

opportunities for local businesses to tap into

there is often a disconnect in the local supply

the benefits of the airport’s supply chain. The

chain, with small businesses revealing

chance to collaborate with regional partners

frustration at not being able to get their

in the Gatwick Diamond helps us play a

products and services in front of decision

positive role in the wider economy. The lead-in

makers within large companies. Rosemary

workshops, including the airport procurement

French, Executive Director at the Gatwick

seminar we’ll be hosting in June, help local

Diamond Initiative (the business-led

businesses to get the greatest benefit from the

partnership established to address the

event.”

economic needs of the area) explains: “Having

attendance at Meet the Buyers events.

Gatwick Diamond Meet the Buyers 2016 will take place on 14 July at the Arora Gatwick Hotel. For suppliers requiring help and advice preparing their pitch, a series of free supplier workshops will be taking place from April.

www.gatwickdiamondmeetthebuyers. co.uk.

At the 2015 Meet the Buyers event, 1,025

spoken to both large and small businesses

face-to-face sales meetings took place and

locally, it became apparent that many supply

research undertaken there found that 100% of

chain barriers could be broken down simply by

buyers expected to do business with suppliers

putting the right people together in a room –

they had met on the day. Over the past six

and so Meet the Buyers was born!”

years, 1,500 local businesses have attended,

Established in 2002, the annual Gatwick

worth almost half a million pounds from their

generating in excess of £22.5m in new

17

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RESEARCH

TAKE TIME FOR SOME R&R: Research and Reflection!

By Joanne Rogers, Managing Director, Prowse & Co. www.prowse.co.uk

Public Relations Marketing Events Research Economic Development

www.prowse.co.uk

It’s that time of year when we’ve seen increased demand for our research services, often from companies seeking to gain insight to inform their business plans, or from organisations needing to establish benchmarks for future programmes.

E

xperience has shown us that rigorous research and market insight should be at the heart of any operation, enabling

companies and organisations to anticipate

leader in the digital space by consumers and trade”. A big ambition for a small, but successful, global brand.

Our social media audit provided them with

establish a content plan or measure ROI! Research still has much value in traditional areas too. For example, with audiences becoming ever more influenced by their

the issues facing their clients and employees.

the information they needed to help make their

customer experiences, it is hugely important

From identifying a gap in the market to

goal a reality here in the UK market – and no,

for companies to understand how to deliver an

effective campaign management, research may

that didn’t mean drinking copious amounts of

excellent personalised service. The availability

be designed to enhance competitiveness and

their wines! We showed them how to increase

of online survey systems means that we can

achieve business objectives.

brand awareness and engagement in order to

now measure responses in real-time – there

attract, acquire and connect with their target

is no need to wait for an annual ‘super-survey’.

goes to those companies with the best

audiences online. The end result extended

However, the ability to identify trends still

research: those who make the most important

the effectiveness of their sales and marketing

applies as a key skill!

discoveries and those who exploit their ideas

activities, ultimately boosting sales.

In summary, here are three questions to consider:

It’s no surprise that success generally

most effectively. These companies drive progress, consistently applying innovation that results from research that’s designed to help develop new products and services.

Unfortunately, we don’t all have the luxury of R&D departments, but at a very practical level, research is becoming increasingly social, making real-time business intelligence accessible for firms of all sizes. Successful marketing is dependent upon preparation and forward thinking. By utilising all available tools, companies can prioritise resource in areas of growth.

For example, we recently conducted research for a wine brand whose digital vision

This type of research can be effective in any industry and in any geographic market. A social media audit can identify who and where your customers and prospects are online and what they are talking about. It also helps to create a content strategy which communicates stories

• Do I know how my customers feel about my products and services?

• Is our team fully engaged with our company’s vision and goals?

• Do I have an effective method for measuring

and messages that are relevant and engaging

social media success, so that I can

to your target audiences.

understand which channels are working and

I still find it interesting how many companies embark on social media programmes without really taking the time to consider their goals,

which aren’t?

If you don’t know the answers, perhaps it’s time for some R&R!

Prowse & Co. uses a variety of research methodologies, from focus groups to online surveys and social media audits. If you need to find insights to drive your business success, give us a call on 01372 363386 or email joanne@prowse.co.uk

was to be recognised “as the wine industry

19

NEWS

NATIONAL NEWS

Compiled by Hannah Monkcom

THE AA’S NEW B2B PARTNERSHIP The AA has signed a major new B2B partnership contract to provide roadside assistance to Lex Autolease, the London-based fleet management and fleet funding specialist.

The new three-year contract with the UK’s largest breakdown service will support Lex Autolease’s services, which it provides to around 300,000 vehicles.

Service in the UK will be provided by the AA’s 3,000 plus patrols and includes roadside assistance, recovery, incident management and European cover.

Bob Mackenzie, AA Executive Chairman, says: “Lex Autolease is the market leader in fleet management and is a fleet funding specialist, offering vehicle leasing for fleets of all sizes, and it is our job to help keep it that way. We are delighted to be providing its valued customers with year round peace of mind at the roadside. We have invested and continue to invest heavily in our business to provide state of the art dedicated operational support in the UK.” The Lex Autolease contract win will add to the AA’s B2B business which serves approximately ten million customers in total. Aside from fleet, leasing and hire companies, the B2B business covers three other categories.

One is an important relationship with Lex Autolease’s parent company Lloyds Banking Group to offer breakdown cover to added value account holders across the bank’s brands, including Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland.

In addition, the AA also serves automotive manufacturers representing close to 70% of the UK’s new car sales market, and also provides breakdown cover to insurance companies who offer the service in addition to the core insurance offer to customers.

HIGHEST RANKING BILLIONAIRES Bill Gates was once again on top as the world’s richest person on

HAILO BUSINESS CAB Hailo, The Taxi App is

already used by business travellers in over 90% of FTSE100 companies.

The company recently

FORBES’ 30th annual ranking of the world’s billionaires; the technology

announced it has

guru has topped the list for 17 of the last 22 years, with a current

experienced year-on-year

net worth of $75 billion, down from $79.2 billion in 2015. The Top 20

growth in excess of 200%

billionaires have a combined net worth of $826.5 billion, down from $899 billion in 2015 and this is who they are:

as it continues to innovate ground transportation across Europe with a raft of new features in its free to use platform.

Hailo for Business has cut the cost of thousands of business journeys, by helping travellers and their companies avoid hidden administration charges and booking fees typically incurred through other firms.

Andrew Pinnington, CEO at Hailo said “Ground transportation in business is all about trust, reliability and control which can now be delivered through innovative use of technology. Customers need to know they can get from A to B as efficiently, safely and cost effectively as possible. Our Hailo for Business service is proving time and time again that our technology platform combined with the experience and professionalism of licensed taxi drivers delivers on all those measures. Hailo gives business customers control and complete visibility of their ground transportation costs.”

Fundamentally, unlike private hire vehicle (PHV) providers, Hailo’s costs are completely transparent to companies, with no set-up, account, booking, or “run-in” charges. The cost of a trip is just that - it can make for significant savings and a huge difference to managing and predicting the cost of ground transportation for any business.

“A strong woman stands up for herself.

A stronger woman stands up for everyone else.”

20

NEWS

“Would I rather be feared or loved? Easy. Both. I want people to be afraid of how much they love me.”

£1M BUSINESS SUPPORT PROGRAMME

The Co-operative Bank and Co-operatives UK announce the launch of ‘The Hive’, a new business support programme for people wanting to start or grow co-operative or community enterprises, using a mix of online resources, training and advice.

The programme is designed to enhance the development and growth of co-operative and community enterprises, a sector that is currently worth £37bn to the UK economy.

Over the next three years, The Hive, the first co-operative development programme of its kind in the UK and powered by £1m funding from The Bank, will support the development of the existing 7,000 independent cooperative businesses across the UK alongside helping new co-operatives and community businesses starting up.

The Hive offers comprehensive online business advice and guidance, alongside one-to-one support, peer mentoring and group training sessions, covering key issues such as registration, membership development, and co-operative finance. An online co-operative community launching in April will unite member-owned businesses across the country, creating networking and business development opportunities.

MORRISONS ON AMAZON Morrisons products will soon be available on Amazon, after the retailers joined forces in a new supply deal. Hundreds of Morrisons’ fresh and frozen goods will be available for Amazon Pantry and Amazon Prime customers, who pay a £79 annual subscription fee. Morrisons shares were up more than 4% after the announcement. Amazon Pantry, the company’s food offering, was launched in the UK last year, but did not offer fresh food. The extended service is expected to begin later this year.

Morrisons’ chief executive David Potts said: “Today’s agreement is built on Morrisons’ unique strengths as a food maker. The combination of our fresh food expertise with Amazon’s online and logistics capabilities is compelling.”

The fourth-biggest supermarket in the UK also announced it was extending its partnership with delivery service Ocado.

Morrisons will use space in Ocado’s new “customer fulfilment centre” in Erith, and Ocado will supply software to fulfil online orders.

“When implemented, this would enable Morrisons.com, working with Ocado, to sell to customers all over Great Britain,” Morrisons said.

Competition is fierce in the supermarket industry, with the big four retailers - Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons - slashing prices as they struggle to win back customers from discount supermarkets Lidl and Aldi.

Amazon’s deal with Morrisons will place even more pressure on the sector.

Sainsbury’s offered £1.3bn for Argos’ owner Home Retail Group, in a bid to expand its retail offering and challenge the likes of John Lewis and Amazon UK.

CONTACTLESS OR CONTACT-MORE?

Just over one billion contactless transactions were completed in 2015, the UK Cards Association said. More was spent using this technology last year than during the previous seven years combined.

About half of all debit and credit cards are fitted with contactless capability.

This allows shoppers to spend up to £30 on their card by placing it next to a sensor in a shop, without the need to enter a four-digit Pin. One in 13 purchases was on contactless during the whole year, but use grew to one in eight by December.

One of the most common ways to use the technology is on the London Underground network, where more than a million journeys a day are paid for by placing credit and debit cards next to sensors when entering and exiting stations.

Transport for London said it was the first integrated transport authority to introduce contactless ticketing.

Concerns have been raised in the past over security of contactless cards, although the industry said that fraud levels on contactless payments were low.

Every contactless card has an in-built security check which requires a Pin to be entered after a number of consecutive contactless payments, to verify the genuine cardholder.

21

NEWS

NATIONAL NEWS IS BARCLAYS LEAVING AFRICA?

Barclays has had a presence in Africa since 1925, now there is speculation that Barclays could be withdrawing from Africa. Barclays Africa was created just three years ago under a deal in which the British bank handed over ownership of its businesses in eight African countries to its South African subsidiary in exchange for a 62.3% stake in the new entity.

The British bank said its board was evaluating strategic options for its 62.3% stake in the African business, a holding worth about £7 billion.

The review comes within months of Jes Staley taking over as chief executive of the British lender, at a time when it is required by regulators at home to hold more liquid assets to shore up defences against any future financial crises.

Once at the heart of executives’ expansion plans, Africa’s growth prospects were dealt a blow in mid 2014 when prices of oil and other commodities - export mainstays of many economies - dived, partly due to a slowdown in leading consumer China.

While the African company accounted for 13% of Barclays’ core profit in the first nine months of 2015, its earnings growth was the slowest among the British lender’s main businesses in that period.

“Barclays could not have picked the worse time to sell. Apart from the standard discount the sale of major stakes, they will struggle to find buyers,” said a Johannesburg-based banker. The company makes most of its profit and revenue in South Africa and also operates in Kenya, Botswana, Ghana, Zambia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Uganda and Tanzania. Barclays also has small businesses in Egypt and Zimbabwe which are not part of Barclays Africa; it tried to sell them to Barclays Africa after the 2013 deal, but talks fell through due to disagreements about the price.

PENSION PLAN DOWN THE PAN Thousands of workers who have been encouraged by the government to take out pension plans could be at risk of losing their savings. It follows fears that dozens of companies providing auto enrolment pensions are too small to survive.

Employers and workers are being deliberately misled by some providers.

Independent experts claim the problem could affect up to a quarter of a million people a year who are putting their savings into so-called master trust pensions.

Such schemes are popular with the 1.8 million small employers with fewer than 30 staff who are currently signing up under the auto enrolment programme.

“There is a risk of these schemes falling over; there is a risk that members might lose their money,” said Andrew Warwick Thompson, executive director for regulatory policy at the Pensions Regulator.

However, he said scheme assets invested through asset managers regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) would be safe.

This will be “the vast majority of cases”, he said.

At least one master trust appears to be providing misleading information online.

On its website, My WorkPlace Pension claims to have £50m of pensions under management, handled by the respected city firm Old Mutual, though when asked, My WorkPlace admitted to not having any such assets. Old Mutual have also said they aren’t affiliated in any way with the company. The government said it was aware of the issue, and was planning to take action.

OFCOM DEMANDS

Communications watchdog Ofcom has said BT must open up its cable network to allow competition to improve UK internet connections and has so far stopped short of demanding a complete break-up of BT, but said this was still an option.

BT welcomed the report and said it was happy to let other companies use its network if they were keen to invest.

Ofcom also said there was a digital divide in the UK between those with the latest technologies, and those without.

It has proposed that decent, affordable broadband should be a universal right.

Rivals had called for a split between BT and its Openreach operation, which runs its cables, fibre and network infrastructure.

Companies such as Sky, Vodafone and TalkTalk, who pay to use the network, say that BT underinvested in Openreach, leading to a poor service with interruptions and slow speeds.

Now BT will be told to allow easier access for rivals to lay their own fibre cables along Openreach’s telegraph poles and in its underground cable ducts.

Ofcom also says it intends to introduce tougher rules on BT’s faults, repairs and installations.

It says Openreach should be governed at arm’s length from BT, with greater independence in taking its own decisions on budget, investment and strategy. It adds that a complete split between Openreach and BT “remains an option”.

“The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.”

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24

THE BIG STORY

NICE GUYS FINISH LAST

By Maarten Hoffmann

A black President with a muslim name was thought to be a significant step towards making peace across the middle east, but nothing could be further from the truth.

A

s Barack Hussein Obama reaches the twilight of his second presidential term, he would appear to be a disillusioned and unfulfilled man. Upon his inauguration, he seemed to be a man that might change the world; a man who was full of promise; a man who had grand plans to actually change the way the USA was run.

He then encountered the deadly jungle of American politics and found that just because his plans made economic and moral sense, that was no key to getting things changed. At every turn he seems to have been thwarted, rejected and disappointed.

Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961, became the 44th President of the United States on January 20th, 2009 and is the only African-American to ever hold that exalted post.

His American mother, Stanley Ann Durham, and father, from Nyang’oma Kogelo in Kenya, met at a Russian language course in Hawaii and married in 1961. Following their divorce in 1964, his father returned to Kenya and died in a car accident in 1982, when Obama was 21 years old.

In 1963, his mother met Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian graduate student in geography at the University of Hawaii, and the couple were married on Molokai on March 15, 1965.

Lolo returned to Indonesia in 1966, followed by his wife and stepson in 1967, with the family initially living in a district of Jakarta.

From ages six to ten, Obama attended local Indonesian-language schools: St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School for two years and Besuki Public School for one and a half years, supplemented by English-language Calvert School homeschooling by his mother.

Obama returned to Honolulu in 1971 to

live with his maternal grandparents, Madelyn and Stanley Dunham, and with the aid of a scholarship attended Punahou School, a private college preparatory school, from fifth grade until his graduation from high school in 1979. Obama lived with his mother and sister in Hawaii for three years from 1972 to 1975

while his mother was a graduate student in anthropology at the University of Hawaii and chose to stay in Hawaii with his grandparents for high school when his mother and sister returned to Indonesia in 1975 before dying in 1995 in Hawaii following treatment for ovarian cancer.

“That my father looked nothing like the people around me—that he was black as pitch, my mother white as milk—barely registered in my mind.”

25

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THE BIG STORY Of his early childhood, Obama recalled, “That my father looked nothing like the people around me—that he was black as pitch, my mother white as milk— barely registered in my mind.” He described his struggles as a young adult to reconcile social perceptions of his multiracial heritage. Reflecting later on his years in Honolulu, Obama wrote: “The opportunity that Hawaii offered—to experience a variety of cultures in a climate of mutual respect—became an integral part of my world view, and a basis for the values that I hold most dear.”

Obama has also written and talked about using alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine during his teenage years to “push questions of who I was out of my mind,” and he was a member of the ‘choom gang’, a self-named group of friends who spent time together smoking marijuana and, no doubt, discovering themselves.

Two years after graduating, Obama was hired in Chicago as director of the Developing Communities Project, a church-based community organisation originally comprising eight Catholic parishes on Chicago’s South Side. He worked there as a community organiser from 1985 to1988 and helped set up a job training programme, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants’ rights organisation. Obama also worked as a consultant and instructor for the Gamaliel Foundation, a community organising institute. In 1988, he travelled for the first time in Europe for three weeks and then for five weeks in Kenya, where he met many of his paternal relatives for the first time.

He returned to Kenya in 1992 with his fiancée Michelle and his half-sister Auma, and again in August 2006 for a visit to his father’s birthplace, a village near Kisumu in rural western Kenya.

“Obama has also been called the food stamp President, with the number on food stamps increasing during his Administration to an alltime record high of 47.7 million, up 80% over the past 5 years. ” Obama entered Harvard Law School in the fall of 1988 and was selected as an editor of the Harvard Law Review at the end of his first year, president of the journal in his second year, and research assistant to the constitutional scholar Laurence Tribe while at Harvard. During his summers, he returned to Chicago, where he worked as an associate at the law firms of Sidley Austin in 1989 and Hopkins & Sutter in 1990. After graduating with a JD degree magna cum laude from Harvard in 1991, he returned to Chicago. Obama’s election as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review gained national media attention and led to a publishing contract and advance for a book about race relations, which evolved into a personal memoir. The manuscript was published in mid-1995 as Dreams From My Father.

Obamas election brought with it hope of change, not only within the black community, but within the white middle class. However, time has shown that he has, to all intents and purposes, failed.

Under his Presidency, the middle class have lost a month’s pay per year due to failed economic policies. In 2009, he pushed through the Stimulus Bill against which the country borrowed a trillion dollars to supply millions of ‘shovel-ready jobs’ in re-building the county’s infrastructure. This produced very few jobs.

Meanwhile, electricity prices have soared to all-time highs and are 20% higher than when he came to office.

Those skyrocketing electricity prices are another loss for the poor, too. Under the ultra-liberal Barack Obama and his “progressive” Democrats, poverty has soared, now affecting nearly 50 million Americans, more than at any other time in the more than 50 years that the Census Bureau has been tracking

27

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THE BIG STORY poverty. The poverty rate has also jumped by over 30% to 16.1%, about the same as when the War on Poverty started, $5 trillion and almost 50 years later.

Obama has also been called the food stamp President, with the number on food stamps increasing during his Administration to an all-time record high of 47.7 million, up 80% over the past 5 years.

Unemployment has increased and has still not recovered from the pre- recession numbers, and in November 2013, jobs were still down 1.5 million from when the recession started. In November 2013, black unemployment was still 12.5%, after 5 years under President Obama. The Hispanic, or Latino, unemployment rate was still 8.7%. The teenage unemployment rate, reflecting Obama Democrat experiments with the minimum wage, was 20.8%. The black teenage unemployment rate was 35.8%.

One of Obama’s greatest failures was the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as Obama Care. He proposed a laudable expansion of health insurance coverage to cover the uninsured, to cap premium increases, and to allow people to retain their coverage when they leave or change jobs. His proposal was to spend $900 billion over 10 years and include a government insurance plan, also known as the public option, to compete with the corporate insurance sector as a main component to lowering costs and improving quality of health care. It would also make it illegal for insurers to drop sick people or deny them coverage for pre-existing conditions, and require every American to carry health coverage. In 2009, a health care bill was passed after gargantuan battles, and in 2010, he signed the bill into law.

In 2016, only 15% of Americans feel they have benefited from the new law and 56% of people feel it has hurt them rather than helped them.

“But Obamacare’s ‘free’ benefit mandates and overregulation have only resulted in sharply increasing health insurance costs, more than doubling premiums in many cases. ” Obama also promised that Obamacare would reduce health insurance costs by $2,500 a year per family. But Obamacare’s ‘free’ benefit mandates and overregulation have only resulted in sharply increasing health insurance costs, more than doubling premiums in many cases.

Another Obama failure might be yet to come. Obama told us that nuclear weapons in the hands of Iran’s terrorist government would be “unacceptable” and he would stop it by any means necessary, with all options now on the table. But the flowerchild Obama/Kerry nuclear negotiations now actually seem resigned to only trying to contain what Reagan defence expert Frank Gaffney is now calling the Iranian “Obamabomb,” to echo the Obamacare failure. But this is the one failure that can prove far more deadly to millions of Americans than even Obamacare.

The Obama administration’s greatest failure in many eyes, including my own, is within foreign policy - or lack of any foreign policy. Removing Osama bin Laden was seen as a tremendous coup, along with the removal of Colonel Gaddafi, Hosni Mubarak, Saddam Hussein and the attempted removal of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad.

Admittedly, George Bush and Tony ‘Bliar’ started this debacle, but Obama showed no tendency to stop ‘regime change,’ which, in many peoples eyes, was the start of the rot and slow death of great swathes of the middle east.

Dictators are bad, and of that there can be little argument, but there is also the pragmatic view that certain parts of the world benefit from having a strong man in charge. If we take Egypt, where I lived for six years under Mubarak’s regime, there were certainly human rights abuses, torture and imprisonment without trial, but it affected less than 2% of the population, whilst the economy grew, tourism flourished and peace reigned. In the main, the average Egyptian was happy, outward-looking and cosmopolitan. There was creativity, freedom and prosperity.

With Mubarak’s removal in the so-called ‘Arab Spring’, we have all-out war, many

29

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“Dictators are bad, and of that there can be little argument, but there is also the pragmatic view that certain parts of the world benefit from having a strong man in charge. ” A black President with a muslim name was thought to be a significant step toward bringing peace across the middle east, but nothing could be further from the truth. His foreign policy seems to be ‘leave well alone,’ but with America having acted as the world’s police force for so long, it is earth-shattering to see them simply remove themselves from the arena.

