Western Daily Press | Business Guide 2022

Business guide Western Daily Press

2022

Your essential guide to business across the West including the region’s top 150 companies and the challenges and triumphs that lie ahead in 2022

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INSIDE.

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C U LT U R E S H O C K The West’s TV industry is thriving while the live events sector has had to focus purely on surviving

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FUTURE IN FOCUS

West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris’s key priorities for the region’s economy in 2022

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POWERING AHEAD

Hinkley Point C delivery director Nigel Cann on the scheme’s critical role in the UK’s future

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HIGH FLIERS

Eight West companies to watch in 2022, including Gloucestershire’s Electroflight

2 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

Coldplay performing at last year’s Live at Worthy Farm. Photo: Anna Barclay/PA

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S CA L I N G U P

The homegrown success seeking to become ‘an Amazon built in the West Country’

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I S M E TA B E T T E R ?

Tech tycoons are calling it the future, but what exactly is the metaverse?

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LIE OF THE LAND

How two of the least likely ‘farmers’ are getting on with the serious business of agriculture

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Chancellor Rishi Sunak got a first-hand account of how businesses in the West Country are faring during these testing times when he visited Pall Corporation, based in the Bristol Channel resort of Ilfracombe, last week Picture: Frankie Mills

Rising to the challenge Richard Bache introduces the Western Daily Press Business Guide 2022

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F the first couple of weeks of 2022 are anything to go by, businesses in the region will have to strap themselves in for another year of uncertainty and turbulence.

Any wishes that this might potentially be the year when things start to settle down a little seem somewhat far-fetched.

While there are tentative hopes that coronavirus-related disruption might potentially ease, the economy still faces considerable challenges from issues old and new.

The Government is in almost constant turmoil, the full implications of Brexit will continue to play out in 2022, the energy crisis continues to bite and inflation is back with a vengeance.

Meanwhile, action to tackle the climate crisis is ever more urgent, supply chains are still challenged and labour market shortages persist.

It would be easy to conclude that my outlook is gloomy - but, far from it.

One of the key lessons of the past two years is that businesses in the West have been remarkably resilient, robust and resourceful.

They have needed every one of those three Rs. Though we would all wish for more THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

stability and calmer waters to navigate in 2022, I’m confident that the agility shown since the onset of the pandemic sets the region in good stead to perform well.

There are scores of examples within these pages of companies performing admirably to find ways of delivering growth even in the most trying circumstances.

Sectors such as leisure, travel and retail in particular will be hoping that restrictions on their ability to trade freely will reduce and hopefully disappear in the not too distant future.

As the Government lurches from crisis to crisis, it is not clear that is has the necessary bandwidth to devote to the key economic issues that businesses need so that they can provide the growth our prosperity depends on.

If one thing is clear, it is that the West needs a united voice and articulates what infrastructure spending in the region should be prioritised.

With the exception of the Forest of Dean and Gloucester, the West was not the recipient of Government largesse in the autumn Budget.

A Conservative Party that is leaching support in the ‘Red Wall’ seats it won in the north of England in 2019 will under-

standably be keen to placate voters there. But the West must not be shy of demanding its fair share of investment too.

We await the much-vaunted LevellingUp proposals with interest, but not, it must be said, with excesses of optimism.

For too many years this region has been a poor relation when it comes to public transport investment, for instance.

The Government should not take the strong Conservative vote in the South West of recent years for granted.

Energy will inevitably be high on the agenda in 2022.

Headlines have been focused on the impact of high gas prices on household bills, but they are even more pressing for many businesses.

While domestic customers are protected to some extent by price caps, that does not apply to business customers and those in energy-intensive sectors such as manufacturing are feeling the pain.

As we grapple with Britain’s Net-Zero commitments, finding the right energy mix will be critical.

The headline sponsor of this Guide EDF Energy - is at the forefront of this with the development of Hinkley Point C

on the Somerset coast. Few - if any businesses can have faced quite such a complicated supply chain challenge in 2021 than the large team working at Hinkley.

Building a new nuclear power station is - at the best of times - about as difficult a construction project as exists.

Hats (or safety helmets I suppose) off to those who have ensured the project continued apace amid the turmoil of 2021.

Without the support of EDF and our other sponsors Renishaw, South Gloucestershire and Stroud College and Hunter Selection, plus our data partner Vistra, it would not be possible to produce this Guide.

We thank all of them for their support.

Gazing into a crystal ball and forecasting what 2022 has in store for us is most probably a fool’s errand.

Nevertheless I’m quietly optimistic that the West’s business sector has demonstrated over the past couple of years that it is very much up for the challenge.

This region possesses the expertise, ingenuity and commercial acumen to thrive despite the challenges it faces.

We should never be afraid to champion our region more - particularly in Whitehall and Westminster.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 1

A few bumps in the road but big plans are afoot Richard Bache looks at a selection of the major economic developments on the horizon in the West

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ANY of the biggest transport projects in the pipeline in the West saw far more work for lawyers than labourers in 2021.

Both sides of the bitterly contested plans for an expansion to Bristol Airport were at the time of going to press anxiously awaiting the decision of planning inspectors following a public inquiry last autumn.

The inquiry closed in October after the airport appealed against North Somerset Council’s refusal of its application for substantial works that would allow it to raise the passenger cap from 10 million to 12 million passengers per year.

The airport – largely backed by the region’s business community – argues the development is vital to the West’s economic prosperity.

But environmental campaigners have consistently opposed it as being contrary to Britain’s net-zero ambitions.

A trio of independent inspectors from the Planning Inspectorate will give their verdict in the coming months.

If they rule in favour of the council the remaining legal option left open to the airport will be to seek a judicial review.

Similarly controversial proposals for a £2 billion tunnel to dual the A303 near Stonehenge in Wiltshire are also stuck in legal quagmire.

The Department for Transport (DfT)

2 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

granted permission to National Highways – formerly Highways England – in late 2020 to dual the A303 near the World Heritage Site in a bid to cut congestion and pollution on a vital route to the South West, pictured below.

The High Court, though, quashed this decision in July 2021 following a successful judicial review by the Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site group – though National Highways has continued to procure contracts for the scheme.

The agency is now likely to re-submit plans to the DfT early in 2022.

Mr Justice Houlgate ruled in the campaigners’ favour on two counts in July – the impact on heritage assets and the failure to consider alternative schemes.

Government defeats in the courts of this nature have been blamed for further delays to long-running proposals to reopen the Portishead to Bristol railway line.

In October the Secretary of State for Transport delayed the process of issuing a development consent order (DCO) for the project by six months to April 2022.

North Somerset MP Liam Fox told Parliament this delay could burden the project with an extra £13 million of costs and potentially damage its viability.

The DCO for the £116 million scheme seeks consent to start work on reopening the defunct section of the line from Por-

tishead and to compulsorily acquire land.

It is thought the Government delayed the process so it could seek assurances on environmental matters in the hope of avoiding similar challenges in the courts to ones it faced regarding Stonehenge and the expansion of Heathrow Airport.

Dr Fox, however, told Parliament: “Let us be very clear: we are not talking about HS2.

“We are not talking about massive environmental impact or huge public dissent about the route.

“We are, as I have repeatedly said, seeking only around 1.3 miles of additional track.”

He said the DfT’s “precautionary legal moves” to avoid a judicial review were causing disappointment and significant costs at a local level.

Work on the line had been expected to start in April 2022, with the first train running in 2024, although the timeline was pushed back by Covid-19.

Despite delays to these three highprofile projects a number of transport projects did see major progress in 2021.

A £132 million project to upgrade railway tracks and install state-of-the-art signalling equipment at the Bristol East junction near Bristol Temple Meads was carried out by Network Rail last summer.

It also involved installing a new line to support new suburban services as part of the MetroWest scheme.

Network Rail also had to carry out major emergency repairs to the line near Salisbury following a train crash before Christmas.

How the new Brabazon neighbourhood north of Bristol could look. Image: YTL Developments

In 2022 some £25 million is being invested in improving the resilience of the Newport to Gloucester line, which connects South Wales with the West Country, Midlands and north of England.

Running alongside the Severn Estuary – exposed to rain, wind and sea – more frequent extreme weather has seen the line devastated by five major landslips in the last two years alone. This has led to extended closures of the railway and temporary speed restrictions, delaying more than 200,000 trains.

Work is due to begin in summer 2022 and will include the removal of more than 30,000 tonnes of material from the cliff face. A state-of-the-art mesh and bolt system will then be installed alongside three miles of track, stabilising the rockface and preventing landslips from affecting the track below.

The project represents the biggest investment in the Newport-Gloucester line since it was opened in the 1850s.

Back on the roads, this year will see Bristol follow in Bath’s footsteps and introduce a clean air zone to cut its illegal levels of air pollution.

The scheme in Bath has not been without its teething problems and controversies in its first year of operation.

It will be interesting to observe if the much bigger city of Bristol can avoid these when the scheme starts this summer.

While the council is keen to remove polluting vehicles from the city’s streets, the trial of the use of electric hire scooters in the city is due to come to an end in March.

Swedish firm Voi’s scooters have become ubiquitous in parts of the city during the Department for Transport trial and users will be keen to see if they are allowed to remain.

In South Gloucestershire residents and businesses will be eagerly hoping that an impasse to the “road to nowhere” saga ends.

The £50million junction on the M49 in Severn Beach was built two years ago, but motorists have been unable to use it THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

room apartments at Brabazon – in a phase known as The Hangar District – are also under construction approximately 300 metres to the north of the new station.

In Bristol city centre meanwhile a new destination dining hub and event space from the team behind BoxPark in London is coming to the Welsh Back waterfront in June.

BoxHall will host indie restaurants, street food traders and pop-ups for allday dining, live music and events.

Down the M5 in Weston-super-Mare a giant decommissioned oil rig will be making a pop-up display on Westonsuper-Mare beach.

The £30 million state-of-the-art facility in Yeovil, pictured below, will see eight existing warehouses turned into one huge centre and work is expected to be complete by the fourth quarter of 2022.

The 210,000 sq ft site will support Leonardo’s global fleet of helicopters through the storage of components and tooling.

GMI Construction Group has been appointed by real estate development company Graftongate to build the new facility. Leonardo’s logistics partner, Kuehne + Nagel, will operate the hub under a 10-year logistics contract.

A planning bid for the £1bn first phase of the Golden Valley Development is expected in 2022

because of a battle over who is responsible for connecting it to the road network.

The motorway junction should connect to Central Park, a large warehouse and distribution centre used by companies such as Tesco, Lidl and Amazon, but the linking road is still unbuilt.

In October South Gloucestershire Council – which has been in negotiations with the business park’s owners Delta Properties and National Highways – passed a motion “to approve the officer recommendations to deliver the link road to join the new M49 junction with the local highway network”.

Although details are scant a spokesperson for the authority said: “At their meeting on 11 October, our cabinet has agreed an approach with the Department for Transport and National Highways that will help the delivery of the M49 link road.

“This decision is an important step forwards and will allow us to progress work with our partners in delivering the M49 link to unlock the significant benefits that it will bring to South Gloucestershire, local communities and the wider region.”

Industrial The former Honda factory in Swindon was closed for good in July after three decades of production.

The 370-acre site – where Spitfires THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

were built during World War II – was sold to Panattoni, Europe’s largest developer of new-build industrial and logistics facilities.

Panattoni is planning to invest more than £700 million into the site.

It said it would be working “very closely” with Honda and Swindon Borough Council, along with the community and its representatives to regenerate the site.

The local authority previously worked with Panattoni on bringing retail giant Amazon to a two million sq ft warehouse set to be built at Symmetry Park on the edge of the town.

In South Somerset, vacuum cleaner giant Numatic International snapped up the former Oscar Mayer factory site in Chard.

It will build a £30 million factory to expand its production capacity for Henry vacuum cleaners.

The seven-acre site in Chard was put on sale in May 2021 when food producer Oscar Mayer said it would cease production in the town by September, with hundreds of staff losing their jobs.

Also in South Somerset, a vast helicopter logistics hub is set to be built for engineering and aerospace giant Leonardo.

Entertainment Bristol arena is scheduled to open its doors in 2024 – and construction is expected to start this year.

In November, the managing director of Malaysia-based developer YTL, Andrew Billingham, said the company had already received enquiries from promoters looking to book events for 2024-25.

Alongside the arena, YTL is constructing a vast neighbourhood on the former Filton Airfield to the north of the city, including a new train station which will be known as Brabazon and is set to start operating in 2023.

It will connect the new development and the arena to Bristol Temple Meads in less than 15 minutes once it is completed as part of MetroWest Phase 2, YTL has said.

YTL has also appointed consultants to develop designs for Brabazon Park, which will be just 200 metres west of the new station and directly in front of the Bristol Arena.

The new park, which is also expected to open to the public in 2024, is set to be the largest new urban public park in the South West for more than 50 years.

The first two-, three- and four-bedroom homes and one- and two-bed-

See Monster, above, is part of the UKwide Unboxed public art festival.

It will be based at the resort’s Tropicana and it is hoped it will have an economic impact akin to the Banksy exhibition Dismaland at the seafront attraction.

A new World Heritage Centre will open in the spring celebrating Bath’s acclaimed status. Visitors will have the chance to discover what makes Bath such a unique place and learn about the city’s attributes of Outstanding Universal Value: the hot springs, Roman remains, Georgian architecture, Georgian town planning, the social setting of the Georgian spa town and the city’s natural landscape setting.

Cyber The developers behind the pioneering project to build the UK’s first cyber business park near GCHQ in Cheltenham were announced in July, with the contract expected to be closed in the first quarter of 2022.

The Golden Valley Development – a 200-hectare scheme being planned by Cheltenham Borough Council and Tewkesbury Borough Council – will see green fields close to the UK’s intelligence and cyber agency transformed into a huge campus and thousands of homes.

HBD X Factory, a joint venture between UK property developer HBD and the international innovation campus developer Factory, have been selected as the preferred development partner. The project will transform the site into a multi-use development with 3,700 homes, two million square feet of commercial space and the UK’s first cyber-focused campus – Cyber Central – which will be home to cyber-related businesses.

According to Cheltenham and Tewkesbury Borough Councils, the project will create up to 12,000 new jobs.

HBD X Factory will be responsible for bringing forward the £1 billion first phase. This will include UK Cyber Central and its Innovation Zone. A planning application is expected to be submitted in 2022 – and construction after that.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 3

Gloucestershire’s Ryan Higgins in action Photo: Mike Egerton/PA

Get in position to catch the best recruits Russell Smith, managing director of South West recruitment specialist Hunter Selection, says that finding and retaining the right staff is more challenging than ever for employers

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ASED in Portishead, in North Somerset, Hunter Selection is perfectly located to help the South West’s engineering and manufacturing companies secure the staff they need to grow.

And never has the demand for skilled staff been higher.

The West is a centre of excellence for engineering, manufacturing, service and technology, and is home to established giants and fast-growing start-ups.

But one thing that they all have in common is the need for skilled staff, and I’ve never known the market be tighter.

It is certainly a good time to be an employee because there are lots of highquality positions available.

Recent labour market statistics show that there are more than one million vacancies in the UK. Employers are having to be increas4 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

staff. One of the things we’ve introduced ingly creative in terms of the packages to make us a more attractive employer is that they offer to successfully recruit and an early-career sabbatical scheme. retain skilled staff.

We have 50 people working in Pay is not the only factor to four offices and the business consider – employees are could easily sustain another increasingly looking at 30 staff. other issues, such as We had a record year work-life balance, benfor profits in 2021 and efits focused on health are working on more and wellbeing and a live vacancies than whole range of other ever before. factors.

The growth has been We’re advising all of driven by companies our clients to review looking for experienced their employee rewards Russell Smith of staff who can start contribschemes to ensure they Hunter Selection uting to the business on Day match the expectations of One. employees to keep them happy It has never been harder to forecast and productive. the future but I anticipate the demand It is something that we have done ourfor skilled staff to remain high in 2022. selves, as ironically our own biggest I’d advise companies looking to recruit challenge as a business is recruiting

to start the process as soon as possible.

The recruitment journey is harder and longer, due to both the shortage of skilled staff available and the impact of the pandemic.

Most first interviews are happening digitally now, but even so there are inevitable delays – particularly during the ‘pingdemic’ when interviews were often cancelled for understandable reasons.

However, our experienced consultants, who work in dedicated teams to find skilled engineers, manufacturing professionals and IT specialists, are continuing to find the best candidates for our clients.

Our mantra this year is quality/quality/quality and that is something we aim to provide to all of our clients.

Please get in touch if you’d like us to help you find the right staff to drive your business forwards.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris

Playing to our strengths West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris sets out his key priorities for the region’s economy in 2022

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ROM Brunel and Concorde to Wallace and Gromit our region is amazing. One of the best things about becoming West of England Metro Mayor six months ago has been the opportunity to see first-hand the wealth of truly talented people that we possess. A big responsibility comes with that for me: to ensure we are fit to face the key challenges of the future.

I’m determined to put our region on the map as the go-to place for innovation and creativity.

We are doing incredible things in our world-class aerospace sector at places like Airbus and in inventing groundbreaking materials at the National Composites Centre. Let’s make sure everyone knows why we are great.

Our creative industries keep getting huge votes of confidence. Netflix have invested £132 million in the South West.

The BBC are moving to a new central Bristol premises in Bridgewater House where they will keep masterminding brilliant programmes such as David Attenborough documentaries. The Bottle Yard studios that I recently visited is expanding, proudly building three impressive new stages with investment from the West of England Combined THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Authority which I lead. So we can expect many more fantastic shows like Showtrial and The Outlaws. Not to mention our success in Bake Off! But we can do even better. One challenge holding us back is congestion.

Queuing in traffic jams is already an awful problem across the West of England. It costs us £300 million a year.

Unless we do something about it, the time queuing in traffic is predicted to grow by 74 per cent by 2036.

That is why I was pleased to secure from the Government the biggest investment in transport per head in the country. This year, the first cash from that half a billion pounds will be invested. I plan to spend it primarily on improving bus services across the West of England as the quickest way to make a significant difference. Longer term we will need much more investment and more new public transport.

All this will help with the big challenge of our time - the climate emergency. Our businesses have a huge role to play in helping reach our ambitious net-zero targets. I know some of the decisions I take on this issue are not always popular within the business community - such as my opposition to the current plans to expand Bristol Airport - but I believe

there is a moral imperative to act.

