BQ West Midlands Autumn 2016 by We Are UMi

BUSINESS QUARTER West Midlands: Autumn 2016

Supporting new businesses BQ Live Debate on how we support start-ups

Leading with courage Top tips for running your company

Two’s a company

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EN T R E P R EN EU R I NT E R V I E W S

Business Quarter Magazine

West Midlands: Autumn 2016

Toy story

£4.95

Meeting partners in life who are partners in business

Nazia’s growing business is just child’s play

B U SIN ESS U P DAT E

IN SIGHT

LIFES T YLE

E VE NT S

BUSINESS UPDATE bqlive.co.uk

EDITOR’S VIEW WEST MIDLANDS ISSUE 15 What I love about editing BQ West Midlands is the sheer positive enthusiasm that we get to report on from so many of the region’s entrepreneurs. Across the wider business and finance sector, there’s understandable nervousness, pessimism and plenty of blame aimed in the direction of the UK’s Brexit vote. But talking to the majority of start-ups and even many established SME companies, much of what I hear about are hopeful plans for growing revenues, profits, jobs and success in the future – regardless of EU status. Take our cover story, Nazia Nasreen, a bright, sparky businesswoman developing the supply of toys designed specifically for religious families. She’s doubled her profits in the first two years, is now employing packers and is planning a research trip to the Middle East. The same passion comes in quadruple servings from our ‘Two’s a company’ feature, with the Stokes, Ackrills, Cooks and Growcoot/Bandara couples all describing their rapid growth. This was a particularly fun story to tell – how to go about starting a business with your loved one, and live to tell the tale! Then we have Chris Cunliffe and his transformation of a typical Black Country company in the pork scratchings market, with huge demand from the Far East. Meanwhile, Mike Parker explains the basis of his multi-million pound Minster franchise, providing the simple but profitable service of office cleaning. Enjoying BQ’s ‘Business lunch’ was Calum Nisbet, the new regional IoD boss, revealing his plans to both assist entrepreneurs and lead the way for West Midlands businesses to ‘put a little back’ into society. And Barclays Bank sponsored our latest ‘Live Debate’ on ‘how to create a culture of support’, with lively observations and suggestions from their guests. Another big theme that came through in this edition was ‘leadership’, captured in detail by an ‘Insight’ piece from Rob Noble, chief executive of the Midlands-based Leadership Trust. We also had Tim Andrews, a recent IoD award winner and boss of the successful Hollywood Monster signs company, sharing his top tips on time management. Altogether, this edition shows how strong and committed the entrepreneurial community is across the West Midlands, and I hope you all enjoy an uplifting read. As always, please send any feedback to me at steve.dysonmedia@gmail.com And finally… in my last editorial, I daftly pledged to be pictured in my underwear if the UK voted to ‘Leave’ Europe. Well, the unthinkable happened, and a promise is a promise: I’m told that Bill Borde is carrying the shocking image in his ‘Bit of a chat’ column on page 80, so prepare to wince! Steve Dyson, editor, BQ West Midlands

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Business Quarter, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT. www.bqlive.co.uk. Business Quarter (BQ) is a leading national business brand recognised for celebrating and inspiring entrepreneurship. The multi-platform brand currently reaches entrepreneurs and senior business executives across Scotland, the North East and Cumbria, the North West, Yorkshire, the West Midlands and London and the South. BQ has established a UK wide regional approach to business engagement reaching a highly targeted audience of entrepreneurs and senior executives in high growth businesses both in-print, online and through branded events. All contents copyright © 2016 Business Quarter. All rights reserved. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies, howsoever caused. No liability can be accepted for illustrations, photographs, artwork or advertising materials while in transmission or with the publisher or their agents. All content marked ‘Profile’ and ‘Special Feature’ is paid for advertising. All information is correct at time of going to print, August 2016.

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CONTENTS

Autumn 16

GLOBE TROTTING IN ST YLE BQ reviews some of the best hotels around the world

WHAT MORE C AN WE DO? BQ Live Debate on how we support entrepreneurial start-ups

N A Z I A’ S TOY STORY

Her growing business is child’s play

THE DIRECTORS’ DIRECTOR

Lunch with the West Midlands IoD boss

ELECTRIC SHOCK

Anita Champaneri is wowed by the hi-tech Tesla Model S

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Celebrating and inspir ing entrepreneurship

FEATURES

REGULARS

FAITH IN TOYS Nazia Nasreen is building a business to help children enjoy religious education

THE BIG ISSUES It’s time to give power to the people says John Duckers

LEAD WITH COURAGE Rob Noble on leading from the front

AVIATION NEW S Stromg airports help us sell overseas Paul Kehoe tells BQ

BQ LIVE DEBATE How do we support entrepreneurs and start-ups?

BUSINESS UPDATE A roundup of which businesses are doing what in the West Midlands

A CRACKLING GOOD BUSINESS How pork scratching are going global

AS I SEE IT Tim Andrews’ tips on work/ life balance

CLEANING UP Minster Cleaning Services turns muck into brass

COMMERCIAL PROPERT Y Who’s building what, where and when

BUSINESS LUNCH With Calum Nisbet, head of West Midlands IoD

ON WINE Charlotte Begley broadens her horizons

SPECIAL FEATURE

Legal and Finance Quarter – a focus on family law

34 T WO’S A CO M PA N Y BQ meets four couples who are also business partners

THE BIG ISSUES bqlive.co.uk

The people have spoken It’s time to ditch non-democratic bodies and elected mayors that have already been rejected, according to John Duckers, the business commentator who West Midlands leaders love to hate The vote to leave the European Union has immense implications for this country – and immense implications for regional government. The West Midlands’ vote for ‘Leave’ was massive, completely against the advice of local leaders. The decision reflected many frustrations, including mass immigration and the way it’s perceived to have driven down wages. But also key was the way a remote, arrogant, unelected Brussels elite was operating in a gravy-train bubble, dictating to the British people what can and cannot be done. For many, Brexit has fundamentally been about the restoration of democracy. And the West Midlands has much to learn from this vote, because while the UK is now to rid itself of one unelected quango, the EU, our region has been thrust into another, the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA). The WMCA is an organisation whose members are not directly elected, one that’s removed from the electorate and therefore unaccountable.

It has only come about because failed prime minister David Cameron browbeat our spineless councillors by saying there’d only be government cash for the regions if they cooperated. They didn’t have the guts to stand up to his bullying, an appalling way to set up any new institution. Thankfully, the WMCA will only have ‘control’ – in reality it’ll have very little influence – of economic growth, jobs, skills, transport and homes, and, given the pathetic scraps being handed down from London, their chances of making any great impression are slim. But their sell-out of the people of this area is deplorable. Cameron is no more, and his regional policy should be binned with him, especially the prospect of an elected mayor. And it is not only me saying this. Forcing an unwanted mayor on the regions has been condemned in a hard-hitting report by the Committee of Public Accounts, the cross-party body which scrutinises public spending on

behalf of the House of Commons. The committee said ministers had given the impression that regions were being given more power, when in fact they were being ordered to agree to creating a directly-elected mayor against their will. If the Brexit vote says anything, it’s that the populace are fed up of being preached to, fed up with their aspirations and problems being ignored. It wasn’t long ago that Birmingham voted against having an elected mayor, as did Coventry. Cameron simply binned that democratic expression and, with gross jiggerypokery, decided that if city mayors were a no-go then regional mayors were the way round it. The EU vote shows that the people will not tolerate being treated in this way any longer. And similar baggage like the so-called ‘Midlands Engine’, all PR and spin, needs to be re-thought too. The ‘Midlands Engine’ is the poor relation of the ‘Northern Powerhouse’. It never even got a mention in the Chancellor’s March Budget, while the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ got mentioned six times. The ‘Midlands Engine’, which stretches from Wales to the North Sea and from the northern Home Counties to the Peak District, is an irrational, unmanageable joke. I’m the first to argue that we need a new approach given the immensity of our difficulties in this region, like poor productivity and skills. But it needs doing in a manner which people can relate to. Nobody talks of being a ‘Midlander’. They see themselves as a Brummie, from the Black Country or Coventry. The effort to improve our economy needs to be based around these geographic and historical fundamentals – ‘cross border’ issues such as transport can then be organised on the basis of friendly cooperation. We don’t need another layer of bureaucracy remote from the electorate. Listen to what the people are saying, Theresa May. We’ll soon be free as a nation but London is still happy to dictate to provincial England. We need a new direction. n

PROFILE JLT Specialty

If you were uninsured, would you know? Having insurance is not enough – unless you are insured for the correct asset values, insurance payouts could fall short of expectations Many companies find their sums insured are inadequate when they make an insurance claim. Consequently they do not receive the insurance payouts they expect. Could you be one of these companies? Our regulator in the insurance industry is the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The following statistics from an FCA thematic review, “Handling of insurance claims for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)” demonstrate some alarming facts: • 20% of SMEs are probably underinsured. • 50% is the proportion that some SMEs are underinsured by. • 40% of business interruption (BI) policies are probably underinsured. • 45% is the average insurance shortfall of Business Interruption policies. REDUCED PAYOUTS If a company is found to be underinsured, insurers typically apply the condition of average to the claim settlement. In practice, this results in the claim settlement being proportionately reduced according to the degree of underinsurance. Imagine a building was insured for £500,000 and a fire causes £200,000 of damage to that building. If that building’s replacement value was £1,000,000, the insurer will judge that the building has only been insured for half of its real value. It will therefore reduce the payment by half, to just £100,000. BUSINESS INTERRUPTION (BI) BI insurance policies are especially prone to underinsurance because of difficulties in determining: The sums to insure – there is often a big difference between the technical meanings for words in a policy and how words are used in everyday business. For example, the definition of ‘gross profit’ in a BI policy is different from that commonly used by accountants. The timeframe the policy should cover - known as the ‘indemnity period’, which needs to be long enough for the business involved to return to a similar financial position as it was in immediately before the insured event (e.g. a fire or flood) occurred.

Similarly, some property owners might decide not to insure their property for the cost of rebuilding on a like-for-like basis because in the event of it being destroyed, they would not intend to rebuild the property in the same manner as before. However, most damage to properties is ‘partial’ rather than ‘total’, in which case the property has to be repaired like-for-like to be consistent with the undamaged portion. Also, some properties (e.g if they are ‘listed’) or local authority requirements place obligations on the owner to reinstate the building exactly as before in the event of its destruction. SUMMARY It is worth spending time with your insurance broker to understand your business risks and the full value of the assets you want to insure and any perils you wish to insure against. This process will help you in any subsequent claim settlement. If you would like further information on managing and mitigating business risk or arranging/placing your insurance cover please contact me.

Sally Swann

PROPERTY INSURANCE Underinsurance occurs frequently in property insurance. Sums insured need to be sufficient to cover the full reinstatement value of the assets insured. But companies often insure physical assets as they are listed on their asset register – not realising that

For more information, or to discuss your insurance and risk management needs, contact Sally Swann, JLT Specialty Ltd, 45 Church Street, Birmingham, B3 2RT.

‘It is worth spending time with your insurance broker to understand your business risks’

Tel 0121 633 3377, visit www.jltspecialty.com or email Sally_Swann@jltgroup.com Lloyd’s Broker. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A member of the Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group. Registered Office: The St

the values are based on original cost or depreciated figures, rather than current day prices. Actual replacement costs can be much greater than this.

Botolph Building, 138 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AW. Registered in England No. 01536540. VAT No. 244 2321 96.

AVIATION NEW S www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

Growing airport helps region’s exports From how a strong airport can help exports, to record passenger figures for the 17th successive month. Steve Dyson reports on the latest aviation news. Birmingham Airport chief executive Paul Kehoe has spoken of how crucial exporting is to the West Midlands economy. Kehoe said: “Global connectivity supports trade and attracts inward investment, so we have a vital role in the Midlands to further improve this by growing access to long haul markets and helping to re-balance the UK’s economy. “Birmingham is at the heart of manufacturing, has the biggest legal system and business support outside of the capital. It’s at the centre of a £110bn regional economy and has the largest concentrate of businesses outside London, with 2,000 international firms and world-famous brands such as HSBC, Deutsche

Bank, JLR, Mondelez and KPMG. “This success will only grow as the airport grows, HS2 arrives and more businesses realise the enormous benefits of relocating – as did HSBC and Deutsche Bank – and investing in Birmingham rather than the overheated, overpriced capital.” Kehoe was explaining why the airport was sponsoring the ‘Export’ category in the Birmingham Post Business Awards (BPBA) this Autumn. He said: “Local businesses, both established and start-up, are contributing to the overall success of our economy and helping to attract trade and inward investment, and for this reason, we support this awards scheme.”

Kehoe said that the ‘Export’ category naturally aligned with the airport’s own industry, because of how global connectivity supports export and trade. He added: “We have sponsored the export award for many years now and enjoy learning about companies which are exporting successfully from Birmingham – some of which rely on air travel to meet their business demands. “It’s therefore rewarding for our business to witness this success and we enjoy celebrating with all the finalists who have done exceptionally well to get to this stage. The BPBA take place at The ICC, Broad St, Birmingham on Wednesday 26 October.

AVIATION NEW S www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

Birmingham still supports Gatwick With the government decision on airport expansion due any day now, Birmingham Airport has underlined its support for Gatwick instead of Heathrow. Birmingham’s chief executive Paul Kehoe said that a new Gatwick runway, when compared to the alternative Heathrow option, would lead to “greater competition and choice across the UK’s long-haul airports, allowing Birmingham Airport to continue to grow”. Kehoe argued that people flying for business or leisure want to fly direct from their airport of choice. With Birmingham experiencing record growth he said a network of long-haul airports, linking all regions into global growth opportunities, is required. He said: “Of the two options before the Government, we support Gatwick’s expansion plan because it will foster greater competition among airports and allow other UK long-haul airports to continue to compete and grow their own direct services. “Heathrow’s plan could constrain this growth with the direct international connections that airports like Birmingham have fought for being lost to West London. A decision for Heathrow would simply mean a return to the monopoly of the past, reducing choice, increasing fares and threatening the business of Birmingham and other UK airports.”

brings a lot of people to the area. There’s the market on Saturday and Bank Holiday Mondays, people fly to Wellesbourne and people who are on courses here with us stay in the village. “The RAF send us air cadets to get their pilot’s license too. Air ambulance paramedics fly out from here, which not many people know. And people enjoy sitting at the cafe watching planes coming in and taking off.”

Over 1.2m passengers in July Birmingham Airport welcomed over 1.2 million people in July, the 17th consecutive month of record-breaking growth. A total of 1,221,212 people travelled through the airport during the month, up by 14% on July 2015. Long-haul saw very significant passenger growth rates, up by 32.8%, and short-haul grew by 12.1%. Paul Kehoe, chief executive at Birmingham Airport, said: “It’s great news that recent months have consistently been surpassing the million-passengers-a-month

mark. A 14% growth rate year-on-year for July is significant and equates to almost 150,000 more passengers. “August tends to be our busiest month so we soon expect to announce more records over the next few weeks, as well as breaking the 11 million passenger mark in twelve months.” Scheduled traffic accounted for over 86.4% of the total passenger volume for July and saw a 26.1% growth rate compared to the same month last year. Charter traffic accounted for over 13.6% of the total. Middle Eastern, Caribbean and North American destinations saw the greatest increase in passengers, due to more airlines serving these regions. Scheduled destinations with significant year-onyear passenger growth were Madrid (+313.3%), Heraklion (+156.6%) and Palma de Mallorca (+71.7%). Charter destinations with significant growth were Orlando (+206.3%), Gerona (+170.6%), Fuerteventura (+96.6%) and Alicante (+62%).

Businesses celebrate flying future Businesses have been given a boost by a local planning decision to retain Wellesbourne Airfield, near Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire. The future of the airfield – home to flying schools, a museum, a café and other businesses – was under threat when plans for up to 1,500 homes led to eviction notices being served to the businesses. But Stratford District Council has now said Wellesbourne is an ‘important asset’ to the area and has not included the site in its Core Strategy, outlining development plans in the district up to 2031. Light aircraft use Wellesbourne as a refuelling stop, and RAF cadets learn to fly at the airfield. It’s also hosted the weekly Wellesbourne Market for more than 40 years. Rodney Galiffe, president of the South Warwickshire Flying School, said: “The airfield

Expansion by sharing A new codeshare between Flybe and airberlin for flights from Birmingham to Germany will expand the reach of both airlines, it has been claimed. Saad Hammad, chief executive at Flybe, said: It strengthens Flybe’s ‘One Stop to the World’ proposition for its regional customers in the UK who will benefit from connections to airberlin’s long-haul routes at Dusseldorf and Berlin-Tegel. “The agreement also enables Flybe to expand its sales and distribution to European regional customers. airberlin benefits from enhancing its route offering to the UK for its customers in Germany and from the carriage of UK customers on its long haul routes.” Neil Mills, chief strategy and planning officer for airberlin, added: Business and leisure travellers will benefit from a seamless travel experience and a connection to our long-haul routes at Dusseldorf and Berlin-Tegel.”

BUSINESS UPDATE Morris waves the flag Morris Site Machinery has secured over £3.5m worth of international orders. The Shrewsbury company will provide 300 lighting towers to Coates Hire in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, more than 50 to a customer preparing for the Expo 2020 in Dubai and more to Russia. Chris Morris, chief executive at the Shrewsbury company, said: “These are significant orders and contract wins for us, testament to the quality and reputation of robust British manufacturing in the global marketplace. It shows faith in the quality of our products, and importantly in the strong partnerships we have developed.” Morris Site Machinery is part of Morris & Company, a fifth generation family business group employing 700 staff.

£100k translates into three jobs Word360, the language and translation specialist, has won £100,000 of public sector work with Telford Council, Walsall Council, and Taunton and Somerset NHS Trust. The new work, which came after a tough tender

businessteam@bham.ac.uk www.birmingham.ac.uk/partners

process between 17 national competitors, will see the Birmingham company take on three new staff. Commercial director Kavita Parmar said: “This has been a real game changer and has enabled us to cement our market share in the region.”

Joy’s HR joy A mother and daughter team running a human resources business have won the Small Business of the Year title in the Warwick Pride Awards. Joy May launched Absolute Works in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, in 2012 and was joined by her daughter Amy Martin, an employment law solicitor, in 2013. The company, which covers HR, recruitment, health and safety, training and payroll services, now employs 10 staff.

Lloyds’ loan tips the balance A family-owned builders’ merchant is expanding its workforce by a quarter and increasing

Morris waves the flag - Phil Winnington, left, and Chris Morris celebrate £3.5m export orders

annual turnover by 10% from £45m thanks to a £10.5m loan package from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. Walter Tipper has acquired two businesses, bought over nine acres of land, streamlined its packaging services and purchased 12 new vehicles. The century-old company, based in Lichfield, operates nine sites and showrooms across the Midlands, supplying trade customers with services from tool hire to supplying bathroom and kitchen units. The two new businesses are Huthwaite Roofing Suppliers and G & J Builders’ Merchants in Rugeley. Joe Tipper, finance director at Walter Tipper, said: “As demand for materials grows in line with the growth of the construction industry as a whole, the business has been able to undertake the next stage of expansion by acquiring land and businesses.” Charlie Allanson, relationship manager at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “We are committed to supporting ambitious mid-market businesses like Walter Tipper.”

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

BUSINESS UPDATE www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

Free export classes

Earth-shattering research A new research programme at the University of Birmingham could help speed up the completion of major infrastructure projects. The university’s Quantum Technology (QT) Hub, led by Professor Kai Bongs, will be running Masters and PhD courses from October, where students will work directly with industry to solve real-world problems. The programme could revolutionise projects such as the next phase of high speed rail from Birmingham to Manchester, as well as help solve the problems in building homes, roads and rail links in ex-mining areas such as the Black Country. Pre-construction groundworks which use traditional technologies to assess the quality of the land prior to building are time consuming and costly, adding up to £7bn to the cost of construction projects in the UK every year. But gravity mapping – which measures ground density to pinpoint potential problems – is limited by interference from ground vibrations, and a one-hectare gravity map showing sub-ground conditions would take just two to three weeks to measure. “Quantum gravity gradient technology enables much more precise mapping of sub-ground conditions and can speed up the process one hundred fold,” said Professor Bongs.

Breaking into glass exports Glasscoat International, the Dudley specialists in designing and building coating systems for the glass and plastics industry, has secured a £460,000 funding package from HSBC. The loan will help to buy expensive materials needed to deliver the manufacture and sale of a glass-coating machine to a German firm for £710,000. HSBC worked with UK Export Finance, the UK’s export credit agency, who agreed to support the contract by underwriting a guarantee offered to the overseas buyer. Ian Cripps, managing director at Glasscoat, said: “Overseas trading is key to our business. Our growth ambitions are to export to new markets such as South America, Europe, Russia, Lithuania and Turkey.” Anne Lockett, UK Export Finance adviser for the Black Country, said: “We’re here to help make exports happen. Our support for companies like Glasscoat International shows how we can help.”

