BQ West Midalnds Issue 09

www.bqlive.co.uk

ISSUE NINE: SPRING 2015

PURE PLEASURE IN A GLASS How Purity Brewing Company became a household name CUT FROM THE SAME MOULD The brothers behind Quantum Mouldings share a philosophy FLYING HIGH IN BUSINESS Nicola Fleet-Milne’s career soared after her pilot hopes crashed HARNESSING PEOPLE POWER Knowledge is priceless, insists engineering boss Marcus Aniol ISSUE NINE: SPRING 2015: WEST MIDLANDS EDITION

MAKES SCENTS Entrepreneur quits law to launch his own perfume range

BUSINESS NEWS: COMMERCE: FASHION: INTERVIEWS: MOTORS: EVENTS

WEST MIDLANDS EDITION

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WELCOME

BUSINESS QUARTER: SPRING 15: ISSUE NINE Some of the West Midlands’ biggest business names have contributed to this special edition of BQ, the first of 2015. This is because I was keen to gather the thoughts of those at the sharp end of delivering growth for the region: what’s been achieved, what’s coming next, and what more needs to be done?

In ‘As I see it’ Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, and chair of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP, describes what he sees as real momentum – with the first £63m tranche of what will eventually total £357m of Growth Deal funding starting in April.

Meanwhile, in our ‘Aviation news’ pages, Birmingham Airport chief executive Paul Kehoe sounds a warning to the government: don’t stifle the West Midland’s recent global progress by allowing the unbridled expansion of Heathrow Airport.

Instead, Kehoe wants the government to expand at Gatwick – therefore supporting a stronger network of airports across the UK, rather than only concentrating on Heathrow.

It’s a complex argument that deserves to be read, understood and considered.

We have a range of detailed analyses in the ‘Manufacturing report’ that appears inside this edition, with two esteemed professors explaining how the West Midlands is competing with the world. Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, of Warwick Manufacturing Group, provides the latest chapter on the region’s automotive success story, while Professor David Bailey, of Aston Business School, assesses the wider manufacturing and export sectors.

Ann Watson, chief executive of Semta, the employer-led skills organisation, describes

progress in education and training for engineering across the West Midlands, while Sean Raftery, head of Quilter Cheviot, explains how the strength of the region’s economy is driven by industrial giants. And Neil Rami, chief executive of Marketing Birmingham, looks at how global relocation achievements make the city one of the world’s best places to live, work, visit and do business.

In the main magazine, we interview some outstanding entrepreneurs – from a lawyer who’s just given up the day job to launch a new perfume, to engineering brothers whose glass-fibre business has expanded into the former Sealine factory in Kidderminster. And from a property developer who turned a derelict pub in Herefordshire into a thriving boutique hotel-restaurant, to a designer who makes unique lamps from old junk.

I was joined for ‘Business lunch’ by successful residential lettings agent Nicola Fleet-Milne, who told me all about her near-career as an RAF pilot. And our ‘Insight’ feature looks at how Marcus Aniol created a 375% growth in turnover for a Birmingham-based building services engineer.

But my favourite feature is the focus on Paul Halsey’s Purity Brewing Company, the West Midlands’ biggest real ale success story, now producing some five million pints a year.

I hope you find the time to enjoy reading it all!

Steve Dyson Editor, BQ West Midlands

CONTACTS ROOM501 LTD Bryan Hoare Director e: bryan@room501.co.uk EDITORIAL Steve Dyson Editor e: steve.dysonmedia@gmail.com DESIGN & PRODUCTION room501 e: studio@room501.co.uk PHOTOGRAPHY KG Photography e: info@kgphotography.co.uk Chris Auld e: chris@chrisauldphotography.com ADVERTISING Chancelle Blakey Business Development Manager e: chancelle@room501.co.uk t: 07786 070 772 Mike Moloney Business Development Manager e: mike@room501.co.uk t: 07801 849 367 Audrey Atkinson Sales Manager e: audrey@room501.co.uk t: 0191 426 8205

room501 Publishing Ltd, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT www.bqlive.co.uk Business Quarter (BQ) is a leading business to business brand recognised for celebrating entrepreneurship and corporate success. The multi-platform brand currently reaches entrepreneurs and senior business executives across Scotland, The North East, Yorkshire and the West Midlands. BQ has established a UK wide regional approach to business engagement reaching a highly targeted audience of entrepreneurs and senior executives in high growth businesses both in-print, online and through branded events.

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While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies, howsoever caused. No liability can be accepted for illustrations, photographs, artwork or advertising materials while in transmission or with the publisher or their agents. All company profiles are paid for advertising. All information is correct at time of going to print, February 2015.

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WEST MIDLANDS EDITION

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

CONTE BUSINESS QUARTER: SPRING 15

PURE PLEASURE IN A GLASS

Features

40 BUSINESS HIGH-FLYER Nicola Fleet-Milne’s career took off after her dreams of being a pilot crashed

22 MAKING SCENTS Rob Hallmark has no regrets about quitting law to launch a perfume range

28 PURE JOY IN A GLASS How Purity Brewing Company became a household name from a standing start

32 SIBLING HARMONY The brothers who share a work-life balance philosophy in business.

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74 REBUILDING A SHELL How determination – and investment – brought a derelict pub back to life

78 PEOPLE POWER The boss who credits his staff with helping to transform a firm’s fortunes

82 LET THERE BE LIGHT Michael Grassi is creating unique lights from long-forgotten objects

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28 SIBLING HARMONY

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TENTS WEST MIDLANDS EDITION

36 COMMERCIAL PROPERTY

The deals shaping our skyline

FLYING HIGH IN THE BUSINESS WORLD

62 MOTORING George Jennings fulfils his boyhood dream in a Bentley Continental GT V8 S

Regulars

64 WINE Hippodrome colleagues try a surprising chardonnay and a sumptuous red

66 FASHION Josh Sims meets the Itialian boss of an American firm that defined a nation

08 BIG ISSUES Manufacturing is in our DNA but we need to invest more, says John Duckers

10 NEWS Who’s done what, when, where and why here in the West Midlands

20 AS I SEE IT We must play to our strengths to grow in 2015, says GBSLEP Chair Andy Street

70 EQUIPMENT

40 HARNESSING PEOPLE POWER

Trends are fickle, but quality endures in the watch industry, Josh Sims discovers

88 A BIT OF A CHAT With BQ’s backroom boy Bill Borde

90 EVENTS Gatherings, seminars and conferences that could boost your business

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78 BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

AVIATION NEWS

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Birmingham Airport’s chief executive Paul Kehoe, stresses the importance of its role in the economy and explains why he believes expansion plans for Heathrow could be damaging – as prospects for 2015 shape up >> Ambition must take flight In October 2014, the Birmingham-China trade summit organised by local MP Liam Byrne was held in London. This was a fantastic opportunity to promote the city to Chinese investors in the House of Commons, with more and more Midlands businesses looking to secure foreign direct investment. Indeed, as Byrne said: “Overseas direct investment from China is set to dramatically increase over the next ten years. Imagine if Britain captured a large share of this.”

At Birmingham Airport, we take our role in supporting these relationships incredibly seriously. We understand that long-haul connectivity is a central driver of economic growth, boosting trade and exports, encouraging foreign direct investment and attracting tourism. From our discussions with regional businesses, we know that ready access to these emerging markets from the nearest global airport is a critical factor for their development. With this in mind, 2014 was an incredibly exciting year for Birmingham Airport – our 75th anniversary year, and one when we completed a number of major developments. Notably, as part of a £200m site-wide expansion programme, we completed the extension of our runway for longer haul flights. Now open, airlines can offer long-haul services to the Far East, the West Coast of the US, South America and South Africa to and from Birmingham, allowing goods and passengers from the region to travel further, faster, and attracting inward tourism and investment. As a result of having greater runway capability, as well as a joint campaign with government, we received the first direct flights from Beijing to a UK airport outside of London in July 2014. This charter service, operated by China Southern Airlines, highlighted the appetite for long-haul flights to and from the region. Indeed, there’s evident growth in the long-haul market at Birmingham Airport, with more daily flights

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Paul Kehoe, chief executive of Birmingham Airport

to New York, a third daily service to Dubai, and daily flights between Birmingham, Delhi and Amritsar. Furthermore, in the last year, Birmingham Airport has been able to secure BA code shares to New York and Barcelona.

We know demand is growing. 2014 was our busiest ever year, handling nearly 10 million passengers. This included a 7.2% boost in long-haul traffic. By 2020, we are forecast to handle 15 million passengers a year.

Competition, aviation innovation, new aircraft types and new rail links are all making this possible.

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Business demand is also growing. Birmingham Airport is located at the heart of the manufacturing powerhouse of the UK. West Midlands exports are the fastest growing in the UK (£27bn in 2013), with the highest growth to long-haul destinations. Indeed, our region has the largest trade surplus with North America, and is the only region to have a positive balance of trade with China.

However, we know the region offers more than just manufacturing, with expertise in financial services, engineering, research and development, science, technology, education

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and the arts. As a result of our growth and our commitment to the region, Birmingham Airport is one of the West Midlands’ largest employers, supporting some 6,500 jobs on site. In addition to catering for the growing demand, the runway extension and development of the airport is also a driver for new growth, both in terms of long-haul flights, connecting flights to feed the longhaul network and increased demand for cargo freight movement. This passenger growth, enhanced by the longer haul connectivity we can now provide, is estimated to help generate thousands of new jobs at the airport and in the immediate supply chain – an announcement that was welcomed during a visit by the Prime Minister in 2014.

It’s not only business leaders and entrepreneurs who increasingly rely on Birmingham Airport.

Within a few years, investment in the railways, especially high-speed rail, will mean millions of passengers can make a meaningful choice between airports in London, Manchester or Birmingham. This is why we support the work of Midlands Connect and the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority, bringing the region’s transport network together and making the case for our region as the centre of the UK’s economy.

Sir Howard Davies’ Airports Commission on runway capacity is considering options solely based in the South East; however, Davies’ final decision, if implemented, will have a profound effect on the whole country, and especially our region. If Heathrow is allowed to grow it will constrain our region’s aviation connectivity even more than it does now. Heathrow is an essential UK airport and must remain a world class airport for the sake of the UK and our region. But, for the Midlands to grow, Heathrow must become complementary to Birmingham Airport, serving the routes only a very large airport can whilst leaving room for our long-haul airport to develop the new routes that our region needs.

That’s the message that businesses must continue delivering to the Airports Commission and the politicians who will make the final decision. n For more details, visit www.balancedaviation.com/roomtogrow

AVIATION NEWS

William Pearson of Birmingham Airport with Air India staff

>> Demand soars as new routes are announced Several long-distance airlines have increased their flights from Birmingham Airport to India, Asia and the Middle East for 2015, while other carriers have announced new direct links to France and Spain. The news comes as Birmingham Airport revealed it handled 9,707,449 passengers in 2014, its busiest year ever and an increase of 6.5% compared with 2013. Extended schedules include: daily links between Birmingham, Delhi and Amritsar, after Air India increased its schedule from four to seven flights a week from 21 December 2014, with additional services operating on Sundays, Fridays and Saturdays; Turkish Airlines’ flights between Birmingham and Istanbul increasing from 10 to 12 flights a week from 29 March; Emirates starting a third daily service between Birmingham and Dubai from 1 August; and Aegean Airlines increasing capacity between Birmingham and Athens by 8,500 seats between April and October.

Meanwhile, new direct flight destinations recently unveiled for 2015 include: Flybe’s summer link to Deauville, in north-west France, a three times a week service between June and September that joins the airline’s other new routes to Bastia, Corsica and Biarritz; low-cost airline Norwegian’s new flights from Birmingham to Madrid and Malaga from March, and to Barcelona from June; and Spain’s low-cost carrier Vueling starting another direct flight to Barcelona three times a week from June.

The above destinations come on top of American Airlines’ already-announced daily flights from Birmingham to New York, which start on 8 May. Paul Kehoe, chief executive of Birmingham Airport, said: “Our new passenger record has been achieved as a result of airlines introducing new routes and more people realising the ease of travelling to and through Birmingham Airport. 2015 looks equally exciting as we prepare for American Airlines, Norwegian and Vueling to start operations in the summer.

“We also expect Dubai to overtake Dublin as the busiest route this year, with Emirates’ third daily service from August. This clearly shows the strong demand that exists in the city and the region for passengers who want connectivity to Dubai, Asia and Australia. And with more capacity being offered by Turkish Airlines, Air India, SAS, Brussels Airlines, Aegean, Thomson and Thomas Cook, travellers can expect more choice than ever from Birmingham in 2015.”

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

THE BIG ISSUES

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>> A critical eye, by John Duckers >> Manufacturing is the region’s future – but more skills are needed The 2015 Centre for Cities report makes grim reading for Birmingham. Running slowly through and then skimming back I couldn’t spot a statistical table in which we came in the top ten cities for anything.

Conversely, Birmingham is among the ten cities with the lowest employment rates – 64.2%. Similarly, it was in the ten posting the highest claimant count – 3.9%. The absolute pits for number of people with no formal qualifications at all – 16.5%. And second worst for the highest levels of inequality.

On a wider perspective than just Birmingham, the report notes: “Despite a consistent political commitment from all parties to improve the relative economic performance of places outside of the South, the gap between cities in the South and cities in the rest of the UK has increased, not diminished.

“Looking over a 10-year period from 2004 to 2013 shows that the differences in population growth, the number of businesses, the number of jobs and house price affordability have continued to widen between cities in the South and cities elsewhere in the UK. “This differing performance is even more marked when looking at private sector jobs.

Cities in the South had 12.6 per cent more private sector jobs in 2013 than in 2004.

But cities elsewhere had fewer private sector jobs in 2013 than they did a decade ago – a contraction of 1.1 per cent.”

What to do about all this? And what to do about Birmingham? Personally, I’m with Birmingham City Business School’s Dr Steve McCabe. He states: “The report makes the case that the next government must do things very differently through investment and planning. As many, including myself, have consistently argued, Birmingham needs to place greater emphasis on rebuilding our manufacturing expertise that was so thoughtlessly undermined in the 1980s.”

A point I too have consistently been

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

a place but only a small place. They produce low-paid, low-skilled and low-esteem jobs. The creative industries is viewed as the panacea – again, it has a place, but it will never be mainstream. Manufacturing is in Birmingham’s DNA; manufacturing produces highly-paid quality jobs. But when will what I believe is an inept city council and equally inept LEP get the message?

>> JLR jobs reveals skills shortage

Manufacturing is in Birmingham’s DNA; it produces highly-paid quality jobs. But when will what I believe is an inept city council and equally inept LEP get the message? hammering away at – manufacturing is the only future for Birmingham. We can lever off the vast success of Jaguar Land Rover.

Suppliers are already benefiting hugely. We can lever off HS2 as it gets closer.

But frittering on about retail, leisure and tourism will not solve the problem – they have

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Meanwhile, Jaguar Land Rover’s continuing growth is likely to expose the region’s chronic skills shortage even further. It’s feared that many experienced and skilled employees will join the booming manufacturer in the luxury vehicles market – leaving firms in the region’s supply chain short of talent.

This follows JLR’s announcement of plans to recruit 1,300 workers to build a new aluminium SUV model at its Solihull plant, powered by Jaguar’s new Ingenium engine, itself built at the company’s new £500m engine factory near Wolverhampton.

Away from the gloss of official statements linked to the announcement, it was only in autumn 2014 that JLR voiced its own worries about skills. Speaking then, JLR marketing director Phil Popham admitted the fast growing business was finding it difficult to find the workers they need.

He said: “There’s generally a shortage of skills, particularly on the engineering side, and we do predict that the number of engineers in the future is going to be a problem. We are attracting many, many people and have got an employee base now of close to 30,000. We have employed 11,000 people extra in the last three years and finding those skills becomes increasingly difficult.”

If even JLR are worried, what’s it like in the boardrooms of top automotive suppliers?

It will certainly need more focus than the government’s paltry £11.3m funding for an Automotive Council UK skills development initiative, announced in January.

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COMPANY PROFILE

MAS helps Branduer with £2m reshoring win A Birmingham-based process. The deal – worth £2m over precision manufacturer the next ten years – involves the is celebrating Birmingham firm supplying after it revealed a major components all over the world, reshoring win that will see 25 including China, India, Mexico, million components shipped UAE and the United States. across the world every year.

Rowan Crozier, Chief Executive Brandauer, the presswork and Officer of Brandauer, commented: stamping specialist, fought off “This is a fantastic win for us, as competition from a number of it highlights our ability to take international rivals to secure the on complex progression tooling Rowan Crozier, CEO of Brandauer tooling-up and volume production challenges and move them swiftly of a cable conduit retention ring into volume production supply. for the telecoms sector. Backed by support from “Whilst we were able to match our global the Manufacturing Advisory Service’s ReshoreUK competitors on price, it was our track record for service, the company was able to compete on the delivering continuous world class quality that made part price, whilst significantly improving the raw the difference to the customer.” He continued: material utilisation throughout the production “We’ve received a lot of support from MAS on

THE HEAD SAYS YES. THE HEART SAYS DEFINITELY, YES.

customer service training, leadership development and sales and marketing…this external advice and funding has made a massive difference to us.”

Now part of the Business Growth Service, MAS provides growing manufacturers in England with access to specialist support and guidance in helping them improve and grow.

www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/mas Twitter: @mas_works/@bgs_tweets T: 0300 303 0034 www.brandauer.co.uk @cbrandauer

G H I B L I

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THE NEW MASERATI GHIBLI IS POWERED BY A RANGE OF ADVANCED 3.0 LITRE V6 ENGINES WITH 8-SPEED ZF AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, INCLUDING, FOR THE FIRST TIME, A V6 TURBODIESEL ENGINE.

Official fuel consumption figures for Maserati Ghibli range in mpg (l/100km): Urban 18.0 (15.7) – 37.2 (7.6), Extra Urban 38.7 (7.3) – 56.5 (5.0), Combined 27.2 (10.4) – 47.9 (5.9). CO2 emissions 242 – 158 g/km. Fuel consumption and CO2 figures are based on standard EU tests for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. Model shown is a Maserati Ghibli S at £70,598 On The Road including optional pearlescent paint at £1,776, 21” Titano design alloy wheels at £3,670 and Red brake callipers at £432.

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GRAYPAUL BIRMINGHAM 120 HIGHLANDS ROAD, SHIRLEY SOLIHULL, B90 4NU Phone: 0121 293 1107 www.graypaul-birmingham.co.uk

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30/01/2015 16:08

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

NEWS

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Birmingham leads the way for start-ups outside the capital, performers’ platform strikes a chord, luxury car maker puts faith in MIRA, TV Dragon helps idea to fly, former banker treads new path >> A powerhouse for start-ups

>> Enterprise drivers revealed

Birmingham remains the most entrepreneurial UK city outside London, according to data released by StartUp Britain.

Analysis of Companies House data shows that 18,337 new businesses were registered in Birmingham during 2014 – an increase of over 2,000 on the previous year.

Manchester follows in second place with 13,054 companies registered, and Brighton is third with 8,344. Birmingham was also the most popular regional destination for start-ups in 2013 according to StartUp Britain, a national entrepreneurship campaign, with 16,281 companies registered.

Neil Rami, chief executive of inward investment agency Marketing Birmingham, said: “Birmingham’s ability to attract and retain the UK’s entrepreneurial talent has created a thriving ecosystem of start-ups, helping to drive its economic growth.

“The city is entering a new period of transformation – with schemes ranging from Birmingham New Street’s redevelopment to the transformation of the Paradise Circus area and the impending construction of HS2.”

Most would-be entrepreneurs give up their day jobs to launch new enterprises because they want to be their own boss, according to new research by Barclays.

Research showed 54% said they wanted to work for themselves. Being made redundant inspires 20% while turning a hobby into a business is a key driver for 16%.

Barclays’ managing director for the Midlands, Ray O’Donoghue, said: “It’s important that business owners are passionate about what they do, as commitment and motivation are key tools to get a successful business up and running. It’s good to see that one in six have turned their hobby into a source of income.”

His top tips for a business plan are: • State clearly what products or services your business will provide.

• Evaluate how customers will access your products or services.

• Look at consumers’ needs and work out what they will want from your business.

• Make sure the question of how you tell consumers about your business is answered thoroughly.

>> Help at hand when weighing up investment options BizzInn, the University of Birmingham’s business incubator, has launched a new Investment Readiness Programme that will help new companies to attract seed investment.

The programme has been designed to help entrepreneurs to assess their readiness for investment and to develop credible presentations to pitch or showcase their offerings directly to investors.

Start-ups, young businesses and those with business ideas will benefit from workshops delivered by experts. They will cover a range of topics including analysing markets and competition, understanding and communicating the customers’ offer, developing and presenting business models and financial plans, and building skilled teams. David Coleman, head of enterprise acceleration at the University of Birmingham, said: “Investment can be a mystery for entrepreneurs who are just starting. These workshops will help participants get to grips with the realities of their own business so that they understand what is needed to attract investment.”

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

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>> Scheme marks milestone The Black Country Skills Factory is supporting its 100th apprentice in the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) sector since July 2013. Nick Fletcher, aged 18, is currently training as an apprentice turner at J Marklew Engineering Ltd, in Netherton, Dudley. The Black Country Skills Factory is an employer-led project supported by government funding whose aim is to address the skills shortages in the HVM sector in the region. It’s the only scheme of its kind across the UK and has resulted in a 21% increase in engineering apprenticeships. Fletcher said: “I’ve always preferred hands-on work and I wanted to follow a route that would allow me to get on-the-job training and demonstrate my own creativity. Through my apprenticeship at J Marklew I feel I am getting specialised training whilst also earning a salary.”

For further information and to find out if your company is eligible for one of the engineering apprenticeship wage subsidies, visit www.blackcountryskillsfactory.co.uk/ apprentices/wage-subsidies or contact Colin Parker on 07944 268 709.

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

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COMPANY PROFILE

Birmingham Research Park Discover the gateway to growth AT THE HEART OF THE REGION’S MEDICAL CLUSTER Situated in the heart of the Edgbaston Medical Quarter, Birmingham Research Park has an enviable location, approximately two miles from the centre of Birmingham, adjacent to the University of Birmingham and the new Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

This unique position makes the Research Park the best location in the West Midlands for young ‘high growth’ companies that need access to both the best research minds and the biggest markets in this part of the UK. FLEXIBLE SPACE TO GROW Space ranges from small one man offices up to 5,000 sq.ft in a single block for larger businesses.

For start-ups not yet ready to move into office premises, the Park’s business incubation space, BizzInn, provides free desk space for up to 6 months for new and eligible enterprises.

THE BIOHUB BIRMINGHAM The first of its kind in the UK, the BioHub Birmingham, is the latest addition to the park.

A fully serviced laboratory, it is specifically designed to provide biomedical entrepreneurs and innovative start-ups with access to affordable, shared facilities and equipment.

Individual laboratories will also be available as grow-on space.

CASE STUDY Spring Active founder, Peter Dines shares his experience of how BizzInn support has helped to develop his latest healthcare business. “I had just started my company, Spring Active, which is focused on alleviating back pain, when I first heard about the facilities at BizzInn. I had just acquired the knowledge and assets of my business, and the offer of the low fixed costs provided by BizzInn, allowed me to focus on business development. But, it was access to BizzInn’s network of contacts that really helped me to develop my business. I gained free advice and guidance on Intellectual Property and was introduced to specific people at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Psychology Department, and the University of Birmingham’s Health Economics Department.

With the help of BizzInn, my business has grown significantly in a short period of time. Now I employ 2.5 members of staff, and have graduated to larger offices within Birmingham Research Park. I chose to stay at the Park because of its superb location within the Edgbaston Medical Quarter and I have now also re-located another of my businesses, Diagnostic Health, to the Park.

The working environment at BizzInn is an exciting one, and through my experiences and knowledge I have also been able to help other tenants as they develop their businesses. I would definitely recommend BizzInn to any business that is looking to grow.”

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NETWORKING FOR GREAT BUSINESS MINDS BizzInn also hosts the University of Birmingham Business Club for business people who are looking to network and exchange ideas with members of the Business Engagement team and academics at the University of Birmingham. The Club holds breakfast briefings that give members the opportunity to discuss topical business issues with experts from Birmingham Business School and other areas of the University.

REGISTER NOW FOR THE NEXT EVENT ON THE 23 APRIL, EMAIL BUSINESSTEAM@BHAM.AC.UK

For further information contact, Tim Yates, Marketing and Communications Manager, Business Engagement, University of Birmingham 0121 414 8635, t.yates.1@bham.ac.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

NEWS

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>> Security firm expands Cyber security expert CCL Solutions is hiring 40 new staff and has opened a new office totalling 20,000 sq ft in Stratford upon Avon, following a funding package worth £1.2m from Santander.

The IT group, which works in the digital forensics sector, counts the taxman, the Gambling Commission and 28 of the UK’s 43 police forces among its customers. The new jobs will increase the company’s headcount to around 150 by mid-2015.

Andrew Krauze, CCL’s managing director, said: “With everyone now using mobile devices the need for digital forensics has dramatically increased and this has resulted in our need to expand.”

Singer Abby Scott (left) with Susanna Westwood

>> Cheque this out!

>> Idea strikes a chord Midlands-based entrepreneur Susanna Westwood has successfully launched a new online platform to help performers make money, thanks to £350,000 of private investment and funding. www.emergeination.com made its debut two months ago at the Jam House in Birmingham and since then the website has experienced over 250,000 hits and has over 1,000 registered users.

Chief executive Westwood’s brainchild is an online platform designed to help musicians, fashion designers, artists, dancers and filmmakers to profile their work, generate an income and create a lasting impact within their industry.

The Emergeination experts, based in Wolverhampton, have worked with acts ranging from Take That and Prince and Beverley Knight, to showcasing collections at London Fashion Week and New York Fashion Week, and collaborating with Sky TV and the BBC. Singer-songwriter Abby Scott said: “Emergeination has helped me to get my music out there, to be seen by the right people, and make more money from doing what I love.”

>> Haven for mobile workers A Regus Express has opened at the Hilton Warwick near Stratford upon Avon, at junction 15 of the M40. The venue offers local firms and people working on the move somewhere to meet, catch up on emails and do business. It’s the first hotel location for a Regus Express and features a drop-in business lounge with individual workstations

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

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

called Thinkpods, comfy seats with laptop stands and phone chargers, as well as free, secure Wi-Fi. Meeting rooms seating two to four people can be booked by the hour.

Phil Kemp of Regus said: “We know that more and more people are working flexibly, instead of the traditional 9-to-5 in the office, and we are confident this latest site will prove popular.”

Birmingham-based BES Limited has become the first company in the UK to trial a remote cheque imaging service with Barclays.