We have rightly declared a climate emergency in the West of England and are committed to reducing the region’s carbon footprint. Today, 90 per cent of the region’s energy comes from fossil fuels and 44 per cent of all our pollution comes from transport. In December I was delighted that my plan for a £50 million Green Recovery Fund was accepted, unanimously, by the leaders of the three council areas.

In the first quarter of this year we will also see another important round of Green Business grants supporting local companies.

Another key focus for me is skills.

That’s why I held a jobs and skills summit within 100 days of being elected – something I’m aiming to do again this year.

One thing that stood out to me was the focus on the future. When I met electric car apprentice mechanics, at S&B Auto-

I’m determined to put ❝ ❝ our region on the map as the

go-to place for innovation and creativity

motive Academy, I heard how the Institute of the Motor Industry says that just 5 per cent of garage and dealer technicians are appropriately trained to work on electric cars at the moment.

We’re going to need a lot more of them, alongside an army of people trained to retrofit our homes. That will be a part of the 23,000 green jobs I have pledged.

Let’s also hope the Government are promising the right incentives to land electric car jobs in Somerset and surrounding areas. I’ll certainly be keeping up the pressure this year.

We’ve got some exciting announcements coming down the tracks as well. I will soon be launching our West of England Employers Charter.

I’m not a Metro Mayor content to sit behind a desk or who expects people to always visit me. Every week I’m out-andabout meeting people and businesses, many of whom have received funding from the Combined Authority I lead.

I want to hear first hand how that money is making a difference, as well as the challenges and opportunities you face. I wish you every success and I will be redoubling my efforts in backing all our West of England businesses to build and prosper in 2022.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 5

The certainty of uncertainties Professor Tom MacMillan, Elizabeth Creak Chair in Rural Policy & Strategy at the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester, looks forward to a challenging year for agriculture

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ARMERS are no strangers to managing uncertainty. The weather, world markets and their customers reliably throw them surprises.

Increasingly, though, farmers are having to cope with more than their fair share of what the economists John Kay and Mervyn King, ex-governor of the Bank of England, call radical uncertainty. This goes beyond the usual games of chance, where you at least know the odds of rain at harvest, say, based on experience. It is a world of vagueness, ambiguity and unpredictability that is trickier to navigate.

In the South West, as across England, this has been the trend. This year seems set to bring yet more of the same. Except, of course, that’s the one thing it won’t be.

Some of this radical uncertainty flows directly from Whitehall, as Defra ministers give shape to a whole new set of policies on farm payments. A big shift has started from farmers getting funded mainly by the hectare, to Government paying for environmental management.

The first details have had a mixed reception. To their credit, Defra officials have 6 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

gone further than ever in trying to design the new schemes with farmers, to try to make sure they work on the ground. But it is fair to say that it is a work in progress.

And the big hitch is that all this ‘codesign’ takes time and the clock keeps ticking. Farmers know when their current per hectare payments will stop, but not yet enough about what will replace them.

These payments are a big deal. Where I live in Gloucestershire, my colleagues at the Countryside and Community Research Institute worked out the county’s farmers will lose £180 million from the current payments being phased out.

Then there are the combined consequences of Brexit and the pandemic on trade and labour availability. These will play out differently across different sectors – for example, between dairy, beef, sheep and horticulture.

On top of all this, the weather is also getting more extreme as our climate changes – 2020 was in the top 10 for rain, heat and sunshine. Farm businesses are more directly exposed to this than almost any other. While this just affects my commute, it hits their fundamentals.

Simultaneously, as one of the few sectors of the economy that has the potential to lock up more carbon than it emits, farmers are under pressure not only to reach net zero, but go further. Which brings us back to those as yet uncertain environmental payments, and to similarly vague promises that billions in private carbon finance will be making their way towards agriculture.

The upshot of this radical uncertainty isn’t necessarily doom and gloom. There will be winners as well as losers. The point is that it is increasingly difficult to predict who they will be.

It puts business resilience and strategic planning centre stage. The challenge is not simply to manage risk, where the assumption is you know the likelihood of different outcomes. It is to be equipped for diverse eventualities, the chances of which are anyone’s guess.

Many of these uncertainties have a common feature: politics. Whether it is trade deals, labour availability, environmental payments or even climate policies, Government’s role is central. Much of the uncertainty is of Government’s making, the ‘constructive ambiguity’ that is seen as necessary to get politics done.

The good news is that this means they can change. Some of the parts can stop moving. And farmers can help that by rediscovering their political voice. This means forging new alliances, for example with environmental and consumer groups. It also means recognising the need for change – even demanding it – to help shape it for the best. The prize will, potentially, be at least a bit more certainty. » Farming - pages 32-35

The upshot of this radical uncertainty isn’t necessarily doom ❝ ❝ and gloom. There will be winners as well as losers. The point is that it is increasingly difficult to predict who they will be.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Support for staff is key to success Hannah Woodland, learning area manager for Professional and Financial Services at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College (SGS), assesses emerging ‘post-lockdown’ trends and demands

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AVING been at SGS for more than six years, I am passionate about supporting businesses to develop their workforces.

An important belief is that investment in employees is key to business success.

Investing in your team will help you gain a higher engagement, which will naturally increase productivity.

The past 18 months have given many of us time to reflect on our personal and professional goals.

With time on our side while we were not trying to find the last seat on the bus or waiting at the traffic lights in the rush hour, many individuals either took up a new hobby, enrolled onto a self-study qualification or spent time revaluating their careers.

As a local Bristol training provider, at SGS College we have found that many individuals are now looking to retrain and move into a new profession.

This was evident with enrolments last September.

With human resources, leadership and accountancy qualifications at the heart of the Professional and Financial Services department at SGS College, we have been supporting many aspiring THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

professionals find their way to their new chosen career path over the past few months.

Businesses have quickly had to adapt their usual way of working, with HR departments taking the lead on this. Professional enrolments on one of the new qualifications from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) have never been so timely.

The CIPD have streamlined their qualifications and we have recently received approval to deliver a range of these.

The Level 3 Certificate in People Practice is a foundation level qualification.

Based on the CIPD professional map, it is the benchmark for those wanting to enter the people profession.

As business leaders, this qualification will enable your HR workforce to gain the confidence and capabilities to guide their decision-making and professional behaviours.

The CIPD Level 5 Associate Diploma in People Management is also hugely popular, having been developed with a range of HR experts. Learners will complete seven units, covering topics such as organisational performance, culture in the workplace and employment relationship management.

Hannah Woodland - SGS College learning area manager

Local businesses have been telling us they want to support the training of their staff, whether this is through an apprenticeship or as an adult student.

There is a range of ways adults can upskill, along with different funding options.

We value the feedback of our learners and understand that they also want to continue learning in a more flexible

It has been shown that ❝ ❝ by investing in employees’

careers they end up feeling more valued, which helps with staff retention and broadening workplace specialisms.

manner, which is why we have adopted a hybrid delivery approach of online and face-to-face learning for many of our courses.

In 2022, businesses need to continue to upskill workforces and help employees feel valued and supported.

It has been shown that by investing in employees’ careers they end up feeling more valued, which helps with staff retention and broadening workplace specialisms.

With multiple start dates throughout the year and a range of professional courses covering all main business functions, we can help you invest in your team and help develop the new leaders of today. » For a full range of professional and financial courses at SGS College, visit www.sgscol.ac.uk/study/professionaland-financial.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 7

£4bn

£5m

invested in the region

invested in local charities and community groups

Hinkley Point C delivery director, Nigel Cann, talks 2022 and the project to build a nuclear power station in Somerset

The energy crisis adds urgency to our project T

HE past 12 months have been monumental for the energy sector. Britain hosted the COP26 conference, highlighting the need for the world to get serious about climate change.

Central to the discussions was the need for us to stop using high-polluting energy sources, such as coal and gas.

It has become clear that nuclear is a crucial part of the UK’s future energy mix, along with wind and solar.

Britain has set ambitious targets to hit net-zero carbon emissions and Hinkley Point C will play a critical role. Every year, it will offset nine million tonnes of C02 emissions – that’s the same as taking nearly four million cars off the road.

The energy crisis has given our project a further sense of urgency.

Gas prices are hitting record highs, due to global shortages and unprecedented demand.

Businesses, as well as domestic consumers, are at the sharp end of it – with expensive bills landing on desks across the region. This turbulence has 8 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

highlighted the shortfalls of the UK’s addiction to gas. This is where Hinkley Point C comes in again. It will step up to plug the gap – meeting 7 per cent of the country’s demand.

For many businesses, the energy crisis has collided with the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

There have been global labour shortages and supply bottlenecks. At Hinkley Point C, we managed this by diverting resources to the areas most critical to the project. This has allowed us to maintain momentum, finishing the year on a high.

In December, with the help of Big Carl, the world’s largest land-based crane, we lifted a 254-tonne steel ring onto one of the reactor buildings. We managed to improve in efficiency, with this ring being built 25% faster than the previous.

Like other regional employers, we have acted quickly in response to the omicron variant.

As always, we are prioritising the safety of the surrounding community and our

Investing in the region Nigel Cann

workforce. We have brought in new measures to manage our site safely and efficiently.

People who work on site are now declaring their vaccine status, or taking regular tests. This has ensured construction can continue, putting us on track for another successful year.

This year will see some enormous pieces of kit arriving on site - including six 5,000 tonne concrete structures, which will be used in our water-cooling systems. This will be a huge logistical operation, as they travel across the Bristol Channel from Avonmouth. Much of this equipment is being made off site, across the UK and overseas. Thousands of people around the world are working

EDF is building more than just a power station. It is pumping billions into the local economy – with businesses across the South West reaping the benefits.

Hinkley Point C’s supply team is awarding contracts to local firms for everything from the supply of materials, to the providing of services on site. So far, partnerships have been made with more than 3,600 regional businesses, with a combined value of more than £4 billion. The total number of direct and indirect jobs supported by the project across the UK currently stands at 22,000.

It isn’t stopping there. There are still many opportunities to get involved with Hinkley Point C. For more information, please contact info@hinkleysupplychain.co.uk.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

jobs supported

22,000 800

hard to bring these vital components together for us.

We are now half-way through the project, and the countdown is on to becoming fully operational. We are getting people ready to work in the power station when it’s switched on. This year, we’re opening a new training centre, which will feature a replica simulator of the main control room. This will be where our future operators will be taught the complicated processes involved in running the plant.

Hinkley Point C is a training ground for future talent, and 2022 is a significant year in our mission. Later this year, we will hit our milestone of creating 1,000 apprenticeships. This has opened jobs to THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Changing lives MIKE Morgan Electrical Services, an electrical installation company based in Bridgwater, has been awarded a multimillion pound contract to work at Hinkley Point C. It operates on-site as part of an alliance with two other regional businesses, Wessex Water and Hydroline Solutions, to provide important utility services.

The company’s ethos is ‘local first’, prioritising businesses and people who are based nearby. The firm’s involvement in Hinkley Point C’s construction has also enabled them to expand rapidly – taking on more workers and apprentices. Funding from the project is being spent on their development, through training at local colleges.

These opportunities have helped their employees climb the ladder within the company. For many, this has allowed them to buy their first home locally. Involvement in Hinkley Point C’s supply chain can really improve employees’ lives for the better.

The company’s managing director, Mike Morgan, said: “Hinkley Point C has really established us as a company.

We’ve grown by 70% a year for the past three years and plan to grow by 20% year on year for the next three. Our turnover has increased six-fold and we’ve gone from 12 to 68 people. This has allowed us to provide a great place for apprentices to learn their trade.”

3,600

more than apprentices trained

organ Mike M

local people who have never worked in construction before.

This year, the government will continue negotiations for a new nuclear power station in Suffolk; Sizewell C. Hinkley Point C is being used as the blueprint for the new site, which is a huge vote of confidence in what we’re doing in Somerset. As we are already demonstrating, it will create thousands of jobs, and contribute billions to the local economy.

Like Hinkley Point C, it will be crucial in helping Britain kick its dependency on high-polluting fossil fuels. Together, both power stations will help protect the UK’s energy supply and the future of our planet.

businesses involved in the regional supply chain

The key to net zero

HINKLEY Point C is making history. It is the first nuclear power station to be built in the UK in more than 20 years, marking the revitalisation of the industry.

The power station will be essential in helping Britain reduce its carbon emissions to net-zero by 2050.

Alongside wind and solar power, it’ll help the country wean itself off highpolluting energy sources, such as coal and gas.

During its 60-year lifespan, Hinkley Point C will generate enough reliable, low-carbon electricity to power around 6 million homes. The electricity generated by its two reactors will offset 9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year, or 600 million tonnes.

Every available energy technology creates some carbon emissions over their lifetime from construction through to operations. However, studies have confirmed that the total amount of carbon dioxide released as a result of Hinkley Point C is even less than wind and solar.

Sustainability is a key part of the construction project itself. We are using new techniques and innovations – such as using solar and hybrid tower lights, instead of ones powered by diesel. In addition, 99% of the steel reinforcement used at Hinkley Point C is recycled.

We’ve also planted thousands of trees, donated £540,000 to local environmental causes, and our team of specialists are creating new wildlife habitats.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 9

Healthy order book means the future is bright Chris Pockett, of Gloucestershire-based Renishaw, reveals how it has responded to the challenges of the pandemic and is in a strong position to grow

R

ENISHAW has seen a positive period of recovery following a downturn in global manufacturing and the impact of the pandemic.

Revenues for our financial year ending June 2021 were 11 per cent higher than the previous year, with adjusted profit before tax seeing a 146 per cent increase.

For the first quarter of the current financial year, we also reported a revenue rise of 35 per cent, with strong growth in all our global regions.

We have significantly benefited from demand from the semiconductor and electronics markets, and much has been written about the global shortage of semiconductor chips caused by huge demand, in part due to the pandemic.

With many people spending more time at home, for both work and leisure, there has been high demand for a range of electronic products, including laptops, webcams, monitors, games consoles and supporting infrastructure for streaming and cloud-based services.

Many EV and ICE vehicles also now use a high number of semiconductor chips for control systems, infotainment systems and digital dashboards.

Our products are used throughout semiconductor manufacturing processes, and we are also being helped by the global investment in new mini-LED and micro-LED flat panel displays,

10 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

which are brighter and more energy-efficient, and by large investments in EUV (extreme ultraviolet lithography) semiconductor processes to produce high volumes of smaller, faster and more power-efficient chips. The need for this new generation of chips is being driven by the rollout of 5G programmes and associated mobile devices.

Renishaw graduate engineers

Adapting to the pandemic The pandemic has resulted in profound changes to our society, the business environment and business practices, many of which will be with us for the long term.

Across the world, the pandemic is accelerating trends around digitalisation, automation, near-shoring, remote

working and sustainability. For Renishaw, this presents significant positive opportunities, because our products are well placed to support our customers as they respond to these new challenges.

We also recognise that the workplace has changed and that it is possible for many roles to successfully combine remote and site-based working. We have therefore implemented a hybrid working policy in the UK, where our non-manufacturing employees will split their week between on-site and home working.

The ongoing pandemic has continued to affect our business and colleagues around the world. Despite this challenging environment, our business has been very resilient, and colleagues across the 37 countries where we have operations have continued to maintain supply and excellent levels of support to our global customers, many of whom are in critical global supply chains. These challenges have highlighted the importance of Renishaw’s strong working culture, and colleagues have fully demonstrated our core business values of inspiration, involvement, innovation and integrity.

Net-zero commitments As a business, we recognise the increased need for sustainability and the need to accelerate our own work in this area. We have made significant efforts to reduce our carbon emissions in recent THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

non-engineering apprenticeships such as commercial, IT support analyst and new apprenticeships for electricians, building maintenance and plumbing.

We also use apprenticeships to upskill existing employees, with around 240 colleagues across the UK currently undertaking one of 20 apprenticeship schemes, including a Level 7 master’s degree in business.

Renishaw apprentices receive on-the-job experience and tailored programmes and training

years, achieving a 39 per cent reduction in our measured global greenhouse gas emissions since 2015.

However, like many organisations, there is much more that we must do to meet the challenges of climate change.

Therefore, in November, we committed to a science-based net-zero emissions target for all aspects of our business by no later than 2050, with an ambition to bring this forward by five to ten years once we have a better understanding of our Scope 3 emissions. Our target will be validated and monitored by the globally respected body, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

Renishaw products help our customers to be more sustainable by reducing their energy consumption and waste, and by helping them to research and manufacture products that are more efficient in use, and therefore use less energy.

Record investment in future talent For many businesses, the ability to grow is being constrained by the challenges of retaining and recruiting skilled individuals. At Renishaw, we have a strong track record of growing our own talent pool, having started our first apprenticeship programme in 1979 and recruited apprentices every year since that time, even during business downturns.

However, the hard work starts years THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

before a young person will ever be employed by us, with an education outreach programme in the South West and South Wales run by four employees who are dedicated to engagement with both primary and secondary schools.

In 2022, we have committed to a record intake of 96 graduates and 80 apprentices across our Gloucestershire and South Wales sites, plus over 100 placement opportunities – a mix of industrial and summer placements. Successful applicants for our highly regarded early

careers schemes receive on-the-job experience and tailored programmes and training to ensure they receive the best possible learning experience.

Our award-winning apprenticeship scheme allows apprentices to gain nationally recognised qualifications up to degree level, alongside on-the-job experience. The range of schemes allows apprentices to join at different educational levels, from Level 3 up to Level 6, across a range of disciplines from engineering and manufacturing to Renishaw technology helped with Great Britain’s bikes in the Olympics

Gold medal performance One highlight over the past 12 months was Renishaw’s contribution to British Olympic cycling success in Tokyo. We contributed our expertise in 3D printing to help produce an innovative new track bike for the Great Britain cycling team that led to seven medals at the Games.

In early 2019, we were approached by British Cycling – national governing body for cycling in Great Britain – to join the development team of Lotus Engineering and Hope Technology, due to our 3D printing expertise, recognising that the metal 3D printing machines we produce could build lighter, more complex components than traditional manufacturing methods.

We initially used our expertise to rapidly produce plastic and metal prototype parts to undertake aerodynamic testing of the new design and ensure that parts were light, geometrically correct and strong enough to endure the strain from riders. After proof of concept, we then used our own metal 3D printing systems to manufacture aluminium and titanium parts, including handlebars, for the competition bikes, with parts customised for individual athletes.