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) West Midlands has launched a new, free service for businesses planning to export for the first time. The Export Essentials masterclasses have been designed to help companies develop their export strategy and to understand the basic principles of international trade. A total of 12 day-long masterclasses have been organised across the Black Country, Birmingham, Coventry and Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire, Shropshire and Staffordshire to enable businesses to attend the most convenient session. The training will include the market research, market selection, routes to market, communication, intellectual property protection, marketing, shipping and documentation, export finance and getting paid. Christine Hamilton, interim director of UKTI West Midlands, said: “This is ideal for any business that hasn’t yet started to export but wants to explore the possibilities of taking their goods and services overseas.” For details email press@uktiwm.co.uk, visit www.exportingisgreat. gov.uk or call 0121 405 4520.

Do you have a plan post-Brexit? Do you understand the risks facing your business? Have you identified the opportunities available? Come and find out what other business leaders are doing. Jon Ralph & the Academy for Chief Executives invite you to join them and other business owners/MDs for an evening with renowned economist, Roger Martin-Fagg. The event will be held on Thursday 29th September in Hogarth’s Hotel, Dorridge. For more information, go to: www.tinyurl.com/BQ-Brexit Or scan the QR code opposite.

www.chiefexecutive.com/Jon-Ralph

BUSINESS UPDATE www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

TOP TWEETS Mayoral WMCA to make HS2 work for the region in WMids? Have your say: #wmcaconsultation – @GBSLEP 4 new B737 aircraft, 600,000 seats, 200 airline jobs @jet2tweets 100 airport jobs @bhx_official great vote of confidence in #MidlandsEngine! – @Paul_Kehoe Great to have @GregHands & @tradegovuk team with us in B’ham today - exporting key to region and UK’s future – ‫@‏‬GBChamberBoss Delighted to be part of Government of Gujarat introduction to the West Midlands #midlandsengine –‫@ ‏‬WestMids_CA

BHSF has launched a new sickness and injury benefit, Pay4Sure, to help employers bridge the statutory sick pay gap, easing staff worries during illness or injury. Brian Hall, managing director at BHSF – Employee Benefits, said: “Our new Pay4Sure policy has been designed to provide employees with a ‘back-up plan’, to prevent illness from triggering debt or financial hardship. “It offers three levels of cover so it can be tailored to the needs of each individual worker. The policy is taken out by the employer and employees opt in, with employee-funded monthly premiums. So where employer budgets are stretched, access to cover can be offered to all employees at no cost to the business. “Sickness is unpredictable, but Pay4Sure can be relied upon to provide employees with an income for up to six months if they are off for more than four weeks.”

Brexit manufacturing blues

‘London hotels struggle as #Birmingham booms’ - City sees record growth, up by 16%: #whybham – ‫@‏‬business_bham Great article by our Chief Exec - How will Brexit affect SMEs’ access to finance? www.bqlive.co.uk – ‫@‏‬ART_BizLoans Extremely proud of graduates, Nick & Andy @SnafflingPigCo for their win on BBC Dragon’s Den – @AstonUniversity Today is John's last day @The_IoD after 23 A special shout out to @LightingProjs who has attended ALL of our birthday parties! #JCturns1 #JCturns2 #JCturns3 #JCturns4 #JCturns5 – ‫‏‬ @JcsocialmediaUK ‫‏‬Congratulations @centricwebltd #shortlisted for ‘Technology Award’ #Goodluck #BrumAwards2016 – @BirminghamAward

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Bridging the sick pay gap

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Confidence in the West Midlands manufacturing sector has been hit by post-Brexit blues, according to a new report. Regional Manufacturing Outlook, an annual report from the EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, and BDO LLP, the accountant and business advisors, says the West Midlands has slipped down the UK business confidence rankings from 1st place last year to 5th place today. Richard Halstead, Midlands director at EEF, said: “The referendum outcome provided a jolt and it’s clear that we’re now on a new path with fresh challenges ahead. Exchange rate volatility, political uncertainty and the danger of increased costs are already causing concern in the region and business confidence is in short supply. But our sector is nothing if not dynamic, determined and resilient. “With a solid business environment, supportive policies and the right outcome from Brexit negotiations, manufacturers should be able to overcome the risks and get their business confidence back on track.” Tom Lawton, partner at BDO LLP, added: “Following Brexit, business confidence fell from 6.2 (out of ten) to 5.2. However, this should not deter manufacturers. Performance over the last 12 months has been promising with increases in output and investment, and it’s encouraging to see Theresa May’s promise of a proper industrial strategy.”

FACT OF THE QUARTER

Jaguar Land Rover has reported

“The referendum outcome provided a jolt and it’s clear that we’re now on a new path with fresh challenges ahead.”

its best ever July retail sales of 44,486 vehicles – up 34% from last year. It sold 336,052 vehicles in the first seven months of 2016, up 23%

PROFILE ART Business Loans

Funding growth ART Business Loans, which specialises in supporting businesses of all kinds that the banks can’t help, has seen demand continue to grow following another record year for loan delivery last year. In 2015-16, ART lent £3.2m to just under 100 businesses in the West Midlands and has delivered over £900k of loans in the first quarter of this financial year, to the end of June 2016. All ART loans are made after a bank decline, although the developing trend is for loans to be made after a bank has already assisted to its maximum with ART loans used as a top up to meet the borrower’s overall need. ART lends between £10k and £150k, with the average loan around £33,000. A wide range of sectors and types of business are being supported but most are seeking to achieve some form of growth. “There is no doubt that the need for our type of lending remains strong,” says Steve Walker, Chief Executive of ART Business Loans. “A number of research reports and surveys published during the past year evidence that the gap in the business funding market for smaller loans is increasing. The stage reached by businesses seeking ART’s support is changing so that, although some are relatively young, there are more established businesses looking to achieve growth and improve performance that are still in need of loan funding of the type ART offers. Despite the substantial growth in peer lending, the increasing difficulty faced by the banks in serving this area of the market has seen further expansion of the market gap faced by businesses.” Investing in the local economy Looking to increase the amount of money it has available to lend the ART Board and staff team are exploring options for funding from a variety of public and private sector sources, including opportunities to innovate and create new schemes. “Sir Adrian Cadbury, founding Chairman of ART in 1997, sadly passed away last year,” says Steve Walker, “and will be missed by all. He would, I feel sure, have welcomed our return to seeking private investors (individuals and companies) who are prepared to support the local business economy through ART, as we did at start up. At that time we could only offer a social return on investment. We are now also able to offer Community Investment Tax Relief, which is of financial value to investors - particularly those paying higher rate tax.”

All photography byMarc Kirsten Mark Walker at Oaks Consultancy: “ART’s approach was quick, concise and business-focused. They were able to provide exactly what we needed at the right time.” www.oaksconsultancy.co.uk

Joanne McDonnell at her shop: “ART was brilliant to deal with. They helped us with a loan to buy a van, stock and improve the premises.” Joanne’s Florist and Tea Room www.joannesflorist.co.uk

Based at Innovation Birmingham Campus the experienced ART team is looking forward to supporting more businesses in the year ahead. Pictured from left to right: Andy King, Christine Allen-Lloyd, Barbara Seaton, Steve Walker, Roz Haque, Martin Edmonds, Graham Donaldson. Supporting businesses Since it started in 1997, ART has enabled around 900 businesses in the West Midlands to create or protect almost 7,000 jobs. Businesses supported include Oaks Consultancy and Joanne’s Florist and Tea Room. Oaks Consultancy offers business planning, transformation and fundraising expertise to the charity, education, physical activities and commercial business sectors. Brothers Adam and Mark Walker used an ART loan to employ more staff in their sales and delivery teams, which enabled the company to increase turnover by over 60% in a year. Joanne McDonall always fancied running a tea room. She and her mother Joan were running a floristry business together when larger premises became available nearby allowing them to expand

and include a cafe in their offer, It has proved to be a winning combination. Read more about these and other borrowers on ART’s website.

To find out more about investing in ART, or apply for a loan, see www.artbusinessloans.co.uk or call 0121 359 2444.

BUSINESS UPDATE www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

ART’s thin loans

MOVERS AND SHAKERS Professor Alec Cameron has started his new role as vicechancellor at Aston University. Prof Cameron, who succeeded Julia King DBE, was formerly deputy vice-chancellor, education, at the University of Western Australia, and was previously dean of the Australian School of Business at UNSW Australia, and president of the Australian Business Deans Council. He’s held senior positions in the IT and Telecoms industries, including Sun Microsystems, Alcatel and Telstra. Business and finance adviser Grant Thornton in Birmingham has promoted Maria Thomas to director. Thomas joined Grant Thornton in 2007 and advises clients on a wide variety of disposals, mergers and acquisitions, including internationally. David Hillan, practice leader at Grant Thornton, said: “Maria puts her clients’ front and centre of everything she does. Her promotion further bolsters our talented team.”

ART Business Loans has joined forces with peerto-business lender ThinCats to pilot a unique scheme to raise £500,000 in support of SMEs in the West Midlands. The ART/ThinCats Community Chest offer gives investors the chance to make a loan to ART for a five-year term, gaining Community Investment Tax Relief at a rate of 5% annually for five years. All of the money raised will be lent to businesses in the West Midlands. The initiative by ART, based at Innovation Birmingham Campus in Aston, follows a third record year of loan delivery in 2015/16. ART’s average loan size is £35,000, and chief executive Steve Walker said: “It is loans of this size, so important to smaller businesses, that are of least interest to the banks and many other providers. That’s why it is vital that lenders like ART exist.”

Mark Selway, chief executive at IMI which is headquartered at Birmingham Business Park, has received an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University recognising his contribution to engineering. Selway said: “It is such a special privilege to receive this award in a city IMI is proud to call home. Birmingham’s blessed with terrific talent, a can-do attitude that is helping the city move forward, and fantastic graduates entering its workforce from all disciplines.” Property consultancy Rider Levett Bucknall has appointed Adam Ellis-Morgan as managing partner in its Birmingham office. Ellis-Morgan was promoted from his role as head of the project management team for the firm’s Midlands division, which he joined in January. He replaces Nigel Mason who moved on to another role within the firm earlier in the year. Former Birmingham MP and current MEP Siôn Simon has been selected as the Labour candidate for the West Midlands mayoral election due on 4 May 2017. Andy Street, John Lewis managing director and GBSLEP chairman, is understood to be considering running for the Conservatives. The mayor will be responsible for the West Midlands Combined Authority, which includes Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Coventry, Dudley, Solihull, Sandwell and Walsall. Birmingham Press Club has appointed BBC WM radio presenter Llewela Bailey as its first woman chairman. Bailey, who’s also a part-time journalism lecturer and who used to present the news on ITV Central, will replace Heart radio presenter Ed James, who’s stepping down after four years in the role. Birmingham Press Club, founded in 1865, is the oldest of its kind in the world.

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Five years of online expertise More than 150 of Birmingham’s top professionals turned up to say ‘happy 5th birthday’ to JC Social Media at Chung Ying Central on Colmore Row, Birmingham. And co-owners Ben and Jodie Cook marked the occasion by publishing a new ‘50 Great Ideas’ series of eBooks to guide businesses in online marketing. The four titles – covering Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and search engine optimisation – are available from Kindle on Amazon at £1.99 each. Jodie said: “Each books explores 50 great, actionable ideas that are geared up to generate new sales and leads as well as improve brand perception and reach. There’s something in each book for everyone, from the real beginner to the fairly advanced user.”

PROFILE Hooper Burrowes Legal

Expanding ‘new model’ law firm seeks new talent to join its team Flexible approach to legal work gives solicitors a decent work-life balance and better income Fed up of the long hours and rigid targets-driven environment of traditional partnership law firms? Want to take control of your own working hours and diary, have the ability to work from home and the potential to double your earnings? Hooper Burrowes Legal, a Midlands-based ‘new model’ law firm with a UK-wide reach, is seeking talented consultant solicitors to join its expanding team. The busy law firm, which is celebrating five years in business, is looking for senior solicitors, with at least 10 years experience and their own client following, who want to take full control over their career advancement and enjoy greater rewards, flexibility and job fulfilment. Hooper Burrowes Legal offers lawyers the freedom and opportunity to operate as self-employed consultants whilst enjoying a head office support structure and all the benefits of working alongside a team of experienced senior solicitors. Its attractive fee-sharing agreement truly values individual performance. Consultants can earn in excess of two-thirds of their billings. And, while the company’s head office is based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, its full use of professional cloud-based technology enables its consultants to work from any geographical location. The firm’s current team includes consultants based in both the north and south of England. HOW IT WORKS Hooper Burrowes Legal effectively provides a halfway house between running your own legal practice – but without all the expensive set-up costs – and working for a firm – but with greater freedom and earnings potential and no cumbersome partnership hierarchy. You manage your own time and client base. Hooper Burrowes Legal provides: back-office support, professional I.T. systems, compliance, indemnity insurance, banking and accountancy, case file reviews, brand marketing and opportunities to build

Managing director John Burrowes (centre) and directors Christine Campbell and Robin Hooper are seeking consultant solicitors across a variety of specialisms. on your personal client following. “This is an exciting opportunity for solicitors with an entrepreneurial flair who want greater freedom and flexibility to build a successful career and determine their own work-life balance,” explains Hooper Burrowes Legal managing director John Burrowes. THE BENEFITS Consultants have total control over their work-life balance and earnings potential. You can double your current income while working the same hours, for example, or choose to cut your hours and still match your existing earnings. You choose when and where you work and the geographical area you wish to cover. Clients get a better more efficient service with access to highest quality legal advice from senior professionals at competitive rates.

and local authority law specialist Robin Hooper joined him as a director in 2012. The firm has an existing 10-strong team of six legal experts and four support staff. Current service areas include business and commercial law, planning and development, commercial and residential property, personal injury and medical negligence, wills and probate. The busy office receives enquiries for all types of legal advice and the company is keen to talk to solicitors across a variety of specialisms.

This could be the start of something life-changing. For

ABOUT HOOPER BURROWES LEGAL The company was launched in 2011 by John Burrowes, former founding senior partner at one of Shropshire’s largest law firms. Leading UK planning

an initial discussion in the strictest confidence contact managing director John Burrowes on 01743 455400 or email johnb@hblegal.co.uk. www.hblegal.co.uk

BUSINESS UPDATE www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-breakfast

GIVING SOMETHING BACK The Midlands office of audit, tax and advisory firm Crowe Clark Whitehill has raised over £15,000 for the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity. The money has been raised from dress down days, football tournaments, comedy nights, bake sales, and tuck shops. Highlights include employees Kathryn Williamson and Jack Edmond’s skydive in 2015, which raised £2,137.50. The annual corporate golf day this year also brought in over £3,000.

£1.25m for software growth Finance Birmingham has provided software firm eTech Solutions with £1.25m to help develop its products and expand. The money for the Shirley-based company, which works in the energy assessment and mortgage valuation sectors, has come from a mezzanine fund supported by the Regional Growth Fund. The firm, which has more than 140 staff, will now recruit additional developers and support staff. Jim Driver, managing director at eTech, said: “We need to continue to invest in the best possible staff to create new products that solve the day-to-day issues our customers face. The funding will enable us to fast-track that process.” Ian Fairclough, investment director at Finance Birmingham, said: “We are backing an ambitious management team whose continual product development and willingness to respond to customer requirements is a core strength.”

The West Brom building society raised £5,863 for the Teenage Cancer Trust at its annual golf day at The Staffordshire in Wombourne. A total of 22 teams, made up of staff, suppliers, business partners and industry contacts, took part in the competition.

Paycare, a not-for-profit health cash plan organisation based in Wolverhampton, has raised a total of £1,312 for charity after its team – the Paycare Pirates – battled it out as part of the Chinese Dragon Boat Race at Himley Hall. The money will be split 50:50 between the Rotary Club of Wolverhampton and Compton Hospice. Worcestershire law firm mfg Solicitors has donated £500 to Snoezelen, a Worcester charity offering multi-sensory activities for disabled children and adults of all ages. The cash will help the charity purchase musical sensory equipment.

Bosses from Birmingham-based Black and White Hospitality, the company behind the Marco Pierre White restaurant franchise, cycled from London to Paris to help raise £20,000 for Cure Leukaemia. Nick Taplin, Shezan Aslam and Julian Hook joined 160 other riders to take part in the ride. And chef Marco Pierre White himself then presented the cheque to Charlie Craddock at the charity’s Centre for Clinical Haematology in Birmingham.

QUOTE OF THE QUARTER “We need to recognise business isn’t just about the good life and expensive restaurants, and that if everyone does just a little bit of value then we can help the region’s social cohesion.” Calum Nisbet, regional director, IoD West Midlands.

Eleven staff from corporate clothing supplier Incorporatewear, based in Coleshill, North Warwickshire, raised nearly £1,000 in Cancer Research UK’s 10km Race for Life in Sutton Coldfield Park.

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03/02/2016 12:53:45

PROFILE Investec Private Banking

The best of both worlds for Birmingham

Financial planning, wealth management and now private banking – the Investec Office in Birmingham is on an exciting journey of growth.

Mike Kelly and Charlotte Foster In addition to our established and highly regarded wealth and investment offering, over the past three years our Birmingham office has been bolstered by the introduction of private and corporate banking. This means that our clients have access to a fully integrated service, under one roof. Mike Kelly, Investec Private Bank says ‘I am delighted about the expansion of the private banking team in Birmingham. It will allow us to increase our footprint in the Midlands and focus on more targeted business development activities across the region’.

“We do what is best for clients.” Mike, who is Birmingham born and bred, has over nearly 40 years of experience in financial services has now been joined by Charlotte Foster. Charlotte is a Private Banker and brings 16 years’ experience

in the financial services industry with her, having previously worked at Coutts and NatWest.

“I am delighted about the expansion of the private banking team in Birmingham.” Investec’s approach to working with clients is flexible. ‘We do what is best for clients’, says Charlotte, ‘Clients are not compelled to use all of our services and it’s vital that we develop a deep and meaningful relationship with clients to ensure we put them at the heart of all we do.’ Investec has built its reputation for being out of the ordinary and by delivering unparalleled levels of service and personal attention. For professionals, entrepreneurs and high net worth clients in the Birmingham region, accessing this world of

opportunity couldn’t be easier. Join a Private Bank that gets you. Please bear in mind that the value of investments and the income derived from them can go down as well as up and that you may not get back the amount that you have put in.

Private Banking

For further information, contact Mike Kelly on 0121 232 0700 or email mike.kelly@investec.co.uk or Charlotte Foster on 0121 232 0700 or email charlotte.foster@investec.co.uk

AS I SEE IT bqlive.co.uk

Juggling the work-life balance Entrepreneur Tim Andrews was named ‘Director of the Year’ in the 2016 IoD West Midlands’ awards. Here he shares his top tips for juggling busy roles and ensuring you have a life outside of the office

AS I SEE IT bqlive.co.uk

“ I now only spend time on things that matter. It goes back to planning and delegation; trust the people around you to deal with things, and encourage them to only come to you if there is no other option.”

1. SET SOME GOALS It’s easy to be working towards the overall goal of the business, but do you actually stop and look at your own personal aspirations? Sometimes people assume that once you’re the managing director or chief executive you’ve achieved what you want and your focus is solely on the business’ strategy. But even when you get to that level, you still need to have some of your own goals, personal or professional. 2. GET THE RIGHT TEAMS AROUND YOU Setting goals can be done with the best intentions but, ultimately, it comes down to having the right people around you to support you and make sure that you’re achieving what you need to be. This sounds easier than it is, but building teams that work doesn’t happen overnight. It’s taken me 25 years to find the perfect blend of people and a workplace culture that makes us efficient and effective. The people who work for me are experts in what they do, and me micro-managing them won’t achieve anything. I simply don’t have the time to be watching over everyone – and this is something that good managers need to admit to themselves.

3. PUT THE RIGHT PROCEDURES IN PLACE Something I’ve learnt over the past few years is the importance of having procedures in place. We have fought some difficult times in business and being resilient is essential for survival. Starting as a family business, we had a very informal structure but now we have created expert teams and given everyone a detailed role profile, which has created better synergy internally. Having processes and procedures has helped streamline the business but also reduces the amount of firefighting that we do. Ten years ago it was all that we were doing, but now being organised means that we don’t need to.

4. MANAGE YOUR TIME “I wish there were more hours in the day” is something that I hear far too often. 24 hours is plenty… if you use them right! It has taken me a long time to get to this point but I now only spend time on things that matter. It goes back to planning and delegation; trust the people around you to deal with things, and encourage them to only come to you if there is no other option. Birmingham – and the West Midlands as a whole – is a great place to do business, but you can easily fill your time attending the opening of envelopes. I now only go to things that really benefit me or projects I’m working on.

5. EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY Technology is something that allows me to manage all of these roles at once. Emails mean that I’m always contactable and I hate it when people don’t reply so I make sure that I do it even if just to acknowledge receipt of an email. Think back to a time before emails: as managing director would you sit and open all of the letters on your desk? Lynne, my PA, is able to filter out the ‘junk’ – anything our new email system misses – and also flag the important things. Social media is addictive, so assign set times to go on Facebook and Twitter. It’s a way of winding down and catching up on what’s happening, without being distracted in the day.

