PLATINUM BUSINESS MAGAZINE - ISSUE 24 - SUSSEX EDITION by Platinum Media Group

The widest-read business publication in the South East

SUSSEX EDITION . ISSUE 24 . 2016

PLATINUM

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What would Maggie do? And the verdicts of the business community

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WELCOME

THE BIG STORY THE IRON LADY Margaret Thatcher stood up to be counted on the European question. What would she do now?

33 42

IN OR OUT At PBM we are as united as Boris & David. Who do you agree with?

FOOTPRINTS FOR GOOD Interview with Bob Holt OBE

52 58

LAS VEGAS What goes in Vegas, stays in Vegas - but Rose Dykins tells all!

THE IMMORAL TAX Should the dead cough up again?

We have finally succumbed to referendum pressure. As a magazine that has never been known to do things half-heartedly, we have devoted a substantial section of this issue to the once-in-a-generation decision - IN or OUT, LEAVE or REMAIN. There has been a seismic split at the very top of Platinum Towers, as we both have different views and fundamentally disagree with each other’s point of view so we went out and canvassed some of the region’s leading business figures to ask for for their opinion. Many cannot comment, of course, as they might have clients on both side of the fence but many have, plus we have quotes from a few celebs and politicians thrown in for good measure. There might also be a few quotes that will stop you in your tracks, or at least make you think very hard. The most we can hope for is to get the decision done and then crack on, whatever route we take. This uncertainty is bad for business. But of course, there’s more. We interview Bob Holt OBE, the Chairman of Mears Group PLC about his New Year’s honour, we ask what will be the result of the merger of two great accountancy firms, Kreston Reeves and Spofforths and Rose jets back from Vegas with all the scoop for business travel in the City that never sleeps. Rose looked a tad rough, so guess it’s true. Maarten gets his hands on the all-new Audi R8V10 and rips up some tarmac and, for some odd reason, he couldn’t locate the off button for the earth-shattering exhaust so we would like to take this opportunity to apologise to the residents of the region. Amanda will likely never travel with him again as they ’sauntered’ up to Weybridge to the Brooklands Hotel for lunch and the cheek of driving it full chat onto the forecourt of Sandown Mercedes to collect their Marketing Director, Keith Jackman, for lunch will be remembered for some time to come. Great lunch though by all accounts. We experience the Acumen Business Convention and came across Zebras all over the Grand Hotel, Anger Management has a rant about an immoral tax and DMH Stallard write about the happy, but inevitable, subject of death and divorce. Amanda pops over to Wiston Vineyard on her quest to sample every vineyard in the South East. That girls got some stamina and, me thinks, hollow legs. Great legs though by all accounts. We have tried to be un-biased in all aspects of the EU debate, bar our personal comments, and by the time we come to you next month, it will be done and dusted. Problems in store whatever we choose but at least it will be over and we can get on with business.

Maarten & Ian Platinum Business Magazine June 2016

responsibility for any errors or omissions relating to advertising

AN ELUSIVE BEAST The Audi R8 V10 is an everyday

or editorial. The publisher reserves the right to change or amend any competitions or prizes offered. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent from the publisher. No responsibility is taken for unsolicited materials or the return of

driver still able to warp your

these materials whilst in transit.

facial features!

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

Issue 24 - 2016

The Team

Maarten Hoffmann â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Director maarten@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07966 244046

Ian Trevett â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Director ian@platinumbusinessmagazine.com 07989 970804

Amanda Menahem Food & Drink Editor

Amanda Spicer Senior Designer

Julia Trevett Accounts Manager

Rose Dykins Travel Editor

Lauren Psyk Event Photographer

AT A GLANCE 6

Local News

Motoring - Audi R8 V10

NatWest

Lewes Business Awards

Motoring - Skoda Octavia vRS

Charity News

Entrepreneurial Spark

Fundraising - Lee Hills

Acumen Business Convention

Table Talk

Review - Horse Guards Inn

Chef Profile - Ben McKellar

Producer - Wiston Estate Winery

National News

Margaret Thatcher

Rawlison Butler

The EU Debate

Accountancy Merger

Wine Masterclass

Interview - Bob Holt

DMH Stallard

Interview - David Shore

Carpenter Box

Digital Marketing Identity

Business Travel

Portsmouth University

Travel Tips

Global Travel Management

Young Enterprise Hurst College

British Airways i360

Travel - Las Vegas

Platinum Style

Gatwick Forum

Networking

Anger Management

Rockinghorse Profile

CharityLine

Prowse & Co

Chambers of Commerce

Motoring - Vauxhall Insignia

104 Secret Sussex 106 Institute of Directors

NEWS

LOCAL NEWS

Compiled by Ian Trevett

CHECK OUT THIS DIRECTOR

Kevin Byrne, Founder and CEO of leading tradesperson vetting and monitoring service Checkatrade. com, has been named Director of the Year at the prestigious London and South East Director of the Year Awards. The awards were run and hosted by the Institute of Directors. Kevin has been at the helm of Checkatrade.com since he founded the company in 1998. He has since made the business a household name, with 260 employees, more than 21,000 trade members and a turnover in excess of £14.5 million. Kevin commented: “I am utterly thrilled to have been given this award. Checkatrade.com has changed hugely since it was first created in the shed at the bottom of my garden – and I could not be more proud of the business it has grown into. “I would like to take this opportunity to thank each of my employees, our members and, of course, the judging panel at the Institute of Directors.” The glittering black tie awards ceremony was hosted in the Nash and Waterloo rooms of the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall, and presided over by BBC veteran Jeremy Vine.

RUNWAY UPDATE

BLACKSPOT BRIGHTON

In all the furore over the Euro debate, the row over the airport expansion has largely been forgotten. Expect the debate to reignite very soon. In the meantime YouGov polls show that almost half of residents living around Gatwick (49%) continue to support Gatwick expansion. Only 34% of those polled would prefer to see Heathrow expanded instead. These results are consistent with previous surveys in the same areas. Meanwhile the Carbon Trust has certified both Gatwick and Heathrow in their “Triple Standard” for carbon, water and waste management. The awards recognise that Gatwick is reducing carbon and water, improving waste recycling/reuse year on year, and has strong environmental management systems and targets in place. The Gatwick Diamond Economic Forum will be held on June 9th at the Arora Hotel with Gatwick CEO Stewart Wingate as the keynote speaker along with Surinder Arora, CEO of the Arora Hotel Group and Andy Rumfitt from AECOM. See page 57 for more details on this informative event.

Only 9% of houses in Brighton are affordable for first-time buyers on average wages, according to a recent study by Post Office Money. John Willcock, head of mortgages at Post Office Money, said: “These figures highlight the challenges facing today’s first-time buyers. “Cities such as Brighton are becoming unaffordable blackspots for those looking to get on the ladder, with average property prices far beyond the typical budget. “House prices in the city have increased by 463% over the past 20 years and now stand at an average price of £305,149.” Looks like the Bank of Mum and Dad is going to get quite a pounding.

“User: the word computer professionals use when they mean ‘idiot’.” 6

NEWS

“A hotel minibar allows you to see into the future and find out what a can of Coke will cost in 2020.”

STARTUP SUSSEX

WEALTH MANAGER PACKS A PUNCH Wealth Manager Richard

Skerritt has found the perfect way to de-stress and clear his mind of figures, shares and the global economy. He picks up his boxing gloves and spars with professional cage fighterturned-trainer Sol Gilbert. Three days a week, he sets the alarm and heads to the Underground Gym in Hove for a In April, Sussex Innovation Centre’s annual StartUp Sussex competition saw success for some of the University’s most enterprising and forward-thinking current students. Darren Tenkorang, who is in his final year of a Business and Management Studies BSc, claimed the top prize of £10,000 to spend on business support services for his TRIM-IT app, which aims to streamline the barbering industry through effective management of appointments and promotions. The runner-up was MSc Business Management & Entrepreneurship student Laurence Stevens, who received £5,000 to develop Vanguard, a compression suit designed to enhance training and recovery regimes for players of highimpact sports. Simone Riddle’s Global Food Connections interactive recipe platform clinched third place, and £2,500. • Are you an entrepreneur who studied at the University of Sussex? If so, the University are very keen to hear your story. They can be contacted at alumni@sussex.ac.uk.

7.00am session. Richard said: “It achieves various goals for me. The key ones are fitness, de-stressing and the ability to defend myself if I had to.” It will also make anyone think twice about mentioning Norwich City’s ill-fated relegation battle. On Saturday, August 13th, Richard will be heading into the ring for his first-ever amateur fight in aid of Action Medical Research. The event will be staged at The Grand Hotel, Brighton and aims to attract a capacity audience of 450, mainly from the business and boxing worlds. Richard said: “Action Medical Research funds life-saving research for children. It’s an amazing charity, and my dream target would be to raise £50k from the Fight Night.” Richard heads up Skerritts Chartered Financial Planners in Hove and London, a firm of independent financial advisers and wealth managers who deal with all areas of financial services. If you would like more information on the fundraising night, or to book a table at the event, please email Louise@skerritts.co.uk.

STEAMING AHEAD

Sussex-based company Steamer Trading Cookshop has announced the acquisition of Kitchens (Catering Utensils) Ltd, which includes three award-winning stores in Bath, Bristol and Cardiff. Steamer Trading is a family owned business and the UK’s leading specialist independent cookshop, with no less than 20 awards for Housewares Retailing. Headquartered in Lewes, it has 37 stores with plans to grow to over 40 this year. In March 2016, Steamer Trading announced the acquisition of Divertimenti, the wellestablished London cookshop and cookery school. Steamer Trading also sells online at www.steamer.co.uk.

NEWS

LOCAL NEWS EXPOS AT THE DOUBLE

Business is booming in Sussex to such an extent that the county will be hosting two major new business expos on the same day - October 20th, 2016. The Brighton Business Expo is taking place at Brighton Racecourse and is organised by Mike Monk, under the umbrella of Memo Events Group. The group has successfully organised expos in Basingstoke, Southampton and Portsmouth. Founder Matthew Larcome says, “Over the last couple of years, over 8,500 businesses have attended our events and we’re as passionate about delivering great business-to-business shows as we were when we launched a few years ago. ww.b2bexpos.co.uk Meanwhile, the K2 in Crawley will be hosting a business expo organised by Target Business Expo, alongside a speakers’ conference, courtesy of Gatwick Diamond Business. This unique day offers delegates the opportunity to network with a diverse range of organisations representing all sectors, from insurance and HR to design and recruitment, as well as to attend a ticket-only professional speakers’ conference. Confirmed speakers include Lara Morgan, Geoff Meade MBE and Andrew Adonis. Tickets for the Conference are available from gdb in advance and are sure to sell fast as numbers are limited. targetbusinessexpo.co.uk So which one to go to? We have the perfect solution - go to both. Platinum Business Magazine will be exhibiting at both events on what will be an excellent day for Sussex business.

COMMISSIONER KATY (AGAIN)

Katy Bourne

COMMERCE OVERCOMES ART

A town centre sculpture

was re-elected

is set to be removed to

as Sussex

make way for a new retail

Police & Crime

development.

Commissioner

Angela Conner, creator of the

after the elections in May. Katy amassed over 114,000 votes, with a 41.78% share. She was elected after second preferences were included in a head-to-head with second-placed Michael Jones, taking her over the required 50% minimum.

Rising Universe installation, said: “It’s always sad when commerce overcomes art. Horsham, wishing to make the town bigger and more commercial, is involved in installing a big John Lewis store, and for this reason are removing the water mobile . “The council has always been polite, open, and helpful, and I understand the direction

The first-preference votes of all the candidates in the Sussex PCC

they want the town to go in.

election were as follows:

“But it’s a shame to see

Katy Bourne 114,570 votes, 41.78%

culture put to one side in the

James Doyle 26,038 votes, 9.49%

face of growing business

Michael Jones 61,017 votes, 22.25%

projects.”

Patrick Lowe 43,075 votes, 15.71%

Horsham does get a very nice

James Walsh 29,550 votes, 10.77%

new John Lewis, though!

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear.” 8

NEWS

“When l was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant, l could hardly stand to have him around. But when l got to be 21, l was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”

HASTINGS PIER REOPENS Nearly six years after flames swept through the 144-year-old pier, the doors of the pier have officially re-opened. In the region of £14.2m has been spent on the redevelopment. The pavilion has been transformed into a restaurant and bar and people are able to stroll around the entire pier for the first time in a decade. Hastings Pier Charity (HPC) said: “We hope it will re-energise Hastings, not just as a tourist destination, but as a fantastic new facility for local people as well.” Hastings Borough Council estimates the attraction, rebuilt over two and a half years, will generate more than £1m a year for the local economy. The pier closed in 2008, and two years later fire wrecked the derelict structure. The council purchased it from its owners in 2012, and it is now owned by the Hastings Pier Charity, which has more than 3,000 shareholders, who bought into the project at £100 a share. HPC predict the pier will bring in more than 300,000 extra visitors to Hastings every year.

SHOWGROUND’S BIG BANG ALL GOING SWIMMINGLY

The biggest and most popular schools event in the South East is on target to break attendance records in 2016 whilst helping high-tech businesses address the skills gap and meet their employment needs. The Big Bang Fair South East 2016 will again be held at The South of England Showground on 29th June. Fair organiser STEM Sussex has received an increased number of applications for this year’s event, equating to around 8,500 students and teachers wishing to attend. However, the continuing success to grow this annual interactive engineering and science event depends entirely on the support and involvement of businesses, professional bodies and educational establishments. The event has the scope to accommodate around 12,000 people, but STEM Sussex is concerned that unless it is able to attract more support and sponsorship to accommodate the increase in applications, hundreds of students may have to be turned away. An enjoyable day of hands-on activities, workshops, shows and interactive displays for 9-19-year-olds, provided by national and local companies, professional organisations, and further and higher education institutions, the Fair has played a major part in encouraging more young people to consider further education and careers in STEM disciplines. As a result of Big Bang fairs across the country, the proportion of 11-14-year-olds who believe a career in engineering to be desirable increased from 27% in 2011 to 43% last year. The Big Bang Fair South East is organised by STEM Sussex, the not-for-profit outreach department of the University of Brighton, in partnership with Crawley Borough Council and Central Sussex College. The headline sponsor is CGG and is supported by other major companies, such as Thales, Gatwick Airport and Kreston Reeves.

Brighton-based We Like Today, the firm behind London’s shipping-container shopping centre Boxpark, has teamed up with developers Copsemill Properties to create inspired plans for the seafront. Adjacent to the Yellowave beach volleyball courts, the Sea Lanes development will have as a centrepiece a 50-metre heated salt water swimming pool. Other facilities include studio space for exercise classes, retail outlets and quirky office space aimed at companies in the sports and leisure sector. The key office tenant will be ‘SwimTrek,’ who are one of the development partners. There will be a number of food and drink outlets, including a high-quality restaurant in a unit overlooking the swimming pool and the beach. The vision is for the pool to act as a stepping stone to facilitate swimmers gaining the skills and techniques to start swimming in the sea. The current timescales involve making a planning application during the summer of 2016. With consent, the plans are to have all the works complete by the autumn of 2017. www.sealanesbrighton.co.uk

BUSINESS RESTRUCTURING

REBUILDING AN SME FOR THE FIRST TIME

Restructuring a small business can be a daunting, but necessary, process, taking profit and growth to the next level.

by Gary Chown ACIB MCIBS Chartered Banker Director, Commercial Banking, NatWest Bank E-mail: gary.chown@natwest.com

ebuilding a small business for the first time involves challenges linked to the size and structure of the business and

What are the signs an SME needs rebuilding? Those running SMEs must study the

Tai Alegbe, Co-Founder of Baacco, a wine delivery company, discovered the business needed rebuilding after realising that its core

attitudes of the founders. Larger organisations

current market and competition, because

proposition, “a showcase of emerging wine

operate in a continuous cycle of evolution, but

developments in these areas can cause their

sellers through curation and content,” was not

own growth to flatline, which is one key sign

as compelling to customers as anticipated and

SMEs often avoid introducing changes because

that a business needs to rebuild. The need for

that “the use of the underlying technology was

owners don’t delegate, processes become

rebuilding grows as a company flatlines and

more important.”

ingrained and existing staff don’t want change.

profits start to fall.

This led the company to rebuild towards

BUSINESS RESTRUCTURING

“SMEs often avoid introducing changes because owners don’t delegate, processes become ingrained and existing staff don’t want change”

where the data was pointing, and

more technical solutions to acquire

illustrated another common difficulty in

customers, and our marketing lead

rebuilding an SME: staff relationships.

began to feel less valued. It’s very difficult to get someone to subscribe to a

Alegbe explains: “We were dominated by individuals who had marketing and

new approach if they feel that approach

wine backgrounds and lacked balance

will take away either an element of

in terms of engineering talent. We had

purpose, mastery or autonomy.”

a choice: to continue down a path which

Autonomous owners and delegation

yielded limited results, or follow a harder but more exciting path. “We needed to start again with the

Many SMEs that need rebuilding have

idea and rebuild the team. As a result,

grown into their current state from a

some team members left and new technical staff joined. We feel it was the right choice, but the practicality of it was quite difficult.”

How to approach change in an SME Mike Bandar runs Turn Partners, a start-up studio focusing on the acquisition, turnaround and creation of online businesses. He believes owners must “incorporate a culture of change.” “It really depends what the owner’s ambitions are,” he says. “Firstly, the owner needs to really identify what they want out of the business. They need to look at efficiency and margins. Look at the growth figures and, as it slows, ask, ‘Is the business reaching its natural peak? Is it now time to look at different markets?’ Sometimes, just a small change can make all the difference.” Bandar goes into a company that needs rebuilding and asks, ‘What can our team do better than the founding team?’ “If it’s easy to answer, then there is a problem and we try and look at it holistically.”

Why is it difficult for SMEs to change? As businesses grow, owners and senior staff are so caught up in existing operations that it can be difficult to take a step back. However, Bandar believes this is vital for future success and to manage the rebuild. As well as finding time, Bandar thinks that “if someone is serious

position led by the founder, but as the about rebuilding their business, they should set aside 10% of profits to look for new markets, new approaches and ways of doing things.”

company grows the owner is pulled away from their skill set into other parts of the business. This is why it’s important to be able

As an extension of their owners, the ability to let go of parts of the business is important.

to delegate.

Change can be difficult to implement in smaller businesses, which are often driven by one powerful figure or a number of senior egos. They often have a perceived vested interest in not letting go of anything, although the rewards for stronger growth in a revised business could be potentially much higher.

of aspects of running the business, but get

The best SMEs are run by people with the vision to see their own limitations and gather around people who excel at the things they aren’t so good at. These are the skills that will drive the business forward.

Why is it difficult to do for the first time? Alegbe says there was a variety of reasons for delaying the rebuilding of Baacco.com. “The biggest factors for our delay were the need for new start-up capital, explaining to external stakeholders why we were changing direction, and the perception that large change means failure. Most important, though, was the challenge of bringing in new people.” This brought about its own problems in terms of staff feeling their roles had been devalued. “In our marketing team, we started to use

Business founders are often good at a range pulled all over the place, with the demands on their time growing as the business develops over time. This can lead to them losing focus on the things they do best. Sticking to what they’re good at is what led to the initial success. Another aspect that adds to the difficulty in making an initial change is sourcing business growth capital. Above all, owners have to set aside time to look at the financial pressures facing the business. Making sure they have the required funds to finance future growth is something business owners need to set aside time to focus on. They need to put in place a clear finance and growth strategy that clearly lays out where the business is heading. In summary, the key challenges for rebuilding an SME are being able to take a step back from the business to have a realistic overview. Owners must delegate and recruit skilled staff to allow them to use the skills they have and leave other parts of the business in safe hands. Accessing finance can hinder a company that’s rebuilding and is an area that outside expertise can help with.

Are you a local business looking to gain new clients or maybe a start-up in need of some real business advice? Whatever the reason, the Target Business Expo and gdb Speakers Conference should be the most important date in your diary. This business to business exhibition is a unique event bringing together organisations from a range of sectors from Insurance to HR to Design and Vehicle leasing.

Over 140 exhibitors will be available to discuss their products and services directly with you. Purchase a ticket for the gdb Speakers Conference, hear from three outstanding speakers and have the opportunity to meet and discuss your business issues over lunch.

DAILY EVENTS NETWORKING BREAKFAST (Tickets available from gdb in advance)

08.15 NETWORKING BREAKFAST | Hosted by Gatwick Diamond Business

FREE SEMINARS 11.00 The March of Technology Seminar | By John Berry of TimelessTime 13.00 Speaking in Public Seminar | By Ges Ray

gdb SPEAKERS CONFERENCE

(For the full conference timetable, please see the event website. Tickets purchased in advance through gdb)

11.30 Lara Morgan

12.15 Geoff Meade

13.45 Rt Hon Lord Andrew Adonis

Target Business Expo is free to attend to all visitors and offers a wealth of information and advice, products and services to all businesses large and small. Please book your stand early to avoid disappointment.

THE TARGET BUSINESS EXPO

Tickets for the Networking Breakfast and gdb Speakers Conference must be purchased through gdb in advance.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL TARGET IN 1

Gatwick Diamond Business | 01293 440088

AND gdb SPEAKERS CONFERENCE. K2, PEASE POTTAGE HILL, CRAWLEY RH11 9BQ

20TH OCTOBER 2016

01293773021 targetbusinessexpo.co.uk

www.gatwickdiamondbusiness.com

Charity supported by Target in 1 Limited.

BUSINESS AWARDS

TV STAR TO HOST LOCAL AWARDS

TV star Juliet Morris to host Lewes District Business Awards

ormer Countryfile presenter Juliet Morris has been announced as host for the third Lewes District Business Awards on

Thursday, 14 July, at Lewes Town Hall. Celebrating excellence in the business community, the Awards highlight the diverse

Street, Cheesmur Building Contractors, Veolia, Swindells Accountants, Cavendish Communications, Brooklyn Hyundai, Richard Soan Roofing Service, LEAP, Basepoint, Viva The Awards night has a tradition of

dinner with wine and a glittering ceremony to

from across the District.

BBC news reporter Ben Brown took to the

Employer, Customer Service and Business

The evening will begin with a drinks reception, followed by a gourmet three-course

attracting high-profile presenters. Last year,

year, including three new categories: the Best

The awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, 14 July 2016, at the Lewes Town Hall.

Lewes and Platinum Business Magazine.

range of successful and inspiring businesses There are 12 trophies up for grabs this

of the acclaimed House Detective.

announce the award winners. Around 200 of the district’s leading

stage, as did BBC news reader Nicholas Owen

businesspeople, sponsors and judges are

in 2014.

expected to attend, giving guests the perfect

Juliet is a journalist and broadcaster

opportunity to network with peers, celebrate

Growth. There are also special awards to

whose credits include BBC Breakfast

with colleagues and find out those all-

recognise retail and the community.

and BBC News, for whom she presented

important results!

The winners have been chosen by a

numerous documentaries and current affairs

panel of judges from notable companies,

programmes. She was a regular contributor to

get more information, visit

including Harvey & Son Ltd, Santon North

Countryfile and also presented all three series

www.lewesdistrictbusinessawards.co.uk

Tickets cost £60 each. To purchase or to

BUY TICKETS “The ceremony Around 200 of the District’s leading business was a very special people, sponsors and judges are expected night, where we enjoyed to attend giving guests the perfect sharing stories, ideas and enthusiasm with opportunity to network with peers, likeminded local celebrate with colleagues and find businesses…” out those all-important results. G.BURLEY & SONS

Tickets cost £60 and include a drinks reception, three course meal and wine.

THURSDAY 14 JULY LEWES TOWN HALL

GREEN BUSINESS OF THE YEAR 2015

PURCHASE ONLINE TODAY

www.lewesdistrictbusinessawards.co.uk

M A G A Z I N E S

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 a rtf .po w ww

A SPORTING SUMMER Bigger Picture looks at Euro 2016 football

June 2016

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TICKETS TO THE South of England Show

INTERVIEW with Tennis icon Boris Becker OUT

Millionaire homes for footballers & wives!

NOW

KITCHEN ENVY

At The Kitchen Store

Warmth Light

The regionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s LARGEST property publication

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ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

ENTREPENEURIAL SPARK powered by NatWest and KPMG

he Entrepreneurial Spark ‘Hatchery’ throws up a galaxy of great inspiring stories and when this magazine recently judged one of the Acceler8 events, we yet again came face to face with our tomorrow. One such bright spark is Aadam Patel. It is impressive that he has created a company called Halal Celebrations designing crackers and party ware for the Asian market, and another called Chit-Chat Celebrations for the non-Muslim market. Aadam is busy taking orders and growing his business. More impressive still is that he is just 15 years old. The Hatchery is a breeding ground for start-up businesses with free support and advice offered by a variety of mentors and top professionals from NatWest and KPMG, and the Brighton Chamber of Commerce have relocated to the site. Such an incubator creates a breeding ground for talent. Aadam joined the Hatchery when he was 14 and travels to Brighton every day from his family home in East London. Aadam started life selling anything he could turn a profit on when only 7 years old and if there was a potential profit, Aadam was there. A few years later he decided to become a property developer buying a house with his father when he was only 12 years old. His father, and his greatest supporter, promised to match him pound for pound. Aadam raised his half within weeks and they purchased and totally refurbished the house in Burnley and, after Aadam oversaw the entire refurbishment, he sold it on at a profit. Aadam was bitten and went on to plan his business when he recognised a gap in the market before seeing news of the Hatchery and applying to join. Now surrounded by eclectic entrepreneurs from all walks of life, Aadam seems to be blossoming and has already supplied NatWest with all their personalised cracker and party ware for their Christmas party.