Our key contributory role in producing the highly successful Olympic bike led to great pride across the organisation, including colleagues outside of the UK. It was exciting to see Great Britain win three gold medals, three silver and one bronze, with Laura Kenny becoming the most successful British female Olympian of all time after winning gold and silver medals, and Jason Kenny becoming Britain’s most successful Olympian ever, winning gold in the men’s keirin and silver in the men’s team sprint.

Looking forward Last year was a positive one for Renishaw and we look forward with optimism for 2022, especially after a strong start to our current financial year and a very healthy order book, with demand from the semiconductor and electronics sectors expected to remain strong and a continuing recovery in the machine tool and co-ordinate measuring machine markets, where many of our products are supplied. In our analytical instruments and medical devices markets, we have also seen confidence return and capital expenditure projects released.

Our key contributory ❝ ❝ role in producing the highly

successful Olympic bike led to great pride across the organisation BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 11

Power station’s boosting skills of a new generation A Gloucestershire college on the site of a former nuclear power station is at the forefront of developing young students for the careers of the future

T

HE Gloucestershire Science and Technology Park at Berkeley - developed by South Gloucestershire and Stroud College (SGS) - has created a genuine talent academy for the region.

The park is unique in Gloucestershire and thanks to its deep links with business it provides great opportunities for employers looking for young talent.

Located just off the A38 near Berkeley, the site has 300,000 square feet of commercial floor space and is well located for the M5 corridor, being less than 15 minutes from either junctions 13 or 14.

SGS currently has some 300 digitally aware teenagers who are pursuing

careers in cyber and digital engineering at the site.

And they are studying with genuinely innovative businesses as neighbours on the 65-acre park, including companies such as Green Fuels and C11 Cyber.

This special learning experience results in these students becoming work ready very quickly.

Kevin Hamblin, SGS CEO, said: “For more years than I care to remember. I have been told that education is not providing employers with the type of person they want or need.

“At the very core of the university technical college (UTC) we have the employers driving forward the curriculum, and a big element is on project work outside

> A Cyber Talk at the Gloucestershire Science and Technology Park

12 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

the national curriculum. I think the difference between our UTC and a school is that we actively look for employer engagement to mould the curriculum, whereas a school would probably see an employer as simply a route to work experience.”

Meanwhile, the head teacher of the UTC, Louise Davies, said: “We want daily interaction with the companies around us - we don’t want to be a separate organisation.

“Employability is also truly at the heart of our culture and ethos. Students benefit from a very wide range of high-quality opportunities to work with local employers and participate in industry-related activities.

“Every student participates in work experience. This helps us develop the ‘soft skills’ so necessary to future success, like teamwork, resilience and communication.”

These partner companies, on the site of the decommissioned nuclear power station, are pioneers in fields such as bio fuels, low carbon and digital engineering.

The UTC is being recognised for its innovative work - for instance last September it was designated as a CyberFirst Gold School by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) – part of GCHQ – in an initiative to identify excellence in cyber security education.

Rich Williams, assistant headteacher and specialism lead for cyber and digi-

tal, said: “Our partnership with the NCSC and the CyberFirst programme affords our students unrivalled opportunities to learn about the varied cyber careers, and network with industry colleagues.

“We are also especially thankful to our employer partners, including CGI, NCC Group, Cyber Security Associates, Capgemini and Darktrace, who have supported students by delivering talks, even during lockdown, and running remote activities.

“They connect our students to the working world of cyber and inspire them in the process.”

Mr Hamblin added: “Our job is to try and educate young people with the very latest technologies in mind.

“We have to develop young people with the skillset that could morph these various job roles as and when they appear.

“We want our young people to understand about tomorrow’s technology - not just last year’s or from 20 years ago. Some of these young people will be going to jobs that may not have been invented yet.”

The UTC at Berkeley provides a mix between an apprenticeship - “on the tools”, he adds - and an education.

For an SME, the UTC provides an opportunity to get involved, without any commitment to employ one of the young students.

He continued: “My message to comTHURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

SGS offers a wide range of apprenticeships covering most employment sectors.

» It has very strong retention and overall achievement rates, ahead of national averages. » Employers are supported with a dedicated account manager to steer them through every step of the apprenticeship journey. » It recruits more than 600 new apprentices every year.

Learners are supported with their training assessor to ensure they have every opportunity to thrive, achieve and progress to the next level. » It has flexible delivery models, including programmes at Filton, Stroud and central Bristol. It also offers workplace delivery for some apprenticeship programmes. » It supports more than 1,000 employers a year with their apprenticeship programme, recruiting over 600 new apprentices every year.

Why SGS is successful

An aerial view of The John Huggett Engineering Hall at SGS College Berkeley Green

drive towards net-zero carbon by transforming the way buildings are powered and heated.

Allard Sports Cars This historic Gloucestershire-based, family-owned sports car brand uses traditional and cutting-edge engineering to bring Allards back to the roads. It also offers general engineering services such as welding and vapour blasting to support occupiers on site.

> > Allard Sports Cars cars are one of the businesses on the Gloucestershire Science and Technology Park

panies is that you can work with the UTC. You can get to know the students and set them research or tasks - almost using it as a long interview.

“These aren’t kids who want an easy life. They have to leave their mates at 14 and they have a longer day. When they leave us, we firmly believe they will be ready for work.”

Businesses based at the GloucesterTHURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

shire Science and Technology Park include the companies listed below: Above & Beyond Retail Above & Beyond Retail UK Ltd, an e-commerce site specialising in collectables.

Active Building Centre The Active Building Centre is a centre of excellence working to accelerate the UK’s

C11 Cyber Security and Digital Innovation Centre The Cyber Security and Digital Innovation Centre of the University of Gloucestershire. Specialising in digital and cyber technologies and offering conference spaces, meeting rooms, co-working spaces, secure working areas and serviced offices.

Cavendish Nuclear Cavendish provides dosimetry and calibration services to the nuclear industry

» Care and effectiveness of its vacancy matching service - more than 90 per cent of apprentices recruited through SGS are still with the employer at 12 months. » Stable, consistent and experienced team of assessors. » The degree to which it tracks progress and supports learners. » No other provider in the region offers the range that we do - SGS can support all the business-critical functions within a large employer – so only need to work with one provider, one account manager. » Direct Delivery - SGS doesn’t use subcontractors. All SGS apprenticeships are directly delivered by SGS, giving responsiveness, consistency, accountability and control of quality.

Employer Support

IT offers » Flexible, blended delivery models. » All content can be accessed remotely from home or work. » SGS is a Microsoft Showcase College. » Flexible start dates and durations. » Highest college apprenticeship success rates in the West of England region. » Free, effective apprenticeship recruitment achieving 90 per cent retention rates. » Advice and support on incentives, funding and the Digital Apprenticeship Service. » Dedicated account management.

More about SGS Apprenticeships

ITS apprenticeship team are here to help guide the Apprenticeship journey, providing advice and guidance. For more, visit apprenticeships@sgscol.ac.uk

Gloucestershire Constabulary - The Sabrina Centre The £7 million Sabrina Centre opened in May 2020 to provide training and conferencing facilities for Gloucestershire Constabulary. It will help the force prepare for its planned growth of more than 300 officers and staff over the next three years, it is named after the mythical goddess of the River Severn.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 13

Fortune favours the bold in these testing times Hannah Baker and Andrew Arthur select eight West companies to watch in 2022

T

HE last year has been an uncertain one for the business community as the Covid pandemic, and the emergence of new variants, continued to put strain on UK plc.

Changing rules and regulations hit sectors - such as retail, hospitality and events - hard, and many already struggling businesses were forced to shut up shop.

Despite the turmoil, there were also companies that managed to adapt to the fast-changing circumstances in order to survive - and even thrive - during 2021.

As we move into 2022, it remains unclear if the year will see more rules imposed to curb the spread of the virus, or how badly the global economy is likely to be dented by the rise of Omicron.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom; there are plenty of businesses flourishing amid the pandemic. Here, we take a look at some of the South West companies - from start-ups to major corporates headquartered in the region - to watch out for this year.

Peequal - Bristol University of Bristol graduates Amber Probyn and Hazel McShane have created a women’s urinal - and it’s already finding success.

Their spin-out company was awarded a £15,000 grant in November after the duo scooped the top prize in the university’s flagship enterprise contest for startups.

Their urinal is designed with outdoor 14 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

events in mind such as festivals, and they say it makes the process of going to the toilet six times quicker compared to a conventional portable lockable toilet.

The pair’s creation has already been trialled by more than 5,000 women at UK festivals including Shambala, Valley Fest and the Bristol Comedy Garden.

If events return this summer, could the age-old problem of the women’s toilet queue have finally been solved?

Lush - Poole The Dorset-headquartered cosmetics retailer Lush announced in November it was shutting down its Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat accounts following concerns around the safety of the platforms for users.

The company, which has its main UK factory in Poole, is no longer using those networks in any of the 48 countries it operates in.

The move is expected to create a potential loss of £10m in sales, according to Jack Constantine, the firm’s chief digital officer.

He said the company had given itself a year to recoup its losses from the move, but was “very positive” about the decision.

The announcement divided social media experts, with some describing the move as “gutsy” while others said it removed individual responsibility.

Whatever happens, it’s one to watch in 2022.

Versarien - Gloucestershire Founded in an engineer’s garage in

Cheltenham, advanced engineering materials company Versarien, uses graphene, a material made from a single layer of carbon atoms, to create products for the automotive, clothing, biomedical and aerospace sectors.

In 2021 the company scaled its production capacity with a move to a new dedicated graphene facility in Longhope in the Forest of Dean, and the acquisition of manufacturing assets sourced via its Spanish subsidiary.

The business has continued to commercialise its environmentally-focused technology, and in November announced a three-year partnership with fellow Gloucestershire firm Superdry to make graphene enhanced clothing for the fashion brand.

Both firms have said the garments will have a lower environmental impact on creation and will be “unlike any others on the market”.

Diane Savory, formerly chief operating officer at Superdry and chair of Gloucestershire’s ‘GFirst’ LEP, became Versarien’s non-executive chairman when James Stewart stepped down at the end of 2021.

Mr Stewart said Ms Savory’s experience would be “invaluable” during the next stage of Versarien’s development.

Graphcore - Bristol The artificial intelligence chip maker was named on a list of the UK’s top-performing scale-up firms in 2021.

It was one of 10 companies which between them secured a fifth of the entire tech sector’s venture capital

investment total of £2.5bn last year.

Graphcore alone attracted £159.8m of investment, according to the report.

The ‘unicorn’ firm - a business worth $1bn or more - was valued at $2.8bn (£2.05bn) in January after raising $222million in its latest funding round.

The Series E fundraise was led by Ontario Teachers’ Pensions Plan Board as well as new investors Fidelity International and Schroders. Existing Graphcore investors, including Baillie Gifford and Draper Esprit, also joined the round.

The company, founded by Nigel Toon and Simon Knowles in 2016, has offices in London, Cambridge, Palo Alto, Oslo, Beijing, Hsinchu, Seoul, New York, Seattle and Austin, and has developed one of the most advanced intelligence processing units in the world.

ProCook - Gloucestershire The Kitchenware brand completed a float on the London Stock Exchange in November that gave it a current market capitalisation of approximately £150m.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Kim Coles, financial director of Lush

Rolls-Royce’s Spirit of Innovation plane was powered by a battery made by Gloucestershire firm Electroflight

A cast iron casserole dish from West firm Procook

Founders of Peequal - makers of women’s urinals - Amber Probyn and Hazel McShane

Robin Totterman is chief executive of Bath-based eyewear firm Inspecs

Not bad going for the family-run retailer, which was launched by chief executive Daniel O’Neill more than 25 years ago and began by selling cookware sets through catalogues.

Mr O’Neill said that the listing would “elevate” brand awareness to compete with other cookware brands such as Le Creuset, Tefal, Denby and allow it to recruit and retain high quality talent.

ProCook recently added to its growing portfolio of more than 50 retail stores across the UK, with openings in two Westfield London shopping centres as well as a cookery school facility in the capital.

The company, which also sells its cooking and dining products directly to its customers through its website, sells its products to customers across Europe with Mr O’Neill previously saying “steady” rollout of the business in Western Europe was part of its expansion plans for the next two to three years.

Inspecs - Bath Designer eyewear group Inspecs made a THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Furniturebox founders Dan Beckles and Monty George

run of acquisitions in 2021, with the latest just before Christmas.

The AIM-listed company, which is headquartered in Bath, agreed a deal for global design and licensing company Ego Eyewear and its operating subsidiaries in Sweden and Hong Kong.

The company said that it was expecting the transaction to be “earnings enhancing” for 2022, with Ego forecast to have revenue of £8.9m for the year to 31 December 2021 (up from £3.4m in 2020).

The transaction comes weeks after Inspecs agreed a deal to buy BoDE Design, a German distributor of optical and sunglasses frames.

Last year, Inspecs agreed to acquire all the equity interests in Nuremberg-based eyewear supplier Eschenbach Holding.

It also bought up the manufacturing arm of a Gloucester-based glasses company that went into administration.

Furniturebox - Wiltshire The Wiltshire furniture business was listed as the fastest-growing online brand in the South West in September.

The company, which is based in the Beaumont Business Centre in Mere, topped a league table compiled by Bristol-based tech firm BrightPearl.

Researchers tracked growth rates for hundreds of online businesses across the UK who registered for inclusion in the ‘Lightning 50’ poll.

Brands were asked to submit their yearly growth numbers from 2019 to 2020, with each business ranked on their net growth percentage during that period.

Furniturebox, launched by Monty George and Dan Beckles in 2015 when the pair were aged 17, recorded a net growth of 267%.

The expanding company, which has grown its workforce to around 40 staff, is set to move to a new warehouse next year, as it looks to expand its product range and introduce new furniture designs.

Electroflight - Gloucestershire The Staverton-based aerospace company, which designs and manufactures

lightweight bespoke battery systems, teamed up with Rolls-Royce in 2021 in a bid to break the fastest all-electric flight world record - and it succeeded.

The Spirit of Innovation aircraft “smashed” the record in November and it was partly powered by a 400kw battery, built by Electroflight.

Rolls-Royce, which has a large South West base in Filton, South Gloucestershire, worked with Electroflight for three years on the project, spending £6m.

Many of the Elctroflight’s engineers - it has about 30 - come from a background in the automotive sector, while its managing director Stjohn Youngman was formerly employed in the sports car industry.

Last year, Electroflight told the BBC that it hoped the knowledge it had gathered as part of the Spirit of Innovation programme has given it a “head start” in the market for aircraft batteries.

As governments around the globe increasingly commit to making aviation greener, could we be seeing more of this small Gloucestershire firm?

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 15

Expanding firm driven by friends’ ambition F

AST-GROWING e-commerce firm Huboo’s head office in Bristol seems like a fun place to work.

The premises on Corn Street in the Old City include a climbing wall, pool table, bar, events space that hosted the Bristol tech festival, and a mini studio for the in-house radio station.

Co-founder Martin Bysh jokes his colleague Paul Dodd had wanted a slide to be installed between the floors of the building, which has a view of the gothic skyline from the rooftop balcony.

The building next door, Gilbert House, was also recently leased to the company in order to expand its HQ – with plans for the bottom floor to be rented out as a cocktail bar.

Perhaps this could be expected for a business that hired its own corporate bard to tell stories of the company and its staff’s achievements in song?

Looking around, it’s hard to believe that Huboo, whose technology enables online retailers to quickly access and complete end-to-end fulfilment operations, was launched less than five years ago from two secure storage rooms at a Safestore in Bath.

Given the incredible rise of the company, not least a 2021 packed with milestone achievements, it’s a wonder anyone at Huboo has time to factor in a frame of pool or a spot of climbing.

In February, it opened its fourth warehouse in and around the Bristol area at South West logistics hub Avonmouth, where it created hundreds of jobs.

In June, it began to scale its ‘microhub model’ into Europe, opening its first site outside the UK in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.

In September, it announced it was set to open a 4,200 sq mt logistics centre in 16 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

the Spanish capital Madrid, with plans to roll out its services across multiple European markets over the next year.

This will be funded by a £60m investment raised during a Series B round, led

by Mubadala Capital, the financial investment arm of an Emirati stateowned sovereign wealth fund, which the business closed in October.

Huboo’s meteoric rise hasn’t gone unnoticed. It was recently crowned Large Business of the Year at the BristolLive Business Awards.

It was also identified in a Government report as one of three companies within Bristol’s burgeoning tech sector expected to attain a ‘unicorn’ valuation of more than $1bn over the coming years.

Around the table in the boardroom, Mr Bysh, Huboo’s chief executive, says Huboo’s longer-term expansion plans are not merely confined to Europe.

“We do (have ambitions to scale to the US), but not on this round. Everything for us is funding driven. Right now The Netherlands is done and working, Spain we’re just setting up, just signing off on the warehouse in Madrid.

“Germany, we have identified where we want to be.

“And the plan is to do something like another 10 [in 2022]. And that’s basically Europe done. We might set up a few smaller bases in some of these additional countries.

“But in the midst of this roll out about eight months from now, we will probably seek funding again for the States. It’s an expensive business going into the States so another round and we’ll head over there, whilst Europe continues to roll out.”

Mr Bysh, a former computer games programmer who previously ran a marTHURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Andrew Arthur speaks to Huboo’s co-founders on launching from a Safestore in Bath to expanding in Europe, as they seek to become ‘an Amazon built in the West Country’

Huboo co-founders Martin Bysh (left) and Paul Dodd.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

ket research company, says it is “weird and difficult” to reflect on the journey Huboo has been on since its formative days.

“I don’t quite believe it now. We intended to be where we are now, but did we ever really believe we would?

You have to be sensible about these things, the odds are always against you.

Fundamentally, it’s been about funding and willingness to take risks.”

He met Mr Dodd, a former distribution and logistics manager with Proctor and Gamble – now Huboo’s chief technology officer – on the sidelines of their sons’ Saturday morning football training in Bath.

The pair struck up a friendship over a shared interest in their respective careers and soon began exchanging ideas for a new venture.

According to Mr Bysh, Huboo started as an idea from Mr Dodd for a company that would collect post if the recipient was not at home or work, and store the undelivered post in local collection hubs – hence ‘Huboo’.