6. REMEMBER WHAT YOU’RE DOING IT FOR… Spending time with the family is so important to me, but I know that my time is tight. Technology means that I can be there for the family dinners and holidays, but every now and then I might have to respond to an email or call. I’d much rather be present for 80% of it than not at all, and my family understands that. I also have to find things that help me work at my best. I go running and hate every second of it but know that the hour of pain means that I perform better for the other 23 hours of the day. Running helps me focus, gives me energy, and builds up that “never die” attitude ready for another busy working day. Tim Andrews is managing director of Hollywood Monster, the Birmingham-based signs and graphics company. He’s also chief executive of Birmingham City Ladies Football Club, and chairman and trustee of the LoveBrum charity. n

ENTREPRENEUR bqlive.co.uk

Through the eyes of a child A desire to help children enjoy their religious education has driven 100% growth for Nazia Nasreen’s fledgling business. Maureen Messent reports Little Nazia and her friends, all running to an after-school mosque in east Birmingham, would hold their scarves over their glossy ebony hair until, a breeze catching the edges, the children become a multi-hued convoy on concrete. That was 25 years ago, when a mosque ‘auntie’ would try to teach the girls – in segregated classes – the ways of their Prophet in the Koran, all in Arabic, of course. Go back umpteen more years and I was being prepared for my First Holy Communion, the Roman Catholic rite of passage, by a teacher-nun. But both mosque ‘auntie’ and my nun, despite doing their best, made us scared of God, and we learned lessons not of God’s love for us, but of His anger when we sinned. He was, we both decided, very stern. We didn’t tell our parents how we felt. They respected our religious teachers, wouldn’t have listened to our complaints that God seemed grumpy. And like countless children of all faiths, we stuck it out. Nazia Nasreen is now aged 30 and a devout Muslim mother-of-two, while I’m so laid-back a Roman Catholic as to be almost horizontal. But neither of us wants generations of children taught fear when they should be learning of God’s love and forgiveness. This is what’s driven Nasreen to launch a business that helps. Enter Barbie, that iconic Western doll, who has been reborn as Hijarbie,

attends mosque in modest clothes, and uses a bright pink prayer mat. And small children who see their parents fasting throughout Ramadan can now count off the season’s 30 days on gingham calendars (think of our pocket Advent calendars) and, if they’ve been particularly good, might, just might, find the occasional small chocolate box in a pocket. Although too young to fast themselves, they are getting into the spirit of Ramadan (no food, nothing to drink, praying during daylight hours). Nasreen has sourced joyous toys like these, unavailable in Muslim shops in Britain, from around the globe because she wants Islam to be fun for children everywhere. Her idea grew in her home in Bordesley Green, Birmingham, at first just a way of playing with her little son, Ibraheem, and daughter, Inayah. But other mothers, who had shared her tedium and frights at mosque schools, became enthusiastic. They wanted the same for their own youngsters, not instead of mosque schools, of course, but as parallel to its lessons. Nasreen’s brain-child is now called the Ibraheem Toy House – named after her son – the UK’s first

online Muslim store. And its success has left her slightly shell-shocked but rushed off her sizefour velvet slippers. “It all started as I fed my son and my small daughter was sitting beside me,” she recalls. “I thought how I adored them both, how I’d never let them be scared of anything. The toys came into my mind as a fun way of teaching Islam. After all, whatever faith we are, we best remember the teachers who made us laugh – their lessons and words stay with us, don’t they? “There’s another angle, too. A hugely important angle. Little Muslims are now growing in a world where terrorist atrocities make huge headlines – rightly so. Our children could be affected by its spin-offs. Yet they are British, they must make their ways here on whatever paths they choose. “Some will, perhaps, be asked to explain their faith and they need to be able to explain its gentle ways, not the horrific slaughter we see. But please, I’m not a fanatically devout Muslim. I’m a middle-of-the-road mum, born and bred in Birmingham. My grandfather came here in the 1960s, my dad worked in factories

“Whatever faith we are, we best remember the teachers who made us laugh – their lessons and words stay with us, don’t they?”

ENTREPRENEUR bqlive.co.uk

“ I don’t want my children to feel outsiders. I want them to be good Muslims, able to counter criticism of what’s done by terrorists in Islam’s name.”

until he became a black cab driver. “We want peace as much as any other group – but we need the knowledge that what terrorists perpetrate isn’t true Islam. I don’t want my children to feel outsiders. I want them to be good Muslims, able to counter criticism of what’s done by terrorists in Islam’s name.” Nasreen left Bordesley Girls’ School for a place at what was then the University of Central England (now Birmingham City University), graduating with a BSc degree she used for laboratory work and audiology testing at Specsavers. She’s married to Mohammed Wajid, who works as a baggage handler at Birmingham International. Her work base now is the typically extended

home in Bordesley Green where she’s rigid on just one rule: she works on her laptop for four hours a day to source the men and women who make the goods she wants to sell online. “They’re out there,” she says, “but they can be elusive”. One example was Zahida, a Liverpudlian housewife, who couldn’t wait to talk online to Nasreen. Would she be interested in vivid pink prayer-mats to teach children to say their simple little prayers as their parents said theirs? Nasreen was more than interested. She ordered a dozen on the spot and had sold 11 of them for a 50% mark up by the end of that week. She could have sold another too, but her delighted daughter refused to be parted

from hers. More globe-scouring unearthed a Dutch Muslim toy-carver, a Nigerian doll enthusiast living in the African bush, a former Birmingham student currently working in Dubai who could sell her jigsaws in bright colours and with big pieces – tiny hands need that bit of help. “I had visited several Muslim supermarkets and found they sold very few toys. I got the impression they felt there was very little need for Muslim toys. Well, there jolly well is and I’m selling them!” A little research followed. Nasreen and her husband went to a Muslim fair in Coventry after locating brightly-coloured Islamic reading and painting books, personalised with first names.

ENTREPRENEUR bqlive.co.uk

“ I got the impression they felt there was very little need for Muslim toys. Well, there jolly well is and I’m selling them!”

ENTREPRENEUR bqlive.co.uk

What tiny Koranic scholars, she asks, could refuse a shiny book on which their very own names are printed? They took child-sized chairs and tables from their own home, then laid out the colouring books and bundles of crayons they’d bought. “All the kids stampeded in our direction when they saw these,” says Nasreen. “So did their parents, all thrilled that they’d found aids to Islam that were fun and inviting. They tried to order on the spot. As we drove home, Wajid, who’d thought my toy idea was just a passing fancy, told me that he reckoned I might have hit on something special.” Now she employs three dispatchers to fulfil orders and points out that her feedback (mostly from mothers, grandmothers and aunts) underlines the toys get little children talking, widen their worlds. “Remember that our kids live in Muslim backgrounds but are surrounded by nonMuslims who do things differently. Our big

And a stark contrast, too, to the countless children with no faith affiliations. Do they reckon Father Christmas is Jesus in disguise? Aren’t they missing out enormously if Christmas is simply mountains of gifts? Right now a bestseller for Nasreen is the cuddly Amina (named after the Prophet’s mother) whose hands and feet are pressed to repeat simple Arabic phrases from the Koran. There’s the modest Barbie, of course, (Ken has yet to put in a mosque appearance), there are brightly coloured board games, books, everything that an inquiring little mind will probe, question and learn. Nasreen’s daughter still goes to mosque school for the Koranic essentials. But one of her mum’s happiest days came when she received a little certificate from mosque school, and was able to dance round her home singing Alhumdulilah (all praise is due to you, God). She’d seen the prayer in the Koran at her after-school mosque lessons, had spelt it out

“Now she employs three dispatchers to fulfil orders and points out that her feedback underlines the toys get little children talking, widen their worlds.”

celebrations are our two Eids, when we exchange presents, get new clothes, do everything non-Muslims get up to before Christmas – oodles of wrapping paper, topsecret shopping lists, squirreling goodies away until the big days. “Christmas for us is just a family get-together over a big meal – because it’s usually a long bank holiday. But it’s useless to say to our children that we don’t do Christmas because we’re Muslims. That implies we’re a people apart. And we’re not. The baby born in Bethlehem is one of our prophets called Isa – Arabic for Jesus. “We don’t forget him. Many Muslims get into a little of the Christmas spirit by buying food which they take to food banks. Our tinies absolutely swell with pride as they hand over the offerings and they’re given a great reception: a good lesson learned.”

with lettered toy bricks, and brought the house down! “She’d learned as I want all kids to learn – sorry, I’m being a doting mum, aren’t I?” Parcels now arrive for Ibraheem Toy House’s office from across Europe, Canada, America, Malaysia, African countries, even Australia, all bulging with childhood delights. And, great news from Liverpool, Zahida, the pink mat-maker, has set up a ladies’ sewing circle to fulfil orders. Nasreen herself has a business future mapped out. “The next stop is designing toys”, she says. “I’ve developed a bit of confidence I used to lack. I even talked about my little company at a city centre business seminar [which is where BQ first spotted her]. I was the only Muslim in the room and I dried up until they all shouted, ‘Come on, Nazia, you’re doing fine, tell us about it’.” She doesn’t say as much, but that’s a big step

for a Muslim woman. What about profits and losses (if any of the latter), and how does she run her business? She hints at the figures and operations in such a human way, discussing them via products. After the overnight success of the pink prayermats, Nasreen thought she should ride what she thought modestly was beginner’s luck. When she discovered the couple selling children’s colouring books illustrating Koranic stories she went for it. “I splashed out on 200, then felt I might have got it wrong,” she says. “But wowee! They went in a week to mums all over Britain who wanted the Koran taught as a pleasure. My usual mark-up was applied – it’s been the same since I started selling in 2014 – and I made £15,000 profit. Last year it doubled to £30,000 – but I’d still a lot to learn.” Nasreen, who pores over her laptop when the rest of her family are sleeping, discovered early on that she was spending hours despatching orders from her home. “Bad idea, that,” she remembers. “I needed that time to track down business across the world, not end up under sticky tape and labels. Despatching companies, though, wanted the earth for what’s a pretty basic service and I felt uneasy: this was cash and time almost misspent.” Not for long, though. A friend of a friend offered her three rooms in West Bromwich for a quarter of the usual rent and service charge, and Nasreen now employs three packers. “It’s super,” she says. “I can keep my eyes on all the stock, check everything. I get a great thrill knowing I’m behind my goods reaching Britain from across the world.” With Ibraheem Toy House doing so well, Nasreen says that everyone asks if she and Wajid have treated themselves yet. “No, it’s far too early,” she replies shyly. “We’re still finding our trading legs.” And then she thinks again, and says: “Although a strictly business trip to Dubai might be on the horizon…” Asked how she might advise other entrepreneurs, Nasreen’s thoughts are delightfully modest: “I’ve learned more than I thought possible – all simple lessons that seem obvious once I take them on board. Like the possibilities of answers to problems being on your own doorstep. And like never making the error of fearing you’re reaching too high…” n

PROFILE EY

You have a vision for your company’s growth. But do you have a clear road map to get you there? John Houlden, Midlands Middle Market Partner talks about the journey to market leadership Whatever your business model or level of maturity, middle market companies are today’s engines of global economic growth. The CEOs of these companies view accelerating and sustaining growth as their number one priority. Achieving sustainable growth can be a challenge for even the most ambitious companies. Grow too quickly and financing may prove to be a serious challenge. But grow too slowly – or worse, not at all – and companies risk losing their competitive edge. This makes finding the right formula for sustainable growth critically important When most businesses think about strategy, they think about how they focus people, systems and processes on delivering customer value and ultimately growth. However, talking to, and working with, clients through their business cycle and our own research has shown us that, while this strategy is successful for some, focusing upon a broader set of activities delivers far more sustainable growth. Ambitious companies need growth strategies that are as unique and aspiring as their businesses. Having a broader perspective on the drivers of growth in your business, and finding innovative ways to accelerate and sustain that growth, can give you a competitive advantage.

We examined the growth journeys of hundreds of companies around the world – ranging from start-ups to market-leading businesses. Through our experience of more than two decades working alongside many of the world’s fastest-growing companies, we have talked to some of the world’s leading entrepreneurs, including many EY Entrepreneur Of The Year™ winners and gained the views of more than 500 EY professionals who work every day with leaders of the world’s most dynamic companies. Our research concluded that, by focusing on a broader set of activities and finding the right balance, businesses can not only accelerate growth, but ensure it’s sustainable. The EY Growth Navigator™ is an interactive experience that uses the EY 7 Drivers of Growth to help you and your leadership team assess your business’s current and aspirational position, and create a strategic road map to help you get there. It is the definitive guide to sustainable growth, spanning seven pillars we see as critical to business success. These are: 1. Customer. Leading companies make customers their focal point. By putting the customer experience first, they achieve a competitive advantage. This includes focusing on products/ services, markets and channels, marketing, the customer experience, sales and pricing. 2. People, behaviours and culture. Leading businesses attract and retain the right people who share the company’s vision and fit its culture. These organisations pay close attention to capability, performance management, innovation, leadership and rewards. 3. Digital, technology and analytics. Information is power. It can help leaders make better, quicker and smarter decisions that improve business performance. We’ve observed that successful growth strategies consider the digital enterprise, analytics, emerging technologies, data security and privacy

and the technology function. 4. Operations. A standard approach to an operating model links strategic intent and an organization’s ability to deliver on that intent. But a tailored approach aligning operations with strategy increases the ability to succeed. This means an operations strategy with a commitment to operational excellence and continuous improvement – and a resilient and sustainable supply chain. 5. Funding and finance. All businesses need funds to grow. How a business manages its money and approaches investor relations and stakeholder management will determine its future course. Leading companies focus on their growth funding strategy, organizational structure, finance processes and controls, the use of data and technology and stakeholder management. 6. Transactions and alliances. Market-leading companies rarely expand through organic growth alone. They seek partnerships, alliances and strategic acquisitions to enhance their growth, competitiveness and profitability, underpinned by solid transactions strategy, planning and effectiveness.

To book an EY Growth Navigator™ meeting or discuss in more detail the EY 7 Drivers of Growth, contact John Houlden, Midlands Middle Market Partner, for more information on +44 121 535 2309 or jhoulden@uk.ey.com

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Leading in an uncertain world As the business world reacts to Brexit, Rob Noble, chief executive of the Leadership Trust, says there’s never been a more important time to lead courageously We’re living in an uncertain world. All of us, me included, are running our businesses, striving for improved productivity and growth against a backdrop of constant change and technological developments that make long term planning a thing of the past. The chain of events following the EU referendum in June are just one example of that. And productivity has a particular importance here in the West Midlands where our output is around £4,000 per head, behind the national average. Things are tough. So what does it take to maintain high performance under pressure? From the military to an investment bank and now as a chief executive I have found myself relying and falling back upon skills and behaviours nurtured in the Army. I have narrowed my thoughts to three

key recommended leadership topics that are tried and tested on the battlefield, but relevant in the corporate environment and anywhere in between. The British Military has defined leadership in the title of the book given to each Officer Cadet upon arrival at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst: ‘Serve to Lead’. Leadership is not about authority born of position or ego, but about being focused on your role as a leader. Many a junior officer misinterprets their role as to be a ‘super-soldier’, able to run faster and shoot straighter, but may miss the major opportunity to be able to deliver the whole team and its range of skills and experiences to the challenge of the mission. The core belief of the Leadership Trust encapsulates elements of this through the

“A sound plan will develop intellectual buy-in and being credible will enable the emotional, but the combination of the two is the winning formula.”

leadership mantra ‘winning hearts and minds to achieve a common purpose’. A sound plan will develop intellectual buy-in and being credible will enable the emotional, but the combination of the two is the winning formula. The uncertain environment is hard to define, due to political, economic, societal, technological, legal or environmental factors. This extra challenge can become the focus if the foundations of the operational performance are not strong, with people forgetting that there remains an objective to be achieved. The first of the three key recommended leadership topics is to ‘understand’. For example, the origin of a task has a need to be met, and completing the task will require appropriate resource and the team has strengths and weaknesses. Any military or business planning process must start with understanding the context of why a task must be completed and establishing whether the task has been assigned appropriately with sufficient resource. The key to unlocking the issue is with someone

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Formal development work should be used to address needs that cannot be met internally, in the same way a sports professional asks a coach for assistance with a particular skill.â&#x20AC;?

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else; whether attempting to destabilise a terrorist network or increase commercial penetration into a client, it may be the person at the centre is not the individual to work on as the influence sits elsewhere. Additionally, there is the understanding that comes from learning. If new equipment or techniques are to be used, the day of the race is too late to identify issues. Leadership needs development, but this does not need to be cost or time prohibitive. Formal development work should be used to address needs that cannot be met internally, in the same way a sports professional asks a coach for assistance with a particular skill. Regular meetings to voice constructive criticism that results (and must result) in actions can be time well spent. Rehearsal can be a huge benefit to understanding and underwriting delivery, where teams can explore potential challenges and pitfalls, in addition to making strategic changes towards a new direction and prepare for any drops in income. Finally, learn ‘one up’ and ‘be ready for anything’. In war what can go wrong will, and after all the enemy has a vote too. So no matter how well the ground is prepared, the real-life situation may be different. Therefore a team which is comfortable to step up is an advantage. After all, it will always be a Friday evening once everyone has gone home when the issue will arise! The second topic is ‘clarity’. This is crucial for everyone, in order to understand what is required of them and how leaders can expect to give sound guidance to their team. After having received a task in the military, it is expected that a leader would refer questions back to the source, which provides the opportunity to challenge as necessary, but also to understand why the task must be completed. Through setting sights on a clear objective and knowing the desired outcome, the leader and their team are able to work in unison and remain mission-focused, operate freely but within agreed boundaries, build contingencies and maintain the ability to anticipate and react as the situation changes. Clarity also helps to build trust as the team will not waste time questioning why they have to complete the task, or feeling unsure

that they can complete it. Finally, there is a need for ‘resilience’, a critical attribute of successful leadership and organisations, but often intangible and difficult to judge. Leadership is often described as a lonely place and at times it must be. Personal resilience in leadership is hugely dependent upon the capability and capacity in the team, as no one person will carry an organisation. Resilient leaders may have their foundations in a clear vision that they can focus on and whatever friction they encounter is dismissed as something that needs addressing, but is merely an inconvenience. Their resilience may come from having created a strong team and knowing it has the flexibility to react to a changing situation, or the resilience may be a confidence in their own abilities and experience of similar situations. Resilience could be compared to courage and whilst much is written about both, my experience of courage in the most extreme of circumstances is that it is not inexhaustible. Courage has been described as a finite resource that were it a substance in a vessel, it would need topping up to ensure it does not run out. The challenge for leadership is to ensure time is taken to refresh and maintain perspective. In a combat situation this could be achieved by getting a break away from the ‘front’, but in a different context this may manifest itself as making time for physical exercise, delegating non-essential activity or consciously deciding to shelve certain projects. In summary, humans are difficult creatures to influence. We have inbuilt and strongly reinforced biases that persuade us to see the world in our own, individual, way and accept our perceptions as truths. So effective leadership, which pre-supposes that we intend to get people to behave and perform in ways they’d be unlikely to do without our intervention, can be complex and perplexing. Being good at it takes courage and practice. But the effort is worth it. At a personal level, winning the hearts and minds of others to overcome challenges as a team is among the most rewarding and fulfilling things we can ever do. For our businesses, activating that leadership at every level will help us turn an uncertain world into an outstanding future. n

Rob Noble Noble joined the Leadership Trust in February 2011, after a period with Goldman Sachs in London running equity operations teams. Previously, he completed 18 years’ service in the British Army where he gained significant operational experience on tours of duty in Northern Ireland, Sierra Leone, Iraq and Afghanistan. As an officer in the British Army’s Parachute Regiment, his biggest challenge was holding responsibility for the lives of 300 people in Helmand, Afghanistan for seven months during combat operations, as well as avoiding unnecessary risk for the civilian communities where they were operating.

The Leadership Trust Based in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, The Leadership Trust has more than 40 years of experience in understanding the pressures today’s business bosses are under. It has developed specialist leadership development programmes based on highimpact, experiential learning, seeking out and developing the leader in everyone. BQ readers are invited to attend a free taster event from 8.45am to 12.30pm on Tuesday 25 October 2016, at Thinktank, Birmingham Science Museum, Millennium Point, Curzon St, Birmingham B4 7XG. For full details and to register a place, go to leadershiptrust.co/tasterdays

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Twoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a company Life as an entrepreneur can be challenging. But what if your co-ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also your other half? Steve Dyson finds out about lovers in business

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JAMES AND CARINA ACKRILL CENTRICK PROPERTY James and Carina Ackrill run Centrick Property, a Midlands-based property group with offices in central Birmingham, Nottingham, Solihull and London. The Ackrills, aged 36 and 35 respectively, live just outside Solihull and established the company in 2005. Carina describes how “our young, dynamic team deliver a friendly, efficient and professional service” in everything from residential sales and lettings, through to estate and block management. James originally set up the company as a property consultancy in 2005, and although Carina came up with the name she didn’t actually work with him initially. James then brought in an old school pal, Shane Bland, to expand into estate management, and with business booming Carina joined in 2007 to launch asset management and sales and lettings agency divisions. But now they’re both working together, who’s the real grafter? Carina says: “Well, I’m in the office more than James is anyway! But it is, in fact, James who’s overseen the vast majority of new business coming into the company since its inception and has, therefore, driven its incremental growth and the direction of the business over the past decade. “We’ve found that challenges of running a business together are trying not to talk about work when we’re at home, and it’s not as easy as it sounds! That said, the advantages are great, especially for the company as it’s completely unified in its direction and aspirations.” Centrick currently employs more than 120 people across the group and last year turned over £5m. It sold over £43m of residential property in 2015 and currently manages over £1bn worth of client assets around the UK. The company has recently scooped three awards: Gold for West Midlands Agency of the Year at The Negotiator Industry Awards, Gold for Midlands Lettings Agency of the Year and Silver for Midlands Estate Agency of the Year, both sponsored by The Times and Sunday Times. And after celebrating its 10th anniversary last year, Carina says: “It’s been a great decade for Centrick Property”.