One of Aadam’s strokes of luck was having KPMG Senior Partner and Head of Tax, David Bywater assigned as his mentor. This is but one of the many advantages the entrepreneurs receive from being part of this programme. Aadam, said: “Joining Entrepreneurial Spark has really taught me a lot. It has given me a structure and a process to move my business forward. They have taught me to test and validate my market. They have honed my skills and with another 79 start-up businesses here, the amount of feedback is incredible. I cannot thank the Hatchery and David Bywater enough.“ I caught up with David for his comments: “I first saw Aadam at the official opening of the ESpark Hub, when he pitched his business idea to an audience of over one hundred, including the CEO of RBS and also our own Chairman. Some would be daunted, (especially at the tender age of 14!), but if he was he did not show it. Since then, in getting to know Aadam I hope that I have been able to offer some wise words of guidance as he tests his ideas for

developing the business. There is definitely a two way benefit in my interactions with Aadam, (and the other chiclets I have met), in that I walk away from the discussions with a small element of the “entrepreneurial mindset”, which is clearly infectious.” Aadam has now researched the market, realised where he needs to amend a product, calculated how to personalise the product for the corporate market, developed and launched a full e-commerce website and has started picking up significant orders. In talking to Aadam, l quite rapidly feel like l started late, don’t know as much as l thought l did and will regret all the years spent at school chasing members of the opposite sex and endless debates about football teams or the latest pop band. While we were all doing that, Aadam was hard at work planning to take over the world.

www.halalcelebrations.co.uk www.chitchatcelebrations.co.uk

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK Run alongside partners NatWest and KPMG, Entrepreneurial Spark® is the world’s largest free people accelerator for start-up and scaleup businesses. Open to businesses from all sectors and completely free, Entrepreneurial Spark® takes no equity in supported businesses. For more information, please visit: www.entrepreneurial-spark.com

CONVENTION

A CONVENTION OF A DIFFERENT KIND …

his year saw a record attendance at the seventh Acumen Business Convention held at The Grand Hotel, Brighton on May 10th. That should come as no surprise considering the line up of prestigious Speakers, fascinating workshops, abundant networking opportunities with over 250 CEO’s not to mention the flash mob song for the sponsors, dancing zebras, prize for photo bingo (aka Phingo!) or a selfie with a life size zebra! Guests were greeted by four dancers in full zebra outfits and spectacular face paintings and the compere, Ibrahim Mikhail, a commercial solicitor who heads their Gatwick office as well as compering their conventions, got interrupted by a flash mob singing a rendition of ‘Help!’ by the Beatles, personalised for all the Sponsors. The author of Brand Famous, Linzi Boyd, inspired the audience to give celebrity status to their business and their managements teams. Kevin Byrne, founder of Checkatrade, gave a sincere, emotional and inspiring talk on building a household brand from nothing and the importance of appreciating your team. The founder of Acumen Business Law, Penina Shepherd, also gave a powerful and inspiring talk on The Freedom of Revolution (the title of her new book) and how to relinquish your business shackles and shift your business to another dimension. Penina said: “It was so exciting for me to be able to announce my new book in front of so many esteemed business leaders. I felt it was just the right

audience to discuss the topic too. There is a revolution happening in the business world and most of us haven’t even noticed, but those at the forefront of the revolution do extremely well. We are lucky in our area here in Sussex to really have ground-breaking and innovative business leaders who are part of the revolution and, as such, it resonated with so many people in the room”. Workshops covered topics such as Social Media, Intellectual Property, how to minimise the risks of business owners being betrayed from within, and leasing a business property. Delegates were able to interact and really get the most out of these sessions. Following a short Acumen News Update it was time for the keynote speaker, Lord Karan Bilimoria, founder of Cobra Beer. He told the fascinating story of the Cobra brand, leadership, entrepreneurship and UK/India relations, rounding off with a Q&A session. Throughout the day delegates tweeted their photos, the lucky winner was Susan Bentley of Scaredy Cat Communications. She received an Amazon Fire complete with zebra case! Finally the evening rounded off with the drinks reception giving all a chance to catch up on the days’ excitement and activities bringing the Acumen Business Convention 2016 to a close. Roll on 2017! For more information: www.acumenbusinesslaw.co.uk

CONVENTION

ria

Acumenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Penina Shepherd with Lord Karan Bilimo

PBM Publishers with Penina

Penina with Linzi Boyd

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NEWS

NATIONAL NEWS MR BITCOIN

Australian entrepreneur Craig Wright has publicly identified himself as Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. His admission ends years of speculation about who came up with the original ideas underlying the digital cash system. Mr Wright has provided technical proof to back up his claim using coins known to be owned by Bitcoin’s creator. Prominent members of the Bitcoin community and its core development team have also confirmed Mr Wright’s claim. Mr Wright said he planned to release information that would allow others to cryptographically verify that he is Satoshi Nakamoto. Soon after Mr Wright went public, Gavin Andresen, chief scientist at the Bitcoin Foundation, published a blog backing his claim. “I believe Craig Steven Wright is the person who invented Bitcoin,” he wrote. Jon Matonis, an economist and one of the founding directors of the Bitcoin Foundation, said he was convinced that Mr Wright was who he claimed to be: “During the London proof sessions, I had the opportunity to review the relevant data along three distinct lines: cryptographic, social, and technical,” he said. “It is my firm belief that Craig Wright satisfies all three categories.” Not everyone has been convinced by Mr Wright’s claims and technical proofs. In its article about Mr Wright, The Economist said “important questions remain” about whether he was Satoshi Nakamoto.

WELSH WINE Wales could have 50 vineyards in 20 years’ time, according to one grower who is selling Welsh wine to France. Richard Morris, from Ancre Hill estates winery near Monmouth, said other countries with similar climates, such as Nova Scotia in Canada, have already developed a successful wine industry. There are about 17 vineyards in Wales, according to the Welsh Vineyards Association. Wales produces around 100,000 bottles of wine annually. He told BBC Radio Wales’ Country Focus programme: “We’re predicting by 2035 that we’ll have four to six wineries in Wales, that we’ll have about 50 vineyards. “That’s based on the growth of the wine industry in Nova Scotia, for example, on the eastern seaboard of Canada.

TIME BOMB Warren Buffett, one of the world’s most storied investors, has issued a fresh warning that the complex derivatives lurking on banks’ balance sheets are a “potential time bomb” that could explode in times of stress. The Sage of Omaha told the annual meeting of his company, Berkshire Hathaway, that while he still believes in holding shares in financial firms such as Bank of America, the sector continues to build derivatives that could create “dangerous” jolts in value that would exacerbate a major shock. “Some of these things get so complicated they’re very hard to evaluate... I know one that’s so mismarked it would blow your mind, and the auditors I don’t think are necessarily capable of holding that behaviour in check,” he said.

BANK OF MUM AND DAD Lending from parents to help their children get on the UK property ladder will amount to £5bn in 2016, according to data from Legal & General (L&G). L&G says it means the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad will help to finance 25% of all UK mortgage transactions this year - at an average amount of £17,500. If this lending prowess was combined into a formal business, it would be a top 10 UK mortgage lender, adds L&G. But it warns this method of lending is coming under increasing pressure. "The Bank of Mum and Dad plays a vital role in helping young people to take their early steps on to the housing ladder," said Legal and General chief executive Nigel Wilson. But he said it highlighted a number of important issues, including house prices being "out of sync with wages".

“Sometimes l think war is God’s way of teaching us geography.” 20

NEWS

“The closest a person ever comes to perfection is when they fill out a job application form.”

BIG HORRIBLE SCANDAL Failed retailer BHS, was “crashed into a cliff”, the chairman of the Business Innovation and Skills Committee, Iain Wright, has commented. Mr Wright said leaders of Retail Acquisitions, which bought BHS in 2015 for £1, were “untried and untested”. He also implied that the previous owner, Sir Philip Green, “stripped” the company of cash. Sir Philip is due to answer questions before a joint hearing of two Commons committees at a date of his choice. Mr Wright’s Committee and the Work and Pensions Committee want to ask Sir Philip about the sale of BHS and how it was left with a deficit in its pension fund of £571m. They have also called Arcadia Chairman Lord Grabiner, who has chaired Sir Philip Green’s retail conglomerate since 2002, to appear before the House. “Is it right that people can buy a company, strip it, in many respects, of cash in terms of dividends - without real regard to pensions or to employees and then sell it for a pound to untried and untested people who then crash it into a cliff?” said Mr Wright on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. Sir Philip has offered to make an £80m voluntary contribution to the pension fund. That’s £491 million to go then.

NATIONAL LIVING NIGHTMARE

THE BRITISH DILEMMA Sir John Vickers, the architect of the Government’s post-financial crisis banking reforms, has dramatically escalated his battle with the Bank of England over the future safety of the UK’s

To counter the financial pain of the national minimum wage many retail

big banks.

companies are cutting benefits and other conditions for their employees in

Speaking exclusively to The Independent, Sir John said Governor

what they say is a necessary move to allow them to afford paying people

Mark Carney’s recent letter to the Treasury Select Committee

the new, higher minimum wage. Employees are reportedly losing their paid

shows that the Bank’s new domestic capital proposals for

breaks in a move that effectively wipes out all the extra money they would

UK lenders don’t even go as far as those proposed by the

receive from the new National Living Wage.

international regulatory authorities for globally systemic banks.

Such companies are also taking tips rather than distributing them to staff.

Banking reform is more confusing than it needs to be. Sir John

The Government could step in over fears that the voluntary rules the

said this was “ironic” given the Chancellor, George Osborne, has

industry abides by have largely failed.

often spoken of safe domestic banking as a way to address the

The Government introduced the National Living Wage as a way of bumping

“British dilemma” of how to protect the taxpayer while keeping

up the income of low-paid workers, effectively raising the minimum wage to

the UK a competitive base for global banking.

£7.20 for over-25s. While companies can be subject to legal action if they do

Sir John also leaves the Bank of England’s top officials in no doubt that their capital proposals fall well short of what the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) - whose conclusions were accepted by the Chancellor - wanted.

not pay that new wage, they are free to get rid of other perks like lunches or paid breaks as they wish. This change effectively means that the pay increase is wiped out, since it will reduce the number of hours that people are paid for by roughly the same proportion that the wage will go up.

NEWS

NATIONAL NEWS PREGNANT DISCRIMINATION Discrimination against pregnant women and new mothers in the workplace is increasing, with a report saying that some women are having their hours cut, being put on zero hours contracts or even forced out of their jobs. Citizens Advice said it had seen a 25% increase in the number of people asking for advice on pregnancy and maternity issues in the past year, with more than 22,000 visits to its website. One case was of a woman who asked the charity for help after her employer cut her weekly hours by more than half after she told them she was pregnant. While her boss claimed there was simply not enough work available, he had also been taking on new staff. A Government spokesman said that discrimination was “unlawful and completely unacceptable”.

APPLE BITTEN Apple shares have suffered from their longest losing streak since 1998 - the same year the company released its first iMac personal computer. More than $73 billion has been erased from Apple’s market value in recent days with shares falling a further 0.18% this month, the company’s eight consecutive session of losses. The iPhone maker's shares have tumbled 13% since last gaining ground on April 20th. This includes a 6.3% drop on April 27th after Apple reported that quarterly iPhone sales fell for the first time ever and revenue fell for the first time since 2003. Tim Cook , Apple CEO, said that claims the tech firm is dead were a huge overreaction “I couldn’t disagree more,” he said in an interview on CNBC when asked if Apple’s best days were now behind it. The future of Apple is very bright, our future product pipeline has some amazing products." In its latest quarterly results, Apple projected earnings per share of $1.90 compared to estimates of $2, and revenues of $50.6 billion rather than higher estimates of $51.97. iPhone sales, which make up nearly 70% of the company’s overall sales, were hurt as the company sold 10 million fewer devices as in the same period in 2015. Slowing growth in China, an oversaturated market and Apple’s record iPhone sales in 2015, increasingly difficult to replicate, were seen as the reasons behind the disappointing results. Carl Icahn, a billionaire investor who reportedly owned 45.8 million Apple shares at the end of last year, also did not reassure investors when he dumped all of his Apple stock. Not all gloom and doom though as Warren Buffet stepped in and purchased 9.8 million shares at a cost of $1.1 billion.

PROFIT DROP Profits at HSBC fell in the first three months of 2016 as a result of volatility on the global markets in January and February, raising questions about the dividend policy at Britain’s biggest bank. Statutory pre-tax profits in the three months to the end of March fell by 14% to $6.1bn (£4.2bn), which the bank described as “a resilient performance despite challenging market conditions”. If currency movements and other one-off items were excluded, profits fell by 18% to $5.4bn. Stuart Gulliver, HSBC’s chief executive, said: “Market uncertainty led to extreme levels of volatility in January and February, which affected our ability to generate revenue in our markets and wealth management businesses. However, our diversified, universal banking business model helped to cushion the impact through growth in other parts of the bank.” The dividend was held at 10¢ a share and the bank tried to quash concerns that management’s plans to increase the payout each year would be difficult to achieve, by pointing out that earnings for the quarter easily covered the $2.1bn cost of the dividend for those three months.

EUROZONE BOUNCE New figures show the eurozone countries are enjoying an accelerating economic recovery – but the same data shows inflation went negative across the bloc in April. Growth was at 0.6% for the first quarter of this year, double the 0.3% rate seen in the last three months of 2015, the figures from the European Commission's statistics bureau show. Eurostat's data shows that the 19-nation bloc, which does not of course include the UK, now has a bigger combined economy than it did at the start of the financial crisis eight years ago. The two-year race to the bottom of oil prices is one factor – it has benefitted nations that are net oil importers, particularly Germany. The fall in price of the euro has also been good news for major exporters.

“At what age do you think it’s appropriate to tell a roundabout it’s adopted?” 22

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THE IRON LADY

Europe. What would Margaret Thatcher do? By Maarten Hoffmann

THE BIG STORY

hat would Thatcher do? All political movements, however secular, have their pantheon of deities, saints

and inspirational figures. In the modern Conservative party Margaret Thatcher is still the magnetic north, against whom all subsequent Tory leaders have positioned themselves. A lightning rod for equal measures of love and hate, she was the only UK PM who stood up to be counted on the European question - and stood her ground on more than one occasion. As a humble grocer’s daughter from Grantham, Thatcher not only became the first

27% in 1975 to 2.5% by 1986. She believed that

“Most of the problems the world has faced have come from mainland Europe,” she wrote. “And the solutions from outside it.”

the political power of British labor unions had strangled enterprise and placed the country at the mercy of unelected barons. When she removed the legal immunities that protected unions from the financial consequences of their actions and overcame a year-long strike organised by the hard-left leadership of the coal miners’ union, the employee days lost to strikes each year fell from 29.5 million in 1979 to 1.9 million in 1986. She said that taxes were too high and brought the top rate down from 98% to 40%. She declared that the state should not be running British business and led the world in “privatisation”—a word she found ugly,

female PM in 1979, but she galvanised the

but a concept she loved—selling off airlines,

Conservative party and, some might say, the

in 1992, she was given a life peerage as

country.

airports, utilities, and phone and oil companies

Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven in the county

to the private sector. In every case, her critics

Much more than any other modern British

of Lincolnshire, which entitled her to sit in the

said that it could not be done. Yet, for better and

politician - particularly Conservative politicians

House of Lords. After a series of small strokes

for worse, she did it.

accustomed to swimming against a leftish

in 2002, she was advised to withdraw from

cultural tide - Margaret Thatcher fought, and

public speaking. Despite this, she managed to

Margaret Thatcher won. Her victory was so

her that she was alone among men, and

deliver a eulogy to Ronald Reagan at his funeral

powerful men at that. For the Tories, of

in 2004. In 2013 she died of another stroke in

all people, to have chosen a woman was

London at the age of 87.

absolutely astonishing, and Margaret Thatcher

great that it changed her political opponents the Labour Party - as much as it changed her own party. Her defeat of the left made Tony Blair possible. And today, with David Cameron

During her political life, she won the big

having finally led the Conservatives back to

arguments. She argued that inflation was

No. 10 Downing Street and wrestling with

a disease of money that could be cured by

a massive, inherited government deficit, as

controlling the growth of the money supply

Mrs. Thatcher did 30 years earlier, all the old

alone, without suppressing incomes. During

debates have become relevant once more.

her premiership, inflation fell from a high of

Upon moving into 10 Downing Street,

It was a constant source of pleasure to

knew how to exploit it. She knew, first of all, that some of her colleagues were frightened of women and inhibited about arguing with them. This was particularly true of many of the so-called Wets—the liberal Tory grandees who, in the early days, served under her most reluctantly and constantly denigrated her tough economic policies. As a result, though many

Thatcher introduced a series of political and

of them whispered against her, none of them

economic initiatives intended to reverse high

ever dared to confront her directly. In her later

unemployment and Britain’s struggles in

years she came to love adulation, but she never

the wake of the Winter of Discontent and an

had the male’s craving for approval from her

ongoing recession. Her political philosophy and economic policies emphasised deregulation (particularly of the financial sector), flexible labour markets, the privatisation of state-owned companies, and reducing the power and influence of trade unions. Her popularity during her first years in office waned amid recession and high unemployment, until the 1982 Falklands War and the recovering economy brought a resurgence of support, resulting in her re-election in 1983. Thatcher was re-elected for a third term in 1987. During this period her support for a Community Charge (referred to as the “poll tax”) was widely unpopular, and her views on the European Community were not shared by others in her Cabinet. She resigned as Prime Minister

mates: she didn’t have any mates. That made her strong. Traveling on the train from Brighton when the Tories were still in opposition, her private secretary bumped into Laurence Olivier, Britain’s greatest actor, and raised with him the problem of Mrs. Thatcher’s voice, which had attracted so much criticism. Olivier arranged for her to have lessons with the speech coach at the National Theatre, and soon the hectoring tones of the housewife gave way to softer notes and a smoothness that seldom cracked, except under extreme provocation on the floor of the House of Commons. Once, in the twice-weekly Prime Minister’s question time, which became the greatest show in the West End, Margaret Thatcher got so angry

and party leader in November 1990, after

with her opponent that she relapsed into the

Michael Heseltine launched a challenge to her

Lincolnshire dialect of her youth. “He’s frit,” she

leadership. After retiring from the Commons

shrieked, meaning that he was frightened.

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THE BIG STORY

“We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers of the state in Britain only to see them re-imposed at a European level, with a European super-state exercising a new dominance from Brussels.” It is certainly true, as has been disclosed by

Do you want Britain to be inside a friendly

her official biographer, Charles Moore, that she

association of neighbouring democracies and

was drawn to the case for Britain leaving the

trading partners? Yes. Do you want the loss of

EU during the 1990s. She hinted as much in

national independence that the other members

her 2003 book, Statecraft: “It is frequently said

of this association demand? No. Do you feel

to be unthinkable that Britain should leave the

more European or more Anglo-Saxon? Do you

European Union. But the avoidance of thought

look across the Atlantic or across the English

about this is a poor substitute for judgment,”

Channel? Not sure.

she wrote. She argued on two separate occasions that Britain would probably be better out of the EU. She made a series of speeches in the Lords

At the end of October 1990, Margaret Thatcher returned from an acrimonious EU summit in Rome, where she had been in the position diplomats dread most of all:

criticising the Maastricht Treaty, describing it

isolated. Reporting on the summit to the

as “a treaty too far” and stated, “I could never

House of Commons, she attacked what she

have signed this treaty.” She cited A. V. Dicey But, by and large, she retained the ladylike

said was Jacques Delors’s idea that the

when stating that as all three main parties

modulations she had so carefully acquired.

European Parliament should be the European

were in favour of the treaty, the people should

Community’s House of Representatives, the

have their say in a referendum.

Commission its Executive Branch, and the

Thatcher’s antipathy towards European integration became more pronounced during

Along the same lines—and more

Council Ministers its Senate. With her love

her premiership, particularly after her

extraordinary—was the Single European Act

of repeating the same thing three times, she

third election victory. During a 1988 speech

of 1986, in which Mrs. Thatcher, excited by

shouted, “No, no, no.”

in Bruges she outlined her opposition to

the prospect of a single market in the EU,

proposals from the European Community

signed away much of the British independence

(EC), forerunner of the European Union, for a

of battles against what she saw as the

she valued so greatly. In all these cases, she

federal structure and increased centralisation

excessive powers of Brussels. Europe also

allowed the Foreign Office to push her against

of decision-making. Thatcher and her party

ultimately brought about her downfall as Prime

the grain of her beliefs. She later came to have

had supported British membership of the

Minister, as her increasingly anti-EU views

doubts about what she had done. In the case

EC in the 1975 national referendum, but she

led the pro-Europeans in her party to move to

of the EU, her regret was violent and, for her

believed that the role of the organisation

oust her. Yet Margaret Thatcher had not always

career, terminal.

been so vehemently opposed to European-wide

should be limited to ensuring free trade and effective competition, and feared that the EC’s approach was at odds with her views on smaller government and deregulation. In 1988,

“Europe” lays a curse on British

She passionately fought and won a number

initiatives. In 1975, for instance, she played a

governments of both parties, because it

key role in campaigning for the UK to remain in

presents a dilemma they can never resolve.

the European Community. And in 1978 she

she remarked, “We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers of the state in Britain, only to see them re-imposed at a European level, with a European super-state exercising a new dominance from Brussels.” Thatcher was firmly opposed to the UK’s membership of the Exchange Rate Mechanism, a precursor to European monetary union, believing that it would constrain the British economy, despite the urging of her Chancellor of the Exchequer Nigel Lawson and Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe, but she was persuaded by John Major to join in October 1990, at what proved to be too high a rate.

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THE BIG STORY was arguing for consideration of a common European approach to defence. In 1980, she called for the UK’s contributions to the then EEC to be adjusted, warning that otherwise she would withhold VAT payments. “I want my money back!” she exclaimed. The battle lasted four years and finally ended in victory for Thatcher but damaged relations with other EC countries. Then came Westland - Michael Heseltine’s battle to keep the helicopter company in European hands with a takeover by a European consortium. Mrs Thatcher was insistent that the US firm Sikorsky should have it instead. She won, he quit and the affair caused further

“And the solutions from outside it.” As the debate about a possible British

In her 2002 book, Statecraft, she suggested the European single currency was an attempt to create a “European super state” and would fail “economically, politically and socially.”

It’s a situation that causes some baﬄement among US admirers, who are unable to

departure from the EU gathers pace, she

understand why she is not revered in Britain

is expected to be invoked repeatedly in the

as much as Reagan is in his homeland. It was

coming months. And that tug-of-war reveals

the Reagan centre that provided the inspiration

a peculiar wrinkle to her legacy: for, as

in 2009 for what still remains the most

long as the battle about the meaning of her

significant initiative to physically commemorate

premiership goes on, another on how she

Thatcher – a British centre that would house a

should best be memorialised also continues

museum and run courses aimed at spreading

with vigour. Where her cold-war ally Ronald

the Thatcherite message. Having been refused

Reagan is remembered with an elaborate

an honorary degree by her alma mater, Oxford

presidential library and museum, plans for a

University, the current proposed site is the

bricks-and-mortar monument to Thatcher have

University of Buckingham, the UK’s only private

yet to get off the ground.

university operating under a royal charter,

“Her legacy was so divisive and polarising that it is difficult – and we saw this in the

where she was a former chancellor. “Visitors will have an opportunity to be

arguments over the funeral – to capture her for

photographed in front of a replica door to 10

the country as a whole rather than just for the

Downing Street and to sit around the table

Conservative party in particular,” says historian

in the Cabinet Room,” promises the centre’s

Tim Bale, author of The Conservative Party

website, on which visitors are told, in terms

from Thatcher to Cameron. “There is an extent

that some may find ominous: “She delivered.

to which she is one of those prophets who are

Now it’s our turn.”

concern among pro-European Tories. It was

honoured more abroad than they are at home,

blatantly obvious that she felt an affinity with

possibly because of her legacy in eastern

and Lady Thatcher’s official biographer, she

the US rather than Europe. Her relationship

Europe and America.”

remains “potentially explosive” inside its ranks,

For Charles Moore, the party’s former leader

with Ronald Reagan was one of the defining partnerships of her premiership and she enjoyed an equal connection to the Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev. What other UK PM in history had forged such close relations with the world’s two superpowers? She held them both in her sway. In her 2002 book, Statecraft, she suggested the European single currency was an attempt to create a “European super state” and would fail “economically, politically and socially.” She called for a “fundamental re-negotiation” of Britain’s links with the EU, stopping short of calling for withdrawal, but nevertheless suggesting that the UK should pull out of common agricultural, fisheries, foreign and defence policies. “Most of the problems the world has faced have come from mainland Europe,” she wrote.

Call Worthing: 01903 234094 Call Gatwick: 01293 227670 Email: info@carpenterbox.com

XERO AWARD WINNER 2016

THE BIG STORY

I don’t sit around, for example, thinking: ‘Was Alexander the Great right to invade India?’ What I want to know is: ‘Was he important, and why does it matter?’ owing to residual feelings about the manner

after her, which is very unusual, for better or

of her departure, but he too argues that there

for worse, and also she was there at the time

has been a lessening of public and media

of the end of the cold war. So, she wasn’t your

antipathy towards her, making it easier for the

average prime minister.”

Conservatives to deploy her legacy. “I’ve noticed this writing the books, that

At a Spectator readers’ evening, Andrew Neil interviewed Moore about his biography

people now see her much more as she

of Margaret Thatcher. He asked him if, after

obviously is, as an historical figure. On the

leaving office, Lady Thatcher had come to the

whole, her reputation has grown, because, in a

view that Britain should leave the European

period when there is a general feeling that the

Union. “I said yes (I think it happened after the

west lacks leadership, it’s very clear that even

Maastricht Treaty in 1992), although advisers

if you don’t like it, she achieved an enormous

had persuaded her that she should not say

amount and knew where she was going on most things. “The more time passes, the less you ask about whether she was right or wrong. I don’t sit around, for example, thinking: ‘Was Alexander the Great right to invade India?’ What I want to know is: ‘Was he important, and why does it matter?’” To illustrate the interest in her beyond Britain, Moore recalls sitting in on last year’s auction of Thatcher’s memorabilia at Christie’s: “You had these extraordinary bids coming from Singapore, China, Russia, Poland and so on, and it’s just inconceivable that that would happen with any other British leader except Churchill. All over the world, you had people paying colossal prices for these things.” Still, levels of antipathy towards Thatcher remain deeprooted at home in Britain, surpassed perhaps only by those in Argentina. Such campaigns aside, those who disagree with the contention that she has become a less divisive figure include Antony Seldon, the

this in public since it would have allowed her opponents to drive her to the fringes of public life.” And here we arrive bang up-to-date with Leave campaigners being harassed and driven to the fringes of public life. Cameron called on the big guns and Obama obediently arrived to blast Boris, Grove and IDS. Nothing to lose there, of course, as he is out of office shortly. The socalled ‘project fear’ campaign does feel just like that, terrifying the man in the street that great, furious wrath will befall us if we leave. Terrifying business into the belief, right or wrong, that profits will plummet upon exit. J.P Morgan even went so far as to pay Peter Mandelson a king’s ransom to lecture their 15,000 British staff about the dangers of departure. I fight to restrain myself from comment, but as this is the referendum In or Out issue leading up to June 23rd, l guess my colours are nailed to the flag post on page 39. If we had a leader with the strength of

University of Buckingham’s Vice-Chancellor

character of a Margaret Thatcher, we might

and a biographer of three other prime

recognise that we are a highly unique country

ministers, who cites the reaction to her death

with a depth of talent, skill, innovation and

“from communities who had their hearts ripped

creativity, with which we could, and do, take

out by her policies, whether necessary or not.”

on the world. We are a country of 64.1 million

“The interesting thing about her is how

people, and yet we punch with the big guys

totemic a figure she is, with either a toxic or

of 300 million plus. We are the fifth-largest

deity status, depending on who you are,” adds

economy in the world. The US has the top spot,

Seldon, who believes that plans to memorialise

and the entire European Union of 27 countries

her at the university would be a “huge

takes the second spot, with China, Japan and

attraction.”

Germany filling in the next three, but there we

“I think they are just trying to find the money.

are, all on our lonesome, at number 5.

But I do think there will be a Thatcher museum,

This country excels in so many sectors it

because she was around for 11 years, which is

barely needs mentioning. Can we stand on our

historic, won three election victories, changed

own? Of course we bloody can. Should we?

the face of the country and had an ‘-ism’ named

Well, that’s up to you to decide on June 23rd.

LEGAL

BE SMART How will new data protection laws affect the Internet of Things? asks Lisa Downs, Partner at Rawlison Butler www.rawlisonbutler.com

ith new data protection laws coming into force in 2018, it is now time to focus on what businesses involved in developing smart devices need to take into account to avoid potential fines of up to 4% of global turnover for failure to comply with the new laws. In addition to a number of key privacy and security messages, the new data protection regulations mean that businesses will (amongst other things) need to consider the following: • Relying on an individual’s consent to process personal data will be much harder and it is likely that businesses will need to rely on one of the other lawful grounds to process personal data. • Biometric data has now been acknowledged as sensitive personal data, so if this is used within a smart device, explicit consent to use it will be required from the individual. • Personal data: ◗◗ Can only be collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes (for instance, the proper use/functioning of a smart device) and not further processed in a way which is incompatible with the original purpose(s) ◗◗ Collected from individuals must be adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary in relation to the use/ functioning of a smart device. Businesses

can’t collect more personal data than is absolutely necessary for a smart device to be used/function ◗◗ Can only be kept in a form which permits identification of individuals for no longer than is necessary for the use/functioning of a smart device. Businesses will have to have data retention policies and systems which will either enable personal data to be (i) deleted after a certain period of time or (ii) no longer associated with that individual

“There are potential fines of up to 4% of global turnover for failure to comply with the new laws.”