Gradually the pair began to hone in on fulfilment and a hub or ‘micro warehouse’, were the key pieces of the idea.

Mr Bysh explained: “A big fulfilment company printed their data a year or two ago, and they said the average picker in their business walks 10 miles per day. Miserable jobs.

“Paul’s insight was that actually, if you insist your clients only deliver enough stock for a short period of time, you can shrink it all into a micro warehouse and the person isn’t walking 10 miles a day, they’re only walking half a mile a day.”

The duo’s idea was to have one person who deals with all the inputs and outputs – the picking, packing and posting, and the frontline support.

“In our hubs now, a hub manager might manage one big client or might have 30 clients in their hub. And they will be the first line of support for those clients, so they’ll get that kind of feedback that you wouldn’t normally get in a warehouse job.

“It’s more like retail really; you open your own shop, you come in, deal with your clients, you shut the shop and you go home.”

Mr Dodd began refining the compa-

ny’s order and billing software system at the Safestore in Bath before the venture had any customers.

He even bought test stock, such as boxes of chocolate, to ship and sell before Huboo had secured any small e-commerce businesses as clients.

Mr Bysh said: “We’d been meeting up, talking about it constantly, I had been mentoring Paul, and I was really excited about it by that point. I was hating what I was doing, running what was now somebody else’s business.

“So I offered to come in, take a piece and commercialise the business. If it works out, I‘ll raise some funds, and we will quit our day jobs and do that. So that’s what I did.

“I got about 60 clients within about six months. We became PayPal’s fulfilment provider in the UK, at which point we realised this did have legs. So we raised our first £1m and just went from there.”

Mr Bysh remembers the first venture capitalist looking to invest in the fledgling Huboo being “visibly shaken” when they came to visit their base at Safestore.

“It was a tiny little room. We had one person working in there, it was packed in as tight as can be.

“But there was this fantastic guy called Tommaso from PayPal, we got on incredibly well with him and I think charmed him, and he thought let’s take a punt’.

“I think we signed up something like 30 PayPal clients within a couple of months, only because brave people like Tommaso were willing to take a punt on two idiots from a Safestore in Bath.”

Since 2018, Huboo’s annual turnover has risen from £61,000 to £4.2m. Despite the challenges of the pandemic it hired around 150 new employees in 2020, took on more than 50 new clients a month and is now planning to create hundreds of more jobs in Europe as it expands.

The establishment of its new European bases in 2021 was made more remarkable given coronavirus restrictions surrounding travel.

Huboo has developed ‘digital twin’ 3D models of all its warehouses to carry out instant, detailed health checks on its hubs, without the hassle of the physical process.

It’s a feature that adds to the scalability of Huboo’s model, with Mr Bysh describing each hub as “a Lego brick of fulfil » TURN TO PAGE 18

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 17

» FROM PAGE 17

ment.” The company’s continental growth was also aided by a group of its interns, who took on a greater level of responsibility found on the average work experience placement.

Mr Bysh said: “Paul and I legally couldn’t go to Germany or anywhere in Europe because they were locked down.

We spoke to consulates, we tried to tell them we wanted to come over to start a business, to spend money, to create jobs – but they wouldn’t let us.

“In the end we had one intern in The Netherlands, Nazra, and three European interns [in the UK], a French girl and two lads; one from Spain, one from Italy.

They could travel in Europe, so we sent them over to meet Nazra.

“We got a flat for them so they could live out there, and just let them set the business up for us in the Netherlands.”

Within a matter of weeks the interns had found Huboo’s Eindhoven warehouse and kitted it out, while liaising with HQ back in Bristol.

A couple of months later Huboo had a business that was running in The Netherlands, in a warehouse that was fully stocked and shelved, and they had hired 20 staff. All of the interns are now fulltime employees across the company’s operations in Spain and Bristol.

Mr Bysh said: “It was a real test of the headless ops. We believe we have a system that is so phenomenally complex to build but so simple to roll out, now that it’s all driven out by our software and systems, that you shouldn’t need to have a long background in ops or be an engineer in order to roll it out or to manage it.

“It wasn’t supposed to happen that way, but honestly, I can’t imagine it being easier or more seamless than it was, it was extraordinary. Kudos to those amazing guys for rolling that out.”

Mr Bysh admits not everything had

18 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

been as straightforward during the pandemic, especially as staff shortages arose from Covid-related absences.

Employees across the business, right up to senior leadership, were redeployed to help out with “picking, packing, and sorting” in warehouses.

Each member of staff within the business trained as a hub manager.

Mr Bysh explained: “One forklift driver goes down with Covid or tests positive, all forklift truck drivers, as they mix together, are gone.

“We lost all of our quality assurance staff at one point; we lost all of the client implementation managers at the same time. Only one of them had Covid, but we lost them because of the ‘pingdemic’.

“We got to a point where we were struggling to get stuff down from the shelves.

“We found ways to cope with all of these things, but it caused huge problems.”

Mr Bysh said the firm had also lost a “huge number” of people who returned home to Europe during the pandemic – and admitted it had been “hard work” to get people in.

“The difference between us and other typical warehouse businesses is the churn rates in our warehouses are miniscule,” he said.

“These are great jobs that people like doing. The biggest problem that we have with churn is people churning internally as they get jobs within the business.

“Something like 50 people have moved up from the warehouse floor into other areas of the business. We want that to be the case.”

Mr Bysh said that the shift towards online retail and away from high street stores, catalysed by the pandemic, had helped Huboo’s growth, though the staff shortages already outlined and sudden spikes in certain products, had made

❝

We have no desire to defeat Amazon. But we do think this is potentially a $100bn business we are sitting on here. that growth “complex” to manage.

“When lockdown started, we had garden shears flying off the shelves; home educational kits, all that kind of stuff,” he said. “We also had massive single spikes.

Initially it was hand gels; half the business was shipping hand gels for months.

“That eventually died down and we don’t really sell gels anymore; now it’s huge numbers of tests. That too will die down in a couple months time I imagine.”

“So we had these massive spikes at the same time as this underlying growth. It’s not a time you would want to be growing in, but some businesses were shut down, so we definitely can’t complain; it wasn’t easy to grow during that period, but we did.”

One change to working life brought about by the pandemic that Mr Bysh is unhappy about, is what he describes as the “sudden discovery that everyone is entitled to work from home.”

It comes as reports emerged last year the government is considering introducing laws that would protect flexible working conditions, which would include allowing employees to request to work from home from their first day in a job.

Mr Bysh said: “It’s human nature. You give someone a privilege for any length of time and they then consider it a right.

They forget that it is a privilege.

“During the pandemic people were

forced to stay home. It seems to be for a certain class the lesson they have learned is that staying home is really nice, and they’re going to do it forever now and feel they should do as they are entitled to because of work-life balance.

“It’s actually where work-life balance falls. It’s a ridiculous thing, ‘I don’t have work-life balance unless I am home four days a week’.

“But the reality is that only happened because other people were working in warehouses packing stuff for you, collecting your bins and driving your buses.”

He added: “My guys in the warehouse aren’t going to be able to request to work from home, because there would be no job for them.

“This is a horrible imbalance. This is not a direction we should be going in as a society I think.

“The fact is there is a debt owed to those people that have worked for the last 18 months, and the way it is being paid is to demand more. This to me is very ugly.”

So what are the next targets for the business? To be the size of Amazon, according to Mr Bysh.

“We don’t care whether Amazon continues to exist or not, we have no desire to defeat Amazon. But we do think this is potentially a $100bn business we are sitting on here.

“The next round for us, in eight to 12 months, should be a raise of £200m or £300m, and ideally a valuation of about £2bn.

“Probably two years from now we should have 30 bases across Europe and we should have launched in the US. “If that works, then that’s a big business.”

An Amazon built in the West Country?

Mr Bysh replied: “Yes, that would be nice.”

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

UK gains momentum Steve Blacker, Head of Business Information at Vistra, considers the economic outlook for the year ahead

L

AST year was unpredictable.

Lockdowns early in the year and a continuation of the furlough scheme far longer than predicted enabled many small businesses and companies to keep afloat during one of the most challenging trading years ever seen.

As the country tries to climb out of a post-pandemic state, how have these events helped shape the companies in the South West region? Let us look at this year’s list of the Top 150 companies and see how they have fared.

Top 150 companies A familiar pattern emerges where UKbased international companies and foreign subsidiaries dominate the region.

Imperial Brands takes the top slot, employing more than 30,000 people globally.

Dyson, the runaway local success story, has now moved up to the number two position.

Energy suppliers also feature heavily in the top places, with OVO, Npower, and EDF in the top 10. Also high on the list are several technology companies, such as Intel, who remain at the number three position. Intel is a UK-US company subsidiary that manufactures microprocessors for desktops and PCs, servers and workstations at the Swindon location.

As we look at the other entries, it is good to see another long-established local company, C&J Clark Ltd, still sitting in the top 30 companies in the region after a few turbulent years of trading.

Founded almost 200 years ago in Street, Somerset, the company still employs more than 8,000 people.

Once more, the Business Guide shows some strong performances across the region even as we come out of the Covid pandemic, but what is the general economic outlook for 2022?

Outlook for 2022 After nearly two years of lockdowns, Brexit and economic disruption, are we at the dawn of a new era of economic growth or heading towards another recession? We have recently seen the inflation rate rise to a ten-year high of 5.1%, which also prompted an interest rate increase – the first in more than three years. Will this continue into 2022 and beyond?

The furlough scheme has been vital for businesses, protecting jobs and household incomes. However, with the furlough scheme now complete, some companies will inevitably get into difficulties and become insolvent. Only time will tell the long-term effect of Covid on businesses in the South West and the UK in general, and 2022 will be a year when insolvencies could rise to record levels.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

The Government has introduced other measures, such as the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) and the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). These safety nets have helped businesses access finance during the pandemic to them get back on track.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stated that the global economy will continue to recover in 2022 even though there is a resurging pandemic, and it predicts that there will be a 4.9% global increase in the economy.

This is a 0.5% higher prediction than earlier in the year, primarily due to the forecast for faster recovery from advanced economies.

Closer to home, the UK economy will hopefully begin to recover following the lifting of the lockdown measures imposed in 2021. Strong demand for goods and services is anticipated in 2022.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has shown that the UK gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to have increased by 1.3% in Quarter 3 in 2021 (July to September). This follows the 5.5% increase in the previous quarter, where there was an easing in many of the Covid-19 restrictions.

The most significant contributors to this increase were hospitality, arts & recreation and health, following the further easing of restrictions and reopening of the economy.

Although this reflects some level of growth/optimism, this is still 2.1% below pre-coronavirus pandemic levels at the end of 2019.

If we look at the IHS Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index, this finished the year at a rate of 58.1, signalling a more robust UK market, returning customers and rising confidence.

This index measures how well the economy is performing and is often closely linked to GDP rates. The indexes fall between 0 and 100, with scores above 50 indicating expansion and below indicating contraction.

The latest Business Confidence Monitor (BCM) survey, carried out by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), shows that business confidence has weakened, though it is still high. However, businesses face growing challenges with skills availability, staff turnover, input costs and transport problems. Companies’ sales expectations are still strong, but not at the previous quarter’s levels.

The survey shows that the UK economy has continued to edge its way out of the deep recession caused by the global Covid-19 pandemic. Momentum is increasing by gradually removing the guidelines and restrictions placed on economic and social activity, most notably those relating to leisure, entertain-

Part of the Dyson campus in Malmesbury

Business opportunities in turbulent times As we look at the list of the Top 150 companies in the region and the current market situation, it is more important than ever to monitor for early signs of adverse events impacting your business.

Vistra offers a comprehensive AntiMoney Laundering and Global Monitoring solution to protect companies against reputational and financial risk.

Our Bristol team has provided business information and compliance product insight for more than 30 years to over 25,000 companies per year.

At Vistra, we believe your business and your people can make a difference in the

Vistra’s Steve Blacker

ment and sporting activities. The main restrictions that still apply are related to travel to or from various countries outside of the UK, which continue to have a dampening effect on those parts of the UK economy reliant on international tourism.

UK recruitment agencies have also signalled a sharp increase in hiring activity over the last quarter, evidenced by the rise in vacancies for both permanent and short-term staff. The imbalance of supply versus demand has also led to increased starting salaries.

world. That’s why our work is focused on helping our clients act with confidence and speed to seize opportunity wherever it arises. As a global corporate service provider and fund administrator with more than 5,000 professionals in over 45 jurisdictions, we empower legal entities globally to work smarter, grow faster, act responsibly, protect capital and scale across borders by doing what we do best: reducing risk and enhancing efficiency.

To find out more about these services or the many other legal, regulatory and compliance services offered by Vistra in Bristol, and globally, visit www.vistra. com or email me at steve.blacker@vistra. com. I would be happy to arrange a call to discuss.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 19

The Top 150 REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

RANK

2021 RANK

1

1

IMPERIAL BRANDS PLC

Bristol

Creation of a portfolio of high-quality next generation and tobacco products for the world's smokers.

2,166,000

32,562,000

32,100

2

4

DYSON TECHNOLOGY LIMITED

Malmesbury

The research and development and sub-licensing of patents and design rights.

450,000

4,876,500

3,276

3

3

INTEL CORPORATION (UK) LIMITED

Swindon

The sale, marketing and distribution of Intel products.

Accounts data converted from US dollars.

525,692

4,568,759

654

4

21

OVO GROUP LTD

Bristol

Leading independent energy supplier.

-176,000

4,459,000

8,391

5

7

NPOWER LIMITED

Swindon

Marketing and supply of electricity and natural gas and related services to domestic, commercial and industrial consumers.

177,000

3,202,000

1,228

6

2

AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED

Bristol

Design and production of wings and associated equipment for the Airbus range of aircraft.

-726,000

2,925,000

8,189

7

6

EDF ENERGY NUCLEAR GENERATION LIMITED

Gloucester

Generation and sale of electricity.

344,000

2,748,000

5,462

8

5

SENSATA TECHNOLOGIES HOLDING PLC

Swindon

Manufacture and distribution of electrical components.

Accounts data converted from US dollars.

134,350

2,229,070

9

11

SCREWFIX DIRECT LIMITED

Yeovil

The distribution of tools, fixings and equipment by mail order, internet and through trade counters.

205,100

2,029,900

10

new

HAYNES GROUP LIMITED

Yeovil

Creator and supplier of practical information and data solutions to motorists and professional mechanics in print and digital formats.

2,823,347

1,827,535

11

10

WESTERN POWER DISTRIBUTION PLC

Bristol

Electricity distribution network operator for the Midlands, South Wales and South West.

692,500

1,671,200

12

New

ROYALTY PHARMA PLC

Bristol

Acquisition of pharmaceutical royalties across the life sciences industry. Accounts data converted from US dollars.

1,245,666

1,553,358

13

16

FIRST GREATER WESTERN LIMITED

Swindon

The provision of passenger railway services.

54,835

1,439,493

6,229

14

9

PUMA ENERGY (UK) LIMITED

Bristol

Operates and expands the fuels storage and wholesale business throughout England and Wales.

5,137

1,323,045

116

15

34

IVC ACQUISITION PIKCO LTD

Bristol

A group engaged in the provision of veterinary services.

-84,974

1,311,097

19,700

16

18

WINCANTON PLC

Chippenham

Provider of logistics and supply chain solutions in the UK and Ireland.

48,400

1,221,900

19,145

17

17

SPIRAX-SARCO ENGINEERING PLC

Cheltenham

Provides engineering services.

240,100

1,193,400

7,891

18

new

RWE GENERATION UK PLC

Swindon

Electricity generation company.

19,000

1,177,000

1,000

19

14

SMITHS NEWS PLC

Swindon

Leading UK specialist distributor and a leading player in newspaper and magazine wholesaling and mixed freight deliveries.

14,800

1,164,500

4,509

20

12

HONDA OF THE UK MANUFACTURING LIMITED

Swindon

Manufacture of motor vehicles, including the manufacture of engines and other vehicle parts.

-3,947

1,143,446

2,936

21

20

ARVAL UK GROUP LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged in the provision of fleet management services.

72,696

1,105,583

686

22

23

THE MORTGAGE WORKS (UK) PLC

Swindon

Residential mortgage lending. T/O = Interest receivable and similar income.

337,600

1,040,900

23

22

WH SMITH PLC

Swindon

Leading retailer in convenience, books and news for the world's travelling customer; and high street stationer, bookseller & newsagent.

-280,000

1,021,000

14,514

24

24

MATTHEW CLARK BIBENDUM LIMITED

Bristol

The distribution of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

4,415

1,010,288

1,665

25

25

ST. JAMES'S PLACE WEALTH MANAGEMENT PLC

Cirencester

Acts as an intermediary in the provision of financial services products.

-83,191

977,391

26

15

WESTCON GROUP EUROPEAN OPERATIONS LIMITED

Cirencester

Distribution of electronic voice and data networking equipment and other networking-related products. Accounts data converted from US dollars.

1,331

889,397

1,149

27

26

MEARS GROUP PLC

Gloucester

Provision of a range of outsourced services to the public and private sectors.

-15,218

805,817

6,327

COMPANY NAME

20 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

TRADE DESCRIPTION

12,523

6,556

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

The Top 150 REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

47,827

794,391

628

-172,200

775,000

8,559

RANK

2021 RANK

28

27

ALD AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED

Bristol

The provision of fleet management services to external customers, including the arrangement of vehicle financing, and the sale of used motor vehicles.

29

29

C&J CLARK LIMITED

Street

A group engaged in worldwide shoe retailing and wholesaling.

30

30

VIRIDOR LIMITED

Taunton

A group engaged in the provision of recycling services and waste management and the generation of renewable energy.

24,700

720,600

2,733

31

35

YTL UTILITIES (UK) LIMITED

Bath

A group engaged in the supply of clean water and treatment and disposal of waste water.

90,400

685,500

3,151

32

51

BAKER HUGHES ENERGY TECHNOLOGY Bristol UK LIMITED

The design, manufacture and sale of drilling and completion equipment used in oil and gas exploration and production, and in the services related to the installation and operation of this equipment.

-448,249

685,083

2,433

33

36

WESSEX WATER LIMITED

Bath

A group engaged in the supply of clean water and treatment and disposal of waste water.

88,700

682,000

3,105

34

32

BORGWARNER TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED

Stonehouse

The manufacture and supply of diesel automotive products and technology to car and commercial vehicle manufacturers.