The trouble here is that Arab nations tend to respond to strength and power and not good words. Discussing what should be done is fine, but unless he is prepared to back it up with military might, it’s water off a duck’s back and has been roundly ignored, as his ‘red lines’ seem to be just so much hot air. Isis are here because there are no strong regional leaders to stop them, and the US, under Obama, has shown a distinct

thousands dead, the economy in tatters, tourism is all but dead, 85% of the precious historical Egyptian artefacts have been looted, trade has all but ceased and terrorism is growing at a terrifying rate right across the region.

Iraq is in tatters, Afghanistan a basket case, Libya is un-governable, Jordan, Turkey and Europe are crippled by millions of fleeing refugees, Yemen and Somalia are lawless and Syria is in the midst of all-out civil war and mass civilian starvation. The rise of Isis can be directly attributed to American foreign policy.

reluctance to get involved. This has given the religious lunatics free reign to rampage across the region, killing everyone as they go, blowing up European capitals and enslaving entire populations.

Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, is another man who only respects strength, and with a US vacuum in that area, has felt free to assume the mantle of superpower, annex Crimea and partner with Assad in the destruction of anti-Assad forces. And who is stopping him? Absolutely no one.

We once had Dictators that were known, in security circles, as ‘terrorist killers’ as they savagely put down such activities in their countries before they got out of hand. The West then killed or deposed these Dictators and that removed the only barrier to the terrorists worldwide rampage. The IS intentions to create a caliphate across the Middle East is down, exclusively, to there being no strong regional leader to stop them.

It has to be said that he took office at the height of the financial crisis when millions of Americans were losing their homes and the banking system was in the worst trauma seen for a generation.

This was a huge weight to carry so early in his term and there can be little doubt that this steered him away from the course he might of intended.

President Barack Obama is well-meaning, highly intelligent and has a strong and admirable moral compass, and, of all past US Presidents, is the one l would most like to have dinner with, but America and the world are worse places for his Presidency, and it seems to reinforce the old adage that nice guys finish last.

In this case, it would appear to be prophetic.

31

ACCOUNTANCY

A CALCULATED OUTSOURCING OF ACCOUNTS

Why is an increasing number of businesses outsourcing their finance function? asks Michael O’Brien, Partner at Kreston Reeves www.krestonreeves.com

C

ost has historically been the main catalyst that instigates discussions about outsourcing. However, a more recent

their businesses forward and utilise the

and the latest software in a remote, but fully

external expertise available to them.

functioning, finance team. It also provides a

Following the advent of online accounting,

dedicated finance team to provide a client

development highlights the trend toward

accountancy and finance practices have

with support and advice relevant to them and

improving overall business performance

adapted and can now deliver virtual finance

their business needs. This team of advisors

becoming the main initiating focus for

teams. These teams benefit clients by providing

will have access to all relevant business data

outsourcing. Business owners want to drive

access to a range of highly skilled experts

in “real time”, enabling them to take an active,

32

ACCOUNTANCY

“All businesses are unique and have different needs. Outsourcing, especially in conjunction with online accounting, gives each business considerable flexibility in tailoring the service delivered to them.”

consistent role within the client’s business.

This arrangement creates a collaborative relationship between clients and their professional advisors, generating opportunities for greater flexibility and a genuinely bespoke service.

All businesses are unique and have different needs. Outsourcing, especially in conjunction with online accounting, gives each business considerable flexibility in tailoring the service delivered to them.

The benefits Improved business focus You can leave the numbers to the experts!

This enables the team to provide robust management information needed to accurately assist with business decisions. Virtual finance teams will install the right systems, processes and financial infrastructure to allow each client to focus on developing their business while removing unnecessary worries and restrictions.

Using these improved processes not only drives business performance forward, it also brings in a wide skill set that will increase the overall efficiency of every business. All clients have to lose is the burden of red tape from compliance issues as a dedicated team keep a step ahead of business trends and individual needs – and to react accordingly with both accuracy and care.

Adaptability Outsourcing the accounts function removes the stress and rigmarole of hiring and training new team members. An outsourcing firm has the ability to react instantly to changes within their client’s business and take action as appropriate. Outsourcing often uses real-time data, which means that up-to-date information is instantly available. This data will be presented to a client in a way which suits them, from instant reports to longer, more detailed analysis and KPI reviews.

The adoption of online accounting also allows roles to be truly shared, which means clients may choose to outsource certain elements

Ready access to experience and expertise Outsourcing accounting functions allows

of the accounting and finance function rather

each business the opportunity to gain access

than the whole area. For example, a business

to a whole new skill set; it allows businesses

may retain control of the sales function and outsource other areas. As no two businesses are the same this flexibility is vital. Using online software enables this service to be absolutely tailored to individual needs.

Cash flow

to scale up (or down)to meet each business need - without having to recruit especially or to increase salary liabilities. Each client, and their business, will have access to expertise in a wealth of areas which can be called upon regularly - or as and when needed.

It is often onerous for owner-managed businesses to stay on top of finances and pay creditors on time, particularly with the trend toward shorter payment terms. Nevertheless, the importance of observing these payment terms is vital: failing to do so may have a negative impact on credit ratings. Similarly, chasing payment from debtors often becomes time-consuming but is essential for cash flow. Both these areas can be successfully outsourced to a virtual finance team, who will efficiently manage debtors and creditors and ensure optimal cash flow for each client. They

Outsourcing firms offer a comprehensive range of services, in-depth expertise and have considerable, wide-ranging industry knowledge at their fingertips. So, rather than just having the skills of an in-house finance team, your outsourced firm could have experts who are skilled in a spectrum of financial and tax specialisms from VAT and Duty to Employee Benefits, and International Tax to Payroll. Using an outsourced finance function enables clients to lower costs, broaden their expertise and take

will also help forecast cash flow management,

advantage of the wealth of reliable, business-

highlighting impending shortfalls and ensuring

focused experiences available to them. This

the business moves forward in the most

also brings not only a more efficiently run

effective way.

business but greater peace of mind for the

The relationship each business has with their

client.

bank can be one of their greatest working

Michael O’Brien is a Partner at Kreston Reeves

assets. Outsourcing teams already have close

and leads its outsourced finance function. If

relationships with all major banks and newly

you’d like to know more about outsourcing and

emerging finance sources which may prove

whether it’s right for your business, please call

invaluable to clients – so, by outsourcing the

or email him on 0330 124 1399 or email via

finance function to dedicated professionals, this

Michael.obrien@krestonreeves.com

relationship can be enhanced.

Fraud prevention Segregating financial duties is fundamental to make sure you minimise exposure to internal fraud. Outsourcing teams already have procedures to deal with this and also monitor real-time information closely, so any suspicious behavior is identified promptly.

33

FINANCE

LLOYDS HELP PRODUCTION

Paul Green Senior Relationship Manager, Manufacturing, South East SME Banking Food manufacturer invests in new production lines with Lloyds Bank support

A

food manufacturer based in St Leonards-on-Sea has purchased two new production lines to increase its capacity and service more orders, with the support of a £240k facility from Lloyds Bank.

BD Foods makes sauces, dressings and other condiments for clients operating in the aviation, hospitality, leisure and retail sectors.

With the support of a hire purchase facility from long-term banking provider Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance, the business bought two new filling lines. This funding means that the company can spread the cost of the machinery over an agreed time period so that it doesn’t affect its working capital.

The first new production line fills sauce and dressing bottles for airlines such as British Airways. The new machinery means the

34

“We have worked with Lloyds Bank for a number of years, and their support of our plans and understanding of the logistics involved when purchasing European machinery has been instrumental in the smooth implementation of our new facilities.”

business can integrate the filling, capping and labelling process in one go, doubling the speed at which it can complete orders.

The second new line fills larger product lines including yoghurt, table sauces and peri dip for clients including Center Parcs, Waitrose and Marriott. The new equipment can fill six bottles at once where the older machinery was only able to do one at a time.

The business’ investment has already enabled it to secure a new contract with hospitality business Whitbread, and it is looking to build on this expansion with a factory extension later in the year. This will create up to 40 new job roles, growing its existing workforce of 84 employees.

Established in 2001, the business achieved year-on-year growth of 24%, and has an annual

FINANCE

“Established in 2001, the business achieved yearon-year growth of 24%, and has an annual turnover of £8.8million.”

From left to right: Darren Lansley Lloyds HP & Leasing, Paul Green, Lloyds Manufacturing Relationship Manager, John Davis, Director BD Foods Ltd. turnover of £8.8million. In line with its on-going expansion strategy the business is hoping to achieve similar growth in the next 12 months.

John Davis, Managing Director at BD Foods, said: “Businesses want to provide their customers with the highest quality condiments, and this is something that we can deliver. Due to the demand for our products, we recognised a need to invest in our infrastructure to move the business into its next phase of growth.

“We have worked with Lloyds Bank for a

number of years, and their support of our plans and understanding of the logistics involved when purchasing European machinery has been instrumental in the smooth implementation of our new facilities.”

Darren Lansley, Regional Manager at Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance, said: “BD Foods has established a reputation within the food industry as one of the leading suppliers of condiment products. The business’ expansive client portfolio allows it to enhance its product

line to cater to different audiences and stay competitive.

“By using a hire purchase facility to fund its new machinery, the business has avoided a large one-off payment and is able to spread the cost of the kit. We’re looking forward to working with the management team as the business continues to accelerate its growth plans.”

LLOYDS BANK COMMERCIAL BANKING Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking provides comprehensive expert financial services to businesses of all sizes, from start-ups, through to small businesses, mid-sized businesses and multinational corporations. These corporate clients range from privatelyowned firms to FTSE 100 PLCs, multinational corporations and financial institutions.

Maintaining a network of relationship teams across the UK, as well as internationally, Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking delivers the mix of local understanding and global expertise necessary to provide long-term support and advice to its clients.

Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking offers a broad range of finance beyond just term lending and this spans import and export trade finance, structured and asset finance, securitisation facilities and capital market funding. Its product specialists provide bespoke financial services and solutions including tailored cash management, international trade, treasury and risk management services.

Its heritage means it has an unrivalled understanding of business needs and a proven track record of supporting businesses across the sectors and regions. Taking a relationship approach, it provides support to its clients throughout the economic cycle.

Lloyds Bank has been voted Bank of the Year for an unprecedented eleven consecutive years at the FDs’ Excellence Awards in association with ICAEW and supported by the CBI & Real Business. www.lloydsbank-commercialbanking.com/

35

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PLATINUM

Welcome to our Business Travel Feature. The sector leader in business travel, Global Travel Management, bring us all the news about the accessibility of private jets, travel editor Rose Dykins flies off to Dubai to find out what the country offers for exhibitions, meetings and conferences and we bring you an exclusive Platinum interview with hotel magnate Surinder Arora.

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THE LONG GRASS BECKONS The current Conservative government will abandon plans to expand Heathrow, a senior minister has claimed. International development secretary, Justine Greening, said the government will decide against a third runway at the west London hub.

Greening, who is MP for Putney, Roehampton and Southfields, also called for a new “long term airport strategy” so the UK can create a “sensible” policy for future UK aviation growth.

“I don’t believe that this government will proceed with a third runway decision,” she told The Telegraph. “I just don’t think it is a smart decision.

“Trying to expand Heathrow is like trying to build an eight bedroom mansion on the site of a terraced house. It is a hub airport that is just simply in the wrong place.

“The sooner that we can move onto working out a long term airport strategy for Britain the better,” she said.

Greening also believed other ministers would “reach the same conclusion”.

APPLE APARTMENTS Apple Apartments has introduced a new online booking system to allow clients to check availability and get access to their exclusive rates.

The London-based serviced apartment operator’s new system allows customers access to both private and public rates, as well as offering the ability to make special requests.

Apple said the integrated service meant that clients could now make bookings without having to speak to their account manager.

The company, which launched in 2012, now offers more than 200 apartments in properties in London, Belfast, Aberdeen and Liverpool.

Apple recently launched a new initiative, Apple 21 Club, aimed at attracting customers in the SME market.

GATWICK DISTILLERY London Gatwick Airport and The Restaurant Group have today announced the opening of The Nicolas Culpeper the world’s first airport gin distillery - following a surge in the popularity of premium gins.

The distillery is now open, coinciding with launch of a unique gin called ‘The Nicholas Culpeper London Dry Gin’.

Named for the famous botanist, it is distilled from an exotic blend of ingredients, including Chinese Cassia Bark and Angelica root from India.

Serving both food and drink, customers of The Nicolas Culpeper are able to pop in for a pre-holiday cocktail or a bite to eat against the backdrop of the functioning gin still, which produces up to 12 litres of gin per batch.

Gatwick and The Restaurant Group teamed up to create the gin after seeing a significant jump in the sales of premium gin over the last five years. Premium gins now account for 40% of all Gatwick’s gin sales, compared to 10% of sales in 2011.

RYAN JET CHARTER Ryanair is launching a new private jet charter service for corporate clients.

The low-cost airline said it would be using a Boeing 737-700 for corporate or group hire.

The aircraft will feature 60 business class seats in a 2x2 configuration with a 48-inch seat pitch, and will be able to fly journeys of up to six hours.

The jet will be staffed by Ryanair pilots and cabin crew and the airline is promising that “fine dining” catering will also be available to clients.

Ryanair spokesman Robin Kiely said: “We are pleased to launch our corporate jet hire service with our newly customised Boeing 737-700, seating up to 60 passengers, on business class, reclining, leather seats, crewed by Ryanair’s industry leading pilot and cabin crew professionals.”

The airline said that it already catered for around 25 million business travellers per year and has now set up a dedicated corporate jet team at its home base in Dublin.

“Now, business and group travellers can also enjoy the benefits of Ryanair’s corporate jet service, as we offer a customised Ryanair Boeing 737-700 for private charter,” added Kiely.

ALL CHANGE AT MARRIOTT Despite word that China’s Anbang Insurance Group Co. has put forth a competing $12.8 billion offer to buy Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Marriott International is still on track to acquire Starwood, Marriott announced Monday. Starwood notified Marriott of the bid from a consortium of investors led by Anbang on March 11. Starwood has until March 17 to consider the offer but stated its board of directors so far hasn’t altered its recommendation in support of the company’s merger with Marriott.

Shareholders from Starwood and Marriott will vote on the merger on March 28. Recently, Reuters reported Anbang agreed to acquire Strategic Hotels & Resorts, which has a portfolio of 16 upscale, luxury properties, from the Blackstone Group for $6.5 billion. Anbang also acquired the Waldorf Astoria New York for $1.95 billion last year.

41

Travel

FLIGHTS OF FANCY

Global Travel Management Managing Director Scott Pawley gives an insight into how the ultimate in first class flying can provide a viable option

I

f you’re interested in reading about beating budget airlines on price I suggest you look away now. For those of you still in the loop,

chartering an aircraft.

For example, a group from an investment bank had meetings in Belgium and Germany on

the sky for team discussions – and they didn’t have to consider an overnight stay at a hotel and dinner.

you might be interested to know that, in this

the same day and were unable to meet all their

In a year when a number of forecasts have

time-poor world, chartering a private jet is

deadlines using scheduled flights or trains. The

warned business travellers that although lower

an option businesses and individuals are

private jet was a no-brainer. It took them from

fuel costs might mean only slightly higher

increasingly turning to.

their nearest airport, Luton, at 6.30am. They

price increases in the cost of airfares, they can

The reason is simple as there are only so

got to Brussels in time for their 9am meeting,

expect to see a global rise in hotel and dining

many hours in a day and when you need to get

the jet then took them to Frankfurt for a lunch

rates.

a team to one or more destinations as quickly

meeting at 12.30pm with a 2.50pm departure

as possible without affecting productivity

that returned them to Luton at 3.20pm. The day

new perspective. You have the advantages of

there are suddenly a number of advantages to

was productive – including a meeting room in

shorter check-ins, you can choose departure

42

All this puts chartering a private jet into a

Travel “You might be interested to know that, in this time-poor world, chartering a private jet is an option businesses and individuals are increasingly turning to. ”

times as well as departure and arrival locations. You can choose your in-flight options such as beds, boardroom and meeting facilities, Wi-Fi and catering whether it’s a particular cuisine or from a certain restaurant or caterer, even if that’s just burgers and chips!

Private charter jets also open a wider choice of airports at either end of your journey that includes small local airports. Even if passengers choose a busy hub airport, they use a small facility called a Fixed Base of Operation, or FBO. This cuts out all of the chaos of a commercial terminal. In the UK the choice includes RAF bases as long as we receive prior permission from the base.

Another time-saver is the luxury of being able to drive to the aircraft as a lot of the time they get free clearance on immigration while any immigration checks at your destination are done pre-flight so that on landing passengers are pre-cleared by immigration, especially if they have a British passport.

When it comes to passengers travelling by private charter to Dubai they are saved from

be on stage in time for their second gig.

However, private charter also became a

For example, if you as Client A are interested in flying from Nice to Luton, a search by your

the queue at immigration and are whisked

viable option for a less glamorous business

aviation consultant might track down an

through to a waiting car, unless you are like one

group of six who wanted to attend an event at

aircraft leased by Client B to fly him to Nice that

client whom we flew into Dubai International

Leeds Conference Centre. They were able to fly

day. Client B has already paid for the hours and

Airport: he was then taken across to a waiting

from a small nearby airport, close to Epping

for the aircraft to fly back empty to it’s base

helicopter which took him straight to the

Forest, with the option to get back the same

in Luton. The aircraft owner/operator having

landing pad on the Burj Al Arab. Another

day without paying overnight hotel costs. The

already collected the cost from Client B will

advantage when flying privately into Dubai is

overall cost return was about £4,000.

then happily sell the now empty leg from Nice

that you can choose either Dubai International

The possible downside of ad hoc

back to Luton to Client A for a fraction of the

Airport (DXB) or the newer Al Maktoum airport,

chartering is that if you decide to charter an

normal price of a private jet flight so that the

Dubai World Central (DWC). Al Maktoum takes

aircraft for a return flight and need to be at

aircraft can return to Luton with added revenue

you nearer to Jumeirah and the Palm which are

a destination for a week you get charged for

for them and, of course, for a bargain price to

both good facilities avoiding the often heavy

every day that aircraft is on the ground waiting

Dubai traffic. Choosing Dubai International

for you. On the other hand you might just want

places you nearer to the centre of town and is

to use some of your hours to do a one-way

the one usually used by commercial flights.

journey and then the leasing company might

You may think that charter flights are more

take another client on rather than wait for you.

likely to be an option for people who need to

In that case you don’t pay for the positioning,

be in two locations within a short timescale

you’re just paying for the number of hours you

such as those in the entertainment industry

fly. Both chartered and leased jets would work

or football managers. To a large extent you’d

out cheaper than fractional ownership of a jet.

be right, such as one internationally-known

One further alternative that you might also

group of recording artists who had two gigs in

consider: it’s known as an empty leg flight

one day. As soon as they’d finished their first

and the opportunity is something you might

gig in Exeter we had to fly them and all their

ask your aviation consultant to check on their

instruments to Carlisle and they were able to

database.

Client A. A one-way business class seat on a commercial British Airways Nice to London flight might cost £700 to £800 but an empty leg flight might actually work out less than that!

The luxury of flying on a private plane is convenience and efficiency, the real advantage is saving time – that equates to saving money.

Global Travel Management Kingsway House, 123-125 Goldsworth Road, Woking, Surrey, GU21 6LR T: 01483 747321 W: www.gtm.uk.com M: sayhello@gtm.uk.com 43

Travel Shake hands in...

DUBAI

by Rose Dykins

Wanting to wow your employees with a wealth of superlatives and inspire them to aim high? The UAE capital holds the key.

D

ubai certainly talks the talk. Its penchant for promising to build the biggest, boldest and most bizarre is well-known,

and architectural firms are constantly conjuring up blueprints that, if they materialise, will add

staging Expo 2020 are well underway, and it

and the extravagance you would expect from

has successfully secured bids to hold more

such a fabulous location. Every small detail

than 100 conferences over the next few years.

is taken care of and events have a high

Dubai has built, and the people are coming.

profile feel.”

If you’re looking for a destination with

Hosting large-scale gatherings are perhaps

to the city’s “space-age playground” vibe. Just a

a permanent buzz, superb international

what Dubai does best, and grand, carpeted

few of the latest include an underwater tennis

connections and all manner of unashamedly

ballrooms are ten-a-penny. The sprawling

stadium, the world’s first fully rotational sky

decadent experiences, the emirate cannot be

Dubai World Trade Centre boasts 93,000 sqm

tower and the world’s longest indoor ski slope.

outdone. “Dubai has a definite elegance about

of meeting and exhibition space spread across

it,” says Scott Pawley, Managing Director of

17 meeting halls and one ballroom - making it

Global Travel Management. “It offers good value

the largest venue in the Middle East. And the

for money, great service, the finest of venues,

72-floor JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, the tallest

But Dubai also walks the walk, and its ambitious vision of attracting 20 million annual visitors by the year 2020 has almost been realised, as it welcomed 14 million of them last year. The emirate has tripled the number of annual conferences and conventions it hosts over the past decade, its pioneering plans for

44

Travel

Palm Jumeirah

hotel in the world, offers two sizeable ballrooms (1391 sqm and 1192

the ones to keep an eye on for corporate getaways are the new Starwood

sqm) as well as 32 other meeting rooms. So, capacity really

properties opening up in quick succession on the man-made Palm

isn’t a problem.

Jumeirah Island, with its mid-market Aloft and glitzy W brands coming

But Dubai can do intimate too. “The One and Only Dubai works well for small meetings, and the Madinat Jumeirah feels so private,” says Pawley. The former is nestled on a tranquil sandy peninsula on Palm

next year, and a five-star St. Regis set to debut in 2018 - the latter will have the world’s highest swimming pool (213 metres above street level).