◗◗ Must be portable to another party. Businesses will have to ensure that personal data provided by an individual is in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable form, so that if an individual changes smart device providers,

their personal data can be easily transferred ◗◗ Must be processed in a way that ensures protection against any security breach, particularly smart devices which generate large amounts of data from diverse locations, because the potential for cyberhacking/spying substantially increases • Notification must be made of security breaches which lead to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed by the smart device. Businesses will have to have appropriate security policies and procedures in place to enable them to act within legal timescales. Businesses need to act now. The extent of changes needed, and financial costs which will be incurred, should not be underestimated. If you are a business operating, or looking to operate, in this domain and you would like further advice on what you need to do to ensure you don’t get fined, please contact Lisa Downs (ldowns@rawlisonbutler.com or 01293 558593). This document is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Professional legal advice should be obtained before taking or refraining from taking any action as a result of the contents of this document.

THE EUROPEAN REFERENDUM What a mess. David Cameron made the promise of a referendum when he thought he needed an extra bullet in his gun for the last election and then having won, realised that he would actually have to go through with it. And here we are with domestic and international matters put on the back burner whilst the continent is entranced with the vote. And now we hear that the Dutch and Czechs are talking of a referendum. Few can doubt that there are problems to come whichever way the vote goes but the resounding voice of business says let’s just get it over and done with and get back to work, as this uncertainty is slowing down business, hampering acquisitions and, essentially, has halted international investment whilst all this doubt is in the air. This has been a shamefully negative campaign on both sides, with fear and loathing a plenty and just as the Tories get a clear run, with Labour in such disarray, they revert to type and start in-fighting with blue-on-blue battles raging on every front. There is little doubt that this is an enormously important vote and in light of this, we have canvassed the region for comment and trawled through the archives for some explosive quotes, and l beg you to search, as they are not very hard to find but are quite eye opening, and hint at a slight contempt for Britain and the rule of democracy. Something the British hold very dear. Do we try to fix that from within or from without? We have until June 23rd to decide.

“There is now huge pressure on our population, due to

“I am voting to stay in the EU because I am

an unasked-for experiment in uncontrolled immigration

frightened. Frightened of the rise of Islamism

that has seen millions added to the population of the UK

across the world and what it means in terms of the

in the past two decades. We now have no choice but to

battle of civilisations. Frightened of a re-emergent Russia,

take back control of our borders. To allow

recreating colonial outposts in Syria, her actions in the

uncontrolled immigration is where

Ukraine and poisoning her own citizens on British soil.

the danger lies as, over the next decade, we will

Frightened of the future of an existential threat to Israel

need to build 16 more Birminghams.

facing the arrival of ISIS in Gaza. Frightened of the return of

This is totally unsustainable and l will vote to leave.

”

George Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury

”

major terrorist atrocities to Western Europe.

Robert Halfon, Conservative MP for Harlow

“The EU is the old Soviet Union dressed in Western clothes.” President Mikhail Gorbachev

“Now we’ve signed it – we had better read it. ”

“We decide on something, leave

Douglas Hurd, former Foreign Secretary on the Maastricht Treaty

“The European Union is currently a state under construction. The construction of one state is its final conclusion.

”

Elmar Brok, Chairman of the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs

it lying around and wait and see what happens. If no one kicks up a fuss, because most people don't understand what has been decided, we continue step by step until there is no turning back. When it becomes serious, you have to lie. There can be no democratic choice against the European treaties

”

Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission

“The [EU] Council of Ministers will have far more power over the budgets of member states than the federal government in the United States has over the budget of Texas.

”

Jean-Claude Trichet, head of the European Central Bank 2003-2011

“They must go on voting until they get it right.” Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, 2004 - 2014. President of Portugal, 2002 - 2004

“I think if l were British, l would probably want to get out. It wouldn’t make any difference to me if you were in Europe or not and you would certainly not be at the back of the queue” Donald Trump, Republican candidate for US President

DAVID CAMERON Prime Minister

✔

It is rather like that scene in Monty Python’s Life of Brian - ‘What’s Europe ever done for us? Well, apart from the market of 500 million people, the regional grants, the access to the market, the support for our universities. Well other than that... take Welsh farming. That market of 500 million people means there are no quotas, there are no tariffs, there are no taxes, there are no restrictions - you can sell as much Welsh lamb, Welsh beef, Welsh pork into that market. Imagine swapping that for the situation that some other countries have outside the European Union, where you have restrictions, you might have quotas, you might have tariffs, and we wouldn’t have access to that market.

RICHARD POLLINS Managing Partner, DMH Stallard

Director, Lime Consultancy

✔

✘

CEO, Gatwick Diamond Business

✔

Like many people, I often find myself agreeing with the last person I spoke to or heard talking about the issue. Those who trade internationally have said that an exit will create a more difficult trading environment and may impact their ability to work on the international stage. We have seen a slowdown or a temporary hold put on a number of investment decisions until the date of the Referendum. Whilst there are a number who probably feel it will make no difference as they don’t see themselves as trading internationally, any negative impact on the economy, even from uncertainty, will work it’s way down. Business and the economy requires some degree of stability and certainty and so, based on the fact that leaving creates more of an unknown future, I am leaning towards staying in. If we leave then I feel we will be in a marginally weaker position on the world stage.

BORIS JOHNSON MP for Uxbridge & South Ruislip

✘

This is like the jailer has accidentally left the door of the jail open and people can see the sunlit land beyond and everybody is suddenly wrangling about the terrors of the world outside. Actually it would be wonderful. It would be a huge weight lifted from British business.”

✔

One of the aims of the EU was to ensure alliance and co-operation govern the future rather than raw conflict and aggression. The rise of nationalist and fundamentalist movements should concern the EU and make it mend its ways, but also means the union is as important as it ever was. It is undoubtedly imperfect, but needs to be improved not abandoned. Britain has political and trade integration but monetary separation, which has proved to be the best option. Leaving would see trade with the remaining countries being more difficult for British businesses.

Sportsman

✘

It is insane that because we are in the EU we cannot reach our own agreements to trade freely with emerging markets, like China and India. We have lost the right to govern ourselves. It is wrong that we have to discriminate against talented people from outside Europe as we are legally bound to accept uncontrolled immigration from within the EU. This country should stand proud and reclaim our independence.

JEREMY CORBYN

The question for me is what I think would benefit my children so I am looking at the medium and long term. I don’t think there is an economic argument for leaving, that said, economic forecasts are rarely accurate even on a domestic level so nobody really knows. I am not a hyper nationalist, I just think Europe is a collection of nations with very different needs. My clients are all bespoke and one solution never fits ideally with more than one client and that is how I see Europe. The only way to instigate bespoke solutions for Britain is by having the ability to change and I just don’t see that as being possible inside the EU.

JEREMY TAYLOR

Chairman, Mayo Wynne Baxter

SIR IAN BOTHAM OBE

From a business perspective, I think it is very difficult to argue against the benefits of the UK remaining in the EU. The position is not perfect and there are of course some issues that don’t suit the UK entirely, but on balance I think the benefits far outweigh the negatives. Collective strength in Europe has to be a positive in today’s rapidly changing world. A united Europe will give us the strength we need to adapt and to compete.

DAVID FARMER

DEAN ORGILL

Labour Leader

✔

The Labour Party is overwhelmingly for staying in. Because we believe the EU has brought investment, jobs and protection for workers, consumers and the environment and offers the best chance of meeting the challenges we face in the 21st century.

RAY FOSS Director, Britaniacrest Recycling

✘

The cost of membership is too high. Charity begins at home i.e. the UK, we should look after our own people like Doctors/Nurses/Teachers/the Army/ RAF/Navy /the Steel industry, just to name a few. We all want better hospitals and schools which are at breaking point.

WIM DUISENBERG first president of the EU Central Bank

✔

“The process of monetary union goes hand in hand, must go hand in hand, with political integration and ultimately political union. EMU [economic and monetary union] is, and always was meant to be, a stepping stone on the way to a united Europe”

KEVIN PITTS Director, Red Care Logistics

✘

I am optimistic we can benefit long term from Brexit, especially as the UK transport industry – to & from Europe is hurting badly. We are being undercut by as much as 55% on everything as they are generally only paid 40-50 Euros per day & it is becoming very hard to find niches which they haven’t touched on yet, so we hope it may be more difficult for the Eastern Europeans to come into the UK. Therefore, I believe my views are self explanatory & not by any means racist.

“

That such an unnecessary and irrational project as building a European super-state was ever embarked on will seem in future years to be perhaps the greatest folly of the modern era. And that Britain should ever have become part of it will appear a political error of the first magnitude.” Lady Thatcher, Statecraft

“We should frankly recognise

“I look forward to the day when the

this surrender of sovereignty and its purpose.”

Westminster Parliament is just a council chamber in Europe.”

Edward Heath, Prime Minister, 1970 - 1974

Kenneth Clarke, Conservative Chancellor in International Currency Review

“Public opinion will be led to adopt, without knowing it, the proposals we dare not present to them directly. All the earlier proposals will be in the new text, but will be hidden and diguised” Valery Giscard D’Estang, President of France, 1974 - 1981

“I have never understood why public

opinion about European ideas should be taken into account at all, Raymond Barre, Prime Minister of France, 1978 - 1981

”

“Of course, Britain could survive

outside the EU...we could probably get access to the Single Market as Norway and Switzerland do…” Tony Blair, former Prime Minister, 2000

MICHAEL GOVE MP for Surrey Heath, Lord Chancellor, Secretary of State for Justice.

✘

When Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey join the EU, another 88 million people will soon be eligible for NHS care and school places for their children. And what will even more immigration from the EU mean for access to housing across the UK? How many more homes will we need and how many more green acres will go? What will it mean for jobs and wages? Can we maintain the apprenticeships we need, safeguard the jobs of the future and ensure people can maintain a decent standard of living, when up to 88 million people from nations much poorer than our own will have the right to live and work here? As we introduce the National Living Wage, the pull of the UK could prove irresistible.

FRANCOIS HOLLANDE President of France

JOHN MAJOR MICHAEL HESELTINE Deputy Prime Minister, 1995 - 1997

✔

One day, we will join the euro. There’s no hurry and I don’t think it’s going to happen in my lifetime. It’ll be controversial. But when we adopted the metric measurements, there was great controversy over that – the metres and the litres. Nobody can remember what the argument was now. You talk to the younger generation and they think you’re slightly off the planet. The Americans fought a civil war over the dollar, not that long ago in terms of human history. It took a long time to make the dollar work.

TSOL KEOSHGERIAN CEO, Unibind Systems Ltd

✘

Big government kills progress through over bureaucracy. The EU is the biggest unelected, unaccountable bureaucracy of all. The laws they make harm the UK more than any other. We are a very progressive, entrepreneurial ‘nation of shopkeepers’. Without our wings being clipped by Brussels we will once again regain our ‘Great’ Britain tag and lead the world in Tech, Commerce, Industry and Finance. Our monarchy, parliament, judiciary and language has given us stability for a thousand years and is the envy of the world. Don’t give it up to a failing experiment!

DAVID BYWATER Partner, KPMG.

Whilst I have my own opinion on whether or not we should leave the EU, and whether the UK will be more or less prosperous by remaining in the EU, my opinion, just like those of others can only be based to a large extent on the fine art of gazing into a crystal ball. Having said that, one thing on which I can be certain is the long term uncertainty which a vote for a Brexit would inevitably bring; businesses do not like uncertainty!

SCOTT PAWLEY Managing Director, Global Travel Management

✔

Global Travel Management is a UK success story: bespoke, quality customer service achieving steady profit and operations growth, supported by major software initiatives. I have shared these with my peers because I believe that as a group of SMEs we are stronger and more likely to succeed. By the same token the UK is better as a part of the EU. UK business travel hinges on Heathrow where a third runway will help maintain its leading international role. However, even this is at risk unless we act as part of the EU to maintain leverage against Istanbul’s airport expansion plans.

✔

I don’t want to scare you, but I just want to say the truth. There will be consequences if the UK quits the EU. There will be consequences in many areas: the single market, financial trade, economic development between our two countries. That doesn’t mean that everything will be destroyed - I don’t want to dwell on this vision of catastrophe. But there will be consequences, including on the issue of people. It will not obviously put in question the friendly relations between France and the UK, but there will be consequences, including in the way we handle the situations that we just mentioned, in terms of migration.

Prime Minster, 1990 - 1997

✔

In the modern world of interconnectivity, you have to share sovereignty or you find yourself isolated and weaker. Our prime concern must surely be the economic well-being of our country and the political and diplomatic clout that our country has and both of those in my judgement are better within the EU, working with our partners.’

DAVID SHEPPARD Chairman, Sussex Chamber of Commerce Founder/Director, D-RisQ Ltd.

✔

This referendum is a disaster, called for political reasons only to save the Tory party from further squabbles over our place in Europe. Business and the economy thrive on stability, an ability to plan for the future, a more certain outlook. Exit undermines all of this for the sake of…. nationalism? Spare me the national ego, I rather like having the European institutions to provide balance to the worst of our home grown political behaviour, to make our leaders think twice before taking our civil liberties away under the guise of national interest. Get Europe off the agenda, we have businesses to run!

GATWICK DIAMOND SURVEY

✔

In the hope that they might get a clear steer, Jeremy Taylor recently surveyed 500 business people from the membership and beyond. At the time of writing, the vote is strongly for staying in the EU (79%) but there are concerns on the influence that the Union has on our finances, regulatory regime and sovereignty. 19% of those who responded would vote to leave whilst 2% are still undecided.

THEO PAPHITIS CEO Rymans

✘

Obama, what was he thinking? This is Great Britain not a third world country run by some tinpot dictator. I think whoever was advising him must be an idiot. I am not going to vote stay. There is no doubt that in the medium term, leaving will make no difference to trade. Whoever tells you otherwise is mad, because it defies every piece of logic and trade in the history of man.

“I think that the European Union, like the Soviet Union, cannot be democratized. Gorbachev tried to democratize it and it blew up. These kind of structures cannot be democratized.” Vladimir Bukovsky, Russian dissident

“The European system of supranationality comes at the cost of democracy.” Lord Leach of Fairford, Deputy Chairman, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Plc

“The day of the nation state is over.” Roman Herzog, German president, 1996

“The most powerful Parliament in Europe is the European Parliament. There will be no repatriation of EU powers.” Vivianne Reding, EU Vice-President, 2010 - 2014

“Britain must stay in the EU - to save us from the Germans.” Yanis Varoufakis, former Greek Finance Minster

“Once the interlude of [WWI] was over, [countries] all went back to the rules and customs of traditional parliamentary democracies. I felt out of my depth.” Jean Monnet, Father of Europe

“Britain is different. Of course

there will be transfers of sovereignty. But would I be intelligent to draw the attention of public opinion to this fact?” Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission

“It will not be any European

statesman who will unite Europe: Europe will be united by the Chinese.” Charles De Gaulle, former French President

MAARTEN HOFFMANN Director, Platinum Business Publications

✘

I cannot support the IN campaign no matter how hard l try. Our sovereignty and security is wrapped up in who we are. We are a sovereign nation with a Queen and a proud and hard won heritage of strength, independence and punching way above our weight. To be absorbed into a union with nations that, to be frank, are economically and socially beneath us is to drag us down. We are unique. I like being unique and therefore we must get out of the experiment and do what we have always done since time immemorial; forge our own path. This is not about staying in the current EU. This is about being in a union that, to be realistic, is falling apart. Banks in the Eurozone have a £715 billion black hole in their books, according to the IMF. The economies of France, Italy, Spain and Greece are all basket cases. The deal just signed by Germany (on our behalf) with Turkey prevents 3 million refugees coming to Europe by agreeing to allow access to 79 million Turks! Then the Schengen Agreement will fall and all borders will open. The UK infrastructure is groaning at the seams and with on-going austerity measures to reduce our debt, we are cutting services at a time when the demand for them has increased faster than at any time in our history. The value of British exports to the EU has plummeted, with a drop of 18.5%, whilst Germany’s have risen by 20% over the same period. The EU is failing British businesses. Big business is falling out of love with the EU with Superdrug founder, Peter Goldstein, Sony VP, Steve Dowdle, Goldman Sachs MD, David Sismey and Sir Patrick Sheehy, former Chairman of British American Tobacco all recommending leave. Former BOE Governor, Mervyn King, recommends leaving stating that Brussels red tape is strangling British business whilst helping European companies. He also stated that the euro might soon ‘explode’. Then where will we be? As sure as eggs is eggs, if we vote to remain, we will eventually see the demise of sterling. A recently leaked ‘secret’ document written by German politicians states that there should be an EU Army, with Germany assuming leadership. Departure will hurt in the short term, and that includes my businesses, but it’s time to be unselfish and think of our children and the world they will inherit. Great Britain is strong, unique, resilient, creative, wealthy, independent, and the 5th largest economy on earth and does not deserve to be swallowed up by a loose collection of tanking economies with a work ethic that, in some areas, is Dickensian. Any group eventually sinks to the lowest common denominator in a race to the bottom and no matter how hard the UK and Germany work, we will never be able to carry the weight of 26 failing states and, in the end, the entire edifice will crumble and the UK will be lost forever. Set us free and watch us soar.

IAN TREVETT Director, Platinum Business Publications

✔

At last, it’s almost over; farewell at last to the vitriol of Project Fear. I don’t mean the legion of economists pointing out the blindingly obvious fact that Brexit will have a negative impact on our GDP and growth. I want an end to the REAL Project fear unleashed by Brexit’s attack dogs at the Mail and Express, with their grim predictions of swarms of scrounging immigrants flooding our streets and imposing Sharia law. 79 million on their way from Turkey? Forget the inconvenient fact that proposed relaxations of Turkish visas apply only to the Schengen zone, which Britain has opted out of. Brexit has retreated to its default position of provoking fear of aliens. Shame. Aside from the tiresome rhetoric, the most revealing interventions to the debate have come from outside Europe. The rest of the world thinks we are insane to even consider leaving one of the world’s most powerful trading blocks. The Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzō Abe: “Many Japanese companies set up their operations in the UK precisely because the UK is a gateway to the EU. A vote to leave would make the UK less attractive as a destination for Japanese investment.” President Obama: “It could be five years from now, 10 years from now before we’re actually able to get something done,” Or more succinctly: “Get to the back of the queue.” Hillary Clinton agrees, and don’t expect any UK favours from Trump. The IMF: “It’s going to be pretty bad to very, very bad.” The Australians: “The EU is a significant trading partner for us, a strong UK as part of the European Union would be in Australia’s interests.” New Zealand feels the same way. The Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi: “As far as India is concerned, if there is an entry point for us to the EU, that is the UK.” And on and on it goes. Trading with UK is far more attractive if we are in. What is most galling for the Brexiters is that every world leader contradicts their very reason for wanting to leave. They believed that the UK on its own would be in a better position to trade with the Commonwealth and America - and at every turn these natural partners slap down any such thoughts. I’d predict that the only world leader who welcomes Brexit is Putin, who would love to see a weaker Europe. Shunned and rejected, the Leavers lash out and accuse Obama of being anti-British and Christine Lagarde of handing out favours to the Government. Burning bridges and making enemies, who can possibly trust these people? Boris, please stick to incoherent cameos on Have I Got News For You, and stop risking our country’s future.

Maarten’s chosen quote:

Ian’s chosen quote:

“We have our own dream and our own task.

“If the UK leaves the EU and there is a

We are with Europe, but not of it. We are linked but not combined. We are interested but not absorbed. If Britain must choose between Europe and the open sea, she must always choose the open sea.”

loss of freedom of movement of scientists between the UK and Europe it will be a disaster for UK science and universities.” Stephen Hawking (and The Royal Society)

Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister, May 11th 1953 39

ACCOUNTANCY

THE WORLD IS CHANGING… Kreston Reeves and Spofforths to merge Kreston Reeves offices, Gatwick

wo well-known firms of accountants and business advisers in Sussex and Kent are

planning to merge this summer. Spofforths is a long-established, successful firm of chartered accountants, business, tax and financial advisers with four offices across Sussex, located in Horsham, Worthing, Chichester and Brighton. Kreston Reeves is similarly wellestablished, with six offices across Sussex, Kent and London, in London, Canterbury, Chatham, Discovery Park (Sandwich), Eastbourne and Gatwick (Crawley). The increasing needs for integrated advisory services and a buoyant transactions market are bringing real opportunities in the business, tax and wealth arenas. This merger will create a new firm with a depth of people and breadth of resource, for example in the digital sphere, or in their sectors of focus: to move the firm to its next stage of development. The new firm’s footprint and focus may be evolving with the market – but one priority will still remain the same: to provide excellent service to all clients, helping each to achieve their business and individual goals. The teams at Kreston Reeves and Spofforths are planning to combine forces with effect from 1st June, 2016, creating one of the largest accountancy and financial-advisory firms in the South East - from two of its most successful 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 with which to meet changing business needs.

ACCOUNTANCY

Local advice. International reach.

Spofforths offices, Brighton

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.” The current firms’ leadership teams include partners who are influential in both the accountancy sector and their local communities. Mark Spofforth OBE is a Past President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) and High Sherriff of West Sussex from March 2016. He has also recently been appointed to serve on The Charities Commission’s New SORP Committee. Clive Stevens, Kreston Reeves’ Chairman, and Alex Spofforth both serve on the Council of the ICAEW. Clive Stevens is a past Chairman and main Board Member of Kreston

• academies and education

International, the firm’s overseas network.

• agriculture

There will be a transitional period during which Spofforths will

• charities and not-for-profit

embrace the Kreston Reeves brand and the two firms integrate people,

• healthcare

processes and systems. Thereafter, the firm will be known as Kreston

• life sciences

Reeves LLP.

• manufacturing

A step forward Richard Spofforth, Spofforths’ Horsham-based Managing Partner, says: “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 new firm will continue to service the needs of entrepreneurial and growing businesses, and on the needs of wealthy and private individuals, with a particular and combined focus on the following sectors:

• private wealth • professional practices • property & construction and • technology “For all the combined partners and staff there will be greater career development, fulfilment and all the other benefits that come from working as part of an ambitious and expanding firm,” says Clive Stevens, Chairman of Kreston Reeves and Supervising Partner for the firm’s Crawley office. The two firms will announce further details of the merger, and of its management team, in late May 2016. For more information about the two firms, visit our websites at www. spofforths.co.uk or www.krestonreeves.com

INTERVIEW

FOOTPRINTS FOR GOOD Bob Holt, chairman of Mears Group, was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours for his work in business and The Footprints Foundation, which he set up in 2008. Mears is the leading social-housing repairs and maintenance provider in the UK and a major presence in the home care and support market. Interview by Ian Trevett

You are known for your role in building up the Mears Group to a company that employs over 20,000 people in the UK. How did you start out in business? In the 1980s I was fortunate enough to work for two of the most successful entrepreneurs in the UK: Lord Ashcroft (former Conservative party chairman) and Tony Berry of Blue Arrow. I had a fantastic experience working for these two guys. Without them, I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today, as they inspired me and made me want to do it for myself. When you build a public company, you have to have a profile, but I wanted the profile to be myself and Mears to be the brand. If you were to look at the early profile of Mears, it would certainly include Bob Holt, and you’d always see Bob Holt with a Mears’ van parked at the side of him. I was always conscious that I was trying to build a brand. It’s been a huge success, not down to me, but down to me and a team of people.

How did you become involved with Mears? I bought it as a small business and I came in as chairman and chief executive. In 2005 we brought in a chief executive from outside, but it didn’t work out, sadly. So I came back full-time as chief executive and chairman. In 2008/9, I handed over the reins to David Miles and he’s been running it ever since, doing a fantastic job. He uses the chairman, if he wants,

“I’m seen as a classic entrepreneur, but I don’t see myself as that at all. I see myself as a team-builder.”

as a sounding board. I don’t cross his path on everything in the business because he wouldn’t want me to. We speak regularly when we need to.

What was the secret to growing the company so quickly? The senior team has never been frightened of hard work. You need luck, we picked the right sector; it needed change and we created that change. We were certainly catalysts for the improvement in local authority outsourcing. We were new market entrants at the time, we were first to market with a different service, based on service rather than on price, so that, I think, put us in pole position. Towards the end of the 1990s Tony Blair allowed local authorities to buy on value and service rather than on price and it brought out the terminology ‘best value’. This was a big catalyst for local authorities and the services are now substantially ahead of where they were 20 years ago. We were the only real player in town selling on service and

INTERVIEW

“By lighting Winnie Ramsbottom’s fire I was doing my community service. It was put in my blood at an early age that this is the thing you do.” that has been happening since day one. It has clearly taken on a whole life of its own, but it’s a fantastic organisation.

value. During the 2000s we were seeing 40% growth year-on-year. As we had confidence that we would continue to grow, we were always recruiting. I always look for people for the next stage of growth, to ensure we are ahead of the curve. There were new market entrants that failed. We concentrated and carried on at what we were good at. That’s the same story today.

You are well known for your charitable work. Was there a point when you made a decision to give something back? I don’t think there was a time when I consciously said it’s now time to give back. I grew up in the north of England and my parents had grocery shops. When l came home from school l wouldn’t be told to do my homework, l’d be told to go round and light Winnie’s fire, or go and take Mrs Clarkson’s food round, or pull her out of the bath. In other words, I was immersed in the community. This was 50 years ago, before supermarkets. This was the corner shop mentality, which was community-based. Although I never thought about it at the time, by lighting Winnie Ramsbottom’s fire I was doing my community service. It was put in my blood at an early age that this is the thing you do. Mears operates in some of the more difficult communities throughout the country. There are over 300 offices nationwide, and every day there is something happening in Mears which is community-based, and I’d like to think

You set up The Footprints Foundation in 2008 to tackle the problems and issues facing disadvantaged and vulnerable people, and those people with significant health issues. The vision is to nurture the skills and qualities of young people through learning opportunities and so help them to develop their self-esteem and promote in them a positive attitude to help them achieve their ambitions and goals. The charity supports schemes in the UK and across the globe, notably South Africa. Why the strong emphasis there? We were always looking for somewhere sustainable we could go back to year-onyear. We found that in South Africa about seven years ago. We currently support seven orphanages out there. We are looking and profiling, at the moment, a couple more, deciding whether we bring those into the portfolio. Last year we entered into a management contract with the Winnie Mobasso Foundation in South Africa, who do a fantastic job in their own right and have very kindly agreed to manage my affairs out there on a

daily basis. It’s good for me, because I’ve got people on the ground now who do the day-today work that is so essential. I’m out there in June for about 10 days promoting another UK charity.

