Island Business Magazine, June 2010

Green Island

Part 2

Can we really deliver on the Eco Island vision?

Also in this issue...

BETTER BUSINESS

SPECIAL REPORT

COMPANY PROFILE

CHAMBER MATTERS

Search Engine Optimisation – we explore the dark arts of search engine visibility with help from Island experts.

In the second of our reports on Franchising we look at what's involved in creating a franchise out of your business.

From pipelines to brewing – how plans to settle down led to the birth of a new brewery, and a successful Island businesss.

New members, Chamber people, member benefits, and more event details for your diary.

CONTENTS

JUNE 2010

President’s foreword

W

elcome to this, the June issue of Island Business Magazine – I can’t believe that we’re already halfway through 2010! Following on from the General Election, the country is definitely in for an interesting ride and it will be fascinating to see how things pan out between now and the end of the year which will, I’m sure, give a real flavour of the pain / gain to come for us all.

The Chamber is widening its portfolio and has established both an Eco-Business Forum and Construction Forum which will join the other sector groups that report in to the Main Board. The real benefit of these groups is that they can focus on fewer issues, but with the experience and specialist knowledge of people working in those fields. With the impending start of the Pan Meadows development and the Highways PFI now a reality, it is vital that our businesses have the best support to prepare themselves to win parts of these multi-million pound contracts. Our challenge must be the re-cycling of as much of the available funding within the Island’s own economy which will inevitably benefit everyone who lives here.

June, of course, sees the return of the iconic Isle of Wight Festival and the mass influx of visitors to the event and the Island. It is important that we nurture these music fans (especially the younger ones) as I strongly believe that they are our tourists of the future – a warm welcome and good impression is vital from all of us.

Mrs. P and I are privileged to own about a quarter of an acre of French countryside with a small cabin on it – our own little bolt hole of tranquility. In the past eighteen months, we have seen a number of new wind farms built within a few miles of us. Being curious, we have driven up to assess the impact on the adjacent villages and surroundings. Firstly, the noise is so minimal that you have to park with the engine off and the windows open to hear them (and there aren’t piles of dead birds that have flown into the blades). Secondly, there is not a mass exodus of people, tourists, or properties for sale. We are in the Normandy National Park which, arguably, is just as rural and equally beautiful as the Isle of Wight, but in the preceding years we have never seen any sign of popular protest about the construction of these wind farms. Don’t get me wrong, these are people that love to protest – the farmers regularly strike and a huge protest movement over a number of years halted the siting of an underground dump for nuclear waste. My point is, the French seem to see the benefits of renewable energy outweighing any perceived disadvantages to the countryside, and seem to have wholeheartedly embraced the future. Does it make us want to sell up? Does it make us feel the place is ruined? Absolutely not.

Enjoy your summer.

Steve Porter, President IWCCTI

2

NEWS A roundup of business news

10

BETTER BUSINESS Search Engine Optimisation – we explore the dark arts of search engine visibility

11 THE EXPERT’S VIEW Information and communications technology Photo: Ventnor Botanic Garden Photographer Julian Winslow

12

FEATURE Green Island – Part 2: Can we really deliver on the Eco Island vision?

20

SPECIAL REPORT Franchising – Part 2: Franchising out your business

Published by The Knowledge Zone Ltd Editor Steve Sleight Art Editor Karen Holloway Editorial team Louisa Mamakou Zara MacAlister Sara Coombes Debs Allan Contact the team ib@theknowledgezone.net

TKZ

Administration and enquiries Tanya Sleight

For more great content visit

24

Yates' Brewery – From pipelines to brewing

tanya.sleight@theknowledgezone.net

Advertising Sales Amanda Bartlett amanda.bartlett@theknowledgezone.net

0118 934 4208 Mary Collis mary.collis@theknowledgezone.net

01983 245505 For IW Chamber Editor (Chamber) Kevin Wilson kevin.wilson@iwchamber.co.uk

Managing Editor (Chamber) Zoe Stroud

While every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of Island Business magazine the publishers do not accept any liability or provide any guarantee that the information is accurate, complete, or up to date. The publisher and its employees and contractors have used their best efforts in preparing these pages and this publication but make no warranty of any kind, expressed or

implied, with regard to the information supplied. The views of contributors do not necessarily represent those of the publisher or the IW Chamber of Commerce. The Knowledge Zone Ltd. and its employees and contractors shall not be liable in the event of incidental or consequential damages in connection with, or arising out of, the providing of the information offered here.

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk Contact TKZ The Knowledge Zone Ltd. 5-9 Baring Chambers 13 Denmark Road, Cowes Isle of Wight PO31 7EX 01983 245505 ib@theknowledgezone.net www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce Mill Court, Furrlongs, Newport Isle of Wight, PO30 2AA 01983 520777 chamber@iwchamber.co.uk

30 34

CLASSIFIEDS Our classified section

36

See digital editions of Island Business Magazine on www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

CHAMBER MATTERS New members, Chamber people, member benefits, and diary dates

To join the Chamber call 01983 520777

Island Business Magazine is printed

by Bishops Printers of Portsmouth

COMPANY PROFILE

THE BACK PAGE Steve Blamire ponders on the loss of regional identity while Rupert Besley puts pen to paper. Plus RUBS – Really Useful Business Stuff

1

THE STARTING LINE

BY THE EDITOR

S

o, now we know. The election is behind us and we, the electorate, gave a very mixed decision. Now it's down to a Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition to steer the country through what is likely be one of the most difficult periods since the 1930s.

It will take time for the dust to clear and for the new government to produce their first budget, but already we are getting clues to the severity of the cuts individuals and businesses will have to cope with, and the instability of the situation we are in.

What will it mean for Island businesses? The impact on Island tourism – such a vital part of the Island's economy – is hard to predict.

The increasingly beneficial exchange rate may help encourage foreign visitors while home-grown tourism may be boosted as people choose UK holidays rather than travelling abroad. Either way, all involved in the Island's tourism industry must work harder than ever to promote our Island as a desirable holiday destination.

While many sectors will be severely hit by the economic situation, others will see opportunities. The potential for environment-related businesses is high, and the decisions taken to implement the Eco Island vision could have a profound impact on the future prosperity of the Island.

Eco Island developments are central to the second part of our Green Island feature this month (pages 12-19) and include an exclusive interview with Council Leader David Pugh.

There's lots of information in the feature but there's even more on Island Business Online, with in-depth interviews with all the organisations featured in the article.

Our unique video coverage is one of the things that has seen Island Business Online grow so rapidly in terms of both visitor numbers and advertisers. Visitors tell us that they love our video reports and our dailyupdated news. If you have yet to visit our online resource please do check it out and let us know you views.

Until next month, may business be good!

Contact the editorial team at: ib@theknowledgezone.net or telephone 01983 245505.

Visit Island Business Online at: www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

IN THE NEXT ISSUE JULY 2010 Published 29 June • Island events – bringing audiences and sponsors to the Island • Better Business – team building for business • Special Report – the Island's commercial property market • Company Profile – HMP Isle of Wight • Chamber Matters – monthly update

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Sporting opportunity for Island businesses

O

rganisers are counting down to the 2011 NatWest Island Games, and encouraging businesses to make the most of the opportunity.

The games will feature about 4,000 athletes competing at 23 Island venues, hosting hundreds of events in 14 sports.

About 300 media from around the world are expected to attend, there will be a Royal visit, an international conference, and the opening ceremony will feature 1,000 schoolchildren. The Games will also be visited by a team of officials from the London 2012 Olympics.

David Ball, Chairman of the Organising Committee, said: "This is an event for the whole Island, and we want to do everything we can to ensure that businesses get involved."

Major sponsorship has already been secured from NatWest, Isle of Wight Council, Tourism SouthEast, and Wightlink.

David has been involved since the Island first hosted the Games in 1993, and said: “Next year will be more significant than ever," he said. "There is huge interest already from the London Olympics, who are seeing our event as a test bed for the 2012 Olympic Games, and it is a wonderful opportunity to raise

David Ball

the profile of the whole Island."

The Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry is working with organisers to spread the message to businesses (see page 32 for event diary date on 8 June).

Michelle Russell, Marketing and Communications Officer, said the scope for business involvement is huge.

“Businesses could, for example, sponsor one of the sports, or help with printing, clothing, a single race or event, advertise in our programmes, or help with any number of requirements ranging from flagpoles for medal ceremonies to large screen televisions."

For more information, visit www.natwestislandgames2011.co.uk.

High speed sea safaris from Ventnor

V

entnor-based OceanBlue Sea Charters have launched their new 8.5m catamaran Free Spirit, built by Cheetah Marine, to take passengers on sea safaris along the Island's south coast.

Lucy Strevens, founder of the sea safaris said: "We wanted to give people the opportunity to get out and have fun on the water whilst learning about our coastline. Our new Cheetah Free Spirit, which is coded to carry 12 passengers, is the perfect boat for exploring the secluded bays and discovering the Island’s wild south coast from the sea."

Free Spirit is powered by two monster 135 hp Honda outboard engines and will offer exhilarating rides to both locals and tourists who want to discover the spectacular Undercliff coastline.

During the sea safari passengers can get hands on and help haul lobster pots and discover the marine treasures of the deep. The trip is completed with a` fast

On safari

ride back to Ventnor Haven. OceanBlue also offer tailor-made private charters for groups who are looking to celebrate something special.

OceanBlue Sea Charters is based at OceanBlue Quay on Ventnor's Eastern Esplanade. The Quay, which includes the Cheetah Marine workshops, Harbour Master's Office, and Goodmans Bistro, is part of the strategic long-term plan for developing the land adjacent to Ventnor Haven.

NEWS

JUNE 2010

Ventnorblog branches out

Simon and Sal Perry

W

V

entnorblog – officially the UK’s top local news site – is out to convince Island businesses of the need to invest in social media.

Husband and wife team Simon and Sal Perry, who set up Ventnorblog five years ago, also provide social media consultancy services and say local organisations are missing out on a big opportunity.

"Sites like Facebook and Twitter give businesses a chance to build a relationship with their customers," said Simon. "But so many are either ignoring this opportunity, or are not making the most of their existing sites."

Ventnorblog has rapidly expanded since its launch, and now receives an average of 250,000 page views a month. It recently won the Best Hyperlocal Site in the UK award at a ceremony in Leeds, and was nominated for a Best New Media award last year.

Sal said that the number of Island people who interact with Ventnorblog is further proof of the power of social media. "We have registered more than 22,000 comments on the site, and it is clear that people are much more relaxed about expressing themselves online," she

said. "We hope we can help local firms make the most of this change of attitude."

Simon and Sal moved to Ventnor in the summer of 2005, and have long experience in online publications. They were among the first of the bloggers, and launched Ventnorblog on the back of widespread interest in the discovery of an unexploded bomb at Ventnor Haven.

Since then, they and their contributors have written 8,500 articles, as well as recording video and audio coverage of events.

Britten-Norman apprentices match up to army challenge Apprentices ready for the challenge

S

even Britten-Norman apprentices successfully competed in the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Engineers Challenge Day at Hawley Lake in Surrey.

The apprentices were involved in a full day of challenges, which were set by the Royal Engineers and which is part of the Key Skills course at college.

Among the tasks were repairing an enemy sabotaged radio transmitter station, enabling the sending of a message to friendly troops within 20 minutes.

In another exercise, a woodland track and surrounding ground had to be cleared of dummy IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). There were 10 to complete within 20 minutes. Fitness was also tested with circuit training and running.

How far could your business thinking take you?

The Britten-Norman team in Fareham 2 took second place behind Farnborough Military College, which was a fine achievement against dedicated Military Colleges.

The apprentices were Craig Chandler, Joe Crouch, Josh Jennings, Will Poole, Scott Tarren, Joe Tigwell, Matt Woodford with Learning and Development Manager, Steve Clark.