And British institution, Dukes Hotel has chosen Dubai as the perfect

Island, while the Madinat Jumeirah comprises two hotels, 29 summer

place to launch its second ever property in September. “There has

houses and seven villas dispersed along 3km of winding waterways and

always been a strong British community in the UAE, and elsewhere in

lush gardens – a Middle Eastern Little Venice of sorts.

the region, and we feel now is the time for Dukes to partake in this,” says

There are too many new hotels springing up to name them all. Among

Debrah Dhugga, Managing Director of Dukes London and Dubai.

45

Travel Clé food

Dubai Opera House

Clé food

Dukes Dubai will recreate the James Bondstyle gentleman’s club glamour the Mayfair hotel is famed for, offering seven meeting spaces, a cigar lounge and, of course, the brand’s signature martinis.

Aside from hotels, there are some staggering new meeting spaces on the horizon. Last month, the first ever opera house in the UAE was set to open. The Zaha Hadid-designed Dubai Opera House mimics a traditional dhow fishing boat in shape, and the floor of its “transformable” concert hall can be flattened, creating a banquet space for 1000 people.

And the immense Expo 2020 site - covering 438 hectares - is intended to remain as a networking and innovation space long after the

Jumeirah at Etihad Towers - Deluxe King Room

25 million visitors have come and gone over the the six-month global exchange of ideas.

The ever-expanding Dubai International Airport has recently opened a new concourse, boosting its capacity from 75 million to 90 million, making it even better equipped to handle its impressive global flight network, and further improving the passenger experience.

Last month, flagship carrier Emirates unveiled its brand new business class seat “inspired by the interior of a modern sports car”, which will launch in November on its B777-300ER - and the airline is also developing a new first class suite, which will imitate the feel of a “private bedroom on a luxury yacht,” (although, this might be pushing your budget, even if your employees have worked really hard…)

Dubai’s incredible connectivity and location at the centre of Europe and Asia makes it ideal if you’re planning an intercontinental get-

46

Jumeirah Emirates Towers - Mosaico Terrace

Travel

together, and the sheer range of facilities and

experiences on offer mean there is something to suit all tastes.

“With a combination of traditional Arabic heritage and a surge of modernity with the best urban luxuries, Dubai is fast becoming an important destination for business,” says a spokesperson from the five-star Al Maha Desert Resort and Spa, a secluded five-star retreat set amid the sloping sand dunes of the 225 sq km Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve.

“Apart from business meetings, a cultural offering is key to a successful MICE itinerary.

At Al Maha, guests enjoy an unmatched experience of Arabian heritage, as the entire resort is styled as luxury Bedouin tents and suites. At the same time, they are offered fivestar services, exciting adventure activities and

One and Only Royal Mirage

a fabulous culinary experience.”

Madinat Jumeirah - Dar Al Masyaf

Atlantis, The Palm

Burj Al Arab - Royal Suite

Burj Al Arab

47

Travel

DUBAI

TEN TOP INCENTIVES • DUBAI AUTODROME – corporate days involve competing in a series of hot laps, drag races and pit stop challenges, with the option of a trophy ceremony for the winners.

• SUNSET DRINKS AT THE BURJ KHALIFA – Atmosphere Lounge, the highest restaurant and lounge on earth, can be hired exclusively for 130 people.

• SELF-GUIDED DESERT DRIVES – in teams, delegates can navigate the UAE desert by Jeep, culminating in an evening around a campfire with folk music and shisha pipes.

• BEACH PARTY AT NIKKI BEACH CLUB RESORT AND SPA – the hedonistic beach hotel brand has just made its Dubai debut, complete with a swim-up bar and a four-tier VIP terrace.

• GUIDED MANGROVE KAYAK TOUR – a chance for delegates to spot some flamingos in the wild, and learn about the rich ecosystem of Abu Dhabi’s mangrove forests (a one-hour and 40-minute drive from Dubai’s centre).

Burj Al Arab Skyview Bar

• XCLUSIVE YACHTS – inviting 200 people to glide around the Arabian Gulf on a sleek super yacht would certainly make a memorable product launch.

• RECEPTION AT CHILLOUT – surprise delegates with drinks at the only sub-zero bar in the Middle East, with stunning sculptures, chandeliers and furniture fashioned from ice.

• AL MAHA DESERT RESORT AND SPA – Camel rides, falcon shows and sundowners in the the resort’s desert event site can all be arranged.

• CAMEL RACING – treat your employees to hospitality at races, Dubaistyle – where camels are ridden by robot jockeys.

• DINNER AT OSSIANO, ATLANTIS THE PALM – a one-off seafood restaurant,

Camel Racing

where guests are surrounded by viewing walls into the venue’s aquarium, home to 65,000 marine creatures.

Ossiano, Atlantis, The Palm

SPARE TIME DINE: For a popular local experience, there’s Bu Qtair, which serves freshly-caught, South Indian-style seafood from a humble portacabin. At the opposite end of the spectrum is Clé, with modern Middle Eastern fare served in a VIP setting. Techfanatics should check out Ebony, where diners order African and Arabic dishes with interactive touchscreen tables – you can even watch your food being prepared via a real-time video stream.

DRINK: Go to Cave at the Conrad Dubai for a cosy, wine cellar with “daybeds”. For decadence, it has to be Skyview Bar at the seven-star Burj Al Arab – with glittering sea views from the hotel’s 27th floor, diamond encrusted champagne flutes, and a minimum spend of £67 per person. And for pure novelty, stop in at Mcgettigans Irish pub before your flight home – its exterior a even has cobblestones and a flock of Cave at the Conrad Dubai confused-looking ducks.

DO: Head to the western Al Quoz neighbourhood for eclectic art exhibitions and a decent cup of coffee (try Cafe Rider and Tom&Serg). Stroll down JBR Walk for a California-like vibe, and reserve your place at a hosted Emirati breakfast at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding, where you’re invited to ask locals questions you may have about UAE’s cultural and religious values.

48

MEET WELL CONFERENCES

EAT WELL • FEEL WELL • THINK WELL • MEET WELL Trade in the hustle and bustle, dark stuffy meeting rooms and heavy food for sea air, green open spaces, energy boosting cuisine and wellbeing activities with our brand new Meet Well conference package.

From

£50*

per delegate

Wellbeing extras include: • Delicious yet nutritionally balanced lunch options • Healthy snacking choices that are not packed with sugar and aim to boost energy • Wellbeing activities for your breaks or after conferencing – from mini massages, yoga & zumba classes to power walking trails in stunning Richmond Park*.

• Energy booster box in your meeting room for your delegates to enjoy during breaks

97-99 King’s Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 2FW www.grandbrighton.co.uk 01273 224300

TheGrandHotelBrighton

@GrandBrighton

144-150 Richmond Hill, Richmond-upon-Thames, Surrey, TW10 6RW www.richmondhill-hotel.co.uk 020 8940 2247

Richmond Hill Hotel

@rhillhotel

Rate featured above is ex VAT. Package and rate is subject to availability and is flexible according to seasonality. Rates will vary across the two hotels. *Supplements apply for activities and choices vary across the two hotels, please enquire at time of booking.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

A VERY SUCCESSFUL MISTAKE

Surinder Arora was a bit of a surprise for his parents, and he has continued to surprise with his incredible rise to become one of the best-known hoteliers and businessmen in the UK. Surinder told his fascinating story to PBM...

L

As you enter his office, your attention is

ruffian from India who was going off the rails.

ike the boy who grows up and buys the biggest train set in the world, Surinder Arora has made it. For Surinder, it was

immediately drawn to the procession of planes rising off the tarmac, soaring skywards on their

but fate intervened: “I was born back in India

planes rather trains that stirred his passion,

journeys to all corners of the globe. If it wasn’t

in 1958, and when I was growing up I was

and his plush office overlooks the runway of

for his exhausting work ethic, there’s no doubt

told that I was a mistake. I was born after a

Britain’s busiest airport. His company, the

that Surinder would happily sit at his desk

10-year gap: three siblings, and then I came

Arora Group, now owns a stunning collection

admiring the view. And if he tired of this, there’s

out of nowhere. As my parents already had

of hotels at Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester

always the option of nipping up to the roof top,

three kids, I was adopted by my mum’s younger

airports, as well as a portfolio of office and

with its added benefit of the accompanying

sister when I was two weeks old. Growing

property, as part of its UK-focused group of

soundtrack of ferocious engines driving these

up, I knew my uncle and aunt as my parents,

private companies.

metallic monsters forward. Not bad for a young

and I referred to my real parents as uncle and

50

There really should be no Surinder Arora,

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

“I am very passionate about my people in the company and I always say, ‘It doesn’t matter whether you’re a director in the company or you’re a porter, a maid or a receptionist, you’re just as important.’”

auntie. In the mid-1960s my real parents came

our house or do whatever it takes,’ but I didn’t

job.’ I joined Abbey Life in September 1982 and

here to the UK, and every time they’d go back

want them to do that. I joined British Airways

married Sunita in October.

and they’d bring a lot of toys and clothing and

as a junior clerk in 1977, earning £34 a week. It

stuff, and I used to say to my other nieces and

was just over £20 an hour to learn to fly, which

from 6.30 am to 2.30 pm, then went to the

nephews: ‘That auntie from England, why does

meant I could only have one lesson per week.”

Abbey office to catch up on admin work and

she love me more than you guys?’

“In 1971 my mum came back to India to

Surinder also worked as a waiter at the

“At BA I flipped onto early shifts, worked

saw clients in the evenings. An average day

Penta Hotel. Now it is the Renaissance, a hotel

wouldn’t finish until about 11 pm. I was also

marry off my eldest brother and sister and

he owns under the Arora Group Portfolio.

flying, and I used to referee three football

she realised that I was turning out to be a real

However, after the recession of the early 1980s,

matches each week.

gangster. I was 12 or 13, I was carrying a knife,

hotel work was hard to come by, so he found a

I wasn’t studying, I’d smoke, I’d do all the wrong

new opportunity.

things. So my real mum said to my parents over in India, ‘Look, with him being your only son, you’ve spoilt him. You need to send him to London. Let me knock him into shape. After his studies you can have him back.’

“In April 1972 I landed at Heathrow thinking I was going to my uncle and aunt, until three days later, at the dining table, they said to me: ‘We’ve got something to tell you.’ It was a shock,

“After a few months Sunita and I went to our first-ever Abbey Christmas party and, as

“The financial adviser from Abbey Life

I was new, we were shoved right at the back

used to come and try to flog me policies. He’d

of the room. In the distance I could see the top

come to the front door and I’d leave out of the

table with the top financial adviser, the branch

back door. My dear mum said to him, ‘He’s not

manager, the sales director and the MD. I said

going to buy any products, but if you’d got any

to my newly-wed wife: ‘Next year I want to sit at

part-time jobs, he’d be interested.’ In those

the top table.’ And sure enough, for the next six

days it was a lot easier and there was no FSA,

years I was number one salesman, apart from

so he said, ‘Yes, of course, we can give him a

one year when I was second.

but I actually thought I was lucky as I could have two mums and two dads.”

Surinder may have felt lucky, but his ‘new’ mum was more demanding than he was used to.

“Mum was very tough. I’d only been at school

“I said to my newly-wed wife: “Next year I want to sit at the top table.””

in Acton for a couple of months and a friend said, ‘Let’s bunk school this afternoon and go swimming. No-one will miss us.’ As I’d only been in the country a few weeks, the school rang my parents and said, ‘Your son’s missing.’

When I got home, my parents asked where I had been. I said, ‘School.’ And that was lesson number one: I got a bit of a bashing, a few smacks and was told ‘Don’t lie to me again or you’re out of the door. Tell me the truth and I’ll forgive you.’

“When I first came I didn’t even know the alphabet, so school was a struggle. The best grade I got was an O Level in Hindi. Because I couldn’t go into further education, I said to my parents ‘I think I’m going to be a policeman.’

Asian families always want their kids to be doctors, accountants and pilots, so a family friend took me to Elstree and said, ‘No, don’t be a policeman. Here, let me pay for the first lesson – why don’t you become a pilot?’

“I took my first lesson at Elstree London School of Flying and loved it. My parents said, ‘If that’s what you want to do, we’ll mortgage

51

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

“My boss in Abbey Life used to say: ‘Surinder,

to be in the office, I was self-employed. I didn’t

Airways Crew Centre and a lot of the crew from

you’re mad. You’re earning over £100K and

get paid if I didn’t work, but at least I could be

BA would come and talk to me and say, ‘We

you’re earning £20K a year in BA. What’s wrong

my own boss.

love New York but we hate Heathrow. In New

with you, why don’t you give BA up?’ And I said,

“Around this time I was driving past

York the hotel is run by BA, no-one else stays in

‘No, boss, I enjoy it. It keeps my brain ticking.’ I

Heathrow and I saw four derelict houses for

the hotel, we get good security, good service. At

did the two jobs and then I started dabbling in

sale. I went to the auction and bought them for

Heathrow we stay in different hotel rooms, we

property, buying the odd house, flat and shop,

£161,000, £40,000 each. The gardens were so

don’t get nice rooms, we get treated like cattle

renting and selling, so I was doing three jobs,

overgrown, I didn’t realise there were a couple

class.’

working seven days a week.

of garages hidden in the growth.

“By 1988 I realised that it was all taking

“I didn’t know what to do with them, so

“I wrote to BA, even though I had no contacts in the company. When I finally got a response,

its toll. I remember saying to my wife and my

I decided I’d renovate them and open up a

I was told, ‘Surinder, we’ll only deal with you

mum: ‘My body take it anymore, I can’t do this.’

B&B. I didn’t know what to call it, so I thought

if you bring in one of the big hotel chains like

Typically, they both said, ‘Don’t give up British

I’d call it HSA. Some friends said ‘HSA?

Hilton or Marriott as you have no experience.

Airways, you get free flights!’

House of Surinder Arora? Hospital for Sick

If the hotel is not built to the right spec, or if

Animals?’ It was actually Heathrow Standby

it’s not run properly, our crews don’t sleep and

and that year I finished number four in the

Accommodation. It went really well, and then I

we end up cancelling all our flights. Its too big

whole country out of about 4,500 salespeople,

started buying the adjoining properties: a few

a risk.’

and I took home over £200K – a decent number

more houses, an old Avis HQ and an old petrol

in 1988. In 1989 I became a sales manager;

station, to create the Arora Hotel.”

“I did leave BA and went full time at Abbey,

a year later, in 1990, I became the youngest branch manager in Abbey.

New to the hotel game, Surinder went

“It took me a good 20 months to struggle through planning and to convince British Airways and then to get the funding. My own

into the business with a can-do attitude and

bank manager said, ‘I think you’re mad. Why the

refused to countenance anyone telling him that

hell don’t you sell the land with the planning

cancer and I then resigned from my branch

something was not possible. This mindset led

permission for a few good millions, and you

management and went back to being a sales

to a fruitful relationship with British Airways.

can walk away and retire or do something else?

“In 1993 my dear mum fell seriously ill with

advisor, because as sales advisor I didn’t have

52

“The hotel was right opposite the British

Construction can go horribly wrong. It can run

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

“How can I offer a 4-star product with 5-star service at 3.5-star prices?

How can I look after my staff as family and my guests like royalty?”

over time, over budget and you could end up in

“About ten weeks later he came back and said,

a council house.’ But to me it was a challenge.

‘Surinder, I’ve been sending mystery guests to

“We built the hotel in 1999, and within six

your properties. I really like the way you run

months BA asked for more rooms at Heathrow

your operation. I’ve been to the main board in

and then asked if we would do the same at

Paris. We’ll make an exception and give you a

Gatwick, and they also promised to bring in

franchise.’ So we did that, and we won the bid

business from America. So we built a second

against Marriott. We now have 14 hotels, of

hotel in Heathrow and one in Crawley, but

which seven we both own and operate.”

within seven weeks of opening the hotel in

The Arora Group is best known for its

Crawley, 9/11 happened and the whole world

collection of airport hotels, but this is only part

collapsed. I had to get other carriers and

of its story. It is the only company to which

the public in. I bought my fourth hotel from

IHG has franchised its luxury InterContinental

receivership in Manchester in 2004. Then in

brand to in the UK, with the new hotel adjacent

2005 I started dreaming about T5.

to the 02 Arena. He is also about to remove

“I approached BAA and said: ‘I’ve been

a huge blot from Crawley town centre by

told that you’re going to tender. Will you

developing the hideous Overline House, which

consider me as one of the tenders?’ When

dominates the entrance to the railway station.

I said the company was Arora, the MD said

“I got a call in 2012 from my General

‘No, thank you, Mister Arora. We’re building

Manager at Arora Gatwick saying that Overline

a £4.5 billion terminal and it’s going to be a

House was up for sale. We have been talking to

5-star international brand. So I’m sorry, we

the council about Overline House, and they are

won’t even consider you.’ I started talking to

keen for residential, but, importantly, it needs

all the big chains and said ‘Will you give me a

to be a nice building because of its location. It is

franchise for your 5-star brand?’ All the hotel

a gateway to Crawley.

companies had the same view: ‘No, we don’t

“Employment in Crawley has always been

give franchises on our top brand. We want to

pretty good, in the top quarter of the country,

protect our brand. Surinder, you can build it,

and more housing is needed in the town

but we must manage it.’ To me this was never

centre. We’re looking at developing studios,

an option.

one-and two-bedroom apartments - aimed at

“I went to Accor, the group that owns many

young professionals or married couples. We

hotel brands, and the MD said the same thing:

have listened to the local councillors, local

‘You can have the franchise for Novotel or

businesses and the local neighbourhood, so

Ibis, but never Sofitel (the premium brand).’ I

people don’t find surprises.”

didn’t give up, I called their CEO, showed him

The development will be a popular change to

round Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester, but

the Crawley town centre, and will benefit from

they insisted Sofitel wouldn’t be franchised.

the experience of the construction arm of the

company.

With all he has achieved, we asked what business initiative has made Surinder the most proud?

“When I was opening the first hotel I always said to my senior team, ‘I want this to be different from other hotel companies. I don’t want this to be known as just as another hotel company.’ So my dream has always been: How can I offer a 4-star product with 5-star service at 3.5-star prices? How can I look after my staff as family and my guests like royalty?

“I always say to newcomers who start in the company that life is two-way traffic. You will be my family after you join the Arora company, but only if you give me 100%. If you don’t give me 100%, you can’t be family.”

It is, perhaps, this ‘DNA mindset’ that ensures the Arora Group is a hallmark for reliable end-to-end delivery of excellence in delivery and service in everything it does.

“Building the first hotel was a real challenge, because I knew nothing, but you always learn.

Winning the bid for T5 was the proudest moment, one that I’ll never forget. It was an achievement to be shortlisted as one of the final two bids – and then everyone in the market place said ‘Arora? No chance. It’s Marriott.’ I was in Scotland when I got the news, and my reaction was: ‘Wow, we’ve done it!’

“Now, my wife will say to me, ‘So, when are you going to retire? What are we going to do?’ and I say ‘I enjoy work, I never want to retire,’ because I do love working, but just taking life a little easier. I’ve got a fantastic team around me, a great board, I can start stepping back and let them get on with it.

“I am very passionate about my people in the company and I always say, ‘It doesn’t matter whether you’re a director in the company or you’re a porter, a maid or a receptionist, you’re just as important.’ I hate people calling me ‘Mister Arora’ or ‘Sir.’ Please call me Surinder.

And if I turn up at a hotel the same time as a guest, open the door for him, because he’s going to pay the bill, I’m not. I also take great pride in helping raise funds at a charity event, and we have run events for Cancer Research and the LILY Foundation, which helps in the fight against young girls getting sold for trafficking. In one evening we raised £760,000, and I have said to the team that we must now do better than this. This is now my ambition” Judging by Surinder’s determination and drive, we wouldn’t bet against him beating that target with ease.

53

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS How an education charity is paving the way into university for children of all backgrounds Nana, Mentee IntoUniversity Hammersmith

Sam, Mentee IntoUniversity Hammersmith

Interview with Lizzie Boyce, Corporate Partnerships Officer at IntoUniversity.

Feature sponsored by DMH Stallard What does IntoUniversity do?

most effective ways to increase young people’s

became an independent charity. Now we have

Lizzie Boyce (LB): IntoUniversity is an

aspirations is through early intervention. We

21 centres in seven cities, and we’re working

education charity which runs a network of

take the children to universities when they’re

towards a goal of 33 centres in ten UK cities.

local learning centres based in underprivileged

in primary school, helping them to learn about

communities. Through the centres we support

different careers, what careers you would need

disadvantaged young people to reach their full

a degree for, what careers you would not, so

potential and raise their aspirations. We do

that at a really early age they are starting to

that through our innovative programme, which

understand what university is and why people

gaps in attainment between schools and many

consists of three strands: academic support,

go. Going to a university allows them see it for

students we work might not speak English at

mentoring and the FOCUS programme that we

themselves, and they can see that it’s actually

home. Just living in a home where there is no

run closely with local partner schools.

just a normal place where anyone can go if they

knowledge of university can be a barrier; a lot

want to study for a degree. It normalises that

of the young people we work with don’t know

aspiration for them.

anybody, apart from their teacher and their

As your name suggests, is the target to get young people into university?

LB: We recognise that in the United Kingdom

How did it start?

LB: We have two founders, Dr Rachel Carr and

What are the main barriers to inclusion?

LB: It’s a mixture of things. There are big

doctor, who’ve been to university. They might not know anyone particularly close to them who actually works. In a more middle-class

going to university opens a lot of doors for

Dr Hugh Rayment-Pickard; in 2002 Rachel and

family the parents are talking to children about

people and we believe this opportunity should

Hugh were both involved in a local community

university and about what they do for their

be available to everyone who has the ability to

project in North Kensington, an area of social

careers from a young age.

succeed in Higher Education, whatever their

and economic extremes. They noticed that there

background. Our centres support students to

were a lot of wealthy people with skills and

learn about what university is, why someone

professional expertise, and there were children

would go and what the benefits are. If they

living on that side of the street whose future

decide to not go to university, we want it to

outcomes looked completely different to those

the most unlikely to reach their full potential,

be because they decide that it’s not the right

growing up on the other side of the street. They

and we do that through working with young

choice for them, and not because they think

put the two together and ran a homework club at

people who meet certain criteria. If a student

that it’s an option that is not available to them.