The trial allows BES to deposit cheques from their own premises, scanning them in using desktop software and digitally transferring them. This could save significant amounts of time and money paying in customer’s cheques at the bank, and gives instant visibility of the credit on their account.

Rob Pinder, relationship director from Barclays corporate banking team in Birmingham, said: “The cheque imaging service has proved hugely popular during its initial trial with our retail customers and the next step is to see how the service can work for our corporate clients. We are delighted that BES Ltd has agreed to work with us on this trial.”

Sarah Meredith, managing director of BES Ltd, said: “When Barclays first approached us to get involved with this initiative, we were only too pleased to help.”

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

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NEWS

caused by forgetting essential information.

It creates a virtual link between the things people want to remember and the objects and people around them, offering a smart reminder system which collates data, image and voice files to prompt the user about day to day tasks. Mary Matthews, founder of Memrica, said: “Memrica Prompt is a memory aid that can be built over time with photos, prompts, references and calendar notes to make all aspects of everyday life easier, such as going to the hairdresser or doctors, as well as relating to family and friends.”

The Memrica Prompt app is expected to launch to the public this summer.

>> Dragon helps idea to fly >> Luxury car maker lured by that MIRA touch Luxury British sports car manufacturer Aston Martin has taken space at the MIRA Technology Park in the West Midlands for its prototype and vehicle development operations.

George Gillespie, chief executive at MIRA Ltd, said: “Aston Martin is a very welcome addition, and will be able to take advantage of MIRA’s extensive research and testing facilities. The automotive technology cluster we are building is really gaining traction with many of the major global automotive players taking up residency.”

Ian Minards, product development director at Aston Martin, said: “This excellent facility gives our engineering teams exactly what they need to ensure the next generation of Aston Martin sports cars continue to be truly class-leading.”

Other companies at the MIRA Technology Park, near Nuneaton, Warwickshire, include Haldex, Bosch, Norgren and Lockheed Martin.

>> Jobless given heart Almost 1,000 unemployed people across the West Midlands have been supported thanks to funds from a Community Grants Programme. The Heart of England Community Foundation has been distributing the grants from the European Social Fund (ESF) over the past 12 months to help break down barriers to employment. Barriers to employment range from disabilities to issues around confidence and 133 projects and groups across the West Midlands have been supported with grants averaging £13,231. That has led to 951 individuals being helped through a variety of measures – from IT training to theatre workshops. Tina Costello, director at the Heart of England Community Foundation, said: “Some of the projects have provided practical

vocational skills while others have been more creative and have looked at ways of improving people’s confidence. Those softer interventions are just as, if not more, important than the more obvious support such as assistance with CVs or IT training. The results we are seeing, even before the projects close, are extremely positive and bode well for the future.”

>> Grant for memory aid app Memrica, a technology start-up based at the Innovation Birmingham Campus, is developing a mobile aid for people with memory problems, including the early stages of dementia. A grant from Nominet Trust has been awarded to develop the first roll-out of the app, which is called ‘Memrica Prompt’, designed to reduce the anxiety and frustration

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Midland businessman Matthew Flint launched what he claims is the world’s first online market place for reclaimed, salvaged, up-cycled and antique goods, with the help of £20,000 of private investment. The Reclamation Shop, based at Cannock, Staffordshire, also enjoyed a business boost thanks to Dragons’ Den TV star Theo Paphitis, who thought so much of Flint’s problem-solving site that he tweeted about the business to his 437,000 Twitter followers. The website allows users to view and buy items from some of the largest and most well-established reclamation, salvage and antique yards in the country and locate ‘hidden gems’ before even leaving their home.

>> Investment bears fruit A West Midland’s supplier of dried fruits and treats has secured £200,000 funding to invest in new machinery.

Kingswinford-based J G Foods Ltd, which trades as Grapetree, is owned by business partners Nick Shutts and Nigel Morris – the duo who built the successful Julian Graves brand of 350 stores. They secured the funding from Barclays for vertical filling machinery that will mean they can bring packing ‘in house’.

Nick Shutts said: “The investment in this equipment will substantially increase our output and it means all of our stock is held in one location.”

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

NEWS

SPRING 15

>> Probate go-ahead for Curo

>> Making inroads in the UAE

West Midlands number-crunchers Curo has proudly become one of the region’s first practices to be licensed to carry out probate work by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Until recently, probate was the preserve of law firms but now accountants are able to carry it out, subject to passing the relevant exams.

Julia Whelan, head of tax at Bromsgrovebased Curo, said: “Probate work sits naturally alongside our current offering and we are well placed to help guide clients through the process with compassion and efficiency.”

HME Technology, the Midland manufacturer and installer of design and technology equipment, has picked up more work in Abu Dhabi and has broken into Dubai.

The Bromsgrove-based firm will be supplying the newly-opened Nord Anglia International School in Dubai, with a £122,000 contract to set up a workshop with 3D printers. The extra Abu Dhabi order is worth another £42,000.

Julian Davis, HME managing director, said: “We started in Abu Dhabi and word has spread. We are very pleased. Our export business is burgeoning and we want to grow it

Kuljit Pahal with Margaret Bull

>> Former banker treads a new path A Warwickshire businessman put the brakes on his career in investment banking – to set up his own successful tyre-fitting company. Kuljit Pahal worked for a number of investment banks, including HSBC and Merrill Lynch, for 12 years but recently decided to launch The Tyre Company at the Bermuda Trade Park in Nuneaton. He received support through the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s start-up programme, funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Warwickshire County Council. The company now employs three staff and serves around 300 motorists per month. Kuljit said: “I enjoyed investment banking but never loved what I did – I love cars and helping people so I thought I’d do something which I have a passion for. My ambition was to become the best local fast fit tyre centre and I wanted all drivers to feel comfortable and confident, especially female drivers. So we have ensured that our service is very open and friendly and we’ve had great feedback from customers.”

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

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

even more. One of the reasons we won it was because of our reputation for quality products and high health and safety standards. Our equipment is tried and tested in the UAE and our follow-up work is respected.”

>> Funding secures deal A Midlands plastic plating company has clinched a deal with luxury car manufacturer Bentley after receiving funds from Finance Birmingham.

Quality Plated Products (QPP), based at Kingstanding, Birmingham, received £350k from the funding provider, enabling it to provide interior chrome parts for Bentley’s first ever SUV model.

John Timmins, managing director of QPP, said: “Without the funds from Finance Birmingham we would have had to turn down the opportunity to work with Bentley on what could be an important stream of work, not just for us but for toolmakers across the region.

“This opens up a huge market of opportunities and the potential to bring further work into the Midlands.”

The £24m Tooling Funding Programme was created to help component manufacturers fund the design, development and manufacture of tooling.

It’s open to manufacturing companies seeking a loan of £50,000 to £1m, although larger funding requests will also be considered.

This opens up a huge market of opportunities

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

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SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

Paul Hamilton explains why bond yields matter so much to company pension schemes For many medium sized companies with final salary schemes, one of the major threats to their solvency is their ongoing and seemingly ever increasing liability to their final salary pension scheme Clients often ask us whether to start, or to continue with, a strategy of shifting funds into gilts to reduce risk at a time when the general expectation is that bond yields are likely to rise and therefore cause capital losses.

BASICS ON BONDS Bonds are effectively loans to government, in the case of gilts, or to companies in the case of corporate bonds. In return for lending money, the bond owner is entitled to receive regular interest payments, or income and repayment of their initial loan at the end of the agreed term. In theory pension schemes use bonds so that the interest payments match the amount of pension being paid out to pensioners. However, interest rates are historically low so the cost required to buy a bond is relatively expensive.

SO, WITH THE PROSPECT OF GENERAL INTEREST RATE RISES WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS: The Adviser’s View: The problem for most schemes is that actuaries use government bond yields to determine the rate at which a pension scheme’s investments are expected to grow. The problem with this is that bonds have been falling consistently over the last few years, thus increasing their liabilities. A 1% fall in bond yields increases the liabilities of a typical defined benefit pension scheme by around 20%. Since quantitative easing was introduced after the financial crisis, many trustees have argued that actuarial methodology could be holding them to ransom. We have all seen the general demise of the annuity being viable for private schemes and the introduction of flexibility, so it could be argued by trustees that flexible

Paul Hamilton and Jackie Hendley, Smith Cooper Independemt Financial Solutions

investment strategies, reflecting assets that are expected to perform best over the long term, should be pursued.

The Actuary’s View: The view of professional advisers is that although the actuarial methodology has its faults, there is no better solution and no expectation that official rules, or the guidelines of the Pensions Regulator, are likely to change. Like it or not, the actuarial process is not going to go away. Every three years each pension scheme must take a snapshot in time and estimate its liabilities.

If bond yields have fallen over the period then, all other things being equal, the cost of liabilities will rise and the company will be expected to put more money into the scheme. And while it may seem inevitable that yields will rise over the coming years, market prices already reflect this widespread opinion. Nothing is ever clear cut.

Smith Cooper View: We have some sympathy with both perspectives. The idea of investing in poor performing bonds simply because of the way that actuarial calculations are done is not compelling.

With ten-year gilt yields now below the headline

Smith Cooper Independent Financial Solutions Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (443209). This information is based on our current understanding of legislation and regulations.

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inflation target it may seem odd to pursue a strategy that is destined to lose money. We too expect bond yields to gradually rise in the coming years, which should have a positive effect on scheme deficits. That said, we do not believe that any such approach should be taken in isolation.

Every pension scheme is different. We work closely with our clients to identify the solution that works best for them - whether this means a larger reliance on bonds or other assets. The important thing is to ensure the assets are invested in a bespoke way that ensures the best result for the scheme. Bespoke investment has traditionally been the preserve of large pension schemes but investment management practices have evolved to the point where small pension schemes can access a tailored portfolio.

With the forthcoming changes from FRS17 to FRS102 companies operating a defined benefit pension scheme are likely to see an increased charge to the profit and loss account. This could have a significant impact on a firm’s credit rating and general operation. Those schemes that are invested bullishly will be most affected and companies are urged to work closely with scheme trustees. We can help with preparation of scheme accounts, undertaking scheme audits and covenant assessments, whilst also reviewing the schemes investment strategy.

If you’d like to discuss this and any other aspects of company pension schemes or financial planning please contact Paul Hamilton, or for business advisory, accounting and tax please contact Jackie Hendley from Smith Cooper on 0121 236 6789.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

GIVING SOMETHING BACK

SPRING 15

>> Patient inspires Pertemps

>> Group effort tops £10,000

Staff at a West Midlands employment and training specialists donated £1,500 to Macmillan Cancer Support to help celebrate the start of 2015. Pertemps People Development Group presented the cheque to local fundraising manager Emily Morgan after being inspired by the story of a former patient who now volunteers for the charity.

ALDRIDGE-based contractor Shaylor Group exceeded its target of £10,000 to donate to its chosen charity Beating Bowel Cancer.

Beating Bowel Cancer is a cause close to the hearts of Shaylor Group as its founder and chairman Fred Shaylor lost his fight against the disease in 2013. As a result, the entire company has wholeheartedly thrown itself into raising £22,671.

>> Charity sings the Blues

>> Digging in Fifty staff at Cushman & Wakefield gave up two days of their time to help a fledgling Birmingham charity that works on behalf of injured ex-forces personnel.

The workers at the real estate company’s Birmingham office helped the Thrive charity with its ambitious plan to help turn part of Kings Heath Park into a gardeningbased rehabilitation centre.

Funded by the British Legion, the ‘Down to Earth’ programme aims to help ex-forces personnel with physical and psychological problems.

>> Easing the burden Birmingham accountancy firm, Clement Keys, has named Ronald McDonald House Birmingham as its new charity partner.

The business aims to raise £5,000 over the next year for the 61 bedroom facility that provides free ‘home away from home’ accommodation to families whose children are at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

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

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

Volunteers and families from a Birmingham-based charity saw Blues’ 3-1 victory against Wigan at St. Andrew’s in January, thanks to EZE Group. The charity Home-Start, Northfield – which helps more than 100 families a year – was handed 20 match-day tickets and a signed football to use for fundraising by the travel and leisure group.

>> Bowled over by support >> Making money grow Pesto Italian Restaurants raised £960 for Macmillan Cancer Support with an Apprentice-style challenge. Teams used entrepreneurial skills to transform £20 into as much money as possible in two months.

The group, including the team from the restaurant on Hollyfield Road in Sutton Coldfield, came up with creative ideas to grow the cash fund, from baking homemade cupcakes to a restaurant swap shop and even selling handmade loom band bracelets.

>> Beyond expectations THE Midcounties Co-operative has smashed its annual fundraising target by collecting more than £500,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust. Its staff and customers have been supporting the charity for two years, and the final in-store fundraising saw the amount top £550,000.

Former England cricket team captain, Alec Stewart, delivered a cheque for £1,300.65 raised by Yorkshire Bank and its business customers, to St Mary’s Hospice in Birmingham. As part of the Bank’s Business Week, the Birmingham Business and Private Banking Centre held a Customer Quiz Night at the Opus Restaurant in Birmingham to raise money for the Hospice. The quiz was attended by 48 local business people.

>> Getting stuck in VOLUNTEERS from the West Bromwich Building Society showed their skills with glitter, glue and sticky stars to get stuck in at the Art Kart project at Birmingham Children’s Hospital. Five building society colleagues brought along an array of colourful materials and helped young patients have fun making cards and other items while waiting for their hospital appointments.

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

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MOVERS AND SHAKERS >> Pauline raises her profile Deloitte has appointed Birmingham-based corporate finance partner Pauline Biddle as the leader of its Midlands practice.

Pauline joined Deloitte in 2002, as part of the Andersen transaction, and was admitted to Partnership three years later. In the last year she’s led more than twenty of the firm’s highest profile deals, including LDC’s acquisition of Prism Medical, the Rigby Group purchase of Norwich Airport and the IPO of Mercia Technologies.

Pauline also heads up the firm’s national UK Aerospace and Defence Industry Group and sits on the national Corporate Finance Leadership Team, which will continue.

SPRING 15

Pro Vice-Chancellor at Plymouth University with responsibility for Regional Enterprise and Professor of Knowledge Transfer. He has extensive experience of the private sector, and working on commercial and public policy.

its Birmingham lawyers being singled out for particular praise.

Angela Fitzpatrick, head of the personal injury department at the practice, based in Edmund Street, Birmingham, has received a special mention for a second consecutive year, with the publication describing her as “knowledgeable and down to earth” and having “the perfect touch with clients”.

>> Out to make his Mark

>> A shining example Stella Layton, chief executive at Birmingham Assay Office, has been elected as the new chairman of the Jewellery Quarter Development Trust, succeeding David Mahony.

Before becoming the chief executive of the Assay Office in January 2014, Stella worked for Cookson Precious Metals Division, whose headquarters are based in Vittoria Street, for 28 years.

>> Enterprising role for Julian Birmingham City University has appointed Professor Julian Beer as Pro ViceChancellor of Research, Enterprise and Business Engagement. He was previously

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

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

National tax, audit and advisory firm Crowe Clark Whitehill has appointed corporate specialist Mark Evans as a partner in its Midlands office. Crowe Clark Whitehill chief executive David Mellor said: “Growing our core markets is a key aspect of our national strategy, and I am pleased to welcome Mark to the firm. His strong corporate experience will complement our Midlands partner team.”

>> Adrian switches allegiance Midlands law firm Shakespeares has poached Adrian Bland from competitor Eversheds, tempting him with a senior leadership position as head of commercial real estate. Adrian was previously head of property and the senior partner of Eversheds in Birmingham. He is also chairman and executive committee member at global real estate think tank Urban Land Institute in the Midlands.

>> Rising in the rankings Midlands law firm DBS Law has been recognised for its quality legal services in the latest Legal 500 UK rankings, with one of

>> First class Male John Male, a senior development specialist who has worked with Airbus and BAE, has been appointed as managing director of the £18m Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre at Ansty park, Coventry. Male has more than 30 years’ experience working in learning and organisational development in industry.

He was production team leader at Airbus and then responsible for training and development at manufacturing locations across the UK.

>> Nageena takes silk Nageena Khalique, a barrister at Birmingham’s No5 Chambers, is to be appointed to Her Majesty’s Queen’s Counsel.

Khalique is head of the public law group at No5, and her appointment takes the number of silks at the set to 28. She is also head of inquests, public inquiries and the coronial law group, and head of the Court of Protection group.

Putting world-class expertise to work in your business

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SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

Resolving Wills, Trust and Estate Disputes Gavin Faber a Partner at Irwin Mitchell says families fall out at the best of times and the consequences can be devastating Families fall out at the best of times and the consequences can be devastating.

This can be exacerbated following a death. The controversial provisions of a will can quickly lead to a total and utter breakdown in the relationship amongst family members. People’s emotions can overwhelm them. It can become an exceptionally emotive dispute and as such people can often be ruled by their heart rather than their head. It can create a situation where the family is quickly ripped apart.

Claims are on the rise. Recent reports indicate that claims have increased by 30%. This is, in my view, the tip of the iceberg. One in five people have been involved in a Will dispute in the UK and this is likely to increase. Irwin Mitchell gets 70 new enquiries a month on average and this figure is growing. It is a significantly higher figure than it was even three years ago.

It is difficult to avoid these disputes where there are disappointed beneficiaries and their very nature means that they are not easy to resolve.

It is vitally important to take advice from expert advisors. This is a very specialised area of litigation and has its own unique rules and procedures. If it is approached like a commercial dispute, this can create additional problems. Those of us who are experienced in this area of law, generally adopt a pragmatic and reasonable stance, always looking to explore the possibility of settlement, given the very high costs involved in litigating the matter.

The first letter can set the tone for the way in which the dispute develops and ultimately the manner in which it is resolved.

In my view the best advice is simply to talk. People are naturally reluctant to discuss their wills and what will happen in the event of their death. There was an excellent example of this recently when it was reported in the National Press that a US

Gavin Faber, Partner

I am increasingly involved in assessing the risks of a dispute and devising strategies to minimise those risks accountant who had given her Maltese terrier a trust fund reportedly worth $100,000 a year has changed her will so that the beloved pet will also inherit a property in Florida. She revealed that she had spoken to her two sons about the decision and they “totally understood” the plans.

There are situations where there is no perfect solution. By way of example, a person may have two children, one of whom has worked in the family company for 20 years helping to make it the

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success that it is. The company may constitute 90% of the estate. Does the Testator leave his/ her shareholding to the child that has been in the business or look to split the estate equally?

There is no right or wrong answer. However, if everything is discussed openly and the reasons for the decision conveyed, it cannot often prevent a dispute arising after death. It is frequently the “shock” of the contents of the Will, at a time when family members may be suffering from significant feelings of loss and upset at the death of a loved one, that fuels the dispute.

I am increasingly involved in assessing the risks of a dispute and devising strategies to minimise those risks. I discuss these issues with the person making the will, in conjunction with the tax advisors, so that an informed decision can be made as to how to structure their estate. Indeed, I have found myself mediating with the family members to reach a solution that everyone can live with. This has so far avoided any disputes arising after death, and indeed, helped the airing of long-held grievances which has generally improved the relationships amongst the family For more information on how Irwin Mitchell can help to resolve Wills, Trust and Estate Disputes and minimise the risks contact Gavin Faber on 0121 203 5366

If you have any dispute about a will, trust or estate, please call Gavin Faber, T: 0121 203 5366 E:gavin.faber@irwinmitchell.com Imperial House, 31 Temple Street, Birmingham, B2 5DB

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

AS I SEE IT

SPRING 15

LEADING LIFE IN THE ECONOMIC FAST LANE Andy Street, chair of the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP), discusses what the region has achieved so far – and the exciting projects coming in 2015 The London-based media has traditionally believed that the economic recovery is rooted there and that somehow regional cities ‘are in the slow lane’. But steadily the political, business and media worlds are waking up to the reality that the West Midlands is now leading the recovery.

The latest statistics show that the greatest fall in unemployment has come in our region – credit to the hard work of businesses across the GBSLEP area. Personally, I feel that this can continue as, while the underlying economic situation is clearly the biggest determinant of success, we also have a lot of home-grown reasons to be optimistic.

The first reason is the Growth Deal, signed by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on his recent visit to the GBSLEP board in Birmingham. This secured an impressive £357m of government funding, as well as further private sector leverage for local economic developments.

The Growth Deal’s key targets are to create up to 19,000 new jobs by 2020, build 6,000 new homes, help 7,600 people to improve their skills, and introduce a wider package of investment to improve transport and unlock stalled development sites across the region.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

Now the promise of the Growth Deal is starting to become a reality as our first tranche of projects worth £63m are due to commence in April 2015. But we must not be satisfied with that alone. We must think about how to explore this new ‘partnership’ way of working with central Government.

Since the Scottish independence referendum, there’s been considerable discussion about regional devolution. My GBSLEP colleagues and I are keen to leave the political debate to the politicians. However, the arrival of the Growth Deal highlights how devolving funding from Whitehall to the LEPs can and will deliver faster growth for regions across the UK. The pressure is now on to prove we can deliver

The pressure is now on to prove we can deliver on all our commitments

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on all our commitments, as undoubtedly successful delivery will provide central Government with the confidence to agree further economic devolution during the next parliament. The next big source of optimism must be the growing HS2 momentum – vital to ensure our area is well positioned to exploit the project’s potential investment, jobs and skills. Last year, plans advanced impressively for both the Curzon Street and Interchange stations, and it was an undoubted coup to secure the HS2 construction headquarters to be based at Two Snowhill.

Similarly, the competitive award of the High Speed Rail College for Birmingham was a great team success, beating many other potential locations.

2015 will also see the completion of major infrastructure projects including New Street Station and the Metro extension, alongside commercial ‘votes of confidence’ such as Grand Central, the Mailbox refurbishment and Resorts World at the NEC. One of the benefits of LEPs has been their ability to use original thinking with partners to develop new and innovative ways of generating growth. Our Enterprise Zone (EZ),

SPRING 15

the only city centre based EZ in the UK, is emerging as a clear example of this. Alongside Birmingham City Council we have developed what we believe is a unique finance model to create a £275m Investment Plan.

Among other things this will make investments in infrastructure works, which in turn will allow private sector investments to occur, both in the EZ and across the wider LEP geography.

The outstanding example of this thinking is the redevelopment of Paradise Circus, now renamed simply ‘Paradise’, where work began in January. This major development promises to be the next iconic piece of the city centre’s reinvention, an excellent example of how GBSLEP and our partners have worked together. In time it will create a substantial number of jobs, helping to attract significant

commercial investment. Personally, I’m hugely looking forward to seeing this development take shape, although I’ll admit to a little sadness at seeing the old library go, as that’s where I studied for my A-levels – happy memories! Another project that’s received support from the EZ and got underway in January was Innovation Birmingham’s iCentrum building. Due to open in March 2016, this is the first phase of expansion for the Innovation Birmingham campus, creating an anticipated 400 new and highlyskilled jobs.

Another exciting initiative is the Institute of Translational Medicine, under Birmingham Health Partners, housed in the QE Hospital, which brings that historic building back into use. This is at the leading edge of the life

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AS I SEE IT

sciences industry and will improve patients’ lives by ‘translating’ medical research into new treatments. That’s powerful in itself, but also shows our economy’s growing diversity and hidden strengths.

So, 2015 has already got off to an excellent start with these new projects beginning and the prospects of others concluding during the year. It will be the year when those strengths show through – thanks in part to the public and private sectors combining for the mutual benefit of our citizens. That’s the GBSLEP mission. n Andy Street is managing director of John Lewis and chair of GBSLEP. For more information, visit www.centreofenterprise.com.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR

SPRING 15

GAMBLING ON THE SMELL OF SUCCESS What made legal eagle Rob Hallmark give up a respected profession to make and sell his own perfume? Ros Dodd finds out

For ten years, Birmingham corporate lawyer Rob Hallmark carried around a spicy secret – he fancied selling his own perfume. Today, that secret’s not only out in the open, it’s a commercial venture that Rob’s shouting about from the rooftops.

Last September he quit law, and in December officially launched Gruhme, a range of men’s fragrance and personal care products that he hopes will become a global brand reflecting the “best of British-ness”.

So passionately does he believe in his fledgling business that Rob has ploughed his savings and money from the sale of his loft apartment in the city’s Jewellery Quarter into producing Gruhme’s first fragrance.

Rob is yet to find a major retailer to stock Gruhme, but the £35, 100ml bottles of eau de toilette are already selling online and through The Barber House, a men’s salon and shaving parlour in Birmingham’s business district.

Although Rob has ditched a ‘safe’ legal career for a riskier life as an entrepreneur, he’s relishing the challenge. He hasn’t shrugged off his lawyer’s persona entirely, though: while clearly fired with enthusiasm and get-up-andgo, he wants to grow the company organically and with an eye firmly on the detail.

“I’ve started on a journey,” he explains. “It’s a 20-year project to become a household name, something to relish for a long time: not just profit and disappear. Some of the biggest selling fragrances are ones that’ve been around for a long time.”

But why would a successful lawyer decide to set up a business selling men’s perfume?

Malvern-educated Rob, a father-of-one in his early 30s, says he’s always had a creative edge and a desire to go into business, but that he followed a long family tradition and entered law: his father, uncle and grandfather were solicitors. After graduating from Durham University in 2003, Rob spent eight years as a corporate solicitor in Birmingham and London, acting for clients such as Compass Group and Barclays. Much as he enjoyed this, he felt like a “square peg in a round hole” and knew he needed to follow his dream.

“My time at Malvern College was almost entirely filled with design; I even picked up a design award. My mother’s an artist, so I’ve always felt like a bit of a geeky craftsman. So after several years as a lawyer, I decided to give in and do what I wanted to do.”

Rob picked up the scent of the kind of business he wanted to go into during a >>

ANDREW WHITING WEALTH CONSULTANCY LLP Senior Partner Practice of St. James’s Place Wealth Management Tel: 0121 215 0926 Email: andrew.whiting@sjpp.co.uk Web: www.andrewwhiting.co.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR visit to Grasse, the centre of the French perfume industry, also known as the world’s perfume capital.

“I went with a friend, who wanted us to buy some perfume for our girlfriends. I talked to one lady about fragrance and how it was made and it was really interesting: rather than needing global business resources, it came down to just one or two gifted people.

So for ten years it simmered in the back of my mind.”

It was the thought of buying a fragrance because he liked it, not because of a celebrity endorsement – with the accompanying price tag – that crystallised the idea in Rob’s mind, especially when his legal colleagues agreed.

“I was surrounded by hard-working, keen and self-aware guys, but none of us were major consumers of men’s fragrance and bespoke personal care products. I thought that was strange, because surely we fitted the demographic that such companies would be targeting.

“My peers told me they wanted to spend money, but couldn’t find products or brands that inspired them. The high street wasn’t changing enough in terms of the type of product available. Profits were increasingly going to massive shareholder bases rather than putting value into the products; so I saw an opportunity.