Visit www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk for up-to-date Isle of Wight business news

ith Business Thinking 2010, HSBC are offering the UK's best business thinkers the chance to share in £90 million lending plus a financial reward of up to £100,000 each.

Six companies from each of nine UK regions will be selected to join HSBC on a Thought Exchange trip.

They’ll travel as HSBC's guests to one of the world’s most dynamic areas of economic growth - China, the Americas, or Europe - for the opportunity to enjoy networking and business development opportunities.

Entries, refined by insights gained on the Thought Exchange, will then be judged by the HSBC panel of experts.

Two finalists from each region will receive up to £5 million lending plus a financial reward of up to £100,000.

One of the 18 finalists will become Business Thinking 2010 winner at a gala event and receive a further financial reward of up to £100,000.

To find out more and to register your interest, go to http://businessthinking.hsbc.co.uk/.

Isle of Wight economy getting stronger

T

he sixth IWEP Barometer Business online survey has reported on the quarter from January to March.

The report shows signs that the economic recovery is strengthening on the Island with the stronger performing businesses continuing to move forward, and significantly more businesses indicating an improvement.

There has also been an improvement in business confidence and for the first time over 50% of businesses are more optimistic about the future.

Graham Biss, Chief Executive of IWEP, said: "Looking ahead to the next six months, the respondents appear optimistic with a third of businesses expecting profit margins to increase.

However, 21% of businesses continue to expect a reduction in margins.

Overall the outlook appears stronger, with more expecting to see their reported trading conditions continue."

3

NEWS

Chamber launches Construction Hub

N

ew moves to strengthen the Island’s construction industry have been announced by the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry.

Representatives of all sectors of the industry have come together to form the Island Construction Hub, and one of its first targets is to seek to work with the Isle of Wight Council, which is reviewing its procurement process.

Geoff Banks, of GJ Banks (IW) Limited, and a Director of the Chamber, is Chair of the Hub. He said: “There is an urgent need for everyone in the Island's construction industry to speak with one voice to the regulators and our clients in both public and private sectors.

"We need to work together to ensure that the Island's industry is robustly represented and see that Island contracts are available to and served by Island companies.”

Members of the Hub include representatives from building contractors, developers, architects, surveyors, engineers, estate agents, the Council, and housing associations.

Mr Banks said he was keen to encourage all construction-related businesses to get involved.

“We want to know what problems are being experienced, so that we can tackle them together,” he said.

“And we want to hear from those who are not Chamber members, too, so that we can achieve stronger representation – and become a voice for the whole industry.”

The Hub’s remit includes: • Creation and protection of Island jobs.

• Monitoring major contracts, including the Roads PFI, and providing information and support.

• Advice and support on new regulations • Identifying training needs and increasing quality standards.

• Identifying and sharing best practice.

• Improving dialogue and working with the industry's clients.

Businesses wanting more information about the Construction Hub should send a message to: chamber@iwchamber.co.uk

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Rapid response from GRP Laminates

T

he growth in offshore wind power has lead to a new market for Rapid Response Vessels (RRVs) like OFFSHORE RESPONSE 1, which was built by GRP Laminates and South Boats on the Isle of Wight. The vessel is owned

by Offshore Wind Power Marine Services, one of the UK’s leading operators of crew transfer and support services for the wind energy market.

Already, one casualty has had reason to be thankful for the speedy response the vessel provides. When an individual became ill offshore, the vessel was on scene within 15 minutes. The RRV's crew has advanced medical knowledge and diagnosed a suspected heart attack. They summoned the emergency services and, at a speed of 30 knots, were back in port to a waiting ambulance in minutes. It was confirmed that the casualty had suffered a heart attack; thankfully he survived.

Paul Walsh, Logistics Director at Offshore Wind Power Marine Services, explained the importance of RRVs: "We supply wind

The Island-built RRV

farm operators with fully-crewed and equipped transfer vessels. As turbines are being built further and further offshore, speed becomes more of an issue."

With a top speed of 30kn, the South Boats / GRP RRV meets a growing need to reduce engineer and turbine downtime.

The RRV’s versatility is another bonus.

“The cabin layout can be arranged to suit the client," explained Paul. "We could remove some of the seats on the starboard side to install toolboxes, equipment storage cupboards and/or a stretcher bearer, for example.”

New Eco Business Forum is launched

T

he Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry has launched a new initiative to help stimulate the Eco Island agenda.

The Forum is chaired by Brian Bailey, a former Chamber President, who is Chairman of Wight Energy Limited and Managing Director of Romahome Limited, with strong support from Forum members who represent a wide range of Island businesses.

Mr Bailey said: "We want to get businesses involved and give them a voice on issues relating to the environment and the Island’s future energy needs. We also want to become an information hub on issues relating to renewable and energy efficiency support, as well as actively encouraging new technologies and innovative ideas that will take the Eco Island agenda forward."

The Forum will lend its weight in support of plans for an Eco / Climate Change Centre and Technology Park for the Island, along with the Island Highways PFI and offshore wind farms.

"There is a huge amount of experience and expertise on the Forum and we will be working hard to represent the interests of all Chamber members and

Brian Bailey

the Island's business community. We would hope to work with the Council in delivering and turning the Eco Island agenda into reality," added Mr Bailey.

The IW Eco Business Forum aims to: • Educate Island businesses and various economic stakeholders, by raising awareness of the principles, values and benefits of a green economy.

• Develop an infrastructure where businesses can explore options and create opportunities for enterprise, innovation, skills training, facilities, products and finance.

• Support businesses and key partners by providing a platform for dialogue, the sharing of ideas and developing best practices, along with options for lobbying decision makers.

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NEWS IN BRIEF Top beach awards for Island The Isle of Wight is again leading the way for the quality of its beaches in the latest Keep Britain Tidy Blue Flag and Quality Coast Awards (QCAs).

The Island has three Blue Flag beaches while also receiving 11 QCAs, giving it a total of 14 awards.

Shanklin joins Ventnor and Sandown beaches in being awarded both a Blue Flag. The Island's total of 14 awards once again puts it joint top in the country alongside Torbay.

With 111 QCA's awarded across the UK, the Island can boast almost exactly 10 per cent of the UK's QCA beaches.

Awards to celebrate manufacturing The manufacturers' organisation, the EEF, will be showcasing the best of British innovation and excellence through their popular Future Manufacturing Awards.

The awards celebrate innovation and are open to all UK manufacturers and their apprentices.

There are four categories, each with two awards. You can enter as many awards as you wish and up to six apprentices can be entered in the apprentice awards.

Entries close on 31 July so to find out more and download your entry form visit www.eef.org.uk/awards/default.htm.

Offshore wind opportunities Marine South East is partnering with Envirobusiness for a workshop on supply chain prospects within offshore wind development. The workshop will be on Thursday, 17 June, 1000-1230, at the Seawork Exhibition in the Canary Islands Fruit Terminal in Southampton Docks.

The workshop will enable potential suppliers to understand the supply chain and identify selling opportunities as well as helping wind farm developers access specialist marine companies. To register for the event call 02380 111590.

The French Connection Two Island business representatives recently visited Devon along with delegates from Research Centres and Science Parks in Brittany, Normandy as well as South West of England, for a three day exchange visit as part of the Channel Innovation Network (Chain).

In September, the Isle of Wight will be hosting the next visit of CHAIN delegates from the South West, South East, Brittany, and Normandy. Any business looking to establish or develop trade links with Normandy, Brittany, or the South West of England can find out more by contacting either Graham Biss at the Innovation Centre on 550300 or Ken Dueck on 07785 977 527.

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Charity golf challenge is great success

T

he Isle of Wight Chamber’s Charity Golf Challenge proved so successful it will now become an annual event.

The event was revived this year after a four year gap, and attracted more than 20 players who enjoyed the sunshine at Shanklin and Sandown Golf Club.

The total amount raised, including a raffle and auction, was £2,000, which was presented to the Isle of Wight Hospice.

The winners – David Street and Roy Clayton, of Imp House – won the Challenge Shield for a year and an 18 carat gold paperweight. Runners up Barry Groves and Aidan Calder, and third placed Rob McCarthy and Jon West won playing lessons with Shanklin and Sandown club professional Peter Hammond.

Zoe Stroud, Chamber Group Marketing Manager, said the event – sponsored by Wightcable and Southern Vectis – had

been a great success."Sponsors and golfers gave so generously, and we are delighted to have raised so much for the Hospice," she said. "Everyone had such a fantastic day that we have already committed to making this an annual event once more."

Gurit plans more health sessions

W

orkers at one of the Island’s top companies are benefiting from free health checks, courtesy of Chamber Health.

The sessions at Gurit have been so successful that there are plans for more.

Over 50 staff attended the first checkups, at which qualified nurses check for cholesterol and blood pressure, and give wide-ranging health advice.

Chamber Health is a service of the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry, which was formed in partnership with the Island

NHS to help in the early identification of health problems.

Lynette Herbst, who leads the team, said the service was now established as a social enterprise, supported by national funding.

"We aim to help take health services out to people who would otherwise not think of going to a doctor, and that obviously includes people who are at work all day," she said.

For more information, and to book a visit to your business, contact lynette.herbst@iwchamber.co.uk.

Low-skilled jobs expected to decline

D

emand for highly-skilled people will intensify during the recovery, and employers fear they will not be able to find people with the skills they need, a new CBI/EDI survey has revealed.

Half of employers (51%) are concerned they will not be able to fill posts requiring the right graduate level or higher skills in the coming years, and a third (32%) don’t believe it will be possible to fill intermediate level jobs, requiring skills equivalent to A level. A third (30%) of employers predict the need for lower-level skills will decrease, while just 17% say it will increase.

Despite the recession, nearly half of employers (45%) say they are already having difficulty recruiting staff with skills in science, technology, engineering and

maths (STEM), with manufacturers and science-related businesses having the most difficulty finding highly-skilled people to fill their posts. Even more companies (59%) expect to have difficulty finding STEMskilled people in the next three years.

Richard Lambert, CBI Director-General, said: "In the future, people with qualifications in science and maths will be particularly sought after, and firms say it is already hard to find people with the right technical or engineering skills. The new government must make encouraging more young people to study science-related subjects a top priority. Businesses can help by showing that these skills lead to exciting and rewarding careers, helping to tackle the big challenges, such as climate change and energy security."

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NEWS IN BRIEF Plug in and drive The Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce is working with partners to investigate the possibility of creating a network of electric vehicle charging points on the Island.

The Chamber has sought expressions of interest from tourism-related businesses that would be willing to have a charging point installed on their premises. The aim is to gauge interest in an initiative which could contribute to the Eco Island vision.

Police warn of Island internet scam Isle of Wight police have issued a warning about a scam involving a fake company making allegations about illegal use of the internet.

The scam uses the fake company name 'HSE Business Support', which falsely claims to be based in Newport High Street.

People who receive a letter are told that a computer linked to their internet account has been monitored as sharing copyrighted music online unlawfully.

Anyone who receives a letter like this is advised not to pay any money but to report the matter by phoning either the police on 101 or Isle of Wight Council's Trading Standards Service on 01983 821000.

Small wind turbine workshop Marine South East under its Wind of the Coast project will host a workshop on Thursday, 17 June looking at the opportunities for marine businesses to install small scale onshore wind energy systems. It will be of particular interest to marine businesses located in windy coastal locations.

The workshop runs from 1400-1630 and will be held at the Seawork Exhibition, in Southampton Docks.

It will highlight relevant policies and regulations, set out the economic case for ‘small wind’ and examine some of the technologies on offer. Call 02380 111590.

Frontline workshop An interactive workshop for frontline staff this month will focus on how to communicate more effectively in a diverse community.

Organised by the IW Chamber and the Island Strategic Partnership, with Red Tie Theatre, the session will help staff who deal directly with clients and customers to understand the issues facing migrant workers, and other groups.

The free event will be held at Quay Arts, Newport, on Wednesday, 23 June, 1500-1700.

Contact the Chamber on 01983 520777 for more information or to book a place.