As well as Mears and the foundation, you are the chairman of several interesting companies. How do you select the projects you wish to help? I want to be inspired by the person or team, and know that they have a vision. If you look at my background, I’m seen as a classic entrepreneur, but I don’t see myself as that at all. I see myself as a team-builder. Where I have been involved in businesses in the past, where investors have wanted to change the management team, then almost without exception I’ve decided to walk at the same time. The latest business I have joined as chairman is Totally Plc, because I saw that the ideas and ideals of Wendy Lawrence are identical to mine and to what we are trying to do in Mears. I’m very excited about providing a professional outsource service into the NHS, and I’m sure we will have a great deal of fun doing it. If we can just improve certain services that are out there and work alongside the NHS Trusts, the Clinical Commissioning Groups and the boards to help them work through their challenges, then I think we will do very well.

www.mearsgroup.co.uk www.thefootprintsfoundation.co.uk

BUSINESS SUCCESSION

BUSINESS AND INCAPACITY, DEATH AND DIVORCE A happy and sad tale by DMH Stallard partners Philip Morton and Claire Carberry

Beware escaped lions!

s solicitors we see situations every day where people have failed to plan for the worst-case life scenarios.

Incapacity. Death. Divorce. In any particular order, these are not a list of the top-three

Once upon a time, in a town not far away,

they’re too busy running the business. Mike is

Maggie and Mike. Maggie did not know Mike

married to Melinda. They felt that a pre-nuptial

and Mike did not know Maggie.

agreement was unromantic and, anyway, they’ll

Maggie runs Maggie Limited with her

events in anyone’s life. However, there are

business partner Michelle. They each own 50%

steps you can take to reduce the impact of

and they have a comprehensive shareholder’s

these life events on your business. We have

agreement. Maggie is married to Mark and

tried to lighten the mood of the subject through the use of bleak comedy. The characters in the following tale are a figment of the authors’

need a shareholder’s agreement. In any event,

there lived two successful entrepreneurs,

entered into a pre-nuptial agreement, ringfencing her business interests in the event that her marriage should break down. Maggie and

be together forever (can you tell where this is going yet?).

Incapacity Maggie and Mike continue on their separate lives, with businesses and life going well. Unfortunately, Morris, Mike’s business

Mark each took legal advice and signed the

imaginations, but the circumstances in which

partner, suffers a stroke, becoming unable to

document well in advance of the wedding and

they find themselves are based on real-life

deal with his affairs himself. Mike and Morris

they review it every five years or so.

had not discussed this eventuality when

events. We apologise in advance for the lack of

Mike runs Mike Limited with his business

setting up their business and had not entered

imagination in the names, but we are no Hans,

partner Morris. They each own 50%. They

into a shareholder’s agreement. Nor had they

Christian or Anderson. On with the tale …

trust each other and feel that that they don’t

prepared mutual Lasting Powers of Attorney,

BUSINESS SUCCESSION www.dmhstallard.com passing control of their business affairs to the

by Morris, his wife and Melinda getting together

Guarantees which he can’t pay. Mike Ltd goes

other (or a trusted professional third party)

to vote him off the board! There was no

into liquidation and both Mike and Morris go

in the event one should become temporarily

shareholder agreement, so nothing to prevent

bankrupt.

or permanently incapacitated. Morris had,

us going down that unfortunate route.

however, prepared a Lasting Power of Attorney passing control of all of his affairs (business and personal) to his wife in the event of his losing capacity. Morris’ wife had never trusted Mike and refuses to accede to his request to extend the overdraft facility and purchase land the company had been trying to buy for the past five years.

Death Meanwhile, Maggie’s business partner,

Maggie, meanwhile, takes on a new shareholder, Matilda who has 40% of the

life and died peacefully in her 90s. She had

Lucy, 28 and recently married. Lucy works so

taken advice on Estate tax planning and passed

hard as a manager in the business that Matilda

on her business and personal assets to her

and Maggie agree that she should receive a

four children and 12 grandchildren with a

10% shareholding. Maggie and Matilda insist

minimal Inheritance Tax bill. We are not sure

that Lucy must agree a post-nuptial agreement,

what happened to Mike, but the way things

protecting the business interests. Nobody

turned out for him in this tale, we wouldn’t be

wants to end up with a son-in-law they don’t

surprised if he was mauled by an escaped lion

know as a co-shareholder. At first, Lucy’s new

from London Zoo.

husband is affronted that she should bring

been an enigma to Maggie. That is why Maggie

up such an unromantic topic of conversation

insisted that the shareholder’s agreement

whilst on their honeymoon in Rome. But, as

determined what would happen in the event of

payment to Michelle’s estate for for the agreed value of the shares. The shares pass to Maggie, allowing continuity of the business.

Divorce By now, you must be hoping that Mike is in for some good news because Maggie seems extremely smug. Luckily for Mike, there is

“Think of the effects your personal lives can have on your business affairs and the effects your business life can have on your personal affairs.”

this tale is the effects your personal lives can have on your business affairs and the effects your business life can have on your personal affairs. The busier we get, the less time we have to ensure the legal documents are in place to protect our position in the event things go wrong. The circumstances in this tale are not uncommon. We see them every day. Simple

your family’s finances from business risk.

from their accountant and decide to each split their shares equally, giving their respective

Lucy explains, this is because her mother and

wives 25% of the shares in Mike Limited.

Maggie insist and the conversation is far easier

Shortly after this decision, Mike’s wife Melinda

than it may otherwise have been. Lucy and her

decides to leave him for the hunky 25-year-old

husband each take independent legal advice,

gardener with the Abercrombie and Fitch body.

learning that a post-nuptial agreement is as

We bet you didn’t see that coming!

binding as a pre-nuptial agreement and enter

buy out Melinda from the business. 24 months

we like to think you would take away from

costs, ensure business continuity and protect

booming again. Mike and Morris take tax advice

the tale?) and does not have the liquid capital to

first name, to name but two examples. What

planning can save considerable future legal

full recovery from his stroke and business is

agreement (you see how we set up this twist in

There are a number of morals that may be lions or don’t name your company after your

some good news, in that Morris has made a

Mike does not have an effective pre-nuptial

Moral of the story taken from this tale. Keep away from escaped

either Michelle’s or Maggie’s death. Michelle with insurance in place providing a lump sum

Maggie lived a long and happy and fulfilled

shares in Maggie Ltd. Matilda has a daughter,

Michelle, has died. Michelle’s family has always

and Maggie had a cross-option agreement

Death again…

into a reasonable post-nuptial agreement.

Insolvency You recall the overdraft facility that Morris’

and £150,000 later, the court determines

wife refused to agree to? Well, when Morris is

that Melinda should retain a 20% share in the

back on his feet, Mike and Morris extend their

company, receiving dividends from Mike and

credit lines to enter into contracts with Crooks

Morris’ hard work. Poor old Mike. Though he

Ltd. Crooks Ltd go into administration, leaving

could count himself lucky; if we had more

Mike Ltd holding the can. Unfortunately for

space, he would also have lost his directorship

Mike, the extra credit was backed by Personal

This autumn, DMH Stallard and Platinum Business are holding a lecture where we will present a more in-depth look at the issues discussed in this article. Following the lecture, there will be drinks and a chance to network with the presenters and other attendees. Look out for details in upcoming issues of Platinum Business Magazine.

CONTACTS: Philip Morton Partner, Family and Litigation Philip.morton@dmhstallard.com Claire Carberry Partner, Private Client Claire.carberry@dmhstallard.com

APPOINTMENTS

A TOUCH OF FROST Further growth at Carpenter Box Gatwick

ith Maurice Frost joining the team at Carpenter Box’s Gatwick office, the firm has managed to recruit one of the area’s most experienced accountants to support its growth. He arrives ahead of an additional team of SME and tax specialists, who, over the next few months, will see the firm’s Peveril Court office almost double in size. Maurice has been appointed to the role of Departmental Director in the Business Services Group, which specialises in Owner-Managed Business and will help build on a spectacular first year for the firm’s Gatwick office, which opened in June 2015. Throughout his 26 years as a partner at an accountancy firm in Crawley, Maurice gained vast experience of undertaking audits and advising owner-managed businesses. During his career Maurice has also worked for one of the UK’s top five accountancy firms, and his technical ability has been put to good practical use during a stint as a Financial Controller for a company within the care industry. Since the Gatwick opening last year, Carpenter Box has been welcomed into the business community to the point that the Partners felt that they had to accelerate their plans for growth, to meet client demand both in Gatwick and South Surrey. The firm’s membership of MHA, a national association of independent accountants offering a full range of services to national, regional and local businesses, together with membership of Baker Tilly International, which gives the firm a global reach, have already helped to win over some of the larger businesses in the area. The expanded Gatwick line-up will include a senior tax advisory professional to work alongside Stuart Noakes, Head of Tax Services Group, as well as a team to support the growing number of clients who have started to use Xero cloud accounting software. Xero is ideal for smaller businesses who want to concentrate on what makes them money rather than on bookkeeping. For their expertise and level of client support around the product, Carpenter Box recently won Xero’s national ‘Accounting Partner of the Year’ award. Maurice is understandably thrilled with his new role, commenting: “I am delighted to be

Carpenter Box Partner Tony Summers (left) welcomes new Department Director, Maurice Frost appointed Department Director in an awardwinning firm with such an excellent reputation as Carpenter Box. I have lived in Crawley from my youngest days and have played a part in the growth and development of the area over many years. I am well established in the business community, so I believe that I am in a good position to help the firm with its ambitious growth strategy, and I relish the opportunity to be part of that journey.”

Maurice will be focusing on owner-managed businesses of all sizes, helping to increase their profitability and improve their tax efficiency. Outside of work, Maurice and his wife are to be found supporting the burgeoning sporting exploits of their teenage son. Maurice plays drums and is also a Harlequins Rugby supporter.

TRAVEL SUPPLEMENT

PLATINUM

Welcome to the Platinum business travel feature. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas so the saying goes but we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t agree. We are going to tell you everything about the town in the desert and the opportunities for MICE travel to this amazing destination. Rose has been busy sorting the wheat from the chaff and Scott Pawley, CEO of Global Travel Management gives us his views on the European referendum and the problems with the delayed airport expansion debate and the CEO of Booking.com gives her essential travel tips.

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TRAVEL TIPS

Travel Gillian Tans, President of Booking.com

Every day millions of hours are spent travelling for business around the world. Gillian Tans gives her top business travel hacks to make your next work trip even simpler and stress-free. BEFORE YOU LEAVE HOME/THE OFFICE Packing If you do lots of back-to-back business travel, save time by keeping a partially packed suitcase. Replenish toiletries and essentials such as underwear and sleepwear as soon as you return. Then, next time you have to pack, you’ve only got to add some business clothes and you’re ready to go.

Cabin Luggage We all know that taking cabin luggage only means a faster exit on arrival. However, if you’re late boarding you may find that the overhead bins are full, forcing you to check in your baggage. Instead of taking a standard cabin-sized, rigid suitcase and laptop case, take two more equally-sized bags (check with your airline first). One should be the maximum size that you could, if necessary, fit under the seat in front. The other should be a non-rigid canvas bag which can be slotted into any odd space in-between the big suitcases in the overhead bins.

Recharging and plugs Almost all devices can be charged via USB. So don’t haul around lots of individual plugs and cables when a couple of connection cables to your laptop or a USB adapter will do. Similarly, a multi-country adapter plug is much better than multiple plugs for different countries.

Pre-order meals If you don’t mind eating veggie, consider pre-ordering your meals before you leave, as a ‘special meal’ will invariably mean you will be served first. This means you can relax/go to sleep while everyone else is still being served their food.

AT THE AIRPORT Spotting the ‘right’ security queue The shortest line isn’t always the fastest. Try and check out the efficiency of the personnel manning the line and the mix of travellers ahead of you, such as families with small children. Pick right and you could literally save weeks of queuing over a business lifetime.

ON THE PLANE Have an on-boarding bag Don’t be one of those people who wait to get on the plane before rummaging in their bags to extract the items they don’t want to put in the overhead bins (holding everyone else up in the aisle in the meantime). Instead, keep all those items you will want during the flight in a small separate bag that you can easily extract as soon as you board. An outside pocket of your suitcase is great for this.

DURING YOUR TRIP Be app happy One of the biggest headaches of business travel is keeping a record of and claiming expenses as well as keeping on top of boarding cards and schedules. Booking.com for Business gives you options which help you understand the numbers, but of course there are plenty of apps that can help which let you track any kind of expense as well as billable time and mileage too. Expense reports needn’t be taxing. Tripit organises all your travel details into an itinerary on the app by simply forwarding on your flight, hotel and car rental bookings. You can also share your travel schedule with colleagues.

Record room and parking numbers If you’re on the road and constantly changing hotels it can get a little confusing trying to remember the number of the room you’re staying in. Take a quick photo of your door or your car parking space on your phone as soon as you arrive.

Enjoy the journey If you feel like all you ever see of a new country is the airport, the road to your hotel and the meeting room you need to get to it’s time to try and do a little bit of forward planning. Could you arrive a little earlier to enjoy a weekend stop over? Could a colleague recommend a local restaurant or café near your hotel that will give you at least a little flavour of the country that you are visiting? A little bit of planning in advance will reward you richly.

Get your ZZZ’s in Transcontinental and transatlantic flights don’t always provide enough hours to get a full night’s sleep. Maximise the amount of snooze you get by eating before you get on the plane. You can even brush your teeth and get into some comfortable sleep gear before boarding so you can ‘hit the hay’ as soon as you’ve buckled up. But bear in mind that the best way to beat jet leg is to sleep as if you are in the time zone you’re due to arrive in.

Travel STACKING THE ARGUMENTS OVER AIRPORT CAPACITY

Global Travel Management Managing Director Scott Pawley considers the impact the EU referendum has on the airport capacity debate

usiness travel remains the lifeblood of a prosperous and competitive economy, and in an era of globalisation it is an

in coming years, with the fastest expansion on

that the majority of our clients use Heathrow,

routes to destinations in the Asia-Pacific region.

which, in 2015 alone, saw almost 75 million

Key policy-makers therefore cannot afford

inescapable fact that air transport is especially

to overlook the contribution air travel makes to

important.

UK economic prosperity in any future decisions

passengers and almost 1.5 million metric tonnes of cargo. I would argue that Heathrow’s expansion

on air transport. In fact, it’s time they acted

could achieve the most significant impact in

business. It enables them to keep in touch with

on the fact that the UK’s ability to continue to

cost reductions, job creation and in relation

clients, suppliers and staff across the world, it

meet the needs of business and the economy

to minimising extra costs associated with

also supports the generation of sales of goods

rests on the thorny problem of lack of airport

increased freight transit times. Business

and services. What’s more, that the demand

capacity.

travellers look to Heathrow for long haul

Companies rely on air travel to carry out

for business travel by air will continue to grow

In business travel management, we find

services. Las Vegas, for example, attracts high

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

levels of business traffic as a major exhibition

First you need to look at the impact of

that forecasters predict that by 2028, the

and conference destination as well as a very

emerging markets, which continue to be a

new Istanbul airport, regardless of any

attractive incentive option for companies. So

driver of passenger growth. China is expected

environmental issues, may have enough

if Heathrow doesn’t get the extra capacity that

to see the largest increase in the domestic

capacity to shift passengers away from Paris

sector may have little choice but to connect to

travel market with Asia as a whole set to

Charles de Gaulle airport, Heathrow, Schiphol

flights via a continental European hub.

become the largest travel market. The location

and Dubai.

I know this is a soapbox, that’s well used. But the interesting times we live in raise new considerations with elements that tip against each other in a neat line of questions, much like a line of falling dominoes. Heathrow’s expansion would provide the best option to keep Britain competitive with European rivals, like Amsterdam Schiphol and Paris Charles de Gaulle, also under pressure to meet future capacity requirements. Now it’s true that it would appear that the UK would not need to remain in the EU to retain our competitive edge in the light of issues over European airport competition or even the green light for a third runway at Heathrow. However, the reality is that our biggest challenge, as a leading international air traffic hub, with all the significant economic advantages that brings, is not from within Europe. Certainly not as it stands.

of the Middle East will help drive growth

This brings me back to the relevance of our

and Dubai is already the world’s busiest

role in the EU and adds potency to our need

international airport.

to establish greater airport capacity. We need

A strong US economy is strengthening its

to have this greater airport capacity where

domestic traffic but while 20 years ago, the

we can maintain our influence in international

majority of passengers travelled on airlines

air traffic and we need to be in the EU to

based in Europe or North America, that number

influence Turkey’s plans in the light of Turkey’s

has shrunk to 49%, and by 2034, airline giant

longstanding petition to join the EU.

Boeing predicts that it will be just 39%. So how do these facts impact on the UK

Outside the EU we have no power to have any influence on the membership and who it

vote one way or the other? They have to be

decides to include. Isolated from the EU we

considered in the light of an unrestrained new

will also have no power to make demands on

third airport plan in Turkey, Istanbul Grand

another nation’s airport expansion plans with

Airport (IGA). It’s going to be big enough to take

regard to how that impacts on many issues, not

150 million passengers per year in due course,

least of which is the environment. So, I know

and is expected to open in October 2017.

where I’m placing my vote on 23rd June.

Three runways have been built as part of plans to have a total of six runways and four terminals. This would create an airport in Istanbul that would be larger than any in Europe. It would replace Atatürk Airport and provide capacity that Turkish Airlines has wanted for its huge expansion. In addition, Turkey has opened 25 new airports in the last 10 years so it’s not surprising

Travel Shake hands in...

LAS VEGAS

Fun, fun, fun awaits delegates in the entertainment capital of the US – as well as meeting options for companies of all sizes, says Rose Dykins

he best day of my life. Not a term you

Pool party season is now well underway

sqm of meeting space, Nevada’s glittering

use lightly, but my day spent at the pool

in Las Vegas, but the hedonism never stops,

entertainment destination hosted 22,000

party at Las Vegas’s Hard Rock Hotel

whatever time of year. Despite the wild

meetings last year, welcoming 5.9 million

indulgence of the destination, Las Vegas’s

visitors for business events.

and Casino was easily in my top ten. The sun was scorching, the DJ was masterful, the mimosas were flowing, and atmosphere was

corporate credentials are seriously big business. Capitalising on its status as an

“We are so lucky in Las Vegas to be able to

entertainment hub, Vegas is continually

host every kind of meeting or convention and

overwhelmingly positive – unforgettable, in

expanding its convention centres and adding

fit every business need,” says Chris Meyer,

fact.

new options. Boasting more than 1 million

Vice President of global business sales for the

The Strip at dusk

Travel

Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. “Whether it’s rewarding a firm’s high-flyers with a once-in-a-lifetime trip filled with activities and entertainment, to hosting 1,000 delegates for a gala dinner in one of our luxury hotels, to putting on a major trade show for 170,000 attendees, right down to an intimate meeting for 10 delegates – we have the ability to accommodate any group or conference. The sheer scale of our facilities is a key reason why so many people come to Las Vegas for business – including three of the ten largest convention centres in the US.”

Wynn Las Vegas

Las Vegas Convention Centre

So, although Vegas is the destination of choice for enormous international events – including tech and electronic event CES (January), and the world’s premier motoring trade show, SEMA Show (November) – smaller companies will find just as many suitable options for group incentives and meetings. “Small meetings are a crucial part of our meetings and events business,” says Meyer. “We can accommodate groups at one of our boutique hotels, in one of our private dining rooms, at a chef’s table, in one of our impressive hotel suites – or even in a gondola in “Venice” [the artificial waterways of the Venetian casino].” And, for those less keen on spending their time around roulette wheels, you really don’t have to gamble to have a good time, and casinos are working hard to make sure they offer other activities. “Gaming will always be important to Southern Nevada’s economy, but as visitors’ trends change, properties seek to diversify their offerings in order to meet those needs,” says Meyer. Wandering freely from casino to casino along the strip, taking in the likes of the Fountains of Bellagio and the cobbled streets and authentic backdrop of Paris Las Vegas, you could potentially go without placing a single bet. Still, if you’re feeling lucky….

Bellagio Fountains Photo Credits: Wynn Casino/hotel : Barbara Kraft LVCVA

Travel WHAT’S NEW IN SIN CITY?

T MOBILE ARENA

– launched in April by MGM Resorts and AEG, this 20,000-seat venue – now the largest arena in the city – will host more than 100 performers and sporting events each year, and is available for event hire.

THE PARK – another offering from MGM, this outdoor dining and entertainment district just off the Las Vegas Boulevard features plenty of outdoor patio space for hire, public art displays and live entertainment.

MANDALAY BAY CONVENTION CENTRE

– the sprawling Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino has further expanded its convention centre, meaning it now offers a whopping 185,000 sqm of exhibition space.

IPEC – opened last summer, this free-

standing venue is five minutes from both McCarran International Airport and the Strip, IPEC, with 1,850 sqm of meeting and event space and 49 hotel rooms.

Mandalay Bay

MR CHOW AT CAESARS PALACE – already a hit with

corporate groups, this high-end Chinese opened in April. Headed up by restaurateur and artist Mr Chow, it’s a slick space for 227 diners, where dishes are served “communal style”.

Mr Chow

SUNDANCE HELICOPTERS

– the heli-tour company now has a state-of-the-art terminal for corporate events, which can host parties for up to 500 people after giving them aerial tours of the Strip.

INTRIGUE

– Wynn Las Vegas’s new ultra-luxe nightlife concept was also set to debut in May, with space for 1,200 people to network in style.

THE D LAS VEGAS – the lively casino

hotel has opened some cutting edge meeting and convention space – including a renovated 560 sqm ballroom, eight breakout rooms, a new outdoor terrace and “Man Cave”-style party rooms.

TOPGOLF LAS VEGAS

– set to open in May at MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas’s take on the popular golfing attraction was never going to be done by halves – it will cover 3.2 hectares and offer stunning views of the Strip.

Top Golf

Travel COMING SOON… CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT – this Las Vegas institution will upgrade more than 4,800 of its rooms this year, and revamp the original tower at Caesars Palace to create the Julius Tower.

W LAS VEGAS

– bringing yet more bling to Sin City, Starwood will debut its W brand in what is currently the LUX tower of SLS Las Vegas. The luxury hotel will have three levels of meeting space.

ARIA RESORT AND CASINO

– the venue has announced a $154 million expansion of its awardwinning high-tech convention centre, which will add 18,500 sqm of space. This will include outdoor areas and a glass-enclosed venue with views of The Park and T-Mobile Arena.

RESORTS WORLD LAS VEGAS – slated as one of the biggest developments on the Strip in over a decade, the Genting Group will open this Chinese-themed casino resort at the northern end of the main drag – due to be completed in 2019.

WYNN PARADISE PARK – a sandy beach waterfront set around a 15-hectare lagoon, a 1,000-room hotel tower, a casino, and possibly a nine-hole golf course are all part of the plan for this exciting development, within walking distance from the Strip. Watch this space…

IDEAL ITINERARY GTM’s Managing Director Scott Pawley outlines the perfect Las Vegas incentive trip for those who’ve worked hard, and are looking to play harder…

THURSDAY – Arrive in the afternoon, and allow for time to chill. Then, the fun kicks off with a late night casino walk, or braving the thrill rides at Stratosphere Tower.

The Grand Canyon by helicopter

FRIDAY – Explore the Strip, dine in a hotel and see a show. The casinos are a real buzz, and we can organise it so that everyone has a budget they are “allowed” to spend. This means they can just relax and enjoy the venues as much as playing the tables and machines. SATURDAY– A helicopter ﬂight over the Grand Canyon, to give the team or delegates the opportunity to explore the outer regions.

SUNDAY – A day by the pool, or, for the more energetic, a chance to explore the Strip further and enjoy a different dining experience.

MONDAY – Homeward bound. 55

Travel WHAT’S ON - LAS VEGAS SHOWS Elton John (October 10-30, Colosseum at Caesars Palace) Jennifer Lopez (June 1-12, July 20-30, August 3-13, December 9-17, Axis Theatre, Planet Hollywood)

Lionel Richie (September 21-28, October 1-12, Axis Theatre, Planet Hollywood)

Mariah Carey (June 7-25, August 24-31, September 3-11, Colosseum at Caesars Palace)

Michael Jackson One by Cirque du Soleil Las Vegas (every Monday, Tuesday,

Jennifer Lopez

Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino)

Mike Tyson, “Undisputed Truth” (until June 26, Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club, MGM Grand) Rod Stewart (August 3-21, Colosseum at Caesars Palace) Santana (September 14-25, November 2-13, House of Blues at Mandalay Bay)

THE LOWDOWN Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s Chris Meyer gives his tips for making the most of a business trip in Sin City:

Q) What’s the best way to let your hair down if you have a spare day? A) To see a different side of Las Vegas, head north off the Strip and visit Downtown, which is

undergoing a complete renaissance. The area is thriving and distinguishing itself as a whole new destination away from the Strip. The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, home to the Chris Meyer Las Vegas Philharmonic Orchestra and Nevada Ballet, is a fantastic venue for cultural events and performances. Downtown is also home to the Neon Museum, where you’ll find a vast collection of old Las Vegas neon signs displayed in the desert – also offering exclusive hire for a corporate event. Fremont Street is the hub of Downtown and a fantastic entertainment district – make sure you look up at the world’s largest video screen, consisting of 12.5 million LED lights.

Q) Where’s your favourite place for a flutter and why? A) LAVO at The Venetian offers table games, mixology and their signature Italian dishes fused together in one

experience.

Q) Beyond the casinos, what would you recommend businesspeople visit if they have the chance? A) Las Vegas is a fantastic base from which to explore the Grand Canyon, and helicopter trips provide a fantastic

incentive option for corporate groups. You can also take a 15-minute evening flight over the Las Vegas Strip and take in the lights – a brilliant reward for hardworking delegates. Red Rock Canyon is just a 30-minute drive from the Strip, and a great place to hike and see the vivid rock colours and formations.

Q) Any other top tips for business travellers? A) There is so much to see and do in Las Vegas, so it is really important to leave time between meetings and

conducting your business to explore the city and have fun. Travel midweek and out of peak season to take advantage of really competitive hotel rates.

GATWICK FORUM

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT THE GATWICK DIAMOND ECONOMY? I

t’s important to understand why major employers and investors put their time and money into our Gatwick Diamond. Those of us

who live and work here understand the value

employer in the area through a number of

College, Gatwick Airport, Iceni Projects, Jones

hotels, will talk about why he has invested so

Lang Lasalle, KPMG, Liberty Property Trust,

much here, and about what others could do to

Mayo Wynne Baxter, NatWest, Optima Systems,

encourage more investment.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, Red River Software,

of the superb road, rail and air connections to

Stewart Wingate, CEO of Gatwick Airport,

Southern Housing Group, Transvalair UK,

domestic and international customers, and the

will talk about his investment programme and

University of Brighton, Valad, and Whiston

high quality of life here, but what would make it

rationale, and how the airport plans to help the

Solutions, as well as the Coast to Capital LEP

more attractive?

Gatwick Diamond economy grow.

and all seven of the local district and county

The annual Gatwick Diamond Economic

Delegates are a mix of leaders from

councils – all of which give the event significant networking power.

Growth Forum, which attracts around 200

significant local employers, investors, local

delegates each year, will this year give a

authorities and more. It’s this mix that gives

The annual Gatwick Diamond Economic

platform to a number of major investors and

the event its power, as business leaders talk

Growth Forum, which this year takes place at

employers, and ask of them why they are

directly to local authority leaders about how we

the Arora Hotel in Crawley on June 9th, brings

investing here and what could be done to make

can make growth happen faster.

the public and private sectors together to

the region even more attractive. Surinder Arora, CEO of Arora Group, who are

Organisations represented last year included Platinum Business Magazine,

currently progressing a major development in

American Express, Balfour Beatty, Canon UK,

Crawley Town Centre, and who is also a major

Chemigraphic, DMH Stallard, East Surrey

discuss the opportunities and obstacles for our regional economy. Join the conversation. See more information at www.gdegf.com.