86,192

672,489

1,828

35

new

INDEPENDENT VETCARE LIMITED

Bristol

The provision of veterinary services.

-161,149

667,373

11,284

36

43

HARGREAVES LANSDOWN PLC

Bristol

Investor investment services, including ISA, SIPP & investment accounts. Provides execution only, advisory services and third party investments for individuals and corporates.

366,000

631,000

1,839

37

33

ROTORK PLC

Bath

Designs and manufactures actuators used for the automation of industrial valves and flow control products.

122,037

604,544

3,507

38

28

SAFRAN LANDING SYSTEMS UK LTD

Gloucester

Design, manufacture & product support of aircraft landing gear for civil and military aircraft and helicopters.

70,075

597,825

857

39

new

RWE RENEWABLES UK SWINDON LIMITED

Swindon

The provision of the development of renewable power generation projects, and services in relation to the construction, operation and maintenance of renewable power generation facilities.

73,134

577,944

550

40

38

DICK LOVETT COMPANIES LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged in the sale and maintenance of BMW, Mini, Porsche, Ferrari and Maserati vehicles in the UK.

14,740

566,182

929

41

new

WESTERN COUNTIES AUTOMOBILE COMPANY LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged in the sale and maintenance of BMW, Mini, Porsche, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles in the UK.

14,311

566,180

926

42

48

RENISHAW PLC

Wotton-underEdge

Metrology company operating in two key business areas: metrology and healthcare.

139,439

565,559

4,437

43

47

FREEMANS OF NEWENT LIMITED

Hereford

The supply of poultry meat.

10,930

561,362

2,636

44

42

NUTRICIA LIMITED

Trowbridge

Distribution, sale and marketing of specialist nutritional products for babies, young children and people with specific nutritional needs.

14,408

559,274

660

45

31

SUPERDRY PLC

Cheltenham

Design, production and sale of clothing and accessories.

-36,700

556,100

2,822

46

40

KERRY INGREDIENTS (UK) LIMITED

Bristol

Manufacture and sale of food ingredient products.

13,368

548,106

1,695

47

37

CAMBRIA AUTOMOBILES LIMITED

Swindon

Sale and servicing of motor vehicles and the provision of ancillary services.

10,185

524,016

1,014

48

54

CORIALIS GROUP LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged the design, manufacture and distribution of architectural aluminium profiles and the manufacture and distribution of aluminium extrusion profiles. Accounts data converted from euro.

53,965

500,000

2,103

49

50

NOKIA UK LIMITED

Bristol

The distribution and maintenance of communications equipment primarily manufactured by the group, together with related products and services.

17,570

480,969

1,072

50

52

MAN TRUCK AND BUS UK LIMITED

Swindon

The importation and distribution of trucks and buses and related products and services within the UK.

4,298

462,415

815

51

new

DKH RETAIL LIMITED

Cheltenham

Design and ownership of brands and wholesale distribution of own-brand products (clothes, shoes and accessories) worldwide.

-79,088

462,219

176

COMPANY NAME

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

TRADE DESCRIPTION

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 21

The Top 150 RANK

2021 RANK

52

new

53

59

54

new

55

COMPANY NAME

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

TRADE DESCRIPTION

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

SANDERSON SOLUTIONS GROUP PLC

Bristol

Engaged in the provision of management services to group companies.

8,999

448,677

320

COMBINED INDEPENDENTS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED

Andover

A group engaged in purchasing electrical goods on behalf of its shareholders who are independent electrical retailers.

2,999

446,515

70

ZURICH ASSURANCE LTD

Swindon

The transaction of ordinary long-term insurance business.

-6,000

441,000

69

PATHEON UK LIMITED

Swindon

The provision of commercial manufacturing services (CMS) and pharmaceutical development services (PDS). Accounts data converted from euro.

88,880

431,531

459

56

39

GE AVIATION SYSTEMS LIMITED

Cheltenham

The development and manufacture of aerospace systems.

Accounts data converted from US dollars.

-245,999

426,327

2,267

57

49

MAGNOX LIMITED

Bristol

The provision of services in relation to the generation and supply of electricity. T/O = revenue.

-1,246

409,587

2,127

58

46

OLA ENERGY ETHIOPIA LIMITED

Bristol

Buys, sells and otherwise deals in petroleum products and chemicals.

2,544

403,815

59

53

THE OASIS HEALTHCARE GROUP LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in the operation of dental practices and provision of dental services.

-82,939

388,427

5,995

60

58

ALLCHURCHES TRUST LIMITED

Gloucester

Group aims to promote the Christian religion, contribute to the funds of any charitable institutions, associations, funds or objects and carry out any charitable purpose. A registered charity, limited by guarantee. T/O = total income and endowments.

-38,797

382,285

1,448

61

62

OPENWORK LIMITED

Swindon

Multi-tied financial services distribution company.

26,163

360,256

62

60

NATIONAL OILWELL VARCO UK LIMITED

Stonehouse

The provision of manufacturing, wholesale and servicing of equipment and accessories to the offshore oil and gas industry.

12,742

346,750

1,628

63

82

FUTURE PLC

Bath

Global platform business for specialist media, driven by technology, with diversified revenue streams.

52,000

339,600

1,636

64

45

COLT CAR COMPANY LIMITED (THE)

Cirencester

Importing, distributing, wholesaling and retailing motor vehicles and parts.

16,876

338,864

189

65

new

KEY WEST (HOLDINGS) LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in sale and lease of catering equipment.

8,686

320,614

1,939

66

55

NISBETS PLC

Bristol

A group engaged in the sale and leasing of catering equipment.

10,509

313,556

1,865

67

63

CENTAUR SERVICES LIMITED

Castle Cary

Pharmaceutical products to members of the veterinary profession.

-1,284

307,971

354

68

new

BASF METALS RECYCLING LIMITED

Cinderford

Refining of precious and other metal products.

207

296,151

69

67

NUVIAS GLOBAL SERVICES LIMITED

Cirencester

The distribution of computer networking accessories and hardware and sale of networked storage solutions.

527

296,002

71

70

new

NOV DOWNHOLE EURASIA LIMITED

Stonehouse

A group engaged in design, manufacture and provision of downhole tools, drill bits & related services to the global oil and gas industry. Accounts data converted from US dollars.

42,948

293,389

752

71

65

KK DAYTONA HOLDING LTD

Gloucester

Holding company.

2,916

292,855

1,239

72

61

MASSTOCK ARABLE (UK) LIMITED

Cheltenham

The provision of agronomy advice supported by the sale and distribution of crop protection products. T/O = revenue.

6,073

285,692

648

73

64

HERITAGE AUTOMOTIVE HOLDINGS LIMITED

Salisbury

A group engaged in sale of new and used motor cars, repairs and servicing.

354

285,478

632

74

66

STANNAH LIFTS HOLDINGS LIMITED

Andover

A group engaged in the manufacture, installation, repair and maintenance of stairlifts, lifts, escalators and moving walkways.

10,216

279,492

2,214

75

new

SENSIS HOLDING LIMITED

Cheltenham

A group engaged in the advertising business.

89,128

279,181

653

76

56

ASPIRE DEFENCE HOLDINGS LIMITED

Tidworth

A group engaged as PFI contractor and finance provider.

25,704

275,140

18

22 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

The Top 150 RANK

2021 RANK

77

new

78

COMPANY NAME

REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

TRADE DESCRIPTION

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

3,576

274,488

353

202

268,988

2,206

GRANGE MOTORS (BRENTWOOD) LIMITED

Swindon

Sale and service of new and used motor vehicles together with the sale of spare parts and accessories.

68

MONAGHAN MUSHROOMS LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in the production and sale of fresh mushrooms.

79

92

TELEPERFORMANCE LIMITED

Bristol

Provides services to many respected brands in the UK and across the globe – customer care, technical support, customer acquisition, digital solutions, back-office and other specialised services – to ensure consistently positive customer interactions.

15,097

266,609

6,959

80

258

NIANTIC INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

Bristol

Develops and exploits technology related to augmented reality games worldwide, excluding USA. Accounts data converted from US dollars.

3,362

253,604

10

81

74

QUALASEPT HOLDINGS LIMITED

Corsham

A group engaged in the supply of pharmaceutical products and services.

14,619

253,247

320

82

71

YEO VALLEY PRODUCTION LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in the production, distribution and wholesale selling of dairy products.

3,937

251,416

1,556

83

new

OAK FURNITURELAND HOLDINGS LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged to act as holding company. T/O = revenue

-22,972

251,084

262

84

78

ECCLESIASTICAL INSURANCE OFFICE PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

Gloucester

Specialist financial group whose portfolio includes investment management and insurance.

-15,746

247,663

1,205

85

147

INTERCEPT PHARMA EUROPE LTD

Bristol

Research and development in PBC and NASH and commercialisation of OCA in PBC.

-134,381

245,499

58

86

76

RYGOR GROUP LIMITED

Westbury

Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle dealing, distribution, warehousing and contract hire.

-1,317

240,422

702

87

75

M AND M DIRECT LIMITED

Leominster

The retail of sports and fashion wear via mail order.

11,274

238,314

701

88

99

EURONICS LIMITED

Andover

Purchaser of electrical goods on behalf of its shareholders who are independent electrical retailers.

178

236,266

89

90

ECOTRICITY GROUP LTD

Stroud

A group engaged in the general commercial company focusing on sustainable and environmental businesses in energy, transport and food.

-3,914

230,014

660

90

new

INTELLIGENT RESOURCE LIMITED

Bristol

The provision of contract resources.

869

228,864

37

91

new

MAGNERS GB LIMITED

Bristol

The manufacture, sale and marketing of alcoholic drinks.

15,411

228,408

92

85

ETEX BUILDING PERFORMANCE LIMITED

Bristol

Manufacture and supply of plasterboard and accessories.

51,244

216,370

470

93

new

THE UNITE GROUP PLC

Bristol

UK largest and most experienced developer and operator of student accommodation.

-120,100

215,600

1,739

94

new

AUXILLIS SERVICES LIMITED

Bath

The provision of non-fault accident management, assistance and related services.

7,833

213,545

95

83

SIMPLYHEALTH ACCESS

Andover

The provision of health cash plans and private medical insurance.

34,000

210,900

96

77

TAYLOR MAXWELL GROUP (2017) LIMITED

Bristol

Engaged in the ability to continue to trade profitably and manage working capital.

4,383

209,898

203

97

81

SIGMA-ALDRICH COMPANY LIMITED

Gillingham

Import, manufacture and distribution of specialised chemicals for research purposes.

82,250

207,469

490

98

115

INTERNATIONAL PLYWOOD PLC

Gloucester

A group engaged in timber merchants.

15,376

194,992

77

99

100

VECTURA GROUP PLC

Chippenham

Industry-leading inhalation device, formulation, development for human use.

131,300

190,600

502

100

95

GALLOPER WIND FARM LIMITED

Swindon

The construction of the Galloper wind farm.

49,322

189,495

101

103

HAPPOLD LLP

Bath

A group engaged in the provision of professional design and advisory services to the property and construction sectors.

19,094

188,203

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

1,791

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 23

The Top 150

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

RANK

2021 RANK

102

118

JISC

Bristol

A group engaged in the support of UK research and education by delivering affordable, relevant and sustainable online content.

9,803

184,348

779

103

80

LEIDOS EUROPE, LIMITED

Bristol

Manages and delivers its logistics, commodities and services transformation programme (LCST). T/O = revenue.

7,444

179,385

163

104

126

APETITO LIMITED

Trowbridge

Supplies nutritious frozen prepared meals and other products to the health and social care sector and food services markets.

30,868

179,156

1,429

105

88

TYCO ELECTRONICS UK LTD

Swindon

The manufacture or supply of passive electronic components, active wireless and fibre optic components, power and wiring systems and high-end printed circuit board technologies.

2,025

176,996

1,232

106

101

DAC BEACHCROFT SERVICES LIMITED

Bristol

The provision of administration services.

6,221

175,899

2,283

107

96

COOPER TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY EUROPE LIMITED

Melksham

The manufacture and distribution of car, van, motorcycle and racing tyres and related processed materials primarily in the European market, including distribution of products to associated companies in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland.

-14,231

169,675

574

108

98

AVON PROTECTION PLC

Melksham

Specialises in chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and respiratory protection, plus milking point solutions.

500

168,000

1,093

109

102

YANKEE CANDLE COMPANY (EUROPE) LIMITED

Bristol

Selling and distribution of candles and associated products.

17,042

166,345

315

110

new

FLEMINGO INTERNATIONAL (UK) LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in the provision of local representation services.

-4,104

166,258

213

111

97

KINGSPAN INSULATION LIMITED

Leominster

The manufacture of flexible faced insulation boards and insulated cavity closures. T/O = revenue.

13,257

166,021

530

112

new

SIRONA CARE & HEALTH C.I.C.

Bristol

A group engaged in the provision of publicly-funded health and social care services. T/O = income.

10,585

165,458

3,335

113

new

ANAPLAN LIMITED

Bristol

Software development, software sales, support, training and consultancy.

-8,167

162,834

414

114

110

MOLSON GROUP LTD

Bristol

A group engaged in the sale of new construction equipment supplied by a number of top line large international manufacturing companies, the purchase and sale of used equipment, and the sale of related parts and services.

-8,635

161,540

254

115

new

ZELLIS TOPCO LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged to provide technological solutions and services for human resources.

-46,094

159,703

2,129

116

new

LIBERTY LIVING (HE) HOLDINGS LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in investing in and operating student accommodation property.

156,300

158,700

117

125

AMCOR EUROPE GROUP MANAGEMENT

Bristol

Services company for group companies. Accounts data converted from euro.

3,698

156,639

884

118

124

PROJECT PEOPLE LIMITED

Bristol

A group engaged in the provision of consulting services.

585

156,409

597

119

130

BRADFORD AND SONS LIMITED

Yeovil

A group engaged in builders merchanting, trading as Bradfords Building Supplies, and the importing and further processing of timber, trading as Snows Timber.

3,576

156,026

766

120

new

WATER 2 BUSINESS LIMITED

Bristol

Holding company.

334

155,064

58

121

111

KNORR-BREMSE RAIL SYSTEMS (UK) LIMITED

Melksham

The design and manufacture of braking systems and related products for rail vehicles together with the design, manufacture and installation of platform screen doors on railway stations.

25,449

152,329

555

122

112

FORD FUELS LIMITED

Bristol

Sale and distribution of petroleum products.

6,558

152,095

176

123

104

COTSWOLD MOTOR GROUP LIMITED

Cheltenham

Selling and repairing of motor vehicles.

3,548

151,261

332

124

141

DOPANO LIMITED

Cheltenham

Holding company.

2,846

151,261

332

COMPANY NAME

24 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

TRADE DESCRIPTION

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

The Top 150

data supplied by Profit/loss and turnover figures are in GBP (000s) and from the last available year - Vistra.com

REGISTERED OFFICE CITY OR TOWN

PROFIT (LOSS) BEFORE TAXATION

TURNOVER LAST AVAIL. YEAR

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

RANK

2021 RANK

125

new

MERCK LIFE SCIENCE UK LIMITED

Gillingham

Sale of speciality chemicals and the provision of research and development services.

15,271

150,979

222

126

new

CORIN GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED

Cirencester

A group engaged in manufacture and marketing of orthopaedic devices on a worldwide basis.

-63,837

150,417

772

127

new

NAGEL LANGDONS LTD

Bridgwater

The provision of temperature controlled haulage facilities, distribution, cold and chill storage and transport services.

7,888

146,013

1,533

128

114

LANGDON GROUP LIMITED

Bridgwater

A group engaged in the provision of temperature controlled haulage facilities, distribution, cold and chill storage and transport services.

7,651

146,013

1,533

129

73

NATIONWIDE COVERED BONDS LLP

Swindon

The acquisition of mortgage loans and their related security.

T/O = interest receivable.

47,500

143,900

130

120

FISH BROTHERS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged in the provision of sale, servicing, body repair, rental and contract hire of motor vehicles.

3,078

143,505

287

131

115

INTERNATIONAL PLYWOOD (IMPORTERS) LIMITED

Gloucester

Timber merchants.

-10,056

142,584

51

132

new

NASA UMBRELLA LTD

Bristol

Operation of a payroll umbrella company.

830

141,830

2,003

133

new

THE AGRICULTURAL MORTGAGE CORPORATION PLC

Andover

The provision of long-term mortgage finance to farmers and growers in the UK.

56,766

140,030

69

134

new

THOMAS SILVEY LIMITED

Bristol

The distribution of oil products.

1,579

139,541

39

135

new

VITACRESS LIMITED

Andover

A group engaged in growing, procuring, packing and marketing of fresh produce.

7,179

139,099

1,443

136

new

ARI FLEET LTD.

Chippenham

Intermediate holding company.

-3,065

138,715

327

137

108

WESSEX GARAGES HOLDINGS LIMITED Bristol

Sale and service of new and used motor vehicles together with the sale of parts and accessories.

1,482

137,992

283

138

129

HOWARD GARAGES (WESTON) LIMITED

Weston-superMare

Retail sale of motor vehicles, accessories, repair and servicing.

2,524

137,140

265

139

117

EW BEARD (HOLDINGS) LIMITED

Swindon

A group engaged in construction contracts and rental of investment properties.

4,397

136,256

308

140

134

CSX LIMITED

Radstock

A group engaged in the distribution of agricultural tractors and farm machinery.

2,458

135,355

141

89

SANDERSON RECRUITMENT PLC

Bristol

The provision of contract information technology personnel.

4,808

134,829

108

142

127

COMPUTERSHARE INVESTOR SERVICES Bristol PLC

The provision of financial administration services relating to share register, employee share plans, tenancy deposit protection and stakeholder communication services.

3,563

133,865

1,436

143

new

FANATICS UK HOLDINGS LIMITED

-25,572

133,465

1,232

144

new

KOHLER SHOWERS HOLDINGS LIMITED Cheltenham

A group engaged in precision controls.

7,060

133,139

787

145

new

SEABANK POWER LIMITED

Bristol

Electricity generation, meeting the requirements of its customers as specified in signed power purchase agreements.

14,372

131,587

55

146

new

C-RETAIL LIMITED

Cheltenham

The operation of Cult and Superdry stores in the UK, which sell own brand and third party clothing, shoes and accessories.