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Duty of care

B

usinesses using plant or equipment of any kind are being warned to be aware of their duty of care to employees.

Updates to the 1974 Health and Safety Act mean that more and more equipment falls under the legislation, requiring it to be kept in good and safe working order.

Many items of plant and equipment will be subject to statutory inspection under regulations such as: PUWER Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998; LOLER - Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998; PSSR - Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000;

and EAWR - Electricity at Work Regulations 1989.

Items that fall under these regulations – whether that is a pressurised coffee machine or a crane – need inspecting and testing at regular intervals to ensure compliance.

Jenny Pearcey, Regional Centre Manager at Swinton Commercial Cowes, said she had become worried to discover that some businesses on the Island believed that statutory inspection of plant did not apply to them. "It is important to stay on top of requirements, and use experienced engineering inspectors,” she said.

Accounting for dilapidations

A

specialist surveying company is aiming to take the sting out of the process of dilapidations, for commercial tenants and landlords.

Dilapidations liabilities are stated in most commercial leases, requiring the occupier to return the premises to a defined condition on the expiry of a lease.

Laurie Gavaghan of Dilaps UK, Isle of Wight, said it can be an aggravating and time consuming process. “The issue of dilapidations tends to be raised right at the end of the lease,” he said.

“This adds the pressure of time and so many people miss out on possible tax savings.

"Accounting for dilapidations reduces tax liability, but only if accurately and professionally assessed. Dilapidations liabilities do not go away. They need to be assessed on an ongoing basis by

Laurie Gavaghan

specialist surveyors with a detailed knowledge of the local area. Local knowledge is key to optimising the claim."

For more information visit www.dilapsuk.com

IW Lottery – winning isn’t everything

I

sle of Wight Lottery top prizewinner Barry Taylor will be spending his winnings on home improvements.

Barry, who lives in Newport, recently won £2,000, and like many winners, he says the real reason for subscribing £1 a week to the Lottery is because "it contributes towards the creation of new jobs and business opportunities".

Feedback from winners of the weekly £2,000, £300 and £200 prizes shows that the Isle of Wight Lottery gets their support for the same reason.

A winner who lives in Lake said: "This Lottery is on the Island for Island people

and it is very important to help local businesses."

A Shanklin winner who has subscribed since 2002 said that the money would come in handy towards the cost of a holiday this year, but that the Lottery’s scheme of interest free loans to new and developing businesses would win her support whether she won a prize or not.

Alan Cousins, of Ryde, announced with tongue in cheek that he would not be donating his winnings to Portsmouth Football Club. Alan added: "The Lottery helps to create Island jobs, and plays its part in keeping unemployment numbers down."

A refreshingly personal approach

We make the time to get to know you as well as your business. So you can trust us with some of the most important decisions you’ll ever make.

For a friendly, no obligation meeting, call us today.

Working with you, not just your business.

Moore Stephens 9 St John’s Place, Newport T 01983 825000 www.moorestephens.co.uk

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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Moore Stephens (South) LLP are registered to carry on audit work and regulated for a range of investment business activities by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales.

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BETTER BUSINESS

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Contributors: Kevin Barton - The Deep Design Company LLP www.deepdesign.co.uk James Cope, Business Link Adviser www.businesslink.gov.uk/southeast www.ebusinessblog.co.uk John Cooper - Etetra Ltd www.etetra.co.uk Thomas Cowley - Netguides Limited www.netguides.co.uk David Groom - Vectis WebDesign www.vectis-webdesign.com Mike Jolliffe - Wight365 www.wight365.com

Search engine optimisation Increasingly, customers are searching online to find products and services they require, therefore search engine visibility is key to online success.

S

earch engine optimisation (SEO) helps tune website content to improve visibility; the higher you rank in a search engine's index, the more visible you will be.

"SEO is a complex subject, and requires time and effort to achieve results," said John Cooper, Managing Director of Etetra.

"It's highly competitive and the rules change on a daily basis."

The key elements of SEO are research, optimised content, technical work on website coding, and above all, the right link building strategy. Text on the website must be well written and clearly explained, so visitors (as well as search engine spiders) can find you, know what your business does, who you are, and where you are.

"It's essential that you pick realistic phrases which you would like to achieve a 10

Louisa Mamakou explores the dark arts of SEO and draws on the advice of local experts. high rank for in the search engines," said Vectis WebDesign's David Groom.

"The page content, page title, other page elements, and if possible the page's filename should all be constructed to give prominence to the phrases you wish a high ranking for," David explained. "Each page should, if possible, have different content to the others. Use, or ensure your web designer uses, Google’s Webmaster Tools to check for potential problems."

Ensure your website address is referred to as often as possible on other websites. In part, this is down to good content; if your pages are of use to people then they will link to them, but be proactive, ask for links from other websites and try posting

comments linking to your website in relevant forums.

Business Link Adviser and web expert James Cope said: "There's a science to search engine optimisation, and while business owners don't have to become experts, an appreciation of the main issues is worth having before talking to your designer. Before starting, make sure you have benchmarked your current position; installing a package like Google Analytics will show your current traffic levels and give an idea of current terms that visitors are using to find your site.

"Broadly speaking an 80/20 rule applies; 80% of effort needed is on offsite elements (inbound links, social networks, directories, PR) and 20% is onsite (content and meta tags).

"Brainstorm the search terms you think your customers will use to find your goods or services, and use tools such as Google's Keyword Tool which helps you identify if there are people searching for that phrase, and if there's a market online. The tool also suggests other terms to consider.

Then take each term and determine the battles you can win and how much competition is there.

"A simple check is to pop the phrase into Google, hit search and see how many results there are. Any phrase with under one million results will give you a better chance of being in the top 10; over a million and you have a fight on your hands. I'm not saying don't target denser markets, just be aware of the effort you'll have to put in if you do," said James.

To help you find out how a search

CHAMBER INTERVIEW THE EXPERT’S VIEW

JUNE 2010

SEO hot topics and tips Personalised search results - Google is bringing in a mechanism to skew search results to bias sites you usually visit. This might help site owners focus their sites and achieve results in their target market.

Speed matters - Google's mission has always been to deliver best user experience, and by including a speed element in rankings it may do just that for Google users.

Research - Do your homework and choose the battles you can win. Focus on terms your visitors use, and try to get niche terms that will send targeted customers to your site.

Real time searches - The main search engines have been talking to social sites such as Twitter to try and integrate tweets into search results. Google, continuing its quest for better user experience, is right to look at integrating these.

Local results - If your business services a local market, make sure you include that in your optimisation, e.g. Isle Of Wight.

Make sure you get a Google Local Business listing to drive additional traffic to the site.

Inbound links - Relevancy of other sites linking to your site.

This is often overlooked by small businesses, but still plays an important role in achieving success according to Google.

Statistics - Get a statistics package. This is the first and most important step after you have a website. It allows you to understand how your site traffic responds to what you do.

Blogs - Regular authoritative, narrative content, talking about your specialist area, is highly ranked by Google.

Video - Use video on websites as search engines favour sites with video and deliver search results which include video content.

Get an expert to help! - Good search engine optimisation can lead to traffic to your website which can provide a huge boost for your business, so it’s worth doing properly. engine reacts to your web pages and what can be done to boost visibility, use a spider simulator such as Summit Spider Simulator.

This free simulator provides a report on aspects of the page that are used to determine how highly in a search engine the page is ranked, and also gives some general usability feedback.

Remember to review your Analytics to see what's working and maybe adjust your optimisation if required to select more rewarding markets. Plus, it's important to review your list of keywords periodically. "Optimisation is not a case of do it once and forget about it," said Kevin Barton from The Deep Design Company. "Good optimisation is an ongoing activity."

Thomas Cowley from Netguides added: "Don't rely on Flash movie text for search results; Flash movie content can't be viewed by search References: engines so replicate the Google's Webmaster Tools www.google.com/webmasters content outside of the movie Google's Keyword Tool too." Also, make sure the www.googlekeywordtool.com writing on your site is indeed Google Analytics text, and not images, as search www.google.com/analytics engines can’t read text Summit Spider Simulator http://tools.summitmedia.co.uk/spider in images.

Read international business news on www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

INFORMATION & COMMUNICATONS TECHNOLOGY Information and communications technology is crucial to many businesses. In his Expert's View column Jonathan Thornton, Technical Services Director of Rydebased IT provider, PC Consultants offers his views on how to get the best from ICT. sponsored by

Time to take the tablet?

T

hroughout recent years there have been several rumours of an Apple tablet device and these were confirmed in January when the new Apple iPad was announced by Chief Executive Steve Jobs. Describing the Cupertino-based company as “the largest mobile devices company in the world” he revealed the new iPad as a third category device sitting between a laptop and smartphone.

Of course Tablet computers have been available for several years in various guises with Microsoft releasing Windows XP Tablet PC Edition back in 2002 right up to the most recent Windows 7 operating system which includes touchscreen capability. Yet in many ways these earlier incarnations have failed to take off and still represent a small share of the market compared to desktop PCs, laptops and netbooks.

However, with sales of over one million within the first 28 days of launch, the iPad has certainly confounded many technology analysts who predicted a very niche market for such a device.

The on-going very public row between Apple and Adobe over the lack of Flash on the iPad was an example of missing features which would supposedly reduce its appeal. Yet with an apparent shortage of the product and subsequent delayed international launch until May, Apple has certainly succeeded in generating enthusiasm for the device.

Other manufacturers have announced iPad rivals including software giant Google who have released plans for a similar tablet running their own open source Android operating system which

can only help tablet devices gain market share. The continued growth of Cloud based solutions such as Google Apps and upcoming Microsoft Office Web Apps are all examples of browser based solutions which can work well in such an environment.

Apple has also tried to create a product in the iPad which appeals not only to home but also business/enterprise users. Take for example the iWork productivity suite which has been ported to the iPad and is compatible with Microsoft Office files, allowing users to directly edit and view documents. Keynote is the Apple equivalent of Microsoft PowerPoint and combined with a projector could be used to deliver presentations directly without the need for a traditional laptop.

Additionally, in keeping with the rest of the iPhone platform operating system, Microsoft Exchange support for email, calendar and contact synchronisation is included out of the box. The iPad also supports, through various third party applications, connections to remote thin client solutions such as Citrix or Terminal Services.

Back in the late 1980s Apple’s early attempt at a touch screen device – the Apple Newton was largely seen as a failure.

However the new iPad, building on the success of the iPhone, continues to cement Steve Jobs’ claim that Apple are now “the largest mobile devices company in the world”!

Contact: Jonathan at PC Consultants on 01983 811711 www.pcctechservices.co.uk Jonathan.thornton@pcconsultants.co.uk

11

FEATURE

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Steve Sleight, Zara MacAlister, and Debs Allan explore the latest green developments and ask "is this Eco Island in action?"

E

Can we really deliver on the Eco Island vision?

In part 1 of our Green Island feature last month we discovered the wealth of activity on the Island focussed on sustainability. New companies are developing in the sustainable energy sector and others are integrating sustainability into their core business operations.

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veryone we spoke with for the first part of this article talked about the Eco Island idea, first mentioned by ex-Council Chief Executive Joe Duckworth in 2007. At the time there was suspicion that this was little more than a powerful sound byte that would fade into oblivion through a failure to implement.

Three years on, many feel that the initiative has stalled at top level while being alive and well on other levels. But at the grass roots it is very much alive and well, and fighting to grow. All over the Island, there are businesses, organisations, partnerships, and communities making huge strides.

We spoke with Council Leader, David Pugh to find out if the Council's vision can still match the ambition of Islanders.

"It's very much still the strategy for the local authority and also our partners, the Island Strategic Partnership," said David.

"It's not just about renewable energy, which some people think; it’s about our wider social, environmental and economic aspirations for the Island.

"It is alive and well," he continued.

"There is a lot more still to do and it's understandable that people do become cynical. We need to demonstrate even greater leadership in taking this forward and actually driving the renewable side.