“My idea is not original; it’s about taking the established market and injecting it with something that guys like me want to buy – something masculine and straightforward.”

Rob wanted an affordable, ‘fresh’ balm that wasn’t too overpowering, and set about creating it by testing an array of perfumes and spices at a Northampton-based fragrance manufacturing company. The result is a “sensual aromatic woody accord” with top notes that include juniper berry, bergamot and lavender, plus traces of cumin and celery seed.

As well as refining the fragrance, Rob also needed the timing to be right: “I knew that if I wanted to do something like this, it would

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My idea is not original; it’s about taking the established market and injecting it with something that guys like me want to buy – something masculine and straightforward

ANDREW WHITING WEALTH CONSULTANCY LLP Senior Partner Practice of St. James’s Place Wealth Management Tel: 0121 215 0926 Email: andrew.whiting@sjpp.co.uk Web: www.andrewwhiting.co.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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have to be in my early 30s. So I set myself some small steps to follow to begin with.”

The first was to semi-detach himself from law, leaving his job at DLA Piper in January 2013. “A career break seems like a big step, but it was quite an easy decision. What I did was give myself a two-month window to set the wheels in motion while looking for part-time work.”

What was Plan B? “To continue to pursue my goal of setting up a business – but with a lot less spare time to give to it as I’d have to go back to being a lawyer.”

In the event, Rob didn’t need to resort to Plan B: providentially, along came Birminghambased Midven, a venture capital company for start-up businesses. Rob landed a part-time role as its in-house lawyer – and spent the next 18 months getting hands-on commercial experience.“It was perfect. I saw it as ‘fate’ telling me this was the right idea. I was very honest with Midven about why I wanted a part-time role. And, yes, I got a lot of tips about setting up your own business – mainly by seeing how incredibly tough it is.

“I saw several businesses go into administration – not just start-ups, but companies that had been going for several years, and I realised it was perhaps true that more new ventures fail than succeed. So it was quite an eye-opener.”

But far from being put off the idea of starting his own company, Rob’s time with Midven made him more determined. “It actually encouraged me,” he says. “One of

ENTREPRENEUR

the features that started to emerge was the importance of time in growing a business, and also keeping it small and lean.”

Rob also learned that a lack of funds wasn’t, in fact, an obstacle when it came to attracting the right kind of business partner. “You’re able to trade on potential; the right people will make offers to help you with almost no promise of return.

“They’d see the opportunity and give services or advice – and that support became one of the most useful tools. If you have money, many people will just – legitimately – sell

Rob’s top tips for setting up in business 1. Conviction. To get it, you need to really want it.

2. Ask for what you want. That way you’ll usually receive only useful answers.

3. Money talks – but ideas shout. Good investors will be attracted to a business that makes money, but great investors will be excited about great ideas and will use their skills to help make them happen.

4. Research your market. Learn what makes your competitors popular and what makes them vulnerable; you need an advantage over them somehow.

5. Stay focused. Don’t get overwhelmed. It’s no bad thing to take small steps followed by giant leaps, but keep a watchful eye on your goals, and stay dynamic.

6. Keep an income. Stay in work if you can, at least to start with; it will help your sanity (and your bank balance) while things get going. A ‘Plan B’ – just in case – is also a good idea.

7. Have faith. Be realistic but don’t expect it to be easy. Push hard but enjoy it: that’s the fuel when all other energy’s spent.

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services and products to you. But if you don’t, you quickly whittle down to those who want to buy into your idea.”

After lots of research and many meetings, Rob struck the deals he needed to bring Gruhme to market: DCS in Stratford-upon-Avon, a leading distributor of health, beauty and household brands, came on board; so too did the fragrance manufacturer, where an owner has since become an investor in Gruhme.

A Smethwick firm does the labelling, a Cheshire company supplies the bottles and a business in Manchester provides the cellophane wrap. Rob’s already planning new product lines for 2015: a perfume with a more intense fragrance, called No 14, and what he hopes will become the brand’s signature fragrance, Gruhme Oud, made from essence of wood of the same name. Men’s shaving and personal care products, and personal wear, such as cufflinks and wallets, are set to follow.

“What I’m trying to create is something unique, but not intimidating, an understated British-ness; if you like, the Aston Martin of men’s fragrance – subtle, no drama, but a British classic. There’s a very strong interest in British branding at the moment.”

Rob, who lives in Edgbaston, has been accepted by the NatWest Entrepreneurial Spark programme, giving him access to a ‘business accelerator hub’ in the city centre.

“It will be great for me to have office space in the city, giving the business a focal point.”

As well as scouting for major retailers to buy into Gruhme, Rob’s putting the business out there as much as he can. “Word of mouth is one way we’re seeing the brand grow, and we’re also collaborating with complementary businesses and events. We were one of the sponsors of the Midlands Fashion Awards 2014 and may join up with a major hotel chain this year.”

However, Rob’s already enjoying the buzz of shelf retail: “I don’t have the marketing budget of many brands, nor celebrity endorsements, but I still feel we’re in with a good chance of people choosing us. And I get a real buzz from seeing people enjoy my products. That’s hard to achieve in the legal profession. People say ‘job well done’, but you don’t get clients salivating over a legal document.” n

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

SPRING 15

Your employees and their ageing relatives Following on from last quarter’s article on the effect of care on income and assets, Andrew Whiting Wealth Consultancy LLP now looks at the effects of care for employees and their relatives The number of working carers is steadily growing.

At the moment roughly one in seven employees is a carer of someone who is ill, frail or disabled and catering for them is going to become a more pressing issue if businesses want to retain key skills.

The issue of ‘eldercare’ is particularly important given our ageing population. Research from the House of Commons during 2010 shows there are 10 million people in the UK who are over the age of 65.

In 20 years this figure will have increased to 15.5 million and will carry on growing.

As Britain’s population is ageing, so is Britain’s workforce. ‘Employers for Carers’, part of Carers UK, has identified an increasing number of employees – especially in the 45–64 age bracket, who are typically highly experienced and have valuable skills – who will assume responsibility for ageing parents or relatives.

This is expected to become more of a problem for businesses, especially if staff are forced to leave work altogether due to their responsibilities at home. Indeed, a new report2 has estimated that 500,000 employees will have left in 2014 to care for someone with dementia alone. More than two million people in the UK have already given up work to care for disabled, sick or elderly relatives and loved ones.

As a result, talent is lost and organisations have the cost of recruiting and training new workers. Up to £1.6 billion3 a year is lost to English business every year, as employees take time off or leave work altogether to provide care for elderly relatives,

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

according to the report compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).

The more you investigate this issue, the more it becomes clear that employers need to act.

Currently, only 25%3 of employees believe that their employer is sympathetic to their challenges regarding caring, with the obvious impact on employee retention and brand reputation.

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TIME4CARE It was against this background of employee and employer challenges that the HCR Group developed time4care as an employee benefit. This addresses the increasing issue of employee absenteeism, distraction from work responsibilities or, as mentioned, even the need to leave work altogether due to a lack of easy access to eldercare advice.

SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE LEGAL ADVICE Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE) understands the challenges faced by later-life clients. Their focus is on the drawing up of Wills, powers of attorney, advance directives and trusts* , and advising in related legal matters.

500,000 employees will have left work in 2014 to care for someone with dementia alone It does this by bringing together a collection of external specialist providers and using in-house experience and capabilities to produce a seamless support service that answers many of the questions that employees have to deal with at times of parental crisis.

CARE ADVICE Nurse practitioners are available who can provide comprehensive analysis, and carefully considered advice, wrapped up with active support.

For example, they can advise on whether a nursing home or residential home might be the right solution or whether domiciliary care and property downsizing might be the answer to issues the family may face.

PROPERTY MANAGEMENT SERVICE An in-house team can manage the sale of a property anywhere in the country and ensure that it achieves its maximum sales value. This may include emptying the property and arranging redecoration.

The team can also advance funds against the value of the property, thus freeing up vital cash to pay for care home fees, or a care fees annuity, or similar.

BENEFITS time4care manages the entire process for each employee, linking all the elements together as and when needed, through a dedicated case manager.

The advantages to employers should be clear and would include: • A reduction in working hours lost and the implications this has on productivity and customer retention.

• A significant employee benefit, of relevance for an increasing number of employees, to help attract talent.

• Staff retention; and therefore a reduction of recruitment and training costs.

Dianah Worman, diversity adviser at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), explains that companies which proactively address the challenges of an ageing workforce will have an edge. Recruiting and retaining talent, she explains, is aided by supporting the wellbeing and engagement of employees of all ages.

1 Confederation of British Industry, 2013 2 Office for National Statistics, 2014 3 HCR, 2013 *Wills, Powers of Attorney and Trusts are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

For more details on how we can protect your financial future please contact :

FINANCIAL ADVICE Financial advisers are carefully selected from the Society of Late Life Advisers (SOLLA), who really understand the issues that are faced by this age group and understand their need to pay their future bills whilst leaving a legacy for their children, are part of the service.

The Partner Practice represents only St. James’s Place Wealth Management plc (which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority) for the purpose of advising solely on the Group’s wealth management products and services, more details of which are set out on the Group’s website www.sjp.co.uk/products. The title ‘Partner’ and ‘Partner Practice’ are marketing terms used to describe St. James’s Place representatives.

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Web: www.AndrewWhiting.co.uk Email: Andrew.whiting@sjpp.co.uk Tel: 0121 215 0926

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

SUCCESS STORY

SPRING 15

Purity has become the region’s biggest real ale success story. Steve Dyson meets managing director Paul Halsey to find out how it all started Not many people had heard of the Purity Brewing Company when it created its first pint of beer in 2005. Today, it’s producing around five million pints a year and has become a household name across the West Midlands.

With annual revenues now touching £5.5m, it’s been a whirlwind success for Paul Halsey, managing director of the Warwickshire-based company. But he thinks the lightbulb moment came back in the mid-1990s when he was working for Bass – then the biggest brewer in the world – where he’d started as a graduate trainee in 1988.

He learned his trade in terms of product, brands, the marketplace and consumers at Bass, but something made him decide he no longer wanted to be a part of the brewing ‘establishment’.

“Working at Bass meant I saw all the good and bad things about the industry,” recalls Paul, who worked in sales development and training. “And as the focus on lager grew, I saw how they took their eyes off cask beer – particularly premium cask beer. For me, that was the beginning of thinking about something different.”

Paul started with Bass at their M&B brand in the West Midlands, and then worked at the company’s northern operations in Sheffield and then Leeds. By 1996, his boss wanted him to move to London, but after tasting Yorkshire’s country life he wasn’t charmed by the big city prospect. This, coupled with how he thought a disastrous concentration on lager was killing real ale, meant Paul resigned.

He says: “If you’re entrepreneurial you can feel quite stifled. I liked the idea of doing my own thing, I loved real ale and I realised it was the time for me to go.”

Paul was newly married to Christine and they bought The Butchers Arms pub, at Hepworth,

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

near Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, quickly developing a venue that had seen better days into a gastro pub, serving quality ales and food. At the same time, Paul was approached by the Highgate Brewery in Walsall, who wanted his help with sales, and so spent two days a week as sales director, this time from an independent’s viewpoint.

After 18 months, the Halseys sold The Butchers Arms, and by 2000, when Paul left his part-time Highgate Brewery role, they poured their energies into a derelict pub near Hebden Bridge, originally called the New Anchor. They renamed it the Millbank – it’s situated in a West Yorkshire village called Mill Bank – and it quickly became well-known for its craft ales, fine wines and food, winning several awards. Paul soon realised there was a wider market for the product that Bass and other major brewers had neglected.

“We specialised in really niche beers and saw the market grow, with young people and women getting really engaged. I thought there might be an opportunity if only there was brand consistency and the right price points.”

Life’s never simple, of course, and while Paul’s business idea was fermenting, not all was >>

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SPRING 15

SUCCESS STORY

ON THE ROAD TO PURE JOY

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SUCCESS STORY well at home, which meant he and Christine divorced in 2004, selling their Millbank venue to a multiple pub company. This upheaval accelerated Paul’s entrepreneurial side, and he began planning a craft beer brewing business with James Minkin – the pair met as fellow Bass graduate trainees in 1988.

But first came market research: “I just couldn’t understand why cask beer hadn’t been embraced more by landlords, and wanted to know why. I did a lot of research, asking good quality pubs and hotels why they weren’t engaging with beer fully.

“Overwhelmingly, they said because it was old-fashioned, and just didn’t appeal to young people and women. That became the basis of our partnership: to create a new style of brand and marketing for our craft beer – engaging women and young people, but not alienating traditional drinkers.”

Next, the new partners discussed where to base their brewery, and decided it had to be the West Midlands: Paul was born in Sutton Coldfield and brought up in Alcester, Warwickshire; James lives in Stone, Staffordshire. As well as geography, the pair also had green principles, and started searching for vacant farmland to reuse derelict buildings and fallow fields for a brewing process that could, if carefully planned, become environmentally friendly.

“An industrial estate would have been a lot easier,” says Paul, “but that wasn’t true to our values. We were determined to use natural ingredients, and we knew it took a lot of water to brew a pint, so wanted a wetland system to deal with waste water.”

Eventually they found Granville Stevens, a “new age farmer” who liked their concept.

He’d inherited his Upper Spernall Farm, near Great Alne, Warwickshire, and had plenty of empty outbuildings and fields, so was keen to diversify. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was offering European grants for farmers with ideas for ‘diversification and rural employment’, and the Purity scheme received a £234,000 grant.

Paul says: “We faced severe due diligence, with Dragons’ Den-style interviews, but whereas many farmers talked about old ideas like bed and breakfast, ours was different, with plans for an education-based visitor

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

SPRING 15

centre and wetland system. This switched the panel on, and we got the grant that helped start our business.”

Once the land and buildings were converted, and the brewing equipment installed, production started, with two new craft beers that Purity felt would appeal to new drinkers.

One was Pure Gold, a pale, dry, hoppy beer, and the second was UBU, fruitier and deeper in flavour.

In the first year, Paul and Jim worked on the “colour, aroma and flow” they wanted, and brewing consultant Neil Bain – now head brewer at Woodforde’s in Norfolk – developed

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the product. In 2006, Purity recruited its own head brewer, French-born Florent Vialan – known by everyone as Flo – who had a degree in microbiology.

Paul says: “We were confident, but the beer had to do the talking. And it really took off when Flo joined. He took our beer to another level, and we started winning awards. The branding and marketing were also crucial.

We looked at the best of what the new world of wine had done and came up with fresh designs and clean, uncluttered branding, with personality that stood out on pump clips and on bottles on the shelf. “Another big step was

SPRING 15

SUCCESS STORY

We were confident, but the beer had to do the talking. And it really took off when Flo joined. He took our beer to another level, and we started winning awards

getting the beer to the market. We decided where we wanted to trade, starting in a 20mile radius of the brewery, and targeted real ale pubs and smaller pub companies. I went out on the road, while Jim concentrated on operations back here.

“So we had great branding, and made sure the beer had consistency and quality. By that I mean you want it to taste – flavour, colour, hop and nose – the same every time you drink it. It’s a high skillset with science behind it, and this quickly got our beers to be highly respected for the tastes and flavours that landlords and consumers wanted.”

Purity’s sales boomed: a new beer, the Mad Goose, gave them three products, and annual turnovers more than tripled from £740,000 in 2008 to £3.4m in 2013 – before they hit capacity issues.

“Two years ago we just couldn’t brew any more and had to make a decision,” says Paul. “Did we stay as we were, with 14 staff, brewing night and day, sweating the kit and team to maximise margins? Or did we develop a bigger, more efficient brewery. We

decided to build a new brewery – Granville had more capacity in an old warehouse – and we did it internally rather than reducing our shareholdings.”

By this stage, they were reinvesting between £50,000 and £70,000 each year anyway, but the modern German brewing equipment was a steep £1.1m outlay. And it was the best decision they could have made.

Purity’s old brewery produced around 10,000 barrels of beer a year, equivalent to just under three million pints. Now Purity brews five million pints a year, with the capacity for ten million.

This not only increased cask-conditioned outputs but enabled them to widen their range, introducing Longhorn, a new unfiltered and unpasteurised keg IPA. This provided entry to a growing market of smaller bars that didn’t have the cellar control conditions that are crucial for cask beers.

Other products followed, including a Saddle Black dark beer, launched with a nod towards Paul’s new thirst for cycling – now that the six-foot, seven-incher’s rugby and basketball-

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playing days are history. More importantly, turnover has grown by 60% to £5.5m since 2013 at Purity, where Paul and James each have 41% shares, with minority shareholders including Granville and Flo; and staffing has increased to 29.

Paul, now aged 52, splits his time between the West Midlands, where he has a new partner, Tara, and Yorkshire, where his two teenage sons from his marriage live. Away from brewing, he’s launched the Pure Bar and Kitchen in Birmingham with renowned chef and restaurateur Andreas Antona and former Bass colleague Martin Hilton, enjoying a £1.3m turnover in the first year. And he might even look for another derelict pub to develop in the north.

But there’s still more to come from Purity, says Paul: “We’ve yet to explore the export market, and so will keep growing. We plan 30% yearon-year growth for the next three years.”

And his top tip for real ale entrepreneurs is hospitality: “It’s all about people. If you like cask beer, you’ve got to go to the pub to get it, and that means getting on with people.” n

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR

SPRING 15

BROTHERS ARE CUT FROM THE SAME MOULD BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR

Quantum Mouldings is breathing new life back into the former Sealine factory in Kidderminster. Ian Halstead sits down with the Wooldridge brothers to find out more Debates about how a satisfying work-life balance might be achieved have spawned an army of ‘self-help’ gurus, a flotilla of websites and sufficient books, CDs and lecture notes to fill the Grand Canyon to overflowing.

The darkest irony of such guidance, of course, is that those who would really benefit most have no time to study it.

However, even on first meeting, there’s no doubt the Wooldridge brothers have devised such an equitable division between business life and relaxation as to make anyone – bar perhaps Richard Branson or Bill Gates – turn a fetching shade of green.

The first sign comes even before the conversation begins, in the old Sealine plant just off the huge ring-road roundabout which forms Kidderminster’s largest landmark.

Peter Wooldridge, the managing director of Quantum Mouldings, hands across a business card which looks pretty much like any other.

However, the one carried by Peter’s brother, finance director Mark Wooldridge, doubles as a colourful advertisement for Barrusclet, a splendiferous and sprawling gîte midway between Toulouse and Bordeaux, which he and his wife Gill rescued from decay and dereliction seven years back. They now spend serious chunks of their time living in an adjacent property, supplementing their income by renting the restored farmhouse to holidaying Brits and others.

Fabulous France is the name Mark has given to the farmhouse’s website, and it’s easy to see the appeal of life among medieval villages, rolling vineyards and azure skies … particularly from inside a half-renovated factory, set amid industrial Black Country sprawl, on a

chilly morn. “Mark is officially part-time, so although he lives in the UK, he often goes over to France. He also manages the family’s property portfolio,” says Peter, with an impressive absence of sibling rivalry.

He’s the youngest of a trio – only joining the business in 1990, five years after it was founded by Mark and third brother Harvey Wooldridge to design and manufacture sleek, and blisteringly fast, sports cars made from glass-fibre – so he’s still full-time.

However, like his brothers, Peter well understands the need to mix work with play.

A keen mountain-biker and tennis player, he’d spent much of the previous day on a ‘mud run’ with his daughter.

Harvey was the company’s star designer and mould-maker, who dreamed up the first Quantum model in his final year at university, but he’s long gone from the company.

“He retired in his late-30s, lives in Spain and spends most of his time wind-surfing,” says Mark, who still drives a Quantum designed by his brother three decades back, which neatly demolishes unspoken thoughts that cars moulded from glass-fibre might not last.

Ironically, given that Quantum’s business model is still based on glass-fibre products, the founders never intended to make it, but were persuaded otherwise by the inconsistent level of work from their original sub-contractors.

“We got into glass-fibre by accident,” admits Peter. “We used two local companies, but the products, and the customer service, were so poor that we decided to make our own.

We soon got a reputation for having the best gel-coat finish in the industry. The quality was so high that there was no need to paint the

surface after it came out of the mould.”

It’s a timely explanation, because anyone who strolled through the former Sealine factory being readied for its new life might think the panels being turned out with such care had been given a coat or two of gloss varnish.

More than 1,000 Quantum cars were produced by the brothers at their Stourbridge factory until that business was sold in 2001, allowing them to focus on the commercial division now known as Quantum Mouldings.

“The sports car company is still going,” says Peter, with evident and understandable pride, “and there are at least 1,000 people in the Quantum Owners Club. We’d been designing and manufacturing products for commercial uses from 1992 though, so it was wellestablished long before the sale. Kit-cars were still popular then, but that market has waned because production cars are so much better than 20 years ago. Nothing rusts nowadays, and manufacturing techniques are so reliable.”

Quantum does still make low-volume runs for niche automotive firms, and one of its bodies (for the Ultima GTR) still holds the world speed record for a production car. “From nought to 100mph and back to standstill in 9.3 seconds,” says Peter.

Quantum’s expertise in automotive design and production led the brothers to focus on an array of glass-fibre products for vehicle manufacturers, including caravans, trailers and hard tops for pick-up trucks. Just as the two remaining siblings have a bond which allows them to tease each other, without a hint of intent, the commercial relationships their business has built have also prospered.

Johnston Sweepers, for example, has been >>

Entrepreneurs come from all walks of life To find out more, go to eoy.co.uk

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR the world’s largest manufacturer of machines which sweep, clean and tidy roads and streets almost since dust was invented, and Quantum has supplied the Surrey-based group with panels since 1999. Likewise, Brian James Trailers of Daventry has been one of the biggest brands in its sector for 35 years, and its relationship with the Wooldridges goes back nearly 15 years.

“We met them for the first time at the Autosport Show in 2001, when Peter was driving a yellow H4 Quantum, and they must have been impressed because we’ve been working with them since,” recalls Mark. “Over the years, we’ve probably had £5m of orders from Brian James, still our biggest customer.”

However, when the global slump hit the UK economy, and the automotive and vehicle industries suffered especially badly, the brothers realised they had to diversify to survive – and goodness me, they certainly did.

“Turnover halved during the recession, but we didn’t lay anyone off,” says Mark. “We were up for any work we could get. We did 32 pods for the London Eye, and an intermediary helped us win work for the Toy Story and Ratatouille displays at Disneyland Paris.”

The brothers, and the talented craftsmen among their 35 employees, even designed products as diverse as the floors for golfputting trainers, and parking meter surrounds.

Among their quirkiest items was a 20-strong herd of hippos for the West Midlands Safari Park, and characters for Sponge Bob’s ‘Splash Bash’ ride at Blackpool’s Pleasure Beach.

“When you do your research, you discover that GRP [glass-reinforced plastic] is used in almost every business sector, and for a bewildering number of uses,” says Peter.

“In the past, almost all our work came via word of mouth, but now our main source of business is our website, so SEO [search engine optimisation] work is important.”

Mark says: “We also work very closely with our customers. If someone comes with an idea, but they’re not quite sure how it might

SPRING 15

We’re expecting 25% growth, which we know is sustainable. We did £1.6m last year, we’ll do £2m this year and we’re confident we’ll do £2.5m the year after look or work, our designers will guide them through the whole process.”

Business is clearly a very personal matter to the brothers, and their ability to develop relationships is as evident inside the factory as on their order books. Every employee who passes is greeted by their first-name, and the response is genuinely warm. Remarkably too, in an era where change is often seen as an imperative, Quantum has had the same bank – and banker – for more than a decade.

“We’ve been working with Dave Roberts at NatWest in Wolverhampton all that time, and he’s been great. He was very supportive when it was tough, and we’ve built up a great relationship, so we’ve never thought of going elsewhere,” says Mark. “We needed a mortgage to buy the Sealine factory. We reckoned we’d need to spend £1m on the property and £200,000 split between the cost of the move, building offices and capital expenditure on new plant and machinery.”

The affable camaraderie of the brothers can’t camouflage the business nous which has kept the company afloat for almost 30 years though, and they were astutely aware that grant support would be critical in such a major investment programme.

They identified the potential of the Green Bridge Supply Chain Programme, funded by the European Regional Development Fund for growing SMEs. “The reason for the move was to have space for expansion, and to be able to take on more people for our current workload,” says Peter.

“Green Bridge was ideal, as you got £10,000

Entrepreneurs come from all walks of life To find out more, go to eoy.co.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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for each job created, and we knew we’d be recruiting at least ten people in the short-term.

It took a good week to fill in the application form, but after that it was a pretty slick process by the council in Birmingham. We worked with them to make sure they had everything they needed, and it worked – we got the maximum grant of £100,000.

It also helped our application because we are looking to enter new ‘green’ business sectors, such as the manufacture of electric vehicles and renewable energy. Glass-fibre would be ideal for turbine blades, for use onshore or offshore, for example.”

Quantum’s business plan also envisages major revenue growth, as Mark explains with conviction: “We’re expecting 25% annual growth, which we know is sustainable because we’ve done it before. We did £1.6m last year, we’ll do £2m this year and we’re confident we’ll do £2.5m the year after.

From this site, we could do £5m a year, and we’ve got 20,000sq ft of space on another site and four acres of land, so there’s plenty of potential. We’ve brought in Steve Galbraith, as operations director, and we’ve got a good strong team here to deliver our targets.”

There is just one itsy-bitsy cloud on an otherwise flawless Quantum horizon: “We’ve always had a family atmosphere,” says Mark, “and great relationships with everyone who works here. When you’ve got 25 or 30 people, you remember first-names, their families and everything. When you start employing 30 or 40 though, it gets harder, and if we had 50 people, it might get quite difficult.” n

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY

SPRING 15

Jewellery Quarter set to shine again, used car supermarket given the green light, new project could create up to 400 jobs, sushi restaurant chooses Birmingham for UK launch, city investment pays off for Trust >> REI in £2m deal Real Estate Investors plc (REI), the Birmingham-based property group, has bought 24 Bennetts Hill, a prime city centre office and retail property, for £2.06m. The building, which is let to tenants including Punch Taverns, Specsavers and Zapaygo, produces annual rental of £235,000, a yield of 10.8%. REI has also agreed the unconditional sale of land in Bilston, West Midlands, for £1.875m, significantly above its book value.

REI chief executive Paul Bassi said: “These transactions, coupled with our conversion to a Real Estate Investment Trust on 1 January, 2015, and a secure and stable property portfolio, leave REI well positioned to grow our rental income throughout 2015.”