The Clement James Centre, where the students

is on free school meals or they’re living in

from the local estate could come and receive

council housing, that gives an indicator of the

support, and it spiralled from there. In 2007 we

income of the family. Our other main criteria

We start working with students at the age of seven. There is evidence showing one of the

54

How do you decide which pupils need help?

LB: We target students in the UK who are

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY is if they are a looked-after child. These are all strong indicators that a child is at risk of not achieving what they are truly capable. We also have secondary criteria, such as English as an additional language, challenging behaviour at school or special educational needs.

Do you have any centres in the South East outside of London?

LB: The Brighton centre, based in Moulsecoomb, partners with the University of Sussex, who are the main funder of the centre, and provide mentors and volunteers.

How much impact has the charity made?

LB: We collect data from all our students centrally and we can assess whether the students know more about university, whether they have improved their teamwork and their confidence. In 2014 79% of IntoUniversity school leavers progressed to Higher Education.

Nationally, it was 23% for students on free school meals. There are more people from different backgrounds going to university, but in the UK we still have one of the widest achievement gaps in the developed world.

How can companies get involved?

LB: One way is through our Corporate Mentoring Scheme, which is matching students in their final year of education, who are applying to university, with a volunteer from one of our partner organisations. Ideally, it will be someone who has been through university and has now entered the professions and can discuss the transition.

One company who has embraced this scheme is the legal firm, DMH Stallard. PBM asked Partner, Simon Elcock why DMH decided to get involved?

Simon Elcock: As a firm, we have been reasonably good at getting involved in various ad hoc Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives but we didn’t have any joined up projects. I was keen to change this, partly because we ought to have more of a focus on our local environment and people and partly, from a commercial point of view, because this is something that our corporate clients expect from us.

Gwen Godfrey, our Head of Banking and Finance, knew of a scheme at Oxford University where she studied and that eventually led to us Lizzie at IntoUniversity. Lizzie came to give us a talk and there was clearly a lot of interest in the firm with around 50 people coming to that first meeting.

So far, we have been involved in the Corporate Mentoring Scheme and have 12 of our people currently mentoring IntoUniversity students. It’s been valuable and educational for us; I think everyone involved has really enjoyed the experience. We have a wide range of people involved, from senior partners to more junior paralegals and I think it’s fair to say that everyone has something to offer and a great deal to gain from this project.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the time I have spent with my mentee. He’s a really interesting and talented guy with a huge amount to offer but, not surprisingly in view of his background, the idea of leaving home and going to university is pretty daunting. So, we’ve been looking at loads of aspects around his chosen universities, for example around funding, student loans, obtaining bursaries and so on. We’ve also been looking at the merits of a London university against a regional university, whether he might continue to live at home if he chose a London university etc. I know that others here have done things like setting up mock interviews with their mentees to help them with university interviews and a whole range of other things. Really, what we are trying to do is to work out what help or guidance our mentees need and then tailor what we do to match those needs.

We have really enjoyed partnering with IntoUniversity and we are going to get involved in more projects with them going forward.

Those will include talking to students about legal careers and doing workshops with students in our offices. I’m sure these will be rewarding for us and, more importantly, I hope they will be of real value to the students.

QUICK FACTS: • Among the UK’s poorest families, only 1 in 40 students will progress to a top university compared with 1 in 4 students from the UK’s wealthiest families.

• Children from disadvantaged areas perform far less well in school and are 3 times less likely to go university.

• More than 1 in 4 young people growing up in poverty in the UK believe that few, or none, of their career goals are achievable.

Academic Support

Corporate Mentoring Pair

Haringey Academic Support

How can our readers find out more?

LB: Just contact us. There are lots of different ways that people can be involved.

Volunteering can be a great place to start but there are many different ways in which companies can support us.

Corporate Mentoring Pair

intouniversity.org lizzie.boyce@intouniversity.org

www.dmhstallard.com Primary Academic Support

55

INTERVIEW

A BEACON OF SECURITY Most companies spend almost all their efforts on the quality of their service and generating new business. No-one really wants to spend too long on examining what might go wrong, as the more you think about the threats to the business, the scarier it gets. Fortunately, Beacon Facilities Management can do the worrying for you and ensure your company can continue, even if the worst case scenario unfolds.

Interview by Ian Trevett.

I

have to admit that organisation is not my strongest point. I try to pretend (to myself) that I have some form of system, but having met the brother and sister team behind Beacon, I can pretend no longer - I live in chaos. Though, to be fair, compared to Matt and Natalie Robinson, I think virtually everyone would feel at least slightly disorganised. The company can reel off lists of all kinds of accreditations, with all manner of acronyms, including SIA ACS and CSAS, which stand for Security Industry Authority Approved Contractor Scheme and Community Safety Accreditation Scheme respectively. Beacon has a vetting system, which borders on the obsessive, checking all employees to British Standard 7858:2012. And quite right, too. Security, and indeed facilities management, are areas where any short cuts can lead to devastating consequences.

Beacon was originally formed as a security company, but now offers a full facilities management package, including cleaning, property maintenance and event management, whilst still maintaining and expanding on their security side; providing security officers, mobile patrols, key holding and business resilience services including business

56

continuity consultancy. What is unique, is that they still think like a security company, and, if you think about it, this offers a huge benefit.

Take cleaning. Your office is full of expensive equipment and even more valuable data. But in the evening, a cleaner you perhaps hardly know is alone in your premises.

“We had the systems to vet security officers,” explains Matt, “So when we started taking on cleaners, we applied the same meticulous procedures, so that everyone on our books is required to have a five-year work history check, proof of the right to work, references, and a credit check. It is quite unusual to go into this detail with cleaning staff.”

“We’ve got all our vetting online now,” adds Natalie. “When you go to our website there’s an online portal where you log on and fill out the application form. It doesn’t matter if you’ve only been in this country for six months, we still go back five years. We’ve had responses back from countries all over the world.”

“We won’t take on anyone who has an unexplained gap of 31 days between jobs, which allows us to discover if anyone has been imprisoned for a period of time. Cleaners don’t need to have a licence, so it is possible

to take on someone who has spent three years in prison for theft, and then put them in someone’s home or business. If they tell us they have been travelling for three months, we want to see plane tickets or evidence such as visas on their passport.”

There are certainly no 31-day gaps in Matt and Natalie’s careers as they have worked tirelessly since founding the company in 2003: “I had been in security for a long time, mainly working in nightclubs in Brighton” Matt says “I then went into events, working for a company based in Brighton. I became a director, though not a shareholder, and when the owners were discussing that they were going to shut the business, I left and Natalie and I started Beacon.”

“Our first client was the Sussex University Student Union, and they are still a client of ours today. They had a night club, bars and they organise large events, and there is an emphasis on keeping everyone safe. Ultimately, they are young people who have just moved away from home; we make sure they’re not passing out in a bush and they get back to their students’ hall, liaising with the campus security to make sure they’re safe. “

INTERVIEW

“We were early in using online advertising, and signed up to Yell.com. At this time, Waitrose had just taken on the Safeway store in Lewes, and their building contractor were looking to secure the building site when they converted the shop. They had been let down by their previous security provider and found us on Yell.

They were impressed with our service, and it led to Beacon being taken on as the security of all their refurbishments nationwide. It was this partnership that really started to grow the business.”

It was the obsessive nature of Matt and Natalie that made an impression on both the client and the contractors (though the manner of the impression varied sharply!), as Natalie reveals: “We were providing construction security, but we also monitored the contractors coming in and out, sending the client daily records.

The contractors had written time sheets on which they would sign whatever time they were supposed to be in, not necessarily when they actually were in. We brought in microchipped tags with smart devices that went on their hard hats and they were scanned in and out. It did make an impact on their time sheets!”

“We do things a bit differently to make ourselves indispensable for the client, though I’m not sure the contractors were so keen.”

The company grew as opportunities presented themselves. Matt recalls, “I remember one instance when a manager at a company in Crawley was leaving for the night, went to turn the light off and the light switches went due to a leak. As we were on site for security, we arranged for one of our approved plumbers and an electrician to attend and fix the problem, we then arranged for a cleaning team to visit and clean the area. In the end we evolved into a full facilities management company.

“We provide key holding and alarm response to many business and residential customers.

If the intruder or fire alarm in your premises activates, one of our mobile response team attends your premises and investigates.

Usually, it is a member of staff or the company owner doing this, which is dangerous. If a member of staff gets a phone call at 3 o’clock in the morning, do you really want them going to

an empty office, not knowing who is in there?

“Our guys are trained and we have lone worker monitoring in place. All our forms are electronic, so the patrol officer fills out a report on a hand-held device and it’s emailed to the customer. So if the alarm goes off on a Saturday night, when the manager comes in on a Monday morning there’s an alarm report waiting for them which tells them that we’ve been there and what’s happened.

“A lot of people don’t know the service exists, and it’s relatively low cost. It’s £300 a year plus VAT and £25 if we’re called out, this includes up to an hour on site checking the reason for the activation. We have spoken to companies who have had alarms go off on the weekend and the key holder has had a few drinks and just assumed it’s a false alarm. They have gone in to work on a Monday morning to find that the alarm was activated due to a burglary” Such a reaction is common, and when asked if companies take their security seriously, Matt is quick to answer: “After something happens, always!”

“It’s like business continuity,” he continues.

“We’re heavy on our business continuity because our customers rely on us, and we need to be able to respond 24 hours a day. All our phone lines can be diverted quickly so that if something happened here such as a fire or

there was an unexploded WW2 bomb and our office was unreachable, we can set up another office straight away and carry on delivering our services.”

“If there’s one message I want to get across to people it would be: Spend some time to review your security procedures. What happens on the business continuity side if your phone lines go down? What happens if your alarm goes off on a Saturday night? Have you got an alarm? Has it been serviced?

“Just spending an hour or two looking at security can save you a lot of hassle. Often places have been broken into and the alarm hadn’t been serviced or is no longer working. Is a working alarm a condition of your insurance?

These things should be reviewed regularly, and it’s really simple. We come across so many cases where people have never got around to looking at their security - and then it was too late.” Matthew is also a qualified Security and Risk Management consultant and is currently studying for an MBA “we can consult on business continuity including running table top exercises, they are really interesting to run and the learnings and actions which come out when the continuity plan is completed, can really help ensure that our customers can continue to support their customers, no matter what.”

www.beacon-services.co.uk

57

ACCOUNTANCY

ACCOUNTANTS IN THE CLOUD…?

Carpenter Box becomes Xero’s national Accounting Partner of the Year Chris Coopey, Partner at Carpenter Box, celebrates the firm’s recent success at the Xerocon Awards in London and takes a look at the impact the internet – and ‘the cloud’ – is having on business today.

L

ove it or loathe it, the internet and ‘the cloud’ - that intangible space the internet occupies - is now inescapable. Almost certainly, your business will have a website and your main means of communication will be email. You may even be into e-commerce – something that in the UK in 2015 accounted for over £60 billion in value, or around 15% of total retail sales (according to emarketer.com).

What, though (you may ask), has this got to do with accountancy? Well, here at Carpenter Box we spotted the potential of the cloud in accounting terms years ago. It struck us that rather than having a local installation of an accounts package in a business (usually on a PC that can suddenly cease to co-operate, is usually tied to one location and is full of critical and sensitive data that needs to be backed up but seldom is), wouldn’t it be a good idea to have something sitting securely in the cloud, remote from the business and accessible from any internet-linked location - and these days, from almost any device.

58

ACCOUNTANCY

As usual with new technology, it all takes a bit of time to fall into place, but there are now some fantastic products out there which can help revolutionise the way in which a business can manage its finances, and Xero is one of our favourites (which is why almost 700 of our clients use it already). From invoicing to automatic bank feeds, or from management information to business-specific add-ins such as EPOS, or property management software, we can give our clients a great cloud solution.

Importantly, from our point of view, a good cloud accounting package such as Xero means that we can spend more time giving business consultancy and adding value to our clients’ businesses, and less time being a number organiser and accounts compiler. The result?

The client gets a cost-effective, secure and always up-to-date piece of software which can help organise their business finances in a logical and efficient way, whilst we get the information we need to do a better job – helping businesses grow and become more profitable.

National recognition

business community we serve, we showcased Xero with an event called BITE – Business, Innovation, Technology and Efficiency attracting more than 200 visitors to the AMEX Stadium in Brighton in October 2015.

Our national award was won on the basis that we delivered the best value-added services to clients who use Xero software.

Carpenter Box was cited to have helped to change the landscape for accountants across the UK. Through its regular seminar programme and BITE, the firm demonstrated the benefits of Xero accounting software to many small business clients, backed up by a regular flow of information through social media and e-news.

I spoke to my colleague and Carpenter Box Partner, Nathan Keeley, who has championed the firm’s Xero programme over the years.

He was, of course, thrilled with the award, commenting: “This is an excellent result for Carpenter Box and its clients, 688 of whom now use Xero, making us one of the largest providers of the software in the UK. “Showing the benefits of moving to Xero

and cloud accounting has been a huge part of our plans for adding value to the work we do for our clients. Taking the focus away from compliance and moving towards a model where we look to help clients to become more profitable and tax-efficient is a large part of our future strategy.

“Our aim is to train even more of our 140-strong team to Xero certification standard during 2016. We increased the number of certified staff from 24 to 40 during 2015 and our target is to reach 60 certified Xero users by the end of 2016.”

The shift to the cloud, and the rise of the ‘Internet of Things’ will herald immense changes in the way businesses operate, with the direction of travel already apparent now.

The trick for us is finding the right approach for the particular business in question, helping them to make the transition early enough to gain some commercial advantage by staying ahead of the pack. How does it work in practice? Nigel Mathews of Games Quest talks about the benefits of cloud accounting to his business at carpenterbox.com/cloud

So, we’re chuffed to be able to say that we were recently named UK Accounting Partner of the Year at the high-profile Xerocon Awards in London.

Xerocon is the annual conference hosted by Xero which looks at the way the software is developing and gives an opportunity for Xero users and the add-in community (the apps that work with Xero) to get together. This year Xerocon attracted more than 1,300 national leaders and innovators in cloud technology and accounting, with the awards being the highlight of the two-day conference.

Carpenter Box first used Xero back in 2010 and two years later became a Xero Gold Partner. The business continued to push for growth, becoming a Xero Platinum Partner in 2014 – one of only eight companies in the UK at that time to be awarded this status.

As part of the programme to add value to the

59

ANGER MANAGEMENT

ANGER MANAGEMENT

by Maarten Hoffmann

BEWARE THE BEAR W

e are being inundated with views, opinions and fear regarding the European referendum and we will be

It has worked a treat. Instead of discussing

and customs and were now suffering the

Crimea or Putin’s actions in Ukraine and

consequences. And what do the pygmy leaders

Syria, Europe’s great and mighty leaders are

of Europe do? They have now turned to Russia

covering the subject in depth in our next issue,

swimming in a sea of incompetence and an

for help!

but there is a larger issue here that l fear many

ever-increasing flow of human misery. Russian

have overlooked.

Russia is weaponising the migrant crisis

immigration chief Konstantin Romodanovsky said “multiculturalism has failed because

and, many feel, is actually inflaming the

the EU was caught unprepared by the lack

situation in any attempt to cripple Europe. If

of a common vision for integrating arrivals.”

that is the case, then we should all applaud

He claimed that Europe had wilfully ignored

Vladimir Putin on an excellent job well done.

differences in culture, religious traditions

Despite numerous warnings, not least from the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, General Philip Breedlove, that Putin is “weaponising” the crisis to “overwhelm” and “break” Europe by the constant bombing of Syria and fuelling the flow of refugees, they ask for his help. Following the Ukraine fighting in 2014, Russia took in 600,000 refugees, whom they forced to integrate. Along with 338 temporary accommodation centres, they refused aid payments and demanded full integration into Russian life - work, school and language. They have not been allowed to join together in ghettos, soak the state for handouts or walk around assaulting their women.

“Integrate or get out” might seem a tad harsh, but it is the only way to make it work. The other way, the European model, breaks the host country’s economy, destroying centuries of law and order, greatly lowers the living standards of its citizens and breeds mistrust and hatred.

Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.

Mr Romodanovsky said, “The EU lacks a comprehensive policy for registering arrivals or deporting illegal immigrants. Note the immigrants’ defiant behaviour and their growing claims and demands. The sex attacks in Cologne on New Year’s Eve are a striking example of this failure.”

There is another answer to this crisis, in the eyes of Europe’s leader, and that is to talk

60

ANGER MANAGEMENT

“Putin hates Erdogan and is revelling in watching Europe rip itself apart whilst fuelling Turkey’s own problems with the Kurds....”

with Turkey and ensure they stop letting every

the entire newspaper under state control. Gay

won and will be unstoppable, and his desire to

man and his dog into Europe. So great are the

rights have all but disappeared and rape of

be seen as a great Russian Tsar reuniting the

negotiating skills of the EU leaders and their

prostitutes or homosexuals is ignored by the

old Soviet Union will come to fruition.

astute understanding of Turkish history, that

police and the courts.

their solution is to throw vast buckets of money

If we allow Turkey membership of the EU,

Now we see Putin claiming the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria and a halt to the

at the Turkish Dictator Recep Tayyip Erdogan,

Europe will border Syria, Iran, Iraq, Georgia and

bombing but you can bet your bottom dollar

£4.7 billion at last count, and incredibly, grant

Armenia, and with a population estimated to

there are hundreds still there fighting guerrilla

European visa-free travel to 77 million Turks

reach 91 million by 2050, they will be Europe’s

warfare, and Turkey has just suffered a major

and rush through their membership of the EU.

largest member. The country’s wealth is very

So, let me see if l have got this right? We

unevenly spread, so their poorest 30 million

terrorist bomb blast that has given Erdogan an

stop the flow of migrants, primarily caused by

would head for mainland Europe within days.

Russian bombing, by asking Russia for their benevolent assistance.

Then we try to stem the influx of 3 million

Putin hates Erdogan and is revelling in watching Europe rip itself apart whilst fuelling Turkey’s own problems with the Kurds by

refugees by granting free travel to 77 million

driving migrants across its borders and

Turks.

encouraging the Kurds to take up arms against

The United Nations human rights chief

Turkey. Erdogan thinks

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said the plan “raises a

that he will get one over

number of very serious concerns.” You don’t

on Putin by joining Europe.

say!!

He won’t. It will play into

This would all be painfully funny if it were

further swamp Europe in

part of Europe. That means that we are part of

a crisis that makes the

this insane decision-making process and we

current problem look like

will have to live with the consequences. As will

a hiccup.

Turkey has a human rights record that

I was determined to resist any comment on the referendum, but after researching this missive, l cannot. The ONLY sane way for the UK to maintain sovereignty, protect its borders and remain one step away from this total and utter madness is to get out of Europe. NOW.

Putins hands as it will

not for the fact that the UK is, supposedly, a

our children. And our children’s children.

excuse to intensify the bombing of the Kurds.

All the while, Putin is playing a deadly game

makes Saudi Arabia look liberal. A recent

in the background whilst

example is their largest national newspaper,

Europe implodes, and if

Zaman, that was recently critical of the

the US votes in Donald

government - a basic right in most democratic

Trump and closes its

countries, where we cherish a free press. The

borders in a xenophobic

government raided their offices and placed

suicide action, he will have

61

MOTORING

86th AUDI Audi can’t stop with their Q series and here we have the Q2. It is a hugely successful range and comes with a virtual cockpit and head-up display. I will let you know what a ‘virtual cockpit’ is when l get my hands on it.

MASERATI Maserati have launched their new Levante, which is, apparently, a warm mediterranean wind.

Up to 430bhp, all-wheel drive and 0-62 in 5.2 seconds and further news from me when l get my hands on it.

BMW The all new M760li x Drive was showcased with the first ever Hybrid M Performance Twin-turbo 12-cylinder engine that will sprint to 62mph in 3.7 seconds which for a plug-in Hybrid is not too shabby.

ASTON MARTIN This gorgeous new DB11 saw the light for the first time and with their in-house designed 5.2 litre twin-turbo V12 housed in a new aluminum shell, if it goes as good as it looks, and it looks stunning, it will be a sell-out.

62

FERRARI The new Ferrari GTC4 Lusso is Maranello’s latest four-seater incarnation with a naturally-aspirated V12 and with a sprint to 62mph taking only 3.4 seconds, you can expect a waiting list.

HONDA The legend returns in the shape of the new NSX. A low volume car with outstanding looks and if it half as good as the first incarnation, then even at £130,000, it will fly out of showrooms.

BENTLEY If you have delusions of grandeur, and a chauffeur, then perhaps the new Mulsanne Grand Limo is for you. At the flick of a switch the glass partition between you and the driver can go from clear to opaque so he can’t see what you are getting up to in the back.

MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER PHEV GX4h

£299 PER MONTH 1

PLUS INITIAL RENTAL AND VAT AT 20%

With luxuriously smooth driving dynamics, the intelligent Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV decides when it’s more efficient to use petrol or electricity, giving it the ability to deliver a staggering 156mpg2. And with ultra-low CO2 emissions, the Outlander PHEV is exempt from Road Tax and the London Congestion Charge3.

Numbers never looked this good. We call this Intelligent Motion.