James and Carina Ackrill - Centrick Property She says: “The company has grown at least 30% year-on-year since its inception and in the last 12 months we’ve seen the biggest growth in the company’s history, with little sign of slowing down. We look forward to being at the head of this successful, innovative and, dare I say, influential company and establishing it as the premier property group in the Midlands.” Centrick’s rapid growth has continued despite the patter of tiny feet: “When we had our first child, Arthur, I ended up only taking seven weeks off, as some bright spark (James!) decided to open a new branch in central Nottingham when I was on maternity leave. “We’re expecting our second child in November and this time I’m hoping to have at least three months off. Luckily, we have an incredibly professional and competent team behind us at Centrick Property, so I can take time out without any impact to company operations or its continued growth.”

The Ackrill’s three top tips for entrepreneur couples: 1. Make time for your relationship among all the business stuff. It’s hard to not talk shop with each other in the evenings and weekends but make the effort to consciously put it aside and just be a couple. 2. Befriend other entrepreneur couples. You can share your challenges and successes with people who truly understand the issues and pressures whilst also learning from them and how you can improve. 3. Utilise each of your strengths in the business. Carina’s background is in marketing so she looks after the communications side, whereas James is “brilliant” at sales and so obtains new business for the company. “You can even leverage these strengths and learn from each other, making the business stronger as a whole,” says Carina.

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Mathew’s and Pesala’s three top three tips for entrepreneur couples: 1. Your relationship has to come first. Business decisions affect your relationship differently than if you were with a straightforward business partner. 2. Patience, patience, patience. 3. Everyone’s happier when you’re successful!

Mathew Growcoot and Pesala Bandara - News Dog Media MATHEW GROWCOOT AND PESALA BANDARA - NEWS DOG MEDIA Mathew Growcoot and Pesala Bandara run News Dog Media, a content agency based in Moseley, Birmingham. This company produces video, pictures and words about human-interest stories to sell to media all across the world. Its main markets are the UK, Germany and the USA, and its biggest clients are Closer magazine, ITV’s This Morning, RTL television, NBC network and the Mail Online. Mathew, aged 27, came up with the idea after working in media agencies since he was 18. He says: “In November 2013 I was working for an agency in Birmingham and wasn’t happy so decided I was going to branch out on my own.” Meanwhile, Pesala, 28, was working part-time and decided to help her partner out. “Despite having no formal experience in this field, she proved to be a genius at finding big human-interest stories and quickly eclipsed me as the most valuable person in the company,” says an admiring Mathew. “Pesala’s definitely the talent. I’m the one who puts everything else into place, producing all of

the visuals, selling to clients and sorting out problems. I would definitely say that I’m the grafter!” The couple, who recently moved to live in Harborne, are currently the only staff at News Dog Media, but consider themselves to be “very successful”. “It is only the two of us so production can be sporadic,” says Mathew. “But we’ve had several high-profile stories that have gone fully viral. We have almost seven million views on our YouTube channel and have forged relationships with virtually every major media outlet in the Western world – including partnerships with new-age companies like the Lad Bible.” As for the future, the couple have their eyes on growth, and area already exploring new markets where they want to “get a head start on our competition”. Mathew adds: “This time next year I think we will have a team of employees around us.” But as far as babies go, he says there are “no plans for that just yet”. However, the pair have just had a puppy, a Teacup Chihuahua called Chico, which he feels has “given us a little insight to what babies may be like!”.

Adam and Natasha Stokes - Adam's Restaurant ADAM AND NATASHA STOKES Adam and Natasha Stokes run Adam’s restaurant on Waterloo Street, Birmingham. Adam, aged 34, has been in the industry since starting catering school when he was 16, and so launching his own restaurant had always been his “dream”. He completed his training at Hambleton Hall, Leicestershire, while Natasha was studying for a degree in physics. As newlyweds in 2008, they moved to Scotland to manage Glenapp Castle, a Relais & Châteaux hotel, and this was where Adam’s dream grew into a “joint aspiration to start a restaurant together”. They moved to Birmingham to launch Adam’s in 2013, and now live in Acocks Green – although Adam doesn’t seem to be home much!

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He often works up to 100 hours a week, and once worked 38 days consecutively when he was in Scotland. Natasha, meanwhile, is the “brains for the future”: she found both the initial Adam’s pop-up restaurant and their current permanent home. She’s also quite honest about the challenges of working together: “Finding the balance of egos and responsibilities is tricky, and working in such a high pressured environment makes even the small things into a big deal.” That said, the business is booming. Natasha, aged 31, says: “We have 35 amazing employees, with a growing turnover and a very exciting and varied customer base. Our company projections are looking very favourable and the expansion in size that happened at the beginning of this year is already paying off with a full restaurant.” “Our first son arrived just three months after opening the pop-up and our second son three months before the new restaurant opened. We have a lot going on but it’s the way we like it. The long-term plan is to continue to please our guests with stunning food, service and surroundings. In the future there may be a cookbook but for now our feet are firmly planted in the present.” The Stokes’ three top three tips for entrepreneur couples: 1. Really know your industry: work it, live it, dream it. 2. Try before you buy, much like living together before you marry. Work together as colleagues before jumping into business. 3. And finally, there is never an ideal time, for anything, sometimes you just have to go for it!

BEN COOK AND JODIE COOK, RUN JC SOCIAL MEDIA Ben Cook and Jodie Cook, run JC Social Media, a specialist social media agency. The couple – both aged 27 – have a team of 12 staff based on New Street, Birmingham, providing social media management and training to local and global clients, with particular success in the automotive and hospitality sectors. Jodie came up with the idea during her degree five years ago, and Ben joined the team after a couple of years as the business began to rapidly

Ben Cook and Jodie Cook - JC Social Media grow. The pair, who’ve been together for nine years and live in Birmingham city centre, both describe themselves as “grafters” but “just in different departments”. “That’s one of the advantages of working as a couple,” Jodie says. “You can play to each other’s strengths. We don’t feel like there are any additional challenges to any business relationship. We spend a lot of time together but that’s always good fun. “Our success is dictated by our clients’ success. If we help them achieve results and help them grow, JC Social Media will be successful. This is reflected in the fact we have household name clients from across the UK and the world, plus a load of awards for our work. “It’s also provided us the scope to be involved in a couple of other projects including the Clever Tykes children’s storybooks and a new app we’re launching.”

Looking after a dozen staff, scores of clients and new business projects sounds like a busy life, but what will that mean if the recently married couple think about starting a family? “There’s no chance of kids, right now; we’re not sure where they’d fit in! We’re committed to growing JC Social Media and to become the go-to social media agency in the UK, whilst being on the look out for other opportunities to add value.” n The Cooks’ three top tips for entrepreneur couples: 1. Play to each other’s strengths and abilities. 2. Come to each other with solutions rather than problems. 3. Most importantly, remember that you’re on the same team, with the same goals and that you’re both trying to achieve them.

PROFILE University of Birmingham

It takes skill to remain competitive In the past few decades, European manufactuing industries have gone through intense change. Technological change not only heavily affected the stock of workers employed in manufacturing but more importantly, impacted on the nature of skills demanded. Manufacturing has also experienced significant transformation as a result of globalisation: it has been the subject of an intense international reorganisation driven crucially by firms’ offshoring strategies. The relocation of activities away from the domestic market is eroding the skill base. This has raised concerns over a mismatch between firms’ skills needs and a persistent skills shortage caused by inadequate training and skilling responsiveness. British firms’ competitiveness depends on their ability to access and attract the necessary human capital effectively. These new challenges need to be addressed through effective collaborations bringing together the education system, government and industry. Upskilling the labour force in key manufacturing industries will be a game-changer for the UK. SkillUP is a research project looking at the demand and supply of skills in European manufacturing industries. Lead by Dr Mariachiara Barzotto and Professor Lisa De Propris from the Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham, SkillUP will contribute to a better understanding of: • What mix of skills manufactures need to be innovative and competitive; • What education and training is required to ensure that workforce skill development matches

“Upskilling the labour force in key manufacturing industries will be a game-changer for the UK.” industry demand. SkillUP delivers evidence based policy recommendations in the form of a toolkit to: • Design and implement effective skills development interventions (such as: educational/training programmes), enhance employability (jobs created and jobs filled), bridge the industry and education system, promote smart and inclusive economic growth of Europe. Dr Mariachiara Barzotto and Professor Lisa De Propris

are seeking manufacturers’ views by interviews in the engineering, new materials, biotech, apparel, textiles and furniture firms with headquartered in the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain or Sweden. The resulting overall research will inform policy makers in the areas of skills development in Industry4.0 in Europe. In recognition of participation, all contributors will be sent a copy of the published final report and invited to the final event along with policy institutions.

ABOUT SKILLUP TEAM Mariachiara Barzotto is a Post-Doctoral International Fellow at the Birmingham Business School. Before joining the School, she has been a visiting Ph.D. student and research collaborator at Cass Business School. She obtained her Ph.D. degree at Ca’ Foscari University Venice, where she worked as a Post-Doctoral researcher. Her research interests and work experience mainly focus on organisation of global value chains, international competitiveness, EU industrial policy and employment in advanced economies - including skill misalignments and skill development in high-income countries. Lisa De Propris is Professor of Regional Economic Development at the Birmingham

If you are interested in participating in the study and

Business School. Her main research interests are: small firms and clusters, competitiveness in clusters and regions,

finding out more about workforce skill development or

forms of clusters and governance, innovation, clusters and foreign direct investment, regional development,

your business is looking to partner with a University

knowledge economy and clusters. In parallel, she has been concerned with the role of the government and

to explore opportunities for collaboration and growth,

institutions, and has looked at policy implications. She has made a distinctive contribution through her

please contact, Andy Newnham, Business Engagement

involvement in scholarly debate, and has extensively published in top-ranking journals.

Partner, University of Birmingham, 07964911458, A.Newnham@bham.ac.uk.

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LIVE DEBATE

In association with

THE VOICE FOR BUSINESS DEBATE

The issue: ‘What more can we achieve to continue to allow entrepreneurial business start ups to flourish in the West Midlands and how do we continue to create a culture of support?’ Barclays had assembled a room of key people from across all sectors and areas of the West Midlands who were clearly focussed on the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem for the region to make it the UK’s most attractive area for aspiring new businesses and setting out a clear plan for supporting innovation, aspiration and growth. After introductions around the table, Tim Virgo, relationship director for Barclays Corporate, started the evening off by setting the debate in the context of the region’s huge growth. “My real passion is supporting clients through their journey from early stage right through to scale-up and beyond. It is about bringing together this eco-system through the fantastic people in this room. But rather than just focussing on the stage of the journey and how supportive the bank is, we will try to find solutions and workarounds because the bank supports with finance, but that is not the only solution. We are looking at business angels and crowdfunding as things that will sit alongside the conventional banking routes because we

know that solutions don’t always fit neatly into certain boxes. “There is a concern that the provision of support is a bit contrived and perhaps the flow needs to be a bit more easy. Whether it is at places like iCentrum or The Latitude Club, we should meet more regularly and tap into what businesses need.” Steve Walker, chief executive of ART Business Loans, said there were pluses and minuses to the existing system: “There is a real quality about some of the support out there, from the likes of Entrepreneurial Spark and sometimes from the universities – although they do tend to hide their light under a bushel. “But I have also been ashamed going into some areas like Alum Rock that are really interested in innovation and were keen for someone to go around and see them, but they don’t have a clue

what is happening about a mile down the road at Innovation Birmingham in Aston.” Robert Hallmark, CEO of male grooming company Gruhme said there were great opportunities in the West Midlands, but he added: “There is as danger of the corporates being too generous and an expectation of that needing to be the case for start-ups. Instead, I think it is a case of miniaturisation and that small is better rather than some of the awards dinners I have been to where the winner gets £12,000. Better saying you have all made the shortlist and give 300 a nod rather than one because there is a danger that that money will be spent on offices and staff and that there will be huge issues with overheads a few months down the line. “The finance I am using at the moment is 60 per cent interest, but it is so accessible if you just need £250 at a time or £1,000 a month because

“There is a real quality about some of the support out there, from the likes of Entrepreneurial Spark and sometimes from the universities”

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start-ups often need flexible, small amounts that you can get at quickly. “This approach also helps filter out the noise and seed the successful ones. Certainly, there are some bad lenders out there, but that is the advantage of this coming from someone like Barclays – there is already a trust in the community.” Prof Monder Ram, director of the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship at the University of Birmingham, said: “In the policy arena, the word is ‘growth’ because you can’t really get business support without messaging your offer as growth – and you can understand why that is the case. “Most entrepreneurs don’t want business support, I agree a lot of them are lonely people and part of quite a closed network, so it is the arrangements that facilitate the start-up - what is around it - that is really important. “When we talk about business support often the conversation pivots towards access to finance and I think that is really unfortunate because if you look at the evidence, finance is not the problem - firms that want the money get the money. This is a great event from Barclays, but I would bet my substantial mortgage that most of those Alum Rock, Sparkhill and Balsall Heath businesses would not have heard of it. They have their own eco-systems and that is really problematic.” Jodie Cook, MD of JC Social Media outlined her approach to mentoring and support, telling her fellow guests: “I use the phrase ‘useful people’ a lot because I try to be a useful person

myself and I surround myself with useful people and try to turn everyone I work with into a useful person. “There are people who see solutions rather than problems, and challenges, not obstacles. I think it is a mindset but there is also an element of it that you can train. Entrepreneurs are probably already those sort of people, but we need to create more of them, which will never happen with anyone who just goes into ‘transmit’ mode and tries to tell them how something will be done. But it can happen with coaching.” Whisk CEO Nick Holzherr was identified as one of the region’s ‘useful people’ and said there was an ‘amazing’ amount of talent in Birmingham. “We have found there are great clusters of innovators in the likes of Digbeth and the Jewellery Quarter, but they don’t really talk to each other – and there are probably quite a few other areas that we haven’t even heard of, which is a massive issue. “One thing we are all picking up from this is ‘what do we mean by support or mentorship and how can legal, accountancy and banking firms help?’. “The key thing here is that the people who have helped me are entrepreneurs who have made it and are now either retiring or investing their money and they can talk from experience and help me with pretty much any problem I’ve got, whether it is people, money or business plans. “The legal, accountancy and banking firms all have access to these people because those are your clients and they are willing to help, but they are not put in touch with the people who need that help. The bigger companies can be the connector between the people who have made it and the people who are trying to make it.” Emphasising the personal approach which is so important for a mentor, he added: “We don’t really need people to write profit and loss accounts or deal with massive legal issues or legal products when we get templates online for free.” Rich Westman, founder of digital health and well-being platform Kaido, said he owed a lot to the e4f incubator at Innovation Birmingham. “We were started at a coffee shop in Shirley, and we weren’t getting out of Shirley anytime soon had we not come across this programme. It is an amazing initiative, but there are a lot of people stuck in there and they are quite

TAKING PART Ray O’ Donoghue, Managing Director of Barclays Corporate Tim Virgo, relationship director for Barclays Corporate Joel Blake, Founder, Cultiv8 Solutions Jodie Cook, MD JC Social Media Alan Lusty, MD adi Group Graham Nicoll, strategic director KPMG Shana Owen, Founder of Brightlet Steve Walker, chief executive ART Business Loans Nick Holzherr, CEO at Whisk Professor Monder Ram, director of the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME) Robert Hallmark, CEO of Gruhme Tony Davis, commercial director of West Midlands Academic Health Science Network (WMAHSN) Chris Rawstron, partner at Irwin Mitchell Rich Westman, Founder of Kaido In the chair: Caroline Theobald CBE Taking notes: BQ Editor Mike Hughes Venue: Hotel Du Vin 45 Church Street Birmingham B3 2NR

BQ is highly regarded as a leading independent commentator on business issues, many of which have a bearing on the current and future success of the region’s business economy. BQ Live is a series of informative debates designed to further contribute to the success and prosperity of our regional economy through the debate, discussion and feedback of a range of key business topics and issues.

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happy to keep their desk and keep coming up with ideas. “Our approach was to get out of e4f as soon as possible and get commercial credibility and raise the finance we have in just the last two or three months because of corporates opening doors for me rather than going through seven layers of an organisation to get to the person who is going to listen. “There is a great opportunity in collaboration, but I wouldn’t have known about iCentrum or Innovation Birmingham, so I wonder how many people are stuck in Costa Coffee in Shirley with a brilliant business idea but can never get it out anywhere?” Shana Owen who runs Brightlet, a digital lettings and property management company, paid tribute to her hosts, saying: “We have been successful in building brand awareness around our product only because of our relationship with Barclays. People think we are credible because Barclays thinks we are credible and that strength applies to all the big corporate who have the contacts. We are looking for partnerships, collaborations and JVs with some of the people on your client lists. “For us, it is about enabling those connections to happen – get us to the right people and give us the opportunity to show what we can do. Brightlet doesn’t see itself as only a regional or national company, we know there is scope for it to be international and being connected to a big corporate brand will enable us to get where we want to be.” Tim Virgo replied: “One of the things we are trying to build is an angel network at iCentrum and people have wrongly assumed that is about access to finance – but in reality it is all about that connectivity. We are very conscious of wanting to support that network and bring people in not just from the city, but from across the UK if they can help your proposition and link you into the right CEOs.” And Ray O’Donoghue added: “iCentrum’s work has been amazing for what is a small platform for a very few fortunate businesses that have got on there. I think it should be embraced and scaled to a place where everyone else can benefit from it.” That need to scale up the region’s offering was echoed by Nick Holzherr, who said the target should be those Alum Rock entrepreneuers: “When we go to those places where no one

has that experience and tell them basic stuff about Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme tax relief for someone who has put some money into a business they think it’s great and ask what it is and I think ‘surely this should be common knowledge among our network.’” From the corporate side, Graham Nicoll, strategic director at KPMG, said: “So many of the successful entrepreneurs come from an ethnically diverse background, whereas if you look at iCentrum or a lot of the hubs in Birmingham, as a rule you are not getting the diversity of gender or race or religion because of this knowledge gap. I don’t think it’s a matter of trust so much as a basic knowledge of the available networks because to some degree they tend to follow in the footsteps of their parents or those who influenced them in their upbringing, not necessarily because of their jobs but because of their networks. It’s about access,

availability and awareness.” Alan Lusty, MD of engineering firm adi Group, applauded the role of connectors, putting the right people in touch with each other. He said: “If I was asked how often I ‘touch’ the 17 MDs I work with, I will be lucky if I touch them for three hours a month, which is not enough, but for me if I can touch them for one hour as a mentor outside my own business then that would give me a personal achievement. “As to whom I would trust to be connector, the banks touch everyone, the entrepreneurs and the businessmen. Would I go out and find someone? No. But I might meet someone around this table tonight that I could work with because there is a similarity in our stories. If I was just given a name of someone and told to go and mentor them, that is much more difficult.“I couldn’t give someone I mentor three hours a week, but I’ll be on the end of a phone for them 24/7.”