>> Growing confidence helps Jewellery Quarter to shine again A three-storey office building in Birmingham’s historic Jewellery Quarter has been bought for £650,000, just a few months after being put up for sale. The Counting House is a selfcontained part of the Grade II-listed Derwent Foundry, sited just off St Paul’s Square, which was occupied for more than 70 years by a jewellery press-maker. The former foundry building was converted into apartments, of which The Counting House is an office building with 8,540sq ft of space – partly new build and partly the Victorian Foundry. The building is let to Wonderful World Models, who have recently moved in and opened the Counting House as a visitor attraction, café and retail outlet for a range of models, including trains and planes. Cameron Thomson, senior surveyor at Cushman & Wakefield, said: “There is a growing confidence in the Jewellery Quarter as an up and coming area. This is another example of an old building associated with the jewellery trade being brought back to life.”

>> Cash support for truss firm A West Midlands company that designs and makes roof trusses is taking on at least 12 new staff after moving to a new home and investing nearly £500,000 in its growth plans.

Nuneaton Roof Trusses was established 14 years ago by Scott McEwan and he has built the company up to a £3m turnover, employing 20 staff. Jack McMinn and Richard Britton have since joined as directors to help take it to the next level and they enlisted the support of the Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub to assist with its expansion. Account manager Colin Hanson-New helped secure grants worth

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

£85,000 to help with the purchase of a new £292,000 machine. And the firm has also moved from Camp Hill to a unit three times the size in Weddington Terrace after being put in touch with Warwickshire County Council’s Gus Bhandal, the inward investment specialist at the Growth Hub. The new jobs will be in design, manufacturing and administration and the changes will allow the company to push towards £6m turnover in the coming year, with long-term plans to reach £10m to £12m.

The hub’s MD Craig Humphrey said: “This is the perfect example of how we can help our manufacturing and engineering sector.”

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>> Culinary newcomer Workers are busy fitting out the new Gas Street Social bar and restaurant that’s set to open at Birmingham’s Mailbox in March. The £750,000 refurbishment

by Shaker Group is taking place at the 4,300sq ft former Bar Room Bar site, helped by a £100,000 grant from the Regional Growth Fund. The venue will create 35 new jobs. Adam Freeth, managing director of Shaker Group and founder of Gas Street Social, said: “We’ve brought together a fantastic team to create an incredible design and food and beverage offer, which we believe will be a great addition to the new Mailbox and Birmingham’s world-class culinary scene.”

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COMMERCIAL PROPERTY

>> The tools for success

>> Survey reveals growth There was a 17.6% growth in the volume of deals on industrial properties of more than 100,000sq ft in the Midlands in 2014. That’s one of the key findings of a new survey by the Birmingham office of leading real estate company Cushman & Wakefield. Total take-up in 2014 of the region’s 100,000sq ft plus properties was 8.79m sq ft of space, which was slightly up on 2013 (8.63m sq ft), itself the best year for transactions since 2008.

David Binks, industrial partner at Cushman & Wakefield in Birmingham, said: “The improving economic conditions continue to encourage business growth leading to increased demand to accommodate both expansion and relocation requirements.”

A West Midland manufacturer, which produces tools and machines to help prepare surfaces for a range of industries across the globe, is expanding into two neighbouring properties to help meet demand.

Trelawny SPT, which is based in Highdown Road, Leamington, Warwickshire, is set to exceed £4m turnover this year, and has taken on nine new employees to support its growth.

Trelawny SPT commercial director Rob Chapman said: “Around 80% of our business is export and we are going into new countries all the time. We have a strong presence in China through a satellite office and we are very big in the Middle East – Qatar, for example, is a growing market ahead of the World Cup.”

>> Green light for car dealer A Yorkshire-based used car supermarket is to open its first showroom in the West Midlands after leasing a new site in a deal secured by leading chartered surveyors Johnson Fellows. Motor Depot Ltd, which has three showrooms in Hessle, Hull and Scunthorpe, has agreed a 15-year lease on 36 Mackadown Lane, Garretts Green, which was marketed by Johnson Fellows on behalf of landlords Apple Barn Properties Ltd. The 12,078sq ft premises on the 3.5 acre site comprises canopied sales area, service workshop, preparation area, and valeting area, plus parking for 600 cars.

>> Increasing its power A Midlands-based manufacturer of electrical distribution systems has expanded its operations by opening a new rental division near Lichfield. The move to unit 4AD, zone 2, Burntwood Business Park, has enabled ide Systems to split its business into three distinct areas. The company, which provided power distribution and cabling for the London Olympics in 2012 and last year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, will locate its rental division to the 7,950sq ft unit after it agreed a five-year lease with London & Cambridge Properties. Meanwhile, ide Systems and ide Online will continue to operate out of its headquarters in Cannock.

>> Work starts on project that could create up to 400 jobs Thomas Vale Construction have started work on Innovation Birmingham’s £8m iCentrumTM building. The 41,700sq ft development is next to Faraday Wharf and Aston University, off Holt Street – visible from the A38M Aston Expressway – and will be ready for occupation in March 2016. The technology incubator is being funded through a commercial loan, agreed with Birmingham City Council, to cover the main construction and fit-out costs, with extra funding from the Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.

It is hoped the project will help create up to 400 jobs in new businesses potentially attracted to the site.

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY

SPRING 15

>> SPS opts for Warwick A growing global energy and technology company has chosen a new Warwickshire base. SPS International (UK) Ltd has opened its UK head office at the University of Warwick Science Park’s Warwick Innovation Centre.

Jon Willis, director of the US-based group, said: “We provide engineering reliability services to the power generation and oil and gas industries and have moved to Warwick to support one of our main clients, Industrial Turbine Company Limited, while looking to expand the office. We also work with E.ON.”

>> Retail boost for NEC Two of the world’s most popular retail brands have agreed to take space at the new Resorts World Birmingham at the NEC. Nike and Gap Outlet have signed deals to become anchor tenants within the 50-unit centre, with another three retailers at “advanced stages” of completing agreements. Last year, Cineworld was announced as operator of an 11-screen cinema at the complex, and Genting UK, which owns the £150m venue, will operate a 178-room, four star boutique hotel.

>> Sushi restaurant chooses Birmingham for UK launch A new all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet has opened its first UK restaurant in the heart of Birmingham’s Arcadian Centre. The Kyoto Sushi and Grill, which has been operating in Holland for the past five years, will bring up to 30 jobs to its location in Hurst Street.

Co-owner Johnny Wong said: “We know Birmingham is the right place to come to open our first venue and as soon as we saw the Arcadian Centre, we felt it would be right at home, being in the heart of the lively Chinese Quarter.”

>> Investment pays off Circle Property Unit Trust’s £1.2m investment in Cheltenham House, Temple Street, Birmingham, has paid off with a string of lettings. The Jersey-based Trust acquired the 16,328sq ft building in 2013 before investing in an overhaul.

Existing tenant, solicitors Broomhall & Co, remained in situ during the works, and have now been joined by the Birmingham Law Society, weight loss consultants Lighter Life, photographers Alex Mae Studios, promotions and retail agency Engaging Faces, property investor and developer Antringham Estates, and PR consultants Headline Communications.

The ground floor unit is let to The Botanist, an award-winning boutique pub chain which specialises in cocktails and craft beers, and is currently being fitted out.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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>> Industrial estates sold Two Birmingham industrial estates have been snapped up by a national property and land firm for around £2.5m. Christchurch Property has acquired the renamed Alexandra Trading Estate – previously called Black Business in Birmingham – and Western Business Park, both close to the city centre.

>> Growth being stifled Growth in the commercial property market in Worcestershire could be stifled in 2015 through lack of supply, according to Midland consultancy GJS Dillon. It says the strengthening warehouse and industrial markets are being put at risk by a lack of supply, particularly in the medium-sized 20,000 to 50,000sq ft sector. The same is true in the office market where smaller offices are in short supply and the availability – particularly for purchase – of larger, good quality office space is sporadic at best.

SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

Business partnerships behind the curtain at the UK’s most popular theatre Alongside the world-class programming at Birmingham Hippodrome is a range of innovative business partnerships.

These provide important support for Hippodrome Plus, the theatre’s ambitious and varied projects benefitting thousands of young people (especially those with learning disabilities) and community groups across the city.

In theatre-land, pantomime means business - oh yes it does! Accounting for an astounding 19% of all ticket sales in 2014/15, the Qdos Entertainment production at the Hippodrome is the UK’s biggest pantomime. With a renowned West End producer and director at the helm, panto runs for a jawaching 75 performances over an intensive seven week period and is enjoyed by audiences of over 110,000. And there’s enough laughter for the whole family, with newcomers to the Hippodrome representing nearly 30% of all bookers.

Such is the strength and length of the relationship that Qdos Entertainment has evolved into a substantial partner in support of the Hippodrome’s charitable trust through sponsorship of the exclusive Qdos Partners’ Lounge in the theatre’s Stalls Foyer. Sumptuously decorated, this private hospitality suite offers individual and corporate patrons an extra-special visit to the theatre and is the regular venue for all-important press nights. And you might even bump into the odd famous face too...

In addition, this panto partnership has just delivered a second fantastic Relaxed Performance with an audience of more than 1,000 young patrons on the autism spectrum with sensory impairments or learning disabilities, plus their families and carers. The impact on the audience is conveyed through the words of a patron: “I thought it was brilliant. Just brilliant. I’ve waited 9 years to be able to take my autistic daughter to the theatre and for her to enjoy it.”

Young audiences are the future and the theatre is committed to making it a little easier for them to come through the doors. In 2013/14 over 15% of all tickets sold were discounted, including over

Hippodrome’s Relaxed Performance at pantomime is aimed at young people with autism, learning disabilities and sensory impairments

14,000 tickets for schools.

In recognition of how culture has the ability to enhance young lives, the Birmingham office of global accountancy firm PwC stepped forward to sponsor the theatre’s First Night scheme, a freeto-register membership club offering discounted tickets to 16-23 year olds.

Mark Smith, Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre Development Trust Chair and Regional Chair of PwC said: “I am very proud that PwC is playing its part in a scheme that gives young people the chance to see some of the best shows in the Midlands including world-class ballet and opera, West End musicals, international dance, drama and the world’s biggest Pantomime. I encourage as many young people as possible to get involved.”

A growing strand of Hippodrome Plus is the Outdoor Programme that offers extraordinary events in the public spaces, streets and squares around the theatre in the Southside BID (Business Improvement District). These free outdoor performances include dance, theatre, high-quality street circus acts and much more, and reach out to families and young people who might not

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otherwise have the opportunity to come into the theatre. This festival-style programming encourages audiences into lesser-known, more unusual city spaces often with the support of local businesses. This means, for instance, that in Gallan’s Hurst Street car park when it’s not full of vehicles, you might be as likely to find the dazzling Terracotta Warrior lanterns (Illuminate, Oct 2013) or film projections (About Town, Nov 2014).

Paul Garry of Gallan Group commented: “As a neighbouring organisation Gallan is delighted, along with the Gooch Estate, to help facilitate unique Hippodrome projects that help promote Southside and which encourage more visitors into this vibrant area of the city.”

The three-way partnership has combined to temporarily transform this urban space into a cultural exhibition venue as well as a tropical rainforest when national restaurant group, Las Iguanas, hosted a themed annual awards delivered on-location by the Hippodrome’s hospitality team.

Birmingham Hippodrome welcomes expressions of interest from all business sectors to put themselves in the spotlight and support Hippodrome Plus. Get creative with your brand, call us and see what kind of role you can play in our future growth.

Contact Judith Greenburgh Corporate Development Manager T: 0121 689 3082 E: judithgreenburgh@birminghamhippodrome.com F: facebook.com/birminghamhippodrome T: @brumhippodrome birminghamhippodrome.wordpress.com

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

BUSINESS LUNCH

SPRING 15

FLYING HIGH IN A COMPETITIVE MARKETPLACE Nicola Fleet-Milne wanted to be an RAF pilot.

When that failed, she entered a TV gameshow, winning two rent-free apartments for a year.

Now she owns a leading Birmingham lettings agency. Steve Dyson took her to lunch When Nicola Fleet-Milne arrived at the University of Birmingham in 1997 to study English and Classics, she soon decided on her dream career. She joined the University of Birmingham Air Squadron and started training to become a pilot – spending two years of her spare time flying single-engined Bulldog trainer planes.

“I went solo and built up 60 hours flying time,” recalls Nicola, now aged 37. “I did all the basic aerobatics, like looping the loop, and loved it. The RAF offered me a navigator’s bursary, but I turned it down – I wanted to be a pilot.”

But on graduation, Nicola failed the pilot medical because of her reach: “They said my arms weren’t long enough, which meant that on paper I couldn’t achieve what I’d been fully

doing when flying!”

With no ‘Plan B’ – she says she’s now “obsessed with having a plan for everything” – Nicola said she “did what most people who don’t know what to do did: I temped.”

She spent four months working in London, and then came back to live with old pals in Birmingham while temping as a secretary for the Knight Frank residential lettings company.

In 2001, she entered herself and housemates into a TV gameshow called Rent Free, hosted

by Richard Bacon on BBC Choice – and they won two city-centre apartments rent-free for a year, giving Nicola unique insights into the residential lettings sector.

She explains how her new career idea developed: “At the same time, Knight Frank said: ‘You’ve got a brain in your head – do

you want to join us?’ I started as a secretary, then moved into lettings administration and soon became a negotiator. It was a wonderful 18 months of learning, but then they sold the lettings side to Bruton Knowles, and I was TUPE’d across.”

She spent 13 months at Bruton Knowles, but “it wasn’t the same”, and Nicola found herself working her socks off until 11pm every night while male colleagues enjoyed “long boys’ lunches” every day.

“That irked me,” she recalls, “it was my department making all the profit, but why should I fund their lunches? Eventually, my then boyfriend said: ‘I’m fed up of you coming home crying every night, I’ll lend you the cash and you can set up on your own.’

And that’s what I did, launching FleetMilne in March 2004.”

Nicola remembers how she didn’t know anything about running a business to start with, but had “sussed” the correct software needed to run a decent residential lettings agency. She rented serviced offices near the Mailbox in Birmingham city centre, and on day one sat at her desk with a phone and computer in front of her and – like the classic scene from The Simpsons when Homer starts his Compu-Global-Hyper-Mega-Neta business – thought: “Right, now what?”

Then the phone rang, and Nicola snatched it up: “FleetMilne properties, how may I help you?” But it was just her mum, from the family home in Middlesex, asking: “How’s it going?”

Nicola says: “For the first six months, I was subject to a restricted covenant from Bruton Knowles, so was just letting people know I’d set up. After six months, I sent a taxi round to their offices to pick up all my files, because my old landlord clients had come and found >> Proudly sponsored by

CATLEY LAKEMAN SECURITIES

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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SPRING 15

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BUSINESS LUNCH

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

BUSINESS LUNCH

SPRING 15

me. I pretty much cleared them out!”

By the end of 2004, Nicola employed her first member of staff, and by the end of the financial year she’d smashed all targets – with turnovers of £117,000 against a planned £70,000, and 120 lettings against a planned 75.

FleetMilne never looked back, with even the recession being “really good to us” because “everyone stopped buying and moved to rent, and rental prices went up”. By 2013, annual turnovers were topping £1m, with 600 properties in management, and staffing reached 25, although it’s currently 16 fulltimers – “because we niched down to fewer but better people”.

Nicola admits there was “a bit of a dip” in 2014, partly because of a lack of property, but also because of a personal trauma: her then boyfriend, Lee Kemp, fell into a coma and nearly died from pneumonia while running a 156-mile marathon in the blistering heat of the Sahara Desert.

“This meant weekly flights to his bedside in Casa Blanca,” says Nicola, “and all the worries that go with someone being so ill.”

Fortunately, all that’s behind her – Lee survived but their relationship didn’t – and a now single Nicola is fully focused on the next stage of FleetMilne’s development.

“I’ve been through it all,” she reflects, “but we’ve hit all our targets, and in many ways I’ve done everything I wanted. But what’s next?

People say the first year of business is the hardest, but I think that’s when you’re most

People say the first year of business is the hardest, but I think that’s when you’re most motivated. Ten years in – last year – was the most difficult

motivated. Ten years in – last year – was the most difficult.”

Nicola recently appointed Ben Evans, who joined her in 2005, as FleetMilne’s new managing director, along with a 20% shareholding, while she became commercial director, still with 80% of shares, planning to forge a future for the company, now based on Colmore Row in Birmingham.

She says: “It’s crunch time – where do we go?

I hear people talking about a glut of property [to rent] but that’s nonsense since 2010.

Nobody’s built anything since – it’s all old stock. But as we come out of the recession, the developers and banks are starting to come back, and ‘build-to-let’ is happening.

This is where the developer builds properties but does not sell them on, renting them out themselves instead. This becomes a sellable asset – with all those rents – and can be sold on to investors, like pension funds.

There will be new stock by 2016 to 2017, and I want to get relationships with those builders and developers, and with the funds that will eventually buy those assets. And I want to get there early enough to influence what’s built, rather than finding it hard to rent them.

In Birmingham, there are just so many different neighbourhoods, each needing different types of properties. It’s going to be really nice to start influencing what’s coming out, and I can do that with the name and connections I’ve built up in the last ten years, with all the ex-clients, landlords and tenants I’ve worked with.

It’s a slow game but there’s a lot of potential for FleetMilne, and I’m in a position to let myself do that. I’m currently the company’s most expensive member of staff, but the eventual fruits of that labour will be worth it.”

Nicola certainly doesn’t let the grass grow under her feet: as well as networking and setting up relationships across Birmingham for FleetMilne, she has numerous other interests: she’s relationship director for BPS Birmingham, Proudly sponsored by

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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SPRING 15

BUSINESS LUNCH

I’ve got pretty much zero interest in children...and I don’t feel I’m missing out the professional membership organisation; a board member at Colmore Business Improvement District; and a trustee of Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre.

She’s won high-profile business awards, including the ‘Entrepreneur’ category in the Birmingham Young Professional of the Year, and the Institute of Director’s ‘Emerging Talent’ award in 2007. She regularly mentors younger entrepreneurs, and is a fledgling start-up investor – helping what’s now the thriving Yorks Bakery Cafe get off the ground in 2012, and currently backing a documentary film called Bicycle, directed

by BAFTA award-winning director and keen cyclist Michael B. Clifford.

We’ve already mentioned Nicola’s personal life – the boyfriend who helped her start FleetMilne, the other boyfriend who nearly died. In between these relationships, she married financial advisor David Neale – and they were divorced within 18 months. But she says she’s staying single for now, pouring her passions into developing the business.

“I’ve got pretty much zero interest in children,” she explains, “and I want to spend a couple of years focused on work because the next stage is so exciting. And I don’t feel I’m missing out – I’ve got great friends, love snowboarding, play netball twice a week and am a bit of a socialite.”

Back to work, Nicola puts her love of the property sector down to being “a born fixer” who enjoys the challenge of “something that needs solving”. She hated the way people practised in residential lettings. “In short, the computer should never say no,” she says. “It’s not that difficult, but it’s difficult to do well.

And there are agencies that don’t do it well.

“Part of my motivation was proving that it can be done very well with the right people, the

A warming treat watching the cold world pass by I’ve never known a restaurant with as much natural light as Sabai Sabai, the Thai venue based in Harborne, where the building’s shape means 75% of walls are windows. This airy atmosphere, enhanced by a fresh design and modern décor, makes you feel welcome, warm and cosy.

Nicola chose Satay Gai for starters (£6.95), or chicken satay to most of us, which she described as “delicious – while it’s a difficult dish to get wrong, that was very nice”. She continued her peanut theme with a Geng Massaman chicken curry (£10.95), which she said was “not too hot, with a bit of sweet coconut milk, a perfect lunchtime dish”.

I went for Thod Mun Pla for starters (£6.95), commonly known an Thai fishcakes, and then went for some heat with a Geng Kiew Wan (£10.95), a green chicken curry blended with coconut milk, bamboo shoots, aubergine, green beans, sweet basil and plenty of chilli.

We both had sticky rice (2x £3.25) and enjoyed Singha beers as we chatted and watched the rather cold world pass by outside. There’s 20% off every lunchtime bill.

Sabai Sabai, 268 High Street, Harborne, Birmingham B17 9PT. Call 0121 426 2688 or visit www.sabaisabai-restaurant.co.uk

right training, and dealing with clients and customers in a reasonable manner. Also, there were some in the industry who didn’t believe I could do it. You know, a single female starting up against big agencies just couldn’t work. I was determined to prove them wrong.

“Now that’s done, I’m driven by the team at FleetMilne and want to succeed for them.

I don’t think we’ve hired many from within the industry, by the way. Instead we look for the ‘soft’ skills – communications, empathy, knowing how to utilise common sense – and then train them up.”

Before Nicola departs in her new BMW 4 Series – her “pride and joy” – I ask for her tips for would-be entrepreneurs: “Be self-aware,

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know your own strengths and weaknesses, and employ people who are good at the stuff you do badly.

“Be money savvy – cash-flows are boring but essential. Don’t scrimp on accountants, or advice. If you pay peanuts you’ll end up with monkeys. Seek out more senior people in the industry and ask them questions. They can save you from making a lot of errors that cost money and reputation.

“And don’t forget to give back. If you succeed, someone a little more junior than you might need a helping hand. It’s the cycle of business life. On that theme, don’t burn bridges! You never know when you’ll need to come back.” n

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

SPRING 15

Financing Growth If you have plans for growth this year, the good news is that there is plenty of finance around according to Dr Steve Walker, Chief Executive of ART Business Loans.

The tricky part, he says, can be finding out what the options are and understanding what is best for your business In truth, there has probably never been a better time to seek finance.

In addition to the banks there are now so many alternative and additional forms of finance available to businesses. Peer lending, local loan and equity schemes, loans from Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) like ART Business Loans and recently grant schemes funded by national pots of money as well as European funding.

Given this climate you need to take time to do the research, or engage a financial advisor to act on your behalf. There are some websites that can be a useful starting point, for example: www. greatbusiness.gov.uk; wwwfindingfinance.org.uk and www.alternativebusinessfunding.co.uk.

Many of the alternative funding sources will lend whether or not you have already approached a bank. CDFIs lend to businesses with a viable proposition which nevertheless have been turned down by the banks. It could be that they have already lent as much as they can. ART often lends alongside the banks and, in fact, packages of finance involving the banks and a variety of other lenders are increasing becoming the norm when it comes to financing growth.

Whichever funder you apply to, it is important to demonstrate a realistic grasp of the state of your

suggest options you wouldn’t have thought of.

Credit cards and some other types of personal finance often have much higher rates of interest than you could obtain on a business loan.

ART loans can be repaid early without penalty and many of our borrowers choose to do that. They frequently find they are able to re-finance or leverage other finance as a result of having been given an ART loan.

GROWTH AT ART BUSINESS LOANS Whilst we were established in 1997 to meet a need for access to finance in Birmingham’s most deprived inner city areas, we have seen an increasing gap in the market left by the banks that we can fill. We now lend to any business based in the West Midlands, which has been unable to get any or all of the finance it needs from the banks and have increased our maximum loan size from £50,000 to £150,000. Since moving to Innovation Campus Birmingham in January 2014, we have gone from strength to strength, forging new partnerships and reinforcing existing relationships.

We are needed more now than at any time in our 17 year history and are forecasting further growth in the year ahead. We look forward to supporting many more businesses with their growth plans in 2015, creating more local jobs for local people.

Steve Walker business, the potential growth rate and timescale for return on investment. Remember that lenders like to be treated as business partners – if you are open and honest with them they can give you the most appropriate advice. Asking for too little money is as bad as asking for too much, because it shows you have an unrealistic understanding.

FINANCING GROWTH To avoid tricky questions, or paperwork, smaller businesses are showing an increasing tendency to go for personal finance. Unless you are just starting out, we would advise against this.

Business lenders can offer valuable advice and

THE ART BUSINESS LOANS TEAM

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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Photo: Marc Kirsten

The ART Business Loans Team (left to right) Graham Donaldson, Martin Edmonds, Chris Allen-Lloyd, Andy King, Barbara Seaton and Steve Walker. The team, which is highly experienced and knowledgeable about business finance, is always happy to share information and signpost to appropriate sources of finance and business support.

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

WEST MIDLANDS: A MANUFACTURING ECONOMY In partnership with

SPECIAL FEATURE WHERE WE ARE

Economic insight from Professor David Bailey

WIDER HORIZONS Professor Jane Godsell on supply chain strategy

ESSENTIAL SKILLS Ann Watson offers words of wisdom on training

INSIGHT

SPRING 15

MANUFACTURING AND EXPORT ANALYSIS

The strength of manufacturing and growing exports are keeping the West Midlands ahead of the rest of the UK – despite a national slowdown in economic growth. Professor David Bailey reports The UK’s economic growth eased in the final quarter of 2014 to 0.5%, as global headwinds slowed manufacturing output and construction contracted, while services (especially retail) continued to grow strongly.

Overall growth for the year came in at 2.6%, down on the official forecast of 3% but still a respectable rate of growth, especially in the context of Eurozone recession and deflation.

But with the General Election looming, the news of an easing up in the pace of growth should come as uncomfortable news for Chancellor Osborne, although he can still claim that at 2.6%, growth was the “fastest of any major economy” and the strongest since 2007. Moreover, the sharp fall in oil prices (down by over 50% since last summer) should simultaneously boost household budgets which have been squeezed for the last few years, cut manufacturing costs, and fuel growth in 2015.

Not surprisingly, the E&Y Item Club have upped their forecast for 2015 UK growth to 2.9%.

Growth in Q4 of 2014 was reliant on the UK’s dominant services sector, which accounts for as much as 80% of UK output, and which was up by 0.8%.

So much for rebalancing and the ‘March of the Makers’. Construction output shrank by 1.8% and manufacturing fell by 0.1% in Q4 of 2014. Rebalancing – at the national level at least – stalled in the latter part of the year. And it’s telling that only the UK’s dominant services sector is back to its pre-crisis strength.

There’s also a concern that the consumerled recovery has again been built on more borrowing as incomes were squeezed up to the end of 2014, and that things could come a cropper if yet another housing bubble blows up. On that, it should be noted that prior to the financial crisis, the debt to income ratio in the

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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MANUFACTURING ECONOMY

SPRING 15

UK was around 170%. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) reckons it will reach over 180% by 2020, and currently stands at 146%.

‘Rebalancing’, so far at least, seems more like shifting the burden of debt from the public to the private sector.

What’s really been puzzling economists, though, is the UK’s ‘productivity paradox’.

What they really mean by this is that they don’t know why, since the 2008-9 financial crisis, the UK economy has apparently lost its ability to improve output from existing labour and assets.

Partly that was because when the downturn hit, firms – especially in manufacturing – hoarded skilled labour. Workers at JLR and other firms actually voted for real-term pay cuts to keep their jobs. As output dropped but employment remained relatively stable, so productivity fell. That was actually a good news story as it meant unemployment didn’t rise as much as had been feared.