"There's always a bit of a reality check on where we are and, particularly in the current economic climate, what we can still deliver within certain timescales," explained David. "But in many ways in the current economic climate it's even more important because of the savings we can make for people through home insulation and so forth, and the contribution that it can make to tightening belts."

Apparently, the aims are unchanged (see info box) and David Pugh pointed out practical steps the Council has taken as an enabling organisation, such as the

FEATURE

JUNE 2010

Eco Island - the vision

Even the birds are well provided for at Liz Earle's environmentally friendly headquarters

"We want the Isle of Wight to become a world renowned Eco Island, with a thriving economy, a real sense of pride and where residents and visitors enjoy healthy lives, feel safe and are treated with respect," Eco Island vision.

The ambitions of Eco Island are: • • • •

Thriving Island Healthy and supportive Island Safe and well kept Island Inspiring Island.

By 2020: •

•

•

•

•

•

The Isle of Wight will have the lowest carbon footprint in England.

The development of new sectors of employment, creating a centre of excellence in renewable energies and generating capacity of over 100Mw of electricity.

A 20 per cent reduction in preventable deaths from tobacco, through the uptake of healthy active lifestyles.

The Island’s infrastructure will be renewed to the highest ecological standards.

The majority of Island children and young people will make better than average progress in schools and achieve results at 16 that place the Isle of Wight in the top 10 per cent nationally.

Make the Island a centre for sustainable development research and development in an existing and thriving real-life community.

Pan Meadows development, the Highways PFI scheme, and the waste gasification plant.

He also pointed out that the new government's decisions will impact on what can be done. "It will be interesting to see what comes forward on renewable energy projects, particularly tidal offshore, wind, and so on."

Acknowledging that expectations are high and difficult to meet, he said: "I suppose one of the frustrations is that all this can’t come to fruition as quickly as you would like."

Challenged about the need for leadership and a more clearly communicated road map, David Pugh said: "Clearly there is a role for leadership and that's where we come in but people don't need to wait for our lead, they can, as they've demonstrated, get on with these things themselves."

Getting on with it All over the Island there is lots to take inspiration from. The Chale Green Project, for instance, is a real communityled project that's being watched with interest at national level.

Malcolm Groves, Head of the Steering Group, also sees it as fitting in well with the Eco Island vision. "We hope that one of the things people will take from it is an understanding of what might be done elsewhere on the Island."

To help this aim, the Chale project is part of the Green Towns Project set up by the Council which covers three towns in the pilot, Chale, Brading, and Shanklin.

"The idea is to develop a set of measures right across the board covering everything from waste through to electricity and water use," explained Malcolm. "Then we can see how we progress on those measures over the years to come."

Malcolm points out that the Chale community has a strong ethos of selfhelp and the local Chale Green Stores is certainly leading from the front. They've installed a ground source heat recovery

See digital versions of Island Business Magazine on www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

system for hot water and heating, double-insulated all new structures, installed a rainwater harvesting system, and light tunnels to bring in more natural light, among a whole range of initiatives.

The Island-based charity The Footprint Trust is a big supporter of the Chale project. Ray Harrington-Vail said: "It's given us a real focus on the Island of what can be done.

"It's not just the people in social housing who are benefiting. We are visiting people in private homes and helping them reduce their fuel bills. It has really acted as a catalyst and is being watched by other parts of the country and other parts of the world."

A slightly different community project is the Pan Meadows development which recently took a step forward when Barratt Homes was confirmed as developer. The 846 units, 254 of which will be affordable homes, will be built to a high level of energy efficiency and heated by a biomass plant burning woodchip, primarily from the Island.

"The biomass building has been deliberately designed for potential future add-ons," said Peter Hopkins, the Isle of Wight Council’s manager for regeneration and community development.

"The Island could produce about 40,000 tonnes of wood chip by the time the biomass system is fully operational. We’re not decimating forests and woodland on the Island. This is about promoting natural growth, through coppicing."

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FEATURE Chale Green Community Project The Chale Green Community Project is aimed at increasing efficiency and self-sufficiency in all areas of village life including energy, transport, waste, food, water, and events.

In December 2009 Chale was awarded £500,000 from the Department of Energy and Climate Change to become a low carbon community. The funding will help with the main aims of the project - to reduce fuel cost for Chale residents.

Malcolm Groves, Head of the Steering Group, explained the main difference between the Chale Project and other projects: "Lots of things have been done in the past but they've all been top-down nationally driven programmes by government.

"The Chale Community Project is very much about a community-led sustainability project."

A major focus for the project is the Spanners Close estate and Malcolm described what is being done: "They're very typical 1970s buildings and in the winter they are very cold.

So the money is going on upgrading those with air-to-water heat pumps.

"South Wight Housing is replacing windows and checking to make sure that the existing insulation is as good as it needs to be to make the air source heat pumps efficient."

Malcolm summed up his hopes for the Project: "I want it to deliver for the people here. I’d like people to live warmer, more comfortable, pleasant lives, and I'd like this to bring the community even closer together than it is now and to be seen as a national example of what can be achieved by something community-led."

For much more information on the Chale Community Project watch our video story on Island Business Online and visit: www.chalecommunityproject.com.

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

The Footprint Trust The Footprint Trust was set up in 2003 as an educational charity to help reduce the ecological footprint of the Isle of Wight by advising both the public and business on how to stabilize their footprint through sensible solutions.

Ray Harrington-Vail, spokesman for The Footprint Trust, explained that research had shown that the Island's population: “was using something like two and a half times its earth share, so if everyone in the world lived like us, we’d need a planet two and half times the size.”

Obviously this isn’t sustainable and the Trust decided it was essential to raise awareness of the issues. “The ultimate aim is to seek to reduce the footprint," explained Ray. The Trust's practical approach ranges from addressing sustainability at a personal level, with schemes such as Warmahome, an Island project helping people to keep warm and manage fuel costs, and initiatives like the Adopt-A-Garden scheme, Future Energy events, and the Green Gym. In order to promote the ideas the Trust attends every Island event they can: “We go where no other environmental charity would dare to go!” said Ray. They give away low energy light bulbs and save-a-flush bags to encourage people to be greener in their own homes. They also do free home visits giving advice on energy saving and helping people to reduce their fuel bills and assist with gaining insultation grants.

Summing up the Trust Ray said: “We believe passionately in wildlife, and in the environment, but we are forward thinking conservationists, not backward looking preservationists and that’s a big difference.”

For more information on The Footprint Trust watch our video story on Island Business Online and visit www.footprinttrust.co.uk.

Ian Wallace, Managing Director of Barratt David Wilson, Southampton said that energy efficiency and renewable energy sources are "one of the highest items on our agenda".

Barratt has been chosen to develop the first Code 6 (highly energy efficient) house in the country, but that's in Bristol.

The Pan Meadows development will, said Ian, be "built to Code 4 standards, heated using biomass technology. So for the Isle of Wight, for the industry, it's fairly new and innovative."

Another project that's been enabled by the Council is the Stag Lane development where Vestas are building their new R&D facility. David Pugh explained: "Next door to the new Vestas centre, on a former landfill site, we've made an initial decision to allocate that land to renewable energy projects, to have a biomass project where we can generate energy from waste."

Waste management Being an Island, land is naturally severely limited for traditional landfill disposal, and how we handle our waste has a major impact on all of us.

Island Waste is responsible for the Island's domestic waste management and its gasification plant was the first example of green energy on the Island.

Although the Island doesn't score impressively on waste management league tables, Island Waste's Lynn Clarke explained: "The Island decided a long time ago that due to the volatile nature of recycling markets the economics didn't stack up and it was preferable to deal with waste on the Island.

"A lot of league tables are based solely on recycling and composting, and when we pit ourselves against those two alone, we don't compare very favourably. But once you factor in waste to energy, which for the Island is very important, then we're doing very well."

Lynn explained the situation regarding business waste: "Business waste is handled by numerous contractors, several of whom now have systems for collecting and recycling. It's much better than it was. I'm pleased to see that gradually the system is improving."

Lynn also emphasised the business opportunities: "An example would be the battery recycling directive. Historically there were very few reprocessors in the UK and batteries were sent to places like

FEATURE

JUNE2010

France. Now, there's a market in the UK for people to recycle them here, so on the back of some of these laws and directives, new businesses can spring up.

One example on the Island is Jadestone, which provides recycling services for electrical products as required by the WEEE regulations. These require businesses to ensure that electrical waste is managed properly and to be able to show documentation to prove that equipment has been disposed of properly.

Talking about Island business waste recycling, Jadestone's Matt Howell said: "There are some very good companies on the Island doing some very good work, but with the sites they have they can't handle anywhere near the amount of waste that is needed.

"We need to look at some sort of big infrastructure where we have an energy from waste plant that is designed from the ground up."

Business actions David Pugh made the point that the future of Eco Island isn't just down to the public organisations. "It's about businesses as well, and in many ways their contribution is going to be as big if not greater than some of the stuff we're doing, so we're all in this together."

At Liz Earle's company headquarters in Ryde, there's a Green Team which focusses on environmental issues. From ingredients to packaging, the energy efficiency of their headquarters, a green transport policy, and efficient use of IT, the team's influence is everywhere. Staff, suppliers, and customers, are all involved in a continual development process.

Despite the closure of their manufacturing base, Vestas remains a very important Island company with almost 200 staff working on Blades R&D. Currently based in an old and inefficient building in East Cowes, Vestas is investing ÂŁ50 million in a new technology centre on the riverside between Cowes and Newport.

"There aren't many things on the Isle of Wight that are putting ÂŁ50 million into this Island," said Rob Sauven, Managing Director, "and we are making that building just about as green as we can."

The centre will have ground source heating, natural ventilation, high insulation, and a very bike-friendly transport policy. They've even wired the roof for solar photovoltaics. www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

Island Waste

Jadestone

Island Waste Services is responsible for managing the Island's domestic waste.

Lynn Clarke, Island Waste's Community Liaison Officer explained: "We have a very efficient waste management service for domestic waste. We have a system that enables us to divert as much waste as possible from landfill, which is the crucial issue on the Island, minimising landfill void."

JadeStone moved into recycling when Matt Harlow spotted an opportunity when the new WEEE regulations were introduced.

Recycling facilities for organic waste, glass, and paper products are provided through collection and at recycling centres across the Island.

Domestic bin bag waste is brought to the Forest Road site where it is separated out mechanically. Plastics, cardboard, and other combustible waste are extracted in the Resource Recovery Facility and turned into floc fuel. The fuel is burned in the facility's gasification plant to produce up to two megawatts of electricity, enough to power several thousand Island homes.

The result of the recycling, composting, and waste-to-fuel processes mean that only about 30 per cent of the domestic waste now ends up in landfill.

When looking at statistics on waste management, the Island doesn't compare favourably because a lot of UK league tables are based solely on recycling and composting.

But Lynn explained: "Once you factor in waste to energy, which for the Island is very important, then we're doing very well.

"There is still waste that we need to tackle, and some things are difficult to recycle. We're always looking at the next move to take - it's not a static process by any means," concluded Lynn.

For more information on Island Waste watch our video story on Island Business Online and visit www.islandwaste.co.uk.

The WEEE regulations (Waste Electrical & Electronic Energy) are relevant to all businesses as Matt explained: "WEEE regulations are European rules denoting that anything requiring an electrical current to operate must be recycled and cannot be land-filled."

JadeStone is now one of only a handful of companies in southern England able to deal with the correct disposal of this equipment and handles anything that requires an electrical current. As experts in recycling electrical products they can give businesses advice on legislation and compliance, and how to dispose of electrical items.

Matt explained what happens to computer equipment: "We ensure that there is no data storage in there; we remove any hard drives and we physically destroy those."

With all the methods of recording data removed, the equipment is then packaged in bulk and sent to Wales, where the plastic, metal, glass, and other components are fully recycled.