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Irwin Mitchell partner Chris Rawstron said his firm and Barclays were largely dealing with established businesses. He said: “If what we are talking about is addressing the diversity issue and getting down to a connection with real start-up businesses, we have to find another way of doing that and I am not convinced that is through professional services firms or financial institutions. “Maybe you have to create a new platform specifically targeted at the winners of tomorrow because there are a lot of start-ups that you could waste a lot of time with, to be quite blunt. And it is a matter of trying to find people who really want and will value the input, whether that is through mentoring or advice. There are a lot of people in our organisations who play a really valuable role in terms of providing continuity with people who need some permanency in a relationship. It is about having a single point of contact with someone who understands them and their business.” Steve Walker agreed and added: “It is a twoway stretch because the people who are being mentored have got to understand the value of that mentoring and want to grow their business, because a lot of people just want the sympathy to get to the point where they might think about growing. “I am surprised this is still an issue, but it is, and not necessarily from the start-up stage but how they get to the growth stage after one or two years. Some academics say they are looking for ‘gazelles’ but they don’t always come from where you might think, they come from other places and going to those other places is a difficult thing. “We have gone out to 45 of our clients who we think have growth prospects and offered them a mentoring service with mentors lined up trained and ready. Five of them bothered. We had that ten years ago and it is the same now.” Prof Monder Ram said: “Since 2010 the government effectively retreated from the business support arena, stopped the funding and in its place is a whole host of new institutions with the banks and corporate institutions really occupying that space now. I think that is to be welcomed because, frankly, they have a lot more credibility than public sector support groups. A couple of colleagues around this table have said what they want from a mentor is someone who has been there, done it and got that

“The people who are being mentored have got to understand the value of that” inside information. “We set up a network of black entrepreneurs ten years ago and when we put them in touch with mentors, who they wanted was someone who understood their culture as well as being a real success in business. I think that kind of interaction is missing. “I went on a study tour to New York in early 2000, and we looked at Hewlett Packard and JP Morgan and Ford and when we asked them how they identified community engagement CSR – which can be mentioned in quite a sceptical way - was part of their job description, so if they didn’t spend a certain amount on it each year that would affect their bottom line. “JP Morgan had small firms incorporated into their supply chain and knew the demographic of their customers so they were in an eco-system which incentivises commerciallyoriented engagement between the corporate and SME sectors. “My university is a half-billion pound business, an anchor institution which can influence what happens in the locality. If it leveraged its own resources it could have a massive impact on the SME community. It could have a transformational effect in territory that could be profitably mined.” Shana Owen agreed, adding: “Generally, entrepreneurs are extremely passionate about what they do and we know that we are

surrounded by talented people who are just as passionate and what we do in Barclays’ Eagle Labs is that we bounce off other companies and find a lot of synergy in what we are all doing. We collaborate in terms of ideas, which is something you can’t get in any other sort of arena. “Most of us have the ability to white-label our products which enables us to essentially pin them to any corporate eco-system, so that is something we would like to explore.” Rich Westman of Kaido admitted that if he was one of the two-month old Costa Coffee start-ups he mentioned, he wouldn’t have gone to bank like Barclays for help growing his business. He said: “There is a culture that as a start-up, you start small and there are usually contacts internally and you don’t think you should reach out too far in case you lose your IP or you burn a bridge. There needs to be something like iCentrum where the corporate are actually saying ‘this is available to you’ because people can get stuck for far too long in a really small confined space thinking they have got to go alone.” Joel Blake, the founder of CSR advisory firm Cultiv8 Solutions – who was later applauded by his fellow guests on his recent OBE for services to business support and enterprise - said: “What I am hearing is a lot about this term ‘corporate innovation’ being bandied around, but it has to mean something for Birmingham in a really localised sense. I made a few notes about the three Cs – culture, commerciality and confidence. “We need to challenge the culture within organisations so their staff can learn more entrepreneurial skills to bring the right level

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“We all come from different backgrounds of experiences and knowledge, but how often do we embrace those conditionings – good and bad”

of creativity and innovation, which brings confidence to make better decisions and engage with the wider eco-system in the silos out there. “The commerciality side is the bottom line – it’s all about numbers and we can’t get away from that, so how are we linking all this activity with those numbers? And if it is not about the monetary value, how are we creating other value for the communities we are supposed to be serving? “But if there is no confidence at executive level to take these risks, how are you going to create change in the deepest, darkest communities in the city and help people feel confident enough to have these conversations? “We can put on our game face all the time, but the reality is that we need to be honest about what we are trying to achieve at the end of it. My own eco-system has been built around relationships because I only want to work with passionate people and harness that passion to make something happen in an organisation. I also look for evidence of impact – how did you

Funding, and Brexit, which are all things we have to deal with – but let’s get down to the basics.” Steve Walker then told the room there were 39 Growth Hubs across the country, which prompted Nick Holzherr to underline one of the challenges for the region by admitting he didn’t know what a Growth Hub was. Steve summarised it as a new form of Business Link, “a signposting that is supposed to be the focal point of putting people in touch with information about what is on offer in terms of business support and access to finance, staffed by the Chamber of Commerce and the University of Birmingham, Birmingham City University and Aston. He added: “But there is an irony here in how

do it, what did you learn and simple things that have a direct effect on your business holistically like ‘how do you handle date night with your wife?’.“There is also peer accountability through which you can build the trust and the bond we have talked about. And then conditioning – we all come from different backgrounds of experiences and knowledge, but how often do we embrace those conditionings – good and bad - and have an honest dialogue about them?“That human relationship builds a really collaborative eco-system. If not , then it becomes all about bureaucracy and European Social

many people don’t know about it because that it is the major tool that is being used, but Birmingham is different – go and look at the Black Country and Worcestershire, where they have appointed someone to make sure they engage with all parts of the private sector and the public sector. If everyone engaged with it and bought into it here, then it would still be the major tool.” Joel Blake questioned whether it was a matter of a decision being made in isolation ‘We think people need that – give them it’, and Graham Nicoll agreed the strategy might not be right

and suggested the hub was focussed on access to finance and still had some way to go to ‘catch up’ with the way things were done elsewhere.“What do people want - probably not what it is trying to deliver as its priority,” he said. Tony Davis, commercial director of the West Midlands Academic Health Science Network, outlined his approach: “At the NHS we looked at joining together with the other NHS bodies around things like the Growth Hubs and what the LEPs were doing and using all that landscape and traditional architecture. “That could be a way of us in the NHS using our resources for economic growth and development and the route we have chosen to go down is to follow the corporate. So the support we have given by sponsoring the digital health hub at iCentrum is not so much about the financial support, but about the proximity to market, so we can articulate the challenges of the customers, pull in innovation and tailor the startups that are being created. “They can then talk to the NHS and fully understand the space they need to inhabit – so it is not all about the incubation, but the wraparound that goes with it. We also launched an SME investment fund, which took me two years to get through the board at the University Hospital – you can imagine the discussions with the finance directors. “But again, this is also about the message that the NHS is investing in some of the things that we think are the solution, rather than wait for the Growth Hubs and the LEPs and other organisations that spend all their time sorting out their infrastructures before they go out to companies and start asking what they want.” Looking at the increasing role needed to be played by the private sector, Graham Nicoll said: “I need to defend the Growth Hubs slightly, in that they have one person who is trying to set up, drive and run it, so it is a resourcing issue. “When I set up a business when I was 18, I went to the Prince’s Trust and the money was useful, but the most valuable thing was for firms to have mentors who can open up networks. I think if I had just gone to the banks, I would

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only have had the money.” On behalf of the banks, Ray O’Donoghue said: “I have been around our 1,000 employees and have a list of Barclays people who want to be mentors across a whole spectrum of businesses and, after this dinner debate, I will task my relationships team to ask their clients which of them would also be mentors. Then we will have a database - but what do we do with it after that?” Nick Holzherr said it should be available in buildings like the Custard Factory in Digbeth and the Big Peg in the Jewellery Quarter that had become landlords to thousands of business across the region, and Jodie Cook said there should be a marketing campaign for a Barclays’ Little Black Book. She said: “This lists not only Barclays customers, but also the people who you know or have met, and to have access to the book they have to have met Ray or his team so you know what they are looking for and can match the right people with mentors who have the right amount of time or expertise. It is absolutely not a directory that people are formally on, but rather it is about facilitating conversations.” Prof Monder Ram outlined one way his team was taking its resources out to the front line of

Birmingham businesses: “We are developing an initiative now where we will embed ourselves into three areas – Sparkhill, Lozells and Balsall Heath – for about 18 months not only to support, but to integrate the businesses there into a number of Birmingham eco-systems so they become part of the city’s USP. I think that needs partnerships, and to have a stellar bank alongside us adds huge heft. “As Jodie says, it is about brokering relationships, but also embedding it into a culture, incentivising it and making it something that employees routinely want to do.” Joel Blake added: “I think it is also about understanding the communication methods, and tech has a huge part to play in that because digital is across all sectors. We need to harness that technology to become an engagement, supportive and mentoring tool.” Alan Lusty said for him the pairing of companies and mentors was a key issue: “My business was seven years old before I could say it was established, so mentors may be able to do more with someone who has already been there for three years and has some stability and momentum.“It is important if we are going to be matching mentors because I could sit ten or

Supporting the high growth eco-system Birmingham has been acknowledged as the second most entrepreneurial city in the UK for the last two years and Barclays wants to support, and make life easier for budding, entrepreneurs throughout their journey. With this in mind, Barclays is now in situ at the new iCentrum site within Birmingham’s growing knowledge quarter, working alongside the likes of Centro & Catapult Transport Systems and Digital Health, a NHS-funded West Midlands Academic Health Sciences Network. We have deliberately chosen this site to enhance our offering and support for high growth and entrepreneurial businesses within the Midlands. The iCentrum building hosts Barclays’ new Eagle Lab which is a combined ‘maker space’ and ‘incubator’, providing both the physical tools and expertise to allow early stage and established entrepreneurs to really flourish. Apart from the new debt and digital products the facility also incorporates unique co-working spaces, 3D printers, digital cutting equipment and modern connectivity, rapid prototyping equipment. ecosystem networking, mentoring and coaching, digital product showcasing, and entrepreneurs in residence. There really isn’t anything else quite like this in the city centre and this presents entrepreneurs with a unique opportunity to commercialise their ideas and concepts. The opportunity to set ‘tech challenges’ and work with established and new-to-market businesses alongside the academic community to help solve these should create something special and truly enhance the region’s intellectual property and brand. Tim Virgo, High Growth & Entrepreneurs, Barclays

12 new starters in the room, but I would rather spend time with a company that has got a quarter of a million pounds invested and could lose it all. And whoever I am with, I’m with them for the journey, because in the early days I was crying, but I couldn’t turn to anybody at 3am in the morning when we are at our most vulnerable. “A mentor is a support mechanism, but he or she is also my friend and the ones I had 25 years ago said some things to me that have got me through tough times even now.” The consensus around the table was that which mentors went to which companies was a crucial part of any solution, and that would be helped by some form of informal collection of mentors with their various skills, availability and sector specialisms. Joel Blake summed up the aims and challenges of the debate by saying: “There are people in places like Handsworth who have no clue about what we are talking about, and have no interest in it because their own eco-system is about surviving. The commonality between those two worlds is about human relationships – what are we doing to encourage people to be themselves so that they are comfortable enough to feel vulnerable, because there is a strength in vulnerability. We need to create this eco-system that is natural, comfortable, chilled out and all-inclusive. Our future workforce in this city is those people who live 20 minutes away.” In their own closing remarks, both Rich Westman and Shana Owen said how important it was that the voice of the entrepreneurs – with all their widely varying needs - wasn’t lost as a structure to help them was being built. Nick Holzherr said mentoring by video conference was an option that should be explored to cut back on time and travel constraints for some mentors and their firms. Chris Rawstron said the private sector had a massive role to play in engaging with businesses and realising the opportunities among the West Midlands’ 660,000 SME businesses. For Barclays, Tim Virgo emphasised the value of making marginal gains and everyone doing their little bit – perhaps just an hour a week to make a difference, and Ray O’Donoghue said there had been a lot said about the time people invested in mentoring and helping other businesses, so he was particularly grateful that the guests had given even more of their time to make the debate such a success. n

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COMMERCIAL PROPERTY One of Brum’s best views An entire floor of a building with one of the most prestigious addresses in Birmingham has been snapped up by global insurance firm Markel. In a deal arranged by joint agent and leading real estate company Cushman & Wakefield, the insurer has taken the third floor of Cathedral Place, on a new lease. Cathedral Place itself is a part modern, part period listed building, which has been extensively refurbished by landlord Canada Life. Cameron Thomson, of Cushman & Wakefield, said the 2,035 sq ft floor had one of the best views overlooking St Philips Cathedral that the city has to offer. Andy Partington, UK sales director at Markel, said: “We were not willing to compromise on quality as we grow in profile in the city.” Charles Warrack, of Johnson Fellows, who advised Markel, said: “Cathedral Place fitted the bill perfectly for my client, and will allow them to focus on their core business in a comfortable and smart environment.”

Posh fitness centre Anytime Fitness, part of a global franchise, has launched a £500,000 upmarket fitness centre at the Crossley Retail Park in Kidderminster, Worcestershire. John Truslove advised landlords Cape Property Holdings on the 15 year lease.

The centre has taken on four full-time employees and a number of self-employed instructors to run the business which includes a £250,000 refit and £150,000 of equipment. General manager Michael Fleming said: “We are pleased with how it has gone. Already we are almost half way to full capacity. We are concentrating on those more interested in a really good workout in a friendly and clean environment on top of the range equipment.”

95% taken at Longbridge St. Modwen, owner of Longbridge Technology Park, has secured deals with four businesses at its Innovation Centre and Two Devon Way office buildings, where almost 95% of space is now occupied. New firms moving into the Innovation Centre include: VoiceSage, an

(from left): Charles Warrack, Andy Partington and Cameron Thomson outside Cathedral Place in Birmingham.

interactive and automated messaging company which has occupied 600 sq ft of offices; Day Out With The Kids, a business specialising in identifying and promoting days out across the UK, which has taken 714 sq ft of space; and Mclean Global, experts in slip-risk assessments and specialist anti-slip solutions, which has taken 218 sq ft. Meanwhile, 123 Reg Ltd, part of Europe’s largest privately owned hosting provider, HEG, has moved from the Innovation Centre into larger 926 sq ft offices at Two Devon Way. James Teal, Innovation Centre manager at St. Modwen, said: “The Technology Park has been an ongoing success since its opening in 2008.” The Technology Park is now home to almost 60 businesses, with occupiers including Aristi, Ballyhoo, Co-operative Web, Host Europe Group, iON Cameras, SRG and Tech Jump.

£1.3m China-Wolverhampton deal Real estate law firm Weightmans has advised a Chinese investor on a £1.3m property deal in Wolverhampton. The Liu family has purchased the Grade II-listed building overlooking Queen Square in the centre of Wolverhampton, with a mix of retail units on the ground floor levels with office accommodation above. Zo Hoida, of Weightmans, said: “Our client plans to put in programme of repairs and has many exciting plans for what they might do with the property. It's great to be involved with such positive plans for future improvement for this prime city centre location." The deal came after connections made at the Birmingham China Business Forum, which encourages investment from China into the Midlands and vice versa.

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himself has a longstanding career in the financial services arena, added: “I bring Together’s common sense approach to the region, offering the professional sector the opportunity to enhance their offering and to receive reciprocal business, and work with clients across the Midlands to help them grow their portfolios. We have a broad network of professional introducers including accountants, solicitors, banks and Marc Finucance financial advisors, who will Regional Development refer clients to us knowing Manager that they can be assured of

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said: “This project has been a great success. We have also delivered some great community initiatives, with multiple workshops and site tours. It is early days but already three people have secured full time employment and many others are now working towards jobs.” Dr David Hardman, chief executive at Innovation Birmingham, said: “We are thrilled that the project has been completed both on-time and on-budget. The building will add to our offering to Birmingham’s more digitallyorientated entrepreneurs.”

Barber cuts deal Moving 120 jobs A facilities management and engineering maintenance business is set to bring up to 120 jobs to Redditch Arcus FM, a joint venture between Arcus Solutions and Sainsbury’s, has outgrown its base at Hartlebury and is to move to Oakenshaw House, on Clews Road, recently purchased by Loxton Developments in a deal brokered by property agents John Truslove. This will see the company’s call centre operations and a technical performance engineering hub transfer to the new site. Arcus FM provides a full facilities management service for Sainsbury’s supermarkets, convenience stores and petrol stations nationwide, delivering mechanical, engineering and refrigeration support. The group employs around 1,000 people, with a head office at Upminster in east London. While Sainsbury’s is its biggest client, it’s now seeking to expand. Chris Green, chief executive at Arcus FM, said: “Given the planned growth of the non-Sainsbury’s arm, we were conscious of the need for somewhere which would promote a smart image. Oakenshaw House fits the bill.” Ben Truslove, a director of John Truslove, said: “This is great news for Redditch and the surrounding area, being one of the largest office lettings in the county in the last 10 years.”

Floor cleaner has it covered A Warwickshire flooring firm has laid out its expansion plan for the next ten years. Beaver Floorcare has taken 3,895 sq ft of space at The Barn, Oldberrow Manor, Ullenhall, more than double the size of its previous premises at Lapworth. The business, run by father and son directors John and Tom Campton, is involved in the cleaning, restoration and maintenance of all types of floor coverings. It is a provider to flooring manufacturers, architects, facility managers, fit-out, national retail, government buildings, leisure industry, stadia, healthcare, airports, warehouses and many more. Clients include KPMG, Wembley, Boots, Harveys,

Birmingham University, DFS and Bensons for Beds. Ben Truslove, a director of John Truslove, which made the deal, said: “Beaver Floorcare has an enviably reputation in its sector. With this bold expansion I am sure they are set to wipe the floor with their competitors.”

New site for 400 skilled jobs Midlands-based construction company, Thomas Vale, has handed over a new £8m digital facility to Innovation Birmingham. The 42,149 sq ft iCentrum building, located just off the A38 Aston Expressway, will provide space for 400 skilled jobs, potentially generating £25m of GVA to the local economy. Craig Tatton, managing director at Thomas Vale,

A West Midlands hairdressing chain has opened its third outlet, with the help of property agents SDL Bigwood. Brits Barbers has taken a ten-year lease at Greenhill Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, adding to its shops in Leamington Spa and Kenilworth which have been trading since 2013 and 2014. James Carver, chartered surveyor at SDL Bigwood, said: “Brits Barbers is an ambitious men’s hairdressing business and we were very pleased to be able to assist them in finding premises in Stratford. Greenhill Street is a good location for footfall so I am sure they will do well.”

200 new jobs at £10m factory The first manufacturer to commit to Birmingham’s Advanced Manufacturing Hub at Aston Hall Road has opened its new, £10m 120,000 sq ft factory. HydraForce Ltd, which makes electrohydraulic controls and turns over more than £50m a year, moved into the 120,000 sq ft factory following a £1.8m investment from the Government’s Regional Growth Fund. Employment at HydraForce in Birmingham is expected to increase from 300 to 500 people by 2020. Peter Macdonald, HydraForce’s managing director, said: “Our new Birmingham facility is helping us improve our speed to market throughout Europe, and into Turkey and India. More than 80% of the product we build in Birmingham is exported. This is a really good news story for British manufacturing.”

LEGAL AND FINANCE QUARTER FAMILY LAW SPECIAL EDITION IN PARTNERSHIP WITH:

SPECIAL FEATURE

Claire Darley reports on promoting family law

SPECIAL FEATURE Family Law

Looking after family law Claire Darley explains the nature of family law, and explains how the Birmingham Law Society works to achieve the best working practices and promote family justice The nature and needs of families are diverse, and different families may require the assistance of different legal experts. Professionals or experts may come into contact with a family where there has been a dispute about the care of a child, or about the arrangements for a child. In more serious cases, there may be safeguarding issues relating to the risk of harm to a child, which may involve a report to Children’s Services, or where a child has been removed from the care of his parents. It maybe in these circumstances that family lawyers and professionals working in the court system work alongside healthcare professionals. In relation to financial experts, a family may have business interests and wealth to protect. In these circumstances family lawyers work alongside wealth managers and other trusted advisers. There are a greater number of tools that a family lawyer now has to prevent a dispute arising in a familial context and to protect resources. This may be the case for example, when a non family member is bought into the family. Persons may employ tax-efficient measures to manage their finances to meet their immediate needs. However, the long–term consequences of those actions may have unintended consequences in the event of a breakdown in their personal relationships. For example, when setting up a new company, or in relation to an existing company, if permitted to do so by the articles of association, a spouse may transfer shares of the shareholding in a company to their spouse to seek to minimise their income tax bill overall if the other spouse is a lower rate tax payer. However, if they later separate and divorce the the person who has transferred their interest could be severely disadvantaged.

Parents and grandparents looking to benefit children and grandchildren would wish to consider the long-term implications of their lifetime financial and estate planning to seek the assistance of a family solicitor alongside their IFAs and accountants to work as a team to protect their interests. The Family Law Committee of Birmingham Law Society is a collaboration of all professionals working within the family justice system to promote a service of excellence. The Committee is made up of solicitors and barristers specialising in financial and child law matters, Cafcass (the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service), the Local Authority and the court service, including members of the judiciary. Last October, Birmingham Law Society and Resolution jointly held the most successful Family Law Conference we have held. The message of the key note address by the President of the Family Division was that family law will be embracing the digital age. Following the closure of courts and the streamlining of procedures this involves the e-filing of documents and court hearings taking place wherever a judge is located. This is nothing new to the courts, because parties in proceedings have been able to attend court remotely for over 40 years by the use of video-link. Implementation has already started with the changes in the rules resulting in a greater range of applications that can be e-filed. The headline news in family law covered by the Committee over the last 12 months has included the topics of regionalisation, rationalisation and radicalisation in family justice: • Birmingham Family Court continues to be able to provide specialist finance judges. This benefits

the business community across the West Midlands and beyond. • Birmingham Family Court has been made the Midlands regional hub for the administration of applications relating to decisions about a person’s property, finances and welfare if a person lacks the mental capacity to make those decisions for themselves. • The Family Drug and Alcohol Court, based at Coventry Family Court, has been a significant success for the Midlands. This court works with families whose children are subject to care proceedings resulting from their parents’ drug and alcohol misuse. • Family law has seen a dramatic increase in cases involving radicalisation. We had the President’s Practice Note in October last year, which confirmed that cases involving this issue should be heard by a Judge of the Family Division only. Fortunately, our own Family District Liaison Judge is able to hear cases of this nature, which means they can be heard at courts within the Midlands region. • Cafcass (the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service) is now undertaking free DNA Testing. Our work is to strive to achieve the best working practices within the family justice system as members of Birmingham Law Society. Our aims are to promote family justice across the extensive region of Birmingham covering Worcestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, the Black Country and the West Midlands. n

Claire Darley is chair of the Birmingham Law Society Family Law Committee, and is also a Partner and Mediator at Higgs & Sons.