-66,574

131,587

1,311

147

122

HERMAN MILLER LIMITED

Melksham

A group engaged in manufacture and sale of office furniture within the UK and overseas markets.

12,887

131,191

491

148

new

GOOD ENERGY GROUP PLC

Chippenham

Purchase, generation and sale of electricity from renewables, the sale of gas services relating to micro-renewable generation and the development of new electricity generation sites.

-82

130,649

272

149

138

SPECIAL METALS WIGGIN LIMITED

Hereford

The manufacture and sale of nickel alloys.

6,356

130,565

578

150

107

FORAY MOTOR GROUP LIMITED

Salisbury

Ford franchised motor dealerships.

-279

130,276

418

COMPANY NAME

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

TRADE DESCRIPTION

Bristol

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 25

Excitement over the rise and rise of electric flight Hannah Baker looks at what 2022 has in store for the West’s pioneering aerospace sector

I

T is nearly 120 years since the world’s first motor-operated plane took flight.

American brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright are generally credited with inventing – and successfully operating – the first piloted aircraft in North Carolina in 1903.

The duo’s groundbreaking achievement, a feat almost impossible to comprehend at the time, would mark the birth of an industry that would change the world.

More than a century on and the aerospace sector is worth hundreds of billions of pounds to the global economy.

Britain’s aerospace industry is now the second largest in the world, behind only the US, with more than 3,000 aviation companies operating in the country.

In 2020, the UK’s aerospace sector had an annual turnover of £35bn and it provided more than 120,000 highly skilled jobs.

Since then, the industry has been ravaged by the pandemic, with giants including Airbus and Rolls-Royce forced to undergo major restructuring programmes in a bid to cut costs.

Last year, however, industry body ADS said the sector was focusing on its future – and returning to long-term growth, despite the uncertainty that remains around air travel.

Airbus also announced this month it had surpassed its annual delivery target for 2021 – with 611 commercial aircraft

26 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

sent to 88 customers, including the last ever A380.

But what does the future hold for the industry? Incredible change, according to Bristol-based aerospace expert Dr Steve Wright (pictured right).

Dr Wright, a senior research fellow in avionics at the University of the West of England (UWE) and a systems engineer who has worked for Airbus and Boeing, says he is “excited” about the developments in the sector, particularly the rise of electric flight.

“I have worked in aerospace for 30 years and in that time I have not witnessed anything like the revolution I have seen in the industry in the last five years,” he said. “It’s bonkers.”

He says the sector is driving towards decarbonising aviation and electric planes, but the new technologies being developed will take some time before they are commercialised.

“The strength and weakness of the aerospace industry is that nothing happens quickly. Electric flight is coming, but it’s going to take longer than you think; probably about five years.”

I have not witnessed ❝ ❝ anything like the revolution I

have seen in the industry in the last five years. It’s bonkers

According to Dr Wright, the sector is developing a “tranche of solutions” as it attempts to become more sustainable, much in parallel with the evolution of the automotive sector.

“Here we are at the end of the second era of aviation and there is no one-sizefits-all solution to sustainable aviation,” he said. “There is a place for smaller, pure electric aircraft, but there is also very much a place for hybrid electric, just as we have seen play out in the automotive industry.

“We hope that pure electric will work its way up the stack of aircraft size and in 20 years everyone will say that is the way it’s done, but it will take a long time.”

There are around 200 electric and sustainable aviation projects taking place around the world, including a large number in the UK. One such project being undertaken at UWE is for a hydrogen-powered vehicle that could travel port-to-port between Bristol and Cardiff.

Businesses across the industry, from major heavyweights such as Rolls-Royce and Boeing to agile start-ups, are also investing heavily in electric flight.

In November, Rolls-Royce’s batterypowered ‘Spirit of Innovation’ plane smashed the world record for the fastest all-electric flight after reaching a top speed of 345.4mph over three kilometres at Boscombe Down in Wiltshire – breaking the existing record by 132mph.

Meanwhile, Bristol-based Vertical

Aerospace is leading the race to develop the world’s first all-electric ‘flying taxi’.

The company, founded in 2016 by Ovo Energy boss Stephen Fitzpatrick, is developing a so-called all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle. In June last year, the business announced 1,000 pre-orders for its aircraft with the likes of American Airlines and Virgin after confirming it would become publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange and being valued at nearly $2bn (£1.4bn).

The company is planning to develop and launch a Virgin Atlantic-branded short-haul ‘flying taxi’ in the UK. The joint venture will see Vertical Aerospace’s electric vehicles based at UK airport hubs, including London Heathrow, Manchester and Gatwick.

These new electric ‘flying taxis’ are not for long-haul journeys, says Dr Wright, but for “short city hops or hops over water” between places that are difficult to get to in Britain by other forms of transport.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Vertical Aerospace’s design for an all-electric ‘flying taxi’

“Wouldn’t it be great if we could fly from Bristol to Gatwick and connect immediately?” he said.

“Another example would be from Oxford to Cambridge, because you end up beating your way across radial roads. It’s a perfect example of that frustration that could be solved.”

Dr Wright, who is also working for Samad Aerospace – a Bedfordshire-based technology company developing a range of civil hybrid-electric eVTOL aircraft – says Scotland is also “crying out” for these new technologies.

“Especially the Highlands and Islands,” he added. “We have been looking at the jump from Prestwick Airport to the Isle of Arran. To drive, it takes so long.”

Dr Wright admits the first commercial THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

trips are probably still three to five years away, however, with flights over longer routes some decades away.

“When will we have the first electric passenger-carrying hop from London to New York? I don’t see it happening before 2050. We have electric flight, and in three to five years we will see it in a very real sense with these short hops. The future in the meanwhile is hybrids. It will be a gradual transition, but it will be decades long as it will happen so slowly.”

Fuelling the planes of the future Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is another hot topic within the aerospace industry, but Dr Wright believes the sector will be burning hydrocarbon for “a long time yet”.

“The very last drop of hydrocarbon fuel

that is burnt on planet earth will be in an aeroplane,” he said.

SAF is non-conventional (fossil derived) aviation fuel that is being used to replace traditional fuels in a bid to cut carbon emissions. There are different types – or so-called ‘generations’ – of SAF and some are causing controversy within the sector.

One of the “big complaints”, says Dr Wright, is creating SAF by growing crops that could be used for food.

“Essentially, we are growing fuel and it is taking crops that could be food,” he said. “In a world full of starving millions that is a really difficult problem. But here is the good news: the production processes are evolving.”

Dr Wright is referring to the three processes that have evolved over time to make SAF more sustainable – and, arguably more importantly, more ethical.

He explained: “With the first generation you take corn, mash it up and brew it into fuel. The second generation takes organic matter that would otherwise be

wasted and chemically turns it into fuel.

But where it gets really interesting is the third generation, where we are essentially growing the fuel using special cultures of algae.”

Dr Wright says scientists are now able to use genetically modified algae, which captures sunlight and pulls carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and turns it back into hydrocarbon fuel that can be used in planes.

“It’s still expensive, but it can be used for aircraft models that already exist.

People are blending sustainable fuels with conventional fuels.”

Dr Wright believes 2022 is going to be a “consolidation year” as industry experts like himself continue on the slow road to sustainable aviation.

“It will be another year of rising frustration for many people, saying ‘come on, we want electric flight’. It is coming, but it will take some time yet.”

He added: “As a country, our heart is in the right place and we are aware there is an opportunity to be seized.”

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 27

Entrepreneurs working for a greener future Andrew Arthur looks at some of the West companies that are doing more than talking the talk when it comes to being green businesses

T

HE South West, of all the areas in the UK, is really at the forefront of the fight against climate change and also the green industrial revolution”.

That was the assessment of business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng when speaking at the official opening of Airbus’ £40m research facility in Filton near Bristol last June.

Mr Kwarteng was among the decisionmakers and business leaders who spent that morning hearing how the aerospace giant would use its new base to help deliver new low-carbon technologies.

Through collaboration with some of its regional neighbours such as RollsRoyce and GKN, Airbus has been involved in some of the ground-breaking innovations the sector yielded in 2021.

These have included the assembly of a prototype ‘eco-wing’ as part of a programme trying to find a more sustainable aircraft wing design. Test flights over the Mediterranean of an Airbus commercial passenger aircraft powered by a Rolls-Royce engine using 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) produced “promising early results”.

In the air closer to home, Rolls-Royce’s battery powered plane, ‘Spirit of Innovation’, smashed the fastest all-electric flight world record after take-off from the Ministry of Defence’s Boscombe Down site in Wiltshire.

A ‘green industrial revolution’ of course has been arguably something of a political gimmick, peppering manifestos of parties of all leanings for some time.

But 2021 saw the unveiling of the government’s ‘Net Zero Strategy’, or how it plans to deliver on its commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Highlights of the plans include securing 440,000 jobs in future industries and the leveraging up to £90bn of private investment by 2030.

Perhaps now the stage has now been 28 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

set for the revolution to take place - and is the South West where it will happen?

The West is keenly observing reports that US carmaker Rivian is considering a site in Somerset for a potential electric car plant, a move that could be worth £1bn to the UK economy and in the South West alone could create 10,000 jobs and another 90,000 indirect roles as part of the supply chain.

As Mr Kwarteng pointed out, not only does the South West have a tradition for “great innovation in aerospace”, its universities are also producing graduates who are very motivated by “green solutions”.

As well as fighting back from the economic impact from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, 2022 will be a year where environmental sustainability has truly become a top priority for business.

With the fallout from the COP26 UN summit in Glasgow, the launch of a clean air zone in Bath and the confirmation of one arriving in Bristol this year, climate change is well and truly on the agenda.

Many firms in the region have been queuing up to tell about how they are trying to reduce their carbon footprint, from introducing all-electric vehicles across their operations, planting trees, to installing air source heat pumps or solar panels at offices.

But what about those environmentally conscious companies that are actually driving that change?

We thought it would be worth taking a look at some of the innovative South West businesses to watch this year, which are making a greener platform for others to build on - sustainably that is.

So, in no particular order, here they are...

Anaphite - Bristol Founded by scientists Sam Burrow and Alexander Hewitt, Anaphite is developing rechargeable battery technology

which its backers believe has “exciting” potential to help accelerate the shift towards sustainable forms of transport.

The Bristol-based start-up has developed what it says is an inexpensive and scalable process to incorporate graphene into battery materials on existing cell production lines Graphene is a material that consists of a single layer of carbon atoms. Anaphite has found that adding it to rechargeable lithium-ion batteries has improved charge time and longevity.

Mr Hewitt, who is Anaphite’s chief operating officer, said: “In order for society to transition to sustainable energy, we need mass adoption of electric transport, meaning batteries need to cost less, charge faster and live longer. We believe our technology truly addresses these critical pain points.”

The company’s work has attracted several backers with it closing a £1.2m funding round in April 2020.

Vertical Aerospace - Bristol While the idea of an electric ‘flying taxi’ may seem pretty space-age, Vertical Aerospace is continuing to develop the technology that could make it a reality sooner than you may think.

The company, set up by Ovo Energy founder Stephen Fitzpatrick in 2016 and based on Chapel Street in Bristol, has designed a vertical take off and landing vehicle, which it says will be able to carry four passengers for more than 100 miles at a top speed of more than 200mph, while producing minimal noise and zero operating emissions.

Vertical Aerospace is partnering with aviation giants including American Airlines, Avolon and Rolls Royce, which in March said its technology would help power the aircraft.

In December, the company and US special purpose acquisition company Broadstone said they were expecting to complete a business combination,

Kelpi is developing a sustainable alternative to the single-use plastic film used in food packaging

which could see Vertical become a publicly traded company, with a listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

The companies said the transaction would provide required capital to certify the aircraft, the VA-X4, as well as develop a manufacturing facility and build out Vertical’s commercial platform and scale production.

Vertical is targeting the highest global certification for the vehicle, which is expected to achieve the equivalent safety standard of a passenger jet by 2024, based on expected standards from the Civil Aviation Authority and European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

Good Energy - Wiltshire The Chippenham-based renewable energy supplier announced in November that it was putting its entire 47.5MW generation portfolio of solar and wind farms, valued at £56.8m, up for sale.

The company said it had appointed THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

lion plastic bottles.

“We must act now because future generations will not be able to remove microplastics from the environment, they’re just too small and too spread out across the globe.”

Naturbeads has won a £425,000 grant from Innovate UK to explore industrial scale production of its technology for cosmetics and paints, and also its potential use in the production of lab-grown meat products.

(From left) Professor Janet Scott, chief executive of Naturbeads Giovanna Laudisio and Professor Davide Mattia.

Greenbrick Workshops co-founders Connor Winter (left) and Ben Gibbons.

KPMG as financial advisor regarding the disposal and that it anticipates completion of the process during Q1 2022.

AIM-listed Good Energy said the sale was part of its ongoing shift towards decentralised energy and mobility services, driven by further investment in its electric vehicle (EV) charging point mapping platform Zap Map. Good Energy said it intends to participate in an anticipated £7m funding round for Zap Map, to support the platform’s expansion in the UK and overseas.

It said the strategy would help it to capitalise on a “rapidly growing market” in decentralised, digitised clean energy and transport services based on 100% renewable power.

The company said the strategic direction had received strong shareholder support, following the lapse of a takeover attempt by Gloucestershire-based rival Ecotricity.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

Kelpi - Bath Alongside researchers at the University of Bath, Kelpi is developing compostable food packaging made from seaweed in a bid to reduce use of single-use plastics.

The start-up is looking to create a sustainable alternative to thin plastic film, often used in the food industry, which is produced with chemicals derived from fossil fuel, and can take hundreds of years to decompose.

The business says its bioplastic technology is both marine-safe and carbon neutral, and it has received private and public investment to scale its work, including from a pre-seed investment round it closed this year led by Bristol Private Equity Club (BPEC), a group of entrepreneurs in the city, Naturbeads - Bath Another on the list with ties to the University of Bath, spin-out Naturbeads, is developing biodegradable alternatives to

Anaphite founders Sam Burrow and Alexander Hewitt.

microplastics that are polluting the world’s oceans.

Microplastics are little beads of plastic, less than five millimetres in length, that are used in products including toothpaste, cosmetics, adhesives and paint to act as sensory agents, structuring agents or emulsifiers.

Naturbeads’ substitute is made from cellulose, a naturally occurring substance that gives plants their strength and structure, which the start-up says biodegrade into “harmless sugars”.

The company’s chief executive and co-founder, Giovanna Laudisio, said that wastewater treatment plants were unable to capture plastic microbeads when they are washed down sinks, leading to them travelling directly into the environment.

Ms Laudisio said: “It’s estimated that 250,000 tonnes of microplastics from cosmetics and paints end up in the oceans every year - equivalent to 25 bil-

Greenbrick Workshops - Dorset The Wimborne-based start-up was founded by Ben Gibbons and Connor Winter when the pair were forced by the Covid-19 pandemic to return to the UK in 2020 after volunteering in Nepal.

The entrepreneurs had been working with rural communities in the South Asian country to reduce the damage caused there by plastic pollution.

Greenbrick Workshops is aiming to help developing countries with technology that uses waste plastic to make building materials.

The duo were inspired by an online open source recycling project called Precious Plastic, which provides information and equipment to designers and artisans looking to establish small shops that create products from locally sourced recyclable waste.

The business has been working with non-governmental organisations in Zimbabwe and Mozambique to set up local workshops that can use their technology to build affordable houses.

Greenbrick Workshops wants to establish 1,000 workshops over the next 10 years, which it hopes would prevent around six million tonnes of carbon dioxide being released from plastic burning and during the production of clay bricks and cement.

The business estimates that this would also allow for the recycling of around 800,000 tonnes of plastic that could potentially end up in oceans - around 1% of global ocean plastic leakage.

Electrified Automation - Somerset Bridgwater-based Electrified Automation was founded by Lloyd Ash in April 2020, after he sold his previous electric motor manufacturing venture, Devonbased Ashwoods Electric Motors, to US firm Dana Corporation.

In October the engineering firm announced it had secured a “milestone” contract to help AIM-listed Saietta scale its motor technology for electric vehicles.

Electrified Automation will develop automated machinery and robotics for Saietta Group as it seeks to accelerate production of its axial flux motors, initially for the Asian two and three-wheel vehicle market.

The company, which grew its headcount to 15 this year, has picked up design work with “major aerospace manufacturers” and is working with other automotive companies to find winding machine equipment, while it is also involved in the off-highway sector as well. The company’s managing director Jim Winchester also told BusinessLive it was also looking to develop its own “next generation” platform of electric motors manufacturing.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 29

For meta or Billions are being invested in building it and tech tycoons are calling it the future, but what exactly is the metaverse?

Hannah Baker finds out with the help of West experts

T

HE term was first coined in US author Neal Stephenson’s 1992 cyberpunk novel Snow Crash. In the book, the protagonist is a hacker who is able to jump between a dystopian Los Angeles and the so-called ‘Metaverse’ - a virtual world where avatars interact.

Some 30 years on and, incredibly, Stephenson’s fictional concept is looking, in many ways, like it could become a reality.

The word ‘metaverse’, is now defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as a “virtual-reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users”. So Stephenson really wasn’t far off.

When Facebook changed its name to Meta in 2021 it may have come as a surprise to many of the platform’s users, but it was a major moment in the company’s history. It signalled Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitions for his business; to be the leader in the development of the metaverse.

He said at the time his company would be focusing on bringing the “metaverse 30 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

to life” and helping people connect, find communities and grow businesses.

It’s probably important to point out the novelist Stephenson has since confirmed he has “nothing to do with” anything Facebook is doing involving the metaverse besides the fact the tech giant is using the term he coined.

According to digital regulation expert Tom Harding, a Bristol-based partner in law firm Osborne Clarke’s commercial team, the Facebook metaverse won’t be the only one in existence; it will be one of many.

“There have been lots of stories that Facebook is going to be the metaverse, but that would just be their version of it,” he explained.

“The theory is that each person or organisation would build their own one, but they are all inter-operable and they all speak to each other.”

So how do you access it? Through a video games console or VR headset, according to Harding, who points out many young people are interacting this way already.

“The concept is a virtual world that

you would access through a VR headset or console, such as a Playstation,” he said. “It’s like living in a video game where you have your own avatar.”

Although Facebook’s metaverse may well be one of the biggest when it launches, swathes of other big-name brands are joining the race to build their own.