UP TO 32 MILES EV RANGE

4WD

156 MPG COMBINED

ULTRA-LOW COMPANY CAR TAX

CONTRACT HIRE FOR BUSINESS USERS ONLY

BIRCHWOOD MITSUBISHI Acts as a credit broker and not a lender

Birch Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN23 6QA 01323 407526 www.birchwoodmitsubishi.co.uk

Book a test drive

Model shown is a 16 MY Outlander PHEV GX4h 2.0 petrol hybrid automatic at £33,899 including the £2,500 Government Plug-in Car Grant. For more information about the Government Plug-in Car Grant please visit www.gov.uk/plug-in-car-van-grants. The Government Plug-in Car Grant is subject to change at any time, without prior notice. 1. The Contract Hire Finance Plan shown is applicable to UK resident business users only and is subject to status via Mitsubishi Contract Motoring (MCM) Watermoor, Cirencester, Glos. GL7 1LF (part of the official Mitsubishi Motors distribution in the UK). The rental is based on an initial rental repayment equal to 12 months’ rental plus VAT at 20%, followed by 35 monthly rental in arrears, and based on an annual mileage of 10,000 miles and are non-maintained.

Excess mileage will be charged for. The offer rental is valid between 30th December 2015 and 29th March 2016 and is subject to change without notice, other terms and mileages are available upon request, available at participating dealers in the UK (excludes Northern Ireland, Channel Islands & I.O.M). Offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. We may receive commission or other benefits for introducing you to MCM. 2. Official EU MPG test figure shown as a guide for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. 3. Congestion Charge application required, subject to administrative fee. Birchwood Motor Group Ltd trades as BIRCHWOOD MITSUBISHI.

Outlander PHEV range fuel consumption in mpg (ltrs/100km): Full Battery Charge: no fuel used, Depleted Battery Charge: 51.4mpg (5.5), Weighted Average: 156.9mpg (1.8), CO2 emissions: 42 g/km.

MOTORING

PEUGEOT 508 SW GT

By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann

driving position that was not the most comfortable for me but it does swallow the miles with little effort and around town, it has plenty of poke and is a breeze to park.

Its main competitors would be the Mondeo, Passat and Skoda Superb and l would take it over all of them with a slight nod to the Mondeo. The Mondeo is a more supple car with better resale value and the Passat doesn’t handle as well, so bravo Peugeot.

I quite like the look of it too - it certainly has a presence but as with all D-sector cars, it is very colour sensitive. Looks great in some and nondescript

W

ell, well, well. Peugeot seem to have done it again. The brand that most of us wrote off a few years back have

offers a form of four-wheel drive and a zillion mpg if you drive like a vicar.

The interior is full of soft plastics and nice

and boring in others.

This car is aimed squarely at the company car market and it makes a damn good fist of it. But one would have to say that they seem to

thrown their hat into the ring with a competent

design details and nothing too annoying.

and well built estate car - or Tourer and many

have got the seating position right in all their

The French, bless em, have a habit of adding

others models so why not in this very, very

superfluous bits and pieces that are just

important car for the manufacturer.

would have us call them.

As you might recall, l reviewed the 308GTi last issue and had great fun with it. The arrival of a 508 estate did not exactly fill me with the joys of Spring but it is a really good drive, soaks up the bumps and swallow the the miles. For the money, they are closing the gap on their German rivals. Still in a totally different class but as l say, for the money, a sterling effort.

The engine range is good and the 2.0 litre and 2.2 litre are the pick of the bunch and there is a hybrid available that locates the electric motor over the back wheels and therefore

TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: 508 SW GT Line BlueHDi150 Engine: 2.0 litre Power: 150 bhp Performance: 0-62 10 seconds Top Speed: 130 mph Economy: 72.4 mpg combined Price: £28,445.00

64

annoying but not here.

The one thing the French were rightly

It is great to have the French back on-side with the creation of highly efficient, good

famous for was really good ride quality and

looking useable cars. When they can crack the

they don’t disappoint here. It has a high set

resale value, they will have it made.

MOTORING

AUDI S1

By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann

TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: S1 2.0 litre TFSI Quattro Engine: 2.0 litre turbo Power: 231 bhp Performance: 0-62 5.8 seconds Top Speed: 155 mph Economy: 40 mpg Price: £26,330.00

P

etrol heads might recall the phenomenal Sport Quattro S1, Audis brilliant short-wheelbase Group B rally car that was nothing short of sensational on the dirt. Well, now we have the chance to buy a road going version, albeit somewhat tamer, in the shape of the S1 Quattro road car.

At first glance, you might not be able to see much difference between the standard A1 and the S1, but take a closer look and you notice those tell tale signs. It’s lower, has a deeper front grill to allow more airflow and we have a more aerodynamic rear end and four tail pipes. The power plant is the ubiquitous VW 2.0 litre that you will find in the Audi TT and the Golf R but this version has been tuned to offer 231 bhp and the addition of four-wheel drive makes it very interesting indeed.

Like all such Quattro’s, it’s permanent 4x4 but in reality, the computer dictates which wheels are being driven and this offers extremely precise and stable handling. In short, it goes like a greyhound out the gate and just powers onto 62 mph in 5.8 seconds. When you consider the size of

the car, that is quite impressive.

The interior is up to par with all other Audis: well built, brilliantly engineered and everything there, where you want it. I could of done with a little more lateral support in the seats but that’s getting a tad picky.

The handling is interesting dependant on what setting you choose.

My usual driving mode is Dynamic as it gives you the fastest driving experience but here, Dynamic leaves you a little unsettled. It is hard as nails and can have a few fillings out on bumpy roads but the cornering is sensational. Choose Auto, and everything calms down a little and it is a happy place to be. I left it in Dynamic and will be visiting my dentist shortly to replace the filling but also to get the smile off my face.

The only problem with the S1 is the price. Starting at £26,330, it can quickly reach £30,000 with extras and that takes it into the territory of the VW Golf R. Personally, l prefer Audi’s to VW’s but there is no denying the astonishing performance of the R and in many peoples view, the S1 comes second.

The S1 is a little temptress that encourages bad behaviour and with a traditional handbrake (hurray) it just begs to be yanked on in mid-corner, after you have disabled the traction control of course.

This is a super hot hatch with bags of personality, grip forever and build quality that will fend off depreciation better than most. The dentist has fixed the filling but says he can nothing about the smile - which is due to the fact that when Audi took the S1 away, they left an R8 V10 on my drive.

Tell my kids l love them and l will be back - sometime.

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MOTORING

MITSUBISHI

OUTLANDER PHEV

By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann

M

itsubishi was originally known as a shipping company and was started by three brothers way back in 1870. The

pumping out a combined 149bhp. In electric

The PHEV comes in auto only and is quite

mode, l managed to get 30.6 miles before the

brisk around town, and if Outlander owners

engine kicked in, and if you only drive around

seem to be looking a tad smug, remember, they

first car was developed in 1917 in the shape of

town or commute a relatively short distance,

aren’t using a drop of petrol to do it. All high

the Mitsubishi Model A, which was Japan’s first

this means that you will never need to buy

SUVs suffer from some body roll in the corners,

mass-produced vehicle and was actually based

petrol again. That is a very appealing thought,

but as the PHEV is heavier than its diesel

on the Fiat Tipo 3.

and unlike pure electric cars, there’s no range

counterpart, it actually helps to centre the car

anxiety, as when the charge runs out, the

when cornering, but, at speed, the steering is

the Pajero, Shogun and the original Outlander.

engine takes over seamlessly and re-charges

a little too light for my tastes. The standard

The Outlander was originally launched as the

the batteries. When home or out, it takes 3.5

stability control helps a little here, and it is

Airtrek back in 2001 and was one of the world’s

hours for a total charge, or 30 minutes on a

surprisingly quiet, even when the engine is

first SUV’s that actually drove like a car rather

rapid charger.

forced into service.

Notable models launched since then include

than a farm truck. The company has had a long

The remarkable thing is that against the

The interior is well laid out, and there is a

time to perfect this model, and what we see

eponymous Toyota Prius (or pious if you look at

simplicity to the dash that is quite refreshing.

today is a high-tech SUV that leaves most of

the drivers), the Outlander returns better mpg

Two things that took me some time were the

its competition in the dust when it comes to

and better CO2 figures. Astonishing in itself,

driving position and the Satnav. At 6’2” and with

economy.

but remember that this is a full-sized SUV with

long legs, l struggled with the seat position and

room for seven and a mountain of luggage.

the steering rake and reach, but with both on

and the world’s greenest off-roader. The

Due to its low emissions, company-car drivers

maximum, l got there, and the SatNav is not the

offering is a 2.0 litre petrol engine with twin

will save a fortune, and there is a government

easiest thing to use, but when you own the car

electric motors, positioned one on each axle,

green-car subsidy available.

day-in, day-out, it becomes second nature. Pity

The 2016 Outlander PHEV is a plug-in hybrid

66

MOTORING TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: GX3h Engine: 2-litre, 16-valve DOHC Power: 149 bhp Performance: 0-62mph: 11 seconds Top speed: 106mph Economy: 51.4 mpg to 156.9 mpg 5% company car tax. ÂŁ0 congestion charge ÂŁ0 road tax

me here if you will, dear readers, as l have a new car every 7 days and have had months where steam was witnessed whistling out of my ears in frustration as l tried to get to grips with the eclectic array of layouts.

I can hear your empathetic words of comfort from here!

I would plump for the GX3h, as you get most of the kit: sensors, climate, Bluetooth and alloy wheels, and if you want the full monty, then there is the GX4s with powered tail gate, sunroof and heated seats. All are standard 4 x 4, of course, and you can never underestimate the phycological comfort of this. Last evening on the way back from Guildford, the gritters were out and temp dials were down to zero, but with all-wheel

drive you experience a great decrease in tension. Who on earth takes them off-road anymore, but there are so many conditions that warrant its use, and so far only Audi have caught onto

this across the range. Having said that, l love mud-plugging, and l would have no hesitation in taking this on a romp, which, sadly, l had no time to do.

In SUV terms, l think the Outlander is a bit of a game changer.

Tel: 01323 407526 www.birchwoodgroup.co.uk 67

LEGAL ADVICE

SECOND MARRIAGES: ‘the triumph of hope over experience’

by Wendy Ryle Burt Brill & Cardens 30 Old Steine, Brighton BN1 1FL 01273 604123

How Remarriages Are Different Remarriages are different to first marriages in a number of ways:

Personal: • You are aware that relationships can breakdown or end – the way you approach a second marriage can be affected by this

Wendy Ryle continues her series of articles on family law issues.

I

f you are embarking on a second or subsequent marriage then there are important legal points to consider. You

may recall Oscar Wilde’s words that second marriages are ’the triumph of hope over experience.’

When referring to a second marriage in this article, my comments apply equally to third or subsequent marriages.

property, savings, investments, pensions and businesses prior to the second marriage.

If you have gone through a divorce, you will be aware that relationships can break down and the stress and pain that follows.

Here are some areas a good family lawyer advise you on: • How Remarriages are Different

knowledge • You are older and may be thinking more about safe-guarding your future, being able to afford a place to live and providing for your retirement • You may have children from previous relationships to consider

Legal: • Finances & Assets – you may have more assets including property, business, pensions, investments and even money from a divorce settlement. Maintenance you are receive from a previous divorce ceases

• Pre Nuptial Agreements

with a new marriage. If you are paying

marriage are often more complicated than

• Children and Inheritance

maintenance to a former spouse then your

the first. There may be children from previous

• Wills and Trusts

relationships, assets you acquired including

• Second Divorces

The circumstances around a second

68

own remarriage will not affect this liability.

• Pre-Nuptial Agreements – many couples

LEGAL ADVICE

“If you die without a Will then your assets or part of them will automatically pass to your surviving spouse.

This causes complications especially when you have children from a previous relationship.” embarking on second marriages sign a prenup to protect their interests • Children and Inheritance – remarriage has several implications on how your assets are passed on in the event of your death, in particular to your children • Wills & Trusts – you will need to create a new Will as remarriage will revoke any existing will. You can set up a Trust to ensure your wishes are be followed on your death. Many people want to provide for their new spouse and children from a previous marriage

Second Marriages and Pre-Nuptial Agreements What is a Pre-Nuptial agreement?

A pre-nuptial agreement is a written contract signed before a couple marry. It sets out what a couple would like to happen to their assets and possessions should the marriage fail.

Pre-nuptial agreements are not legally binding but when drafted properly are often upheld by judges. There are circumstances when a judge may deviate from the pre-nup terms but they are being given greater weight by the Courts following a decision of the Supreme Court in 2010.

Should I consider a Pre-Nuptial Agreement for a Second Marriage?

If you have already been through a divorce,

agreeing a pre-nup. The collaborative process

planning for all scenarios as over 40% of first

is a very good one assisting clients with the

marriages, over 60% of second marriages and

negotiation and completion of a Pre-nuptial

over 70% of third marriages end in divorce.

Agreement.

Once a second or subsequent marriage has

Second Marriages and Inheritance General If you die without a Will then your assets or

you will be aware of how difficult the process

part of them will automatically pass to your

can be.

surviving spouse. This causes complications

Most people remarrying are more realistic

especially when you have children from a

subsisted for a number of years, the starting point for a division of the assets will be an equal one.

I and my colleagues at Burt Brill & Cardens have been helping people plan their second marriages by offering a range of interconnected and joined-up services. These include mediation, collaborative law, pre-

about the possibility of the new relationship

previous relationship.

nuptial agreements, Trusts and Will-writing.

ending. In turn they are more aware of the

Children

We take time to answer any questions you

importance of agreeing terms to provide

If you have children from a previous

and your partner may have, get to know your

security for any children and avoid being left

marriage, you will almost certainly want them

specific circumstances and needs, and explain

with nothing if the marriage breaks down.

to receive an inheritance in the event of your

all of the options to you. If you would like us to

death. If you have no will and your assets

consider the your position or that of someone

pre-nuptial agreement can protect the assets

automatically pass to your new spouse, your

you know who may be planning to remarry, we

of the wealthier party and give the less well-off

estate may ultimately benefit their children

can provide 30 minutes’ free initial advice to

party a chance to indicate that they are not in it

rather than any children you might have.

Platinum Club members or anyone referred by

Often be one party will be better off and a

for financial reward.

Pre-Nuptial Agreements and Mediation and Collaborative Law Mediation and collaborative law are good options to help couples cover off all the more delicate points around a marriage, including

Legal advice is essential in ensuring your children’s inheritance is protected.

a member. Please contact me at wryle@bbclaw.co.uk or on 01273 604123.

Second Divorces The statistics, according to the Telegraph, also highlight the importance of future-

69

MEET WELL CONFERENCES

MEET YOURSELF HEALTHY These days there is a major focus on health in all aspects of life - and our business life is no exception.

F

ew of us will of been to a conferences or event and not overeaten or stuffed ourselves with food we know we should not have consumed in the mistaken belief that it will keep us going throughout the day.

The Richmond Hill Hotel in Surrey and the Grand Hotel in Brighton have joined forces to create Meet Well Conferences. The concept is to boost productivity and attentiveness through a well-balanced diet, energy booster boxes and activities within the breaks, such as mini massages, yoga and Zumba classes, beach walks and more. It might seem odd to break a conference for a yoga lesson but research shows that such activities in conferences breaks increase the level of productivity and attention ten fold.

It is often thought that sugary snacks boost energy and, in the short term, this is true but they can have a terrible long-term effect that often means halfway through the afternoon delegates are flagging and therefore feel they need another sugar rush. The opposite is actually true. Eat a nutritionally balanced diet through the day and energy levels remain high and engagement levels where they were when the day started.

This is the new way to organise conferences, meetings and events.

70

â??The formal evidence base on what works well is not yet strong, but the evidence from experience and thoughtful opinion is becoming clear. It is also clear that leadership in creating a supportive culture is a key factor in ensuring staff wellbeing.

Without leadership at every level a crucial factor in the effort to improve health and wellbeing staff engagement - will be missing.

I hope that the leading thinkers and doers who attend the such conferences will share their experience and knowledge, bringing it to an even wider audience.

Dame Carol Black, Expert Advisor on Health and Work, Department of Health and Public Health England

â?ž

INTRODUCING

Table Talk

Welcome to Table Talk, our new Food and Drink section bringing you the best in drinking and dining across our region.

We have plenty to share with you. This month read about the fantastic Brighton and Hove Food Festival (not to be confused with that Hove Lawns event that you have to pay to get into, and which is not local but actually a national money making endeavour), our very own truly independent local festival, now the biggest food festival in the country and we are proud to be the media sponsor. As well as various events on the lawns there is an exciting line-up of special evenings hosted by the best of our local food and drink providers in the region. You can find out more in Nick Mosley’s column on page 78.

On that note we are also in discussions to sponsor a Surrey based Food Festival, watch this space.

Our wine columnist, Jonny Gibson of the Sussex Wine School, gives an introduction to food and wine pairing with some great insights In terms of dining, this month we feature the fabulous Curry Leaf Café (look out for my interview with the chef and co-owner next month). Our Chef interview is Masterchef Professionals winner Steven Edwards and we profile one of our regions great wine producers - Ridgeview in Sussex.

What else have I been up to? Well this month I have spent a fair bit of time in London checking out some new and established favourites; Sartoria, recently refurbished and relaunched with Francesco Mezzei at the helm (who achieved a Michelin star at L’Amina). Go just for the incredible Zabaglione. The Wolesley, The Edition, and the two star The Square by the chefs chef Phil Howard. This was a bring your own bottle night making an otherwise costly meal, much better value (but bad for the liver – my dining partner and I brought three between us!). I also dined at The Riding House Café (who I successfully sued 5 years ago – but that’s a story for another issue). I have also, of course, spent a fair amount of time in some great local venues; The Saltroom, Plateau, Fourth and Church, Food for Friends, the Leconfield in Midhurst, Eat Naked, Penny Hill Park Hotel and Spa, Hotel Du Vin, Terre a Terre, the Curry Leaf Café and Polpo.

I’ve also managed to fit in studying for my wine qualifications (the Wine and Spirits Education Trust level 3) with Sussex Wine School. What brilliant fun! (apart from having to learn about pruning). Spending a day a week tasting up to 12 wines with a bunch of like-minded people is a pretty good way to spend a wintry Wednesday. Trouble is, it makes me want to drink more.... Oh well. If you’re serious about wine i’d recommend the Sussex Wine School - I’ve discovered many new wines that I now love and feel much more confident ordering wine with food. I have now also signed up for the French Wine Scholar qualification so I will be sharing my discoveries in future issues.

I hope you enjoy this new section – please do get in touch with your views, comments and questions at amanda@platinumbusinessmagazine.com

Happy dining

71

Table Talk REVIEW

The Curry Leaf Café

drinks on a Friday night to mark the

T

regional cuisine and Ridgeview sparkling wine

with locally sourced produce (bar spices from

end of a week and get your weekend

by the glass – it’s a compelling proposition.

India), means that you wont find long lists of

off to a fitting start. For me it’s one of life’s

Co-founded and owned by Chef Kanthi Kiran

different curries, but rather a concise and

pleasures and I have spent years testing and

Thamma (whose credentials include working

mouth watering selection of dishes designed to

researching the perfect places for a Friday

with Jamie Oliver and more recently the highly

cater for most tastes and preferences (vegan,

night curry. From the authentic hub of South

regarded Chili Pickle in Brighton). I have been a

vegetarian, gluten free etc). What I love about

Indian cuisine in Tooting to the Michelin starred

regular since it opened and follow the changing

this restaurant is that each dish on the menu

likes of Benares in Berkeley square – I’ve

menu with the seasons. Great care is taken

is truly distinct. So many Indian menus have

seen quite a few Pakoras in my time. A good

over the development of each dish and the

generic curries with flavors that are similar.

curry is something I often crave. For years my

construction of the menu. Kanthi has a lifelong

Here, each dish is a masterpiece.

here’s nothing like a curry and a few

venue of choice was Hove Tandoori, still one of the best classic Indian curry houses. Many a night has been spent putting the world to rights in their modern, chic and cozily lit dining room. The brilliant staff knew what to bring; Tandoori king prawns and Dhal Masala (served Madras hot) with a South African Chenin Blanc -essential Friday night staples. Now there are also some other great choices in our region and

With a changing seasonal menu, fresh

passion for discovering and developing new styles and dishes rooted in the diversity of Indian cuisine. You can rest assured anything you eat at the Curry Leaf Café will be based either on Kanthi’s family home cooking, or inspired by one of his many trips to different parts of India.

Each dish is tested with both the kitchen and

every single dish is cooked fresh from scratch

There is always a tandoor roasted whole fish on the menu, either as a starter (currently mackerel) or in the summer as a main course dish (often Bass or Bream). I always have it.

Fresh zingy charred spices complementing the fish rather than overpowering. Vegetarians are well catered for; there are usually two different vegetable curries. The current menu

my absolute favourite these days is the award

front of house teams providing input – a real

features an aubergine curry with a coconut

winning Curry Leaf Café.

team effort, with thought and care. The fact that

and tamarind sauce with ginger, coriander and

72

Table Talk

❝

You can rest assured anything you eat at the Curry Leaf Café will be based either on Kanthi’s family home cooking, or inspired by one of his many trips to different parts of India.

❞

the Temple bar where they serve authentic Indian bar snacks and most recently a kiosk at Brighton station serving the food you’d actually find at Indian train stations – an inspired move and a great alternative to the usual suspects.

This is already proving popular.

Here at the Curry Leaf café, the room is bright and café like – convivial and lively with warm and chatty staff. Service is efficient and relaxed. Despite two-hour time slots I’ve rarely left sooner than three hours. After all, theres a lot in the world to put right.

chilli; a rich and fragrant dish, the aubergine

is great, a mixture of international varieties

lending a non-meaty ‘meatiness’. A root

that compliment Indian cuisine as well as an

vegetable curry is cooked with a delicate

Indian wine menu and of course spirits, beers

tomato and coconut broth; the firm vegetables

and cocktails. On my last visit I chose to follow

adding texture.

my glass of Ridgeview with a Languedoc

The meats vary, last year I loved a slow cooked lamb curry, this month they have a pork vindaloo but this is no ‘Anglo-Indian’ vindaloo that you often find in many curry houses, typically sacrificing flavour for chilli heat. Here it is fragrant and well balanced. There is always a good chicken curry, currently a Hyderabad dish (this area of India is famed for its cuisine).