SPECIAL FEATURE Family Law

“The Family Law Committee of Birmingham Law Society is a collaboration of all professionals working within the family justice system to promote a service of excellence.”

SPECIAL FEATURE Family Law

The Resolution revolution puts families first

Aaron Keene, a solicitor at The Wilkes Partnership in Birmingham, is also the West Midlands chair of Resolution, a national group of family lawyers. Here, he looks at how Resolution is helping lead the way as the role of the family courts changes Increasingly clients do not want their cases dealt with by traditional court proceedings which often bring long delays and great expense. Now there is a fresh approach with Resolution, a national organisation of family lawyers committed to dealing with issues in a constructive and nonconfrontational way. It is accepted that some cases cannot be resolved without recourse to the courts, but there is more than one way to deal with a family law case. Family law solicitors are adept at narrowing the issues between parties who

incorporating

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are suffering the trauma of marital or relationship breakdown. Resolution lawyers particularly concentrate on the welfare of the children and are backed by a code of conduct to ensure that these ideals are met. Resolution and family lawyers have a wide range of strategies to deal with disputes, from correspondence to mediation, a process whereby a couple are referred to a neutral third party to help them reach their own informed decisions by negotiation. There is also collaborative law where highly trained family lawyers look to resolve family law issues at a series of four-way meetings. Resolution is committed to making sure any changes are for the benefit of families, including its most recent campaign for a no-fault divorce. The last thing a couple should be doing when their relationship breaks down is arguing about the reasons for it.Concentrating on sorting out the arrangements for their children and dealing with their financial issues should be the priority. Each local region has a regional chair and committee to bring together the legal communities in those areas - a driving force for lawyers to work together for the benefit of clients. In July this year we launched a Litigants in Person Scheme, where local solicitors join a rota once a year to provide free advice to litigants in person at the family court in Birmingham â&#x20AC;&#x201C; an issue which is becoming a growing problem. When a person does not have a lawyer it usually leads to delays in the process and lengthy hearings so by providing this advice we are not only assisting that individual but also other court users. We are always looking at ways to let other parts of our profession and other professionals know more about the services that we can provide to their clients who unfortunately find themselves with family law issues to resolve. There are always more creative solutions to be found, and by working together as part of Resolution we can look for those solutions. We recognise that sometimes it is not possible to sit around a table and deal with matters, so all Resolution members are able to make the appropriate court applications where necessary, for example where children are in danger of suffering harm or assets need to be preserved. The president of the family division, Sir James Munby, has said that an entirely digitalised and paperless family court can be achieved in the next four years. With such a rapid pace of change, clients with family law issues need to know they are in safe and proactive hands, as provided by Resolution members. If you would like further information on Resolution West Midlands, contact Aaron Keene on 0121 785 4400 or abkeene@wilkes.co.uk.

15/08/2016 10:16

SPECIALIST SOLICITORS IN FAMILY LAW We have one of the largest and longest standing specialist teams in the country with several of our lawyers being accredited members of either the Law Society Family Law or Children Panel Our highly experienced family law team deal with every type of problem, from the simple to the extremely complex and serious. There is no particular type of client we act for, we act for people from all works of life, including but certainly not limited to owners and directors of privately and publicly owned companies, professionals and the entertainment and sports world.. We have been consistently endorsed by Legal 500 and Chambers directories as leading family lawyers in the midlands. The reputation of the firm was recognised in the Birmingham Law Society Legal Awards when we were awarded Law Firm of the Year (sole practitioner and up to four partner’s category). Our ethos is built around two pillars. Firstly, to provide our client with an excellent personal service, recognising that they need our service as they are going through one of the most challenging times in their life. The second is the skill and expertise that we provide that must be of the highest quality in all that we deliver. For more information please contact Grant Bird, Blair Allison, Fountain Court, Steelhouse Lane, Birmingham B4 6DR T: 0121 233 2904 E: grantbird@blairallison.co.uk W: www.blairallison.co.uk

Divorce & Family Law Practice LLP is a niche practice based in the attractive surroundings of St Paul’s Square. We specialise in all areas of Divorce and Family Law.

Established in 2002, DFLP immediately gained recognition as a leading Family Law practice, and is recognised annually in both Legal 500 and Chambers UK. We are one of the Midlands’ premier matrimonial firms. Sources say we are “absolutely committed to doing their best for their clients”.

The practice is headed by partners Beverley Morris and Joan Price, together with Caroline Dresden, Vivienne Middleton, Amy Parker and other support staff.

We offer a personal and tailored service, dedicated to providing proportionate and pragmatic advice within a realistic costs framework. We understand the dynamics of family relationships – and their breakdown. We are adept at dealing with complex and high net value cases, including those with pensions and company issues together with issues arising out of co-habitation, pre and post-marital agreements, civil partnership disputes and children issues.

Beverley Morris: Joan Price: Caroline Dresden: Vivienne Middleton: Amy Parker:

Caroline and Beverley are also trained Collaborative lawyers, a style of dispute resolution in which we seek to avoid time-consuming and antagonistic litigation, by empowering the parties in face to face discussions, and reaching a settlement reflecting their own personal requirements.

bjm@dflp.co.uk jp@dflp.co.uk cd@dflp.co.uk vm@dflp.co.uk ap@dflp.co.uk

t: 0121 200 0890 f: 0121 233 9623 www.dflp.co.uk Divorce & Family Law Practice LLP 14 St Paul’s Square, Birmingham, B3 1RB

PROFILE Shakespeare Martineau

What’s yours is mine and what’s mine is yours - except for the family business Have you ever considered whether your family business would survive a divorce? Families have for years built businesses through generations whether in IT, manufacturing, building and various other trades. Such businesses have been on a rollercoaster following more than one recession, a fluctuating economy and now Brexit. However, businesses are not only subject to economic turbulence as personal circumstances can cause an equal amount of disruption and distress. Have you ever considered whether your family business would survive a divorce? Family businesses are often built up through the bloodline with children following in the footsteps of parents, but they also branch out to spouses. It can often be tax efficient to make a spouse an employee, Company Secretary as well as a shareholder. However, making decisions based on what your heart says or in order to be more tax efficient can be costly in the long run. Your business may have been running for years before you were married, and then you marry and perhaps, sadly the marriage breaks down. It is at that stage that you may regret giving away shares to your spouse, as they are unlikely to return them without proper financial consideration. Even if you have provided the shareholding as a ‘gift’, you can be sure that this gift will not be returned! That old adage of ‘what’s yours is mine and what’s mine is yours’ can ring true on divorce.

“It is not uncommon for some family businesses to bring in non-family members to boost the business such as a new partner, shareholder or director” The starting point when you look at divorce proceedings is often an equal division of capital and potentially income, followed by the Court considering why you should step away from this

Zahra Pabani

position of equality. If you have a family business when exiting a marriage, you would no doubt argue that this existed pre-marriage and should therefore be discounted from the matrimonial pot. However, if the business is the main asset and no other funds available you may struggle to make this argument. Usually, the Court will only allow you to ring-fence the assets if they are not required to satisfy the needs of the other spouse and more importantly the children of the marriage. However, your family business may have increased in value since the point of marriage, or start of the relationship and this value should therefore be taken into account and ringfenced as a result. It’s hard to assess this value retrospectively and you would often need a forensic account to undertake this exercise. In an ideal world, you should carefully consider

your options prior to getting married, and ensure that a valuation is done at that time, but in reality who does that? It is not uncommon for some family businesses to bring in non-family members to boost the business such as a new partner, shareholder or director. Of course when doing so, an exercise of due diligence is carried out to ensure the business partnership will effectively be a ‘happy marriage’ and when bringing in a new romantic partner into the business a similar approach should be taken. Although going through the lengthy due diligence exercise may be unrealistic, speaking to a family lawyer to assess what options are available could pay off considerably in the long run and help to avoid complex divorce proceedings. For example, a pre-nuptial agreement could be exactly what you need. For some people this is unpalatable and can be very unromantic, but for others it is a sensible planning tool, which can save a huge amount of heartache and money if the worst happens. Bringing a new partner into your life is of course incredibly important and no doubt requires a considerable amount of thought, emotion and planning. This is multiplied further if also introducing them into the family business too, so always give it a lot of thought and take some advice, so that you all go in with your eyes wide open!

For more information please contact Zahra Pabani, Family Law Partner Email: zahra.pabani@shma.co.uk Tel: 0121 214 0318

PROFILE Anthony Collins Solicitors

Why won’t you let us be a family? Surrogacy and the need for reform. Following the publication of ‘Surrogacy in the UK: Myth busting and reform’ in November 2015, Kadie Bennett of Anthony Collins Solicitors looks at the issues and pitfalls with the current law on surrogacy arrangements that have once again come to the forefront of family law developments. The law in this area is primarily governed by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Act 1990. Whilst the Act has been reviewed, in 2004 and 2007, and subsequently amended by the HFE 2008, the legislation in this area has not seen a significant overhaul since its enactment. As the report highlights, the need for reform in the area of surrogacy law is great and can no longer be ignored. The main area in which reform is needed is the time limit in which parents can apply for parental orders. Currently, applications for parental orders can only be made between six weeks and six months after the birth of the child concerned. In 2014, Anthony Collins Solicitors’ childcare team was successful in challenging the time limit imposed by the HFE Act and secured a parental order for the intended parents who had made their application after the six month time limit had elapsed (Re X [2014] EWHC 3135). Understandably, this is the area of reform that is most frequently challenged. It can only be assumed that the need to challenge the time limit in which parental orders can be made is primarily due to the lack of awareness of intended parents. This was recently highlighted again in the case of A & Anor v C & Anor [2016] EWFC 42, where the applicants requested that a short judgement was put into the public domain, to raise awareness and encourage other people in the same position as them to make applications to secure their legal relationships as soon as possible. Problems can also arise if surrogacy arrangements have taken place with a surrogate mother being located outside of the UK. There are additional requirements in relation to the immigration status and entry requirements for the child etc. that can lead to applications being made outside of the time limits imposed by the HFE Act. A further area for reform is that the law doesn’t

Kadie Bennett allow for single parents to apply for a parental order, despite an intended parent being able to foster and/ or adopt a child or, in the case of a female intended parent, undergo IVF. This can be frustrating when the intended parent is biologically linked to the child. In this scenario, a source of legal recourse would be for the

“As the report highlights, the need for reform in the area of surrogacy law is great and can no longer be ignored”

intended parent to apply to the court under a child arrangement application. Any order made would be regulatory in nature, rather than transformative, and therefore would usually extinguish the day before the child’s 17th birthday. Alternatively, adoption could be considered by the intended parent; however this is not without its own difficulties. The report highlights that the law requires one or both of the intended parents to have a genetic link to the child, in order to apply for a parental order. The report highlights that by comparison there is no such requirement for those who undergo IVF. This is because the law recognises the gestational mother as the legal mother of a child. This is both unfair and arguably a violation of rights to equality among other basic rights. It is clear that as technology and science advances and as society becomes more accepting of nontraditional family arrangements that the need and want for review and reform will only grow and build momentum. It is fair to say that we, at Anthony Collins Solicitors, are particularly interested and excited to see what developments are borne from this report and hope that reform in this area is soon to be forthcoming – for the benefit of both the children and families involved.

For further information, please contact Kadie Bennett kadie.bennett@anthonycollins.com 0121 214 3545 https://newsroom.anthonycollins.com/profiles/ bennettk

Planning for long-term care

Thanks to continuing advances in medical care and healthier lifestyles, we have the potential to enjoy longer lives. While most of us embrace this prospect, many of us also recognise that increased life expectancy comes at significant financial cost. Financing the long-term care of ourselves or our families may seem rather daunting which is why the Birmingham office of accountancy, investment management, financial planning and tax group, Smith & Williamson, is hosting a free seminar which will give you the information and guidance you need to plan for the future. John Hodgson, managing partner of tax & business services at Smith & Williamson in Birmingham, will open the seminar with a look at ways to plan for later life, what is involved and how you might benefit. John said: “Social care is a course of anxiety for many, we seek to alleviate the problem by helping people to make the best use of their finances and finding the most effective ways of funding their care. “The social care arena is such a complex and confusing one and we hope that our seminar will provide some valuable insights. The last thing people want to do is leave things to chance and find themselves having to make crucial decisions for themselves or their loved ones when they are at their most vulnerable. At such times, people frequently feel very emotional and under pressure to make the right decisions, often in a very short space of time. “Fortunately this scenario can be avoided through careful planning with help and support from specialists that can advise on the various considerations, from ways to minimise capital erosion and improve cash flow planning, to setting up a Power of Attorney.”

These include: • Understanding who is responsible for delivering social care and your options when paying for it • Where to go for assistance and the different types of care available • Ways to organise your estate effectively, including balancing the need to access capital when you need it and managing inheritance tax • Aiming to maximise the return on your investments at a time when interest rates are low and retirement and care costs are rising • The value of Powers of Attorney for everyone, regardless of age or time of life. The later life planning event is taking place at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (REP), Centenary Square, on Thursday 24 November from 2pm to 5pm. Refreshments will be served and there will be an opportunity to ask questions after the briefings and meet speakers on a one-to-one basis afterwards. To find out more or reserve your place, please contact Jas Dhillon at Smith & Williamson on 0121 710 5226 or email BirminghamEvents@smith.williamson.co.uk John Hodgson, Managing Partner Tax & Business Services Birmingham t: 0121 710 5200 e: john.hodgson@smith.williamson.co.uk w: smith.williamson.co.uk

John will be joined at the seminar by five other speakers, each specialists in their field, who will provide thought-provoking overviews of the issues.

By necessity, this briefing can only provide a short overview and it is essential to seek professional advice before applying the contents of this article. No responsibility can be taken for any loss arising from action taken or refrained from on the basis of this publication. Details correct at time of writing. The tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. Smith & Williamson LLP Regulated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales for a range of investment business activities. A member of Nexia International. The word partner is used to refer to a member of Smith & Williamson LLP. Smith & Williamson Financial Services Limited Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate all of the products and services referred to here.

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The social side of business Calum Nisbet, the new West Midlands boss at the Institute of Directors, wants business leaders to help people at the bottom, not just enjoy life at the top. Steve Dyson finds out more over lunch

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In 1995, Calum Nisbet saved up enough money to pause what was then his hotel management career for a backpacking adventure in South East Asia. He was aged just 25 when he headed off to Bangkok and was 26 by the time he returned in 1996. But those eight months abroad travelling through Thailand, Indonesia, Nepal, India, Singapore, and Malaysia changed his life. “Getting educated at boarding school and then working in hotels means you get used to everything being done for you,” explained Nisbet. “And so I found travelling so invigorating, not only exploring but doing everything for myself. “When I decided to travel, I thought ‘I can’t do the whole world’ and so I chose South East Asia to really understand the people there – their different cultures and foods. I decided that I wasn’t going to work. I’d saved for travelling, to experience every day. And it’s stood with me ever since, given me a great understanding of how different communities live, the immense challenges they face. Even today, it helps keep things in perspective, and has changed my perception of what’s important.” When Nisbet returned to the UK, he was working in a posh hotel again and was suddenly faced with a well-off woman “going crazy” because her room wasn’t quite ready for her at 7am in the morning. “So what?” was the thought that entered Nisbet’s mind, comparing her plight to less-fortunate women in South East Asia. He adds: “I realised life is not all about being on the top of the pile.” Nisbet was born 46 years ago in Crawley, near Gatwick Airport, one of four boys, although his parents’ divorce and new relationships soon meant he was one of seven children. His family moved to Norfolk and he was educated as a boarder at The Leys School in Cambridge, before taking a degree in Hotel and Catering Administration at Middlesex University in Hendon, North West London. During his degree, he had various hotel experience abroad and decided this was the career for him, with an initial plan for his own chain of hotels. His first real paid job was in 1992 as front office supervisor in a team preparing to open what was then called The Regent opposite Marylebone Station in London (it’s now The Landmark). “I just loved it,” he recalled. “When you’re

“Getting educated at boarding school and then working in hotels means you get used to everything being done for you and so I found travelling so invigorating, not only exploring but doing everything for myself.”

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building and opening a hotel, you’re involved with everything, from the palm trees to the staff. I really enjoyed helping to create and deliver that quality.” After three years, Nisbet became one of three duty managers, and had saved enough money to depart on his dream back-packing tour. When he returned, he worked at another smart hotel but quickly realised he’d enjoyed “developing and opening” a five-star hotel, whereas simply working at established venues was “just running it”. He went to Dublin for four years, starting with a new job as front-of-house manager during the development and opening of the Merrion Hotel in 1997, helping find and train the right staff. Nisbet thrived on this, and after a while moved into consultancy, establishing a hotel and catering desk for recruitment specialist Collins McNicholas. “I thought: ‘I know hotels, I know London, I know Ireland,’ and was soon recruiting really quality staff from London to work in Ireland. It went well and I was asked to start a sales and marketing desk as well.” Now a proven a recruitment consultant, Nisbet headed back to England in 2001 for a job in accounting and finance recruitment. “I hated it,” he recalls. “I had nothing in common like I did with hotel staff, and although I did really well out of it I found it difficult.” Nisbet decided to change careers again, and started “at the bottom” as a Yellow Pages salesman, where he got what he describes as “the best sales training in the world”. He explains: “We were trained in how to understand the needs of the customer, so we could come up with a sensible solution that they wanted. Then, the only thing left was to justify the cost of that solution. “For many people, this was their only real

“I hated it. I had nothing in common like I did with hotel staff, and although I did really well out of it I found it difficult.”

marketing conversation of the year, and we helped them focus on how to maximise their profit margins. For instance, a florist told me that the most important business for them was funerals, and so the solution was to find how we could promote their business in the right place – with funeral operators.” Nesbit spent seven years with Yellow Pages, from 2003 to 2010, becoming a field sales manager. He left when the internet led to the fast-shrinking of printed directories, which meant “the whole sales model changed, and was not one I necessarily bought into”. By now Nesbit was living down south and married to Genevieve, who he’d met when they worked together at The Regent back in the 1990s. They decided they needed a change of scene and spotted a job advert for a ‘corporate relations manager’ at the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO). “It was a bit mad,” Nisbet says, smiling. “I was not a huge classical fan but knew about and liked the orchestra, and I was not a musician but liked music. I was basically saying ‘I’m not from your world intellectually, but I can be your person if you want me to translate the message for you’.” He got the job, and spent the next three years building and strengthening the CBSO’s portfolio of corporate partners, increasing revenue “from £75k to £250k with 100% retention”, and changing the way corporate relationships worked.

“We made a huge difference in how people talked about it,” he says, “which meant people understood what we were trying to do by using their money in areas like educational outreach. The message was ‘how can businesses collaborate for the greater good and for themselves’, because I don’t just believe in corporate philanthropy. There’s got to be clear ideas of what’s in it for both parties.” In late 2013, Nisbet’s boss at the CBSO left and he applied but didn’t get the resulting job. He says: “I thought if I can’t get this role do I leave for something different? It was a heavy heart moment but the right thing to do, and I’ve still got very strong links at the CBSO.” Nisbet then spent a short period in corporate affairs at a law firm before launching his own company, Zig Zag Consulting, which focused on supporting relationships between corporates and charities, working with clients as diverse as The Library of Birmingham Trust and Birmingham Airport. When the vacancy of regional director at the Institute of Directors (IoD) West Midlands came up, Nisbet applied and got the job. He jokes: “After a somewhat eclectic career, I’d quite like this one to stick for a while!” He says: “In many ways my previous jobs have led to this one: building strong brands, developing customer service, retaining clients. Anyone can win clients but the IoD role is all about keeping them, understanding their businesses and operating in their networks.