However, while the technology that will support individual metaverses is still under development, companies that can afford it are using existing online gaming platforms as a way in.

I think more people will ❝ ❝ start to build their own little

metaverses - and it will start to become more of a reality. At the moment it is still slightly theoretical for the majority of people

Nike, for example, has already set up its own virtual world, or metaverse called Nikeland - within a platform called Roblox.

Roblox is used by millions of (mostly young) people around the world, who create an avatar and interact in a usergenerated 3D world. Players can create their own games as well as buy, sell and create virtual items which can be used to decorate their avatar.

According to Nike, the buildings and fields inside Nikeland are inspired by its real-life headquarters, and there are areas for the Roblox community to test their skills competing in various minigames. A digital showroom also allows players to deck out their avatar with special Nike products.

But Nike and Facebook aren’t the only ones jumping on the metaverse bandwagon. Last year, ITV and John Lewis launched their own metaverse within the video game Fortnite.

ITV’s I’m A Celebrity experience in Fortnite Creative allowed players to take on their very own challenges in a virtual version of the castle where the show is THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

verse?

The Metaverse is defined as a virtual reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users

filmed. For John Lewis, there was a virtual shop where players could obtain supplies and power up Christmas lights for their virtual camp.

“In the longer term, the idea is that you could walk from one brand’s metaverse into another,” explained Harding.

“We will have this Changing digital interconFacebook’s nected world company name to Meta where you will signalled Mark have an avatar and Zuckerberg’s you will go into ambitions for his Nike’s metaverse, business for example, to buy something and it will be delivered to your door.”

How the metaverses will connect is still a mystery but it is likely an organisation such as Facebook will develop a standard, according to Harding.

“There is no understanding yet of how they will be connected, but they all speak to each other and join together to THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

be ‘The Metaverse’,” he said. “It’s a digital concept and in 10 years time, or whatever, we will have this digital interconnected world.”

The use of the metaverse for retailers is clear to see, but it could also be used for events and virtual meetings, Harding points out.

He doesn’t believe it will replace face-to-face gatherings, but could work alongside them.

“I hope that it will work alongside live events,” he said. “For example, anyone could go to a Taylor Swift concert in the metaverse and you don’t have to leave your own house. But, there will always be demand to see performances in person too.

“You will probably have the real thing in the concert venue and then you would probably have a duplicate version going on in the metaverse. So you could have

live participants and virtual participants.”

For smaller firms, the commercial opportunities as yet are limited. But as the metaverse develops, it will erase the issue of geography for business interaction.

According to Harding, 2022 will see growing numbers of companies “getting on the metaverse train”.

“I think more people will start to build their own little metaverses - and it will start to become more of a reality. At the moment it is still slightly theoretical for the majority of people.”

Some 31 years on from the launch of the world wide web to the general public, it remains unclear whether the metaverse will enjoy the same meteoric rise as the internet.

Harding believes it will be “significant”- but building the technology will take time and huge sums of money.

“In 10 years time I am sure my kids will be pottering around in the metaverse and meeting their mates, but there will always be a place for face-toface contact.

“Companies are spending a lot, and there is a lot of behind-the-scenes investment in the technology to support it. You need to build it first and then exploit it.”

His advice to businesses is to keep up with general developments around the metaverse and look out for opportunities about how they can get involved.

“I am sure Nike at some point will say brands can have areas in their world, like a virtual department store with concessions.

“There will be opportunities for collaboration between brands. It will be a new shopping experience. It won’t entirely replace bricks and mortar and face to face, but it will be a whole new experience.”

The metaverse might be the hot topic of this year, but it seems it could be some time before even the largest and wealthiest of firms launch versions of their own.

“There is a lot of hype around the metaverse and whether it’s the next big thing,” Harding added. “In my view, it will be, but in several years’ time - not in 2022.”

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 31

Growing a stronger, more resilient industry

32 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

When change is in the air, opportunity abounds for those quick-thinking doers, but there are uncertainties ahead, writes Athwenna Irons

A

GRICULTURE is a prime example of an industry that has always embraced entrepreneurial spirit, adapting to and emerging from Covid-19 and other challenges in a dignified manner.

At the height of lockdown restrictions, the West Country’s farm shops and food producers were right there and ready to respond, adapting quickly to meet a sudden and rapid increase in demand – so much so that public backing of the nation’s farmers has subsequently soared to a record high.

According to the results from the 2021 Farmer Favourability Survey, commissioned by the National Farmers’ Union last year, 75 per cent of the 2,000 respondents said they “trust British food more than food from the rest of the world”, with 73 per cent admitting that they “often or always look specifically for British food when shopping” – the highest figure seen since the start of the survey in 2012.

And 88 per cent of the public feel that it is “important that Britain has a productive farming industry”.

While this will have served as a welcome morale boost, the daily grind of tending livestock and tilling soils continues for our countryside custodians, come rain or shine, pandemic or no pandemic.

A big part of the job description is dealing with market volatility, with most farmers having little or no influence over the price they might receive for their products.

However, output prices have “held up very well” over the past 12 months, says Brian Harvey, partner and agricultural accountant at PKF Francis Clark.

“At present, we are still seeing the farm gate price of milk, wheat, rape, beef and lamb remaining well above that seen in 2020.

“Despite this, I am not expecting to see the sector generating bumper profits for the current year as, in terms of inputs, we are currently seeing what can only be described as a perfect storm.”

Mr Harvey says that, at present, fertiliser and sprays, red diesel, seed, livestock feed, farm machinery, wire, plastic and wood are all costing more, and in certain cases “considerably more than ever before”.

He continued: “This is clearly denting the farmer’s hard-earned margin, and this is on the assumption that the

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

farmer can get hold of it in the first place.”

Echoing this, Mel Squires, regional director of the South West NFU, pictured inset, says: “Brexit, Covid-19 and some of our labour challenges aside, I think we’ve had a better than expected season of gathering in forage and crops.

“Speaking to most farmers, they would probably tell you that a year ago it was feeling quite challenging.

Now, many are feeling lucky to have had the breaks in the weather and the opportunities that they have.”

However, Mel believes the outlook for the next 12 months will be tinged with a deeper concern, namely the ongoing uncertainty that surrounds the seven-year transition away from the Basic Payment Scheme and direct subsidies, which will be replaced by payments for ‘public goods’ – services that agriculture can provide to society that are not delivered by the market.

Indeed, the NFU has already called on the Government to postpone BPS reductions in 2022 and 2023, expressing concerns after the National Audit Office reported that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs had not yet published detailed objectives or ensured adequate incentive for farmers’ participation in the new Environmental Land Management scheme, expected to replace BPS when fully operational in 2024.

According to Defra’s road map, farmers who receive less than £30,000 a year will see their BPS money cut by 5 per cent in December, with progressive reductions to 50 per cent by 2024.

For larger farms, the cuts will be much bigger. For example, a farm business that currently receives more than £150,000 in subsidies will face a 25 per cent reduction this year, climbing to a hefty 70 per cent cut in 2024.

Minette Batters, president of the NFU, said: “This change in agricul-

tural policy represents the biggest transformation for farmers in generations, and the NFU and its members want – and need – this transition to be a success.

“But I really fear for the future success of farming in this country if the Government presses ahead with its current timetable to transition to its new agriculture policy schemes which simply aren’t ready.

That’s why we are calling for a postponement to the BPS reductions in 2022 and 2023, alongside a thorough review, to ensure the new policies and schemes are ready with clear incentives and objectives.

“It’s crucial they give farmers and growers the confidence to invest, provide fairer market returns, reward environmental delivery and realise our shared ambition of producing climate-friendly food for markets at home and abroad.”

As well as changes to subsidies, Defra is proposing to offer farmers who wish to retire or leave the industry the option of taking a lump sum payment, capped at £100,000, in place of any further direct payments. And in 2024, direct payments will be ‘delinked’, meaning recipients will no longer have to farm the land to receive their BPS claim.

With such challenges in the year ahead, and longer term, farm businesses will need to be both resilient and adaptable.

Writing in the Andersons Outlook 2021 report, agricultural consultant Richard King says: “There are still great opportunities to improve financial performance in all sectors of our industry. Without the distorting effects of direct support, there can be a greater focus on the areas of activity on farm that actually make a profit.

“Over time a stronger, more resilient industry should result, able to meet many of the other challenges that lie ahead.”

Brexit, Covid-19 and some of our labour challenges ❝ ❝ aside, I think we’ve had a better than expected season of gathering in forage and crops.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 33

How limelight shed light on farm realities Richard Bache looks at how two of the West’s least likely ‘farmers’ are getting on with the serious business of agriculture

S

IR James Dyson and Jeremy Clarkson both made their names and fortunes by tinkering around with machinery far removed from tractors, combines or telehandlers.

But the Wiltshire vacuum pioneer and the motoring journalist turned nation’s favourite petrolhead are both shedding new light on the challenges and opportunities that farmers face.

Clarkson owns a 312-acre farm in the Cotswolds village of Chadlington and his Amazon Prime TV series Clarkson’s Farm was one of the surprise television hits of 2021.

The critically-acclaimed series showed Clarkson learning the ropes of farming after his previous farm manager retired.

Although there was no shortage of playing up for the camera and the inevitable Clarkson gaffes, the show was widely praised for how it highlighted the economic realities facing farmers in Britain. A second series is in the pipeline and eagerly awaited by viewers, who at times in 2021 inundated his Diddly Squat Farm Shop such is its popularity.

Indeed, in October Clarkson was named the NFU’s 2021 Farming Champion of the Year at the Farmers Weekly Awards.

NFU president and Wiltshire beef farmer Minette Batters said: “When it comes to recognising someone who has done their best to showcase British food and farming over the past 12 months, no-one has earned this award more than Jeremy Clarkson.

“His show has really resonated with the public, brought alive the ups and downs of our industry to a huge new

34 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

audience, and transported British farming into the living rooms of families across the country.”

“His enthusiasm comes through in spades and his overwhelming and continued support for the NFU’s Back British Farming campaign makes him a very deserving winner of this prestigious award.”

Clarkson is clearly no ordinary farmer – who else after all would buy a giant Lamborghini tractor to tackle narrow West Country lanes? – and has numerous other income streams.

But the shock revelation on the programme of his land agent presenting him with a farming income statement for the year of £140 was genuinely eyeopening to the general public.

It may – alas – not have been that much of a surprise to those who’ve toiled the land for decades.

Sir James, who famously made more than 5,000 prototypes before producing his first vacuum cleaner, made a rather more substantial return from his farming activities.

He does however farm on a very different scale to Clarkson and indeed nearly anyone else in Britain.

He is one of Britain’s biggest landowners, with his holdings comprising of approximately 36,000 acres of farmland.

Although his biggest farms are in Lincolnshire and Norfolk he does also own significant farms in Somerset and Gloucestershire.

In the latest accounts lodged at Companies House for his Beeswax Dyson Farming Ltd turnover for the year to the end of December 2020 was £30.2 million and he recorded a pre-tax profit of £2.2 million. Those figures related to one of

“His ❝ ❝ show has

really resonated with the public, brought alive the ups and downs of our industry to a huge new audience, and transported British farming into living rooms across the country.”

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

the wettest years on record and it is likely the next set of results will be more impressive.

In his autobiography published last year Sir James spoke of how he is seeking to bring his passion for innovation and doing things differently to the agricultural sector.

In the chapter on farming, he writes about the frustration with farmers taking on all the risk and making massive investments to grow a crop, only for middle-men and retailers to take most of the profit.

Although most of his income relates to commodity crops – he is Britain’s biggest pea grower – he is already selling West Country beef and lamb directly to the public from Dyson Farming’s website.

The herd at one of his farms near Bath – at Freshford to the south of the city – provides Taste of the West award-winning meat that is sold online, while also supplying the canteens at Dyson’s campuses at Malmesbury and nearby Hullavington.

It will come as little surprise that technology features heavily in Sir James’s vision for the future of agriculture and while no farm will ever be quite as spotless as his high-tech Wiltshire labs, he appears to have little truck with the rusting paraphernalia that is not an uncommon sight on most farms.

He says: “Farming is a visceral form of manufacturing with much to teach us. As in making anything on a large and repetitive scale, however, all the basics have to be right.

“There is no reason why a farm, its equipment, tracks, ditches and yards should be

messy, muddy or untidy. We should always maintain high standards.”

Although Clarkson has undoubtedly brought the challenges farmers face to a wider audience it is likely that those within agriculture will be more closely monitoring what Sir James and his team can achieve with the technical expertise and innovation of Dyson’s engineers behind them.

Another way Sir James is shaking up farming is by publicly publishing incredibly detailed data on yields and tonnages in a Harvest Report on his website last month.

There is perhaps more than a kernel of truth in the stereotype of traditional farmers being somewhat vague about their methods and particularly their results in fear of their neighbour being seen to be a ‘better farmer’.

A dozen pages of data, graphs and charts on the budgeted versus actual tonnages of crops ranging from oats to spring barley via vining peas show that isn’t a reluctance Sir James shares.

The report said: “There was a slight element of apprehension for Harvest 2021 within the business as the challenges of Harvest 2020 remained firmly in our memories.

“Whilst it is widely accepted that the industry is never straightforward, the previous year was particularly arduous and Dyson Farming were pleased to welcome improved yields and quality across the crops as Harvest 21 progressed.

“Cereal crops overall performed well with second wheat in some cases outperforming first.

“Reports of low bushel weights across several varieties were attributed to the frustration of a wet harvest without any rain.”

Which just goes to show that no matter their wealth no farmer – not even one with the resources of Sir James Dyson – has yet mastered the British weather.

Queues at Jeremy Clarkson’s Diddly Squat Farm last year

THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 35

Cultural world’s TV highs and live event lows Richard Bache looks at how the West is furthering its global reputation in the television industry, but the cultural sector needs live events with large audiences

I

T was hard at times over Christmas to avoid seeing Bristol on the small screen – be it on the BBC or one of the American streaming giants.

Dozens of productions were filmed in the city in 2021 and that is increasingly being reflected with influence off the screen, too.

According to the Screen Business report, commissioned by the British Film Institute and published in December, the total spend on High End Television (HETV) production in the South West rocketed from £25.6 million in 2017 to £126.3m in 2019.

It will only have increased since as streamers such as Netflix, Disney, Amazon and HBO pile billions of dollars into the battle to secure subscribers.

The region’s share of that spend has increased from 2.1 per cent of the UK spend in 2017 to 6.1 per cent in 2019.

Over the same period, according to the report, employment on HETV production in the West has nearly tripled from 772 people to 2,086.

This means that the region isn’t just been used as an undeniably attractive and varied backdrop, but increasingly as a production hub in its own right.

Bristol’s decades-long excellence in natural history – owing to the BBC’s Natural History Unit – is now being reflected in the growth of its private sector production companies.

36 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

A recent feature in The Guardian described the city as ‘Green Hollywood’.

Firms such as Plimsoll Productions – where Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees is a non-executive director, Wildstar Films and Silverback Films all have substantial natural history departments, including numerous veterans of the BBC’s worldleading training in these fields.

These are firms that are rapidly growing – both in terms of the number of staff they employ and their turnover.

In the year to the end of August 2020, Plimsoll had a turnover of £28.6m and

profit of £5.4m; Silverback, in the year to the end of December 2020, achieved profits of £2.3m on a turnover of £11.5m; and at Wildstar, turnover was up more than 500 per cent to £3m, with profit taking a corresponding leap to £815,000 from £142,000.

The attraction of natural history to the big streamers is that it is truly global content that can be consumed by their audiences around the world.

That is something that has long been known by the BBC’s Natural History Unit.

Coldplay perform at the ‘Live at Worthy Farm’ event

Wildebeest on the Serengeti in ‘A Perfect Planet’, produced by Bristol-based Silverback Films

It will experience a massive year in 2022 when it follows in the footsteps of so many of the creatures it has filmed over the decades by migrating to a new home.

Staff at BBC Studios, which includes the Natural History Unit, will leave the BBC’s site on Whiteladies Road in the Clifton area of Bristol for a city centre office.

The Natural History Unit has been on Whiteladies Road since its inception in 1957.

BBC Studios is the main commercial subsidiary of the BBC and will move to Bridgewater House – near Channel 4’s regional headquarters – to accommodate future growth for its award-winning teams.

When the move was announced last year, Ralph Lee, director of content for BBC Studios, said: “Moving to a new production base in the centre of Bristol will enable us to continue to support and celebrate the creativity of the Natural History Unit and Factual Entertainment, build on our legacy and invest in our future.

“Bristol is the largest BBC Studios production base outside London, and its indisputable success and ambition has empowered us to make this commercial investment. We want to grow our production business significantly and retain our position at the pinnacle of proTHURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

The Covid-19 pandemic ❝ ❝ has had an unprecedented

impact on the ability of arts and cultural organisations to carry out their usual activities.

gramme-making in a highly competitive global market.”

Julian Hector, head of BBC Studios NHU, said: “I’m so proud of the Natural History Unit’s 64-year heritage, which has firmly established Bristol as the wildlife content production capital of the world.

“Now we are moving into a 21st century sustainable base in Bristol city centre, which will give our teams the best possible creative environment. For people who dream of giving the natural world a voice, our new home will become a beacon to join us.”

The move does not directly impact the BBC’s other staff in the city, including those working on Points West and Radio Bristol, although questions about the future of such a prominent building like Broadcasting House will persist.

While the television industry – like other sectors whose products are consumed in the home – has flourished during the pandemic, it has been very much tougher going for the live events sector.

Earlier this month, it was reported by the Western Daily Press that Glastonbury Festival saw its turnover drop from £45m to less than £1m following the cancellation of the event in 2020.

In accounts for the year ending March 31, 2021, the organisers of the worldfamous music and arts festival held at Worthy Farm in Pilton, recorded a loss of THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

£3.1m after taxation, with turnover at £936,000.

Sir Paul McCartney, Taylor Swift (pictured below) and Kendrick Lamar had been set to headline the Pyramid Stage in 2020, with Diana Ross playing the Sunday Legends teatime slot, before the coronavirus pandemic forced the performances to be called off.

The event was again postponed last year, with the organisation staging a live stream event – Live at Worthy Farm – which featured sets from Coldplay, Michael Kiwanuka and Wolf Alice.

The directors of Glastonbury Festival Events Ltd said the company had been able to cover the significant losses incurred from the pandemic and the cancellation of the 2020 festival with a float of retained profits from previous years.