Left to right: Charlotte Holloway, Surinder Arora, Sam Garrity, Stewart Wingate and Abhi Chacko

DIGITAL CAPABILITY For 2016, the event theme is the digital economy. The event will spend some time considering our digital sector and how it can grow further, providing more jobs, and generating more local economic value. The digital sector has an impact far beyond its own borders. All companies are now, or will be, affected by new digital trends such as the internet of things, cloud computing, mobile web services, smart grids, and social media, and those who take best advantage of them will grow the quickest. This means we need to retain and grow our strong digital sector for the benefit of the whole Gatwick Diamond economy. How good is our digital infrastructure, and how can it be improved? How do we achieve adequate digital investment? The event will also look at digital skills and the talent pool, discussing how the supply of digital skills could meet the demands of the labour market – and about what we can do to make sure the digital-skills bottleneck does not constrain our growth. Speakers in the digital section of the event include Charlotte Holloway, Head of policy and Associate Director, TechUK; Abhi Chacko, Head of IT commercial department, Gatwick Airport; and Sam Garrity, Managing Director, Rocketmill.

ANGER MANAGEMENT

ANGER MANAGEMENT by Maarten Hoffmann

THE IMMORAL TAX I

s it just me or does anyone else feel that David Cameron missed a wide-open goal recently when trying to wiggle his way out of

the Panama Papers fiasco? His father set up an off-shore vehicle to avoid inheritance tax (IHT). Surely, the point

them in exceeding the achievements of their

income tax, with the top 10% paying well over

parents. This is what enables a nation to grow

half, at 55%. Without their effort and enterprise,

wealthier and more successful. Take that away

a huge burden would fall on the 12% who

and everyone starts from scratch again. It’s like

pay no income tax at all and the welfare state

a reset button.

would collapse.

The truth is that there are no parents in

The Tories had their strongest surge in

here is not that he did it but that he, like so

this country, of any income bracket, who

popularity when George Osborne promised

many others, are forced to do it in the first

do not want their children to do better than

to raise the threshold for IHT to £1 million

place. It is an immoral double taxation and

themselves and who want to give them a leg-up

for married couples - a pledge he now won’t

should be scrapped immediately. The open

in life. This is one of the most fundamental

fulfil until 2020. By registering a resounding

goal that Cameron missed is not taking that

of human instincts. It is also among the most

vote of approval for this policy, the public

opportunity to state the unjust horror of this tax

selfless and morally admirable. Indeed, the

demonstrated their belief that the tax was

and vow to repeal it.

urge to look after our own families is a hugely

deeply iniquitous. And rightly so. Why, when we

powerful incentive to work hard.

have paid tax on our earnings throughout our

Wealthy countries have always seen generational trickle-down wealth. It’s what gives the next generation a leg up and aids

After all, it should never be forgotten that the richest 1% in this country today pay 27% of all

lives, should we be taxed on the same money again upon our deaths? There is nothing wrong

ANGER MANAGEMENT

“There is nothing wrong with taking legal steps to avoid IHT - as every family would, given the chance. It’s the tax itself that’s immoral.”

with taking legal steps to avoid IHT - as every

The idea of seizing people’s savings and

tax for buying and maintaining your home, you

family would, given the chance. It’s the tax itself

homes when they die might appeal to hard-

shouldn’t have to pay tax again for the simple

that’s immoral.

left ideologues like Jeremy Corbyn and John

act of dying.

McDonnell, but to most voters it looks like

What amazes me most in this debacle is

been shouting from the rooftops? Instead,

opportunistic big government at its least

that the Tories could not hit a barn door at fifty

he scuttled around as if he had got his hand

attractive, snaﬄing money when people are at

paces. Here they are with a wholly unexpected

caught in the till, and then, in an attempt to

their most vulnerable by rebranding death as a

majority, absolutely no opposition whatsoever

Isn’t this the message Cameron should have

extricate himself, having hoisted himself by

and a public and press consumed with the

his own petard, he set the worrying precedent

EU, and yet they fail to make the big changes

of publishing his tax returns. By throwing this

that are needed and, in the main, are fully

tasty morsel to the hounds of class warfare,

supported by the public. Instead, they split on

does he not risk sharpening their appetite for more, until the pressure grows for all politicians to lay bare the details of their own private finances? At this rate, the clear danger is that people with private means will no longer wish to enter public life for fear of being mauled by the ever-hungry pack. If that happens, the field will be left clear for

“What amazes me most in this debacle is that the Tories could not hit a barn door at fifty paces.”

politicians who know nothing of wealth creation

the referendum and start knocking seven bells out of each other. As long as there are unjust laws, the majority with something to leave to the next generation will do all they can to ensure that happens and no amount of laws, taxes or press blood baths is going to change it. And nor should it. It is a deeply unjust, unfair and downright immoral tax and should be scrapped tomorrow.

and are, effectively, unemployable in any other profession. Leaving an inheritance is a positive choice, which should be encouraged and facilitated,

transaction. If you choose to leave some money

not punished. It is clearly good for our society

or assets to your children rather than spending

that parents take an interest in helping their

it all on yourself in retirement, you should be

offspring to secure their futures. It means more

congratulated for your selflessness and sense

people have the safety net of savings, rather

of family responsibility – not hammered with

than relying on the safety net of the taxpayer

tax. If you pay tax on earnings, then pay tax

when things go wrong or times are bad.

for getting interest on your savings, then pay

CHARITY PROFILE

CARE AND COMPASSION

St Peter & St James Hospice improves the lives of people who have a life-limiting or terminal illness. Jo Carr, Communications and Marketing Manager, explains more about the work of the hospice. Charity Proﬁle, sponsored by CharityLine Can you describe the work that St Peter and St James does?

in the hospice where patients can come and

across the South Downs, and we encourage our

stay, the majority of our care takes place out

patients and their loved ones to make the most

At St Peter & St James Hospice we will

in the community, in patients’ homes. Hospice

of our grounds.

support you and those important to you to

care improves the lives of people who have a

live well towards the end of life, by giving

life-limiting or terminal illness. It helps them to

compassion, hope and quality care. We can

live as actively as they can to the end of their

How is the hospice funded and how much does it need to run?

make a positive difference to the experience

lives, however long that may be. It not only

charge, and we rely on our local community for

of everybody in our community who faces

takes care of people’s physical needs, but looks

86% of our funds as we receive less than 14%

death or bereavement, by offering choice and

after their emotional, spiritual and social needs

of our funding from the Government. We have

support through our expert care, knowledge

as well. Hospice care also supports carers,

to raise more than £2.6 million every year

and understanding.

family members and close friends, both during

through fundraising - that’s £7,200 every single

a person’s illness and during bereavement.

day. If you would like to learn more about us,

Haywards Heath, Lewes, Uckfield and the

Set in 23 acres of Sussex countryside, St Peter

are interested in volunteering or would like to

surrounding areas, and, while we have rooms

& St James Hospice has spectacular views

donate to support our vital services to the local

We care for patients from Burgess Hill,

All of our hospice services are free of

CHARITY PROFILE

community, please see our website at www.

• Organise

publishing (at the Press Association and then

stpeter-stjames.org.uk or call 01444 471598

Coffee mornings, quiz nights, shopping

Orient-Express Magazine) made me feel sure

and we’ll be happy to help.

evenings, races or casino nights ‘Fashion

that I wanted a career in communications,

How can businesses make a difference?

Swap’, Dress down, Dress up or Fancy Dress

where my English degree would be utilised.

at work day, Bubbly Challenge, Payroll Giving

I then started working as a Communications

or matched funding.

Manager in an NHS Primary Care Trust,

Getting involved with the hospice can be rewarding for you as a business and for your

• Tax Beneﬁts

employees, some of whom may already be

Businesses can obtain tax relief when

familiar with our services. Helping us can help

they give money, whether as a one-off or

raise your profile across Sussex, demonstrate

a regular payment. The HM Revenue &

your commitment to community services like ours and bring your staff team together around a common purpose. With your help, we can continue to provide skilled, compassionate,

Customs (HMRC) website provides details, so please see more information at www.hmrc. gov.uk

• Volunteering

end-of-life care, free of charge to over 600

Between April and October, we offer Make

patients and their families in Mid Sussex each

a Difference Days when you and your

year. Ways business can help include:

team can volunteer at the Hospice. These

• Charity of the Year Make us your charity of the year and set a fundraising target that your staff can

days might include gardening, woodland clearance, painting or cleaning. Volunteering at the Hospice is a great day out, the perfect opportunity for team-building and helps us

contribute to individually or collectively

save money. It gives us the chance to show

through events, payroll-giving or

you first-hand how your support makes a

participating in some of the hospice’s many

difference.

fundraising events.

• Sponsorship

What is your role?

followed by communications roles, where I was the lead for the organisation, in a hospital and local government. When I saw this role advertised I knew that I wanted to develop my skills further in an organisation that I had heard so many positive things about. I know that everything I do is worthwhile and supports a fantastic team of staff.

What events are coming up? We have fantastic events coming up over the summer months. To see a full list of what we’re holding and those our supporters in the community are running, please see www. stpeter-stjames.org.uk/events. This year, we have over 60 gardens taking part in our Open Gardens 2016 programme. Our annual Star Walk is on Saturday 9 July – it’s an amazing night to truly make memories shine brightly. To register, see www.stpeter-stjames.org.uk/ event/star-walk-2016 We have all our events in

I’m the Head of Communications at the

our events leaflet. So, to see this, simply drop

Sponsor one of our exciting fundraising

hospice and have been working here for two

into one of our eight shops or the Reception at

events and enjoy the excellent media

years now. I oversee all the communications

the hospice.

coverage we have across Sussex.

and marketing activities of the organisation,

How do you work with CharityLine?

• Pay For A Day It costs £7,200 to provide the hospice’s services for a whole day. If you want to ‘payfor-a-day’, you can choose the day, receive our special Pay For A Day Certificate and be invited to visit the hospice on your chosen day. We’ll also invite you to our exclusive Pay For A Day supporter events.

• Take Part We have a series of challenging and fun events running throughout the year, including our annual Star Walk. For those who prefer to run, we have places in the Brighton and London Marathons.

both internally and externally, so this includes the press office, social media, publications, website, graphic design and corporate branding.

How did you get involved? I have worked in both the private and public

We work closely with Stuart Sutherland from CharityLine. During my time here Stuart has been extremely helpful in offering advice on everything from collection pots and website donation to making the most of technology to strengthen our fundraising efforts. They have

sectors. However, this is my first role in the

helped immensely with the production and

charity sector. Working in journalism and

distribution of our supporter communications.

CharityLine makes it easier and more cost effective for charities to grow their donations through proactive marketing, utilising properly sourced data and cleansing existing data.

www.charityline.org.uk 61

NETWORKING

BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER

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

lthough I’ve always been and will remain a strong advocate of online communications, one of the most enjoyable aspects of my work is bringing people together in real life! Over the years, my team and I have organised numerous events for clients, from private dinners through to public consultations, business engagement events and high profile conferences. One thing they have in common – they’ve all brought together business communities across our region. My experience is that, whatever the occasion, live events provide an important opportunity to gain from listening and sharing experiences through conversation. I have often walked away from such interactions with either a simple yet important piece of advice, a new idea or a valuable business ally for the future. For many (and for senior executives and entrepreneurs in particular), business life can be isolating, so such events provide a valuable means of connecting with colleagues or likeminded peers and also help to put day-to-day issues in a broader context.

Public Relations Marketing Events Research Economic Development

www.prowse.co.uk

The act of bringing people together also reflects well on the hosting organisation. An event automatically elevates their brand, helping to build collaborations and motivate employees. Building connections by bringing people together also has the benefit of generating support when change is necessary. But it’s not just about organisations, as bringing people together can also impact on a location’s wellbeing – creating a sense of community. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that a place is about more than economic development budgets and businesses. At its heart, a place is about its people, heritage, assets and of course opportunities - all of which should be fully utilised to build successful communities. For example, over the past few years we’ve worked closely with the Manor Royal BID team to help build a sense of place for the 500

companies and 30,000 people who work in the Sussex business district. It’s been personally gratifying to see real progress being made on bringing people together – united with a common purpose. Another example is our work in Leatherhead, Surrey. Six years ago, we created a business awards scheme in conjunction with the local chamber of commerce in order to recognise the efforts of local business people and their employees. Over the years, it’s been rewarding to bring together large multinationals with SMEs and see their business relationships grow. Of course online communications are an important and cost-effective method of reaching out to people, but in my view, nothing quite beats the ‘meet up’, bringing people together in real time for mutual benefit.

Prowse & Co. combines strategic counsel with practical support to help you effectively communicate with your target audiences. If you would like to find out more about how our event management services might benefit your organisation, just give me a call on 01372 363386 or visit www.prowse.co.uk.

MOTORING

VAUXHALL INSIGNIA By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann

TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: 2.0 CDTi Engine: 2.0-litre diesel Performance: 0-62mph: 7.5 seconds Top speed: 130 mph Economy: 62.8 mpg Price as tested: £23,324.00

the USP. Price and economy. And in both these areas it scores very well. To get into this car for as little as £16,279 is remarkable. There are a good range of engines but you should plump for the 2.0-litre with 138bhp as it provides plenty of mid-range grunt. I, on the other hand, am not constrained by such things as BIK rates and fuel economy and therefore would select the 2.8-litre V6 petrol that will get you down the road to 62mph is less than six seconds. The ride is totally dependent on the wheel size and any larger than 16 inches and you get a choppy, irritating ride but stick with the right wheels and you get a smooth and progressive journey.

he Ford Mondeo has held sway over this mid-range sector for quite some time and all things must come to an end. But, l venture, not quite yet.

The Insignia is a good looking, sleek design and a good choice for the sub-premium fleet market. The 2-litre diesel will be the favourite but l would step up to the fancy BiTurbo model that has the kick this car needs. It is good, handsome and able but lacks that touch of flair that would set it apart. The interior is a marked improvement over past Vauxhall products in this sector and has a feel that it was designed rather than crafted in a 6th form design studio. Everything is where you would want it and easy to hand and it is very comfortable on the motorway, which is where it will spend most of its time. Round town it’s nippy enough but the engine is a tad gruff for me. The petrol is quieter of course but then you lose some of

The driving position is good and it offers four-way lumber adjustment and electric height adjustment and the dash is well laid out but it takes a few days for it to become intuitive. The sweeping roof line that make it a good looker also deals the minus of poor rear vision. Opt for the optional parking sensors as you’ll need them. It comes with all the toys - 4.2 in colour screen, bluetooth and USB sockets, SatNav, and voice recognition but to me the seats let it down. If the mark of a man is his shoes, then the mark of a good car are the quality of the seats and they don’t quite cut the mustard. There’s a leather option but then the price rises and the point is, yet again, defeated. In summary, this is an attractive, competent, economical and sensible proposition if you do long miles and have no serious interest in cars. And that market is huge and the Insignia hits the spot.

“It is good, handsome and able but lacks that touch of ﬂair that would set it apart.” 63

MOTORING

AUDI R8 V10 By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann

ho doesn’t love a supercar? Total arts-of-work-on-wheels that are good enough to lick and fast enough

to rip your face off. What’s not to love? The elephant in the room in this discussion is the fact that 99% of supercars are not

and stronger. The 1,555kg kerb weight makes

behind the seats jumps up, eats the moggy

it a skinny latte; add in all-wheel drive and a

and shoves you down the road faster than you

screaming 5.2 litre engine producing 602bhp,

can register what is happening. It is lightning

and you just know what’s coming next. I am

fast, and with the standard Quattro there is

going to drive it like l stole it.

(almost) no corner that you cannot throw it into,

The engine is sublime and makes jokers out

everyday drivers. They are elegant, delicate

of those who say turbocharged engines sound

and ruinously expensive to repair when Doris

better. They don’t compare to this naturally

hits you in the car park of Asda. So, pop it in

aspirated power plant. Of course, you have to

at any speed, that is not achieved with supreme confidence, flash panache and slightly soiled underpants. And they sent me the fast one - the V10 Plus,

the garage and only let it out for those Sunday

push through the mid-rev area, where turbo’s

with 602bhp! That outpaces the Porsche 911

blasts and, in most cases, watch the value

shine, but get it up to 6,000 revs and all hell

Turbo S to 100mph from a standing start by

soar if you keep the miles low. Well that’s very

breaks loose. It just wants to go, and presents

almost half a second and gets within a gnats

boring, isn’t it?

such an exquisite pedal response that, speed

whisker of the McLaren 650S. Engage launch

limits be damned, you just have to let it rip.

control and all your dreams will come true.

The Audi R8 V10 is that elusive beast - an everyday driver still able to warp your facial features if you get heavy with the go-pedal. I have each of my review cars direct from the manufacturer for seven days at a time, and I use them as my work and play car for the week. This means l attend countless meetings,

The seven-speed twin-clutch is too fast to even

The interior is well laid out, and l think the

notice the changes, but - and here is the kicker

‘virtual cockpit’ is a treat. Buttons allow you

- pop it into Comfort or Auto mode and it will

to customise it for your intentions, selecting

burble round town like a blasted tame moggy.

which dial you would like front and centre (l

Pop it into Dynamic, open the exhaust pipes

only really needed the rev counter). The SatNav

and slip into Sport and the monster tiger hiding

becomes the entire dash display when needed

conferences and exhibitions, take the kids to school, go shopping at Waitrose and may even deliver a sick bunny to the vet (long story). Send me a Ferrari 458 or Lamborghini Huracan and most of these tasks would be impractical and somewhat scary if l had any respect for my no-claims bonus. The new V10 is sharper and tighter than its V8 predecessor, and, with much of the tub being new, with aluminium space frame and panels, it is lighter. There is also a good dollop of carbon fibre in there, too, making it lighter

“It is lightning fast, and, with the standard Quattro there is (almost) no corner that you cannot throw it into, at any speed, that is not achieved with supreme confidence, ﬂash panache and slightly soiled underpants.”

MOTORING TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: Audi R8V10 Plus Quattro Engine: 5.2-litre FSI S Tronic Power: 602 bhp Performance: 0-62mph: 3.2 seconds Top speed: 198 mph Economy: 23.0 mpg combined Base price: £132,715.00 As tested: £153,650.00 and is a little like watching HDTV with razor-sharp graphics and options to see which building is on the next corner. The simple fact that the road remains in the same eye line is undoubtably an aid to safety. Processing speed is mighty, with wi-fi connectivity and a 13-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system. You won’t use it, though, as you will be listening to the sweet soul music coming out of the tail pipes. It is rather hypnotic, but can be tweaked down from major earthquake to a slight tectonic tremor. Yes, it’s German, and therefore the counterweight to the bullet proof reliability and superb build quality is the slight lack of Italian flair, but this creeps closer to the ultimate sub-supercar, the McLaren 570S, and they have certainly achieved the feeling that you are in something special. It has the stance of the Ferrari 458, if not the finesse, the visceral power of the Huracan, if not the price, and, most importantly, the ability to be driven every day, anywhere, anytime. I did, and l have to tell you that a little bit of my heart went within it when it was time to give it back. No worries, though, as the drop-top R8 Spyder will be out shortly, and they will have to send it to me again. I HATE this job.

“It is rather hypnotic, but can be tweaked down from major earthquake to a slight tectonic tremor.”

MOTORING

SKODA OCTAVIA vRS By Motoring Editor, Maarten Hoffmann If you are of a certain age, you will recall the Skoda jokes doing the rounds, such as: What do you call a Skoda with a sunroof: A skip. How do you double the value of a Skoda? Fill it with petrol. What do you call a Skoda on a hill? A miracle.

ll very funny and true back in the day, but you will be laughing on the other side of your face recently as Skoda, following their purchase by Volkswagen in 1994, are now utterly reliable, well built and make a very sensible purchase. Created in the Czech Republic way back in 1905, Skoda failed to keep pace with the rapid progression in vehicle technology and became the butt of every joke out there. So that’s it, you would think. Who on earth could recover a brand after such a drubbing? In come the Germans to the rescue, and today we have a car that was voted top of the driver satisfaction table in 2011 at 88.4%, ahead of Porsche at 87.6%, and was voted the most satisfying car to drive in the UK. Both Skoda as a brand and the Octavia itself have

“There is more than a whiff of Golf around the entire car, but that’s no bad thing.”

finished consistently highly in the Driver Power customer satisfaction surveys in the last few years. In 2015 the Octavia finished in 11th place in the survey overall, an excellent result.

turbocharged petrol or diesel engines, and now

The Octavia is a very good car, but the third generation Octavia comes with the vRS variant that can keep pace with a Golf GTi. Mine had the DRG gearbox that works smoothly and got me to 62mph in 6.9 seconds and on to 152mph. You get the same running gear as the GTi, although the larger body will be noticed in the corners, but you really have to push it to notice this. The steering is precise, the ride is very comfortable, and, give it a good kicking and it really shifts. There is more than a whiff of Golf around the entire car, but that’s no bad thing.

electro-mechanical front differential and lots of

The Octavia vRS is available in five-door hatch or estate format, with a range of

of the rear seats and a storage net in the boot

four-wheel drive has been added into the mix. As of last year, Skoda also offers a vRS 230, which adds an extra 10bhp, bigger brakes, an extra equipment. The estate version is stylish and has space aplenty, although the hatch offers 590 litres with the seats up and a huge 1,580 with the rear seats down, which is more than many an estate car. The opening is large and there’s no big lip to lug items over, while the boot is, overall, a good shape. The only fly in the ointment is that the seats aren’t totally flat when folded, but it’s a minor complaint considering the space on offer. Features such as a loading hatch in the middle also add a practical touch.

MOTORING TECHNICAL STUFF Model tested: Octavia 2.0 TSI vRS Engine: 1,984 cc Power: 197 bhp Performance: 0-62 mph: 6.9 seconds Top Speed: 152 mph

ŠKODA Octavia 2.0 TDi C

Economy: 44.1 mpg combined

Only £231.96 per m

Price from: £24,460.00

Birchwood ŠKODA

Birch Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN23 6PX 01323 407101 | www.birchwoodskoda.co.uk

Official fuel consumption for the ŠKODA Octavia range in mpg (litres/100km): Urban 33.6 (8.4) - 72.4 (3.9); Extra Urban 51.4 (5.5) - 88.3 ( 147 - 90 g/km. MPG figures are official EU test figures for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. *Monthly rental shown i

followed by 35 monthly rentals. 10,000 miles per annum, excess mileage 6p plus VAT per mile. Further charges may be payable when vehicle is re Finance, Freepost ŠKODA Finance. Offer may be varied or withdrawn at any time. Valid for vehicles registered between 1 April and 30 June 2016. V

was extremely high, while it did just enough in

the first two years’ mileage unlimited and the

are top-notch, and the dealers generally

the pedestrian and safety-assist category to

third year limited to 60,000 miles. Some rivals

provide exceptional service. I have not heard of

warrant the highest rating.

beat that with a five-year warranty, but Skoda’s

Owners say that reliability and build quality

any major mechanical or electrical issues so far, apart from a few minor gremlins with the sat-nav mapping. It should offer a dependable ownership experience on the whole. The Octavia offers further peace-of-mind in the form of a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating. The adult and child occupant protection rating

The usual array of airbags is offered on

one is pretty much par for the course in this

every model, while vRS spec cars get features

sector. You also get a three-year paint warranty

like hill-hold assist, dynamic headlights,

and 12 years of protection against corrosion.

lane-keep assist and post-collision braking to prevent further accidents after a crash. The Octavia gets a three-year warranty, with

This is well built, fast, safe as houses and handles very well, and from £24,460.00 is exceptional value for your money.

“Both Skoda as a brand and the Octavia itself have finished consistently highly in the Driver Power customer satisfaction surveys in the last few years.” 67

SIMPLY CLEVER

Your Company Car Just Got Promoted

ŠKODA Octavia 2.0 TDi CR VRS

Only £231.96 per month* Birchwood ŠKODA

Birch Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN23 6PX 01323 407101 | www.birchwoodskoda.co.uk Official fuel consumption for the ŠKODA Octavia range in mpg (litres/100km): Urban 33.6 (8.4) - 72.4 (3.9); Extra Urban 51.4 (5.5) - 88.3 (3.2); Combined 43.5 (6.5) - 80.7 (3.5). CO2 emissions are 147 - 90 g/km. MPG figures are official EU test figures for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. *Monthly rental shown is plus VAT for business users only. Initial rental of 3 months followed by 35 monthly rentals. 10,000 miles per annum, excess mileage 6p plus VAT per mile. Further charges may be payable when vehicle is returned. Indemnities may be required. Subject to status. ŠKODA Finance, Freepost ŠKODA Finance. Offer may be varied or withdrawn at any time. Valid for vehicles registered between 1 April and 30 June 2016. Vehicles shown are for illustration purposes only. E&OE.

CHARITY NEWS

RECORD RUN

Record number of Brighton Marathon runners for Sussex children’s hospice

ore than 270 runners took to the

around £1,000. They train two boys whose siblings rely heavily on the care provided by Chestnut Tree House.

streets of Brighton on Sunday, 17th April 2016 to raise funds for Chestnut Tree House, the children’s hospice for Sussex. Beginners and experienced runners from all over Sussex and further afield put their best

The first runner to finish the Brighton Marathon for Chestnut Tree was elite runner Jared Bethell, who supports Chestnut Tree because he knows it is a very special place, and Jared has contact with a family of a child who has been to the hospice. Nicky Ifould, Events and Campaign Fundraiser for Chestnut Tree House, Joe Skeaping - First BM10K runner back

foot forward and took

said, “On behalf of everyone at

up the challenge to

Chestnut Tree House, I would like

run the BM10k and the

to say a huge well done and thank you to all our runners. You were all

full 26.2-mile Brighton

fantastic, raising vital funds and increasing awareness of the hospice.

Marathon. The sun

“We are on track to raise more than last year’s total of £80,000, which

came out on Brighton

would provide care for the children and families we support for 12 days,

seafront and shone

both at the hospice and out in the community. Thank you as well to our

on what is now the second biggest marathon in the UK, and they raised

amazing team of volunteers, without whom it would not be possible to

thousands of pounds. Congratulations to all the runners who took part.

support our runners.”

The first runner back for Chestnut Tree House in the BM10K was Joe

Feeling inspired? Why not sign up for a Chestnut Tree House charity

Skeaping from Brighton, who runs regularly for Chestnut Tree House,

place in the 2017 Brighton Marathon? Visit their website www.chestnut-

because as a parent he feels passionately that the care and support the

tree-house.org.uk/brightonmarathon to apply for a place today. You can

hospice provides to sick children and their families is so important.

also join their team and run for Chestnut Tree House with your own place.

A team of coaches from Patcham United football Club, Clinton, Simon, Martin, Andy and Steve, all competed in the BM10K and have raised

Registration is now open at www.brightonmarathon.co.uk. Please sign up and remember to select Chestnut Tree House as your chosen charity.