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“Yes, this is about selling the IoD’s virtues, but then making sure they get value and therefore remain members. I’d heard a lot about the IoD being a London-centric business, but I believe there’s now genuine enthusiasm to give regions more independence, freedom and support. That’s what I’m coming in to do.” Nisbet has been busy in his first six months, re-establishing the IoD brand, supporting the region’s business leaders and helping set standards for member directors to aspire to. He says it’s all about “good leadership, good governance and good boards”, because “all that equals a good business”. But that’s what the IoD’s already about. What’s Nisbet’s personal input? “One of my main aims is to make the IoD more relevant,” he says, “and to make sure our membership is feeling

understood. Refreshing the brand and getting in front of a new audience based on the networks I’ve developed. The West Midlands is one of the UK’s key areas for entrepreneurs, and there’s a definite need for support.” Nisbet lists a few new products: the ’99 Club’, where new members pay just £99 for the first year; the ‘Women as Leaders’ club; and various ‘Mastermind’ groups which offer peer-to-peer mentoring and support. There are, he says, “some real winning stories” coming out of “putting like-minded people together”, and as a result “they’re growing and doing really well”. He adds: “I want the IoD West Midland to be in the same breath as the Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, the CBI and local LEPs. We don’t see them as competition because the IoD’s idiosyncrasy is that we look after the

individual, not the business. “We focus on professional development with courses for every level of director. Often with entrepreneurs their business is growing faster than they can keep up with. We want to make sure their business does not outgrow them by training them.” Good governance, succession planning, strategic thinking, negotiation skills, and finance management are just some of the training areas, allowing business leaders to pass the IoD’s Certificate, then its Diploma, and ultimately gaining Chartered Director status. Nisbet’s big challenge is to grow membership from a base of “around 1,800” and to tackle what’s currently a “high attrition rate”. He adds: “I’m conscious that a lot of our members are in the latter part of their careers. I’d like to rejuvenate the future profile of the IoD with a younger audience.” The Nisbets lived in Smethwick for the first seven or so years in the West Midlands, before moving to Belbroughton, Worcestershire, where they’re now bringing up their children – a son, aged 10, and a daughter, eight. Despite Brexit, Nisbet feels everything’s looking good for the region: “Employment’s up, we’ve had more FDI [foreign direct investment] than anywhere else for the last two years, we’re an entrepreneurial city, we’re leaders in digital creative, and in advanced manufacturing, and there’s unprecedented collaboration between the LEPs, politicians and business people.” I challenge him on what some of the emerging labels really mean – such as the so-called ‘Midlands Engine’ and the ‘West Midlands Combined Authority’ – but Nisbet’s insistent: “Look at what the likes of Andy Street [John Lewis boss, and chair of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP] have done under the labels. “He’s linked Birmingham and the Black

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“I’m conscious that a lot of our members are in the latter part of their careers. I’d like to rejuvenate the future profile of the IoD with a younger audience.”

Country like no-one before, and has managed to create a better profile for the West Midlands area in London than we had before. Now it’s time for government to give us the power to run ourselves.” On the potential West Midlands mayor, although he won’t name him specifically, Nisbet would love the likes of Andy Street to stand: “The region would benefit from a business leader, someone who has the experience of bringing people together. We need direction, and that’s not going to come from a politician in my opinion.” On Brexit, Nisbet admits that the ‘Leave’ vote was “not what our business members wanted”, but that “everywhere in the Midlands voted to leave, and we can’t be blind to that”. He says it’s now up to business leaders and organisations to “provide clarity, direction and find opportunities”. Nisbet also wants the IoD to lead the way in businesses becoming “more responsible” for the region. He says: “There are many good sides – professional services, manufacturing, tourism, and all the other things we shout about. But there are bad sides too: the skills gap, long-term unemployment levels in inner city suburbs, illiteracy rates. It’s great that we’re attracting and retaining talent. But what about organic growth? What about the growth of individuals here? “How can we channel positives into helping people? It’s a responsibility for businesses in this region. For example, how many business leaders are school governors, practicing what we preach? We can’t shy away, and we can’t just sit here and council bash or Tory bash. We need to recognise business isn’t just about the good life and expensive restaurants, and that if everyone does just a little bit of value then we can help the region’s social cohesion.” n

El Borracho De Oro If you like Spanish tapas, you’ll love this venue, created by experienced restaurateurs Emma and Alfonso Yufera-Ruiz. We left it to the Catalan chef to choose dishes to sample, and he didn’t disappoint. To start, we shared a large selection of cheeses which included a sharp Queso Manchego, made from unpasteurised sheep milk, cured for seven months; Queso de Penamellera, a milder cow’s cheese, similar to brie; and Queso Pregondón, a tangy blue cheese made from goats’ milk. Served with this was cured meats that included Jamón Ibérico (ham), Chorizo Ibérico and Cecina de León (cured beef), the aromas and tastes creating a real buzz on the tongue. Among our favourite hot dishes was Calamar Relleno, a different take on squid that’s stuffed with fennel, eggs and prawns. The presentation was impressive, leaving you in no doubt what you were eating, but the texture was tender, the tastes superb. Another success was a pan of juicy mussels cooked in a delicate sauce containing hazelnuts, paprika and white wine, a nice Spanish twist to what you’d normally expect from this shellfish. Various other dishes were tasty, but the very best we tried was a giant courgette flower stuffed with cod and a nutty, tomato sauce. This was a delight to look at when it arrived and was delicate yet memorable on the palate. Prices for classic tapas range from £4.50 to £9.50 a dish, with five or six to share creating a filling evening meal, perhaps just leaving space for dessert. For lunch, there’s a special offer from Tuesday to Friday of two tapas for £6.95, a deal that’s also available on Tuesday evenings. El Borracho is slightly challenged in an obscure location with limited parking, so you’d be advised to catch a cab. But once you try it, you’ll be back for more. El Borracho De Oro is at Harborne Court, Harborne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 3BU. To book visit www.elborracho.co.uk/book-a-table or call 0121 454 5368.

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The name’s Bond, Anita Bond BQ’s own Bond girl Anita Champaneri, managing director of public relations agency Delicious PR, enjoys a hi-tech experience in the Tesla Model S I don’t like wasting anything. I don’t like wasting food, I don’t like wasting time, I don’t like wasting money and I certainly don’t like wasting energy! So it was with glee that I accepted the challenge of road-testing the Tesla Model S. It’s the iPhone of the motor industry – an electric car for the future – and one that wouldn’t look out of place in a Bond movie. This high-performance vehicle is ideal for those used to the big executive drive of a BMW, Mercedes or Lexus and more cost efficient to run. The Model S, the first fully-electric sedan, combines performance, safety and efficiency. It’s sleek, yet sporty, and certainly looks good on the road. Built on the Tesla platform, the battery’s floor location gives the Model S an extremely low centre of gravity, lowering the risk of rollover while also enhancing handling and performance. It seems weird to drive a car without an engine, but it’s all about reeducating yourself. When you unlock the car the handles pop out automatically. Inside it’s very simplistic, with little in the way of buttons and knobs. But then you see a large central screen to access the wizardry of the information system, controlling everything from drive performances to a touch-screen swipe to open the sun roof. A keyless ignition starts the car and you can’t even hear a soft purr, it’s that quiet. The most exciting (but scary) feature is the ‘autopilot’. I

tried it out on the M6 south to see what it could do. The safety feature requires you to keep your hands on the steering wheel. (Note to self: autopilot is not an excuse to put your hands on your head, use your phone or start searching in your bag!) So with a deep breath I hit a steady cruise of just over 70mph and hit the lever twice. Be prepared to be freaked out by a car with a mind of its own. The autopilot senses the parameters of the lanes and keeps you central. The infrared senses cars around you and in front, and you can feel the car move itself, and have to resist the urge to counteract its movements. Another car indicated and pulled out in front of us and the Tesla, sensing this, steadily slowed down behind it. If you want to change lanes, hit the indicator and the car will sense the cars around you, steering itself automatically but safely. This was weird! I could see there was a truck in the adjacent lane and was praying the sensors would sense it and ignore the indicator instruction. It did – but it gets some getting use to, putting your trust in a computerised vehicle. It’s really hard resisting the pressure of reacting to the bumps and traffic around you. You can always click it back to self-drive, or simply take control of the steering wheel to instantly turn the auto pilot off. But I forgot to do this at one point and we

“I don’t like wasting anything. I don’t like wasting food, I don’t like wasting time, I don’t like wasting money and I certainly don’t like wasting energy!”

ended up taking a slip road on a bend at 70mph! Arrghh! No worries: the Model S took it in its stride and I didn’t feel it was a car that was too powerful to handle. The Tesla has the highest possible safety ratings, the longest range of any electric vehicle, and over-the-air software updates that are said to continuously improve its performance. It also comes with its own handy app so if you’re at home and want to get the car out of your drive, your app can turn the engine on, set the temperature controls inside and – by pressing ‘summon’ – it will drive itself out for you. Pretty impressive stuff! It also has auto parking, so you can stand on the pavement, press the button and – using the onboard infrared – the car parallel parks itself. This is ‘Oh so 007’, and I certainly felt like a Bond girl, cruising along in my high performance car with even the odd ‘white van man’ nodding at me appreciatively. n Price: The Tesla S Model starts at £53,400. Fuel: You’ll never have to visit a petrol station again! Just plug into a charging station. You’ll get one at home for your main overnight charging. And on the road, there are charging stations at many hotels and service stations. Road tax: There’s none! And the government gives you a £4,500 grant towards the purchase price. Where to buy: There are no Tesla dealerships. There are 14 stores located throughout the UK, or you just choose your specifications and place your order online at www.tesla.com/en_GB/models/design. This is internet shopping at its best, with delivery times of around 3 months.

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Armani in a city where the skyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the limit

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Dubai is a man-made miracle, a city of superlative built on what was once a desert, and now one of the world’s greatest names in design has chosen it as the location for a luxury hotel To look across the wind-rippled sands around Dubai is to be struck by the wonder of civil engineering. Desert yawns endless as far as the eye can see, the landscape punctuated only by the occasional bush - used by Nomadic tribes for millennia to pinpoint water - and the odd passing lizard. City types can here don their ghutra and play at being T.E. Lawrence, driving vintage Land Rovers, navigating by the stars, eating crispy, long-lasting Arabic bread cooked over a hot stone and learning the codes of coffee - if your host pours you a half cup, you’re most welcome, since a half cup stays warm and invites a refill; if you’re given a full cup, be sure to drink up and be on your way. If it’s Ramadan, you can break the fast by drinking the Middle East’s most popular, and deeply unexpected, drink of choice - Vimto. The more adventurous can try warm camel’s milk. You can eat camel too, as well as ride one. The ship of the desert is as much the larder of the dunes. This orchestrated ‘desert experience’ is all the more striking back at the Armani Hotel in central Dubai - one of just two such designer hostelries, the other being in Milan - and all the more so for it being high up in the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building (at least until Jeddah completes the 1km tall Kingdom Tower). Of course, Dubai’s passions for shopping and building are not for everyone - the view from just about anywhere, including your room at the Armani Hotel, is likely to include a construction site. This is hardly surprising in the emirate that seems to throw up a new piece of landmark architecture every fortnight or so, and which somewhat fixated on size - opens the world’s biggest entertainment park this summer, and has plans for the world’s largest Ferris wheel,

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the world’s biggest airport, the world’s largest building in square footage, and, of course, the world’s biggest mall, some three times the size of the Mall of Dubai. That is already the world’s biggest. It’s all a build up to the World Expo, being held in Dubai in four years. But these passions do drive home what a miracle of transformation Dubai represents - in just some 45 years it has turned desert into destination, teasing these silvered towers out of the sands. Small wonder the sheiks behind what at some point must have seemed like the greatest folly are now celebrated, from giant billboards to crystal-encrusted mobile phone covers. Such is the transformation that it has encouraged global powerhouse names the likes of Armani to open here - rather than anywhere else on the planet they could choose - in order to give comfort and air conditioning to the more urban nomads suffering in the constant hairdryer heat outside. Naturally it does this in style. It is said that Giorgio himself made all of the interior design choices based on his own home - which can only leave guests to conclude that his home is a tidy symphony of brown, bronze, beige and his signature ‘greige’. On each floor three corridors radiate from a central point that marks the very core of the tower. Armani marks this fact with a table on which stands a vase with a single orchid. The stamen is a welcome splash of colour. It is, as it were, tres sheik - luxurious, refined, refreshingly unflashy in a place that still clings to bling, and, most attractive of all to the Middle Eastern customers who make up half of its guests, even connected to that world’s biggest mall. For them, no doubt, to stay in a fashion label hotel is a welcome extension to their fashion label purchasing. They sleep, breakfast and dine Armani, punctuating this with visits to the mall’s Armani stores and Armani cafe. An Armani porter will even escort you there and collect your big brand booty at the end of another long day flexing the plastic. Then comes relief in the shape of indulging other senses. The Armani Hotel offers seven restaurant, - mostly of an Italian bent - and a spa offering, for the brave, the kind of intense massage that guarantees you’ll have to skip at least a day’s retail therapy while you’re in recovery. In the lobby are Armani stores - not selling clothes but one dedicated to flowers and the other to chocolates. Naturally the glittering, sci-fi spire that is Burj Khalifa is itself part of the appeal of staying in the Armani Hotel - with its highest restaurant,

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highest pool, highest private apartment and - who knows? - on the observation deck 148 storeys up, maybe the highest Guinness Book of Records plaque. The sheer preposterousness of the place is perhaps bested only by the fountains towards the side of the hotel. From a restaurant veranda guests can watch the halfhourly display of what can only be described as liquid fireworks, a show of sequenced sweeping, swooning and rocketing water jets to the theme of ‘The Magnificent Seven’ or a touch of Strauss. You can’t but wonder what it’s all for, this spectacle made of the desert’s most precious resource. But you can’t help being captivated like a child nonetheless. It is, indeed, all very Las Vegas, another infrastructural wonder in the middle of a desert. Nevada has the strippers and the booze, of course, if they’re your poisons. But then it doesn’t have this not so little oasis of Giorgio. That alone might swing the balance. n Rooms at Armani Hotel Dubai start from AED 2,000 per room per night, subject to 10% municipality fee, 10% service charge and a AED20 per room per night tourism fee. www.dubai.armanihotels.com

“These passions do drive home what a miracle of transformation Dubai represents - in just some 45 years it has turned desert into destination”

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From a swish suite on the 43rd floor of The Shard, London, to a new French bistro now operating in 15 locations across the UK, Steve Dyson samples life on the road for BQ readers

Shangri-La Hotel at The Shard, London When you’re in London and about to stay at the Shangri-La, you just can’t take your eyes off The Shard, piercing the clouds at 1,016-feet high. Whoever you’re with, your destination is an instant conversation, as the impressive skyscraper is recognised by everyone as London’s new emblem. This creates a special thrill that other hotels just can’t manage as you approach the building, your baggage passing through airport-style security scanners before you’re allowed into the lifts. The Shangri-La has 185 guest rooms and 17 suites on floors 34 to 52, just over half way up the 95-storey tower. You can easily see the outer

edges of London in all directions by walking around the reception, bar and restaurant on the 35th floor. I stayed in a Premier Shard Suite on floor 43, boasting a huge bedroom, a lounge with a long, comfy sofa and chair, and a desk overlooking south London, all with gigantic floor-to-ceiling windows. The master bathroom (there was another for guests!) had a walk-in monsoon-style shower, a Japanese douche-style toilet and a free-standing bath in the window. And yes, I tried them all – especially enjoying my bubble bath as the world passed by beneath me. The taster menu at dinner was superb – crab, foie gras, ‘whole’ chicken (various parts

cooked different ways) and a three-way apple sorbet. But the view made it really special, my table set infinity-style into a window through which I could see the tiny London Eye below. The excitement was tiring, and I slept the night away in my luxurious bed, with perfect aircontrolled temperature, blackout blinds and the silence you can only imagine at that height. Shangri-La Hotel at The Shard, 31 St Thomas Street, Southwark, London, SE1 9QU. Double rooms start at £350, with suites priced from £675 to £10,000. Call 0207 2348088, email reservation.slln@shangri-la.com or visit www.shangri-la.com/london/shangrila

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Guildford Harbour Hotel If you’re visiting Guildford, there’s no better place to stay than the Harbour Hotel, a short walk from the cobbled High Street in the centre of the town Formerly a Radisson Blu venue, the rooms at this modern, glass-fronted property are large, smart and comfortable, with velvet-like décor and furnishings. There’s plenty to do, with a newly-refurbished gymnasium, indoor swimming pool, stone oven sauna, aromatic crystal steam and relaxation rooms. And the large bar and restaurant provide great food and service, with everything from decent bar-style burgers to tasty steaks, fresh fish and lobster. Harbour Hotels Group, the new owners, is headed by Mike Warren, who spent 20 years working with Hotel du Vin and Malmaison Hotels. His experience means all the Harbour Hotels – now in 13 locations including Brighton, Bristol and Chichester – are benefiting from quality upgrades Guildford Harbour Hotel, 3 Alexandra Terrace, High Street, Guildford GU1 3DA. Double rooms start at £89. To book, visit www.guildford-harbour-hotel.co.uk, or email guildford. reservations@harbourhotels.co.uk for rooms, or guildford.events@harbourhotels.co.uk for meetings/events.

Premier Inn London County Hall Put the usual quality you’ll find at any Premier Inn into a classic building like the County Hall, and you’ve suddenly got a real bargain in central London. This impressive building is less than a minute away from London Eye, on the banks of the Thames, and it’s clean, relaxed and – importantly – affordable for the centre of the capital. It’s based just 400 yards from Waterloo Station, with a 24-hour front desk. Although the building is old, the modern rooms all feature satellite TVs, private bathrooms with free toiletries, spacious work desks and free tea and coffee facilities. The on-site restaurant serves light lunches and evening meals, and a good breakfast buffet, with various freshly cooked options. Most importantly, like all Premier Inns, all rooms have the springy but luxurious Hypnos beds, which I rate as one of the ‘best sleeps’ around. Premier Inn London County Hall, Belvedere Road, Lambeth, London, SE1 7PB. Rooms start at £79. Book direct at www.premierinn.com for exclusive saver rates.

Bistrot Pierre, Birmingham With 15 venues now open across the UK, we visited Bistrot Pierre’s latest location to sample the food, service and ambiance on offer. The French restaurant group has made a lovely job of refurbishing a Grade IIlisted building on Gas Street, adjacent to the canal and a stone’s throw from Broad Street. The former headquarters for the Birmingham Canal Company is now resplendent in white-washed stone, and has quickly blended into the area. There’s plenty of space inside, and lovely views over the canal from the sunroom upstairs. The kitchens deliver some great value French cooking, including classics like steak-frites, boeuf bourguignon, bouillabaisse and paté de campagne, with tarte au citron an example of what’s on the dessert menu. Open seven days a week for lunch and dinner, the service is relaxed and friendly, and the prices more than affordable. A two-course prix-fixe lunch costs £10.95, and a two-course early dinner starts at £14.95. Bistrot Pierre has locations in Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, Leamington Spa, Harrogate, Ilkley, Sheffield, Stockton Heath, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Plymouth, Torquay, Cardiff, Bath and Newport. Bistrot Pierre, 46 Gas Street, Birmingham B1 2JT. Visit www.bistrotpierre.co.uk or call 0121 616 0730.

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“Picpoul is a unique white grape from the costal region in Languedoc of southern France, bordered by the famous oyster producing town of Sete”

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A wine adventure Charlotte Begley, regional client manager for Investec Corporate and Institutional Treasury, enjoys a refreshing French white and a mysterious Turkish red For someone who isn’t averse to a glass of wine after a day in the office, it seemed like the perfect fit when I got asked to do this review as part of my role at Investec Bank. Unsurprisingly, I also had some willing helpers in the form of two friends, who were more than happy to put their Saturday night to good use as we set about enjoying the wine that had been chosen for us by Connolly’s Wine Merchants. For a white wine I typically go for a Sauvignon Blanc, but this seemed like the perfect opportunity to try something different, and I got exactly that with the Domaine la Serre Picpoul de Pinet I was given to try. Known as the ‘Chablis of the South’, Picpoul is a unique white grape from the costal region in Languedoc of southern France, bordered by the famous oyster producing town of Sete. The appellation is protected from the northwestern winds by a range of hills, whilst the coastal winds from the Mediterranean temper the summer heat that hits the Domaine La Serre

vineyards on the hillsides around the village of Montagnac. The wine was light and refreshing, with a smooth citrusy hint to it, making it a fantastic dry white wine alternative and one that I’d happily enjoy again. It’s perfect for a summer evening and a wine that is said to complement seafood dishes very well. I was particularly intrigued by the red that I was given, hailing from Turkey; it isn’t a country that would normally spring to mind when choosing a wine. It was a bottle of Ancyra Okuzgozu, produced by Kavaklidere, Turkey’s largest privately owned wine maker. With a rather difficult pronunciation, Okuzgozu derives its name from the large grapes said to resemble bull’s eye, complementing the hint of cherries that also comes through upon tasting. Interestingly, the Kavaklidere vineyards, established in 1929 and present in several of Turkey’s wine producing areas, are led by an all-female team. Vineyards in Turkey face rather

unique challenges, with recent regulations in the country now restricting the advertising and promotion of any alcoholic beverages. This was a delicious wine, smooth with a relatively fruity after-taste, which is where the cherries and cranberries come through. It wasn’t a heavy wine either, something I’m always quite aware of when choosing a red wine, and it actually had quite a refreshing taste to it. Both bottles of wine were a welcome change and having had this opportunity to broaden my horizons, it’ll definitely encourage me to be a little more adventurous when ordering my next glass of wine after a long day at work! n

Kavaklidere Ancyra Okuzgozu, £10 a bottle, £8.99 in a case of 12 Domaine la Serre Picpoul de Pinet, £8.45 a bottle, £7.60 in a case of 12 Wines provided by Connolly’s Wine Merchants Ltd, 0121 236 3837, www.connollyswine.co.uk

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They’re little more than chunks of skin and fat in a bag. But pork scratchings have provided one Staffordshire company with a lucrative serving of tasty overseas markets. Jon Griffin reports

Scratching away at success It’s the pub snack unlike any other – with a customer base from Birmingham to Bilston, and from South Africa to the Seychelles. Some elements of the UK’s invariably shrill dietary police may hold up their hands in horror, but the humble pork scratching is increasingly big business in an era of universal calorie-counting and health-conscious values. The remarkable rise of Tamworth-based firm Real Pork Crackling is a real-life West Midlands entrepreneurial saga dating back to the early 1970s, creating jobs for more than 50 people whilst tickling the taste buds of new generations of snack-eaters and pub drinkers. And the story is still unfolding – with the dedicated workforce at this unique Staffordshire company aiming to boost annual turnover to up to £7m as it churns out millions of packets of scratchings, crackling and pork crunch. In the UK, scratchings are thought to have originated in the Black Country in the 1800s when they were widely consumed by the working classes. Many families in those distant days kept their own pigs as a source of food and the offcuts of fat and skin were fried and eaten by grateful Victorian parents with considerable numbers of mouths to feed.