Awareness of the legislation amongst businesses is not yet widespread, especially among smaller companies.

It is also little known that batteries, including household batteries, have to be recycled separately. Worldwide, over 15 billion batteries are disposed of annually. In the UK, less than five per cent is currently recycled.

Jadestone operate both on the Island and the mainland and will collect from Hampshire, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall, West Sussex, Surrey, Wiltshire, and the south coast.

For more information on Jadestone watch our video story on Island Business Online and visit www.jadestone.co.uk.

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FEATURE Liz Earle Naturally Active Skincare Over the past 15 years Liz Earle has grown into an award winning business with over 300 employees.

As a botanically-based skin care business the company has always been keen to work with the environment as Geoff Day from their Green Team explained: "We like to make very small steps but very frequently. Our philosophy is progress not perfection."

The Green Team is responsible for continuous improvement on the environmental impact of the company including the ingredients in their products: "We look at our ingredients very carefully at all stages and obviously the first consideration is quality but we also look at the country in which it is grown, we look at the sustainability in its broader sense, and its availability," said Geoff.

As well as reducing the number of plastic bags brought in by suppliers by 95 per cent, the Green Team has reduced the amount of packaging used: "The vast majority of our packaging is recyclable," said Geoff.

The company also has a purposebuilt, energy efficient headquarters in Ryde – The Green House. It has a network of underground pipes which power a geothermal heating system: "It uses minimal energy and keeps us warm in the winter and cool in the summer," said Geoff.

They also have an underground tank to collect rain water for flushing toilets: "Water use is increasingly becoming an issue particularly on the Island, and we're looking at ways we can reduce our water usage and grey water recovery is an important part of that," explained Geoff.

For much more on Liz Earle watch the video report on Island Business Online and visit www.lizearle.com.

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Vestas The Vestas Research and Development site, currently in East Cowes, employs one per cent of the total worldwide Vestas workforce. About 200 people, the majority of which are engineers and senior technicians, focus on development of blades for wind turbines.

The Vestas company slogan is 'As green as it gets' and they have invested £50 million into their new Island technology centre to make it as green as possible. "We intend to move into the new technology centre in April 2011, and we are saying to our workforce that it might be a low energy building but it's also up to us how we use it," said Rob Sauven, Managing Director of Blades R&D. Wind energy is the most developed of all the renewables and Rob explained why: "It's the resource that is in just about every country on earth and therefore it's a resource that a lot of different countries have invested in. The more countries that invest in the technology the more mature it gets. Wind technology has had 25 years of investment and it's made it very cost competitive.

"The wonderful thing about a wind energy resource, or any renewable resource, is you have it on tap, the fuel is free," said Rob. Rob accepts that most objections to wind turbines are due to visual impact and believes the main problem comes from people not accepting change.

But he says it is age related. "The older generation are much more likely to find it an unwelcome visual intrusion and the younger generation are much more likely to find it a thing of beauty and interest."

For the full interview with Rob Sauven watch the video report on Island Business Online. For more information on Vestas visit www.vestas.com.

Still in their old building, the company has vastly reduced the impact and costs of travel by installing a state-of-the-art video conference facility. They also buy all the food for their canteen locally, if it's available on the Island, with a wall map showing where the food comes from.

Island bus company Southern Vectis has a positive impact on the environment whenever they take passengers out of cars, but they're also conscious of their own corporate responsibility to be more sustainable.

"We cut our fuel use on buildings by 16 per cent," said Marc Morgan-Huws, Operations Manager, "and we're now working on water reduction, so we take it very, very seriously.

"We're not saying we're environmental because people get on our buses; we are also very committed to making our own operation as sustainable as we can."

Southern Vectis is also involved with the Chale Community Project on a pilot study involving low cost fares, and has also introduced its own car scrappage scheme which has seen 44 cars scrapped since October in return for a year's free bus travel.

The elephant in the room Of course, all of this substantial 'green' activity can't hide the embarrassing elephant in the room – why has an island that aspires to 'Eco' status been so reluctant to embrace wind energy?

Interestingly, given the passionate debate over the past few years, we failed to find anyone who would speak against wind power. A spokesperson for The Wight Against Rural Turbines (ThWART) campaign group told us they had no-one that could speak to us as campaigners "were exhausted".

There were plenty of people, however, who have no doubt of the need for wind. "It is a great sadness for us at The Footprint Trust," said Ray HarringtonVail, "that whilst we talk about Eco Island on one of the windiest places in the UK there's not one wind turbine.

"There is no good reason why we shouldn't have a handful of large wind turbines on the Isle of Wight and we disagree fundamentally with those who say they're ugly."

Indeed, the arguments against an Island wind farm do seem to have come down largely to the issue of visual impact.

Wind. It means the world to us.

The Worlds biggest Blades Technology R&D centre Vestas Technology UK ltd is pleased to welcome its 200th R&D employee and we are looking forward to welcome all into our new technology Centre in Q1 2011on Isle of Wight.

Read more at vestas.com Power your life - As the world’s leading supplier of wind power solutions, we have delivered more than 40,000 wind turbines in 65 countries. Over 20,000 employees are eager to welcome new, dedicated colleagues on our journey to a more sustainable future. vestas.com

FEATURE Southern Vectis Southern Vectis is the principal bus operator on the Island and have a large part to play in helping the environment. Marc Morgan-Huws, Operations Manager for Southern Vectis explained: 'We undertake about 8.5 million passenger journeys each year, so that gives the scale of what we do in terms of moving people round the Island."

Southern Vectis' bus fleet is quite new, with the oldest just eight years old, and they are some of the most environmentally friendly buses in the country.

Southern Vectis is naturally keen to encourage people to use public transport: "There’s a lot of evidence that if you can get people to break through the psychological barrier of using the bus, usage will go up quite significantly. We try to say to people – it's not a last resort, but a very viable way of getting around in a number of circumstances," said Marc.

"We run a very different network than we did about five years ago; it's now about high frequency, fast reliable services that run across a long expanse of the day, and decent quality buses."said Marc, "and actually frequency is the thing that drives most people towards us."

In the summer months bus usage is much higher and Marc estimates that about a third of the people using the bus in the summer are visitors to the Island. Many of the Island's tourist companies are aware of the limitations of travelling to the Island without a car, particularly for families with small children, and Marc is also understanding of this issue: "We're not necessarily trying to persuade people to give up their car or to leave their car at home but perhaps use a combination of the bus and their car."

For the full interview with Marc Morgan Huws watch the video report on Island Business Online.

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THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

West Wight Landscape Partnership The West Wight Landscape Partnership, (WWLP) is a three year programme funded by the Lottery to help conserve and enhance the important habitats of the West Wight.

Over £1.5 million has been committed to the scheme and it is run by ten partners including Parish Councils, the Isle of Wight County Council, the National Trust, the Wildlife Trust, and the Chamber of Commerce, all of whom contribute to the overall budget.

The project addresses four broad themes; learn, conserve, celebrate, and assess.

Peter Fellows, Scheme Manager, explained: "It's really about taking a landscape-scale approach to all of these issues.

"It's about looking at the West Wight and what there is to be celebrated about this place and how to do that in a way that really makes an impact."

Education is one of the most important aspects of the work carried out by the WWLP. "If we can't engage young people and older members of the community in understanding and appreciating what's of value on their doorstep then we're going to struggle in the future," explained Peter.

The WWLP works with all of the schools in the West Wight, helping students to see what is so special about their local area and to be able to look after it and care for it in the longer term.

"I think that very much reflects the ethos of Eco Island," concluded Peter.

For much more on the WWLP watch our video story on Island Business Online and visit www.wwlp.co.uk.

It's almost a Marmite thing, you either love them or hate them. While some say they destroy the visual landscape, others say they're beautiful, and a very positive sign of renewable development.

Rob Sauven, Managing Director Blades R&D, Vestas said: "I absolutely respect people who consider them a visual intrusion in beautiful landscapes," Rob said but added: "My challenge to those people is if you want to turn your lights on and look after this planet, wind energy is about the only commercially viable resource in the next 20 years that is going to make a serious impact."

Ray Harrington-Vail emphasised the same point: "We have to ask ourselves some very serious questions. What do we want? Because, if we don't want wind turbines, the Island is the ideal place to put nuclear power. So we need to think very seriously about what we do want."

You might imagine that an organisation as dedicated to their local environment as the West Wight Landscape Project, would be vehemently opposed to the prospect of a wind farm. But, as Peter Fellows, Scheme Manager, explained: "Obviously. we have an interest in sustainable energy and what we can do is help people understand what the issues are. We're not here to advocate one solution or another, but try to encourage people to understand the issues."

David Pugh acknowledged the importance of the wind farm issue.

"I think sooner or later we probably will see some onshore wind on the Island and the question is on what scale and where is it going to be?"

So, can the Island really live the Eco Island vision and show a lead to the rest of the country as was first envisaged?

David Pugh thinks we can. "The Island is well placed to lead on this. Clearly there is a lot more for us still to do and we need to respond to that.

"One of the interesting things will be what we get from government, in terms of what incentives, what policies they put in place, and what opportunities they provide to local authorities to lead on some of these projects at a local level.

"But we certainly can, we're a distinct defined island community and if anywhere can the Isle of Wight can."

There is much, much more on this subject with all the contributors' video interviews available at www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk.

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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SPECIAL REPORT

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Island company Animals at Home successfully franchised their business

Franchising your business Franchising out your business is potentially the best business format there is – providing it works! But before you can start down the road of franchising your business there are many things to consider, including assessing costs and viability.

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here are many advantages to using the franchise model to expand your business. You may be able to grow the franchised business using the capital resources of franchisees, without having to take on further staff and commit other resources.

The franchisee, as an owner of his/her own business, is likely be more motivated than a manager or assistant manager working directly for you, and in certain circumstances the franchisee may have local knowledge which would not otherwise be available to you.

You may start your business with the idea that you want to grow rapidly and franchise out as soon as possible, or like Denis Chirgwin from Animals at Home it may just work out that way: "We never 20

Zara MacAlister looks at how to franchise a successful business planned to franchise our business. We grew from one branch to two and then received so much interest we decided the franchise route was the right one for us." Animals at Home began on the Isle of Wight in 2004 and franchised the business out in 2005. They now have over 55 franchisees across the country.

Denis is happy with the franchise model for his business and said: "With a franchise, customers feel they get the

personal service of dealing with the owner, and the comfort of a national brand."

If you choose to franchise out your business you are entering into a long term contractual relationship with the franchisee – you will be granting a license for the franchisee to operate a branch of your business. Long term contractual relationships of any kind must be considered carefully and not entered into without thorough research and thought.

The basic principal is that the franchisee will pay you a fee to start up their franchise and will be regulated under your guidance and supervision. They will then benefit by becoming part of a proven business model, they will have the use of your trade marks and logos, and full training and support from you.

But in practice it is a lot more complicated than that! When you franchise out your business it is likely that you will lose a certain amount of direct control over the business and the brand.

However, if successful this could be a small price to pay for the financial rewards you may receive.

Firstly, you will need to have been running your company, or a pilot of the franchise, successfully for at least 12 months so you are able to assess the seasonal fluctuations that may affect your business. Another thing to consider is whether there is a national demand for your service or product, and whether that demand can be sustained in the long term. It's also important that the skills needed to run the business are transferable and you are able train the franchisee.

As the franchisor it's important that you have a clear understanding of what you will expect from your franchisees both during the start-up process and long term.

You need to be committed to supporting the franchisee, and you need to ensure that anyone who starts up a franchise of your business has the support and training necessary to succeed and achieve the financial rewards you are promising them.

Tom Endean, Marketing Manager at the British Franchise Association (BFA), warned: "If you don’t set realistic targets and support your franchisees you will have some very despondent franchisees when no one is able to meet the targets or expectations."

SPECIAL REPORT

JUNE 2010

You can get specialist advice to help with this initial phase and although it's extra costs at a time when your business' cash flow might be struggling – it is worth investing early on to avoid making mistakes and facing big bills later.