LAST CHANCE FOR GOODWOOD HOUSE BREAKFAST The next event in our series of networking breakfasts takes place next month on Thursday, 14th July at Goodwood House near Chichester. We are delighted to have Neil Laughton speaking at the breakfast. Neil is an entrepreneur and adventurer currently disguised as a business consultant, executive coach and team trainer. A former Royal Marine Commando, Special Forces Officer and helicopter pilot, he has founded, built and sold a couple of successful businesses to a FTSE 100 company. Hugh Lowson, David Pegler, Linda Perry, Ambrose Harcourt, Derwyn Jones Neil has also organised and led adventurous expeditions on seven continents, has completed the Explorers’ Grand Slam (including five expeditions to Mt Everest), circumnavigated the UK on a jet-ski and piloted the world’s first road-legal ﬂying car across the Sahara Desert. Places are limited, so contact Lucy Groenewoud on 01903 871849 to book your place, or email lucy. groenewoud@chestnut-tree-house.org.uk. www.chestnut-tree-house.org.uk/breakfast

CHARITY GIVING

ZAMBEZI ADVENTURE It takes all sorts to make the world go around. There are those that take and those that give and Lee Hills, Partner at Mayo Wynne Baxter is one that likes to give. Not the usual charity fundraiser of running a marathon or skydiving. Oh no - Lee has decided to take a raft down the Zambezi river, dodging angry hippos, crocodiles and killer rapids in his efforts to raise money for the Winston’s Wish charity.

n September 10th, Lee will attempt to paddle his way 100km along what is known locally as the ‘Great River’. The Zambezi flows for 2,700kms through six countries on its path from Zambia to the Indian Ocean. This unique and demanding challenge will start at Victoria Falls and take in unforgiving rapids such as ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and Oblivion’! Lee will expect a rough ride, with sweltering heat, humidity, blistered hands and harsh conditions providing just some of the obstacles along the way. He will paddle and carry the raft along 100kms of the river, sleeping under canvas on the bank at night. The river’s upper section is dotted with islands and braided with narrow fast flowing channels. Lee will paddle and raft his way along the course of the river through Zambia, steadily heading towards the journeys end at Chabango Falls and the final rapid ‘Ghostrider’!. So far, in just four weeks, Lee has raised an incredible £2900 towards the overall target of £4000 and really needs your help not only to hit this target but to smash it. Lee said: “This is a challenging and physically demanding adventure but one which will make a difference to the lives of dozens of children who need our support. In a small way I am hoping to make a difference and I hope that others will want to share in this challenge and do so as well’’ Should you also wish to make a donation, you can do so via Lee Hills’ Just Giving page below and find out more about the Charity. Winston’s Wish is the UK’s leading childhood bereavement charity, offering practical support and guidance to bereaved children. Every day, over 100 children lose a parent in the UK and Winston’s Wish are there to offer support and professional counselling. Lee will do (almost!) anything to raise money? Publicity! Photo shoots!! Press coverage!!! Your own in house PR!!!! It’s a win win all round! So if you, or the business you work for, want to be part of this, act now! Speak to Lee and he will not only make this fun but good business too!

https://www.justgiving.com/Lee-Hills1 http://www.winstonswish.org.uk/ For details on how to get involved, contact Ambrose Harcourt at AHPR on 01273 206111 or email ambrose@ambroseharcourtpr.co.uk. Here at Platinum Towers, we wish Lee all the very best and if he doesn’t make it, recruitment companies should be aware that there will be a vacancy for a new Partner at Mayo Wynne Baxter.

WELCOME TO

Table Talk

As I type, it is feeling decidedly spring-like and I’m looking forward to a summer of gastronomy. I have booked my place on the various exciting events as part of the Brighton and Hove Food festival and I have lots of entertaining and cooking planned over the summer. This month, read my review of the Horse Guards Inn in Tillington. Our producer profile is the excellent Wiston Estate. Our chef profile is Ben McKellar, the man behind the famous Ginger group of restaurants in Sussex. As for my food diary… well, last month, following my foodie trip to Guernsey I then headed off to Chicago and California, the latter a haven of good wine and food. I found the food in Chicago, while having a high reputation, consistently over-salted and over-laden with butter and oil. It was as if they don’t actually like the taste of vegetables and feel the need to completely disguise them. Conversely the food scene in San Francisco was a total joy. A highlight was the Ferry building on the bay which houses a Borough Market-style artisan food emporium where you can buy, eat and imbibe. Which is precisely what we did. California is of course a major wine region, and I loved the fact that this was evident in the culture of the city and beyond. There’s a real emphasis on wine and wine tasting at every corner. The Napa Valley is a wine-lovers dream - each cute town is basically a big resort for wineries, with each winery offering excellent value tastings, often with food. Having always been an old-world girl, I now have a renewed appreciation for Californian wine. Here’s my top recommendation. If you like new world Pinot Noir, go for anything made in the Russian River area. We couldn’t get enough. After almost three weeks of imbibing every day, upon my return I embarked on a bit of a self-imposed nutrition recovery programme (I will not use the word detox!) Nothing extreme of course. A girl has to eat. So it was all salads, smoothies, fish and lots of kale. It did the trick and I have since enjoyed tucking in to my beloved gin and wine collection, cooking for friends and frequenting various local venues (reviews to follow) all in moderation of course (cough).

Amanda 71

Table Talk REVIEW

The Horse Guards Inn By Amanda Menahem

couple of months back I reviewed

Inn at Tillington near Petworth. Trusting

table. On a Wednesday at 1pm it was very

the lovely Leconfield in Petworth.

his judgment I happily accepted, especially

busy. Clearly this is a popular place.

Such a pretty part of our county. I

given the opportunity of a bit of post-lunch

decided I wanted to return and explore the area during the day. Us Brighton folk can get pretty insular, spoilt as we are with such great

exploration. Nestled within the South Downs National

The menu is divided into ‘light lunch’ items and also the full three-course options, plus a steak section. The menu informs us that

Park near the Petworth Estate, the Horse

the beef is supplied by nearby Rother Valley

Guards Inn certainly provides a splendid

Organics from cattle that have been allowed

know how I do like a bit of country pub action.

countryside fix. The pub got its name in the

to graze ‘on herb rich pastures and then hung

City life needs a bit of balance after all.

1840s when it became the ‘regular’ of the

for 35 days’. Such detail is clearly a sign of our

household cavalry. Unlike the Leconfield, this

provenance-obsessed times (rightly so).

bars, restaurants and pubs. But regular readers

My lunch date, the lovely retired CEO of the Coast to Capital LEP, Ron Crank, is himself a man of good taste when it comes to food and wine. Ron suggested the Horse Guards

is a real pub full of character with oak beams, open log fires and plenty of original features. We were warmly greeted and shown to our

The menu is interesting and varied. Hearty pub grub features strongly - BBQ Belly Pork Bap, Slaw and Fries (£8.50), Confit Belly Pork,

Table Talk

❝

We were warmly greeted and shown to our table. On a Wednesday at 1pm it was very busy. Clearly this is a popular place.

❞

Afghan Rice Pudding with Rosewater and Pistachio. Of course I spotted the Dark Chocolate Mousse, Amaretti, Cream and Hazelnut Praline. Because I hadn’t consumed any alcohol (please don’t write in – I’m fine – it’s just that I had the car…) I was able to resist dessert. But should you choose to dine here please do have dessert and let me know what you think. Good quality decaf coffee (a rarity) arrived with homemade chocolate fudge. Having declined dessert, I greedily gobbled it. Delicious. We drank sparkling water and off I went Cassoulet Beans and Curly Kale (£16.50), mmmm pig. There are plenty of modern twists like

smoked (as is so often the case). For the main course, I went for John Dory fillet, Ratte Potatoes, Romesco Sauce, Seaweed

the South Coast Fishcake livened up with

and Smoked Sussex Gold (a rapeseed oil). Ron

Kachumber Salad and Curry Mayonnaise, or

chose the aforementioned Italian-Style Duck

the Lamb Merguez Burger. A clear European

Leg.

and global influence appears throughout the menu; gnocchi, crab, chilli, parsley and garlic butter and the enticing sounding Italian-

Petworth, feeling grateful. What a lovely way to spend a day.

My fish was almost perfectly cooked (though it lacked a crisp skin). The Romesco (a Catalan sauce made predominantly from

Style Sweet and Sour Duck Leg with Raisins,

nuts – usually almonds and red pepper) added

Almonds, Chocolate, Polenta and Greens. This

a welcome richness to what was a light but

all suggests a confident and adventurous chef.

satisfying dish. My only complaint, other than

Not always a good thing.

the skin, was that the portion of fish was tiny.

The proof will be in the eating.

exploring the pastoral delights of nearby

Like half a fillet. Strange. Maybe they were running out. Ron’s Italian-Style Duck was a

To start Ron and I both ordered Smoked

beautiful plate of food. Generous, hearty, rich

South Downs Pigeon Breast, Beetroot, Celeriac

but well-balanced, with the duck falling off the

and Spelt Salad, Parsnip Crisp with Walnut

bone.

Dressing (£7). I absolutely loved this. The celeriac had been shredded and combined with nutty spelt grains, but wasn’t overdone – more of a garnish than being too central. The

I was tempted by dessert. I’m a sucker for rice pudding and its rare to see it on a restaurant menu. Here they have a Chilled

walnut dressing working well with the nutty spelt and earthy celeriac. The beetroot - thinly shaved discs at the base - added a pleasing sweet yet earthy note. The parsnip crisp provided texture and sweetness. This was so good it would have worked well on its own, but was made immeasurably more hearty by the addition of the smoked pigeon

The Horseguards Inn Upperton Road, Tillington, Petworth GU28 9AF Tel: 01798 342332 Web: www.thehorseguardsinn.co.uk

breast, rich and dark and thankfully not over-

Table Talk CHEF PROFILE

Ben McKellar By Amanda Menahem

en McKellar is not one for the limelight. You may not even have heard of him, but you will almost certainly have heard of his restaurants – the Ginger group.

John Burton Race at the two-Michelin L’Ortolan

and still be in the kitchen as much as I was.

in Berkshire before returning to Brighton and

Especially with a young family! Now I am

eventually launching what was to become,

enjoying a new kind of role to that of a chef,

arguably, one of the most successful food

focusing more on business strategy and acting

The original Gingerman restaurant opened its doors back in 1998 and is still at the top of its game today. Following the success of the Gingerman, Ben opened the Ginger Pig in Hove, representing the epitome of gastropub excellence. Then followed the Ginger Fox in Henfield and, most recently, the Ginger Dog in Kemptown, which opened in 2010. Ben is a bona fide local success story, having been born and bred in Brighton. After college Ben spent time honing his cooking skills in some of the best restaurants in the South of France before returning to the UK. He worked under

enterprises in our region.

as a mentor to my team. I still get involved in

I can’t deny it, I’m a fan. I have never had a bad meal at any of his establishments. The

but I let my excellent team express themselves,

Ginger Pig is still, for me, the best Sunday

providing guidance when needed. I like to

roast in Brighton, and the Gingerman the best

nurture talent.

fine dining restaurant. The Fox is an exercise in country pub elegance. If only my waistline could handle it, I’d be eating at one of the Gingers weekly. I was delighted to be able to

Where do you get your inspiration? From my team mostly. We all keep abreast of the industry and what’s happening locally and

get some time with Ben…

further afield. We look at what’s cool, what’s

What’s important to you?

work for us. But we make sure we stick to our

Running a consistently high-quality group

new and we see what, if any, elements might core philosophy and brand. A good example

of restaurants. This means that I have to

is the refurbishment of the Gingerman. We

ensure very good staff who are motivated and

could see a trend toward a more informal

ambitious, and very good ingredients.

environment for fine dining and so created

With four restaurants, where do you focus? I am not in the kitchen as much as I used to be. I personally opened all four establishments

menu development and key strategic matters,

a relaxed bistro feel while retaining the key features of our brand.

What do you cook at home? I mostly cook spicy food at home, curry

and cooked in all of them for many years. I

or other Asian food, although my kids love a

found I couldn’t run the business effectively

Sunday roast.

Table Talk

❝

Running a consistently high-quality group of restaurants. This means that I have to ensure very good staff who are motivated and ambitious, and very good ingredients.

❞

Guilty pleasures? Chocolate, whisky and peanut butter, not all together… although, actually...

What do you think of the local food scene? Sussex and Surrey are both great for food and wine. The Brighton food scene, in particular, has changed dramatically for the better over the last five years or so. There is now a fantastic, diverse range of eating places to suit every budget.

Where do you like to eat out? In Brighton, I like The Chilli Pickle, The Set, 64 Degrees, Meat Liquor, China Garden, and UniThai. In London, I love Lyle’s, Pitt Cue and Barrafina.

What’s next for you? We are about to start developing the upper floors at the Ginger Pig into 11 hotel rooms, which will hopefully open this year. Alongside this we will be expanding the food offering at the Pig to provide breakfasts and brunch and extending the outside space. Next year we hope to finally open The Ginger Fish as part of the Terraces development by the Pier. This will be an informal all-day café-style venue, serving classic, locally sourced, fresh fish and chips, but done really well. Look out for my review of the Gingerman in next month’s issue.

Table Talk PRODUCER PROFILE

Wiston Estate Winery By Amanda Menahem Dermot

And with her, the striking and vivacious Pip, the matriarch of the family and the visionary behind the success of the vineyard. It was Pip who finally persuaded her husband Harry to plant the vineyard back in 2006, having first conceived the idea some 40 years earlier - a result of feeling homesick for the rolling vineyards of her native South Africa. Today its 6000 acres lie on the chalky slopes of the South Downs, the vines themselves covering 16 acres on south-facing slopes with ‘terroir’ almost identical to the renowned Cote Des Blancs in Champagne. After planting the vines in 2006 the family still needed to actually make the wine. With no funds and no premises, they decided to approach the established nearby winery

Nyetimber, who agreed to make their wine

he funky, modern branding of Wiston

tour of the region over a year ago. It was a

for them, lead by head wine maker Dermot

Estate Winery caught my eye long ago,

highlight. Since then, their wines have received

Sugrue. Dermot soon joined the Wiston team.

and being a sucker for bubbles, I was

numerous accolades and rave reviews from the

destined to become a fan. I don’t like any old bubbles, however (I dislike many big brand Champagnes and as for Prosecco, well I just don’t get the craze when

likes of wine legend Jancis Robinson. And now me. I had a highly enjoyable afternoon with wonderful people. I was greeted warmly by the charming

Cava is so much better). I first experienced

Kirsty, a member of Goring family who have

Wiston sparkling wine aboard a gourmet bus

owned the entire Wiston Estate since 1743.

Pip

He set about finding a suitable wine making location (an old converted turkey farm) and scoured Europe for the right equipment. And so the winery was built. Luckily both Dermot and Pip share the same core values; organic principles, respecting nature, minimal processing, staying small, being authentic, doing what feels right rather than chasing profit. These principles embody the entire production process. Dermot sourced a rare ‘coquard press’, the only one of its kind in the UK. This ancient wooden mechanical press uses gravity to enable the grapes to be pressed very gently resulting in a cleaner, fresher end product. There are no herbicides or chemicals used (unusually) and no intervention in processing or filtration- the wine simply ‘does its thing’. This is not to say that the end product is totally left to fate (though one vintage did result in an accidental, and delicious, Rose!). No, they take great care in deciding how long to mature the wine, what type of barrel to use, and so on. Such care over every element also extends to the branding, which takes its

Table Talk

❝

This ancient wooden mechanical press uses gravity to enable the grapes to be pressed very gently, resulting in a cleaner, fresher end product.

recognisable and distinctive colour scheme from Pip’s favourite scarf.

Cuvée will appeal to those who

The garland like decoration that encircles the label is a copy of the

like their bubbles crisp and

decorative features to be found in the ceilings of the old family home

fruity and very dry. I adore the

Wiston House.

blanc de noir and Rosé (both

So what about the wine itself? There are four non-vintages. The brut is the classic 3/3/3 blend of all three grapes, the Rosé, a blanc de blanc (100% chardonnay) and a blanc de Noir (Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier). The vintage wines are the Wiston Cuvée 2010 and the Rosé 2011,

❞

the NV and the 2011), as I like the complexity and structure of these wines. Wiston’s wines can be found in a handful of local restaurants (including the Leconfield and the Chiltern

winner of 5 gold awards. These wines attract numerous critical acclaim.

Firehouse in London - both

The vintage Blancs de blanc 2010 won Gold at Sommelier Wine Award

reviewed in this magazine

2015 and Gold in the Drinks Business Global Masters 2014 and most

and available on my own

recently Gold at IWC 2016. The Blancs de blanc non vintage won

website PeoplePlacesFood.

Gold and Best in Class at The Champagne & Sparkling Wine World

co.uk). Stockists include

Championships 2014. Of the Wiston 2011 Rosé, Jane MacQuitty of

Corney and Barrow, Ten Green Bottles and Butlers in Brighton to name

the Times said “Another Dermot Sugrue triumph, this delicious,

but a few. And you can also buy directly from the website.

smoky, savoury, barrel-fermented rose oozes elegant sour cherry and raspberry class.” I was treated to a first taste of as yet unreleased wines; a 2011 Pinot Noir dominated vintage, which will be released just before Christmas, and a 2009 Brut Cuvée. Both were excellent. The blanc-de-blanc and 2010

Their award-winning Rosé wine

I found the family members I met to be extremely passionate, friendly, warm, welcoming and generous with their time. They plan to create a more customer-friendly space for wine tasting and food, more akin to the offerings at wineries in Pip’s native South Africa and the Napa Valley. Given their natural gift for hospitality, this will be a success. I for one will be a regular.

Luxury Private Dining BY ALAN WHITE

THE ULTIMATE PRIVATE DINING EXPERIENCE IN SUSSEX Perfect for special occasions & celebrations, client entertainment and high end company dinners. For bookings or to arrange a viewing of our private dining spaces, please email conference@grandbrighton.co.uk

or call 01273

224300

THE GRAND BRIGHTON, 97-99 KING’S ROAD, BRIGHTON, EAST SUSSEX, BN1 2FW

www.grandbrighton.co.uk • conference@grandbrighton.co.uk

TheGrandHotelBrighton

@GrandBrighton

Table Talk

Wine Masterclass SUMMER ASPARAGUS AND OTHER STORIES by Jonny Gibson

Talking of good reds, I was the guest

ne of the best things about this time

(Butlers Wine Cellar, Quaff Wines – both in

of year is when the signs appear at

Brighton £13), Albourne Estate Bacchus 2014

speaker at this month’s first Wednesday

the end of dusty tracks around Sussex

(South Downs Cellars, Hurstpierpoint and

wine tasting at Hotel du Vin Brighton and

for fresh asparagus. If you take your local and

Lindfield £12.95), Kingscote Vineyards Bacchus

the theme was red wines from around the

seasonal food seriously like me then you will

2014 (The English Wine Centre, Alfriston £19)

world. Two of them stood out for me and

know all about the joys of buttery steamed

or Bolney Pinot Gris (Waitrose £16).

they were both from the New World rather

Jersey royals, quickly cooked asparagus and hollandaise sauce. But what to drink with this early summer classic?

An undoubted perk of this job is the fact that I get to try a lot of different wines every week, either at our own tastings or in wine shops and trade tasting events. There really are some hidden gems out there and it always a joy to stumble across them. I am a big fan of green fruit wines with a stony mineral edge (think Chablis) and am always on the lookout for them. This style of white wine is perfect for summer drinking and it helps that my wife loves them too. Recent finds have included the excellent Gavi di Gavi Nuovo Quadre La

The wine and food pairing

Battistina 2015 (Butlers Wine Cellar, Brighton

gurus suggest Sauvignon Blanc,

£10.99), Nunzio Ghiraldi ‘Il Gruccione’ Lugana

particularly a cool climate,

2014 (Cucolo Deli, Heathfield £16), Kurt

herbaceous version from the

Angerer Loam Gruner Veltiner 2014 (Quaff

Loire valley as this seems to

Wines, Brighton £18) and Pazo Senorans Rías

partner the asparagus so well.

Baixas Albarino 2013 (Majestic £14.99).

Sancerre or Pouilly Fumé are great choices if you are looking to impress a business client but you can save the pennies by choosing a Touraine Sauvignon or a wine from a lesser known village appellation like Quincy, Reuilly or Menetou Salon. There’s no need to stick to Sauvignon either as there are plenty of zingy, grassy whites out there from other grape varieties.

Summertime usually means light to medium

than Europe which was interesting. Firstly the Trinity Hill Hawkes Bay Syrah 2014 from New Zealand which had gentle smoky peppery blackberry fruit and was very much like a northern Rhone wine (Hailsham Wine Cellars £12.95). South Downs Cellars also stock some of this producer’s range. Even better was Byron’s ‘ Neilson’ Santa Barbara Pinot Noir 2013 which I thought was absolutely stunning with soft red berry fruits, floral and mineral notes and was more Burgundian than Californian. This would certainly be a real deal maker if you were dining at the hotel with a client. I couldn’t find it listed any

bodied reds. We had our first

further south than Noel

barbecue of the summer this

Young wines in Cambridge.

weekend now that the sun has

Independent wine shops in

finally come out with butterflied

Sussex – please stock it!

lamb and a new season salad with crumbly goats cheese. We tried a few different reds and one stood out. A delicious Chateau Cambon Beaujolais 2014 with lovely crunchy cherry and spice and made from organically grown grapes (Ten Green Bottles, Brighton

You can match your Sussex asparagus with

£14.50). Good Beaujolais is

something closer to home with an English dry

a wonderous thing and we

white wine such as the excellent Davenport

should drink more of it at this

Vineyards Horsmonden Dry White 2013

time of year.

Jonny Gibson is the head tutor and owner of Sussex Wine School, an independent company that runs regular tastings and courses including WSET Levels 1-3 in Brighton, Lewes and Tunbridge Wells. www.sussexwineschool.com

GATWICK DIAMOND

MANUFACTURING – The Past and the Future

Jeremy Taylor, Chief Executive of Gatwick Diamond Business, asks David Shore, MD of Time24, about the changes he has seen in almost thirty years of manufacturing in Manor Royal. Jeremy Taylor (JT): What are your memories of the business environment in the Gatwick Diamond when you started, back in 1987? David Shore (DS): When we started, the North Terminal Development was going on, so we had negative unemployment. It wasn’t zero unemployment; there were far more vacancies than people to fill them. They were actually importing people from the Northeast, as getting hold of people was impossible. We set up in a converted farm, trying to get hold of skilled staff, and it was almost impossible. When the major recession hit in 1989-92, big corporations like Rediffusion suddenly released their apprentice-trained guys, which for us, in terms of lifting our skill base, was fantastic, as we took on, at a reasonable price, all these guys who had spent years working in a good apprenticeship. It enabled us to bid for much better, higher-skilled work than we’d been able

to before. When the economy is really up in the UK, being this close to Gatwick means it always gets very tough. Those who have been around long enough can remember the problems of negative unemployment, how wage rates rocketed up. We are in a labour-sensitive market, and if my wage rates suddenly start cranking up like that again, we’ve got a real problem; it would take me out. Around this time, there was more manufacturing here, and a greater concentration of aviation-related industries. JT: When I first met you in 1996, what a hot-bed of manufacturing the area used to be. There were 250 people employed at Knowles Electronics, and Filofax were also here. Now, both have been replaced by housing. We also had APV, Edwards High Vacuum and A & M Hearing. Now the concentration is in research and development. Where we do well is in

attracting the inventors. Edwards don’t do the manufacturing, but they do the invention here. Electra are putting in a magnificent R&D centre. We have also retained a simulator cluster. DS: It is all about adapting. The models that were applicable in the 1990s don’t always work anymore. Think about how many people had Nokia phones in the 1990s, but they didn’t change with the market. In the 1990s, there was a trend of supplychain partnerships, which John Peel, the chairman of CADIA (predecessor of Gatwick Diamond Business), used to champion. We started opening sites around the country to partner with clients such as Bombardier Transportation in Derby. It worked, and we grew very quickly, with many supply-chain partnerships, and our turnover went from £8m to £28m. As soon as the ‘noughties arrived, no-one cared where you were, it was all about globalisation. Big corporates only cared about

GATWICK DIAMOND

“The factories of the future will have two employees, a man and his dog. The man is there to feed the dog, and the dog is there to stop the man touching the machine.” price and which low cost country we were manufacturing in. The model had gone. We opened a site in the Czech Republic. It was worth the risk; the people there are ambitious, hard-working and very conscious of quality. Now we are seeing some re-shoring. Vent-Axia and Chemigraphic have brought jobs back from China, as the wages there are rising. JT: In the last thirty years, the changes in technology have been unbelievable. I remember my predecessor was very distrustful of email, and would download a message and then quickly switch off the modem. That was only in 2004. DS: What’s interesting is where it will go next. As we go further in the future, the place of work is irrelevant. The talk is all about Industry 4.0 - the fourth industrial revolution. Google it, because it’s a fascinating read. The Germans are so advanced on it, but we are struggling to even get fast broadband. There’s a quote that came out of Germany saying that the factories of the future will have two employees, a man and his dog. The man is there to feed the dog, and the dog is there to stop the man touching the machine. The level of automation and sensor technology is just so clever. We may be storing up problems for the future in the UK. Our measured productivity is almost 30% less than the States and France, because they are using and investing in much more serious kit, while we are investing in low-cost labour. Eventually, that is going to bite us. We haven’t invested in that kit; we haven’t invested in that level of automation. The stats say that the French could take Fridays off and still be more productive than the UK. Sometimes it’s easier to go and employ two more low cost heads than it is to invest. We are almost becoming a nation of low-cost skills and low-cost labour. We are 134th in the business investment league, equal with El Salvador. JT: Aside from technology, what other changes have you seen? DS: We no longer get management fads, which used to come into and go out of fashion all the time. It was fascinating watching it. I can remember there was TQM – Total

Quality Management, benchmarking, the Tom Peters era of search for business excellence, empowering, and then you had ‘Six Sigma’. It went on endlessly, but seemed to stop after the last recession. I’ll tell you why: companies could no longer afford all these massively paid management consultants. These people were making so much money; you would pay them fortunes to go and consult on some benchmarking TQM exercise. Business process engineering was another fad and whilst many

“The students were clearly bored to tears, until I told them how much an electrical engineer can earn.”

of these ideas were good and added value when the crash of 2008 came along people refocused and the basic principals of business of selling hard and keeping costs tight became prevalent. Also, there is the generational change. I invited in a bunch of sixth formers who were interested in engineering, and as I explained what we did, they were clearly bored to tears, until I told them how much an electronic engineer can earn. You could hear a pin drop; I was talking their language.

Expectations have changed. The young generation want the money now. You get some very clever kids, but the emotional intelligence isn’t there. It’s probably our fault as parents. We drive our kids everywhere and they live in a sanitised, safe environment, without any notion of risktaking. They never have to make a decision for themselves. It’s no wonder that the BCC found that something like 87% of 16-year-olds are just not ready for work. It’s a fact that most apprenticeships are going to the over 25s. Do you remember the YOP scheme – the Youth Opportunities Scheme? It was much maligned, but what it did was get 15 to 16-year-old kids into businesses, because it cost firms nothing to put them in and it just gave them an experience of working. They don’t have schemes like that anymore. Yes, we’ve got some very, very bright IT smart-guys, but have we got emotionally intelligent, problem-solving kids? It’s a different generation. JT: Thank you David. It was a fascinating look at local business and, in particular, manufacturing. Let’s not leave it another 20 years before we do it again!

www.time24.com www.gatwickdiamondbusiness.com

Established in 1987,Time 24 are now a global player in the fields of control & panel wiring, wiring harnesses, electromechanical assembly, systems integration and modular outsourcing. Employing 300 staff at sites in Burgess Hill and the Czech Republic we provide highly innovative supply-chain solutions and technical excellence in these market areas. Time 24 is one of the sixty fastest growing companies in Sussex.