Nearly 200 years later, butcher John Edwards found that pork scratchings were outselling everything else in his shop at Pelsall, near Walsall – and the first chapter of an enduring West Midland industrial success story was written. Edwards, father of current Real Pork Crackling managing director Lee Edwards, backed his business instincts in the early 1970s and invested in an industrial unit and packing line just down the A5 at the Amington Industrial Estate in Tamworth. It was a decision that was to pay handsome dividends, eventually giving birth to a global brand and putting bags of extra flavour into nights out for tens of thousands of pub regulars. Davina Spencer, who’s the sales and marketing executive at Real Pork Crackling, says: “The snack was founded in the Black Country as a Black Country treat. Over the years you saw packets in various parts of the UK – now it is all over the country in many different formats.” The original John Edwards Pork Scratchings business eventually became Green Top Snacks – the distinctive green bags were a familiar sight behind the bars of many West Midlands pubs in the 1970s and 80s. But the subsequent interest from a hard-driving Liverpudlian called Chris Cunliffe was to prove a turning point in

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the history of the Tamworth firm. Back in 2012 Cunliffe, who had worked in the investment sector in Liverpool and London, was looking to buy and run his own business. In his own words, he lived up to the famous catchphrase of the late Victor Kiam, the wealthy American entrepreneur who bought the Remington shaver company after his wife bought him his first electric shaver. “Yes,” chuckles Cunliffe, an unashamed fan of scratchings. “You could say I loved them so much I bought the company. It is fair to say that the business had grown predominantly before I joined. But it’s now grown even further, and we’re a global brand. “Tyrrells Crisps had pushed things along, if you think how the UK’s crisp and nut market has matured. For a long time it was still a 1970s style sector with crap packaging. Crisps and nuts took off in the 1990s, with the likes of Walkers and Smiths – new packages, new flavours, all sorts of new ideas. “I was looking to buy a business in 2012 I had taken 18 months off and was trawling through businesses for sale. I’d been an employee in Liverpool and London but had always wanted to work for myself.” Cunliffe’s vision for the future of the Tamworth firm centred on cashing in on the growing demand for scratchings through investment, diversification and a constant commitment to

“A hell of a lot of hard work has gone into this – it hasn’t been done overnight. Producing quality is vital and we are learning every day” quality with hand-cooked products largely based on rind from Large White and Durac pigs. “It’s very much a traditional British snack but for years it was still ‘in 1972’ in terms of products and processing. Consumers were looking for alternatives to crisps and nuts – we invested heavily in our facilities, particularly how we cook and how we season. “A hell of a lot of hard work has gone into this – it hasn’t been done overnight. Producing quality is vital and we are learning every day, you have to ensure that you are ahead of the curve. “Today the pork snacks market in the UK is worth £30m to £35m – and the category is in double-digit growth, up 13.8% year-on-year. And we’ve gained market share at a time when the category keeps growing. People are far more interested in pork snacks these days and we have opened the category up to new consumers.” The Real Pork Crackling business model has seen the Tamworth firm ship snacks from its homespun factory on the town’s Lichfield Road Industrial Estate to a variety of exotic locations in recent years, from Cape Town to Auckland in New Zealand, and from Cyprus to the Czech Republic.

For a time, it was even delivering to well-heeled tourists on the luxury Indian Ocean paradise of the Seychelles via a van sales operation which supplied the Tamworth snacks to bars lining the white sandy beaches. The firm’s export successes owe a great deal to the ingenuity of the Tamworth team in producing hand-cooked delicacies ranging from pork crackling seasoned with sea salt to English mustard pork crackling and jalapeno crunch. The operation became a UK household name, with its premium products supplied in recent years to the likes of Fortnum and Mason, Harrods and Harvey Nichols. Cunliffe says: “Today we supply South Africa, New Zealand, China, and the Czech Republic. Pork Crunch is very popular in China – they cannot get enough of it.” Spencer adds: “The world’s got much smaller with the Internet. All food markets are constantly changing and the export side of the business is definitely growing. In Asia, they eat Pork Crunch with meals like they eat prawn crackers.” Both Cunliffe and Spencer stress that quality is the key in an ever-competitive market. Cunliffe

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says: “We have one or two major competitors but we are the only Marks and Spencerapproved manufacturer. “We believe we are the number one in the market for new product development. We are the only BRC (British Retail Consortium) Grade A pork snacks manufacturer. We have created new flavours, new packaging. We are pushing the envelope and everyone else is following us. Spencer says: “Scratchings were always seen as a snack when you are in a pub with a pint – for a while they had a bad reputation. But now there are loads of ideas and flavours out there. It is all about picking the right message.” Cunliffe adds: “Our crackling is so good that we changed the name of the company. We have gone through growing pains. It was a big gamble (for me) and we have had some really difficult times. “Now we are in the big supermarkets – Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, the Co-op – and have weekly analyses from all our major customers.

The Midlands market is really strong for us.” Cunliffe’s commitment to the Tamworth firm is such that he commutes daily from the Wirral on Merseyside to Staffordshire, a round trip of 240 miles, staying over one night a week. “I have got used to early starts and late finishes. My family is up there on the Wirral and the kids are at school. I have done 56,000 miles in 18 months.” Cunliffe may be the figurehead of the scratchings factory – he has a majority stake in the business with Lee Edwards the other shareholder – but he emphasises it’s a team effort when it comes to staying at the top of the UK pork snacks sector. “I drive the business, I drive everybody. Although I am extremely ambitious, I am very fair. We are a team here, it is not all different individuals. I have no ego – it is not me, it is us.” And it’s also about (relatively) healthy eating, despite the widespread assumption that scratchings are a risk for the careful dieter. While

pork rinds are high in sodium and fat, they’re also low in carbohydrates and are sometimes considered an alternative snack food for followers of the Atkins diet. Cunliffe, a keen Liverpool FC fan, is justifiably proud of the progress Real Pork Crackling has made in recent years – and pulls no punches about his hopes for the company. “We are now geared for significant growth. We will have a sizeable business in five to 10 years. We are aiming to do between £6m and £7m turnover – that is huge growth for us. “We’ve had offers for the company but we consider this a journey – there is no need to sell, we enjoy what we do here. We try to foster a family environment and we are still a private family business as such. “This is an exciting journey and if I have a legacy it is to develop this brand. We want to be the Walkers of the pork snacks world – but there is still a lot of hard work to be done. We are still a few years away from that.” n

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“We know our customers value reliability and consistency. If you get those two right, price is less important”

Making a clean sweep The saying ‘where there’s muck, there’s brass’ could have been created for Minster Cleaning Services. Frank Holwell reports ‘Cleaning the office’ is hardly the most exciting job description, and doesn’t sound like a very lucrative occupation. And yet Minster Cleaning Services has a network of 42 franchises across the UK, and between them they turned over £35m in 2015 – a figure confidently expected to exceed £36m in 2016. One of Minster’s top-earning franchisees last year enjoyed a turnover of £1.6m and took home profits of £170,000. That’s a lot of muck, making a lot of brass, and it’s a success story that’s been over 30 years in the making. Mike Parker, managing director of Minster Cleaning Services, based in Birmingham,

says: “The challenge for us is we’re seen as a commercial cleaning franchise, which might seem boring to some. What we’re really about is offering a management franchise that happens to be in the business of commercial cleaning.” Parker joined Minster after a successful 30-year career with HSBC bank, including a spell as branch manager at New Street in Birmingham city centre. He says: “The good news about the sector is that our business is repetitive. That generates you cashflow – it’s pretty predictable. Most of the premises we will clean five nights a week, some seven days a week; if we keep doing our job

right we’re doing all those next month too, day in, day out. “It’s not like we’re selling a product multiple times to the same consumer. As a business model, it works well.” Parker’s based at Minster’s million-pound head office in Erdington, which the company moved into last July. He oversees a team of 15 staff, who support the franchise network in four key areas – IT, marketing, operations and finance. Established in 1982 by chairman Alan Haigh, the company became a franchise network – and a full member of the British Franchise Association (BFA) – 10 years later.

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“What do I know about cleaning?” asks Parker. “Not as much as some of my colleagues is the truth. But I have an operations team that knows a huge amount, and a network that knows a huge amount, leaving me free to focus on other areas of the business.” Minster Cleaning Services – and franchising in general – offers a robust business model. Even in the last recession of 2007/2008, Parker estimates they only lost around 10% of turnover. That’s a figure, he says, an awful lot of sectors would have been quite happy with. Since then, Minster hasn’t looked back and has put on around £9m in turnover. He says: “In a recession, businesses start looking at the cost base. If they can trim back on cleaning they will, but they can’t do without it totally. Even if they try, the phone usually rings four or five days later when staff are complaining because they’re not prepared to clean toilets!” Minster is the largest commercial cleaning franchise in the UK. However, while Parker will describe Minster as ‘a player’ in the commercial cleaning sector as a whole, he’ll happily admit they’re not a massive player, with even the most successful franchise only commanding around 1.5% of that territory’s business. This is largely by choice, however. “The market is dominated by big national accounts, for example retail brands with hundreds of stores. We don’t compete for these because the margins are horrible,” explains Parker. “It’s not all about turnover – our franchisees are interested in making money and a long-term, sustainable business. We could turn over £50m by the end of the year if we wanted that type of business, but we don’t.” One future strategy for Minster is splitting up some of its larger territories – not for the incoming purchaser, but 10-15 years down the line when they sell their business. Minster’s centrally managed marketing systems and processes provide branches with all the leads they require. It’s then up to individual branches to convert these leads into new clients which are managed locally. This, says Parker, gives Minster a huge strength and stability. Most of the work is for professional offices, schools, car showrooms, with 20% of business coming from primary care medical and dental practices. Unlike some franchises, which insist their franchisees source everything through them

at a mark-up, Parker insists Minster focuses on profiting from their trading alone. Minster’s appeal to clients, says Parker, is their process and integrity – turning up when they are scheduled, and doing the job well. “It’s all about having a clear market positioning. We’re not trying to compete on price, but do we turn up when we say, and do what we say we will? We know our customers value reliability and consistency. If you get those two right, price is less important.” Like Parker himself, many of the company’s best franchisees come from a successful management career on the high street. “None of our franchisees had any previous experience of the commercial cleaning sector – they don’t need it,” he says. “Our latest franchisee in Bristol, he’s ex-Lloyds Bank, with a track record of successfully managing groups of people which is attractive to us. After all, we’re a people business. “Our biggest challenge is replacing one of our superstars when they choose to retire with someone as good, if not better. The risk is we don’t find someone good enough and that business perhaps declines.” Future options which the Minster executive team is now exploring are international expansion and running another unrelated and non-conflicting franchise network alongside Minster. “We know we’ve got expertise in B2B marketing, so I can see us running another B2B

franchise and applying our knowledge and learning to that,” says Parker. “It’s a logical next step, but it’s identifying the right opportunity.” As well as being ‘repetitive’, another of the sector’s attractions, says Parker, is the slow rate of change when it comes to innovation. Technology may have introduced microfibre cloths and extendable poles for window cleaning, but robots have not made the human element obsolete just yet. “I expected by now we would be fully engaged in robotic vacuum cleaners, but it just hasn’t happened,” he says. “Why? Because the technology’s still pretty unreliable. “Technological innovations could have taken a chunk of cost out. The opposite is happening instead, and we’re seeing huge regulation around the National Living Wage, where you’ve got to keep negotiating prices.” Away from the world of commercial cleaning, Parker is a Scout Leader at a group near his home in Kenilworth, Warwickshire. “It’s good fun, keeps me young and it’s great to be able to give something back to the local community. Parker’s own children clearly also keep the Minster managing director grounded: “I remember making that transition from HSBC to Minster, and my kids were of an age when they loved pulling dad’s leg. So it was: ‘Dad, what is the difference between Jif and Cif?’ My response was: ‘It’s paying for your university – shut up!’” n

The British Franchise Association In 1977, eight franchise companies came together to form the British Franchise Association, which promotes ethical franchising practice in the UK. The BFA has formal criteria for membership and a code of business practice, with a standardsbased approach to develop credibility, influence and favourable conditions for growth. It’s the only voluntary self-regulatory body for the UK franchise industry, and other members include McDonald’s, Water Babies, Little Kickers, Clarks Shoes, Pitman Training and Toni & Guy. The BFA holds two sets of annual awards, recognising its franchisors and their franchisees. Minster itself was a finalist in the headline category at the 2016 BFA HSBC Franchisor of the Year Awards in June. And now Kevin Lawley, who manages the company’s Norfolk and Suffolk franchise, has been shortlisted in the B2B category for this year’s Franchisee of the Year Awards. Lawley, another former banker, took on the franchise five years ago and has grown the business to a £1m-plus turnover, employing more than 180 staff. The awards will be announced at Birmingham Town Hall on 29 September, and can be followed on Twitter #FranchiseeAwards16.

BIT OF A CHAT Bill Borde’s examining the news behind the headlines Zen’s red carpet The great, the good and the schmoozers from Birmingham’s business world turned up at the launch of the Zen Metro in July. What was once the Metro Bar and Grill, one of the city’s most popular venues in the late nineties and early noughties, has now been brought back to life as a new Thai restaurant. Top bosses from corporate giants Bond Wolfe, Cushman and Wakefield, Colmore BID, Marketing Birmingham, Ernst and Young, and Seven Capital were among the 300-odd

guests celebrating the £250,000 refurbishment by the Brandasia Group – owners of Asha’s. And even Birmingham Airport’s busy chief executive Paul Kehoe found time to come and relax, along with his media team Sarah Collyer, Francesca Baller and Justine Howl. Other well-known media faces included former TV sports host Gary Newbon, Capital XTRA’s Sacha Brooks, Heart FM’s Steve Denyer, Free Radio’s Andy Goulding, ITV presenter Genelle Aldred, and BBC WM’s Richie Anderson.

Steve Dyson writing editorial in his undies

Editor’s daft promise You might remember that BQ editor Steve Dyson told readers in the Summer edition that he’d be pictured writing his next editorial in his undies if Britain voted for Brexit. And so here he is: not quite Gary Lineker, but sporting boxers and socks, courtesy of celebrated West Midlands cartoonist Colin Whittock!

On yer bike! Rosie Ginday EY winner

Rosie’s sweet prize Former BQ cover girl Rosie Ginday has been named EY West Midlands’ Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year. Ginday is the founder of Miss Macaroon, a specialist producer of French macaroons, and judges were impressed with her “infectious enthusiasm and passion” and her focus on a sustainable business model. Miss Macaroon’s customers include Karl Lagerfeld, Pandora and Hendricks Gin, whose company colours are matched by special runs of the sweet treats as corporate gifts. Ginday reinvests profits to provide training and jobs for unemployed young people and ex-offenders. Ginday will now represent the West Midlands at EY’s UK finals in October with: Marg Randles and John Woodward of Busy Bees, Staffordshire; William Chase of Chase Distillery, Herefordshire; Mark Jones and Jeremy Taylor of Green Frog Power; Sarah Gill of Gro-Organic, Birmingham; Michael Bruce of Purplebricks, Solihull; Ben Maughan of SHEco, Tipton; Heather Penn and John Penn of SSE Audio Group, Redditch.

Huge freight deliveries on two wheels could soon be the future across urban areas in the West Midlands, after a trial by Colmore Business District. The TRIPL Urban Cargo bike, which has a 750-litre storage area for parcel and package deliveries, is powered by an 8kWh lithium ion battery which reaches 100km on a single charge. It costs ¤200 a month to rent or ¤12,000 to buy. Paul Fielding, a director of Brewin Dolphin who looks at transport with Colmore Business District, said: “Our aspiration is to improve travel in the district for pedestrians by easing congestion. The TRIPL bike or something similar would be a great method of reducing delivery vans in the district.”

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EVENTS

BQ’s business diary helps you forward plan

SEPTEMBER 14

GBCC, Solihull Chamber – Breakfast with business, 7.30am to 9.30am, Village Hotel Club Solihull, The Green Business Park, Dog Kennel Lane, Shirley, Solihull, B90 4JG. Members £8.33, non-members £12.50. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@ birmingham-chamber.com.

IoD, Coventry & Warwickshire Mastermind Group, 6pm to 9pm, Ragley Hall, Alcester, Warwickshire, B49 5NJ. Members £42. . Details: Sue Hurrell, 07803200189, sue.hurrell@Institute of Directors.com.

GBCC, Burton Chamber – Networking breakfast with International Trade Advisers, 7.30am to 9am, Holiday Inn Express, Second Avenue, Centrum 100, Burton upon Trent, DE14 2WF. Members £10, non-members £20. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

GBCC, Solihull Chamber – Enterprising Women’s Networking Lunch, 12pm to 2.30pm, Holiday Inn Solihull, 61 Homer Road, Solihull, B91 3QD. Members £20, non-members £40. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

BBBC, Judith Armstrong – CEO of Millennium Point, 7am to 9am, Hotel du Vin, 25 Church Street, Birmingham, B3 2NR. Cost £20. Details: 0121 236 0484, www.bbbc.biz

GBCC, Business Growth Seminar: Cyber Security, 8.30am to 10.30am, Chamber House,75 Harborne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 3DH. Members free, non-members £25. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

IoD, Black Country Dinner, 6pm to 10.30pm, Gongoozlers, Dudley Canal Trust, Birmingham New Road, DY1 4SB. Members £55, nonmembers £70. Details: Sue Hurrell, 07803200189, sue.hurrell@ Institute of Directors.com.

Haig&Co, Cyber Security Practice – Autumn Event, 6pm, Hotel Du Vin, 25 Church Street, Birmingham, B3 2NR. Free. Details: dnavas@haigand.co or (Tracey Byrne) tbyrne@haigand.co

OCTOBER 04

GBCC, Solihull Chamber – Curry Club Networking, 5.30pm to 7.30pm, Jiyaan Indian Restaurant Ramada Birmingham Solihull, The Square Solihull, Birmingham, B91 3RF. Members £12.50, non-bers £25. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

GBCC, Future Faces – ‘The Trading Game’, 5.30pm to 8pm, Deutsche Bank, Five Brindley Place, Birmingham, B1 2JB. Members free, non-members £15. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@ birmingham-chamber.com.

GBCC, Ecommerce for International Trade, 9am to 1pm, Birmingham City University, Millennium Point, Curzon Street, Birmingham, B4 7XG. Free event. Details: Babita Shahjahan on 0121 607 1815.

GBCC, Solihull Chamber – Just Networking, 5.30pm to 7.30pm, Ebb and Flow Cafe Bar Solihull, Herbert Road, Solihull, B91 3QE. Free event. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birminghamchamber.com.

UBBC, Maximising your business value, 9am to 1pm, Manufacturing Technology Centre, Ansty Park, Coventry, CV7 9JU. Details: Lucy Hogg 0121 232 9618, E-mail: lucy.hogg@ mazars.co.uk.

GBCC, Export Documentation, 9.15am to 4.30pm, Chamber House,75 Harborne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 3DH. Members £210, non-members £230. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

GBCC, Autumn Expo, 10am to 3pm, The Barclaycard Arena, King Edwards Road, Birmingham, B1 2AA. Free event. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com.

GBCC, Future Faces Annual Dinner & Awards, 6pm to 11.30pm, Edgbaston Stadium, Edgbaston, Rd, Birmingham, B5 7QU. Members/non-members £60. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber.com. GBCC, Business Growth Seminar: People Development, 7.45am to 10am, Chamber House,75 Harborne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 3DH. Members free, non-members £25. Details: 0121 607 1772 or email, events@birmingham-chamber. com.

BQ’s business events diary gives you lots of time to forward plan. To add your event, email details to steve.dysonmedia@gmail.com, with ‘BQ events page’ as the email subject heading. Please check with contacts beforehand that arrangements have not changed. Events organisers are also asked to notify us at the above email address of any changes or cancellations as soon as they are known. KEY: BBBC, Birmingham Business Breakfast Club. GBCC, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. IoD, Institute of Directors. UBBC, University of Birmingham Business Club

The diary is updated daily online at bqlive.co.uk