This could have implications on the attitude of your other franchisees too, and in the long term could affect the success of the whole franchise network so it's important to set reasonable goals and make sure both you and the franchisee are comfortable with the targets you set.

Once you are sure that the franchise model is right for your business and you can meet all the basic criteria you can begin to put together the franchise package, or an operations manual. This will detail the work the franchisee will do, how they will do it, and the standard you will expect of them. The manual should include everything the franchisee needs to know about the setting up phase as well as the continued operation of the business.

You can get specialist advice to help with this initial phase and although it's extra costs at a time when your business' cash flow might be struggling – it is worth investing early on to avoid making mistakes and facing big bills later.

The BFA have a list of affiliated members who can help with the different aspects of the franchising process and Tom Endean said: "You will need legal advice and services from a franchise specialist, plus production of all supporting documents and support structures. All of this comes at a cost if you do it properly, but do your homework and don’t cut corners, as it will only come back to haunt you later."

Richard Holden, Head of Franchising at Lloyds TSB echoed Tom's comments and www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

said: "Don’t be tempted to franchise your business on the cheap because you will pay for it in the end."

The franchise agreement The franchise agreement is the legal contract between you and the franchisee and sets out all the obligations and legal rights of both parties.

There is no UK law governing franchising and franchisees are set up under a commercial contract through the franchise agreement. Your agreement needs to observe competition law and EU regulations otherwise it's useless. Think about any laws or regulations that may be specific to your industry e.g. food safety laws if it is a fast food business.

Emily Frampton from Warner Goodman Commercial said: "Franchising is currently a largely unregulated industry. There is no specific franchise legislation in place, instead the franchisor-franchisee relationship is governed solely by contractual principles, i.e. the terms of the franchise agreement which is why this is such an important and often very lengthy document."

It is vital to get the necessary legal advice to help construct the franchise agreement and the BFA have a list of affiliated solicitors. A lot of the work done on a franchise agreement can be done over the phone and via email so location is not a crucial factor to consider when choosing a franchise lawyer.

This is another area where it's strongly recommended you get professional advice: "The franchise agreement is a vital part of a successful franchise.

Cutting corners or trying to do this yourself may mean that the franchises won’t be run correctly and you business will suffer as a result," advised Tom. The franchise agreement will be onesided because you need to regulate your franchisees in order to protect your business. However, there will be some obligations on you as the franchisor and the agreement will set out the regulations that will affect you as well as those imposed on the franchisee. In time, once you have built up a network of franchisees, it might be that you will need to act against the interests of an individual for the greater good of the franchise network so having all these regulations detailed in the franchise agreement is crucial to avoid problems further down the line.

The franchise agreement should cover: Intellectual property Ensure any intellectual property, logos, or trademarks that the franchisee will use in the running of the business are protected, and detail how they may use them.

Fees Start-up costs and ongoing fees should be explained; what do they get for their money? Include details on the consequences of non-payment.

Obligations on the franchisor Explain how you will assist the franchisee with regards to training and support, both during the start-up process and long term.

Training Include information on how much training is needed, both for the startup phase and ongoing. Will there be additional costs for any compulsory training?

Territory Explain what you will do to protect your franchisees against rival companies in the area. Detail where they are allowed to trade, and where they are allowed to advertise their business.

Duration How long is the initial contract, and what are the conditions for renewing it? Most franchise agreements run for five years, but it varies so take advice for what's best for your business.

Post termination Make sure you include information about what happens at the end of the contract. Also include information about what happens if you want to terminate before the end.

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SPECIAL REPORT

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

You will also need to spend money marketing the franchise opportunity, but chances are you will be able to re-coup the marketing costs from the first few franchisees.

The agreement will be non-negotiable; it needs to be this way in order to build uniformity across all your franchises. If for any reason there are additions or amendments these should be put into a side letter. The franchise agreement needs to be a true reflection of your business, so it's worth paying for advice and guidance at this stage. It's important to only put obligations into the franchise agreement that you understand and need. If there are requirements in there that you don't fully understand you could end up breaching the contract without realising it.

Revenue streams Revenue will come in from the fees paid to you by the franchisee. These include start-up fees, and ongoing fees. As the franchisor you shouldn't be looking to make money on the initial start-up fees, but money will start to come in as the franchise begins to make a profit.

For the ongoing fees it's common for franchisors to take a percentage of gross turnover from their franchisees. The benefit of this is that it helps to build good relationships – if they do well, you do well.

The costs of franchising your business are hard to quantify because it depends on the nature of your business. Average set-up fees are around ÂŁ30,000 and you will also need to set aside around ÂŁ1,500 per month for your recruitment budget.

Recruiting franchisees is probably the hardest part of the whole process.

However, if you are to build up a network of successful franchisees across the country, or indeed globally, it is worth investing in this process to make sure you get the best franchisees you can. Be aware that if you overprice your 22

franchise opportunity you will struggle to recruit franchisees.

There are many ways you can recruit franchisees including; franchise exhibitions, newspaper advertising, trade and franchise magazines, referrals from existing franchisees, the BFA, and franchise centres and brokers. Getting specialist advice on finding the best candidate can be useful and the BFA can help you find an affiliated advisor.

Consider becoming a member of the BFA; there are strict criteria and your business will undergo a series of checks but the value of the membership could make your recruitment process a lot easier, as Tom explained: "The resulting membership status provides a huge amount of confidence to prospective franchisees. The BFA website is also one of the most commonly used resources for prospective franchisees and so there is also the advantage of a presence on the website."

You will also need to spend money marketing the franchise opportunity, but chances are you will be able to re-coup the marketing costs from the first few franchisees. Your best form of marketing is via existing successful franchises, which is another reason why it's important to keep all your franchisees happy.

Mandy Gale from Travel Counsellors chose to start up a franchise of the travel company on the Isle of Wight following a recommendation from a friend. She had considered it for a while and then after hearing good things about the franchisors she took the plunge. She is very happy with the franchisor and has a lot of contact with them whenever she needs it.

Going forward As the franchisees grow and develop, their attitude towards you as the franchisor will change. Experienced franchisors have explained the four stages the franchisee may go through.

At first, they will want to learn everything they can from you and will look to you for help and support. As they start to learn how to do it themselves you may find they become reluctant to answer to you. The next step down the line is that they may become comfortable in their ways and just do the minimum needed to satisfy you.

To avoid this situation you need to build solid working relationships with your franchisees, which is crucial to the success of your franchised business. One of the best ways to encourage your franchisees is to make sure that any obligations placed on them are always in their best interests.

You will need to commit substantial amounts of time and money before you start to see a return on investment.

However, once the franchise is up and running you will begin to see all your hard work pay off.

However, the hard work is not over.

You will need to constantly monitor the performance of each of your franchisees, to ensure that quality levels are maintained and to assist any franchisees that are in difficulties.

Your ongoing commitment to your franchisees, through training, product development and support, is vital to the success of your franchise network.

More information about franchising can be found on the BFA website www.thebfa.org

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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COMPANY PROFILE

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Father and son, David and David!

From pipelines to brewing How plans to settle down on the Island led to the formation of a new brewery and a business that's grown steadily over the past decade.

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avid Yates has reached 7,200 pints of beer a week, and says it still isn’t quite enough.

That’s the current level of production at Yates’ Brewery in Newchurch, a business which has never stopped growing – or brewing – since David first experimented with ingredients in 1999.

His breakthrough came with what proved to be a prize-winning beer called Undercliff Experience, which the brewery is still rolling out by the cask to pubs and other outlets all over the south.

Yates’ Brewery was born when David began supplying beer to the pub that 24

was his next door neighbour, what used to be the St Lawrence Inn. In typical Island fashion, the word soon got round, and Undercliff Experience began appearing at other pubs, too.

It remains the brewery’s most popular beer, in a range that varies in strength from 3.8 per cent proof, up to the legendary 7.6 per cent Yule Be Sorry, which won CAMRA awards last year.

David caught the brewing bug when he moved to the Island 30 years ago, with the aim of settling down after travelling the world as a welding inspector specialising in pipeline installations.

Kevin Wilson reports on how an Island brewery has matured.

He and his wife bought a health food and grocery shop in Ventnor, which – as fate would have it – was only 100 yards away from the then Burts Brewery. It wasn’t long before David got a job there, and soon after that, was pressing for the chance to get experience in brewing. He realised he had found his vocation, only to be made redundant in 1998.

Watch video reports and business profiles on www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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COMPANY PROFILE

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Annual company turnover has now exceeded £2 million, of which 60 per cent is wholesale, and 40 per cent brewing. Turnover has increased every year and there is no sign of a slowdown.

David Yates (Senior)

Preparing the grain for the next brewing process

But less than a year later, David had secured a small loan to set up in St Lawrence, and he estimates he has been working seven days a week ever since.

Now aged 67, he shows no sign of wanting to slow down, although the appointment of his son, also called David, as Co-Director, has certainly alleviated some of the pressure.

David ‘Junior’ was brought in to build up the wholesale side of the business, ensuring that Yates’ Brewery diversified to avoid total dependency on sales of the beer it brews.

He was working as a driver for a wholesaler at the time, and was able to bring his expertise into the business from day one.

Yates’ now supplies its own beer, along with everything else a pub might need, in a seven days a week operation. David 26

'Junior' said: “We have built up customers who know they can rely on us to deliver anywhere on the Island within a couple of hours, every day of the week, whether that is our beer, or soft drinks, or any of the 250 wines we carry in stock.”

Annual company turnover has now exceeded £2 million, of which 60 per cent is wholesale, and 40 per cent brewing. Turnover has increased every year and there is no sign of a slowdown, says David 'Senior'.

The company moved to new and larger premises in Newchurch a year ago, and is already using just about every square inch of space. The brewing capacity has doubled as beer drinkers have latched on to David’s unique beer recipes, such as Undercliff Experience, Holy Joe, Wight Winter, and Yates’ Blonde Ale.

His secret weapon for 2010 is a new summer beer, called Yates’ Golden Bitter, which he hopes will be the brew of choice at some of the Island’s major events, as well as in the pubs.

The company has been chosen to provide beers for the Isle of Wight Festival this month; and is main supplier to the beer tent at the Old Gaffers event, as well as the Real Ale Festival at Isle of Wight Steam Railway, and the jazz event at Ventnor Botanic Gardens.

“It’s definitely the most rewarding job I’ve ever done,” enthused David. “There is something really satisfying about the process of converting grain into beer, and knowing that thousands of people will taste it and hopefully enjoy it.”

Not surprisingly, David’s recipe book is his prize possession. “It is a bit like baking a cake,“ he said. “Once you have found a recipe that works, the important thing is to be able to reproduce it exactly.

For example, moving to Newchurch meant that we had to be very careful about the water we used to make sure it didn’t alter the taste of the beer.”

It takes about one working day to brew the beer, but ideally it should be left in the cask for three weeks before serving to pub customers. Once it is casked,

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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COMPANY PROFILE

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

We have built our business up around getting the basics right – the product, the price, and the service – and we have a good name in the trade.

David Yates (Junior)

Casks ready for delivery and (right) David and son check the quality

a secondary fermentation takes place.

Drink too soon and the beer will be flat.

A lot depends on the skills and experience of pub landlords, too, who need to be prepared to vent the cask and allow it to clear for a day before serving it. Then be able to sell all the beer in the cask within four or five days, otherwise it will be past its best.

David said: “These days, there aren’t any bad beers, but so much depends on how it is looked after. Fortunately, the Island is well served by its landlords, and standards are high.”

David 'Junior' agreed, and added that the future looks good for Yates’ Brewery.

“We have good relationships with pubs here and on the mainland, and our delivery staff will always help a landlord set the beer up if it’s needed.

28

“We have built our business up around getting the basics right – the product, the price, and the service – and we have a good name in the trade. A high number of our accounts use us as sole suppliers, which shows the confidence they have in us, and we are very proud of that.”