The Tandoori platter is a meat lovers dream (me) . Side dishes come included with the mains – a tomato curry, dhal, pilau rice and a naan with the option to order extra.

All of this is served to you on your own tray

Sauvignon Blanc, the high, refreshing acidity balancing well with our meal. You can order many of the wines by the Carafe. Unusually for an Indian restaurant, desserts are a real treat.

Interesting and modern twists on traditional Indian sweets. Think chilli and vanilla sponge spiced with cardamom with saffron ice-cream (supplied by nearby excellent Boho Gelato) or heavenly spiced rice puddings.

Expect to may about £35 a head for more food than you need and plenty of good wine.

Good value.

The Curry Leaf Café also has outposts at

with each curry in silver bowls (tip - I always ask for a plate as I like to combine flavors rather than eat from single dishes). There are a good selection of starters /small plates to share. A few months back I was addicted to their panneer and pea fritters, this time it’s their onion and vegetable pakoras. The Masala spiced nuts and poppadums come

The Curry Leaf Cafe 60 Ship Street, Brighton BN1 1AE. Tel: 01273 207070 www.curryleafcafe.com

with freshly made chutneys and go well with that all-important first drink. The wine list

73

Table Talk CHEF PROFILE

Steven Edwards

Fans of Masterchef may recall how Steven Edwards, a Sussex-based chef, won the sixth ‘professionals’ series at the age of just 26, making him one of the youngest winners.

I

t seems Steve was always destined to be a

local ingredients to create unique and simple

collaborated with him on several projects. Here

winner, claiming the title Sussex Young Chef

dishes, focusing on getting the most out of

I get some insights into the chef, businessman

of the Year in 2010. He has trained with

each ingredient. Steve takes part in food

and family man....

some of the country’s leading chefs, including

events across the country and hosts residencies

Raymond Blanc and local chef Matt Gillan

and pop-up restaurants in Surrey and Sussex,

at South Lodge Hotel before going on to

as well as further afield. Recent and regular

Whats important to you?

Quality is the most important thing to me.

become head chef at the Camellia restaurant

pop-ups in our region include Penny Hill Park

That’s not just about cooking but

- a position he held at the time of winning

Hotel and Spa, Nyetimber Vineyard in West

every decision I make in the company. The

MasterChef. Steve left South Lodge in 2014

Sussex & The Bingham Hotel in Richmond,

to set up his own company; etch food. Here

London. In March 2015 Steve was appointed as

he aims to provide customers a unique dining

the creative consultant for the Brighton British

experience in a fun, interactive and non-

Airways i360, due to open this summer.

pretentious atmosphere.

His food philosophy is simple: using quality

74

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Steve over the last few months, having

question I always ask is, “Is this the best we can get?”

Where do you get your inspiration?

I’m inspired by local produce and the seasons. I love Sussex and seeing the countryside change throughout the year.

Table Talk

❝

His food is lovely. He makes food that is great to eat, expertly cooked, presented with a certain elegance, clean lines, and it works fault-free.

Michel Roux Jnr.

❞

What’s next for you?

I couldn’t be happier with how things are going and feel like 2016 is going to be the busiest yet. With the British Airways i360 opening in Summer and etch events getting busier and busier. For me the last piece in my three-year plan after winning MasterChef is to open my own restaurant. This has always been my ambition, even though I know it will be difficult. I think its important to find the right location and space that allows for creativity and innovation. I want to create a restaurant that is still around in 10 -15 years time. For me This inspires me to create new dishes. I enjoy

It was the local whilst working at South Lodge.

spending time with local producers, seeing the

Great staff, food and atmosphere. Perfect on a

produce up close gives a new-found respect to

Sunday with the family.

it’s about creating a legacy.

make sure that it’s ‘done justice’ when serving to the customer.

What do you cook at home?

You should speak to my wife! I’m going to

Which celebrity chefs do you admire?

I hate the term celebrity chef as to me it describes a chef who is on TV more than in

be honest: I do very little cooking at home as

a kitchen! There are chefs I admire: Jason

my Mrs looks after me so well. When I do have

Atherton (of the Pollen Street Social empire),

an opportunity to cook, I like to bake with the

because he is not only a highly talented chef,

kids or cook the homely nostalgic favourites

but I also admire him for his business prowess.

like shepherds pie.

His achievements are remarkable. Ashley Palmer-Watts at Dinner (in the Mandarin

Guilty pleasures?

Nandos! I’m not ashamed to say I eat there.

Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge), who studies the history of British food and serves it in

The concept is great. Quick, simple, semi-

a 180-cover, two-Michelin-star restaurant.

healthy food that brings the family together.

There’s no-one else doing this. Perhaps lesser

In the future I would love to be part of a

known would be Bristol-based chefs Jonray

concept like this.

& Peter Sanchez-Iglesias. I met them in 2012, and for me this was a massive turning point

What do you think of the local food scene?

Sussex and Surrey both have lots to offer

in my career. They were so full of passion, talent and the nicest chefs you could meet.

They are self -taught, so everything they do is

in terms of production and dining and this is

a little different, and the way they question

developing all the time. Living in Sussex, I have

every process is what I love most. Their cuisine

also followed the Brighton Food scene as an

is quite minimalist, but everything on the

observer and I think it just gets better and

plate is perfect. Tragically, Jonray passed away

better each year. Brighton really is booming

last year and since then the restaurant has

and I can’t wait to get my teeth stuck in and

relocated down the road to Bristol Harbour.

help push it further.

Peter is doing an amazing job with Casamia restaurant and also two other restaurants,

Where do you like to eat out?

Living in Horsham, I love the Crabtree Pub.

a pizzeria & tapas bar. That alone, for me, is inspiring.

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Bar Fly WINE

Wine School ❝ ❞

by Jonny Gibson, Sussex Wine School

If you don’t believe me, taste a red Bordeaux on its own and then after a bite of mature cheddar cheese.

T

he first thing to say about food and

of the best taste sensations I have ever had.

spicy red like Chateauneuf du Pape, Cotes du

wine pairing is that there is a lot of

If you want a red wine then look for Pinot

Rhone or Primitivo / Zinfandel.

stuff and nonsense written about it. If

Noir or a lighter red from northern Italy like

something works well for you, then stick with

Valpolicella. A slightly chilled, light red is great

it, and if you want to experiment, then you

with meatier fish like turbot or monkfish.

should do so. Here are my pearls of wisdom based on many years of tasting wine with food and experiencing wonderful pairings in action.

High-acidity foods need highacidity wines Some foods are undoubtedly friendly to

High tannin reds become magically smoother with salty foods If you like your red wines full-bodied and chewy, then you’ll need something to tone down those mouth-drying tannins. Salt, protein or a reduced sauce are your friends

wine and others create a challenge. Hands

here. If you don’t believe me, taste a red

up if you are a fan of goat cheese, seafood,

Bordeaux on its own and then after a bite

salads with a dressing, Thai food, simple

of mature cheddar cheese. The difference is

tomato pasta or any other tangy, zesty dishes.

amazing. Seasoning your food with a little

You’ll find that these dishes have the effect

salt or pairing big reds with a meat dish will

of dropping the acidity level of a wine and

both help to make dry wines like Cabernet

making them taste a little flat and boring.

Sauvignon, Malbec, northern Rhone Syrah,

Make sure you start with plenty of refreshing

Chianti and Nebbiolo taste richer and

zip to start with, so try grape varieties like

smoother.

Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling or Italian whites like Soave and Verdicchio with these foods.

Champagne is also a good choice. Ruinart Blanc de Blancs NV and seabass ceviche is one

Jonny Gibson, Sussex Wine School Sussex Wine School runs regular tastings and courses in Brighton and Tunbridge Wells for anyone interested in finding out more about wine.

Find our more at www. sussexwineschool.com

Balance your textures Balancing food textures with appropriate wines sounds obvious and it is good advice.

Sauces can make a huge difference. We run a steak and wine evening that demonstrates this perfectly. The entrecote steak with béarnaise sauce is perfect with a French Cabernet Sauvignon, but the ribeye with gremolata (lemon zest, garlic and parsley) needs the higher acidity of an Italian red like Montepulciano or Chianti.

Like chilli heat? Avoid dry wines and beers Spice can be a real problem for wine. It is best to avoid dry wine styles with lots of tannin as the chilli heat makes these wines taste really bitter and astringent. This is why you see sweeter lagers like Cobra rather than dry lagers like Becks and Grolsch on the menu at your local curry house. Wines should be on the lighter and sweeter side of life with spicy dishes. Think Beaujolais, Pinot Noir, Chilean Merlot, Riesling or off-dry rose wines.

Some of the most famous food and

A delicate pan-fried lemon sole will work best

wine pairings use these principles, but add

with a light white wine like Chablis, Gavi or an

an unexpected twist to them. The reason

unoaked Macon Villages. Add some stronger

that a sweet dessert wine like Sauternes or

garlic and tomato flavours to your white fish and you need a more gutsy white like a South of France Viognier or Marsanne, an Albarino from Spain or maybe a Fiano or Falanghina white from southern Italy. A delicate rack of lamb is perfect with a red Burgundy. Duck and a reduced red wine and plum or cherry sauce works better with any dry red from Bordeaux or south west France. Beef and pickled walnuts with celeriac mash or a spicy lamb tagine, on the other hand, will taste great with a smooth,

Monbazillac works so well with blue cheese like Roquefort is the surprisingly high acidity in the sweet wine can cope with the very tangy cheese. Port and Stilton are further cases in point.

Keep it sweet with desserts When it comes to pudding, there is only one piece of advice: make sure the wine is at least as sweet as the dessert or it will taste horrible.

Happy experimenting!

77

Table Talk EVENTS

Spring Harvest The Brighton & Hove Food and Drink Festival hosts this year’s Spring Harvest from 19-30th May. The festival director, Nick Mosley, takes us through the highlights of one of Europe’s biggest celebrations of food and drink.

A

s we enter our 14th year, this May

the on-going generosity and support of our

wine media from across the globe descend

sees the most exciting food festival

patrons, sponsors and the hospitality and food

on our city for a conference and exhibition at

ever to hit the seafront and streets

community of our region.

the Hilton Brighton Metropole that happens

of Brighton & Hove. The success of the ever-growing festival is entirely reflective of the dynamism of the food and hospitality economy that we find in the city and surrounding county.

The Brighton & Hove Food and Drink

Uniquely for a major food festival - whether here in the UK or overseas - all of our outdoor activities are free to enter. Other than the tasty morsels from our 80 plus stallholders on Hove Lawns at our Sussex & The World Weekend, we offer a variety of events and

Festival is a very unique vehicle driven by the

activities including our Children’s Food Festival,

passion and talent of the festival team and the

Live Food Show, Beach BBQ Cook Off, live

hundreds of stakeholders we work alongside each year. Despite our scale and scope, we are a not-for-profit Community Interest Company with specified aims and objectives in terms of supporting and nurturing the local food economy, promoting both good and local food

entertainment and our Taste The World area in conjunction with this year’s international partners from Sicily, Sweden, The Netherlands, Portugal, Guernsey and India.

2016 is a truly momentous time for Sussex

and drink to residents and visitors, and taking

as this year we host the International Cool

our food and drink offering to the wider

Climate Wine Symposium right here in

world in terms of both export opportunities

Brighton & Hove, running alongside the food

and gastronomic tourism promotion. We

festival. ICCWS happens every five years, and

receive no public funding, so rely entirely on

sees hundreds of cool climate wine makers and

A FLAVOUR OF WHAT’S TO COME We’ve an Indian Banquet at Hotel du Vin with Curry Leaf Café supporting FareShare Sussex; cool climate themed wine dinners at Terre à Terre, The Set Restaurant and Jeremy’s Restaurant; fusion chef, producer and mixologist events at 64 Degrees and The Plotting Parlour; the UK’s largest ever English Wine festival on Hove Lawns – along with a world record attempt for the biggest cheese board with La Cave à Fromage; punk wine and beer tastings supporting Rockinghorse children’s charity; a Swedish tea dance with Visit Sweden, Metrodeco and Swing Sussex; an amazing brunch with the hugely talent chef Simon Mckenzie from the five star Old Government House in Guernsey at Market; and we’re even looking after our four-legged friends with The Dogs Dinner.

Visit the website for dates and booking details.

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once every five years. It really is a mark of how important Sussex and the south of England have become in terms of quality wine production in the past two decades, and as an organisation we’re very proud to be delivering the consumer events for ICCWS alongside our friends at Butlers Wine Cellar, Laithwaites and English Wine Producers.

This year’s Brighton & Hove Food and Drink Festival ‘Spring Harvest’ has a really exciting 10-day programme that involves oodles of truly delicious food and drink businesses.

The city’s food awards also launch on 1st April with public nominations in over 15 categories running until the end of August before our panel of judges head out to secret shop and interview the finalists with our grand final – sponsored by Deliveroo and supported

by Ridgeview Wine Estate and Blackdown Artisan Spirits – hosted in early November where we crown the creme de la creme of our hospitality and food industry.

I really hope I’ve got you salivating for more.

So tuck in, enjoy and join us for the bounty of world (and world-class) food right here on our doorstep!

Nick Mosley, Director, Brighton & Hove Food and Drink Festival CIC

Web: www.brightonfoodfestival.com

Bar Fly PRODUCER PROFILE

The Ridgeview Winery

T

he multi

Champagne. The grapes are hand harvested

the glass (including 64 degrees, The Curry Leaf

award

and blended then bottle fermented spending

café, The Market and Fourth and Church in

winning

a minimum 18 months ‘on the lees’ (in contact

Hove). The dominance of Chardonnay in this

Ridgeview wines

with yeast) providing the familiar yeasty,

blend provides a crisp fruity (citrus) freshness

are growing in

biscuity notes of most champagne wines.

alongside a subtle buttery softness. This was

popularity and acclaim. The latest, somewhat glamorous endorsement, is the Ridgeview Fitzrovia Rose was served at the recent Oscar ceremony creating a real buzz on social media and in the press. With Ridgeview winery on our doorstep at Ditchling and their sparkling wines being one of my favourite tipples, it seemed an obvious choice for our first product review.

The vineyard itself is set in a stunning

The range of wines make the most of the vine and comprise the spectrum of styles found in classic champagne; blanc de Blanc (100% Chardonnay), Blanc de Noir (the Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) and two blended varieties; the popular signature Bloomsbury which uses all three grapes but is Chardonnay dominant and the traditional blend Cavendish which is Pinot dominated. In addition they offer two Roses; the Fitzrovia created using a standard blending method and the Rose

Maarten’s favourite (he didn’t spit I noticed).

Next up the Cavendish (2013 vintage), Pinot dominated providing a fuller bodied wine with structure and complexity which would pair well with food. Finally the Rose de Noir (2010 vintage) –a new one for me and now my favourite of their range. Fuller body in style with juicy red fruit flavours and creamy biscuit; a very well balanced and complex wine ideal as an aperitif or with food. Retailing at over £32.95 this is an occasion wine but l was rather taken with it.

landscape at the foot of the south downs. The

de Noir made using the rarer ‘bleed’ method

tasting room providing sweeping views over

whereby the skins of the Pinot grapes are

the vineyard.

left in brief contact during pressing and then

here. I would sooner drink Ridgeview than

extracted to give colour and structure.

many champagnes and l love the fact that

Tamara Roberts CEO of this family owned business described how in 1995, her father,

The naming of each wine referencing

a computer entrepreneur, decided to start

London regions, pays homage to the little

a vineyard after a chance conversation

known fact that the traditional ‘champagne’

with a fellow wine lover who was himself

method was first documented in the 1800’s by

investing in vines. Today, the 20 acre vineyard

Christopher Merret in London long before it

produces 350,000 bottles a year with plans for

appeared in Champagne.

significant growth; a very realistic ambition given that the US market is now opening up to English sparkling wine and Ridgeview already appearing on the wine lists of top New York and Californian wine bars and restaurants.

The wines are made using the same

During our visit and after a tour of the

There is no denying the quality of the wines

this is a family owned and run business now in its second generation. Tamara and her team are frequently involved with the local food and drink community. She talked fondly of other successful Sussex vineyards and we discussed the fact that Sussex is one of the best counties for food and drink (here here) and

impressive vineyard and processing areas,

yet does not enjoy the same profile

we were treated to a tasting hosted by the

as other regions.

warm and charming Tamara who is clearly passionate about her business. First up the Popular Bloomsbury (2013 vintage) retailing

grape varieties (Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and

at £24.95. This is the blend most often found

Pinot Meunier) and traditional methods of

on restaurant wine lists and local venues by

I couldn’t resist coming away with a bottle of the Rose de Noir and I’m already looking forward to choosing the occasion – it wont be long.

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EDUCATION

HERE TO STAY

It was twenty years ago when girls were first welcomed to Hurst College Senior School, an all-boys institution for 150 years. To celebrate the 20th anniversary, Ian Trevett spoke to the Headmaster, Tim Manly, and Registrar, Debs Treyer-Evans, who was originally appointed to oversee the transition to a fully co-ed school.

I

t is hard to imagine Hurst College as anything other than a co-educational school, but it wasn’t too long ago when girls at Hurst

purpose in life. The certainties of the Imperial,

parties were run by middle-aged men of a

almost Victorian, era had been shaken by the

certain type whether on the left or right. It was

1960s in particular, and then the nihilistic

all fairly grim.”

would have been unthinkable. You don’t have

1970s. Schools often didn’t quite know what

to travel too far back in the past to the days

they were there for. It was only during the

of falling pupil numbers, that prompted the big

when independent schools were often stuffy

1980s and 1990s, that schools came to terms

decision to introduce girls. In 1993 Debs Treyer-

institutions, stifled by tradition and stuck in the

with their identity.”

Evans was taken on to oversee the revolution

past. Happily, times have changed.

The current Hurst Headmaster, Tim Manly,

“Until then schools of this sort were still preparing boys (and they were all boys) for a

It was in this context, and the small matter

in the school, which went further than simply offering spaces to the fairer sex.

is refreshingly honest about the historic

world that was very hierarchical and male and

“At the time, the boys were called by their

difficulties faced by schools such as Hurst:

the scope for creativity when they were young

surnames and the masters all wore gowns,”

“The school was a bit behind the times. Judging

just wasn’t there. That was one of the great

recalls Debs. “It was a very formal environment.

by my experience of being at a similar school

things about the ‘80s. It was suddenly very

So you weren’t just going co-ed, you were asking

in the 1970s, I think many had lost their way.

liberating. In the 1970s you always had this

teachers to call pupils by their first names.

I don’t think they had a sense of their real

sense that the country, businesses and political

Some saw this as a backward step.”

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EDUCATION

Disarmingly, Debs regards her naivety at the time as her strongest card, and declares that she didn’t really notice any opposition to the changes, which surely must have existed among long-standing residents of the staff room. “It was the right time to change, so it wasn’t too much of a battle. Our feeder schools were going co-ed and we had demand from parents who wanted their daughters to go to the same school as their elder brothers.

“It probably helped that this time coincided with members of staff retiring, but possibly

floor windows so that people couldn’t climb

committee. We went for long viyella skirts that

the biggest challenge was that the staff room

in and out of them. We had a co-ed committee

were very fashionable at the time, and now

remained male-dominated for some time - we

to discuss all these issues, because we had to

we have kilts, but the uniform hasn’t changed

needed more female teachers.

plan carefully.

much since then. We don’t have any arguments

“The first thing we had to do was choose

“The school was predominantly boarding at

about the skirt length, and the uniform is

which house to convert. So we amalgamated

that time, and we have a far higher proportion

very forgiving for all shapes, which is pretty

a couple of boys’ houses, and converted one to

of day students now. Since Tim Manly arrived

important in teenage years.”

a girls’ house. I had to go to the school council

as Headmaster ten years ago, the senior school

and present a paper to the governors arguing

has doubled in size, with 800 pupils at the

that we had to have decent beds and re-do

school this September.

all the bathrooms. In fact, the first thing we did in the house was to change all the ground

“Interestingly, the biggest debate was probably the uniform - we even had a uniform

It would have been a brave move for the first girls, as they were clearly in the minority.

“We had 30 girls in our first cohort in 1995, very brave pioneering girls - 15 in the Lower Sixth and 15 in Year Nine. We are now 47%

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EDUCATION co-ed and that’s quite a rapid change.

“One of the lovely things is that the girls have excelled in all areas, including music and sport. Just a few weeks ago, in fact, our girls were under-14, under-15 and under-16 Sussex netball champions, and our under14s also won the Sussex Cup, while our under-15, 16 and 19 teams were runners up.

The choir benefitted from becoming co-ed, but the most rapid expansion has been in drama. We no longer have to ship in girls from local schools to take part in productions which now number more than 20 each year.

“We’ve had a series of events to celebrate the anniversary. We started off with a dinner in December when we invited 799 girls who have left since that very first year in 1995, and we had a fantastic turnout.

“We commissioned an anthem written and composed by Sir Peter Maxwell-Davies (who very sadly passed away recently) and that’s going to be recorded. We’ve had an artist in residence who came here and spent a week with the girls and produced a magnificent textile hanging.”

Gilly Robinson “One of the original girls gave a speech and she had wonderful stories of what life was like and there’s no doubt they were real pioneers, they were real trailblazers. It wasn’t just that first cohort, it was the first five or six years of girls who had a challenging time.”

In February, we hosted a gala dinner for the 349 girls currently at the college. “I’m a great advocate of mixed-sex schools because the world is co-ed, you end up in a co-ed workplace and a co-ed environment. Learning to live and work alongside people of the opposite sex is good. I think the other thing is that they end up with very good friends of the opposite sex, not girlfriends or boyfriends, but long-lasting friendships and I think that’s a huge plus that you don’t get from a single-sex school. I think the myth of girls doing better in single-sex schools is really gone now, Last year the girls in our school outperformed all the single-sex schools around here in GCSEs and A-Levels.”

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When Tim Manly became Head in 2005, the co-ed project was well advanced, but not yet complete: “We were still about 30% girls at that stage, and the staff room was dominated by male teachers, who had a strong sense of the fact Hurst had been an all-boys school.