But that doesn’t explain why there hasn’t been a decent pick up in productivity since.

What’s termed ‘multi-factor productivity’ (one way of looking at the efficiency of producing output from a mix of inputs) actually reduced economic growth by 0.5% last year. That might have something to do with access to finance for investment, for example.

Overall, what recent figures tell us is that while manufacturing had a ‘good’ 2014, it still has some way to go to recover the ground lost during and after the 2008-9 downturn.

And a sustained manufacturing recovery is still not guaranteed, as the latest GDP figures show. Doubts over the durability of the manufacturing recovery centre on fragility in key export markets, low levels of investment spending, concerns over the impact of high energy costs across the sector (on which the recent fall in oil prices should help), and issues of skills and access to finance further down the supply chain.

As I said a year ago here in BQ West Midlands, these factors could yet throw something of a spanner in the manufacturing works.

Thankfully, the fall in oil prices, which will spur economic growth and cut manufacturing costs, has come at just the right time for the sector, and the wider economy.

On the positive side, last year saw another rise – albeit slight – in UK automotive output. This

MANUFACTURING ECONOMY

A sustained manufacturing recovery is still not guaranteed, as the latest GDP figures show year should be even better, with full production runs of new Mini and Nissan Qashqai models, the new Jaguar XE coming on stream and the new Land Rover Discovery Sport hitting the roads.

JLR has just posted record output figures and should top 500,000 units this year, with big increases in sales beyond Europe being stacked up. Some 80% of cars made in the UK are exported, of course. But while JLR has led the automotive export charge into new markets beyond Europe, UK exports overall have failed to take off anywhere near as much as policymakers had hoped for. The West Midlands is of course an exception to this, with export growth far beyond anything seen in any other UK region. The heavy lifting of rebalancing and exporting our way of trouble is only really happening here in this region.

Exports here now account for more than a fifth of the region’s GVA, and the region sells 12% of the goods shipped abroad from the UK. The rise in exports from the region has been driven by the automotive sector, which accounts for over 40% of the region’s exports.

Advanced manufacturing and engineering in the West Midlands can now compete with anywhere in Europe on the basis of high productivity, high quality and low labour costs.

INSIGHT

The region is also well placed to develop this further through investment in skills and technology. But to do the latter properly, ideally the region needs a better set of local policy levers so that it can do more to push things along and actively support our exporters, including greater attention to skills, access to long-term finance and support for innovation.

For example, in designing support for skills in the region’s ‘phoenix’ low carbon vehicle cluster or its serious gaming industry, local LEPs are far better placed to do this than a remote quango in London, which is far removed from where the action is really happening.

So far we have seen a strong effort by local actors – whether LEPs, suppliers, unions, assemblers or support agencies such as the Manufacturing Advisory Service – to work together to support the renaissance of local manufacturing. The co-operation between some of the local LEPs over inward investment and supply chain support, for example, has been genuinely first rate.

But that needs to be built on. Local authorities need to come together in a ‘Combined Authority’ to seize the devolution opportunity so that the region can develop a wider array of policies to boost the local availability of skills, foster the region’s innovation capacity, support the supply chain base, and provide effective support services.

And central government needs to listen and let go of such powers. Devolution isn’t necessarily going to boost economic growth in the UK overall as some regions won’t necessarily deliver. But this is the one region delivering the rebalancing and export growth so wanted by the government. Giving the region more power to push that along really does make economic sense. n

Industrial learning David Bailey is Professor of Industrial Strategy in the Economics and Strategy Group at Aston Business School (ABS), recognised worldwide as a leading centre of business education. From humble beginnings as a training centre for the industrial community to today, when graduates are sought out for their employability based on ABS’s placement model and work-based learning, the faculty are in demand for their understanding of what creates successful growth in companies. ABS provides an intensely practical and contextual business education with a strong commercial focus.

It also concentrates on relevant research for business, and especially small and medium-sized firms, where it has a proven track record, with the aim of making business more effective.

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

SPRING 15

We are now part of the Business Growth Service…

Lorraine Holmes, Area Director for the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) in the West Midlands, reveals how growing manufacturers will benefit from its integration into the Business Growth Service.

The New Year brought with it some positive news for the business support landscape, with the Chancellor announcing the launch of the newly formed Business Growth Service.

This is designed to make it easer for companies to access support by bringing together a range of expertise from four existing services – ourselves at the Manufacturing Advisory Service, GrowthAccelerator, Intellectual Property (IP) Audits and Design Council Design Mentoring – into one single service. The Business Growth Service will help manufacturers to: • Develop new ideas and market them • Protect intellectual property • Build leadership and management skills • Export for the first time or break into new markets • Improve manufacturing processes and build supply chains • Connect with a network of ambitious business leaders Business and Enterprise Minister Matt Hancock said: “Small businesses told us the support available was too disjointed so we have joined it together through our new Business Growth Service, which will provide a tailored package of support to thousands of firms each year.”

The Business Growth Service is aimed at businesses with growth potential based in England, with fewer than 250 employees and a turnover of less than £40m.

By combining the expertise of the four programmes, we expect to create up to 49,000 new jobs and deliver up to £2.3bn of economic growth.

How are you going to benefit? www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/businessgrowthservice www.mymas.org, 0300 456 3565, @bgs_tweets

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

Reshoring success: (l-r) Helen Pitt (Andel Plastics) and Roger Tyler (Blink Medical)

CASE STUDY: BIRMINGHAM COMPANIES JOIN FORCES TO BRING MEDICAL INNOVATION HOME A partnership made in Birmingham could change the way single use surgical instruments are manufactured and help bring production back to the region.

Blink Medical has teamed up with Andel Plastics to produce a mould tool that will allow a device used in eye surgery to be made out of plastic instead of ‘traditional’ stainless steel.

The ‘Double Ended Marker’ is lighter, safer, and more cost effective to manufacture, which will lead to considerable savings for the NHS and health organisations across Europe, the US and, potentially, the Far East.

Backed by strategic support from the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS), the new partnership will involve production of the instrument moving from China to Birmingham,

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creating three immediate jobs in the process.

It also strengthens the relationship between Blink Medical and Andel, with the latter recently investing nearly £70,000 in a new clean room to assemble specialist instrument packs for the medical sector.

“We are continually looking at ways where we can bring innovation to the marketplace and recognised at an early stage that there was potential to consider plastic as a material instead of the traditional reliance on metal,” commented Roger Tyler, Managing Director of Blink Medical.

“This isn’t something we could do on our own and needed to seek the expertise of a plastic injection moulder, which is where Andel came into the equation.”

He continued: “Tapping into MAS support to help with prototyping and development, we were able to successfully come up with a RP plastic surgical

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COMPANY PROFILE

instrument that was more functional and cost effective to produce than its metal counterpart.

“We’ve just started to get our first orders and we expect to achieve sales approaching £100,000 during the next twelve months, with the promise of this ramping up considerably in the coming years.

“This is just the start and we’re already looking at how we can develop further innovations.”

WEST MIDLANDS MANUFACTURERS SET TO BENEFIT FROM FIT FOR NUCLEAR £1.5M FUNDING CALL A £1.5m support boost has been unveiled to help manufacturers enter or expand their presence in the growing nuclear sector.

Fit For Nuclear (F4N), which was developed by the Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (Nuclear AMRC) and delivered in partnership with the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS), is offering grants of around £10,000 to West Midlands companies that want to meet industry standards and compete for work in civil nuclear.

More than 5,000 SMEs are needed to ensure the UK has the necessary capacity to meet its £60bn civil new build programme and the multi-billion decommissioning contracts already underway.

“Smaller manufacturers have a vital role to play in civil nuclear, if they can meet the standards demanded by the industry’s top tier,” said Mike Tynan, chief executive of the Nuclear AMRC. “To win work, West Midlands companies need to make sure they have the ability to meet safety, quality and cost standards, and can demonstrate that their specialist capabilities can deliver value to clients.”

He continued: “We created Fit For Nuclear to help manufacturers close any gaps in performance, and this new funding will provide vital support for anyone taking the next steps and getting ready to compete for nuclear opportunities.”

The funding call will allow management teams to drive business improvements in areas such as improved manufacturing processes, factory layout, bid writing, training plans and strategy.

Manufacturers can apply for F4N funding to support R&D projects to optimise production or develop new processes/products and can also access the Nuclear AMRC’s world-leading workshop capabilities in welding, metrology and design support.

All projects must be completed by 31 March 2016,

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Inside the new Dorries Contumat vertical turning/milling lathe at the Nuclear AMRC

Any West Midlands manufacturer employing 10 or more people and boasting over £1.6m sales can apply to the new funding call with firms urged to apply as soon as possible to secure a share of the funding.

“Almost 200 businesses have already embarked on Fit For Nuclear and more than 75% of these have recorded immediate tangible bottom-line benefits,” explained Steven Barr, head of MAS. “This is just the start and the current funding call will look to accelerate the number of companies getting involved. Nuclear is seen as a difficult sector to break into. Yes requirements are different, but it’s not as problematic as some people make out.”

He continued: “F4N can take you throughout the entire journey, from the online capability check and on-site assessment, through to the generation of an action plan and a 50% grant towards improvement or R&D projects.

“We’ve successfully worked with manufacturers involved in aerospace, automotive, electronics, marine and general fabrication, taking their core expertise and making them applicable to nuclear.”

The UK is leading the way in researching the challenges and opportunities posed by decommissioning, currently working on 17 sites dating back as far as the 1940s.

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Going forward, the industry has outlined plans to construct around 16 GW of new nuclear power stations in the UK by 2030, equating to a potential investment of £60bn.

Backed by top tier partners including Areva and EDF Energy, Fit For Nuclear will give manufacturers a clearer understanding of supplier expectations, performance benchmarks, clarity on routes to market and access to the unique manufacturing R&D capabilities of the Nuclear AMRC in Sheffield.

Participants can also take advantage of the centre’s Nuclear Connections initiative, which helps link manufacturers to specific supply opportunities from the industry’s top tiers.

Steven continued: “Any West Midlands manufacturer employing 10 or more people and boasting over £1.6m sales can apply to the new funding call.

“All they need to do is get in touch and one of our assessors will guide them on the application and a quick decision will be made to ensure companies have the best possible chance of taking advantage of the £60bn+ opportunity.”

For further information, please visit fitfornuclear.co.uk or contact 0207 728 3026.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

FOREWORD

SPRING 15

PUTTING THE UK AT THE HEART OF THE GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN We must widen our horizons, says Janet Godsell, Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Strategy at WMG, University of Warwick

It is frustrating to see UK industry adopt a narrow and limiting perspective to the supply chain, especially in today’s globalised world.

Such a narrow perspective is damaging to UK industry.

The UK is part of a network of global supply chains. To operate effectively in this network, the UK first needs to recognise that it is a part of the network, and then identify the most value adding ways to contribute.

It is about recognising global demand and configuring the right global supply chains to meet this demand effectively (meeting the customer requirements in terms of cost, quality, time and increasingly environmental and social sustainability).

Failure to do so will see the UK becoming increasingly marginalised with no recognised role or expertise to contribute to the global supply chain network.

It is not too late for the UK. Indeed, with the after-shocks of the global financial crisis still reverberating around the world, and traditional models being challenged by the Internet, the time is right to re-visit the role that the UK plays in global supply networks.

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Whether this be local supply to meet the demands of the UK market, regional supply for the European market or global supply for the world.

To capitilise on this opportunity and re-define the UK’s role at the heart of the global supply chain network, there are four critical ways in which the UK needs to view them differently.

1) Functional to holistic perspective: The supply chain needs to be defined in its broadest possible sense to include all the core supply chain processes (design, plan, source, make and deliver) and consider the extended network both upstream and downstream, as originally envisaged.

2) Manufacturing to planning centric: Planning is the glue that holds the supply chain together. It provides the opportunity for co-ordination and synchronisation along the extended supply chain. It is the overarching process across global supply networks that connects together different manufacturers, both large and small.

3) ‘After thought’ to integral part of strategy: Successful organisations use their supply chains strategically to reduce costs today

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whilst enabling future growth. This can only be achieved if it is an integral part of business strategy and not a cost reduction focused afterthought.

4) Re-shoring to right-shoring: A holistic view of the supply chain, its link to a business’s strategic priorities, and the consideration of the total supply chain cost, helps businesses to evaluate where best to place their factories, warehouses and suppliers. This can be enabled by the intelligent use of network modelling tools a capability well developed in the UK. n • Professor Godsell has recently contributed to ‘New World Supply Chains: Britain at the Heart of Global Manufacturing’, a term paper from the All-Party Parliamentary Manufacturing Group, and through her Supply Chain Research Group, at WMG, is committed to ensuring that the UK is at the heart of the network of global supply chains by working closely with industry to find pragmatic solutions to real supply chain issues. She has also developed a Supply Chains in Practice network for those who want to want to stay at the leading edge of supply chain strategy. For more information visit go.warwick.ac.uk/scip.

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AUTOMOTIVE AND ENGINEERING ANALYSIS Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, chairman of WMG, a research and education group based at the University of Warwick, analyses the growth of Jaguar Land Rover and the wider automotive sector

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EXPERT VIEW The year 2015 is going to be absolutely crucial for the success of Jaguar Land Rover and the wider Midlands motor industry. Can JLR continue its global advance in the face of the challenges ahead for the global economy? Can it make the breakthrough into the small car segment dominated by the major automotive manufacturers? The stats to date are quite amazing. For the financial year to March 2014, the company reported full-year pre-tax profits of £2.5bn, with revenues of £19.4bn.

The Midlands’ biggest manufacturer revealed global turnover was up by 9% in 2014, with 462,678 vehicles sold. Land Rover celebrated a record year with 381,108 vehicles while Jaguar sales were 81,570.

The aim is to produce one million cars by the end of the decade. A heady prospect indeed but, if anybody can pull it off, JLR can. After all, since 2009, the company has undergone a period of unprecedented growth, doubling output on the back of a raft of exciting new models. JLR now employs around 30,000 people globally and supports around 190,000 more through dealerships, suppliers and local businesses.

All its vehicles are engineered and designed in Britain and, despite the ambitious plans for global growth, the heart of the business remains in the UK. The firm has invested billions of pounds – more than £10bn in the last five years – in modern production, research and development facilities. In fact, it’s the biggest UK investor in R&D in the manufacturing sector and is in the global top 100 for R&D spend. Selling to more than 170 countries, JLR is now one of the largest exporters by value in the UK, with 80% of vehicles produced in the UK being sold abroad. Yet JLR is still a small company.

Its competitors Audi and Mercedes are four or five times as big. And the world situation is going through dynamic change. The Chinese economy is on a downward trend and all over currencies and markets are volatile.

The automotive sector is facing issues – the development of electric cars and hybrids while at the same time coping with new regulations.

Future technologies are such that a huge amount of R&D is needed. With an enormous amount of help from Tata, there has been a remarkable turnaround at JLR. All credit to >>

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

EXPERT VIEW those at JLR and especially to Dr Ralph Speth, who is one of the best chief executives in the country. Yet these are early days. But for Tata there wouldn’t be an R&D driven UK car industry left. But we got them here and it effectively saved the automotive industry in this country from complete destruction.

When Tata came to the UK in 2008 there were a lot of question marks about the Castle Bromwich factory which was destined to be closed. It has been kept open and the newest models are being built there – also at Solihull and Halewood. A lot of investment has gone in to make that happen. Huge amounts of investment are required to produce competitive vehicles. It nearly never happened because Tata almost walked away after the Labour Government set out tough terms for financial help at the height of the banking crisis and economic downturn, but stayed the course and is now reaping the benefits. Tata has embraced corporate responsibility – thousands of new jobs, many more apprentices, helping schools to understand engineering, funding people to do university degrees, establishing University Technical Colleges at WMG and Solihull, getting involved with top universities. Indeed there is a symbiotic relationship between JLR and the social environment in which company employees live. JLR takes that very seriously.

They have single-handedly changed the image of the manufacturing industry in this country.

The benefit has been felt across the supply chain. But there remains a long way to go and many hurdles.

Such as wage costs – we in the UK are in danger of becoming uncompetitive. JLR was disappointed at the way the recent pay settlement was conducted – in the glare of the newspapers and 24:7 instant headlines. Other countries such as the US, Canada, Turkey and Austria have made lucrative offers designed to attract the company – they are not hamstrung by state aid restrictions as in the UK. JLR is rethinking its direction – it is at a crossroads.

2014 saw a number of highs. Models like the Evoque have captured the public imagination, and both the Discovery Sport and Jaguar XE have been unveiled. The group’s vital new £500m engine factory was launched at the i54 site near Wolverhampton. The plant, the

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

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Applying new ideas Professor Lord Bhattacharyya founded the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) in 1980 to help reinvigorate UK manufacturing. WMG is a department of the University of Warwick, and aims to improve the competitiveness of businesses by applying new ideas, technologies and skills, bringing academic rigour to organisations and industries.

size of 14 football pitches, is JLR’s largest investment for in-house engine design and manufacturing in a generation. It will be home to the new ‘Ingenium’ range of engines that will underpin the upcoming generation of both Jaguar and Land Rover products, starting with the XE saloon. The first XEs will roll off the production line with these engines this year, for deliveries in May. JLR opened its first plant in China – it will produce three JLR models by 2016 – in partnership with local firm Chery Automobile Company. The factory is part of a 10.9bn yuan (£1.1bn) investment and is located in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu, north of Shanghai. It has a planned production capacity of 130,000 cars in its first year. The first model to roll off the line will be the Evoque, JLR’s most popular vehicle in China.

Since its launch, one in five Range Rover Evoques have been sold there. China is JLR’s largest single market. More than 100,000 vehicles were sold in the country in the financial year ending March 2014. And the worldwide expansion goes on. A new £240m plant in Brazil is set to come on line in 2016, capable of producing 24,000 vehicles a year. JLR has been eyeing up locations in the southern United States and Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, back at home, 2015 opened with the announcement of around 1,300 new jobs with a new Jaguar car, its first 4x4, described as a practical five-seater, an SUV crossover, to be built at the Land Rover factory in Solihull for launch in 2016. It will cost around £38,000. Named the F-PACE, it will go up against the Porsche Macan and the BMW X4. Perhaps the biggest challenge for

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this year is ensuring the new baby Jag is a hit with the car buying public. JLR’s development to date has largely been based on Land Rover – it far outsells Jaguar. The new 2015 Jaguar XE marks the brand’s return to the compact executive car segment, probably the most competitive sector worldwide, in which the likes of the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class traditionally hold sway. The Jaguar XE’s public debut came at the 2014 Paris Motor Show in October. Prices started from £26,995.

The public unveiling of the XE came off the back of a star-studded launch event in London which Jaguar trailed by flying the car over the city by helicopter at sunset. No expense was spared in making sure the new XE arrived with a bang. The Jaguar XE is the result of around £1.5bn worth of investment in a new factory within Land Rover’s Solihull plant, and JLR is expecting big things from its newcomer in terms of sales impact.

Arguably it is the group’s most important model ever. I believe it will meet the test, battle the opposition head on and sell well.

Jaguar needs a big seller.

Hopefully it will be seen as the spiritual successor to the Mark II Jaguar (as driven by Inspector Morse) built in the Midlands in the 1960s. In the wide automotive sector, UK car sales rose 9.3% year-on-year overall in 2014 to reach a 10-year high of 2,476,435 units.

Jaguar was up 13.52% and Land Rover ahead 2.74%.

Of the Midlands minnows, Aston Martin declined 6.7%, although this equated to just 62 cars, while Longbridge-based MG, the Chinese-owned brand, saw an overall rise of 361.5% – however volumes remained small at 2,326 compared to 504. Interestingly, 2014 saw a remarkable surge in demand for ultralow emission vehicles (ULEVs). Registrations of plug-in cars increased four-fold from 3,586 in 2013 to 14,498 in 2014. Overall, around 80% of UK-built vehicles are exported, and UK car-making boasts £60bn annual turnover.

Meanwhile, pundits believe low inflation, low interest rates and high employment will produce a strong 2015 domestic market. n For more information, visit www.wmg.warwick.ac.uk

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COMPANY PROFILE

Shaping the Future of Automotive Manufacturing WMG has been collaborating with the automotive sector for over 30 years, leading major multi-partner projects which have resulted in making cars, and companies, increasingly smarter, lighter and greener The automotive sector continues to grow and is Europe’s largest investor in R&D, helping to deliver sustainable and affordable transport for the 21st century. WMG, at the University of Warwick, has developed cutting edge technologies by bringing together a diverse range of disciplines and applying this, through partner projects, to deliver innovative products that meet both social and consumer needs.

Much has changed in the automotive industry.

Driven by demands of energy security and climate change, vehicle powertrains are becoming more efficient but more complex. With increased R&D, hybrid and fully electric vehicles are finding a place in the new vehicle market. This is in many ways the most exciting decade for automotive evolution since the 1920s – the decade in which the petrol engine emerged as the dominant propulsion source for cars. In order for a car to compete in the fierce global market it needs to meet not only the changing technological requirements, but also the social needs and demands of the consumer.

This creates challenges from fundamental science, such as battery chemistry, through to manufacturing and business processes, and requires understanding of human behaviour and responses to new technology.

Our aim is to design and manufacture the next generation of lightweight fuel efficient vehicles in response to the significant challenges facing the UK and global transportation industry as a result of the low carbon agenda. It builds upon a 10 year track record in delivering such solutions to industry through collaborative R&D projects.

Key investments supporting this activity are: ENERGY INNOVATION CENTRE The largest battery test facility in the UK, with facilities to scale up battery chemistries from gram scale coin cells to full scale battery packs

produce polymer nanocomposites. Through synthesising and functionalising nanoparticles and incorporating such particles into polymers using innovative manufacturing techniques industry will be able to scale up and commercialise products with added functionality.

International Institute for Nanocomposites Manufacturing for prototype vehicles and to test cells/ modules under extreme abuse conditions such as crush, pierce and vibration, as well as the ability to characterise them in normal operation. Powertrain test facilities allow experimentation on complete hybrid vehicle powertrains, including the ability to test the component elements of the system on separate but synchronised dynamometers.

INTERNATIONAL MANUFACTURING CENTRE Focussing on the forming joining assembly and performance of lightweight structures. The Centre houses equipment for pilot scale forming, automated joining/assembly and high strain rate testing.

AUTOMOTIVE COMPOSITES RESEARCH CENTRE Focusing on lightweight vehicle technologies and manufacturing capability for polymeric composites it provides industry with hands-on technical expertise and equipment to develop lightweight structures. Facilities include forming presses, computer controlled cutting, resin mixing/ injection, plasma treatment and joining machines.

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR NANOCOPOSITES MANUFACTURING A first of its kind, the Institute exploits polymer processing techniques to enable industry to innovate their manufacturing technologies to

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ADVANCED STEEL RESEARCH CENTRE A state-of-the-art research facility which will focus on research aimed at transforming the manufacturing of steel. It will include advanced characterisation and laboratory scale steel making facilities, which will provide a unique national resource, complimenting Tat Steel’s long term investment with WMG and the University.

THE NATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE INNOVATION CENTRE A collaborative £150m project with Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Motors and will deliver a long-term strategic plan, creating the largest academic automotive R&D facility in the Europe which will enhance the UK’s capacity and capability in key areas of automotive research.

Due to open late 2016.

The UK automotive sector is spearheading progress in advanced propulsion systems, led by the Automotive Council and the new Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC). The University is delighted to be at the heart of this through hosting the APC Hub on campus from 2014.

If you are interested in collaborating with WMG contact our Business Development Team on (024) 765 75935 or email wmgbusiness@warwick.ac.uk.

Visit go.warwick.ac.uk/wmg

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

INSIGHT

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Education, skills and training are crucial for the UK’s advanced manufacturing and engineering sector. Ann Watson, chief executive of employer-led skills organisation Semta, reports on progress in the West Midlands

EDUCATION, SKILLS AND TRAINING FOR MANUFACTURING What better way was there to start 2015 than with the news Jaguar Land Rover is creating 1,300 new jobs at its Solihull plant to help build the first Jaguar Sport Utility Vehicle? It’s a significant boost to the economy of the West Midlands and the UK as a whole, and I have no doubt it has come about, in part, as a result of innovative work the company has been doing on the skills front.

JLR identified that to grow as a business it needed the supply chain to grow with it.

So it developed a programme to drive up its suppliers’ key performance indicators to provide better quality, on time, at the right cost to itself and other car manufacturers.

Those employees taking part are skill-assessed at the start of the programme and tested

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

at the end, where on successful completion they get an opportunity to take further qualifications. The impact is they are better skilled and better prepared to help their own businesses as well as JLR. The suppliers have seen huge benefit in the programme with vast improvements in the skills, knowledge and behaviours of course attendees. The SMEs taking part have become advocates for it as the programme is rolled out, maintaining the growing momentum and focus of connecting skills development to outstanding performance.

It’s encouraging to see businesses working together to meet training needs. Small enterprises which could not afford to do it on their own are clustering together and working

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with colleges and the large employers to deliver cost-effective training benefiting them, the individual and the wider sector.

But more needs to be done across the sector.

In 2014 there were 72,500 job postings for technical engineering related vacancies in the West Midlands. The main concentration was located in Birmingham (21%), Warwickshire (20%), Staffordshire (17%) and Coventry (10%). Impressive statistics yes, but the challenge of filling these vacancies should not be under-estimated.

Between 2015 and 2020 it’s anticipated that there will be a net recruitment requirement for 18,000 people across all occupations into the advanced manufacturing and engineering sector – 3,000 a year – in the West Midlands.

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And approximately 9,000 will need to be recruited into technical roles.

Semta has also long argued that educators and business need to work closer together to address the skills challenge. When talking to bright, talented youngsters, we hear tales of academic snobbery – career advisers actively obstructing them from taking a vocational qualification and a career in industry. Many are being driven into higher education so schools can simply tick a box to say a pupil has gone to university. Our research shows only 10% of educators feel they know a lot about apprenticeships despite their growth and the stated aim of all the main political parties to have apprenticeships at the heart of our industrial strategy. Only 10% of parents rank apprenticeships as their preferred qualification for their children, despite the fact it can lead to a career path which can provide them with a lifestyle which is better than many of their peers who go to university. They continue to learn while they earn, with the potential to gain a degree while working, without being burdened with student debt. Of course industry needs the best graduates – far too many of those taking STEM subjects are lost to other sectors of the economy – but we cannot allow the poor advice to supress the ambitions of our young people who can’t or don’t want to go to university. To attract more boys and critically many more girls we need to redress the balance and build a proper skills pipeline.