What is more, he said the company has reached this position without building up any debt.

“Dad took out a small loan when he first got the equipment for a brewery,” said David.

It hasn’t all been plain sailing, though.

The wholesale section of the business got off to an interesting start, when the two Davids drove over to the mainland with a cheque to pay for their first stock.

Unfortunately, the supplier would not

accept a cheque because they were brand new customers, so they drove all the way back to the Island to return immediately with the cash.

By the time they had returned with the goods, and before the ferry had docked at the Island, they had sold all of it over the mobile phone!

“We suspected that we may have made the right decision!” David said.

Now Yates' Brewery is the supplier of choice to many Island pubs, and is thinking through options for further expansion.

David Senior said they would not be hurrying into a decision.

“We have good relationships with our customers and we have to be careful not to overreach."

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www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

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CHAMBER MATTERS

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Kerstine Andrews

K

Chamber People

erstine Andrews has been clocking up the miles as she maintains contact with members of the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry.

More than six months into her job as the Chamber’s Membership Officer, Kerstine says the pace is hectic.

“There is so much interest in joining the Chamber that my feet have hardly touched the ground,” she said. “I see my job not just as helping them to make their minds up, but as keeping in touch with them once they have joined.”

Kerstine’s background is in retail, training, and estate agency, and since joining the Chamber she has been amazed by the range of businesses on the Island.

“I am constantly surprised and delighted to meet so many people who are either setting up in business, or expanding,” she said. “I have lived here

most of my life and I thought I knew the Island well. But the sheer scale of business activity is incredible.

“Obviously, not everyone wants to join the Chamber, but I find that once the benefits are explained, many people feel it is silly not to join.”

Kerstine has a daughter at university, a son who is an apprentice engineer on the island, and a stepson at school.

She relaxes by doing dancing exercise classes, and also enjoys eating out with her partner Jev. “I suppose the dancing keeps me in shape, so the eating out doesn’t have too much of an effect!” she said.

Members and non-members can contact Kerstine at 01983 520777, or by sending a message to kerstine.andrews@iwchamber.co.uk.

To find out more about the Chamber, go to iwchamber.co.uk

Looking back through the archives As the Chamber celebrates its centenary year, a look back through the archives can sometimes be a sobering reminder of the issues the Island has faced, and overcome …

I

n April 1915, the Chamber was discussing the damage to Island tourism caused by military restrictions which prevented 'aliens' from coming here on holiday.

Mr H W Daws, from Shanklin, had written to the Chamber saying that the restrictions "were proving ruinous to visitor resorts in the Island, as Americans, French, Russians, and every other nationality were not allowed to enter the Island."

He pointed out that no such restrictions were in force anywhere else and wondered why the Isle of Wight was being singled out.

The County Press news report continued: "It appeared that alien friends could go into Southampton and Portsmouth without let or hindrance, but 30

if they wished to visit the Island, they were not absolutely forbidden, but permits had to be obtained, and it was very difficult for them to come."

Mr Arthur Andrews, presiding at the meeting, said the Chamber would make representations through Douglas Hall MP and Sir Godfrey Baring MP to see if "there could be some relaxation of the restrictions without injuring military interests."

He pointed out that "Ventnor and Shanklin had been largely dependent upon German visitors, and naturally no German could be allowed here, but it was difficult to understand why Americans, and their gallant allies, the French, should not be allowed."

Later in the meeting, the impact of the First World War was felt once more, as

Colonel Willoughby Wallace, commanding the reserve battalion I W Rifles, asked the Chamber to encourage more traders to reduce their staff of men eligible for call-up to the absolute minimum.

There had been a good response, but he told the meeting that more traders needed to respond and that all eligible men should be given the opportunity of joining the service, with their jobs secured until the end of the war.

The same edition of the County Press – April 17 1915 – carried a report of the battle of Neuve Chapelle, which announced British casualties of more than 12,000. Field Marshal Sir John French said the results of the battle were "wide and far reaching", and the newspaper commented: "For those results, the highest possible praise is due to our heroic troops, whose magnificent valour and tenacious courage never shone more brilliantly than on this occasion."

CHAMBER MATTERS

JUNE 2010 Credit: Julian Winslow Photography

Organic growth for Naturally Wight

Celebrating Young Chamber achievement

Sharon Lake is looking to grow her skincare business organically.

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he handmade creams in her Naturally Wight range are produced with organic oils and can be made to measure for people with specific needs.

Sharon launched the business five years ago after qualifying as an aromatherapist and is now looking to expand to include a spa and men’s ranges.

Sharon, who is based in East Cowes, also intends to target the corporate and tourism markets.

“Several hotels already carry my products,” she said, “and I am hoping that more tourism-related businesses will see the attraction of locally made skincare which uses only natural products.”

As part of her plans for expansion, Sharon has also developed new branding and supplies a number of shops on the Island, including the Godshill and King’s Manor farm shops.

For more information, go to www.naturallywight.co.uk, or call 07917 135294.

Taking the prize (from l to r) Hayley Toms, Carisbrooke High School; Matthew Randall, St Catherine’s School; Saira Khan, event speaker; Michael Chard, Sandown High School; Sophia Moule, Sandown High School; Rob Ashley, General Manager, PGL Little Canada

Isle of Wight Young Chamber has made a difference to more than 1,500 students this year and the organisation celebrated its year of achievement at the Annual Awards ceremony.

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eachers and businesses joined students at Cowes Yacht Haven to applaud a string of Young Chamber award winners.

Saira Khan, who was runner up in the first series of The Apprentice, was special guest speaker.

The event, held on 13 May at Cowes Yacht Haven, and compared by Tom Stroud, was sponsored by IW Radio, PGL, Betapak, Hampshire Constabulary, Liz Earle Beauty Co, Wightlink, Cowes Town Waterfront Trust, Pepper, and Finishing Touches.

Awards presented were …

Most Valued Young Chamber Council Member at each YC school: Carisbrooke High, Jessica Kullander; Christ the King College, Matty Gough; Cowes High, Ellie Holman; Medina High, Stuart Woods; Sandown High, Emma Johnson; St Catherine’s, Charlie Riley.

Most Valued Employer Contribution to each YC school: Carisbrooke, Plaza Ice Cream; Christ the King, Mountjoy; Cowes, Hampshire Constabulary; Medina, Moreys; Sandown, IW Fire Service; St Catherine’s, Wightlink.

Highest Individual Achievement at each YC Challenge: Minghella Challenge - Bradley McLaughlin, Carisbrooke High; Southern Vectis - Rosie Ely, Cowes High; Into the Blue - Charlie Welman, Cowes High; Liz Earle – Hayley Toms, Carisbrooke High; Navigate Solutions – Michael Chard, Sandown High; Hampshire Constabulary and IW Radio – Hayley Toms, Carisbrooke High.

YC Challenge Winners 2009/2010, sponsored by PGL Little Canada: Hayley Toms, Carisbrooke High; Charlotte Pointing, Cowes High; Michael Chard and Sophie Moule, Sandown High; Matthew Randall, St Catherine’s.

NEW MEMBERS Bilton Hall Ltd 01983 756394 lynn@bilton-hall.co.uk Milton Lodge, Gate Lane Freshwater Bay Isle of Wight PO40 9QD Brand strategy, marketing and communications.

Essential Signs And Print 01983 811148 info@espiw.co.uk Unit 3F, Ring Road Industrial Estate Ryde, Isle of Wight PO33 2LT Sign manufacturers and painters.

Screen printing, digital printing, signs, banners, stationery, etc. For all your printing requirements.

Fountain Inn Cowes 01983 292397 fountaincowesreservations@ greeneking.co.uk www.fountaininn-cowes.com Cowes, Isle of Wight PO31 7AW Bar / Restaurant / Hotel.

Gavaghan Jones LLP 07815 830546 laurie.gavaghan@gavaghanjones.com

34 Downs View Road, Bembridge Isle of Wight PO35 5QT Chartered Surveyors.

Salterns Road, Seaview Isle of Wight PO34 5AQ Self-catering holiday operator.

Holiday home developments.

Peekaboo Design 01983 565566 hello@peekaboodesign.co.uk www.peekaboodesign.co.uk Unit 1 Enterprise Court Nicholson Road, Ryde Isle of Wight PO33 1BD Website Design.

Springvale Hotel 01983 612533 reception@springvalehotel.com www.springvalehotel.co.uk Springvale Road, Seaview Isle of Wight PO34 5AN Family hotel set on a beach near to the sailing village of Seaview.

Ryde Deck Chairs 07717 570124 ldt.iow@gmail.com 11 Pellhurst Road, Ryde Isle of Wight PO33 3BW Deck chair hire including sun loungers, windbreaks and parasols.

Also available for private hire for functions and occasions. Delivery and collection service included.

Themed parties can be arranged.

The Bayhouse Hotel 01983 863180 info@bayhouse-hotel.co.uk www.bayhouse-hotel.co.uk 8 Chine Avenue, Shanklin Isle of Wight PO37 6AG Hotel.

Seaview Holidays 01983 612330 steve.r@seaviewdevelopments.co.uk www.seaview-holidays.co.uk

The Boathouse 01983 810616 info@theboathouseiow.co.uk www.theboathouseiow.co.uk Springvale Road, Seaview Isle of Wight PO34 5AV Pub, restaurant and self catering accommodation.

Check the calendar of business events on www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

The Little Gloster 07900 692433 bencooke1983@yahoo.co.uk www.thelittlegloster.com 31 Marsh Road, Cowes Isle of Wight PO31 8JQ Licensed restaurant and bar offering fine food with excellent views across the Solent. Open 7 days a week, private functions, and wine room available. Two en-suite bed and breakfast rooms also available.

The Victorian Lodge 01983 563366 neilherbert@f25.com www.thevictorianlodge.co.uk East Hill Road, Ryde Isle of Wight PO33 1LS Self-catering holiday apartment in Ryde in close proximity to Ryde Esplanade and beach.

Thearle Photography 01983 281727 thearle@btinternet.com http://www.thearleohotography.com 24 York Street, Cowes Isle of Wight PO31 7BS Commercial, industrial, PR, editorial

and advertising photographic business based in Cowes.

Photography by Steve Thearle, master photographer.

Vernon Cottage Tearooms And Tavern 01983 865411 paul@deveremedia.com www.vernoncottage.co.uk 1 Eastcliff Road. Shanklin Isle of Wight PO37 6AA Villa Rothsay Hotel 01983 295178 margaret@villa-rothsay.co.uk www.villa-rothsay.co.uk 29 Baring Road, Cowes Isle of Wight PO31 8DF Wolverton Manor 01983 740609 jane_patterson@bt.co.uk www.wolvertonmanor.com Shorwell, Isle of Wight PO30 3JS Charitable concerts and garden fair.

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CHAMBER MATTERS

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Chamber Legal Services is a highly valued benefit of membership of the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce.

It provides quality, free advice 24/7, 365 days a year, and includes free legal expenses insurance.

S

Check our online calendar at www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk for details of all business events

EVENTS

everal recent cases from around the country provide useful illustrations of just how important this membership benefit can be.

The service represented a commercial vehicle recovery operator, who was prosecuted for overloading his vehicle. The problem occurred when the operator was called to tow away a broken down HGV on a busy motorway. The vehicle was causing an obstruction and was a potential danger, so the driver removed it.

32

Chamber Events =

Other Events =

8 June Networking at Newclose Cricket Club Newclose Cricket Club, Blackwater Road, Newport 1830-2100 free buffet • Guest Speaker David Ball, Chairman Island Games Association.

Call 01983 520777 or email chamber@iwchamber.co.uk

This meant his combined train weight was over the legal limit. He committed an offence because he did not get prior permission from the police, but with help from his legal expenses policy, panel solicitors pointed out the extenuating circumstances which enabled the operator to avoid a conviction or fine.