“If you are going to be co-ed then the key thing is to be properly co-ed and that is why we are celebrating, because we are nearly at that 50% level, which has made a huge difference. If you have a few girls in a school, that, I think, is almost a worse scenario. It should either be single-sex or properly co-ed. You shouldn’t trial by minority.

“There are many schools that struggle to get up to 30-40% and stay there for many, many years. Speaking personally, I’m not sure I see myself working elsewhere because I like the dynamic we have here.

“When I arrived, considerable emphasis was put on the girls’ success, whereas now we can afford to be very even-handed because there is no need to be otherwise.

I don’t feel an invisible hand is required to push girls into science or boys into creative subjects. We have settled into an equilibrium and attractive culture.

“Unlike 10 years ago, it’s actually now OK for boys to enjoy dance and be in the choir and its OK for girls to do physics. We have many female officers in the CCF, which is fantastic. I firmly believe that the future belongs to hybrids. It belongs to those individuals who can combine the best characteristics, which are seen to be stereotypically male as well as stereotypically female. It is an element of risk-taking, the desire to initiate and challenge which are often seen as male traits, plus the stereotypically female (and these are stereotypes) elements of empathy, working with people, understanding and listening. These are the folk who are going to be building businesses, changing them, adapting them in the 21st century in a non-hierarchical environment.

“Boys and girls are different, but they all do tend to sit on a spectrum. To be absolutive in your approach and to say a boy does this and a girl does that is completely wrong.

“The whole gender thing has always been challenging and I think is even more challenging than when we were younger. We were young and utterly ignorant. They are young and they think they know it, but what they often witness on social media and the internet, is a strange sort of porn-culture view of the world. That’s a real challenge for them as they grow up.”

With all the issues of gender, therefore, is a co-ed or single-sex environment preferable?

“There are good schools and there are not-so-good schools and we should be wary of making judgement that single sex or co-ed is superior to the other. Speaking personally, I’ve got four children – two boys and two girls – and I love the fact that they’ve been through the co-ed environment, and that’s partially because of my own all-boys experience. Tellingly, my two eldest, my oldest boy and my oldest girl, are both at Oxford doing physics. That’s great.”

OPEN DAY

Bank Holiday Monday 2 May 2016 at 10:00am

Curious, creative, engaged, independent, conďŹ dent, and happy - that’s a Roedean girl

Day, flexi, weekly, and full boarding from 11 to 18. Wide range of scholarships available.

Please register at roedean.co.uk

CAREERS

MASTERS LEARN FROM MASTERS S tudents at Portsmouth Business School recently spent a week learning from those who have experienced one of the world’s most tumultuous economies.

Second year students working towards a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) visited Reykjavik in Iceland as part of their course to help them better understand aspects of strategic management in a business environment outside the UK. The week began with a visit to the University of Reykjavic to hear from some of the teaching team about the business and cultural environment in Iceland, providing a backdrop for the rest of the week’s visits.

The MBA course team chose Iceland because it provided a chance for students to learn from business people and organisations who have responded to the 2008 global financial crisis which brought the Icelandic economy to its knees.

The students learnt about businesses in the private and public sector which have rebuilt themselves, including Islandsbanki, one of Iceland’s most famous banks. Other businesses visited were born from opportunities the crisis presented, including Meniga, a global leader in financial management systems.

Portsmouth MBA students at the University of Reykjavic Course leader David Hall said resilience and a determined ‘can do’ class at Portsmouth could be seen to be applied attitude were characteristic of Icelandic in a different business context to the UK, which people and were clearly in evidence in the brings an important international perspective to approach they took to business. our MBA course and the student experience.”

He said: “The access and openness of the For more information about the discussions the students had with senior leaders Portsmouth MBA, please come along to was a revelation and extremely stimulating. one of our regular open evenings details “This visit provided another dimension to the of which can be found at students experience and learning on the MBA at www.showyoumeanbusiness.com Portsmouth Business School. What is taught in

Show you mean business – do the Portsmouth MBA

Our Master of Business Administration (MBA) will develop your capabilities and enable you to bring fresh thinking to your organisation right from the start of your studies. Not only will it enhance your career prospects but it will allow you to build lasting networks with like-minded individuals.

• Innovative work-based learning • Taught part-time in two day blocks over two years • Generous scholarships

‘The MBA is a key to unlocking the doors to senior and executive level management roles.

The pace of the course allows me to carry out a full time international sales role at the same time as studying.’

Katie Ilincariu Europe and South America Sales Manager, Fosse Liquitrol

Come along to one of our Postgraduate and MBA open evenings and listen to a guest speaker, meet the teaching staff and current students in a relaxed and informal atmosphere – for details visit www.showyoumeanbusiness.com.

For more information or to apply: T: +44 (0)23 9284 4888 E: mba.admissions@ port.ac.uk W: www.port.ac.uk/mba

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Platinum Business News!

Your future talent-pool of highly-skilled future employees The Careers and Employability Centre, at the University of Sussex, welcomes the opportunity to work with new and existing employers, our Sussex alumni and opportunity providers across all sectors.

We want to make it easy for you, the business community, to engage with the University and your future talentpool of highly skilled students and graduates. We look forward to discussing ways in which we can work together.

Free vacancy advertising for employers We offer a free vacancy advertising service for opportunities which are suitable for our current students or recent graduates. Adverts appear at our online vacancy listing: www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/jobs/search and interested candidates will apply to you directly.

One year professional placements A number of courses at Sussex involve a professional placement year. Subjects include Informatics, Business and Management and Product Design. We can help you to recruit a suitable student for your organisation.

Work experience and Internships Work experience is a cost effective way of raising your profile and even trialling potential future graduate employees. We can target current students and recent graduates and have some special funded schemes.

Sussex Santander internships The University of Sussex is a member of Santander Universities UK and we are able to offer a limited number of 12-week internships, with attached funding, for small to medium-size enterprises.

Recruitment fair Our flagship event, Careers Fair, is held each autumn at the American Express Community Stadium. It attracts over 100 exhibitors and up to 2,500 students and recent graduates. We’d love you to be there!

Events Let us host your recruitment presentations or informal drop-in sessions to give you the opportunity to meet students on campus. This is an effective way to reach your target audience.

We also welcome your support and expertise for some of our initiatives such as StartUp Sussex Enterprise, our programme for potential social and commercial entrepreneurs.

Skills workshops and alumni talks Employers regularly visit Sussex to run skills development sessions for our students. Recent events have included presentation skills, social entrepreneurship, commercial awareness, networking and assessment centres. We also welcome Sussex alumni back to campus to take part in careers information

If you’d like to find out more please contact: Linda Buckham, Director, Careers and Employability Centre, Andrea Wall, Employer Engagement Manager, Careers and Employability Centre, The Library, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QL T: 01273 873384 or 01273 678429 E: andrea.wall@sussex.ac.uk W: www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/employers

Please mention Platinum Business Magazine when you contact us.

2016

One day exhibitiOn, Friday 6th May THE KING’S CENTRE MId SuSSEx, VICToRIa Road, BuRGESS HIll, RH15 9lR 10.00aM – 3.00pM

exhibitiOn OF business in burgess hill This lively one-day event showcases many of the businesses in and around the business parks of the town. Burgess Hill is home to more than 250 businesses, of which some are large international companies and many others are SMEs. We are very proud of the strength and diversity of the business sector in the Town. do take this opportunity to come along and find out for yourself – and also to network with the vibrant business community and witness some individual success stories.

Where: When: entry:

The King’s Centre Mid Sussex, Victoria Road, Burgess Hill, RH15 9lR

”THE EVENT WAS FANTASTIC. A SUITABLE NUMBER OF VISITORS BUT ALSO A VERY FRIENDLY BUSINESS TO BUSINESS ATMOSPHERE.”

Friday 6th May 2015 from 10.00am – 3.00pm

ROB LITTLE, HILLINGAR LTD.

Free – on production of a business card

For more Information on registering for the exhibition or further details on networking visit www.bhbpa.co.uk or contact Peter liddell at peter.liddell@bhbpa.co.uk Thanks to Sussex living for sponsoring this event, and to the following companies for their continued support:- autowise, Burgess Hill Town Council, Hickstead Hotel, The King’s Church Mid Sussex, lea Graham associates, Paul Noble Photographic, Preview, Netsense, The Sussex Sign Company and TS Professional.

“MUCH MORE FRIENDLY AND PERSONAL THAN OTHER EXHIBITIONS.” BRUCE MILLINGTON, SUTTON WINSON

“ONE OF THE BEST EXHIBITIONS I’VE ATTENDED.” IAN HOPPING, AUDITEL

“THIS WAS BUZZY AND BUSY, THERE WAS GREAT FREE FOOD AND ICE CREAM. I HAD A GREAT TIME SPEAKING TO ALL AND SUNDRY.” ANN DRUERY, THE VAT LADY

organised by

designed by

sponsored by media partner

“BRILLIANT EVENT, WELL DONE. FIVE STARS ON EVERYTHING” LANCE NUTTALL, THE WOOLPACK

www.preview.co.uk

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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

BUSINESS SCENE

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1. A J Walter Aviation Ltd 2. Michael Thornley, Comms Factory Group with presenter Simon Fanshawe OBE

4.

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3. Time 24 Ltd 4. Ampito Group LLP 5. Enviropower Ltd 6. Electronic Temperature Instruments Ltd 7. NEXUS Ltd 8. Dawn Sweeney

CELEBRATING THE SUPER GROWERS The county’s Super Growers were recognised at a breakfast awards ceremony at The Amex Community Stadium in Falmer. The Sussex Super Growth Awards brought together the inspirational group of high-growth companies who are helping to drive the economy.

Created by Kreston Reeves, Lloyds, asb law and The Argus, the ceremony was hosted by Simon Fanshawe. To have been entered, companies must be active and their main trading address must be in Sussex. Turnover must be at least £1 million in the base year, the company must be profitable and it must not be quoted. Growth figures were based on a three-year period with all information based on records filed with Companies House. This year’s three highest growth companies, in order, were Comms Factory Group, JW Stratton and Focus Group.

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Photos courtesy of asb law

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NETWORKING

BUSINESS NETWORKING You never know where it will lead...

By Emma Pearce Marketing Consultant – marketing planning, outsourced marketing and social media training www.pearcemarketing.co.uk

How networking can lead to the development of powerful partnerships and national awards

W

e all know that networking is not just about selling. It’s about developing relationships, finding suppliers,

fellow delegate standing beside her. On hearing about Emma’s work, he explained he was

manually chasing money!

In February 2016 both companies were

at the concept stage of developing software

at Xerocon again. Emma was a guest on the

meeting potential partners and learning more

that would integrate with Xero. David Tuck,

Chaser exhibition stand, speaking to other

about business.

Co-Founder and CEO of Chaser, described how

bookkeepers and accountants about her

their system would send automated emails

experience with Xero and Chaser.

Here’s a true story about the significance of an initial conversation at a networking event.

for chasing customers to pay their invoices

It led to an incredibly important business

(in a polite and persistent way that looked like

fantastic news: both won national awards!

partnership that has led to significant growth

normal personal emails).

Chaser won ‘Add-on Partner of the Year in the

and national recognition for both parties.

This chance meeting led to some interesting

At the end of the conference there was some

UK’ and Fresh Financials won ‘Xero Bookkeeping

discussions in further networking breaks, and

Partner of the Year in the UK’ for leading the way

company (near Lewes, in East Sussex) that

when the first prototype was ready in May

in reinventing bookkeeping through the adoption

provides cloud bookkeeping and accounting

2014, David travelled down from London to visit

of Xero and add-on solutions.

services for SMEs using the Xero accounting

Emma and gave her a demo. Over the following

platform. (Xero is set to overtake Sage in terms

months, Emma helped David by rigorously

Fresh Financials is a Selmeston-based

of number of customers in 2016. In 2015 Xero

testing the product and giving enormously

Networking never stops But that’s not the end of the networking

helpful feedback about refinements to make

story… another winner that day was a second

every 46 minutes!)

it even better. A close business relationship

Sussex-based business. Carpenter Box,

developed and both companies had exhibition

Chartered Accountants and Chartered Tax

Chance conversation

stands at Xerocon in 2015 as their businesses

Advisers in Worthing and Gatwick, were named

converted a Sage data set over to its system

Emma Northcote-Green, MD at Fresh

grew. Fresh Financials was the first SILVER

‘Accounting Partner of the Year in the UK.’ Post-

Financials, first attended the Xero conference

Xero Accredited Bookkeeper in East Sussex,

conference networking led to Emma making a

(Xerocon) in London in 2013. It was only a

and their client base quadrupled in 24 months.

connection with Aaron Knight from Carpenter

year since she had decided to fully commit

Chaser was launched and had rapid growth;

Box and they have since met about how they

her bookkeeping and accounting business to

there are now over 1000 businesses signed

can start working together.

Xero. In a networking break, as she picked up

up to the system. The benefits are significant

a drink and considered which exhibition stand

– with an average 26 debtor day reduction and

and ask people about their business. You never

to visit first, she started a conversation with a

an average 3.5 working weeks saved per year

know where your conversation will lead…

90

So don’t forget your networking skills: smile,

BUSINESS SCENE

CHESTNUT TREE HOUSE Networking at The Grand March 2016

O

ver 60 people attended the first Brighton business networking breakfast hosted by Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice in March. Attendees from a large range of local businesses met to learn about the work of the hospice in the community. The charity’s patron, Ambrose Harcourt, acted as MC for the event hosted by The Grand Brighton.

Guests were welcomed by the hospice’s new Chairman, Derwyn Jones, and heard from Linda Perry, Director of Children’s Services at Chestnut Tree House, who gave a moving account of the care provided by the hospice to local children and families. Hugh Lowson, Chief Executive of Chestnut Tree House, said, “It was great to see so many Brighton businesses come along this morning to find out more about the care Chestnut Tree House provides, both at the hospice and in families’ own homes.”

There are two more business networking breakfasts coming up: Tuesday 5 May - Cisswood Hotel in Horsham Thursday 14 July - Goodwood House, Chichester

Chestnut Tree House, Linda Perry and Hugh Lowson

www.chestnut-tree-house.org.uk/breakfast

Chestnut Tree House Sarah Arnold with Patron Ambrose Harcourt

Gemma King of Vivid Marketing and Alan Maher of Chestnut Tree House Lottery

Katie and Rachel of Juice 107.2 with Alan Novis of Sussex Promotions

General Manager at The Grand Hotel Andrew Mosley with the Chairman of Trustees at Chestnut Tree House, Derwyn Jones

Chestnut Tree House Terrina Barnes with Mike Monk of Monk Marketing and Marie Harris of Beta Futures

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Direct Debit Processing Donor Development Campaign Planning Marketing Resources

www.charityline.org.uk

Call us on: 0800 368 9701 or email: info@charityline.org.uk

BUSINESS SCENE

THE PLATINUM BUSINESS CLUB BRIGHTON & GATWICK

1.

The Platinum Club just continues to grow and grow. The Club is about effective and highly enjoyable networking between regional business leaders. No speeches, no presentations, no seated meals and no sponsors - rather, a fully hosted Champagne cocktail reception full of eclectic Directors and CEO’s from a vast array of companies. There was a comment that there was more business carried out at a single Platinum event than all the regions networking events put together. Who can argue with that. To join, contact info@platinumbusinessmagazine.com or call 07966 244046.

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Caraline Brown, MD of Midnight with Kevin Duala of Overline John Burroughes, CEO of Uniglobe Travel talks with Chris Langley of RBS

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Simon Gregg of IT First and Mark Tulley from Gemini Print Anthony Weller of Warrens Law chats with Emma Segal of Pier Recruitment

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6.

4.

Mark Cardy from Skerritt’s Wealth Management Chris Bailey (Allied Irish Bank), Janet Scott (Hunters Recruitment), Chris Mansfield (Davenport Investments)

7.

Mark Tulley of Gemini Print

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PLATINUM STYLE

style PLATINUM

❝

‘Simplicity, to me, has always been the essence of good taste.’

– Cary Grant

Samantha Wilding Tel: 07833 084864 Email: Samantha@styleandgrace.eu Website: www.styleandgrace.eu Twitter: @alwayschicUK

❞ STYLE ICONS S

tyle is notoriously difficult to pin down; many people are fashionable but relatively few are truly stylish. In my opinion, it comes down to simplicity, elegance and individuality.

In this article I’m going to focus on two great twentieth century male style icons who have simplicity, elegance and individuality nailed.

Their appeal is timeless, their images are unforgettable and they continue to influence what men wear now. And take a look at Cary Grant’s fabulous rules for dressing (see the box) – you’ll see that most of these apply to

94

women as well as men.

Cary Grant – it’s all about the suit Cary Grant had a reputation for being sartorially superior, as it were, and was often cited as one of Hollywood’s best dressed men.

His preference were for the clothes of a ‘welldressed, sophisticated chap.’ He still looked elegant even being pursued across a dusty plain by a crop duster in North by Northwest (which, by the way, required six suit changes and dozens of ties…)

Interestingly, Mr Archibald Alexander Leach

PLATINUM STYLE the sunglasses, watches and shoes that he wore, both onscreen and off.

These are the details that make the difference between looking good and looking great. He was also incredibly loyal to the brands and items he chose, creating his ‘signature’ look. Here are his choices: • Sunglasses: Persol sunglasses, particularly the 714 range. These were brought out in 1960 and at the time were the first folding glasses. They are still available today.

• Watches: He wore many on screen but Mr McQueen’s personal choice was the rare Rolex Submariner 5512, which was discontinued in 1978. His, incidentally, sold in 2009 in New York for $234,000 [roughly £168,000].

• Shoes (actually boots): Northampton firm Hutton’s ‘Playboy’ boots in brown suede were McQueen’s favourites. He wore them in a number of films including The Great Escape, Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair.

Sadly, Hutton closed down in 1990. (as he was originally) never considered himself to be particularly well-

So gentlemen - think about what you wear. Whether you prefer

dressed, saying that he didn’t strive to follow fashion. But I would argue

formality like Cary Grant or are happier in a more casual McQueen look,

that that was the key to his timeless elegance – he favoured classic

pay attention to the details. Care about your look. Be a style icon.

tailoring, and had clothes made at tailors including Schiaparelli in Rome and Dunhill in London.

No one wore a suit quite like him, and not all of them were bespoke.

The man himself said, ‘Some of my suits are ten to twenty years old, many of them ready-made and reasonably priced.’ He tended to tread a ‘middle path’ when it came to his suits, so that didn’t look too conservative yet neither did they date quickly. His lapels weren’t too wide or too narrow, and his trousers were likewise neither too slim fitting nor too baggy (although we would consider them loose by today’s standards).

He also advised choosing quality over quantity when buying key items, particularly suits and shoes: ‘permit me to suggest you buy the best you can afford even though it means buying less’.

Steve McQueen – the details mattered If Cary Grant was synonymous with ‘debonair’, Steve McQueen was the undisputed ‘King of Cool’. He was equally at home in a t-shirt and leather bomber, a polo neck and jacket (Bullitt) or sharp tailoring (just look at the three piece suits in The Thomas Crown Affair). But the important thing about Mr McQueen was how much the details mattered to him; he cared about

Cary Grant’s dos and donts: Mr Grant was often asked about his ‘rules’ for dressing, and in an article for GQ said ‘I can’t think of any rules about clothes, since there really aren’t any….’. But he did go on to advise the following. Although these are aimed at men, the first four can apply equally to women: • Buy [shoe] trees to conform to the shape of your shoes, and keep your coats on curved hangers • Don’t stuff your pockets with heavy articles and bulging wallets filled with seldom-used cards. They ruin not only the neatness of your appearance but the actual tailoring of your suit. (Ladies: take note where your handbags are concerned) • Don’t overbuy. When you contemplate an article, judge whether or not it harmonises with items you already own • Take care of your clothes, keep them clean and in good repair • Do see that your socks stay up. Nothing can spoil an otherwise well-groomed effect like sagging socks From Cary Grant On Style, GQ/The Week, 1967-68

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BRIGHTON & HOVE

A LOOK AHEAD AT THIS YEAR’S EVENTS

By Emily Hall, Events Manager

J

anuary got off to a flying start at Brighton Chamber with 32 new members and 10 packed events.

There was a topical Big Debate on ‘Should The EU Be More Business-Friendly?’, and a

Construction Voice (for the property and construction sector).

So what’s next?

Our monthly Business Breakfast at

Major Developments event featuring three

Carluccios have some not-to- be-missed

important developments in the city. We

speakers coming up, including Arjo

interviewed the impressive Alan Margetts,

Ghosh (digital entrepreneur), Gary Peters

founder of The Kitchen Store, at Silo, and

(LoveLocalJobs.com), and Felicity Beckett

hosted four Bite-Sized Learning sessions on

(Duke Of Yorks). You need to book these early

Google Analytics, Being a Better Writer, and

or buy for the year to guarantee a place.

more… oh, and a behind-the-scenes tour of the Amex Stadium.

February started with Creative Hub (for

Our Pop-up breakfasts have the slightly later start of 9am, and are held at some of Brighton’s most comfortable and attractive

creative businesses), with two fascinating

cafes. The next one is on the sharing

case studies, Bite-Sized Learning on using

economy, followed by one on getting

LinkedIn for sales, Gamification, and more.

investment in your business.

We interviewed Richard Skerritt over a

There are four great networking socials

delicious lunch at Drakes, held a day-

that start straight after work. The first is a

long workshop for start-ups and explored

wine tasting on 24 March at the new Fourth

constructing great communities with

and Church in Hove.

Photo thanks to Katariina Jarvinen www.lighttrick.co.uk

The next Big Debate will focus on work space and how we can meet the demand.

The popular two-hour Bite-Sized Learning sessions are planned three to four months ahead, so you can see them on our events calendar now. Topics include email marketing, pitching, Vlogging, ‘Being a Productivity Ninja,’ led by Think Productive, your one-page business strategy, running competitions on social media …

Mega Bite-Sized is a longer version of Bite-Sized Learning, as the name suggests.