DIGITAL MARKETING

WHY YOUR BUSINESS MUST HAVE A FACEBOOK MARKETING STRATEGY by Shea Bennett, Head of Digital Marketing at Identity Group

aving worked in the digital marketing sector for more than a decade, if there’s one question that I have been asked

of UK social networkers only use Facebook,

Accordingly, Facebook has become far more

and no other social platform. To many of

than “just” a social network. Its ecosystem is

them, Facebook is social media. Which is

unlike anything we have seen in history, linking

repeatedly it would be this: “What is the best

why one should always ignore sensationalist

hundreds of millions of people continuously,

social media platform for my business?”

proclamations that Facebook is on the decline,

both on and off the platform.

My answer always used to start with, “It

or that it’s no longer relevant amongst key

depends”. Choosing the right social media

demographics. Facebook remains comfortably

platform for your company did depend on a

the most popular social network amongst

number of factors, such as the type of products

all the key age groups. Statistically, almost

or services you were selling, and the industry in

everyone you know has a Facebook account.

which you operated.

Bottom line? Your customers are on Facebook.

Historically, LinkedIn was seen as the

Your prospects are on Facebook. And (perhaps

premier social media site for recruitment and

most importantly) your competitors are on

direct sales. Twitter was the clear choice for

Facebook.

exhibition marketing and B2B, and platforms

particularly for retail brands that had a strong appeal with the key 18-34 demographic. But for B2B, niche companies or SMEs, Facebook was often a very difficult nut to crack. Times have changed. Facebook has rolled out a number of exciting new tools that have quickly established it as the number one social

the people, places and things we interact with online. It contains the largest number of defined relationships between the largest number of website users of any platform, simply because Facebook is (and remains) so incredibly popular. effective medium for reaching large, targeted

for very visual, content-heavy brands. for business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing,

This digital matrix, which Facebook refers to as its social graph, connects each of us with

As such, Facebook has become a very

such as Instagram and Pinterest were fantastic And Facebook? Facebook used to be brilliant

Facebook Advertising

“50 per cent of UK social networkers only use Facebook, and no other social platform. To many of them, Facebook is social media.”

groups of consumers to promote products and services. Facebook ads start at just £1 per day and scale to all budgets, and users can be targeted by an ever-growing wealth of criteria, including age, gender, location, interests and behaviours. Advertising campaigns can be based around objectives – for example, sending traffic to your website or collecting leads for your business – and you’ll only pay when that objective has

network for every business across every

been met. Moreover, results are almost always

industry, irrespective of target

exponential: if you’re getting 10 leads for £10,

customers. Indeed, the more niche your

you’ll get 100 leads for £100, and vice versa.

business, the more effective these tools can be. Read on to learn why.

The Facebook Ecosystem From its launch in February 2004, Facebook’s

In 2012 Facebook acquired Instagram, which now boasts 400 million users, and the company also owns WhatsApp, which has one billion users, plus its spinoff Messenger app, which is

Facebook Custom & Lookalike Audiences Powerful stuff. But if there’s one area where Facebook has fallen a little short, particularly

growth has been nothing short of incredible,

used by 800 million. Worldwide, Facebook Like

reaching 100 million global users in early 2008,

and Share buttons are embedded on tens of

If you work in B2C it’s usually fairly easy to

and one billion by 2012. Today, Facebook boasts

millions of websites.

identify your customer audience on Facebook,

1.59 billion users worldwide, and 50 million businesses have a Facebook Page.

Recently Facebook has ventured into virtual

for niche businesses, it’s in the targeting itself.

but for B2B brands, or those with very bespoke

reality with its highly anticipated Oculus Rift

services, it’s a far trickier proposition. In

headset, and the company is also investing

the past it has required a lot of educated

million users, with 96 per cent of all UK adults

heavily in live video, artificial intelligence and

guesswork, often with frustrating results.

active on the platform. Indeed, 50 per cent

global internet connectivity.

In the United Kingdom, Facebook has 31

In 2013 Facebook made its Custom Audience

DIGITAL MARKETING

tool available to all advertisers. A Custom

Audience is, particularly one that’s been

create a Lookalike

Audience is a list you create on Facebook made

created from website visitors. Search traffic to

Audience for you

up of your existing customers and leads, and

niche business websites is rarely accidental,

based on this list,

you can then target that audience directly with

meaning that each person who is added to your

which will be closely

Facebook ads.

Custom Audience has already shown interest,

matched, based on

and is therefore a potential customer.

their demographics,

Custom Audiences can be created in a variety of ways. You can upload your CRM

interests and

database to Facebook, which will then cross-

behaviours. Because Facebook’s ecosystem

match your customers by their details to create a Custom Audience of Facebook users. Or you can insert a piece of code into your website, called a Facebook Pixel, which matches people who visit your website with people on Facebook, building a Custom Audience over time. This is a brilliant data-capture solution for websites that suffer from high bounce rates. Alternatively, you can proactively target people who visited a specific page on your site, or even

“Facebook Lookalike Audiences are… likely to be interested in your business because they’re similar to your existing customers.”

is so big, the Lookalike Audience is usually many magnitudes larger than the source Custom Audience, so your 1,000 original leads might create a Lookalike Audience of 100,000. You can then target and re-target to this new group with Facebook ads. What a fantastic opportunity for any small or new businesses!

Conclusion Quite simply, these new tools from Facebook

those who didn’t complete a given action (for

have changed the social marketing space.

example, they abandoned their shopping cart at

And as its ecosystem continues to grow and evolve, the possibilities for businesses of all

the checkout). This has tremendous value for all

Where this gets very exciting is another new

sizes, in both B2B and B2C across every sector

Facebook tool: Lookalike Audiences. Facebook

and vertical, will expand accordingly. Whereas

Lookalike Audiences are a way to reach new

previously there was some debate to be had

people on Facebook who are likely to be

about the pros and cons of each social network

having visited your website (or both) – they are

interested in your business because they’re

for business, today there’s one very clear

essentially warm leads, which removes a lot of

similar to your existing customers.

choice. Kick-start your Facebook marketing

businesses. Because the people in a Custom Audience have already shown interest in your brand – by already being part of your CRM or

the guesswork from marketing. Better still, the

Let’s say you’ve uploaded your CRM to

more niche or specific your business, products

Facebook and created a Custom Audience

or services, the more valuable a Custom

of 1,000 prospects. You can ask Facebook to

campaign today!

sb@identitygroup.co.uk www.identitygroup.co.uk

Biography: Shéa has managed the digital campaigns and marketing solutions for both B2B and B2C brands across a variety of industries, including retail, finance, education, healthcare, charity, sports and events. A recognised authority within the digital space, he has published two books and written thousands of articles about social media, and his work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post and the BBC. Identity specialises in the manufacture and implementation of corporate branding, with over 30 years’ experience in the industry. A major supplier of digital marketing, events management and commercial signage across the UK and Europe, Identity is a multi-award-winning company with a very experienced team of industryrespected individuals. Email: sb@identitygroup.co.uk, Web: www.identitygroup.co.uk

Northbrook College – Open for Business Room Hire – prices from £10 per hour Northbrook College is dedicated to meeting the needs of the business community and is now offering a range of rooms for hire. Whether you need a space for client meetings, new business presentations or interviews we can accommodate your needs on a small or large scale basis, one-off or regular hire available.

For more information please contact: commercial.services@nbcol.ac.uk or 01903 273 016

CAREERS

WHERE THE WIND BLOWS Portsmouth students honoured for wind farm work

team of final year undergraduate students from the University of Portsmouth Business School has won a competition for its contribution to the region’s offshore wind farm industry as part of an “Apprentice” style challenge.

The group of five students worked on a project over several months with a local boat company Nauti Powerboats and Yachts Ltd to recommend proposals for maritime support systems serving offshore wind farms. They were presented with a trophy and £500 prize having been nominated by Nauti owner Paul Duffield who commented: “The team excelled themselves by demonstrating eagerness to take on an area that was difficult and unfamiliar to them. They produced first-class research and presentations, and the project is leading to massive savings for our clients and to additional productivity in the offshore wind industry. We also will be saving thousands of tonnes of CO2 emissions from the support vessels and increasing green energy production from the turbines.” Senior Lecturer Peter Wainwright, organiser of the Business Enterprise Projects, welcomed guests to the prize-giving by saying: “This year we have seen 270 students working in 50 teams as consultants with local organisations in the private, public and third sectors. It has been great to see the students developing practical business skills in the work environment.” The University of Portsmouth holds a coveted Silver Award in the Small Business Charter, in recognition of its skill, commitment and promise in helping small and medium sized enterprises to grow, and in providing students with employability skills and business start-up support.

If you wish to discuss the possibility of your company working with students on a Business Enterprise Project, please email us at bsro@port.ac.uk

You’re a professional – so prove it Project Manager

HR Practitioner

Whether you are responsible for projects, HR, marketing, corporate governance or have ambitions for a top-level executive role, we offer flexible and professionally recognised postgraduate business courses for busy working people. You’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain, so come along to our next open evening – for details please visit www.showyoumeanbusiness.com.

Sales Manager

Strategist

We’ve got our credentials – have you got yours?

T: +44 (0)23 9284 2991 E: pbs-studentrecruitment@port.ac.uk W: www.port.ac.uk/pbscourses

YOUNG ENTERPRISE

IN AT THE DEEP END How do pupils cope with running a real business? Ian Trevett visited Hurstpierpoint College to find out.

Under Young Enterprise’s flagship Company Programme, students find out what it’s really like to set up and run a business.

elivered across an academic year, young people make all the decisions about their company, from raising the initial share

capital to designing their product or service, selling directly to customers and, ultimately, winding up the company and paying their taxes. All this takes place with the support of one or more Business Advisers, who bring a wealth of business knowledge and expertise to the team. Hurstpierpoint College has entered the YE

How did you become involved with YE? Jan Leeper (JL): “My background is in business. I worked in the recruitment industry for eight years in London. I left to have children, and when my husband joined Hurst, I was asked to become involved in the YE activity. I’ve found it to be an amazing programme as it’s so real; it’s not just classroom theory. Julie Lambert-Day (JL-D) has been working

their staff to take time away from the office to support programmes like this, but the advantage of bringing professional experience to these young teams, is incalculable. When you’ve been in business a long time you can become quite cynical as you grow older. “You’ve been around the block and you see the same things over and over again. Then you do something like Young Enterprise as a volunteer and you see the calibre of students, both in the state and private sectors; it is

company programme for many years and is

with Hurst for five years: “I’ve held senior

a passionate advocate for the scheme. The

amazing, and they really blew me away. Their

Marketing roles as well as working as an

creativity, their complete enthusiasm and their

programme is run by Jan Leeper, Head of

independent consultant, and was approached

ability to absorb and take in everything made

Careers and Director of Pastoral Care, and Julie

by YE about becoming a volunteer adviser.

me think, “Gosh, I must have been like that

Lambert-Day, a business-adviser volunteer.

It’s not always easy for companies to allow

once.”

YOUNG ENTERPRISE

“Young Enterprise is an amazing programme as it’s so real; it’s not just classroom theory.”

“As somebody who used to recruit a number of students and interns for my marketing teams, I would seek out students who had either done YE or Duke of Edinburgh, as they usually displayed a sense of pragmatism and wanted to be challenged and learn new skills.”

How hands-on are you? JL: “At the start of every year, I do present our students with a choice – of whether or not they want to be competitive or just simply work their way through the processes of running a company. I think because they’ve seen how successful some of our previous teams have been, they

“As a recruiter, I would seek out students who had done either the Duke of Edinburgh Gold or Young Enterprise.”

How does the Young Enterprise Company Programme work? JL: “Students have to raise their own capital – they have to show their commitment to their own company, by investing in it. You have to pay an £80 registration fee from your capital which goes to pay the admin and insurance costs for YE, but after that, any profit made is returned to the shareholders at the end of the year. “Meetings are held weekly and we try to set a professional tone from the outset – meetings are meant to be collaborative and dynamic,

choose the competitive option and that means

rather than run as a series of lectures. The

that we have to challenge them more.

teams establish their own code of conduct and

“They need to be creative and original in their product ideas, to have an understanding of how to market it well and be able to design a comprehensive branding strategy. We don’t come up with product ideas; we leave that entirely to them. Our role is to question and to help them look at the decisions they are making, from every angle. We do push them and it can be a bit of a roller coaster ride with challenging deadlines and steep learning

as soon as the companies are up and running, JL-D: “When you eventually watch them take their own board meetings, you start seeing the dynamics of companies you’ve been involved in yourself. These moments make me feel such incredible faith that our young people are so bright and so clever and that we’ve got nothing to fear while we’ve got such great people coming through. “They will come out with a set of skills that

Julie and I step back to allow them to run the sessions themselves.” JL-D: “The Hurst team did very well this year, with their Branding taking first place at the County Competition and Billy Swann winning through as Young Achiever for the MidSussex, Crawley & Horsham region. “Imberhorne School from East Grinstead were the overall worthy winners for Mid-

curves, but as they go through the process they

will actually help them hugely when they go

Sussex and will go on to the Regional

start to understand why.”

into any business.”

competition in June.”

YOUNG ENTERPRISE

Together in Business Hurst students Charlie Claisse and Holly Meyerratken took on the roles of Managing Director and Deputy Managing Director, respectively. PBM asked what had they learned from the experience. How did you find out about YE? Holly Meyerratken (HM): “Mrs Leeper gave a talk at the start of the year about the project, outlining the benefits and the drawbacks, and there were 48 applications. We were given a business scenario and we had to outline our strategy. After this, 18 people went through. “Once we had our team, we started with an election process to select the Managing Director, the Deputy, sales positions, marketing positions, finance and human resources. Then we chose our name, Onu, which means ‘together’ in the Nigerian language of Igbo.” Charlie Claisse (CC): “Having established our company name and our positions, we then had to brainstorm product ideas. That went on for two meetings and we got three solid ideas: a teddy bear pencil case, a chalk board, and the third one was a Bad Day Survival Kit. Julie pointed out that bad and survival can have very negative connotations, so that’s when it became the ‘Little Box of Happiness’, which in turn became the whole product brand.

“We set up a stand at two different trade fairs, each with a different variation of our brand product. Our first ‘ Little Box of Happiness’ was themed towards mums and was sold as a Christmas present. Then we had the Easter Box of Happiness which was targeted more towards young children. “The first trade fair was organised through Young Enterprise, the second one we organised with our Prep school.”

How did the team dynamic work, and what help did you get?

underestimated how long it would take to put together and had to work late to make sure we hit the deadline.” CC: “It’s a really fun process, but it’s also really insightful. I had studied Business at GCSE, but it was quite another thing to put it into practice in a real context. Taxes were a lot harder to calculate than I had thought and I certainly learnt a lot about leadership.” HM: “I don’t necessarily imagine starting my own business but being at the forefront of one would definitely be something I’d want to do.”

HM: “We did our market research, and we also had some advice from a previous Hurst MD. We got a lot of help from him about where to go and how to start.”

Jan Leeper: “This year’s team was very resilient and competitive. After the first Christmas trade fair, some teams can fall by the wayside, but Onu kept on working very hard, which isn’t easy as they were also studying for A-Levels. “The most impressive thing about Onu, is their tenacity – they started in September as a group of individuals and will finish the programme as a team.”

What did you learn from the process?

Both Charlie and Holly agreed that YE was a very positive experience - and they also made a 100% profit!

HM: “Writing a business plan was definitely a wake-up call to the real life of business – we

www.hppc.co.uk www.young-enterprise.org.uk

CC: “Unless it was a very specific task, which Holly and I delegated, we tended to stick together as a group.”

ADVERTISING FEATURE

STARRY NIGHTS Tell us about this exciting new landmark British Airways i360 will be the world’s tallest moving observation tower when it opens this summer on Brighton beach. Passengers will glide up to 450ft in a glass viewing pod to enjoy unfolding 360-degree views of Sussex. British Airways i360 is conceived and designed by Marks Barfield Architects, creators of the London Eye.

What facilities and attractions will there be in the beach building? The real hub of the beach building will be our 400-seat restaurant, the Belle Vue, which will serve modern British dishes inspired by the region. Sit outside and admire beautiful views of the sea and the West Pier in the sunshine; or on chilly days you can dine in stylish surroundings indoors while still enjoying the view. Our vision is to serve the best food and drink from the region, so we’re delighted that Masterchef: The Professionals winner Steven Edwards and business partner Josh Stanzl will be working with our caterer Heritage Portfolio on a range of signature dishes made using Sussex ingredients. We’ll also be serving Nyetimber sparkling

wine, Harvey’s ale and Wobblegate juices – all of which are produced locally and have won multiple awards.

Will there be a business and conference offering? Yes – we have a very flexible beachside events space which can be tailored to accommodate groups from 10 to 1,000 people; ideal if you’re looking for a completely unique venue for your next business meeting, conference, awards ceremony, banquet, party or reception. Larger groups can book the whole building and exclusive use of the observation pod, which carries up to 200 passengers at a time.

It won’t be long before companies start thinking about Christmas parties. Will British Airways i360 have any special Christmas party packages? Absolutely! And what’s more, all our Christmas party packages include a British Airways i360 flight. There can be few better ways to enjoy the sparkling festive lights of Sussex than from our glass observation pod at 450ft; and you can even enjoy a drink at our Nyetimber Sky Bar* – which is set to become the most unique bar in the UK.

Our Starry Night package is designed for small groups who want to feel part of a bigger party and includes a three-course meal with a choice of starter and main course, half a bottle of wine per person and dessert canapes served in the pod during your flight. You can then dance the night away to DJ music in one of our beachside event rooms. Starry Night Christmas parties are available between Friday 25th November and Friday 23rd December from 7pm until late; price £60 + VAT per person. Early Bird Discount: save £10 per person** if you book online and pay for your Starry Night package in full before 31 August 2016. Bespoke menus are available for larger groups. Speak to one of our team about your Christmas party now by calling 01273 448370 or emailing events@britishairwaysi360.com or visit britishairwaysi360.com * Drinks at the Nyetimber Sky Bar are not included in the Starry Night package. **Early bird discount price is £50 + VAT per person when you book online and pay in full before 31 August 2016.

PLATINUM STYLE

style PLATINUM

Samantha Wilding Tel: 07833 084864 Email: Samantha@styleandgrace.eu Website: www.styleandgrace.eu Twitter: @alwayschicUK

Faiza Shafeek

Stylish

PLATINUM WOMEN

n last month’s column, I focused on stylish Platinum Club guys. This month, I chatted to two very different Platinum ladies to hear

more about their individual style and where they get their inspiration.

FAIZA SHAFEEK: colour and accessories Faiza has a style that is uniquely hers, using vivid colour and accessories to fabulous effect. She understands her colouring and her body shape and has a strong sense of what works for her and what doesn’t. She cares about

dressing well, whether that’s for professional or casual occasions, yet never wears a suit, because that’s what people expect! She’ll often wear black or navy trousers, adding a twist with an unusual or embellished coat or jacket and some heels. Faiza’s French Lebanese mother was her strongest style influence: “My mother was elegant and very chic – a real beauty,” she explains. Her mother taught her how to use accessories well (scarves, handbags, jewellery) enabling her to take a few good items and dress them in completely different ways. Taking

one black top, for example, Faiza adds different necklaces, bags and shoes to make it look unique each time she wears it. Dressing well gives Faiza confidence. She says, “If I feel good and look good, this gives me confidence – it opens doors professionally.” For her, it doesn’t have to be a ‘label’, although she buys the odd designer piece, and much of what she buys is from eBay or secondhand. Her mother was good at this too – of course in her day they didn’t have eBay, but she and her friends would get together and swap items. Faiza wears a lot of colour, particularly red,

PLATINUM STYLE FAIZA’S TOP TIPS:

• Never go sleeveless if you are beyond a certain age • Don’t be afraid of colour – know what suits you and accessorise with it • Money has nothing to do with dressing well – it’s about being creative • Pay attention to underwear and its fit

turquoise, pink and gold. She is fortunate to have inherited some amazing antique pieces of jewellery from her great grandmothers and great aunts, including the necklace in the photo you see here, which is over 100 years old. She says, “My jewellery and makeup are great ways to draw attention away from the bits I don’t like, and accentuate my best features” When shopping for an outfit for an event, Faiza often finds she’ll come home with new shoes, handbag, or a new item of jewellery – and wears these with clothes she already owns. Once again, she creates her look with accessories.

AMANDA MENAHEM: simple, elegant, sharp Amanda’s style has evolved over the years, but what remains is a focus on simplicity, encompassing sharp lines and an elegant silhouette. As a graduate trainee on the management scheme at Harrods back in the 1990s, she had strong early influences. The uniform was sharp - tailored black suits - and no individual flourishes were allowed. That love of sharp black suits has stayed with her. At Harrods she was surrounded by elegantly dressed senior women, including head buyers and directors, and beautiful clothes that, she says, she couldn’t afford at the time! As her career progressed, she kept the sharp suited look, wearing suits and jackets from labels including Theory and Helmut Lang. But she also began to add colour and personality through statement jewellery and shoes, and colourful heels became her signature. Today she retains her love of simple, clean lines, even when not wearing a suit. At Hastings Direct, she was the only female member of the Executive Committee, and found she had to strike a balance between embracing her femininity without it detracting. She says, “I wasn’t sure I always got it right. Sometimes male colleagues would compliment me on my attire, often my shoes, and I wasn’t always sure that that was a good thing.” She also recalled being told that someone had asked whether the HR Director was “the skinny lady with

Amanda Menahem

the fabulous shoes”; it was then that she realised that she had a ‘brand’. Now that Amanda has made the transition away from corporate life and is exploring her own business ventures (including editing the food and drink section of this magazine), she is exploring a new look that works for her. As a Coast to Capital LEP board member, she still has to attend meetings and events. For these, she tends to wear a suit jacket with dark jeans and flat shoes, carrying her heels. Under the jacket she’ll often

The Platinum Club is the regions leading CEO networking forum with events hosted at the Grand Hotel, Brighton and the Hilton Hotel, Gatwick, each month.

wear a camisole or t-shirt in a muted tone, topping off the look with a silver grey Louis Vuitton scarf or statement jewellery. Amanda says, “I feel like I’ve found my look for my new chapter: a jacket and jeans, sometimes tailored trousers, and mainly in black, navy or grey.” Her

AMANDA’S TOP TIPS:

• Always keep it simple: less is more • Invest in a good jacket or two – and wear them with smart and casual items • Use statement jewellery and colourful shoes to add personality

biggest dilemma these days is what to wear for a date. “I love long walks followed by dinner, but how on earth do you dress for both?”

BROUGHT TO YOU BY MIDNIGHT COMMUNICATIONS

NETWORKING

THE BUSINESS NETWORK

Network Review - Longmans Lunch Club

Marketing Consultant – marketing planning, outsourced marketing and social media training www.pearcemarketing.co.uk Emma Pearce reviews a long-standing, informal B2B network in Eastbourne

here are not many business networking groups focused purely on Business to Business (B2B) attendees, so they do prove popular. The Longmans Lunch Club also has another winning card - it’s based in a Thai restaurant and includes an excellent twocourse lunch! But it’s not just the great food that keeps bookings high at each month’s event. When I spoke to attendees at a recent meeting they said the group was always busy because it’s informal - you don’t have to stand up and pitch. They find it friendly, easy to manage with no membership fees or obligations to attend, plus the restaurant is within easy walking distance for anyone based in the town centre. The group has been under the leadership of Gavin Whippy (of John Whippy Insurance Brokers) since April 2015, but was established back in the mid-1970’s by David Lakin. As a Building Society Manager, David wanted

to network with accountants, solicitors and financial advisors, and the group gradually grew. Gavin also had a turn running the club in the mid-1990’s, having been a member for a few years. There was a wide mix of sectors represented at the meeting I was at - including banking, accountants, stockbrokers, financial advisors, solicitors, insolvency practitioners, property agents and surveyors, recruitment agencies, IT services, HR and marketing consultants, a commercial cleaning firm and more. Gavin said, “Since we relaunched the club in 2015, we have seen membership grow steadily, and we now have an average of 50 attendees. Our record is 64 to date! To join the Longmans Lunch membership you simply ask to be on the mailing list, or get invited by another attendee. You can drop into any meeting for just £15, which you pay at the bar with your drink order.”

A monthly newsletter giving meeting dates for the coming months as well as news of any other special events and charity functions is emailed to over 200 members. The Longmans Lunch Club has a table booked at the St Wilfrid’s Summer Luncheon and a Longmans Ladies Table at the Lady Taverners Lunch this year, as well as its own Garden Party and Christmas event

The format of the meeting • open networking with everyone attending the event • sit down for a two-course lunch (starter and main courses) • more open networking if you wish to stay “No one owns the club and no one is making a buck out of the events. The main purpose is for local professionals to meet each other informally, exchange ideas and opinions and put a face to a name,” Gavin added.

Key Facts • Location: Thai Brasserie (upstairs in the Enterprise Shopping Centre, next to Eastbourne Railway Station) • Frequency: once per month, except August (typically, the second Wednesday of the month)

• Size: 50 attendees, on average • Time: 12.45, with lunch served promptly at 1 pm, finish by 2.10 pm • Lock Out: no • One-Minute Round: no • Speaker slot: no • Cost: £15, payable at the bar, plus your drinks (no membership fee) So, if you are looking for a relaxed B2B networking environment and have a taste for Thai food, this group is ideal! To get your invitation to attend, please email gavin@ johnwhippy.co.uk. You can also visit the Longmans Lunch Club Facebook page.

CHARITY PROFILE

ROCKINGHORSE Making lives better

With the increased pressures on the NHS, the work of the Rockinghorse Children’s charity is more important than ever

The entire Rockinghorse team: (L-R) Analiese Doctrove, Rhian Walsh, Louise Bartha, Ryan Heal, Hannah Seltzer, Liz McCluskey & Cheryl Piper

The profile of Rockinghorse in Brighton and much of Sussex has risen dramatically over the last few years, which is a testament to the hard work of the surprisingly small team. The result is that the charity can make a real impact in their determination to improve the lives of sick children, but there is so much more that needs to be done. PBM asked PR and Communications Manager, Cheryl Piper, why the support of local businesses continues to be so important. Why is Rockinghorse so important? Isn’t the funding of the Royal Alex the responsibility of the NHS? It is Rockinghorse’s role to provide the services, facilities and equipment that are deemed too costly or not necessary by the NHS. Only the core services, facilities and equipment

For example, the High Dependency Unit at

matter where they are, children should always

the Alex may be furnished with a ventilator, but

be allowed to be children. With this in mind, we

due to patient demand, it might be that four

also provide funding for furnishings and toys as

ventilators are required on the unit – this, of

well as much-needed counselling and therapy

course, can be life-saving – and this is where

sessions for both patients and parents.

we come in. As well as providing life-saving and cutting-

Last year we funded indoor and outdoor sensory spaces, which have proved a welcome

are provided by the NHS, so the charity is here

edge medical equipment, our funding ensures

distraction for young patients and their families

to fund anything over and above what they can

that children are treated in an environment

spending long periods of time in the Alex.

provide.

better suited to their needs; we believe that no

Besides providing an alternative environment

CHARITY PROFILE in which youngsters can relax and reflect, these

community. The charity prides itself on the

spaces aid their social and developmental

relationships established within the business

Our fundraisers do well to manage

skills.

community in Brighton, Hove and further into

expectations, and many supporters are

Rockinghorse works tirelessly to ensure that the services we support have access to the

East, West and Mid Sussex. One of the key objectives was to demonstrate

charity fundraising events throughout the year.

genuinely surprised that we are such a small team. We are lucky to have such incredible

best possible kit and equipment, to help ensure

exactly where and how funds are being spent

support in Sussex, but due to the perception

a safe and positive experience for the babies,

at the paediatric centres we support, including

of the size of the charity, it can mean that local

children and teenagers who use them.

the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital (the

community groups, schools, businesses and

Alex) in Brighton, as well as the neighbouring

individuals may think we do not need their

Trevor Mann Baby Unit (TMBU) and its sister

support, which is certainly not the case.