A policyholder who called the helpline was facing a prosecution for failing to stop and report an accident after a rented van he was driving clipped the wing mirror of another vehicle.

The driver was prosecuted for driving without due care and attention, and failing to stop and report an accident. He could have faced a prison term, a driving ban, and penalty points on his licence.

However, our legal team was able to provide evidence about the construction of the van, which proved the client could not have been aware of the collision.

Must be pre-booked =

The cab in which the driver was sat was an entirely different structure to the ‘box’ on the back so he was unaware the side of his vehicle had clipped the wing mirror of the other vehicle. He could not have felt any vibrations or heard the collision. With the proper legal representation, the driver won his case and had all his costs paid.

Solicitors also recently helped a company recoup more than £30,000. The opponent had denied owing the money, claiming the invoices had been incorrectly calculated and that the contract provided for different prices. After some investigation into the case and negotiations with the opponent, payment in full was received by the client without the need for court proceedings.

For more information about all the benefits of Chamber membership, send a message to chamber@iwchamber.co.uk

•

10 June Exporters' Seminar Chamber of Commerce Boardroom, Registration 0930 Seminar: 1000-1600, £25 + vat (pre-booked reservation only) • Call 01983 520777 and ask for a member of the International Trade Team

14 June Word Advanced 9 June Isle of Wight College, 0930-1630, Make marketing work for you £110 • Call Marilyn Arnold on 01983 Discuss how you can maximise 550609 or email: the potential and generate businessplus@iwcollege.ac.uk business for your company.

Free workshop, 1600-2000, 17 June Rosebowl, Southampton • Make marketing work for you Call Business Link on: Discuss how you can maximise 0845 600 9006 the potential and generate business for your company.

9 June Free workshop 1600-2000, Sales Management Seminar Basingstoke Country Hotel, A free seminar with a short Nateley Scures, Basingstoke. • presentation on the latest best Call Business Link on: practice in sales management and 0845 600 9006 the opportunity to network with a variety of sales and 17 June business people.

Outsourcing: the benefits for Organised by Solent Innovation & growing businesses Growth, 1145-1500, Richmond A valuable insight into Building, University of Portsmouth outsourcing, how it can help your Call Becky Platt on: business, and all the things you 023 9284 4323 • need to be aware of if you are thinking of outsourcing.

The Rose Bowl, Southampton 0830-1200, Free seminar • Contact Katy Patterson on 01489 889 882 23 June Managing Diversity: Information session for frontline and reception staff members Free seminar, Quay Arts 1500-1700 In partnership with Red Tie Theatre. • Call 01983 520777 or email chamber@iwchamber.co.uk 1 July Niche tourism event At the brand new Vintage Vacations site in Ashey, Ryde.

Celebratintg American Independence Day • Call the Chamber on 01983 520777 to book.

6 July Mediation matters Seminar for solicitors, surveyors and all interested in Dispute Resolution training or work. • Quay Arts, Newport, 1300-1600 £7.50 (includes light lunch, tea & coffee). Contact Grant Vincent on 07540 333 340.

6-9 July The Prince’s Trust Explore Enterprise course

Helps people to explore and test their business ideas, write business plans, and start their own businesses or achieve alternative goals in education, training, or work. • Tel. 02380 622666 or email susan.hunter@princes-trust.org.uk 23 July PGL Activity Event, Wootton To include: abseiling, high ropes, zip wires and dragon boat racing, BBQ and refreshments. July 23rd.

1800-2100, £6.00 per person • which PGL will donate to charity Call 01983 520777 or email chamber@iwchamber.co.uk 2 August IW Chamber Cowes Week Lunch Cruise and buffet lunch leaving Thetis Wharf, Cowes 1130-1500, £25.00 per person • Call 01983 520777 or email chamber@iwchamber.co.uk 4 August IW Chamber Grand Centenary Come and celebrate the last 100 years with us at Cowes Yacht Haven. Special earlybird discount for members, if booked before end of June £89 pp + VAT • Call 01983 520777 or email chamber@iwchamber.co.uk.

CLASSIFIEDS

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Our Classified section is the perfect place to advertise your products and services. It's also incredibly cost-effective with a classified ad costing from just £8 per column centimetre. Call 01983 245505 to book your classified advert.

BLINDS / AWNINGS Apollo Blinds Isle of Wight, John Youle.

Tel. 01983 402230 apolloblindsiow@googlemail.com apollo-blinds.co.uk/isle-of-wight

Advertise here from just £8 per column centimetre.

Call 01983 245505 to book your classified advert.

CATERING

BUSINESS SERVICES

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY BUSINESS UTILITIES

BUSINESS UTILITIES

Commercial property?

We can help you.

Commercial friendly service local knowledge CATERING

www.hose-rhodes-dickson.co.uk CORPORATE EVENTS Stagegear Rentals 3 Quivey Cottage, Main Road, Arreton, PO30 3AG. Tel. 0870 3450352 Email: pete@stage-gear.co.uk Web: www.stage-gear.co.uk

01983527727

Boost your business!

Advertise here fom just £8 per column centimetre

Advertise your services here from just £8 per column centimetre. Call 01983 245505 to book your space.

34

CLASSIFIEDS

JUNE 2010 COUNSELLING / LIFE COACHING

SURVEYORS AND ARCHITECTS

An emotionally intelligent workforce increases productivity and saves money Help your staff to: Manage Stress, Reduce Anxiety, Increase Self Confidence Manage Time Effectively NLP, CBT, HG Qualified Therapist To find out more, call Relaxing Times 07791 656 545 Email: michael@michaelackrill.wanadoo.co.uk GRAPHIC DESIGN AND WEB APPLICATIONS

TRANING Creedence Training Academy & Consultancy Freshwater, Isle of Wight info@creedencetraining.co.uk www.creedencetraining.co.uk 01983 759213

Advertise here from just £8 per column centimetre. Call 01983 245505 to book your classified advert.

TRAINING ICT Open Sauce Systems Ltd. Low cost, flexible phone systems and servers. Ideal for new businesses.

01983 220028 www.opensaucesystems.com

Place your advert here from just £8

ICT Profound IT Limited Bespoke software development, consultancy, and business systems integration.

01983 883000 www.profound-it.co.uk SIGNS AND GRAPHICS

www.islandbusinessonline.co.uk

UniTrain are the leading suppliers of quality managed training services and courses.

UniTrain specialise in tailored on-site solutions as well as offering public courses UK wide.

Our main areas of training expertise are: Microsoft Desktop Applications (including Office 2007) Sales Training Personal Development & Management Up to 30% off your first booking on selected courses with this advert. (Quote CC10)

Want to know more?

Call 0845 643 1611 or Email:sales@unitrain.co.uk visit www.unitrain.co.uk

WORKWEAR

35

REALLYUSEFULBUSINESSSTUFF

THE BACK PAGE

HSBC Start-Up Stars - UK's top awards for small businesses If you know a business that deserves national recognition then you can nominate them for the UK's premier small business awards, the HSBC Start-Up Stars Awards. HSBC is also seeking nominations for the best young Green and International businesses.

Visit the HSBC Start-Up Stars website to find out what makes a Start-Up Star, hear from previous winners and learn how you can nominate a start-up business that inspires you. www.startupstars.hsbc.co.uk Looking for helpful advice on careers and learning?

The Careers Advice Service is an impartial, careers advice, and guidance service for adults. The Careers Advice Service is involved with the successful "Our future.

It’s in our hands" skills campaign as efforts combine to encourage adults to recognise and act on the need to maintain existing skills and learn new ones.

The Careers Advice Service can be reached

Cartoonist: Rupert Besley

36

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR THE ISLE OF WIGHT

Our RUBS section is where we pass on stuff we come across that we think is really useful – it does what it says on the tin! If you have a tip that you think is really useful let us know and we'll share it here.

Free agent toolkits Six free toolkits to help agents avoid common errors when filing clients' returns for 2009/10 have been published by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). www.hmrc.gov.uk/agents/prereturnsupport-agents.htm.

CHANGING TIMES

via telephone on 0800 100 900 or through their website at: www.direct.gov.uk/careersadvice DHL Express are offering a prize draw to win an Apple iPad http://simplydhl.com/uk/banner/import37O2-4800MW.html Opal are offering super fast reliable broadband from just £10 a month www.opal.co.uk/store/business-broadband Business Book Review Business Book Review's brief but comprehensive summaries of the best business books is the perfect resource for time-starved professionals. www.businessbookreview.com Our book review Free by Chris Anderson.

As we see the costs associated with technology plummet and the digital world is increasingly moving in the physical realm as people interact with new media, how do we adjust to the economics in the face of dropping online prices? Chris Anderson explores how to turn a profit in the face of this situation in his book Free.

Free business cards Vista print are offering 250 business cards + business card holder absolutely free.

Visit www.vistaprint.co.uk

Steve Blamire is known as a free-thinking and sometimes radical business consultant who contributes innovation and an inventive flair.

In Steve’s monthly column, here and on Island Business Online, he’ll be musing on a wide range of subjects.

Contact Steve at steve@steveblamire.co.uk

Where are we?

L

ast month a client took me on a bit of a road trip up North, taking in the sites of Slough and Leicester en route before reaching our final destination of Yorkshire.

The aim of the trip was to visit a number of social enterprises with the view to developing similar opportunities on the Island.

Overall the trip was very successful and those that we met were very willing to part with their knowledge and experience, which will hopefully give us a significant head start in developing similar businesses on the Island.

Although what really got me thinking was something a little more abstract. We stayed the night at a Premier Inn in Castleford, it was identical to every Premier Inn I had ever stayed in, but that was the reason – guaranteed wifi, comfy rooms and an edible breakfast.

The following morning we departed and as we walked out of the entrance I stopped my compatriot and asked him the following question: "look around you and what do you see?" He replied with some puzzlement: "A grey-clad Cineworld building, Pizza Hut, Staples, a Lloyds Bar, a car park, and a B&Q on the horizon."

My next question was: "So where are you?" He laughed, realising my reference to Coppins Bridge, although added: "But saying that we could be anywhere in the UK." And that was my point – we could have been three hundred miles away on the Isle of Wight, we could have been across the border in Lancashire, or in another country such as Scotland, and suffering the same generic banality. So there I am in Yorkshire and not a flat-cap or whippet in sight.

For the remainder of the trip I spent my time staring out of the car window searching at every opportunity for a sense of place.

Apart from the steel mills of Sheffield the human landscape was difficult to distinguish from one place to the next.

I began to ponder the reasons why we are slowly losing our regional identities and heading towards an almost American unculture. The answer is quite simple I guess, it is the cheapest option in terms of development, replicating the same formula, and we, the consumer, like consistency.

It may be easy but it is quite simply dull and the implications for our communities are even further reaching. Our sense of community is built around our sense of place, if we continue to lose that sense of place then it ultimately undermines our sense of community. In turn, that leads to a lack of social cohesion and the resulting social problems which follow.

So are there any ways that we can halt the relentless juggernaut of blandness that is engulfing our little nation? I guess we have to look to the planning system. But in recent years the planning system has allowed a number of iconic development sites on the Island to be covered with huge retail sheds (think Cineworld, B&Q and Pets-atPC-Carpet-Curry-land).

Would B&Q have been put off by the demand that they build a store of significant architectural value?

Quite simply no, as the commercial opportunity was so substantial. So next time we roll out the red carpet to encourage large chainstores to our shores maybe we should consider that they might actually want us more than we want them?

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Our services services include includelogo logodesign design&&branding, branding,brochure brochuredesign, design, advertising, exhibition advertising, exhibitionand anddisplay displaygraphics, graphics,printing, printing, and and website design design & &build buildincluding includinge-commerce e-commercewebsites, websites, intranets & intranets & extranets extranetsand andcontent contentmanagement managementsystems. systems.

Telephone 01983 529039 Email info@peppercreative.co.uk www.peppercreative.co.uk Mill Court Furrlongs, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 2AA