It features four expert speakers, plus a light networking lunch. The first one is designed to cover everything you need to know about content: build your business with content; create it, showcase it and check it works.

If you like networking with a difference, Behind The Scenes events include a boat tour of Shoreham Port (back by popular demand), and many more great destinations to be revealed shortly.

In May we have our first in the series of Business Leaders Lunches at The hear from Lesley Batchelor OBE, the CEO of the Institute of Export.

Planning for this year’s Brighton Summit (14 October) is well underway.

A truly unique conference, this will be the fourth - packed with brilliant speakers, workshops, panels, fun sessions, food and networking. Chamber members will get the chance to book a Super Earlybird ticket from March.

To join Brighton Chamber, get more involved, sponsor an event, find out more – contact us on 01273 719097, membership@businessinbrighton.org.uk or see www.businessinbrighton.org.uk

CHAMBER NEWS

Grand Brighton, where we’ll

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ACES

THINK YOU CAN’T AFFORD AN HR MANAGER? THINK AGAIN!

CHAMBER NEWS

A

human resources specialist has hired an employment lawyer to help her expand her company, offering outsourced HR services to small businesses across East Sussex.

Eastbourne-based Serena May has been running an independent licence of national company The HR Dept since January 2013.

Recently starting her fourth year in business, and with 25 retained local clients on her books, she has now enlisted the services of legal adviser Lisa Martin.

Serena is aiming to take Lisa on full-time in a matter of months and has bought the licence to run the HR Dept in Brighton and Hove as well.

“I’m going for it,” she said.

“We’re aiming to become known as the best resource for outsourced HR services in East Sussex.

“We already cover Eastbourne, Lewes, Newhaven and the surrounding areas and we are taking Brighton and Hove on board, too.

“Lisa brings with her 10 years of private practise experience and is a great asset to the team. Her appointment will enable us to expand the

98

business quickly and continue to provide quality support and advice.

“I want to get Lisa up to full time work as soon as possible, then look at who else I need to recruit in six months or so. It might be admin support or more HR expertise but I’m certainly planning to take on more staff eventually.”

For more information check www.hrdept.co.uk/offices/eastbourne

WHAT IS A KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER PARTNERSHIP?

KTP is a world-leading programme that helps businesses succeed by connecting them to the UK’s rich academic resources. It’s a partnership between the business seeking expertise, a university or college and a recently qualified graduate – known as an Associate. Each partnership lasts from twelve months to three years.

The graduate carries out a strategic project in your business, with expert university academic guidance. Up to 67 per cent of the project costs are government-funded.

If you apply to KTP and you’re successful, an Associate (supervised by the company and the university) will work in your company and help bring your plans to life.

A Knowledge Transfer Partnership can involve refining or designing products, opening new markets, improving business, marketing or manufacturing systems and cutting costs and waste.

To find out more about KTPs, go to https: www.brighton.ac.uk/business-and-community-partnerships

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

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

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

ACES

£60,000 WIN FOR KTP START-UP

A

start-up company - Cyclr – was launched as a result of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with the University of Brighton and has just won £60,000 from Creative England.

Cyclr has developed a unique cloud-based marketing software system which automatically manages email marketing campaigns.

The Cyclr team have been working with academics from the University of Brighton’s School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics to embed visual language programming and open cloud-based software architecture to enable the system to be more efficiently used by local companies.

Dr Aidan Delaney, the university lead for the two-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership project, said: “Cyclr builds on 20 years of research at the University of Brighton and shows how our work can be harnessed by local companies to grow market share and jobs.”

This win is part of a larger fundraising push from Cyclr to drive forward the launch of their new, unique software platform. The project team have already received strong local support but are keen to welcome further interest and investment. To find out more about how you can get involved, see the www.cyclr.com website for a free trial and virtual tour.

Cyclr

PARKER BUILDING SUPPLIES AWARDS APPRENTICES

ACES – THE ALLIANCE OF CHAMBERS IN EAST SUSSEX - WWW.ACESALLIANCE.ORG You are automatically a member of ACES, representing 4,000 members across the county, if you are a member of the chambers listed below. This entitles you to share your news stories in these Platinum Business pages without charge.

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

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

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

CHAMBER NEWS

Didac Assessor Alison Howe (far left) and Parker Building Supplies’ Operations Manager Phil White (far right) with the eight successful apprentices

Eight trainees at Parker Building Supplies (PBS) have been presented with certificates for successfully completing their apprenticeship learning programmes.

The apprentices spent 12 months learning the ropes at the independent timber and builders’ merchants, which employs 250 people at 24 branches across the South East, including Eastbourne.

Seven of the trainees received their certificates from national training provider assessor Alison Howe from Didac, and the other certificate was presented by PBS’ Operations Manager, Phil White, for successfully completing the Freight Transport Association’s course on transport and distribution. All trainees also received a bonus to recognise their achievements.

Phil said: “I remember how I was encouraged to train and learn in my early career, and it was so important. We’re delighted with the success of our eight trainees, and they will be offered further training in the future so that they can continue to develop.”

Meanwhile, three other PBS staff have been awarded a Post Graduate Diploma in Independent Merchant Leadership and Strategy. Marketing Manager Jamie Pierce, Crowborough Branch Manager Lee Church and Purchase Ledger Assistant Jake Feek were all presented with the accolades from the Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) at Birmingham City University’s Winter Award Ceremony.

Jamie, who is also Chair of the BMF’s Young Merchants Group, said: “I really respect the BMF, so to receive this diploma was fantastic for all three of us. We were part of the first cohort on this new course and we are all going to continue our studies towards a merchant-specific Master’s degree.”

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EASTBOURNE

FAB AT 50!

B

y the middle of February, the Eastbourne unLtd Chamber of Commerce had welcomed its fiftieth new member of 2016 - up a massive 350% on last year.

Steve and Lesley Minnette of MsMatch joined the Chamber after trading at Eastbourne’s regular street market for three years. Having run Strowgers, a successful plumbing supplies business in South London for 20 years, Steve and Lesley retired and moved to Hailsham.

As serial entrepreneurs, having run a garden centre, pet shop and bespoke joinery company alongside the plumbers merchants, they found retirement too quiet and decided to join the market to keep busy.

Due to their success at the Eastbourne Market they joined Hailsham Market, and then in December 2014, opened a shop in St Mary’s Walk, which doubled in size in March.

Steve, Lesley and, of course, Moose the poodle were presented with a special 50th member certificate by Chamber President Tim Cobb.

Tim Cobb said, “Steve and Lesley have a wealth of experience in running successful businesses, and I’m delighted that they have joined our Chamber after being a regular feature on our market for three years. MsMatch sells everything from Moorcroft and Anita Harris Art Pottery to incense sticks, and they are a very welcome addition to the Chamber.”

(And yes, Anita Harris is our much-loved singer and film star as well as a sought-after potter.)

Luke Johnson, Town Centre Management added, “Steve and Lesley are a brilliant Eastbourne Market success story. Although they have been in business for years, they started trading to develop a presence locally. Now they are in a retail unit, with plans to expand, and it’s great to witness their success.”

Since January new members have included LM Productions, who worked with Eastbourne unLtd and West End Studios, producers of the acclaimed Neon Noel; the award-winning Imli Indian restaurant and Phoenix Boxing Club.

Tim Cobb President of the Chamber, Stephen Holt Stephen Holt, Business Development Manager for Eastbourne unLtd, said, “We are Business Development Manager, Steve and Lesley determined to work our hardest for all our members, whether they joined last month or from MsMatch when the Chamber formed 134 years ago! Being part of Eastbourne unLtd means you are part of the largest town-based Chamber in the South East, and MsMatch join over 600 other businesses who can receive free business support, networking events and PR opportunities as part of their membership.”

CHAMBER NEWS

So if you are interested in joining, do give them a call on 01323 641144.

AND LOOKING GOOD AT 60!

The team in Airbourne fancy dress

S

ince welcoming MsMatch to join the Chamber in mid-February, new members have continued to beat a path to the Chamber door, so that by the end of February Eastbourne unLtd had welcomed over 60 new members to join them this year.

“This is unprecedented,” said Christina Ewbank, Chief Exec of the Chamber. “We have never had so many members in such a short space of time since we formed in 1882! Last year was a good year but it took us ‘til September to find 60 new members.

“This reflects well on our Members Andy Camfield, our Action Coach, and Rachel Stone of Bespoke Training for the great work they have done with the team to develop our business plans this year. It also reflects well on our team, Stephen Holt, Luke Johnson, Sandra Walker and Siobhan Hopkins, for making it happen.”

If you would like to know more about this active Chamber of Commerce visit www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk

Visit www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk for details of this year’s Chamber events and activity or to join up on line from just £109.00 per year.

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E k RE OW! co.u F e N s. rib line tion c n ca bs Su ead o ubli p d r olio n f a rt .po w ww

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WORTHING

SPHERE OF INFLUENCE

T

he new Sphere Business Centre was officially opened by local MP Tim Loughton.

Billed as ‘Worthing’s most flexible business space’ the Centre offers a variety of serviced space options for smaller local companies alongside business development.

The Centre is also the new home to Worthing and Adur Chamber of Commerce who has been instrumental in developing the offer for local companies. It was funded by a grant from Worthing and Adur Borough Council and is based within the Broadwater Campus of Northbrook College who has also fully supported the Sphere.

“Small businesses looking to take those first steps intwo growth face many challenges,” says Chamber Chief Exec, Tina Tilley. “Going into your first office can be prohibitively expensive and dealing with all the factors of renting commercial property can be daunting. The Sphere has been set up to offer local companies a secure first step into growth and increased success.

We’ve had so much interest already, there was obviously a gap to be filled.”

The Sphere offers a variety of fully serviced office space including hot desking, part-time open plan desks and small private offices. The office space has been designed and fitted out by local award winning firms, Mocha Furniture, Warnes Projects and Subway.

Prices start from just £12 a day and include all rates and rent, Wi-Fi, cleaning and tea and coffee.

“I know it sounds strange but the minute companies take an office with us, we will be planning for when they leave,” says Tina. “The whole ethos of the Sphere is to help all those who join us become too big to stay. We will help them with targeted planning and business advice and look forward to seeing great success come from the Sphere over the next few years.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

CHAMBER NEWS

A

102

s business people we are all experts in our chosen field.

However, there are many important business areas that you may not be knowledgeable about such as marketing, social media and web management. But how can you improve your knowledge?

Worthing and Adur Chamber of Commerce has developed its new Wise Up 2workshops, which feature: • Focused session lasting two-to-three hours on a specific subject.

• Led by professional trainers who are experts in their field.

• Small group of up to eight delegates guaranteeing a personalised session • nteractive session to aid learning and allows the delegates to exchange ideas.

Recent Wise Up 2 workshops have covered marketing and time management and have all received rave reviews.

If you’re a member of the Chamber (or become a member) a Wise Up 2 workshop costs you just £35. This quality of commercial training could cost in excess of £200 for half a day.

Programme of courses 26th April - WiseUp2 .... Video Production, Editing & You Tube 10th May – 60 Second Elevator and winning the pitch 24th May – WiseUp2 LinkedIN 16th June – WiseUp2 PR on a shoestring 28th June – WiseUp2 Make your computer work for you 12th July - WiseUp2 Email Marketing www.worthingandadurchamber.co.uk/wise-up-training

Forthcoming Chamber Events 22nd March – Start Up Business Workshop 6th April – Chamber Chat Networking 15th April – Chamber Hub Networking 22nd April – Networking Lunch – Strategic Future of Coast to Capital 4th May – Annual General Meeting 20th May – EU Debate. In or Out? Debate with Sir Peter Bottomley & Tim Loughton

CHICHESTER

THE BIG SWITCH

By Luke Mead, Director of LMS Group and Chichester Chamber of Commerce & Industry

I

n 2025, BT will be switching off the ISDN Network… …but don’t be scared! Transferring your telephone systems isn’t a painful or expensive process anymore. It should be easy and simply

achievable through your managed service provider. (Obviously, let us know if you don’t have one.)

What is ISDN? ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) is the transmission of voice and data traffic over telephone copper wires.

How does the switch off affect my business? In 2025, businesses will no longer be able to use any systems that use the ISDN network.

But we’ve got ages! It might seem a long way off, but now ISDN is

If your current traditional telephony contract is up for renewal within

becoming a legacy platform. It is likely that the existing network and

the next few years, now is the time to start exploring the benefits and opportunities of VoIP and SIP technologies.

infrastructure, will become impaired before the 2025 switch-off date.

What is VoIP and SIP? We like to keep Technology Unravelled, so, put simply, VoIP allows you to make virtually free, or very low-cost, telephone calls over the Internet.

SIP Trunking is a form of IP telephony and a replacement for ISDN. SIP allows the running of voice calls over your internet connection (also known as VoIP).

There are currently 3.2 million ISDN channels active in the UK. Any business which doesn’t move away from legacy networks, will become severely limited in their usability, business continuity and service quality.

Top 5 benefits of SIP & VoIP • Cost – Significantly cheaper external and international calls and line

location. Remote workers are able to use VoIP anywhere with internet connection including mobiles.

• Disaster Recovery Solutions - Can forward calls to a number of different lines in the event of a disaster, such as data breach, accident or fire.

• Scalability – As your business evolves, VoIP can be scaled up or down, adding more lines to your business. Phone systems and handsets also need to support VoIP (your service provider will be able to help you with this.)

• Easy installation – 48 hours (in comparison to 6 weeks for ISDN installation!).

The switch off will happen… so don’t leave your business continuity in jeopardy. Be sure to speak to your managed service provider shortly about your next steps to VoIP technology.

For information about Chichester Chamber of Commerce and Industry, or any of the above initiatives, please visit www.chichestercci.org.uk or contact office@chichestercci.org.uk

CHAMBER NEWS

rental, free intra-site calls.

• Flexibility – Phone lines aren’t tied to any specific geographical

103

SECRET SUSSEX

THERE’S NOTHING FISHY ABOUT THEIR CORPORATE EVENTS

S

ea Life Brighton is best known as one of Brighton’s top family visitor attractions.

It has been open for more than 140

years, attracting visitors from far and wide who admire its underwater creatures including

community, Sea Life Brighton was once again

olds, Lorraine Nugent said: “We were extremely

Brighton and Hove Business Awards, testament

excited to hold this year’s Young Start Up Talent

to its enduring charm and appeal.

process at the Brighton Sea Life Centre. This

In February this year, the attraction hosted

sharks, turtles, seahorses, rays and even an

three Young Start Up Talent events, from a

anaconda!

1-2-1 event to Dragons’ Den Style pitches and

The aquarium has now opened its doors

Co-founder of the initiative for 16-25 year

named ‘The Best Place to Visit’ at the 2015

was very different from our previous events and a completely unique experience.”

Event organisers in Brighton and Hove are

finally the grand unveiling of this year’s winner

often left scratching their heads looking for a

to corporate events in the evenings, giving

at a showcase event. The winner, Nick Musto,

new and unusual venue for their next event. It

yet another reason to visit this much loved

was announced from the aquarium’s famous

could be that they’ve been going to the same

attraction.

glass bottom boat which floats over an array of

place for many years and are looking for a

captivating sea creatures.

change, or perhaps they’ve got a new brief and

A stalwart of Brighton & Hove’s business

For more information visit https://www.visitsealife.com/brighton/events-and-experiences/

104

SECRET SUSSEX

Launch of the Jurassic Seas need something a bit different.

Kirstie Prodger and Amy McManus of Rendezvous Casino

The terrapin tank in the rainforest

“Organising a corporate event here means

exhibition of aquatic dinosaurs and ancient

your delegates will be taken right back to their

creatures with state-of-the-art technology

themselves on their ability to organise truly

childhood” explains Max Leviston, General

tanks. A great addition to any corporate event

memorable events - from lectures read from

Manager at Sea Life Brighton. “We only ask that

or private party, guests will love trying their

the Glass Bottom Boat to drinks receptions

you avoid loud music and flashing lights so as

hands at feeding the digital Plesiosaurus,

in the arcade - they can cater for all. The

not to disturb our creatures.”

marvelling at the giant teeth of the Megalodon

The staff at Sea Life Brighton pride

aquarium has previously been booked for

Presentations and announcements can be

and testing their bravery in the face of an angry

corporate networking events, private parties,

made in the auditorium which has a capacity

comedy nights, cocktail parties, seminars and

of 250 and overlooks the ocean display, home

lectures, quiz nights and many more.

to some of the largest creatures at Sea Life

chosen to be the first Sea Life Centre in the

Brighton including stingrays, zebra sharks and

world to launch the brand new Secrets of the

tropical fish.

Reef exhibition.

As one happy customer explains: “We’ve used Sea Life for events now for over seven years and it’s definitely our go-to place as

Sea Life Brighton is also available for

Liopleurodon.

This year the aquarium has once again been

After 12 months of planning and four months

one of the most unusual and visually stunning

wedding receptions – the arcade can take up

of intensive preparation work, Secrets of the

venues in the south of England. From informal

to 400 standing guests or it can also be turned

Reef will open on 24 March 2016. The new

presentations and launches through to catered

around for sit down dinners for up to 120.

installation will invite visitors and guests to

dinners and drinks receptions, the space is

Guests will be able to tour the aquarium and

discover the paradise of a Maldives reef and

hugely flexible and always leaves a lasting

visit the 3,500 creatures before sitting down to

meet its most famous residents such as the

impression on our clients and colleagues. From

eat, and the speeches can be made whilst rays,

regal tang and clownfish. In the spirit of making

first conversation through to the delivery of

starfish and Japanese spider crabs look on.

event delegates completely regress into

the event, nothing is too much trouble for the team.” Nick Mosley, Director, Sharp Media Ltd. Exclusive hire of the venue offers access to the entire aquarium and events can be booked from 5pm until midnight, or later should the need arise.

As the world’s oldest operating aquarium, with all of its original Victorian architecture from 1872, Sea Life Brighton is an ideal venue for truly bespoke and unique events.

Sea Life Brighton launched a global first last year with Jurassic Seas, an interactive

children, the new installation will also feature an incredible crawl-through coral reef!

Whether you’re looking for a venue for a private party, corporate drinks reception, press launch or lecture, Sea Life Brighton is well worth investigating.

Photo Credits: Julia Claxton

105

INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS

LESS MEANS MORE?

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

L

ast month I wrote about the changing attitudes to holidays, and whether new ways of looking at how much time to

allow were successful or otherwise.

But it is not only the way leave is structured

entirely on the work required already can

heard of (or invented), having to learn new

moving to a shorter day result in greater

skills and adopt to a different pattern of the day

productivity, or will everyone spend 5 hours per

(dictated by the factory rather than agricultural

week less being productive?

rhythms) – all of which when read back does

On the other hand, if you think everyone at

sound somewhat familiar today, does it not?

that is being considered as business tries to

work for 7 or 7.5 paid hours per day is being

The difference this time is the speed of this

keep pace with changing societal values and

productive 100% of the time are you actually

shift, and the impetus created by the fact that

perceptions. Several Scandinavian countries

deluding yourself?

the debate on any issue can be widespread

have seen businesses shifting the working day to a 6 hour one.

They are seeking greater productivity in less time, which may sound counter-intuitive.

However, many businesses seem to be

Arguments for and against the move do

otherwise of any employer on these issues

whether an employer thinks his staff are

can be shared, and perceptions formed, in an

working at maximum productivity already.

People who think their existing regime

adopting this change of hours coupled with a

means optimum productivity clearly will

different attitude to the amount of meetings

not see the benefit in people working less

held, and cutting down on social media access

time. Those who think that productivity can

at work.

be increased may feel that recognising that

Essentially they are looking at a more

concentrating fully but for shorter periods

focussed working day, where employees

will be better than concentrating partially for

are asked to concentrate solely on the work

longer periods is a realistic assessment of how

required by their job. In return, however, the

people work in reality.

employees are working a shorter day and therefore gaining additional time as their own.

There are of course varying opinions as to

All of this fits into the debate about working hours, flexibility and methods of working which we are changing at a pace rarely seen before.

whether this concept does result in greater

The Industrial Revolution saw a massive shift

productivity.

in allocation of labour, people being moved

For one thing if you have a culture focussed

106

globally in seconds, and the flexibility or

seem to develop from a stance based on

into jobs that a few years earlier had not been

instant.

There will not be a “one size fits all” model for business on these issues, but businesses need to be thinking about various options, because their staff (who they may want to retain) will be.

JUST A THOUGHT Do you know if your customers’ perceptions of your business align with yours?

MINI Business Partnership

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VINES OF GATWICK

Stephenson Way, Three Bridges, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 1TN Freephone: 0800 915 4700 www.vinesgatwickmini.co.uk

Official Fuel Economy Figures for the MINI 3-door Hatch Range: Urban 31.0-72.4 mpg (9.1-3.9 l/100km).

Extra Urban 54.3-91.1 mpg (5.2-3.1 l/100km). Combined 42.2-83.1 mpg (6.7-3.4 l/100km).

CO2 Emissions 155-89 g/km. Fuel Figures may vary depending on driving style and conditions.

Vines of Gatwick is a credit broker.

Offers available to business users only. *Plus £894 initial rental. Price shown excludes VAT at 20% and is for a 36 month Contract Hire agreement for a MINI Cooper 3-door Hatch, with a contract mileage of 30,000 miles and excess mileage charge of 5.90p per mile. Applies to new vehicles ordered between 1 January and 31 March 2016 and registered by 30 June 2016 (subject to availability). At the end of your agreement you must return the vehicle. Excess mileage, vehicle condition and other charges may be payable. Available subject to status to UK residents aged 18 or over. Guarantees and indemnities may be required. The amount of VAT you can reclaim depends on your business VAT status. Terms and conditions apply. Offer may be varied, withdrawn or extended at any time. Hire provided by BMW Group Corporate Finance. BMW Group Corporate Finance is a trading style of Alphabet (GB) Limited, Europa House, Bartley Way, Hook, Hampshire RG27 9UF. †Test drive subject to applicant status and availability.