Semta has been commissioned and funded

by The Education and Training Foundation to develop and deliver a project to drive up standards in STEM teaching and training across England. The STEM Alliance brings together further education and industry to develop a higher level of competence, confidence and collaboration in STEM teaching and learning, to inspire and equip the next generation of engineers, scientists and technicians with the skills to succeed. Key activities will include: • Identifying and sharing good practice and the best resources.

• Delivering workshops and events for new and existing STEM teachers and tutors.

• Increasing staff entering STEM training programmes and retaining them.

• Actively engaging with employers, including employer secondment and work placement

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opportunities for tutors and trainers.

A STEM employer register will be created, with the aim of signing up more than 1,000 employers across England, to provide workbased professional development for STEM teachers and tutors. Time is of the essence and we are looking to companies in the West Midlands, which accounts for 12% of all employment in the UK’s Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering sector, to join us. It is also clear there is a shortage of specialist STEM teachers and tutors. A recent report by Engineering UK revealed almost a quarter of those in secondary schools teaching maths (23%) and chemistry (24%), and a third teaching physics (34%) have no qualification in the subject beyond A-level.

Success in promoting science and maths to young people, and encouraging continued STEM study beyond school, depends on high quality teaching delivered by subject specialists. It is in everyone’s interests that employers and educators create a climate for talent to thrive, whether that be those delivering the knowledge or those learning it, to ensure the West Midlands and the UK has a highly motivated, highly skilled, world class workforce for generations to come. n

INSIGHT

About Semta Semta is ‘Engineering Skills for the Future’.

Semta is employer-led and responsible for equipping the UK’s vital engineering, science and manufacturing technologies sectors with the skills to compete on the global stage. These sectors are the powerhouse of the economy and their skills and productivity are fundamental to UK recovery and future prosperity.

Semta represents 138,000 companies with a 1.66 million-strong workforce, which generates annual revenues of £309 billion for the UK economy.

The sectors include: aerospace, automotive, composites, electrical, electronics, marine, mechanical, metals, renewables, defence, rail and space sectors.

To contact Semta, go to www.semta.org.uk, or call 0845 643 9001. For more information on how you can get involved in the STEM Alliance email: enquiries@STEMalliance.uk or visit www.STEMalliance.uk

Workforce demographics • 12% of the AME workforce is aged 60+, 8% are aged 16-24.

• 21% of the workforce is female.

• 9% of the workforce is from an ethnic minority.

• 12% of the workforce has some sort of disability.

• Craft (21%), operator (18%) and professional (17%) occupations account for 56% of total employment.

• 44% of the AME workforce is employed in higher-level occupations (managers, professionals and technicians).

• 51% of the workforce is employed in direct technical roles (engineers, scientists and technologists).

Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (AME) • 200,000 employees work across 14,300 AME establishments.

• The AME sector accounts for over 8% of total employment in the West Midlands.

• The AME sector in the West Midlands accounts for over 12% of total UK AME employment.

• 77% of AME establishments employ between 1-10 employees (micro-sized).

• In terms of employment, key AME sectors in the West Midlands are Metals (37% of AME employment), Automotive (21%) and Mechanical Equipment (19%).

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BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

Supply Chain and Logistics Management Part time, Industry Accredited, Professional Education Deliver competitive advantage through your supply chains. Become a change agent and leader for effective supply and logistics for manufacturing, process, and service-based organisations.

MSc Supply Chain and Logistics Management

Why choose WMG?

Accredited by the IET, the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply, and the Chartered Institute for Logistics and Transport.

▪ Excellent networking opportunities

Supply Professionalism Programme

▪ Apply your knowledge straight back into the workplace

The educational platform for supply managers at global companies including AstraZeneca, Fuji DB, PZ Cussons, GSK and Syngenta. Now open to new companies.

For more information: W www.warwick.ac.uk/wmgptmasters E wmgptmasters@warwick.ac.uk T +44 (0)24 765 23976

▪ Study while in full-time employment ▪ Intensive five-day modules are ‘all inclusive’, allowing you to immerse yourself in the programme

▪ Modules developed in partnership with industry to ensure benefit to both employer and employee ▪ Qualification awarded by the University of Warwick – Times and Sunday Times University of the Year 2014/2015

SPRING 15

EXPERT VIEW

WEST MIDLANDS ECONOMIC ANALYSIS The future looks bright for the industrial West Midlands, according to Sean Raftery, of Quilter Cheviot, who assesses the market and economy for 2015 Buoyant Birmingham is the perfect demonstration of that oft-seen gulf between the real economy, one that employs people and creates opportunity and prosperity, and the rarefied and sometimes jittery world of international markets. While geopolitical concerns, tumbling oil prices and reduced Asian and US growth prospects are causing some nervous traders to reach for their blood pressure pills, our city region is at its most confident since the dark days of 2008.

It’s a confidence which is well-placed too, because it’s one based on significant structural opportunities and developments which will properly fuel the engine of the regional economy. And the truth is that the economy generally is in good shape and that those tumbling oil prices – while impacting on some stock market valuations – will be a major boost to the UK economy, reducing costs for business and consumers alike. Households in particular will benefit from lower fuel prices.

Many developed countries have failed to see any significant wage increases over recent years so the reduced cost of oil will provide a welcome boost to household finances. That macro-economic picture only goes to support the confidence being felt regionally, where it’s worth reminding ourselves of some of the facts. The Birmingham economy grew by 4.2% between 2012 and 2013, outperforming the UK growth rate of 1.6% and making it the strongest performing of all the UK’s core cities in that period, according to official Government figures. Data from Marketing Birmingham for 2012/13 shows there were 41 inward investment projects in the city, creating a total of 2,271 new jobs and safeguarding a further 1,732 jobs. This represents a 52% increase in investment projects compared to the previous year. Associated job numbers

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Sean Raftery is head of the Birmingham office for Quilter Cheviot Investment Management

were also considerably up on 2011/12, with 64% more jobs created than the previous year.

In 2013/14 the Greater Birmingham area saw more foreign direct investment projects than any other area. The region has also seen strong export growth since emerging from recession, with the West Midlands exporting more than any other region apart from the South East in Q2 2014. Perhaps the key indicator of health is that total employment

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has recovered to pre-recession levels and the latest official employment figures for the West Midlands show that total employment rose by 4,000 during the period July to September last year. Last year also saw some notable milestones, all of them signals of a strengthening economy.

HydraForce Hydraulics, for instance, started work on its new factory at the Advanced Manufacturing Hub in Aston. >>

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EXPERT VIEW The 120,000sq ft manufacturing facility will become home to around 500 staff this summer. Work also started on the first speculative office building to be built in Birmingham since the recession. The 55,000sq ft Goodman office at Eastside Locks tell us that property investors are coming out of hibernation. The latest chapter in the renaissance of car manufacturing was the opening of the £500m Ingenium engine factory in Wolverhampton.

Birmingham Airport’s runway extension also opened last summer, bringing new long-haul destinations, including China, within range.

The Chinese tourism market has tripled over the past 10 years and is estimated to be worth about £15m to the West Midlands economy.

That investment is part of a £1bn chunk of infrastructure investment for the region which will provide improved access for business,

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residents and visitors and which it’s estimated

by Birmingham City Council will ultimately deliver some 24,000 new jobs and £4bn-plus of GVA for the city region.

The next stage of the New Street Station development, for instance, will see some 3,000 workers on site this summer as work on a 21st century transport hub and the Grand Central Birmingham project is completed.

When John Lewis opens its £35m store above New Street station, Birmingham will be the only city outside London with a Harvey Nichols, a Selfridges and a John Lewis. Selfridges is itself investing £20m in its Bullring store centre and Harvey Nichols is doubling its space in the Mailbox, which is itself undergoing a £50m revamp by new owner Brockton Capital.

Add to this already heady mix the £130m extension of the Metro network and the huge potential impact of the HS2 project (50,000

jobs and a £4bn GVA boost according to Birmingham City Council) then it’s easy to see where city confidence is coming from.

The new employment opportunities all these developments will bring, combined with the boost to consumer spending from low oil prices and low inflation, is good news for the city. For the West Midlands and the Birmingham city region, we believe 2015 will be a year of sustained positivity. n Quilter Cheviot Investment Management focuses primarily on structuring and managing bespoke discretionary portfolios for private clients, charities, trusts, pension funds and intermediaries. www.quiltercheviot.com. This article is not intended to constitute financial advice: securities referred to may not be suitable for all recipients, and the value of investments can go down as well as up.

Coming April 2015 New accredited leadership & management bite-sized training for manufacturing SMEs Helping employers address operational management and leadership skill shortages.

MHA Bloomer Heaven is one of the most established and successful independent Chartered Accountancy practices in the West Midlands. Working closely with manufacturing and engineering clients we provide bespoke accounting and taxation advice as well as advice on specific matters including:

Business structure

Developed by Black Country employers & employer representative groups

Bank and financier negotiations, managing cash flow

Modules focus on hard (practical management) & soft (leadership) skills

Tax initiatives; Research & Development, Capital Allowances and Patent Box

Training to be held at leading manufacturing companies

Accountancy, Audit and Tax Compliance

Co-ordinated by the Black Country Skills Factory

Enquire now: 07944 268709 www.blackcountryskillsfactory.co.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

For more information contact Chris Barlow, Managing Director & Head of Manufacturing MHA Bloomer Heaven t: 0121 236 0465 e: Chris.Barlow@bloomerheaven.co.uk w: www.mhabloomerheaven.co.uk

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MANUFACTURING ECONOMY

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INSIGHT

RELOCATION DRIVING THE INDUSTRIAL REGION

Growing relocations, start-up activity and a vibrant visitor economy are all helping Birmingham’s success in an industrial region. Neil Rami, chief executive of Marketing Birmingham, reports Now is the time to be in Birmingham. The city and its surrounding areas are securing record levels of investment, businesses and visitors.

From new companies to established global brands, a range of companies are moving here. The Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP area attracted 77 foreign investment projects last year, more than any other English region – creating 4,800 jobs. It is not just companies that are coming to Birmingham.

The city attracted 34 million visitors in 2013, the highest on record. Birmingham is also the most popular destination for Londoners relocating from the capital, according to data from the Office of National Statistics, with some 5,500 people coming to the city in the 12 months to June 2013. Birmingham has become an increasingly desirable location to tourists and new residents by offering cultural gems such as the CBSO and Birmingham Royal Ballet, a thriving culinary scene that includes four Michelin-starred restaurants, and worldclass retail and leisure facilities. The success of sectors including financial services and digital media are providing real career progression opportunities. This hasn’t happened by accident. Birmingham is tearing down the concrete of the 1960s, transforming its city centre, and improving infrastructure. The upgrading of the city’s transport networks and its growing talent pool are making it easier for companies to set up a base here. The city is within easy reach of London’s business hubs but remains an affordable location.

The challenge is to keep the momentum going as competition between locations to attract investment and a talented workforce continues to grow. Cities like Birmingham must prove that they have the economic strength, attractive environment and strong

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Neil Rami leadership that truly sells the city globally.

While continued investment from international names is helping to raise the region’s profile as a business destination, the growth of our smaller firms and supply chains is also vital.

Birmingham is already performing well in attracting and retaining entrepreneurs.

Over 18,000 new businesses registered in the city during 2014, more than any other outside London. Offering ambitious new firms the right business environment – with access to local talent, cluster networks and funding opportunities – is crucial to their development. The growth of the region’s incubation hubs, including the Birmingham BioHub, iCentrum and Oxygen Accelerator, will play a lead role in maintaining the city’s reputation as an entrepreneurial hotspot. It is vital to capitalise on the exciting events taking place throughout 2015. Decades of work and huge levels of investment into Birmingham and its surrounding areas are culminating this year, transforming the local landscape and economy. An array of new or revamped

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schemes are completing in the coming months – such as New Street station, Resorts World and Grand Central – while major cultural celebrations include the 25th anniversary of Birmingham Royal Ballet and 50 years of the Ikon Gallery. Marketing Birmingham has been promoting 2015 as a landmark year to the media, potential investors and visitors since early 2014. We have also been working with a range of partners to capitalise on the year ahead, and our ‘Welcome to More’ campaign will raise awareness of the Birmingham area in 2015 – targeting audiences in the UK and overseas through marketing campaigns, PR activity and business development.

The campaign will not end this year. Although 2015 is a landmark year, Birmingham is a city of progress and changes to its physical and economic landscapes will continue. Beyond 2015, the city is entering another period of transformation. The work on Paradise is now underway, and the construction of HS2 is on the horizon. The Ashes is coming to Edgbaston this summer – and this prestigious sporting fixture will also return in 2019.

Birmingham is poised to welcome the world.

And the world is already taking notice. The highly influential Rough Guides has named the city as one of the top ten global destinations to visit in 2015. Birmingham has been ranked sixth in Europe, and top in the UK, for investment prospects in the Emerging Trends in Real Estate – Europe 2015 report by PwC and the Urban Land Institute.

As recognition of Birmingham grows, the city will continue to welcome new companies, new people and new ideas from all over the world. 2015 has all the ingredients to be a significant year in Birmingham’s economic development. n

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COMPANY PROFILE

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A local gateway to global legal expertise By working with DLA Piper’s Birmingham office, Midlands manufacturers can access the expertise of 4,200 lawyers in over 30 countries across the world DLA Piper adopts a sector approach to client relationships, enabling lawyers to build up a detailed picture of the manufacturing world its clients work in. This competence goes all the way down to a sub-sector level, with experts working specifically in areas such as aerospace and the automotive market.

Tim Lake is a partner in the Birmingham office’s corporate team, specialising in mergers and acquisitions and private equity. He also leads the aerospace and automotive focus across the Midlands. Tim said: “Developing expertise and knowledge in each subsector means a lot to our clients. We offer the full services of a business law firm, but move beyond traditional legal categorizations. This enables us to ingrain ourselves in our clients’ business so that we understand the regulatory and legal framework in which they operate, allowing us to respond with greater relevance to both the day to day and emerging issues they face.

The result is a highly tailored service which ensures that clients are provided with timely, practical, relevant and cost effective answers and strategies”.

For example, Tim explained that DLA Piper has a strong understanding of employment and pensions for a company based across Europe, where continental jurisdictions might mean complex

DLA PIPER’S LEGAL SERVICES COVER PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS, CUSTOMERS, STAFF, FINANCE, GOVERNANCE AND COMPLIANCE. DETAILED AREAS INCLUDE: • Accessing finance • Commercial contracts • Employment and industrial relations • Intellectual property • International markets • Managing disputes and litigation • Mergers and acquisitions • Pensions • Product recall • Real estate • Safety, health and environment regulations

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Tim Lake Partner DLA Piper

The best way to really understand what’s going on in the sector is to have close working relationships – and that’s what our clients like about us regulations and close dealings with works councils and trade unions. He said that DLA Piper’s services can move right the way through a company’s operations, another example being how the firm’s finance team can talk to the manufacturer, component suppliers and banks to make sure they access the right finance on appropriate terms.

Tim said that DLA Piper has also played a major part in the recent trend of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) wanting to take main component suppliers in-house, which has involved strategic mergers and acquisitions.

He said: “The best way to really understand what’s going on in the sector is to have close working relationships – and that’s what our

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clients like about us.”

DLA Piper supplements this knowledge with wider activities, such as its partnership with the EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation. This sees DLA Piper partnering with the EEF on the flagship quarterly Outlook Report.

Tim also underlined the company’s strong international heritage, where it’s capable of dealing across manufacturing with everyone from OEMs to tier one and tier two component suppliers – with access to a global team of experts.

“Being ready to deal with those global challenges is what makes us really different,” said Tim. “That global presence, our ingrained sector knowledge and our seamless service are key reasons why clients are using us, particularly in the automotive and aerospace sectors.”

Tim sees his Birmingham office as a regional access point to global sector expertise: “Each person in the office is effectively a gatekeeper, offering a gateway to all services and products we supply across the globe.

“For example, I’m more than happy having a conversation with a firm about a project in Singapore – and then making sure that client gets the right person with the right experience on the ground in Singapore.”

DLA PIPER’S CLIENTS INCLUDE: OEM and Tier 1 and Tier 2 automotive and aerospace component suppliers

For more information contact Tim Lake on T: 0121 262 5934, M:07968 558930 E:tim.lake@dlapiper.com Victoria Square House, Victoria Square, Birmingham B2 4DL W: www.dlapiper.com

MANUFACTURING ECONOMY

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WHO’S WHO

Professor Richard Dashwood

Rachel Eade

PROFESSOR OF ENGINEERING MATERIALS MAIN BUSINESS: WMG, research and education group, University of Warwick

NATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR LEAD MAIN BUSINESS: Manufacturing Business Support, Supply chain specialist

WMG, International Digital Laboratory, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL 024 765 73094 R.Dashwood@warwick.ac.uk www.warwick.ac.uk/wmg/people

Wolverhampton Science Park, Wolverhampton, WV10 9TG 07968 025 406 rachel.eade@mymas.org www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/mas

Professor Janet Godsell

Lorraine Holmes

PROFESSOR OF OPERATIONS AND SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY MAIN BUSINESS: WMG, research and education group, University of Warwick

AREA DIRECTOR OF MANUFACTURING ADVISORY SERVICE, NORTH & WEST ENGLAND MAIN BUSINESS: Business and Consultancy Support Services

WMG, International Institute for Product and Service Innovation, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL 024 765 28038 J.Godsell@warwick.ac.uk www.warwick.ac.uk/wmg/people

Professor Dave Greenwood PROFESSOR OF ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS MAIN BUSINESS: WMG, research and education group, University of Warwick

Wolverhampton Science Park, Wolverhampton, WV10 9TG 01902 838 300 lorraine.holmes@mymas.org www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/mas

Huw Jenkins FIT FOR NUCLEAR – LEAD ASSESSOR MAIN BUSINESS: Manufacturing Business Support

WMG, International Digital Laboratory, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL 024 765 73584 D.Greenwood@warwick.ac.uk www.warwick.ac.uk/wmg/people

Wolverhampton Science Park Wolverhampton WV10 9TG 07717 335 595 huw.jenkins@mymas.org www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/mas

Professor Ken Kendall

Roy Pulley

PROFESSORIAL FELLOW IN STRUCTURAL COMPOSITES MAIN BUSINESS: WMG, research and education group, University of Warwick

NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST MAIN BUSINESS: Manufacturing Business Support

WMG, International Manufacturing Centre, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL 024 765 73791 K.N.Kendall@warwick.ac.uk www.warwick.ac.uk/wmg/people

Wolverhampton Science Park Wolverhampton, WV10 9TG 07919 168 339 roy.pulley@mymas.org www.greatbusiness.gov.uk/mas

Professor Sridhar Seetharaman

David Terry

ROYAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING / TATA STEEL RESEARCH CHAIR IN LOW CARBON MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES MAIN BUSINESS: WMG, research and education group, University of Warwick

WMG, International Digital Laboratory, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL 024 765 24348 S.Seetharaman@warwick.ac.uk www.warwick.ac.uk/wmg/people

MANUFACTURING ECONOMY

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OFFSHORE WIND ADVISOR MAIN BUSINESS: Manufacturing Business support Wolverhampton Science Park, Wolverhampton WV10 9TG 07919 168 341 david.terry@mymas.org www.growoffshorewind.com/

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MOTORING

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FINALLY LIVING THE ‘SCHOOL BOY’ DREAM

George Jennings, Associate at property advisers GVA Birmingham, is wowed by the Bentley Continental GT V8 S convertible I’m a big kid at heart and driving a £210,000 super-car is every school boy’s dream – and the Bentley Continental certainly lived up to the fantasy.

Whilst I only drive around 12,000 miles a year for my job, I’d be more than happy to hand over the keys to my 6 Series BMW and drive

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into the office in the Bentley Continental every day as, frankly, the journey to and from work would be a joy.

It would be fair to say I felt a little exposed at times, especially when stopping at traffic lights and feeling as though all eyes were on me when, in actual fact, all eyes were on the car –

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and let’s be honest, who could blame them.

The sleek leather interior and exquisite contrast stitching is exactly what you’d expect from a car of this calibre, with all the seats embossed with the Bentley logo.

With its bold colour, in this case Kingfisher blue, its silver edging, contrast gloss exterior mirrors and the specially designed 20’’ openspoke dark tinted wheels, this car stands out amongst its competitors.

With plenty of room for four adults and space for the golf clubs, this car is like a comfortable

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armchair, albeit one that provides a plethora of exciting mod cons to keep you thoroughly entertained. The Bluetooth telephone system is unbeatable, the GPS tracking system doesn’t miss a trick and with ventilated front seats with massage function, you really are spoilt.

The Continental isn’t all style over substance either, with the impressive 4 litre, twin turbocharged V8 engine taking the car from 0 – 60mph in 4.5-seconds and 191-mph top speed, which for a 2.5 tonne car, is exceptional.

I found myself on the search for as many tunnels as possible so I could embrace my inner child and hear the upgraded exhaust system roar, something which would put a smile on anyone’s face.

After being initially nervous about driving an unfamiliar car in icy conditions (with a £5k personal excess looming over my head) the

car’s impressive sports suspension and 4 wheel drive quickly put me at ease, making the car feel rigid and ready to tackle any corner.

The Bentley Continental also proved to be very fuel efficient, with the engine switching off four of its eight cylinders when cruising through residential areas to reduce energy wastage, and then switching them back on as soon as you hit the right pedal, giving you added power the split second you need it.

For me, the Bentley Continental would be much more at home in the South of France, in the sunshine, with the roof off and the windows down.

It’s a car that feels like it would be perfect for driving through the town before picking up the pace along those long stretches of coastal road.

I went into a experience anticipating a swift drive in car that I had preconceptions

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MOTORING

of being just a grand tourer rather than a sports car, but I was more than happy to let the car sway my perception – and it certainly did that.

The Bentley Continental does everything a Porsche 991 can do and more and, if I forward think five years, I’ll happily have this as my future drive of choice – sitting in my garage alongside the 991 of course! n BQ would like to thank Bentley Birmingham for donating the GT V8 S Convertible driven by George Jennings. The OTR price including all optional extras is £210,000. For more information please contact Mark Hudson, Head of Business, Bentley Birmingham, 2 Wingfoot Way, Fort Parkway, Birmingham, West Midlands, B24 9HF, T: 0121 448 8146, E: bentley.birmingham@sytner.co.uk

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SPRING 15

THEATRE DUO ON WINE

FORCED TO REVISE MY GRAPE EXPECTATIONS! Birmingham Hippodrome’s Judith Greenburgh finds herself re-evaluating Chardonnay as colleague Mandy Rose samples a red Despite having holidayed at our family home on the fringes of the great red wine Chateaux of the Bordeaux region since childhood, I am predominantly a white wine drinker meaning the opportunity to taste the white of the pairing was an eagerly anticipated pleasure.

But the big reveal of the Chardonnay label might as well have been worded ‘short straw’.

Chardonnay, the world’s most famous grape, also conjured up the taste of oak and a preference that I had abandoned in favour of other varieties a decade ago.

This did not bode well. However, on researching the family-run over five generations Thierry Matrot vineyard in Meursault, I was delighted to learn that all use of chemicals had long-been abandoned and that the philosophy has been to produce organic wines since 2000 which closely reflect the terroir and vintage.

So without further ado, and to accompany a fragrant Kerala-inspired fish curry, we opened the bottle. The chilled, amber liquid seemed to hold the sides of the glass as if it knew it wasn’t long for this world.

This is an elegant white Burgundy and thankfully fairly free of the aromatic quality so often associated with oaked barrels. And it had some authority as an accompaniment to the mid-week supper dish but would probably come into its own with a lighter choice.

While this wasn’t a Damascene conversion to a whole grape variety, it’s probably time for this household to re-think and re-visit Chardonnay.

MATROT BOURGOGNE CHARDONNAY 2013 £14.95 Thierry Matrot is based in the village

of Meursault, and having taken over his family’s vineyards in the ‘80s has moved them towards greener methods of production and emphasising the elegance of white burgundy.

More information can be found at their website www.matrot.com Having spent many years visiting Italy’s Umbria and Tuscany regions I have been privileged to have tasted quite a few Italian wines over that time. I prefer the full-bodied red, my particular favourite being Montepulciano which I first tasted in the medieval town of the same name not far from Sienna.

However because of my love for Italian wines I’ve not explored the delights of other countries so I was excited to try a bottle of French wine from one of the leading estates in the southern Rhone.

According to its website Arnoux et Fils was established in 1717 and over generations the domaine now extends to over 40 hectares of vines.

I was given the bottle on one of the coldest days of the year so gave it a couple of days to get to room temperature and boy was it worth it.

The sound of the pour as it went into the wine glass was heavy, the colour a deep dark rich red Mourvèdre and has the taste of plums with a slight hint of vanilla. It left a beautiful creamy chocolaty after taste in my mouth and it immediately made me think how good it would go with a quality smoked cheese at a dinner party.

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This is a wine to be respected and I absolutely loved it. Move over Bacchus, the Roman god of wine, I’ll definitely be adding French fancy to my personal wine list.

DOM ARNOUX ET FILS, VACQUEYRAS JEAN-MARIE ARNOUX 2011 £14.69 Arnoux et Fils is one of the leading estates in the southern Rhone, situated right in the heart of the pretty village of Vacqueyras.

Successive generations have developed the domaine which now extends to over 40 hectares of vines spread over Vacqueyras and Gigondas. Operating on yields averaging only 28hl/ha their quality is exemplary whilst prices remain competitive.

This cuvee is 50% old vine and 50% younger vines from a blend of 65% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre and is wonderfully evolved with a rich plum/damson fruit and terrific length and complexiity. www.arnoux-vins.com n The white Matrot Bourgogne Chardonnay 2013 is £14.95 and the red Dom Arnoux et Fils, Vacqueyras Jean-Marie Arnoux 2011 is £14.69. Wines were donated by Connolly’s Wine Merchants and can be brought from Dovehouse, Connolly’s Wine Merchants Ltd, 379 – 381 Warwick Road, Olton, Solihull, B91 1BQ. Tel: 0121 709 3734 Connolly’s Wine Merchants Ltd, Birmingham Livery Street, B3 1EU. Tel: 0121 236 3837 www.connollyswine.co.uk

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FASHION

AMERICAN DREAM TEAM Its designers created clothing that defined a nation, but now the Italian CEO of US company Brooks Brothers is pushing for change. Josh Sims speaks to Luca Gastaldi Luca Gastaldi is the 47-year-old Italian CEO of the Italian-owned Brooks Brothers, almost 200 years old and about as quintessentially American a clothier as one could find. It was Brooks Brothers that invented the button-

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down collared shirt, that pioneered the stripy, so-called ‘rep’ tie, that shaped preppy style and which, by introducing the boxy, wearable sack suit, effectively defined the template for business dress for much of the last century.