The organisation added that the float had enabled it to contribute to running costs during 2021 when the festival was cancelled for a second time, and that it would look to build the float back up for future events.

While Glastonbury should hopefully be back with a bang this summer and it has managed to weather the storm, that

£44m of lost revenue is money that would have trickled down throughout the West’s creative economy.

Hundreds – possibly thousands – of stagehands, artists, sound engineers, acrobats and other performers have lost out on their biggest gig.

Many in the arts world were critical of Government financial packages that were slow to reach some parts of the sector, particularly freelancers.

Nevertheless, support from the Cultural Recovery Fund has topped £1.2 billion and kept many venues afloat – one of the most recent awards was £15m to 132 venues across the South West in November 2021.

Business remains challenging, however, for cultural venues such as theatres, live music venues and cinemas.

For instance, two of the West’s leading cultural institutions – Watershed and the Bristol Old Vic – reported their respective financial results for the year to March 31, 2021 either side of Christmas, and the headline numbers within them make stark reading for anyone in the cultural sector.

Yet, alongside those grim numbers is

the positive story that they have managed to survive the pandemic despite incredible challenges and that they continued to deliver cultural offerings to diverse audiences through the very worst times of the past 22 months.

At the Old Vic, some 87 per cent of its income of £3.8m in that year was via donations and legacies – with only 7 per cent of its income coming from takings at the box office during a period when it could scarcely perform in front of live audiences. The operation of the theatre itself saw income of only £282,021 that year compared to more than £2.1m the previous year.

In the strategic report in the accounts it said: “The financial year of 2020/21 proved to be very challenging and the greatest achievement is that the business was still able to produce and deliver work, whilst remaining financially viable, despite being closed to the public for over 50 per cent of the year.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the ability of arts and cultural organisations to carry out their usual activities.

“While Bristol Old Vic is no exception, we have decided to use this as an opportunity to transform our business by creating a new live/streamed digital hybrid model based on the charismatic atmosphere and unique intimacy of our theatre.”

In its strategic report, Watershed also outlined how it dealt with unprecedented challenges to survive and deliver its inclusive cultural experiences that bring people together.

It said: “For most of April 2020 to March 2021, the Watershed building was closed due to Covid restrictions, causing business uncertainty and hardship for our staff, audiences, residents and partners.

“But Watershed itself was far from mothballed and through the dedication of our staff and the support of our funders, we were able to continue to bring people together in Bristol, across the UK and across the world.

“Though the year was marked by much sadness – especially around the redundancies we had to make – there were also highlights and things to celebrate.”

Again, some numbers were bleak, with its popular cafe/bar – which normally subsidises some of its arts offerings – only accounting for 2 per cent of turnover in 2020/21 compared to 30 per cent in 2019/20 and cinema ticket sales falling to 1 per cent of turnover from 16 per cent and growing pre-pandemic.

The report added: “Covid has shaken our model, our staff and our community and we need time to recover, reflect and rebuild.”

Watershed celebrates its 40th anniversary this year with a series of events and here’s hoping it and all the West’s other cultural treasures find 2022 very much plainer sailing than the past two years.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 37

Developments off the pitch are taking priority Richard Bache looks at the numerous economic issues facing the West’s sporting clubs

F

EW – if any – sectors of the economy have faced as many challenges to the bottom line during the pandemic as professional sport.

As part of the wider hospitality and leisure industry it not only faced the difficulties of snap lockdowns and other uncertainties dealt with by bars, restaurants and theatres.

But it also largely had to keep the show on the road while income dropped off the cliff.

This was evidenced by the publication of Bristol City Football Club’s financial results for the year ending May 31, 2021 in December.

The headline figure of a pre-tax loss of £38.4 million was eyeopening enough – losing nearly £750,000 per week puts a dent in the bank balance even of an owner as rich as billionaire Steve Lansdown.

But it is what was reported elsewhere within those accounts that could have the more immediate implications for the Ashton Gate outfit.

As chief executive officer Richard Gould has pointed out, the collapse of the transfer market for players – outside the upper echelon of the Premier League – is devastating to the sustainability of the club’s business model.

City, like some other Championship clubs, operated on the basis of player38 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

trading to balance the books. And not only does the club have to concern itself with the normal operating concerns of any business, it has to comply with the regulations and requirements of the English Football League (EFL).

Mr Gould, pictured below, told our sister website Bristol Live last week that barring a firesale of its better players it was likely to breach the terms of the EFL’s profit and sustainability requirements for the 2022/23 season. That could ultimately lead to points deductions.

The potential saving grace is that it is very unlikely indeed to be the only Championship club facing a similar dilemma, and those rules may need to be reformed.

The division has long been likened to an economic madhouse – with studies showing some clubs spend more than 200 per cent of their turnover on player wages.

Clubs chasing the riches of the Premier League – in a competition distorted by huge parachute payments for clubs relegated from the top flight – have frequently overspent in an unsustainable manner.

A report leaked to the Mail on Sunday last year showed that among 18 Championship clubs that responded to an EFL survey the average basic yearly pay for their highest paid player was £1.51 mil-

lion – £29,000 per week. At one club, an assistant academy manager was on £300,000 and even one physio was on £191,000 per year.

Mr Gould told Bristol Live that City’s policy of “player trading” has long been a fundamental approach of the Lansdowns to ensure the much-desired process of “sustainability” and had helped ease the club’s growing wage bill, which in the most recent accounts stood at £35.3m.

As City made an £11m profit in 2018/19, it won’t exceed the £39m losses over a rolling period of three seasons, but it is likely to be a different picture this time next year.

However, with the majority of the Championship’s clubs to publish their accounts in the coming weeks, and substantial losses expected across the board, the EFL may be forced to further amend the system.

“Are we blameless? Probably not,” Gould said. “Because we have spent quite a lot of money on transfers and our player salaries have gone up quite significantly over the last three or four years.

“That was all fine while there was a transfer market there to fund it. But now there isn’t, or at least there isn’t one the way that it was – that’s where we start falling foul of FFP. “Where the uncertainty is, to what extent will the EFL accept there has been a crash in the transfer market? We have this bow wave of costs that is coming year-on-year closer to the FFP element and with the loss of transfer income,

Tomas Kalas (red shirt) cost Bristol City £8m, but the transfer market is no longer in good shape to fund ‘player trading’ Pictures: Rogan Thomson/JMP

there is not much we can do.”

City are one of only four second-tier clubs from 2020/21 to have published their accounts for the financial year ending 2021, and the expectation is that their big red number of £38.4m won’t be an outlier across the rest of the division.

Lower down the pyramid, the financial losses weren’t so stark, but the clubs involved had a more precarious existence anyway, living on relative shoestring budgets.

There were several bright spots in the West, notably a change of ownership that could herald a brighter future at Swindon Town and renewed hopes of a new stadium for Bristol Rovers.

The Gas moved a step closer to realising their dream with a sale agreed for the land at St Philip’s Marsh, home to the city’s fruit market.

The 11-acre site to the east of Temple Meads station is planned to be redeveloped, with residential properties, restaurants and other entertainment venues.

Part of the project also includes the stadium for Rovers, with a 20,000-capacTHURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

ity mooted, to move the club from the charming but ramshackle Memorial Stadium in Horfield, which has been their home since 1996.

However, there are significant barriers still to be crossed as the planning application for the overall site is expected to take between 18 months and two years, leaving the Gas’s involvement slightly in limbo.

It is understood that as that procedure takes place, the fruit market will continue to trade as normal before being relocated if and when it’s approved.

Due to that wait, Rovers are only able to agree to a deal in principle for their involvement in the project, and if any issues should arrive during the planning process, there are no obligations to proceed with the stadium.

In the event of the stadium being built by the developer, Rovers wouldn’t own it, as they do the Memorial Stadium, but it would be a long-term lease with a minimal yearly financial obligation.

The deal does include the sale of the land at the Mem to the same developer THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 2022

that intends to revamp the Fruit Market, with the plans for that site off the Gloucester Road to be turned into a residential development.

It will be a complex and lengthy procedure but is a tangible sign of progress after two years of curiosity caused by president Wael Al-Qadi’s declaration prior to the kick-off of the 2019/20 season that the fruit market was their preferred site for a new stadium.

Rovers’ League Two rivals Swindon Town have a spring in their step, having looked like they were staring down the barrel before the season started.

A protracted takeover hadn’t been completed and there were only six players – who weren’t being fully paid – on the books.

But since the takeover by Clem Morfuni – backed by the Wiltshire club’s supporters’ trust – there has been a remarkable transformation on and off the pitch.

The club – under Ben Garner – are in a play-off spot and progress was evidenced by a high-profile televised FA Cup clash against Premier League leaders Man-

chester City earlier this month.

Although there was no giantkilling, Swindon gave a good account of themselves and it was a bumper payday for the club.

Former Nationwide insurance boss and new club chief executive, Rob Angus, had said the draw against City was “massive” and “a shot in the arm” for owners still tackling an inherited debt.

He said: “It will also be a shot in the arm financially. We’ve inherited a very difficult position with £4.5m worth of debt. We’ve made good progress, but we’ve still got £2.5m worth of debt to work through and legal battles and issues to work through. This (cup tie) will be a big help.”

Elsewhere in Swindon, work is expected to be completed on the new speedway and greyhound racing stadium at Blunsdon by the middle of this year.

It began in earnest last September, when cranes appeared on the site just off the A419.

Now, the land has been dug up and the groundworks are all underway, with the hope of a summer completion.

As part of the redevelopment, the existing stands and terraces will be demolished and the new building placed on the opposite side of the track.

The work will also see both the greyhound and speedway circuits reduced in size.

Outline planning permission was first granted a decade ago for the revamp.

While scores of new houses have been built around the stadium in the past 10 years, ideas to build a new fire station and a market on the site did not come to fruition.

Another welcome development is the return of ice hockey to Bristol after almost a decade.

The Bristol Honda Pitbulls move into the new Planet Ice arena near Cribbs Causeway before Christmas.

The team had played in Oxford since 2012 following the closure of the former Bristol Ice Rink in Frogmore Street, but now call the 1,300 capacity arena home.

Wins on the pitch have been few and far between for Bath Rugby but the club secured a major victory in the appeal court just before Christmas.

Judges ruled that historic covenants, thought by some to be a barrier to development at the Rec, are not enforceable. The decision overturns a High Court ruling in October 2020 that at least one of the eight objectors had a right to the benefit of the covenants.

Following its successful appeal, the club said in a statement: “This is a significant step forward for the club, and our landlord, Bath Recreation Limited, who joined the appeal proceedings.

“The ruling provides the certainty needed to bring forward comprehensive plans for a new stadium at the Rec and work on design proposals will recommence in the new year.”

It is hoped that more progress on the long-proposed redevelopment of the Rec into an 18,000-seater capacity stadium can be made this year.

Bath Rugby chief executive Tarquin McDonald said: “We are delighted with

We would definitely ❝ ❝ not have existed as a club if it

wasn’t for that (Government) money and we’re by no means in the worst financial state. the ruling and can now focus on bringing forward revised proposals for a new stadium. This is important for the club and the city. Redevelopment will create new jobs, boost visitor spends, enhance the river frontage and help to provide education and support opportunities for young people who need it most.”

Bath’s big West rivals, Gloucester, meanwhile, have transformed the former SLG Beauty Warehouse next door to Kingsholm Stadium into their new training centre in a multi-million-pound investment in the city. The club built an elite high-performance training centre, designed to greatly improve the training and playing experience for the Cherry and Whites squad.

It certainly seems to be paying dividends thus far – with the club flying high in the Gallagher Premiership.

The investment came after a challenging year previously, with the club being one of many to benefit from the Government’s Winter Survival Package when games had to be played behind closed doors in late 2020 and early 2021.

Lance Bradley, Gloucester’s chief executive, told the Mail at the time: “We would definitely not have existed as a club if it wasn’t for that money and we’re by no means in the worst financial state.

It saved a number of clubs.”

Up the A40 in Cheltenham, it is hoped that bumper crowds will be able to attend the National Hunt Festival in March for the first time since it was controversially allowed to continue at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020.

The Jockey Club owns the Prestbury Park course, plus other West venues at Wincanton and Exeter.

Its accounts for the year ending December 31, 2020 show that turnover fell from £202.7m to £111.5m, with the Festival in March the last major event it hosted in front of the public.

Although its accounts for 2021 haven’t yet been published, having to stage the 2021 Cheltenham Festival and the Grand National at its Aintree home behind closed doors will undoubtedly have hurt.

The West’s professional cricket clubs face a different challenge – a board that at times seems indifferent to their future.

Neither Somerset nor Gloucestershire host men’s matches in the English Cricket Board’s new competition The Hundred.

The ECB has given the prime summer slot – and much of its promotional resources – over to its new competition, at the expense of the county game.

Following a humiliating Ashes defeat this winter, there will inevitably be questions asked about the shape county cricket takes.

Developments off the pitch could almost be as important as those on the field for fans of numerous sports in 2022.

BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 39

Here’s to better times

Richard Bache looks at the challenges facing hospitality operators after two years of dealing with myriad restrictions and challenges

H

OSPITALITY staff have been on the frontline throughout the pandemic and have had to cope with more obstacles than almost any other sector of the economy.

At various times they have had to manage test and trace requirements, enforce mask-wearing and social-distancing compliance, police the ‘rule of six’ and work out what exactly constituted a ‘substantial meal’.

All, of course, while delivering great food, drinks and service while frequently operating with reduced numbers of staff due to factors such as the ‘pingdemic’.

Talk about spinning plates.

It is perhaps little surprise that hospitality faces a recruitment crisis the likes of which it has never seen before. One factor is undoubtedly the reduction in the number of skilled European staff who were available before Brexit and the onset of the pandemic, when many returned home.

But the prolonged first lockdown of 2020 also saw many people who worked in hospitality pivot to other careers, which were less affected by restrictions.

The frontline staff are far from alone in having endured an extremely difficult two years in hospitality. Owners and operators have endured all of the above challenges while also facing the stress of ensuring the financial survival of their ventures during times when they were either unable to trade or faced such draconian restrictions that they couldn’t trade profitably.

Many of the businesses that have survived have had to take on much greater levels of debt and substantially change their business model.

One firm that is thriving is Bristolbased cafe-bar chain Loungers.

Chairman and co-founder Alex Reilley’s remarks in its accounts for the year ending April 2021 illustrate the degree of challenges the company and its people faced while simultanteously projecting his optimism that it has emerged from the pandemic a stronger business.

One physical manifestation of those challenges, reported in the accounts, is that it had to find storage space for more than £1 million worth of furniture from its 160+ venues so they could reopen under social distancing requirements.

He also detailed the difficulty of everchanging regulations that were imposed almost overnight (which meant the loss of £400,000 worth of stock for instance), the resilience required of its people when 99 per cent were furloughed and the financial challenges of running a business in a year when it could only trade in 34 per cent of the time.

Yet it said it used those periods when venues weren’t able to open to develop new menus, invest in and improve its outdoor spaces and introduce a tableservice app that it believes will continue

40 BUSINESS GUIDE 2022

Loungers’ chair and co-founder Alex Reilley admits it has been a challenging couple of years for the hospitality industry - but he believes his chain of cafe bars is emerging from the pandemic a stronger business

to be valued by customers post-pandemic. It was insulated from the massive decline in footfall in city centre locations by virtue of the majority of its sites being in residential neighbourhoods and said sales were extremely positive in the periods when it was allowed to trade.

Mr Reilley said: “It’s difficult not to get too carried away when looking to the future. We have a business that is currently trading fantastically well.”

He did however say that the shortage of staff in hospitality was a challenge.

He added: “In my 28 years in hospitality, recruitment has always been challenging, but I have never known there to be such a shortage of people.”

He said the sector needed help from the Government to address the labour crisis.

Government support has been something of a bugbear for the wider hospitality industry throughout the pandemic.

While the initial furlough packages helped thousands of businesses survive and the ‘eat out to help out’ scheme got customers back through the door after the first lockdown, subsequent support has been more piecemeal. The rise of the Omicron variant just before the critical

In my 28 years in ❝ ❝ hospitality, recruitment has

always been challenging, but I have never known there to be such a shortage of people

Christmas period was devastating for many businesses.

Last week it emerged that there was a real postcode lottery across the country of whether hospitality businesses were able to access support grants announced in the wake of Omicron’s emergence.

According to UKHospitality, pubs, bars and restaurants lost around £10,335 on average in the week leading up to Christmas Day, with takings down 60 per cent compared to 2019.

James Savage, who owns several Bristol pubs including the Eastfield Inn in Henleaze and The Greenbank in Easton, told our sister website Bristol Live the figures quoted by UKHospitality were ‘on the low side’ compared to the reality faced by many landlords.

“I calculated that we’ve lost approximately £20,000 per pub in expected sales over the festive period, which effectively wipes out a very significant percentage of the profit we needed to make in December, our busiest month. Many big group bookings for Christmas became smaller and smaller as more and more people dropped out, and some were cancelled altogether.”

The losses in the run-up to Christmas came as many pubs struggled to balance the books after the lockdowns of the past year.

James added: “Bearing in mind we are still paying back deferred costs from the lockdown periods, this leaves many businesses in a very precarious position.

The one-off grants announced in December, along with the reduction in

VAT on food sales and the discounted business rates, don’t come anywhere near to compensating for the December situation so although there is government support, it simply isn’t enough.”

Sam Gregory is the landlord of Bristol city centre pub The Bank Tavern, which has relied heavily on office workers in the past. Since more people have been asked to work from home, he has seen trade drop off, especially at Christmas.

“We’re about 50 per cent down on 2019,” says Sam. “It started off very strong in December then as soon as the Government started asking people to stay away it nosedived.

“I assume this was because people wanted to stay safe when visiting older relatives over Christmas and New Year, but also risk-averse companies either not wanting to expose themselves to any litigation over acting irresponsibly by having work parties or companies wanting to keep their work force intact over December. Although the government’s offer of help sounds good, that’s all it is a sound bite.”

Operators will be looking for further Government support such as Business Rates reform and for an extended VAT freeze to ensure their survival after two unimaginably difficult years. More than anything though they will be hoping the tentative signs that there might be less coronavirus-related disruption in 2022 come true. That is something we will all raise a glass to if it helps the West’s award-winning food and drink scene get back on its feet.

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BUSINESS GUIDE 2022 3