You have done very well in raising funds for the hospital. Has the need to raise money now lessened due to this success?

site, the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU), based within the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath.

The daily challenges any small, local

The restrictions and overspend within the

business faces affect us. Changes in the

NHS have meant that we are needed more than ever before, which may come as a surprise to some. More and more local children’s services are requiring our support and applying to us for funding, including local respite centres and mental health units. Every project we fund is approved by the hospital committee and our board of trustees. This ensures that the most appropriate

market can have a direct impact on the charity,

“ The restrictions and overspend within the NHS have meant that we are needed more than ever before”

projects are being funded and are sustainable

to a child’s hospital experience in what can prove an incredibly difficult time for a sick child and their family.

How has the profile grown so quickly? Rockinghorse underwent some necessary

Rockinghorse is often misconstrued as being ‘one of the big boys,’ when in fact we are a local, independent charity operated by a team of just seven staff, two of those part-time. Our charity is nearly 50 years old (Rockinghorse was founded by Dr Trevor

introduction of a new charity CEO, Ryan Heal.

Mann back in 1967), and with that heritage

With that, team changes were made and

we are often perceived as a bigger outfit than

Rockinghorse re-focused on the cause and

we actually are. Of course, this comes as a

made its commitment clear: to make life better

huge compliment and a direct indication of the

for sick children in Sussex.

dedication and hard work of the current team.

Through a new-found strategic direction,

our ongoing projects, we also rely on the gifts in kind donated to Rockinghorse to enable the day-to-day running of the business. We simply do not have the funds to pay for all the back-office necessities and therefore rely on the incredible support of other local

free of charge.

Are you sometimes perceived as being a bigger organisation than you are in reality?

changes three and a half years ago with the

Rockinghorse has re-engaged itself in the local

donations from our supporters in order to fund

all our IT equipment and ongoing IT support

those projects, we also fund presents for sick Easter, but this is all part of bringing normality

and, as much as we rely on the generosity of

businesses, such as Trident, who have provided

for the services that need them. In addition to children at Christmas and provide treats at

What challenges does Rockinghorse face?

We are also supported by a small pool of volunteers upon whom we rely at our key

What is the extent of your geographic coverage? Predominantly, we are a Sussex-based charity. Rockinghorse is best known for its work in Brighton and Hove - which is where the Alex is situated – but, of course, the hospital caters for children all over Sussex, even including the fringes of Surrey, Kent, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. What is the best way for companies to get involved? To get in touch! We work with many different types of supporters, who choose to fundraise for us in different ways. We offer charity places in challenge events such as marathons, triathlons, cycle rides, as well as many of the new military-style assault course teambuilding events. We also host our own in-house events - the Midsummer Ball and Best of British Sporting, for instance - and supporters can also hold their own fundraising events, such as quiz nights, dress-down days and cake sales.

Their office is open from 9.00am-5.30pm Monday to Friday, and the team can be contacted on 01273 330044. Supporters can also visit our new website www. rockinghorse.org.uk, which is now mobile-friendly, to provide a better user experience.

SUSSEX CHAMBER

CHAMBER BUSINESS AWARDS business, people development, technology, high growth, customer service and partnerships with the education sector. There is an easy online entry process, and the awards website is updated regularly to provide information and inspiration. The website also provides insider tips and tricks to help you with your entry. Businesses are the driving force of the UK economy, helping Britain to maintain its reputation internationally, which is why it is important Nora Senior, Chamber President at last year’s event

ecognising and rewarding excellence in British business, the Chamber Business Awards is one of the UK’s most contested and prestigious business award programmes. Each year, from

Aberdeen to Plymouth, organisations of all sizes and from all sectors compete for the coveted titles. Entry is now open. You have until the 24th June to showcase

The broad spread of categories in the Chamber Business Awards reflects both the diversity of industries and skills of British firms, and the range of achievements and projects that they have been involved with. Each time I visit businesses around Sussex, it is inspiring to see so many companies finding innovative ways to grow their business, which will in turn create jobs and wealth, and deliver economic

Chamber Business Awards, hosted by the British Chambers of

prosperity. The Awards acknowledge the relentless efforts of these

Commerce (BCC).

businesses and their talented employees.

business calendar, recognising and promoting the best of British business through a series of regional heats, culminating in a Gala

So what are you waiting for? Give your business a winning chance and enter now! www.chamberawards.co.uk Entry is free for Sussex Chamber members and only £195 + VAT for

Awards Dinner, which will take place at the Brewery, London on 24

non-members. Kindly contact the Chamber to discuss the Awards in

November.

more detail. Tel: 01444 259 259 or visit

Companies can enter seven categories, covering exports, small

CHAMBER NEWS

their local communities and the wider economy.

the best of British business and compete in the thirteenth annual

The prestigious competition is one of the showpiece events in the

for us to recognise and celebrate the contribution they make to both

www.sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk

Last year’s winners

Please contact the Sussex Chamber of Commerce for all of your exporting needs. Tel: 01444 259 259 or visit our website: www.sussexchamberofcommerce.co.uk

BRIGHTON & HOVE

WORKING TO LIVE

Four years of the Living Wage in Brighton By Grace Evans, Projects and Marketing Manager Councillor Warren Morgan said: “The Brighton and Hove Living Wage Campaign has made a huge difference to the income and living standards of hundreds of people over the past four years, and every business or organisation that has signed up must be thanked and congratulated for taking the positive step of being accredited. As a city council we will continue to give the campaign for a real Living Wage in Brighton and Hove our total support.” The Brighton campaign started as a result of the Living Wage Commission that met for six months in 2011. In February 2012 Brighton Chamber held a Big Debate about the Living Wage, and in April 2012 the Living Wage Commission announced that a businessled campaign for a Living Wage would be spearheaded by the

ecently, 50 of the Brighton & Hove Living Wage employers got together to celebrate four years of a successful Brighton & Hove Living Wage Campaign at Living Wage venue BrewDog

Brighton. Over the last four years, Brighton Chamber has run the Brighton & Hove Living Wage Campaign, looking at the business benefits of

Chamber. Carol Lewis, the Chamber President, said: “I’m really proud that the Brighton Chamber has been running the only business-led Living Wage campaign for the last four years. We have received so much support from local businesses and are looking forward to even more businesses joining the campaign going forward.” Guests at the event included Bill Randall, who formed the Living

paying a Living Wage and encouraging businesses to join the local

Wage Commission in 2011, which then led to the start of the local

campaign.

campaign, and Tracey Allen who helped to get the campaign off the

At the event we looked back at how the campaign started and at what’s been going on this year. There are now 272 businesses signed up to the campaign, and nearly 3,000 salaries have been raised. Councillor Warren Morgan, Leader of the Council, spoke about why

ground. Chamber Director Sarah Springford said that “...over the next year, the campaign will help to clarify the difference between the government’s ‘National Living Wage’ and the real Living Wage.” To find out more about the campaign, or to sign up for free,

Officer for Unison, explained the importance of paying the Living Wage

visit www.livingwagebrighton.co.uk. You can follow the campaign on

and why they have supported the Brighton & Hove campaign.

Twitter @BHLivingWage.

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

the campaign is so important for the city, and David Arnold, Policy

Photos by Simon Callaghan Photography • www.simoncallaghanphotography.com

ACES

FUNDING BOOST TO YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROSPECTS

CHAMBER NEWS

Young people in East Sussex will receive a boost to their career prospects as a result of £200,000 in new funding.

round 3,000 youngsters are expected to benefit from cash secured by East Sussex County Council on behalf of Skills East Sussex (SES), the county’s employment and skills board.

visits to employers, boost the uptake of apprenticeships, increase the take-up of science, technology, engineering and maths subjects, and reduce the number of young people not in education or training.

The East Sussex scheme is one of only 33 to be funded by the Government-backed Careers and Enterprise Company and the only employment and skills board nationally to receive funding.

Cllr Nick Bennett, East Sussex County Council and lead member for education and inclusion, said: “It’s vital to the economic success of the county that our school leavers have the skills employers need.

The money will be used to fund Progress – a new project aimed at equipping young people with the skills needed by business and preparing them for the world of work.

“This funding will allow us to create even stronger links between the education and business sectors, to ensure our young people get the best possible opportunities and are fully prepared for the world of work.”

The scheme will help increase work experience opportunities and

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 Some of the funding will go towards the STEMfest project, aimed at encouraging students to study science, technology, engineering and maths subjects.

ordinators to help create a network of volunteer enterprise advisers to work with schools and colleges .

“It’s vital to the economic success of the county that our school leavers have the skills employers need.”

Martin Ellis, chairman of Skills East Sussex, said: “It’s wonderful to secure extra funding for the Progress project, which will help us to steer more young people towards the world of work. “It will help young people make informed choices about the options available to them and will raise their aspirations. “It’s especially pleasing that East Sussex, out of so many applications from around the UK, was successful, which reflects on how seriously we are taking the skills agenda generally.”

Claudia Harris, CEO of The Careers and Enterprise Company, said: “We are delighted to award Skills East Sussex with funding to continue its amazing work. There is a huge number of extraordinary organisations working across the country to connect business to schools and colleges, creating encounters that inspire and inform young people about the future. “We look forward to working with Skills East Sussex and seeing the impact it continues to have on the young people it works with.”

The Progress scheme, which runs until June next year and will work with all secondary schools and colleges in the county, supports the East Sussex employability and skills strategy, aimed at ensuring the county’s workforce has the skills businesses need. The project also aims to build on the success of a scheme launched last year which saw the county council employ two enterprise co-

CREATING WEALTH

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

The Wealden and Eastbourne Loan Fund (WELF) has just received the promise of a terriﬁc boost of £300,000 to its small-business loan fund. The initial fund of £100,000 was set up by Edeal Enterprise Agency in 2015 with support from Wealden District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council. The Let’s Do Business Group has just added £100,000 to the pot and secured a further loan of £200,000 from Unity Bank, making £400,000 available to East Sussex businesses in total. The WELF fund is aimed at small businesses who have struggled to raise ﬁnance from their banks and comes with access to fully funded business support and mentoring from Edeal for those in the Wealden and Eastbourne area. The fund will be awarded for innovative products or processes, job creation and/or growth. If you think you could put a loan of between £3,000 ad £15,000 to good use, please contact Edeal on 01323 641144 or email info@edeal. org.uk

EASTBOURNE

CHAMBER MEMBERS MOVE TO PACIFIC HOUSE OFFICES Three Eastbourne unLtd members have moved to state-of-the-art offices in Sovereign Harbour. Video company Smokescreen Visuals, Southern IT Networks and children’s charity Chestnut Tree House are amongst the latest occupiers to take offices in Pacific House on Eastbourne’s Sovereign Harbour Innovation Park. SMOKESCREEN VISUALS is an award-winning video production company with clients including the NHS, Activision, Craft Guild of Chefs and The London Mint Office. The company was founded by Matt Derbyshire in 2004 after returning to his home town of Eastbourne following a London career making TV and cinema trailers. The company has fit out its new offices to a high standard, including three hi-tech video editing suites. Its new base has enabled it to more than double its number of employees and it plans to continue expanding. MD Matt Derbyshire explains: “Pacific House is like nothing we’ve ever seen before in the area. A building of cutting-edge design and facilities, plenty of parking and good security - it’s what we’ve been waiting for all this time. It’s the ideal environment to enable us to keep on growing.” www.smokescreenvisuals.co.uk

CHAMBER NEWS

CHESTNUT TREE HOUSE provides hospice care for children and young people with life-shortening conditions. It has taken two offices for its East Sussex team of nurses, fundraisers and volunteers to enable it to expand – with desks for 20 staff in the building. Its new base is intended to help it to reach more families, raise awareness of its work and attract new supporters. Tracey Luker, Head of East Sussex Fundraising, says: “We’re caring for around 55 children and young people in East Sussex but there are many more needing our specialist help. Our move to Pacific House gives us more room to accommodate our growing service, better access to major transport routes and a pleasant working environment in a modern, well-equipped building.” The charity is keen to recruit more volunteers, whether on the basis of a regular commitment or a few occasional hours. enquiries@chestnut-tree-house.org.uk.

SOUTHERN IT NETWORKS provides small businesses with computer services and support and has taken a ground floor office within Pacific House. The company’s services span managed IT, cloud computing, connectivity, business continuity and telecoms solutions. www.southernit.com

ABOUT PACIFIC HOUSE Developed by Sea Change Sussex, the building is a contemporary, three-floor business centre. With offices available from 627 sq ft upwards, it is suitable for small, medium and large companies. There are small suites available on the ground floor, mediumsized offices on the first floor and two large offices on the second floor. The building incorporates a light-filled atrium, break-out areas for informal meetings and a conference room. It is designed to be a lowenergy building and has parking spaces for 130 cars. In addition to Pacific House, the Sovereign Harbour Innovation Park has development sites which can accommodate further business premises up to 80,000 sq ft. Companies can commission Sea Change to develop bespoke freehold or leasehold properties for them or buy serviced sites to create their own. The Innovation Park is designed to provide an economic boost to the area by providing high-quality premises and sites on previously disused land. It is three miles from Eastbourne town centre and five minutes’ walk to the cafes, restaurants and boutiques of Sovereign Harbour’s marina and retail park. www.sovereigninnovationpark.co.uk

If you would like to join the largest town chamber in the South East and also become a member of ACES, the Alliance of Chambers in East Sussex, visit us at www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk and join up from £59.00 plus VAT.

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WORTHING

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU Spring is naturally a time of newness and growth, and boy, have we got some good, new stuff happening at Worthing and Adur Chamber!

THE FORCE WAS STRONG AT CHAMBER AGM

Almost 100 members turned out to the Worthing and Adur Chamber of Commerce AGM. As it was held on ‘Star Wars Day,’ May 4th, at the Dome, the Chamber took that theme and ran with it, featuring life-sized storm trooper balloons! Two new members were elected to the Executive Committee, Kelly O’Haire from Ask for the Moon will lead on Digital and Communications, and Clive Spring from yoohoo design will lead on Design and Brand. Both have been actively involved with the Chamber for some time, and Kelly O’Haire said, “I firmly believe that communication should be at the heart of everything you do and want to make sure the Chamber communicates with members effectively and efficiently, in a way that suits them as business people. I’m looking forward to being part of the leadership team and helping the Chamber become an even stronger voice for businesses in Worthing and Adur.” Keynote speaker for the evening was Chamber Patron Gillian Fielding, who gave the members a very entertaining insight into the Brexit debate. Gillian also played a key part in the Chamber’s most successful-ever event earlier this year - the Better Business Show – and it was announced at the AGM that there will be another one in early February 2017.

A new WiseUp2 training programme is running, offering expert sessions, including PR on a shoestring, make your computer work for you and email marketing. We also have plenty of interesting networking events planned. Chamber training courses and networking events can be booked via our website : www. worthingandadurchamber.co.uk

ur most exciting growth opportunity at the moment is the new Sphere Business Centre, based within the Broadwater campus of Northbrook college, which is proving to be a big hit with all those who have been to see it so far. Two thirds of the offices have been let, and the hot-desking offer is also being increasingly taken up. So what can the Sphere offer you? This list of key points should help. Within the Centre itself you can expect: • Business space for those looking for anything from a single day of hot-desking, through to full-time desks in shared offices and private offices; • Private meeting room, available for sphere members, with video conferencing facility; • Excellent broadband and Wi-Fi; • Secure swipe access to the centre, lockable offices and lockable storage space; • Business development support from Worthing and Adur Chamber, plus opportunities to train through the Chamber’s WiseUp2 programme; • Free tea and coffee. Companies are encouraged to come and be part of a community that will build and grow with the businesses themselves. The aim is to get them to outgrow the Centre in two years. “The minute companies take space with us, we will be planning for when they leave,” says Tina. “The whole ethos of the Sphere is to help 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. Prices start from just £12 a day. Try us first, with a free taster day. More information at www.spherebusinesscentre.co.uk

Competition time! To celebrate the official opening of the Sphere, Worthing and Adur Chamber is running a competition. All you have to do is like and share the Sphere facebook page – spherebusinesscentre - and you could be trying out the Sphere for free very soon!

CHAMBER NEWS

TRAINING AND EVENTS

TRY OUT THE SPHERE BUSINESS CENTRE

101

ENTER NOW!*

The all new Women in Business Excellence Awards – Sussex Edition are now open for entries. It will be the unmissable event celebrating the county's female entrepreneurs and high-achievers. The new awards have been launched and organised by Faiza Shafeek, who has created some of the county's most successful and enjoyable business awards and exhibitions.

Save the Dates: Semi-final is on 15th September Gala Final is on the 25th November

Information and entry details: Web: www.sussexwomeninbusiness.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/sussexwib/?fref=ts

CATEGORIES: • New Business/ Start-Up Of The Year Award • Small Business Of The Year Award (under 10 employees) • Medium Business Of The Year Award (10-50 employees) • Large Business Of The Year Award (over 50 employees) • Business Woman Of The Year • The Business Innovation

* Closing Dates:

• Entrepreneur Of The Year Award

Mail 17th August Email 20th August

• Digital Woman Of The Year Award • Woman In Education • Woman In Uniform • Woman In Arts/Music/ Dance/Media • Employer Of The Year Award • Employee/s Of The Year Award • Contribution To The Community Award • Mentor Of The Year Award • Women Of Courage • Lifetime Achievement Award • Overall Business Or Business Woman Of The Year Award

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CHICHESTER

WILL WE OR WON’T WE?

Asks Nicki Paddy, Board Director, Chichester Chamber of Commerce and owner of Nicki Paddy & Co

s a Board Director for Chichester Chamber of Commerce, I’m being asked for a member perspective on our future in Europe… an interesting question. The June referendum on Britain’s

membership of the EU is looming ever closer, but it seems that many business professionals are still undecided on whether to back Brexit or not. Such a key decision needs to be carefully considered and the arguments for and against must be deliberated. The current lack of information available in the public domain means that many British citizens are unlikely to feel able to make an informed decision about the future of the country that they live in. The nature of my business is such that I get to interact with different clients who offer a varying range of products and services, within both UK and international landscapes. Having the experience of

are trying to export without that commitment from those prospects outside the UK – which, of course, makes doing business overseas much harder. Exchange rate uncertainty is also causing a great deal of concern. Some say that retaining the status quo will provide an element of stability and an improvement will be seen in exchange rates. But what about the USA’s influence? Numerous reports, and Barack Obama’s own sentiments last week, show us that the US would like us to stay in Europe to build better, stronger relationships. As a result, clients are considering that trade with the US could also be affected if we leave the EU, as doing business overseas without that safe gateway into Europe may become even less appealing. So, if we weren’t part of the EU, whose relationship (trade and

working with businesses with large import and export requirements

otherwise) would we use as our template? I can’t see that there is

has given me a good sense of the likely impact of a Brexit for regional

one. But, as a business owner and a British citizen, the answer to this

businesses.

question is vital to help me form the basis of my decision. Until this

Some clients are already facing problems with their overseas

is answered, the bigger question remains: should we stay and try to

prospects as they do not want to commit to placing orders when things

reform various aspects of the EU from within or should we just go and

might all change in June. Without a confirmed outcome, some clients

try to develop some kind of trade agreement?

CHAMBER NEWS

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

103

SECRET SUSSEX

TAKING A STAND Mike Monk has taken stands at countless exhibitions and is now drawing on his experiences, good and bad, to create a brandnew event - the Brighton Business Expo, on October 20th. He tells Ian Trevett what exhibitors and visitors can expect…

How did you start out in business? I started in the marketing business about 34 years ago. I worked for many companies, starting off working for a printed t-shirt company

exhibitor wants; they get the people through the door, it’s a well-run expo and it has a good vibe about it. The company behind the shows is Memo Events, and they run three

based out at Brighton in the early 1980sand then went on to work for

very successful shows in Hampshire. I have taken the franchise for

sourcing companies with a lot of time in the Far East before starting my

Brighton & Hove, which is great as I’m a Brightonian, born and bred.

own business about 16 years ago, called Monk Marketing. We have over 20,000 products on our database. I’ve always had a passion to run a business-to-business expo because I’ve exhibited at many exhibitions across the UK, Germany and France and I’ve always felt that with the right people I could do better. I have recently exhibited at B2B Expos in Hampshire and I have found their exhibitions to be first-class – really very good. They do everything that an

“If there are 70 exhibitors at the expo, you’ve got 69 potential clients sitting in the hall before anybody walks in the door.”

www.b2bexpos.co.uk/brighton-business-expo

104

SECRET SUSSEX

“The pen is still the number one. It goes through eight pairs of hands in its life.” I believe that the franchise model is something you’re quite an expert in… I franchised my company, and at one point we were up to ten franchisees. I did that for about ten years and Monk Marketing still has got a couple of franchisees, so I was able to help B2B Expos in putting together their franchise model.

Many growing companies consider the franchise route. Why did you opt for this method of growth?

Talking about your Monk Marketing company, you have seen trends come and go. What products are always popular? The pen is still the number one. It goes through eight pairs of hands in its life. T-shirts and mugs are still very popular, as are umbrellas and golf umbrellas. IT products, such as flash drives, are big now. I found a niche in the hotel market. I’ve got a number of hotel clients and I’ve developed kids’ packs for these hotels, which evolved into a junior ambassador campaign for the Intercontinental in Times Square in New York. The other way to sell is to create bespoke products for clients. We made a stress toy shaped as a cow’s ear for a pharmaceutical company that injected cows. I can be very flexible with design as I’ve now got a very good partner in the Far East who does all my factory sourcing and product development.

What makes a good expo?

I visited the Franchise Expo in London, looking for potential clients for my merchandise and marketing, and was sitting having a coffee at the show when I had that light-bulb moment. I thought, “Hang on, this is a better way to grow your business than employing sales people.” So I set off on the route of learning about franchising, contacting The British Franchise Association (bfa), going to conferences, consulting Sussex Chamber and talking to franchise consultants. I took the advice onboard and learnt how to franchise my business

You need a lot going on at the expo. You need to have good seminars and workshops going on, plus inspiring keynote speakers. We’re going to start the day with a Juice FM Business Breakfast, so we’ll get over 100 people in early, which will kick-start the day very nicely.

It’s a time-consuming model and it’s not the cheapest method in the world, but the rewards are there as long as you get the franchise model right. There are a lot of routes I went down that I certainly wouldn’t go down again, because I’ve learnt from those.

There’s parking for 1,000 cars at Brighton Racecourse, and we’re going to have a couple of car dealerships, including Chandlers BMW and Rivervale, bringing their cars along, plus Mid Sussex Golf Club are putting a golf net outside the front. The Mayor of Brighton is opening the event and we have a diverse range of businesses, three excellent key-note speakers, as well as seminars.

Is the key to sell the franchises to the right people? I’d say that’s THE most important factor. My most successful franchisees were people who had not even sold before. They were just willing to learn from the induction training and the ongoing training and became very successful. The people who always argued the case and thought they could do better didn’t make it. I now run a course on how to franchise your business, because I’ve got all that knowledge that I can now impart to businesses that are maybe now looking at franchising. I offer the course on a bespoke basis, one-to-one. We either hold the course in one of the rooms at Mid Sussex Golf Club or in a hotel in Brighton. I evaluate a business’s potential and advise if it’s franchiseable. And if it is, then I can create a tailored course with them on how to franchise.

It’s interesting that you have been on both sides of the franchise fence. I believe in the model. I chose to buy this franchise because I wanted to put on an expo but I didn’t feel I could do it on my own. There is so much work involved, and you need the knowledge and connections. I thought: “These are good expos, they get the people in, there’s a good vibe about them.” When the founder, Matthew Larcome, said he was interested in franchising, I showed him how to franchise his expos and in return I took the licence for Brighton.

We’ve got a networking area where we’re going to have two speed networking events during the day. Porsche Mid Sussex are sponsoring the networking café and will be showing the Porsche Experience on a large plasma screen, plus there’s a magician and a casino.

It’s going to be business with a bit of fun. We want people to enjoy the day and come away thinking, “That was a very productive three hours I’ve just spent there.”

Do people tend to do more business with other stands or with the delegates that arrive? You can do both. I always do business with other exhibitors as well as the visitors. I think you should use the other exhibitors as potential clients. It’s not just the visitors, the other exhibitors can be clients as well. If there are 70 exhibitors at the expo, you’ve got 69 potential clients sitting in the hall before anybody walks in the door.

What are your tips for exhibitors? Try and do it as professionally as you can. I’ve seen stands where people have put rather poor photocopies on the wall and it’s all looked a bit shabby. A pop-up banner only costs you about £60 and you can get really good brochure stands for £50. Invest in your exhibition stand; it’s your shop front. Make it look inviting, and professional. It doesn’t cost a lot of money to make your stand look good. And that will attract people onto your stand as well.

The Brighton Business Expo takes place on October 20th at Brighton Racecourse.

105

INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS

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

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.“ - Helen Keller.

ecently the Institute of Directors conducted one of its regular Policy Voice surveys of members, a means

might) but more likely to our strategic thinking

70% for businesses formed post-2008 but 59%

and planning.

for those who were around pre-recession.

by which it tests the feeling of businesses

This Policy Voice noted the clear distinction

This later survey went on to see that this

between respondents’ confidence in their own

on various issues of the day. The results of

confidence manifested itself into significant

businesses and in the general economy. On

these surveys then feed back into its lobbying,

percentages (51%) planning to introduce a

the question of the performance of their own

helping that influence to truly reflect the views

new product or service this year, and seeing

business in 2016 62% were confident, but

of businesses themselves, and not just be an

that 25% of respondents had seen double-digit

only 37% were confident about the economy

interpretation of what those views might be

growth in the last 12 months.

as a whole. Turning to pessimism 13% were

from Pall Mall headquarters.This particular

pessimistic about their own businesses but

survey included several questions on business

23% were pessimistic about the general

optimism.

economy.

It is, of course, a relatively standard topic.

It may well be the case that the members

Business confidence barometers will often

of the IoD have a particular faith in their own

pop up as a subject in your email inbox, either

businesses. Or might it be that the members

asking you to join in, or to report the findings of

of such an august body are entitled to feel that

recent surveys, such as the one just mentioned.

they somehow have an edge that will help them

The producers of the surveys and reports would, I suspect, be surprised if we told them

perform above the norm?

from the confidence? Does it matter either way? In any event the somewhat nebulous concept, and context, of “business confidence” will nevertheless continue to hold a fascination for us all. Even if we are lightly dismissive of the idea, we will still want to know how the barometers are reading.

Much as I would like to use this thought to

that we receive such information with glee or

promote membership, an earlier survey from

excitement. However, they might be reassured

Hiscox in 2015, about thoughts on prospects

to hear that we nevertheless recognise that the

for 2016 amongst small businesses and

information is important. The ever-intangible

entrepreneurs offers little assistance with that

confidence can have a real effect on what might

idea. In that survey 64% of those respondents

happen going forward, perhaps not necessarily

were also confident about their prospects for

to a particular business decision (though it

the year ahead. Interestingly that figure was

106

Does the confidence come from performance, or does the performance come

JUST A THOUGHT How would your business score on an employerability scale?

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