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Abraham Lincoln wore Brooks Brothers – he was even assassinated wearing it – as did Kennedy, the Vanderbilts, Morgans and Astors, and Hollywood greats from Valentino to Clark Gable, Cary Grant and Fred Astaire.

“But if you want a real contradiction, it’s not the fact that an Italian is running such an American company,” adds Gastaldi – who admits to having discovered the company through close study of the dandy attire of another Italian, Fiat supremo Gianni Agnelli, “it’s that it was only seven years ago that Brooks Brothers even had a store outside of the US. Brooks Brothers has deep American roots – and that American nature is a pillar. But now we have to build on that. We all travel more now and trends move faster. The trick is not to lose the American wardrobe and the styles we pioneered, while staying tuned to changing modes of dress.”

Gastaldi, who came to Brooks Brothers after 20 years in senior positions with Italian luxury goods company Loro Piana, concedes that is a tricky path to walk. On the one hand has been Brooks Brothers’ more progressive moves over recent years: the launch of Black Fleece, a more directional premium capsule collection designed by Thom Browne, Red Fleece, a more trend and cost-conscious collection, and now the appointment of designer Zac Posen to oversee womenswear as creative director – the first time the company has brought in an external designer, established in his own right, to oversee a whole segment of its business, from clothing to packaging and marketing. It is a statement of the company’s intent to fulfill its “huge potential” in womenswear.

Then there is the sizable international store expansion programme, which will see over 50 new Brooks Brothers shops (some whollyowned, some in partnership) open over the coming year, including 12 in the Middle East, the same across Scandinavia, 10 in eastern Europe and Russia, and up to 15 across India and Australia.

And yet, on the other hand, there is Brooks Brothers’ deeply-embedded culture of clothing a conservative American customer that remains the company’s bedrock – this is the company, after all, that still provides those Ivy League uniforms to the US’ collegiate blue bloods. For every Brooks Brothers aficionado – Gastaldi

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Some people are scared by change – we’re all human.

But we’re ready to exchange ideas, even if that means the process takes longer than I’d like

speaks of devoted customers who know more about the company’s history than those working for it do – there is a fashionisto more inclined to dismiss it as staid and, well, too American: ”To excite attention by anything at all remarkable in the way of colour or texture is considered both vulgar and ridiculous,” as the company stated in an ad back in the 1920s.

“Modernising while respecting heritage is easier to say than to do,” says Gastaldi.

“And sometimes there’s resistance within the company itself,” Gastaldi adds. “Some people are scared by change – we’re all human. But we’re ready to exchange ideas, even if that means the process takes longer than I’d like.

I like to challenge that American part of the

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company that says there’s still demand for that very American cut of suit – very full, wideshouldered – by introducing more tailored styles too, which are selling well. Even very traditional customers like the idea of bringing something fresh to their wardrobe. And we have to remember that talking about, for example, how Agnelli wore Brooks Brothers shirts, is a totally meaningless conversation for a lot of people.”

That is to say that, incredibly, there are those men – it’s mostly men – whose interest in clothes goes only as far as keeping warm and within the law and not looking silly. Gastaldi is not one of those men. He can wax lyrical on the unique extent of Brooks Brothers’ >>

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FASHION

contribution to the menswear canon – on how it’s “a good thing to have the originals in so many menswear items, the many copies of which just make the makers of the originals stronger” – but also on the hazards of relying on them. “There’s a danger when a [clothing] company culture is too tied to those classics, when you can’t see how dress is changing,” he says. “One advantage of our international expansion will be that we’ll have people working in different regions challenging that American culture to adopt what is new while also being consistent with Brooks Brothers.

It’s good to provoke our design teams.”

Intriguingly, however, Gastaldi is not so caught up in the idea of riding the patriotic manufacturing wave that certain consumers have ridden over recent years. While the company has historically acquired specialist manufacturers with which it has had a long, close working history, and while Gastaldi remains keen on bringing more manufacturing back to the US, his motivations for doing so are, unsurprisingly, entirely pragmatic ones.

“Offering the best value for the price is the priority, so I wouldn’t stake so much on being made in the US, or made in Italy, at the expense of that,” he says. “We go wherever

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is best – Turkey, Morocco, Asia or now, as is happening, more so in the US. Of course, some customers want their Brooks Brothers made in the US – and if you’re going to bring manufacturing back to the US, who better than Brooks Brothers to do it? – but I think they’re a minority. They’re very keen on Brooks Brothers, more like collectors – I’m one of them. But the fact is that the majority just isn’t so bothered, even if they’re American.

They buy Brooks Brothers because they trust it to provide the right quality at the right price. That’s what has made Brooks Brothers’ customers so loyal.” n

It’s a good thing to have the originals in so many menswear items, the many copies of which just make the makers of the originals stronger. But there’s a danger when a company culture is too tied to those classics, when you can’t see how dress is changing

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EQUIPMENT

QUALITY REMAINS TIMELESS

Innovation and sophisticated design counts for more than passing fads when it comes to creating timepeices, as Josh Sims discovers

Talk to the elite end of the watch business, and the question of trends is increasingly met with a blank stare. “I have no idea what the trends are. I’m not sure there are any,” says Peter Harrison, the CEO of Richard Mille, one of the more progressive independent brands. “We just do what we like.”

Or, as Michael Parmigiani, the watchmaker behind Parmigiani, puts it, “the industry just doesn’t focus on a few big styles anymore – now it’s a question of ever small trends being added to what’s already available, so each watch becomes more like an art work in its own right. It’s more individualistic, because these days everyone wants to be different.”

Indeed, if SIHH – the Salon International des Haute Horlogerie, held in Geneva each January – is anything to go by, the mass market may continue to thrive on consumers identifying with status brands and their iconic models, but at the very top – where prices in six figures are not rare – it is the piece itself that matters; a piece, indeed, which may have taken many years to create. As IWC’s creative director Christian Knoop stresses, ever-longer development times mitigate against trends in a

watch industry making ever more sophisticated watches – “this is not the fashion industry”.

This is not to say that the new watches for 2015 don’t reveal certain loose patterns. There is a playfulness with shapes, for example, with watchmakers the likes of Vacheron Constantin (celebrating its 260th birthday this year), Chaumet and Cartier setting round dials in squared off cushion cases.

A push towards more unusual materials is also on the rise, with, according to Knoop, many more unexplored materials set to undergo investigation for their use in watchmaking over the next couple of years, especially those that improve durability and reliability. In the meantime, most are pursued for their visual and textural appeal. Audemars Piguet has used forged carbon in its new designs, Parmigiani meteorite and Piaget onyx, in a re-edition of Andy Warhol’s Black Tie watch.

Ralph Lauren – perhaps, thanks to its fashion foundation, the most willing to push forward on the use of unexpected materials solely for their aesthetic appeal – has introduced models featuring shot-blasted steel, for a distressed effect, and dials ringed with burl wood.

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A decade ago TechnoMarine caused outrage for much of this conservative industry by teaming precious jewels with a plastic case – but now the idea returns thanks to Roger Dubuis, which has developed a method for setting diamonds in rubber.

Black and off-white may remain the dominant colours for dials, but blue continues its assent and grey is on the up – even if subtly: A. Lange & Sohne’s Datograph Perpetual brings the colour of storm clouds right across its face, but the company’s first minute repeater with a digital (as opposed analogue) display – in development since 2010 and yours for €440,000 – achieves a similar shade by using blackened German silver.

If you’ve spent that much on a mechanical movement of such exquisiteness you might well want to see it, and show it off, so skeletonised movements, stripped back and fully visible front and rear of the watch, are more widespread too.

Cartier introduces one for its classic Tank, and for its 60s Crash model, Ralph Lauren has created its first and Roger Dubuis has introduced new star-effect and creeping ivy skeleton architectures for its models.

But perhaps the most striking skeletons are from Parmigiani. Its Tonda 1950 Squelette – with clear glass – is also available as a model for women. A skeleton for women may be unusual enough as the industry is only recently coming round to the idea that women are interested in the mechanism that drives their watch, not just the superficial aesthetic, ideally covered in gemstones. But this one comes with a semi-opaque milky glass which, when lit from behind, shows the movement’s parts with all the evocative blurred edges of shadow play.

Indeed, if an overarching trend out of SIHH can be discerned, it might be more one in >>

15 years ago it was men who wanted a strongly recognisable watch – now women do too BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

EQUIPMENT

business culture than in the popularity of certain approaches to the look and feel of the new year’s clutch of timepieces – and that would be the waking up to the potentiality in the growing demand among women for serious craft beneath the pretty exterior of their watches.

“The fact is that women’s attitude to watches is changing,” says Piaget’s marketing and creation director Frank Touzeau. Piaget has introduced a refinement of a bracelet first devised in the 1960s, and comprising some 300 tiny, hand-assembled links. “Compare the industry today with 15 years ago and there’s a distinct change. Then it was men who wanted a strongly recognisable watch with real technical value, and now women want that too. Recognising that is a process that you can see starting now.”

Certainly, as Peter Harrison and Michael Parmigiani hint at, some of the most impressive watches launched for this year are simply going their own way in style and innovation, and, what is more, doing it for women. Cartier, for example, has created a new setting for diamonds that, in effect, mounts them on tiny

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springs with just the right amount of vibration to give the stones movement and so added shimmer. Tellingly, Richard Mille, meanwhile, offers its first flying tourbillon, and offers it to women: the tourbillon cage is set amid a series of petals which open and close every five minutes, allowing the tourbillon to rise through this mechanical blossoming.

It’s a marvellous little moment to behold.

But for how long will such extreme craft be appreciated? Montblanc has produced arguably the single most culturally relevant watch of 2015, and the interest lies less in

the timepiece as its strap.

Its Timewalker Urban Speed has what the company is calling an E-strap. This comprises a small touch screen through which the wearer can manage mobile phone calls and texts and monitor their activity. It is highend watchmaking’s first riposte to Apple’s recently-launched watch, tapping as it does into the younger generation’s obsession with connectivity as well as its general disinterest in wearing watches that simply tell the time, in however artful a fashion. The E-strap is, perhaps, a sign of what’s to come. n

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ENTREPRENEUR

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FORMER EYESORE IS A SIGHT FOR SORE EYES Property developer Ian Dowling spent hundreds of thousands of pounds turning a wrecked Victorian building into a thriving pub and hotel. Steve Dyson reports The 19th century Talbot Inn at Newnham Bridge, near Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire, was in a pitiful state back in March 2011.

Originally a hunting lodge before a century operating as a busy coaching inn, the Gothicstyled building was empty for nearly three years after a bank’s repossession, quickly becoming a derelict village eyesore.

Despite being boarded up, all fixtures, fittings and furniture were stolen, and the roof was stripped of lead – causing damaging leaks throughout the 9,000sq ft building.

The Talbot Inn was, as property developer Ian Dowling, puts it: “Completely knackered.”

And yet he fell in love with it, buying the ruin and the half-acre it sits on for £240,000, and spending 14-months restoring it to its former glory.

“The water damage was so bad we had to take the whole building back to its brickwork to dry it out,” recalls Ian, aged 44, who trades as Marina Bay Investments Ltd. “Then we had to completely rewire it and fit new plumbing – effectively treating it like a new-build shell.”

Some of the building’s original skirting boards and floorboards were salvaged, and centrepiece furnishings like the main

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fireplace was a bargain from a reclaim yard, but everything else had to be purchased and fitted. By the time it reopened in September 2012, Ian estimates he’d invested more than £330,000.

But his eye for a bargain and sheer hard work paid off: in 2013, its first full year as a boutique hotel, restaurant and pub, the Talbot Inn turned over £650,000, returning profits in excess of £100,000.

“We got off to a flying start,” says Ian, a married dad of two. “We had a very good chef, and we grew from there. The accommodation was slower, taking longer to build up traction. But now the seven rooms have taken off, the bed and breakfast trade drives the business.”

Although this is his first dining pub with luxury rooms, Ian has quickly realised how the trade works, and knows that if he can fill his bedrooms, he covers costs, with casual food and drink becoming profits.

“After the first year, what had been a heaving restaurant died down, and we lost a lot of lunchtime trade. But although we’d had between 30 and 50 lunches a day, this was not a high spend, and it was difficult to get stability of numbers. You could have 30 to eat one day, but only five or six the next, and that was expensive to operate.

“But the rooms quickly became steady, and so we did a lot of proactive thinking to get people to stay. We brought in a lot of custom online through things like Secret Escapes, >>

We quickly learned that the local drinking trade is not that significant.

We’re a rural pub, and there isn’t enough demand to rely on locals. Instead, we’ve got to work hard to bring people in

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the Daily Telegraph’s travel deals, and by getting entries in Sawday’s and The Good Pub Guide. We also get a lot of business from the Midland Automobile Club [based in Worcester].

“We still do great food, but now that’s also enjoyed by people staying overnight, perhaps for a weekend treat, as well as passing trade.

And we quickly learned that the local drinking trade is not that significant. We’re a rural pub, and there just isn’t enough demand to rely on locals. Instead, we’ve got to work hard to bring people in.”

Turnover dropped slightly in 2014, but Ian’s growing experience of trading patterns meant labour costs were lower, less was spent on new equipment, and the revenue was more from accommodation rather than food, so profit margins improved.

Ian says: “Rooms at the Talbot Inn start at £85 for bed and breakfast, and so if a couple come for a weekend, they’ll spend a minimum of £220 once they’ve also had a meal or two with wine. With seven rooms full, that’s 14 people also dining and drinking, and added custom is then the bonus. A good Friday or Saturday can see anything between £4,000 and £6,000 takings, although you have to balance that against what’s sometimes only £500 or £600 on Mondays.”

Using figures from September 2014, Ian shows how the Talbot Inn sold between 40 and 45

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rooms out of 49 available each week – an occupancy rate of between 75% and 90%.

And he says this is building – with a special £99 dinner, bed and breakfast rate running throughout January and February 2015, and more discounts to get people in on Sunday nights.

“It’s a very competitive marketplace,” says Ian, “but I think we’re experiencing a resurgence

of the independent operators as people are turning away from larger branded models.

People are saying ‘no’ to Travel Lodge, and ‘yes’ to unique, high-quality venues like ours.

“Consumers expect more from the places they’re staying at. They don’t want to pay the earth, and they certainly don’t want to be ripped off. But they’re less concerned about slight premiums for better quality.”

A lifestyle decision that has paid off Born in Edinburgh, Ian Dowling studied Economics and History at the University of St Andrews in Fife before starting his career in finance in the early 1990s.

He worked as a financial trader with corporate debt in the Far East, specialising in a Singapore hedge fund for ten years. He was involved in a management buy-out in 1998, but sold up in 2005 when he and his wife, Sally, decided to return to the UK. “We’d just had our first child and it was a ‘leave or stay’ moment. We’d invested a lot of our own funds in Asia, but we made a lifestyle decision to put our roots down back home.”

Sally, now aged 43, comes from Worcester and so that’s where the family settled – with fastgrowing ten-year-old daughter, Isabella, and seven-year-old son, Rory. As well as being codirector of Marina Bay Investments, Sally has her own career as the European financial chief for Dawn Foods, the US-owned bakery chain, which means regular trips abroad.

Ian himself briefly took a job at UBS for 18 months but also invested a lot of savings in property, soon making this his full-time occupation. Being his own boss also gives him the flexibility to look after the children when Sally’s away.

Aside from the Talbot Inn, Marina Bay Investments operates another half-dozen or so properties, ranging from holiday complexes that bring in a steady income of £90,000 a year to barn conversions, one which he bought for £150,000 in 2009 and is now worth some £750,000.

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The biggest challenge for Ian has been staffing – especially because of the Talbot Inn’s rural location. He’s very happy with his manager, who runs the venue day-to-day, and with his chef, who sources “great local produce” that’s popular with diners. But he says having enough staff – in the kitchen and serving tables – when “you’re not absolutely sure if you’re going to be full or empty” is a hazard of the pub-dining business.

“There’s probably easier ways of making the money,” Ian reflects, “but it’s a great lifestyle business. It’s a bit like sitting on a trading floor: when the kitchen’s manic with 80 to 90 diners, you thrive on the chaos. That’s exciting – you constantly get to think on your feet and quickly if you’re busy, enjoying great guests.

“But when it’s dead, it’s so frustrating. Where is everybody? What’s wrong with our food? I suppose you’ve got to have a bit of paranoia.

And it’s tricky to staff. We have six full-time staff, and up to 15 part-timers, but that fluctuates. That makes it more interesting than 9-to-5 predictability – that’s for someone else. ”Ian comes across as someone having a lot of fun, but he’s keen to share two issues in the pub sector that trouble him. The first thing is “the Government’s unfair treatment of pubs by insisting they charge VAT on alcohol”, while supermarkets don’t have to, leading to more and more people drinking at home rather than in local hostelries.

But far more stressful is a dispute he’s having with Malvern Hills District Council on the commercial rates they’ve recently applied at the Talbot Inn. “When I bought the place, the rateable value was £13,000 a year, which I thought reasonable. But now they’ve whacked it up to £26,000.

“The government bemoans how pubs are closing down around the country, but here’s me, a small businessman, taking on what was the empty Talbot. And Malvern Hills say: ‘Now you’re open, and because you’ve invested all that money, your turnover will increase, and therefore your profits will grow.’ So they double the rates – plus we’re paying £1,200 in Council Tax for the manager’s flat.

“We’re fighting it now, but it’s madness, and if that’s what’s happening across the country there’s just no incentive to reopen the doors of some of these great, historic pubs.” n

ENTREPRENEUR

A thriving pub in the heart of the country There’s no way I could write about a thriving pub-hotel without staying there myself. Well, it’s a hard life, but someone’s got to do it…

What I particularly liked about the Talbot Inn was the sound of silence after everyone’s gone to bed, from around 11.30pm. It’s so tucked away in the countryside that traffic just stops until around 6am. The bedrooms themselves are of boutique hotel quality: large, comfortable beds, huge stone bathrooms, sizeable showers.

I stayed with Ruth, my wife, and we enjoyed Wye Valley IPA and Hobsons real ale, dinner and fine wine on a Friday night with a jazz-style band, and by 9pm it was standing room only. It was good to see a place that was derelict until a few years ago so busy.

The ale was well kept. My venison stew very tasty. And in the morning we had a very decent English breakfast – including those all-important pan mushrooms and black pudding.

Visit www.talbotinnnewnhambridge.co.uk for more details.

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INSIGHT

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HARNESSING THE POWER OF PEOPLE Marcus Aniol insists that good people are the secret behind his success story at J S Wright & Company, the building services engineers. Steve Dyson finds out more

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When Marcus Aniol joined J S Wright as business development director in 2004, the Birmingham-based building services engineering firm was turning over £8m a year.

By 2006, he was managing director, and by the end of the current financial year the company’s turnover will reach around £38m – an impressive growth of some 375% since he joined. By 2018, he predicts annual turnovers will reach £50m.

“It’s all down to our people,” says Marcus, aged 55, a father of two grown-up children, who lives with his wife, Dominique, in Stourbridge. “If someone comes to buy this business and you strip out the people there’s nothing. Some companies have stock and products, but ours is all about our people and their knowledge, loyalty and attitude.”

It’s a worthy sentiment, but surely he’s done something different to shape those people at a business that’s more than trebled operations in the past decade – which included the toughest recession for 80 years.

“When I started, I did a business review,” Marcus concedes, “formally and informally.

J S Wright was a very traditional firm and I found no business plan, no budget and no understanding of what the company was good at.

“We used to quote for any potential business that came through the door. But my review found what we were particularly good at, and that was repeat work. By that, I mean fitting

INSIGHT

If someone comes to buy this business and you strip out the people there’s nothing. Some companies have stock and products...ours is all about people out the electrics and plumbing in multi-storey buildings where the floors are the same, such as hotels, student accommodation, care homes and multi-residential buildings.

“Those were the things where we were competitive and were getting good margins, so we decided that’s what we’d concentrate on, breaking the business down into specialising in the design and installation of heating, plumbing, ventilation and air conditioning systems for different sectors.

“Also, there was an incredibly flat structure in terms of organisation when I arrived. The owners had picked three managers to help run the business, but beyond that there were no tiers. And small things like company cars mattered. It used to be that every company car was a Rover 200 or 400 – dreadful. And decent people didn’t join us as a result. So I changed all that.”

In those few sentences, Marcus draws a picture of dragging an old-fashioned firm into a modern world. But now he pauses and is earnest about the owners of J S Wright &

Career development and all that jazz Marcus Aniol was born in Bristol, where his parents ran The Duke jazz pub.

“From the age of six, jazz music was blaring in my ears every night and Sunday lunchtimes,” remembers Marcus.

In 1977, after grammar school, he became a commercial apprentice at Ian McGregor’s British Steel Corporation, but when a strike meant he couldn’t get past picket lines, he became disillusioned.

Still only 19, Marcus left and went on the road as a salesman – first for engineers GKN and then selling industrial detergents for Soilax, before joining pipework distributor BSS at the age of 23.

He stayed with BSS – now part of Travis Perkins – for 19 years, working up to key account manager and West Midlands regional director. He left to work for a water heater importer in 2002, “but that just didn’t work out” – and then, in August 2004, he arrived at J S Wright.

Outside of work, Marcus’ daughter has two small boys, and he jokingly refers to himself as a “boring old grandad”, but this is far from the case. As well as golf and rugby – he once played for Bristol seconds and Stourbridge – he co-owns the race horse ‘Poker School’ with golfer Lee Westwood.

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Company – Peter Marsh, Edwin Moore and David Osborne, all in their 70s. The trio bought the company, founded in 1890, from local engineers Newman Tonks, and by 2004 were determined to find a new, dynamic leader.

Marcus recalls: “I met Peter on a golf course and he said: ‘Have you ever thought of running a contracting business?’ I said: ‘I’m not an engineer, I’m a businessman.’ And he said: ‘Exactly – you don’t need to be an engineer, you need to be able to work with people.’ They knew exactly what the business needed, and they went out and got it.

“They’re good to work for because, while understanding the industry, they’ve not interfered, and have given me complete freedom to operate as I see fit. For example, I planned to open a London office, and phoned Edwin to explain the initial set-up costs, and he more or less said: ‘Why are you ringing me?

If you think that should happen, just do it.’

“They’re good guys: they know you can get a bad month, a bad job, when we lose money.

But consistently we’ve not done that. In fact, we’ve made money every year. They see that and understand it. I think it must be impossible where people have to work for corporate financiers without that insight.”

Having explained the business transformation, and having underlined that he’s got supportive owners, Marcus is soon singing the praises of his main ‘people’ asset again.

“From the start, the staff were fantastic,” he says. “They’re loyal – many tradesmen have been with us for more than 40 years, and we’ve some second and third generations working for us. But when I arrived, because of how things were organised, it was difficult keeping all 80 or 90 staff gainfully employed.

Now all 135 staff are always busy.

We did this by being much more choosy about who we worked for and what we >>

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INSIGHT

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did, developing a selection matrix. And we built better relationships with customers, so instead of being one of six firms bidding for jobs, we became one in three, and we negotiated reasonable amounts of work.”

That word “reasonable” is modest, but Marcus qualifies it by admitting the company experienced “flat-lining” during the recession, with turnovers between £15m to £19m for five or six years, although still profitable.

Describing how better customer relationships were formed, Marcus refers to the design and estimating team, who considered their job ‘done’ once they’d completed an estimate.

Now they follow through, visiting customers and helping with paperwork, understanding that “every company is different”.

Another great boon is J S Wright’s “unusual” ability to design its building services for 50% of jobs. “Normally, a builder’s consultants provide designs for things like pipework, so this is a huge, unique selling point. We’ve also grown our workforce, while most competitors use more sub-contractors. We do also, but the bulk of our work is done by people who work for and care about J S Wright.”

Remaining on the ‘people’ theme, Marcus tells me how J S Wright takes on several apprentices each year in trades like plumbing and engineering. They join an ‘academy’ which has two or three team-building meetings a year, including overnight stays to take part in exercises like raft-racing.

There’s another ‘academy’ for the company’s foremen, because although J S Wright had some very experienced supervisors he found that most had just learned on the job, with few formal qualifications.

“With all the legislation and paperwork you have to be aware of, this just wasn’t acceptable any more,” says Marcus. “So we identified people who needed help, or foremen of the future, and developed a threeday programme, covering everything from role-planning to presentations.

“The difference in confidence is remarkable.

One told me that he ran a football team in his spare time and that this training really helped him improve how he did that. Another’s daughter was getting married and he was worried about speeches – but now he felt fully prepared.

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“We also invest in effective communications, effective leadership and high-impact presentation training. We say to all our staff: ‘You don’t have to go – this is for you. It’s a tool for your own personal development.’”

Another ‘people’ initiative at JS Wright is mentoring: “We’ve got some very longserving guys. For instance, Ray Gould, a design engineer extraordinaire. He’s 63, and he can work here as long as he wants, but it scares me to death that at some point he’ll walk out the door with all that knowledge.

“So we developed a mentoring programme, asking where we needed to grasp knowledge in the business. And we identified ten mentors and ten learners – although it’s the learners that drive the process, not the mentors.

They want to understand people like Ray’s knowledge and ability. For instance, in a plant room, with all those pipes and wires, Ray’s a genius at laying it all out. How do we get that knowledge into apprentices’ heads?”

Moving on from people, Marcus talks about the future of J S Wright, celebrating its 125th anniversary this year. As well as targeting

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£50m annual turnovers, he wants to change a trend that’s recently seen around 90% of work focused in and around London.

“We’ve taken on a business development manager,” says Marcus. “He’s going to make a difference, taking us into different sectors like utilities and energy, bringing more work back to our West Midlands roots, and developing us as a national business, with UK depots.”

J S Wright has now opened a branch in Bristol, and appointed a quality engineer two years ago – licensed to go anywhere in the business to carry out spot-checks. This was unpopular at first, with staff thinking they were being spied on, but Marcus says it’s a powerful way of improving customer satisfaction.

As I’m preparing to leave, I ask for his top tip for other business leaders, and he again focuses on people – with a tougher edge: “Sort out the wheat from the chaff. Look at your workforce. Who’s on-side, wanting to progress? Get them close to you, promote and cherish them, and invest in them. Those who are not, just let them go. It’s hard, but it has to be done.” n

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COMPANY PROFILE

Cure Leukaemia Patron Geoff Thomas reveals boost for life-saving work at the Birmingham Centre for Clinical Haematology A boost for the life-saving work carried out at the Centre for Clinical Haematology (CCH) at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham (QEHB) has been announced Cure Leukaemia Patron, Geoff Thomas, announced that his fundraising efforts will increase the Centre’s ability to deliver pioneering treatments for blood cancer patients at this international centre of excellence in Birmingham consistent with the Government’s Life Sciences vision.

In order to build on its track record of success and drive forward access to innovative therapies, the CCH will benefit from a £1.5 million funding injection, £1 million of which is scheduled to be generated by Geoff Thomas and his Le Tour – One Day Ahead premium cycling fundraising event.

THE MONEY WILL PAY FOR: • More research nurses • Ability to deliver more state of the art therapies clinical trials and blood cancer treatments • The potential to deliver stem cell transplants as an outpatient procedure • A dramatically improved patient experience • The chance of developing cures for a range of blood cancers within the next 30 years • Consolidate the Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s position as a world-leading centre for the development of new drugs for the treatment of blood cancer In 2003, former England footballer, Geoff Thomas was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia and was given less than three months to live. Following treatment from Cure Leukaemia Co-founder and Director of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Unit at the QEHB, Professor Charlie Craddock, Geoff has been in remission since January 2005.

Since then, Geoff has worked tirelessly to raise money for treatment, research and awareness for blood cancer and the Patron of Cure Leukaemia is taking a hands-on role within the charity, setting himself the target to raise £1 million next year, through cycling the entire Tour de France route

I was determined to do something to make a significant difference just one day ahead of the professional peloton. The money raised by Geoff and his fellow cyclists will fund the delivery of novel new drugs and transplant therapies for patients with blood cancer at the Centre for Clinical Haematology.

Geoff said: “I owe my life to the excellence of the haematology team at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and I have always been honoured to be a Patron of this great charity. When I heard about the opportunity to increase the amount of work carried out by the Centre where I was treated and in the process extend access to life-saving therapies for people who are in the same position as I was a decade ago, I was determined to do something to make a significant difference. “ Geoff is inviting riders to apply to be part of his Le Tour – One Day Ahead peloton of just twenty riders who will join him for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience life as a pro-cyclist, with full rolling road closures and support crew and vehicles, one day ahead of the actual Tour de France. Together the group will aim to raise £1 million for Cure Leukaemia and help beat blood cancer.

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Entries for Le Tour – One Day Ahead are still available as well as fantastic sponsorship opportunities for businesses. For more information please visit: beforethetour.com. Geoff will also be leading a four-day, 500 kilometre cycling challenge: London 2 Paris: Inspiring the Revolution in June. Former teammates including legend Ian Wright, Mark Bright and John Salako are taking part along with current England Under-20 manager Aidy Boothroyd. George Lineker, a fellow leukaemia survivor and son of BBC Match of the Day presenter Gary, will also be on the team. Places are still available, to sign up go to: l2prevolution.com. Donations to Geoff’s challenge can be made through his JustGiving page: justgiving.com/Geoff-Thomas-2015 For enquiries please contact Bobby@ CureLeukaemia.co.uk or call 0121 236 9202.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

ENTREPRENEUR

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SHINING A LIGHT ON OLD OBJECTS Old umbrellas, ancient cine cameras and broken hairdryers – nothing escapes the gaze of Michael Grassi when it comes to creating stylish lamps. Kate Copestake reports The problem with designers or engineers is that if you hand them something beautiful, or intriguing, they just can’t resist taking it apart.

Michael Grassi is that irritating person.

The artist and designer is the founder of

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Kidderminster-based It’s a Light. From the workshop and stuffed cellars of his lovely Victorian house, he dissects, fiddles, toys with and constructs a range of bespoke and short-run handmade interior lighting

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made from familiar – and sometimes unfamiliar – everyday objects.

Michael describes his work as “repurposing – acquiring ordinary manufactured objects that have enjoyed a past life and turning

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ENTREPRENEUR them into objects of desire”. And lighting is one of his pet obsessions. “My house and my wife and business partner will testify to this.

I am always fascinated by objects and I can’t resist imagining their reinvention”.

Michael grew up in rural Shropshire, at Burford, near Tenbury Wells. His father was an Italian prisoner-of-war who stayed on after World War Two, went into farming and married his land army sweetheart. His mother worked at Burford Gardens, home of the national clematis collection.

“I grew up on a mixed farm,” recalls Michael.

“There was a lot of poverty in Italy when my father was growing up, and after the war he decided there was nothing to go back to. So he settled into doing what he knew best, and managed a farm.”

Anyone who walks the countryside will know that, far from being a bucolic dreamscape, a working farmyard is usually strewn with bits of broken machinery. Michael says: “My father always fixed things out of necessity, so I grew up with the habit of never throwing anything away in case it could be useful.

“I was always picking up interesting bits and pieces and wondering what I could do with them. From about the age of ten I started to help my father fix machinery, or create parts that would help repair something that was broken. At school I was fortunate to be taught metalwork and woodwork, how to strip things down and rebuild them.

“My group of friends were into bicycles, and we’d create customised bikes, largely because we couldn’t afford new ones but also for the thrill of it. One friend had a big delivery bike with a basket on the front, the heaviest of the lot, so when we were out we’d share the riding of it so we could all keep pace.”

Michael’s choice of a career in art and design was not initially greeted with unbridled enthusiasm by his family. Despite the reaction of his father, who had plenty of hard work and a career on the farm mapped out for his son, he enrolled on a general art and >>

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09/02/2015 16:49

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ENTREPRENEUR design foundation course at Stourbridge College of Art. “It was largely thanks to my tutor David Wright, who came round personally to see my father to persuade him that I had a talent and therefore a career in art and design. David kept a smallholding as well and one of his donkeys needed his hooves clipping. My father set to it, an instant bond was formed and I went to college with my father’s reluctant blessing.”

Michael then completed an art foundation course and a textile design course which gave him a thorough grounding in colours, patterns and textures. He settled on graphic design and qualified in Visual Communications at the Faculty of Art and Design at Wolverhampton Polytechnic, now the University of Wolverhampton, in 1976.

While at college he and wife Judith, then his girlfriend, used to walk around the town’s derelict gas works and streets of 1970s slum clearances picking up interesting flotsam and jetsam – screws, bolts, unidentifieds – which Michael says: “I use them to this day. I always knew I’d find a home for them.”

His professional design career began in 1977, working with glass designer David Hammond at the Thomas Webb Crystal site in Stourbridge. The Crown House Tableware Group was formed and Michael, as their first in-house graphic design manager, built up and led a team of six designers, working on the famous tableware brands Thomas Webb Crystal, Dema Glass, Denby Tableware, Edinburgh Crystal and George Butler Silversmiths.

Back home, Michael’s first repurposed light was the ‘Brollite’ in 1977. “It was born from necessity”, says Michael. “I needed a light with a large hook which I could hang up in my workshop, so I created a light combining an old metal angle poise lampshade with an umbrella handle. I still use it in my workshop and I’m working on a new version.”

Michael created grassidesign, his graphic design company, in 1987 with Judith, his wife and business partner, herself a successful fine artist.

“We had moved to Bedford where I ran a design team of eight in a brand new studio.

I was spoiled. But it didn’t last and when the company was bought out I was made

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redundant, prompting my decision to go it alone. I loaded up Judith, our daughter Sophia and our possessions, plus dog, and headed back to live with my parents in Shropshire, whilst we searched for somewhere to live and work. All our worldly goods were stored in one of the cowsheds….”

The grassidesign studio went on to be a success, with clients ranging from single entrepreneurs to large companies, public bodies and charities. But with the childhood tinkering still itching in his fingers, Michael created It’s a Light in 2013.

As an inventor, lateral thinker and natural hoarder, Michael tirelessly scours skips, car boot sales and junk shops for parts and inspiration for his range of lighting.

Sometimes these are purpose-made, such as the shade carriers (which also go by the delightful name of gimbles) and others which he adapts.

Many designs have an industrial or engineering feel to them, as they are made from objects such as recycled film cameras, tools or kitchenalia, and sit perfectly in contemporary loft and warehouse-style interiors and the present hankering for

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I am always fascinated by objects and I can’t resist imagining their reinvention

all things vintage in bars, restaurants and galleries.

Some of Michael’s creations have a touching backstory. “I’m occasionally approached to make a light from an item that has a particular significance for someone,” says Michael.

“A friend had bought an old Bolex 16mm cine camera from a flea market whilst on a trip to Italy. He knew I would be interested in this and would love to make a light from it. It reminded us both of a much-missed late friend, a professional photographer, who used this type of camera at the beginning of his career.

The result looks wonderful, and I’d like to

SPRING 15

think he would approve”. These lights are no Heath Robinson bolt-ons and idle fripperies.

Michael’s work is truly exquisite, with every detail researched and every finish perfected.

There’s humour, too: one of his recent creations, made from a 1960s Super 8 cine camera, carries a tiny “Butlins, Pwllheli” enamel badge. “I like to think of the owner on his two-week industrial break with his family, filming the knobbly knees competition.”

All of the lights are produced in very small numbers. Each one is totally handmade and all are fully Portable Appliance (PAT) tested to UK and European standards. He even designs the packaging, transport boxing and labels, and many lights come with their own ID dog tag for authenticity and provenance.

“I tried to source the making of the tags locally as they’re aluminium but disappointingly no-one seemed interested.

A company in Latvia responded immediately and got the job.”

Michael says that his background in industrial design enables him to appreciate and respect the beauty and engineering of the original objects. He clearly loves materials and finishes, and his enthusiasm is contagious.

When we meet a second time, I take a box of copper rivets I found in the back of my garage, and now find myself picking things up, and wondering...

Throughout his design career Michael crossed paths with many small and interesting components, including furniture fittings, boat, bike and car parts, wardrobe fittings, automotive parts and lighting. “Design is a form of engineering,” says Michael.

“We still make a wealth of fantastic parts and products in and around Birmingham and the Black Country, and wherever I can I source my lighting components from local manufacturers.”

He lists Philippe Starck, Frank Lloyd Wright and Charles Eames among his inspirations: “I have always believed that a good designer

Family Law

ENTREPRENEUR

understands that a core business – call it a bread-and-butter range if you like – is essential to a successful business.

Good and great design is all around us, and great design doesn’t have to mean expensive.

The success of grassidesign has taken me back to the playroom – that birthplace of creativity – to develop a commitment to bespoke craftsmanship, good design, repurposing and beautiful engineering.”

Michael has concerns about how design education is delivered today: “Design students must be allowed the full run of their imagination. I’m concerned that, in addition to paying college fees, design students now have to buy everything they need even at the experimental stage of their ideas, so finance becomes a controlling force at the outset.

“UK design students are still some of the best in the world, with young designers like Thomas Heatherwick producing truly groundbreaking ideas, but if innovation and

If innovation and creativity is to be encouraged we must continue to support and invest in talent and apprenticeships creativity is to be encouraged we must continue to support and invest in talent and apprenticeships.

Design, engineering and manufacturing are inseparable, and are disciplines that our country’s wealth and success was originally built on. We owe it to our predecessors to keep pushing the boundaries.” n

To talk to a specialist advisor today simply call on 0845 604 4911 or visit www.irwinmitchell.com/family

PLS-FL137-BQ Magazine-18mm x 175mm.indd 1

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09/02/2015 16:49

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

OPINION

SPRING 15

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY with David Urquhart the Bishop of Birmingham

The results for 2014, we are told, were adequate for business. Headlines for employment, inward investment, exports and share prices indicated growth and competitive advantage. Recovery continued, a double-dip was avoided and even the halving of crude oil prices looked hopeful for most.

Yet in one of the most prosperous countries in the world, anxieties prevail over an unsustainable standard of living, declining quality of environment, and instability in a multi-ethnic society. This year, I shall try to concentrate on three areas for improvement: an honest, accessible and accurate measurement of success; a better-understood economic framework; and new partnerships and alliances in society.

In an election year, is it too much to ask for agreed data to judge how we’re doing as a city region, let alone a whole country? I’d like to concentrate on just one vital area, that of employment. There are numerous measurements (for example Job Seekers Allowance Unemployment decreased in Birmingham to 36,201 in October, and Employment in the West Midlands rose by 4,000 in Q3) but neither statistic explains that some may still be on other benefits, or that new workers on inadequate income may be bringing up children defined as ‘in poverty’.

Can we benchmark the income levels that each person and household need to participate fully and interdependently in the nation’s creativity? This means looking more closely at when a person and their household starts contributing to, rather than taking from,

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

If an economic recovery really is building up traction, the West Midlands needs to think about corporate social responsibility (CSR), according to David Urquhart, the Bishop of Birmingham the economy; and it will require better-paid jobs. One of the phrases current in economic debate is ‘inclusive growth’. Discussion about the health of the prevailing world order, dominated by capitalism, has become broader and more robust since the 2008 crash.

At a conference on ‘Inclusive Capitalism’, sponsored by EL Rothschild and the City of London last year, Christine Lagarde and

Is it too much to ask for agreed data to judge how we’re doing as a city region, let alone a whole country?

Mark Carney encouraged leading financiers, philanthropists and industrialists to see their enterprises and corporations in the context of the needs of the whole of society.

Justin Welby continued with this theme in January 2015, reminding those in financial services that they are there to serve, and that today’s banks are expected to be peoplecentred. Further work will be done this year with the International Coalition on Mining and Metals as Methodists, Catholics and Anglicans respond to requests from industrialists to develop an ethic for future transformation.

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Another challenge to business is expected this year in a new book by John Browne, attempting to ‘break the cycle of anti-business sentiment’ and integrate ‘societal concerns’ into the ‘very heart’ of business.

But neither agreed data nor a healthy commercial framework will make much difference unless we forge new partnerships in our locality. Visionary progress towards becoming a CSR city-region has been led

by Greg Lowson, of Pinsent Masons, with an initial priority of linking schools with businesses to develop children’s skills and confidence. Following Local Authority budget cuts, I’ve commissioned an independent design for Phase II of the Giving Hope Changing Lives social inclusion process to continue bridging the gaps in inequalities across Birmingham.

And in response to the profound social and religious issues raised by Trojan Horse, I’m also hosting a series of interfaith ‘conversations’ designed by Andrew Smith, my inter-faith director, helped by staff at the Universities of Birmingham and Coventry.

One of the principles from a recent collection of essays, ‘On Rock or Sand?’ edited by John Sentamu, goes beyond ordinary economics and politics to the higher ground of “acceptance of our responsibility towards ourselves as well as others”. By working together for the good of all, let’s make 2015 a year that will be better than ever. n You can contact the Bishop with ideas at bishop@cofebirmingham.com

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BIT OF A CHAT

SPRING 15

>> JLR bike alerts

>> Sweet-toothed Silhillians

with Bill Borde

>> Break a leg!

Upmarket citizens of Solihull have revealed a rather keen taste for doughnuts. More than 15,800 customers have visited the new Krispy Kreme store that opened in the town’s Touchwood Shopping Centre in December. And in the first month alone, more than 14,600 single doughnuts were served – with the ‘original glazed’ and ‘chocolate dreamcake’ the favourite varieties tickling Silhillians’ tastebuds. Another 44,000 doughnuts were sold in ‘dozens’ boxes, which means locals are either keen on sharing or they’re stocking up for secret feasts! Sales are certainly keeping the firm’s Black Country bakers busy over at the Krispy Kreme factory in Tipton.

Imagine gadgets that tap you on the shoulder and ring a bell in your ear if cyclists ride too close to your car. That’s what Jaguar Land Rover researchers are testing at the firm’s Whitley research centre.

With nearly 19,000 cyclists killed or injured on UK roads every year, the company’s ‘Bike Sense’ project is identifying the best ways to trigger instinctive responses from drivers to prevent accidents.

New sensor technology includes door handles that ‘buzz’ drivers’ hands to stop doors opening into the path of bikes, and accelerator pedals that vibrate if moving the car would cause an accident.

And if a bike is in a blind spot, sensors might even trigger audio systems that sound bicycle bells or motorbike horns through the speakers, or tops of car seats that extend and ‘tap’ drivers’ left or right shoulders.

Dr Wolfgang Epple, director of research and technology for JLR, said: “Bike Sense will optimise light, sound and touch to allow faster cognitive reactions by engaging the driver’s instinctive responses.”

>> High flyer

I hope it wasn’t something I said… Just weeks after appearing in BQ West Midlands Winter edition, Birmingham Hippodrome’s chief executive has stepped down.

Stuart Griffiths, who headed the theatre for 12 years and was awarded the OBE after rescuing it from the brink of bankruptcy, is to become programming director at the Ambassador Theatre Group, which owns 39 venues worldwide. Break a leg, Stuart – we’ll miss you here in the West Midlands.

>> Scramble!

Buyers have been put on red alert for the sale of two disused buildings on a former World War II airfield in the West Midlands.

The properties on what used to be RAF Snitterfield are up for grabs, complete with planning permission, for conversion into holiday lets, with a guide price of £250,000.

Based near Stratford-upon-Avon, they’re being marketed by CPBigwood, with offers invited prior to a public auction.

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

The boss of a Midlands creative design firm is looking for somewhere to park his airliner.

Neil Morten, of Staffordshire-based GMP Design, plans to open a studio and bar in an old Boeing 737 airliner that he’s just bought. Now he’s looking for a site in or around Lichfield where the aircraft can be permanently based.

“Our visionary designers have created the concept and can’t wait to turn it into reality,” said Neil.

“Not only will it be a fantastic studio and venue, it’s the ultimate in recycling.”

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SPRING 15

COMPANY VIEWPOINT

Businesses are failing to capitalise on entrepreneurial talents of their workforce, reveals EY research Millennials are one the most ‘entrepreneurial’ generations to join the workforce, reveals new research from EY, with 68% of 25-34 year olds aspiring to run their own business.

Based on a survey conducted by Censuswide of 1,000 business professionals, the research explored how entrepreneurial skills can be fostered in large companies. It revealed that many large businesses are failing to harness the entrepreneurial talents of their employees, with only half (52%) of millennials surveyed feeling that their skills and attributes are fully utilised by their current organisation.

Adrian Roberts, Partner Sponsor for EY’s Entrepreneur of the Year Programme in the Midlands commented: “An entrepreneurial mind-set is often associated with small start-up businesses. Whereas in reality, all organisations, regardless of size and scale, need people who can innovate, create and challenge the status quo.

That’s why the best businesses focus on building diverse teams to ensure they are drawing on the widest spectrum of views.”

A MISSED OPPORTUNITY According to the survey, 82% of the respondents have previously had or currently have ideas that could create new opportunities or revenue for their organisation. However, many organisations have been slow to capitalise on these entrepreneurial skills; only half of the respondents (54%) said they have been able to implement their ideas in their workplace.

Adrian Roberts, Partner Sponsor for EYs Entrepreneur Of The Year Programme in Midlands

As a result, the survey highlighted that many of today’s workforce recognise the limitations of their current employers. Only half (48%) of professionals feel they can achieve their ambitions within their current employer and a mere third of respondents say their workplace has an entrepreneurial and innovative culture. Many respondents state that they believe there is a lack of opportunities and challenges within their organisations, with 64% citing this as the reason they cannot achieve their career goals with their current employer.

research, Midlands based businesses appear to be embracing an entrepreneurial culture.

46% of respondents working for organisations based in Midlands felt that their company had an entrepreneurial culture, as opposed to 29% nationally. 47% respondents feel that their skills and attributes are recognised and utilised by their current organisation. In the Midlands, 56% respondents aspire to run their own business, however, 51% feel that they can achieve their career goals with the current employer.

Concluding, Adrian Roberts said: “We’ve learnt from EY’s Entrepreneur Of The Year Programme programme that entrepreneurs are generally made not born, and many have often spent time in a corporate setting before setting out on their own.

However they also see opportunity where others see challenge; are tenacious and visionary; and have the ability to work in and motivate a team.

These are skills that would be highly regarded in any organisation and are skills we actively recruit for. The challenge for UK PLC is to ensure that there are the opportunities available to enable these individuals to reach their full potential.”

REGIONAL DISPARITIES However, it seems that some organisations have started to recognise the value of an entrepreneurial workforce. According to the

• EY poll of over 1000 professionals reveals only half (48%) of employees feel they can achieve their career goals with their current employer • Almost 7 in 10 (68%) of 25-34 year old professionals aspire to set up their own business • Fewer than a third (29%) of business workers from large organisations feel their workplace has an entrepreneurial and innovative culture

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Adrian Roberts, can be contacted on 0121 535 2349 @EOY_UK #EOYUK eoy.co.uk

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

EVENTS

SPRING 15

BQ’s business events diary gives you lots of time to forward plan.

If you wish to add your event to the list send it to steve.dysonmedia@ gmail.com, with ‘BQ events page’ in the email subject heading.

FEBRUARY

20 Solihull Chamber, Annual General Meeting & Networking Lunch, 11am-3pm, Holiday Inn Birmingham Airport, Coventry Road, Birmingham, B26 3QW. £25 members, £33.33 non-members. 0121 781 7384, solevents@solihull-chamber.com

26 The Greater Birmingham Digital Summit, 8.30am-6.30pm, The ICC, Broad Street, Birmingham, B1 2EA. Free. www.gbda.org.uk/ 26 GBCC Future Faces Vice President’s Social, 5.30-8.30pm, Bank Restaurant & Bar, 4 Brindley Place, Birmingham, B1 2JB. 0121 607 1836, k.evans@birmingham-chamber.com 27 GBCC Chamber Expo, 10am-3pm, The National Motorcycle Museum, Coventry Road, Bickenhill, Solihull, B92 0EJ. Free. 0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

24 CBI Business Breakfast with CBI Economics Director, Rain Newton-Smith, 8-10am, Ernst & Young LLP, Colmore Circus Queensway, Birmingham, West Midlands B4 6HQ. To book contact julia.fox@cbi.org.uk 26 GBCC The Political Debate: An Audience with the Local Candidates, 6pm-12:20am, Burton Hospital, Burton upon Trent, DE13 0RB. Free members, £10 non-members. 01283 535 640, c.plant@chase-chamber.com 26 IoD West Midlands: Women as Leaders - Birmingham Airport tour, 6-8pm, Diamond House Birmingham International Airport B26 3QJ. £15 members, £20 non-members. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com

MARCH 2 IoD West Midlands: Audience with Cameron Addicott, Former Undercover Officer with H.M. Customs, 6-8pm, Harrison Clark Rickerbys Ltd, 5 Deansway, Worcester WR1 2JG. Free. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com 4 IoD West Midlands: The Business of Being the Stafford Railway Building Society, 7.30-8.45am, Staffordshire University, Beaconside, ST18 0AD. £10 members, £15 non-members. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com

APRIL 14 GBCC Chamber Business Breakfast with Paul Kehoe, CEO, Birmingham Airport, 7.30-10am, venue TBC. £15 members, £22.50 non-members.

0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

5 GBCC Future Faces HS2 Panel Discussion, 5.30-7.30pm, Millennium Point, Curzon Street, Birmingham, B4 7XG. Free members, £15 non-members.

0121 607 1836, k.evans@birmingham-chamber.com

16 GBCC How to Make the Most of Your Membership, 9.30-11.30am, Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, 75 Harborne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 3DH. Free members, £10 non-members. 0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

6 Headz Up Business, International Women’s Day, 9am-3pm, Walsall Football Club, Bescot Stadium, Walsall WS1 4SA. £25. 07772 045 850, enquiries@headzupbusiness.co.uk

21 Solihull Chamber, Need 2 Know… Access to Finance, 9am-12pm, Solihull College, Blossomfield Road, Solihull, B91 1SB. Free members, £8.33 non-members. 0121 678 7488, solevents@solihull-chamber.com

10 IoD West Midlands: Breakfast Seminar: Preparing Your Business for Sale, 7.30-9am, Higgs & Sons Solicitors, 3, Waterfront Business Park, Dudley Road, Brierley Hill, DY5 1LX. Free. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com

23 GBCC Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce Annual Dinner & Awards 2015, 6-11pm, Hall 3, ICC, Birmingham, B1 2EA. £130. 0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

11-12 Aluminium Federation (ALFED), Health and Safety in the Manufacturing Sector Workshop, Telford Golf and Spa Hotel, Telford, Shropshire TF7 4DT. Further details from Ann Gough 0121 601 6365 and www.alfed.org.uk/

23 UBBC April meeting: How Funding Can Support Business Growth, 7.30-9.30am, The BizzInn, Birmingham Research Park, Vincent Drive, Birmingham, B15 2SQ. businessteam@bham.ac.uk

12 GBCC Women In Business - 1st Anniversary Lunch, 11.30am-2.30pm, Hoar Cross Hall Spa Hotel, Makers Lane, Burton on Trent, DE13 8QS. £22.

01283 535 640, c.plant@chase-chamber.com

30 GBCC Professional Networking Lunch, 12:15-2pm, Drayton Manor Hotel, Tamworth, B78 3TW. £18 members, £25 non-members. 08450 710 191, c.plant@chase-chamber.com

12 IoD West Midlands: Visit to Serious Gaming Institute at Coventry University, 6-8pm, Unit 7 Coventry Innovation Village, Cheetah Road, Coventry CV1 2TL. £15 members, £25 members. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com

MAY

16 GBCC Women in Business Conference, 9.30am-3pm, De Vere Venues Colmore Gate, Colmore Row, Birmingham, B3 2QD. £24 members, £36 non-members.

0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

6 Solihull Chamber, Breakfast with Business, 7.30-9.30am, Devere Village Urban Resort, The Green Business Park, Shirley, Solihull, B90 4GW. £5.83 members, £8.33 non-members. 0121 678 7488, solevents@solihull-chamber.com

18 GBCC Chamber Business Breakfast with Alan Volkaerts, Operations Director Jaguar Land Rover, 7.30-10am, Holiday Inn Birmingham Airport, Coventry Road, Birmingham, B26 3QW. £15 members, £22.50 non-members. 0121 607 1772, events@birmingham-chamber.com

15 Solihull Chamber, Enterprising Women, 12-2.30pm, Hampton Manor, Shadowbrook Lane, Hampton in Arden, Solihull, B92 0EN. £20 members, £33.33 non-members. 0121 678 7488, solevents@solihull-chamber.com

18 BBBC, Speaker Rob Groves, Senior Project Director, Argent, 7-9am, Hotel du Vin, 25 Church St, Birmingham, West Midlands B3 2NR. £20.

Book at www.bbbc.biz

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

18 IoD West Midlands: Black Country Dinner with Professor Carl Chinn, 7-10.30pm, Dudley Zoological Gardens, Castle Hill, Dudley, West Midlands DY1 4QF. £40 members. Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com 19 IoD West Midlands: Breakfast Seminar: How Private is Social Media in the Workplace? 8-9.45am, Abbey Lawn Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY2 5DE. Free.

Sue Hurrell 0121 643 1868, sue.hurrell@iod.com

BUSINESS QUARTER | SPRING 15

Please check with contacts beforehand that arrangements have not changed. Event organisers are also asked to notify us at the above email address of any changes or cancellations as soon as they are known.

KEY: BBBC, Birmingham Business Breakfast Club. CBI, Confederation of British Industry. GBCC, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. IoD, Institute of Directors. UBBC, University of Birmingham Breakfast Club

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