SW Business Leader Magazine: Issue 11

er ew S: ad i U Le rev PL ss 19 e i n 20 us s B ard w

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South West Edition

Issue 11: Nov - Dec 2019

Has the business world finally woken up?

BLM talks to Jo Fairley – Co-Founder of Green & Black's - about why it pays to be sustainable in business

What is behind the WeWork crisis?

Page 8

What are the challenges facing tech companies looking to scale?

Page 20

Should business leaders speak more on public issues?

Page 40

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FROM THE EDITOR

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Contents IN THIS EDITION 2

Latest News Breaking business news from around the region and UK

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Agenda: WeWork Crisis What is behind the WeWork crisis?

10 Cover Story: Jo Fairley

Green & Black’s Co-Founder talks about her business journey and the challenges she faced in scaling the business

FINANCE 14 Feature: Pitching for Investment What are investors really looking for when being pitched?

18 Report: Clean Air South West businesses would back employees to go smoke free

GROWTH 20 Debate: Technology

What are the challenges facing tech companies looking to scale?

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

BUSINESS LEADER VISION: INSPIRE

26 Fast-Track: Brightpearl Meet the multi-national retail software firm that looks set to dominate the market 28 Growth: International Trade How to launch your business in South Africa 34 Review: Stewart Golf Business Leader Launches the Stewart Golf X9 Follow

ECONOMY, POLITICS & MARKET 36 Report: Chinese Investment

What do Chinese investors really think of Brexit?

LEADERSHIP 40 Feature: Reputation Managment

Should business leaders speak more on public issues?

INFORM

CONNECT

HR 46 Feature: Technology in the Workplace

BLM looks into the true impact of technology on our working lives 50 Review: Legal Guide BLM reviews some of the leading law firms in the South West

REGIONAL FOCUS 54 Bristol and its Unicorns What have Ovo and Graphcore meant for the city of Bristol?

56 Guide: Business Events Showcasing some of the most popular business venues and event ideas

44 Interview: CEO in Focus BLM talks to Craig Unsworth of Upgrade Pack about his plans for the company 1

LATEST NEWS

Ascot Group first company in its town to install dedicated EV station Inspire • Inform • Connect EDITORIAL Oli Ballard - Editor E: editor@businessleader.co.uk Barney Cotton - Assistant Editor E: barney.cotton@businessleader.co.uk DESIGN/PRODUCTION Adam Whittaker - Senior Designer E: adam.whittaker@businessleader.co.uk Melissa Larkin - Website Development E: melissa.larkin@businessleader.co.uk SALES Sam Clark - Business Development Manager E: sam.clark@businessleader.co.uk Emma Filby - Business Development Manager E: emma.filby@businessleader.co.uk CIRCULATION Adrian Warburton - Circulation Manager E: adrian.warburton@businessleader.co.uk ACCOUNTS Jo Meredith - Finance Manager E: joanne.meredith@businessleader.co.uk MANAGING DIRECTOR Andrew Scott - Managing Director E: andrew@businessleader.co.uk

The Ascot Group is leading the way when it comes to tackling air pollution by becoming the first company in WestonSuper-Mare to install a dedicated Electric Vehicle (EV) charging station.

The company had the full-stack charging station installed in the car park of its South West headquarters and North Somerset Council’s only approved EVCP installer confirmed that it is the first company in the town to install a dedicated EV station.

Andrew Scott, Ascot Group CEO, said: “We have always taken our corporate responsibility very seriously and are committed to the environment and sustainability.

“Electric vehicles are integral to tackling the air pollution issues facing the UK.

“They are better for the environment, providing less pollution and renewable energy, while reduced harmful exhaust emissions means better air quality, which is good news for our health.

“More and more people are turning to electric vehicles, with more than 4,000 per week being registered in the UK alone, and our dedicated charging station is ideal for customer use.”

Bristol and South Gloucestershire tourism economy worth £1.4bn No part of Business Leader Magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the editor.

Business Leader magazine will make every effort to return picture material, but this is at the owner’s risk. Due to the nature of the print process, images can be subject to colour variation of up to 15%, therefore Business Leader Magazine cannot be held responsible for such variations.

If you would like to get involved or have any news you would like to share, please contact us on 020 3096 0020 or email: editor@businessleader.co.uk.

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The visitor economy in the Bristol region is one of the biggest in the UK. According to new research data from Destination Bristol, the tourism economy in the Bristol and South Gloucestershire region is worth £1.4bn a year and supports over 29,000 jobs.

Total tourism-supported turnover is worth an estimated £1.85bn to local businesses.

Visit Bristol’s Head of Tourism, Kathryn Davis said: "It is exciting to see the value of the visitor economy in Bristol and South Gloucestershire continue to grow.

Award-Winning Legal Advisers to Regional Businesses 2

"The data shows us that visitors are staying longer than before, which is one of our key objectives and the value of international visits is the highest it has ever been."

0117 925 2020 vwv.co.uk Issue 11: November - December 2019

BEHIND EVERY SUCCESSFUL AGENCY…

…IS A WONDERFUL LIST OF CLIENTS. Thank you to everyone who’s contributed to our story over the past 25 years. We’re looking forward to telling yours over the next, online, in print and social.

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LATEST NEWS

ADVERTORIAL:

CASTLE BUSINESS FINANCE – PROUD TO CELEBRATE THE SUCCESS OF GREAT SMALL BUSINESSES Castle Business Finance is proud to have recognised the achievements of some of the best of the South West’s small businesses by sponsoring the Business of the Year Award (1-10 employees) at this year’s Business Leader awards.

With experience of building businesses from scratch into multi-million pound entities, Castle Chief Executive Jeremy Coombes is a champion of recognising and supporting potential. He says the winners of the category, Aquarian Cladding, who have taken the title for two consecutive years, have all the hallmarks of a winning company.

“Entrants had to show sustained year-on-year growth and profitability, evidence of a strong business plan and future forecasts, and robust plans for staff development,” says Jeremy.

“Aquarian Cladding demonstrated that they have the commitment to invest in their staff, the community, their IT systems and product testing, whilst still managing to achieve year on year growth with very impressive levels of profitability.”

Castle Business Finance are specialists in providing bespoke funding solutions to SMEs and lend across a varied cross-section of businesses, with manufacturing, wholesale, haulage and recruitment already proving to be key sectors. They are known for their common sense approach to lending, with decisions often taken within a matter of hours by a qualified decision maker looking at each opportunity, and funds released swiftly.

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Jeremy Coombes says the awards are an effective way of showing that the South West region is a force to be reckoned with.

“As a company based in Portishead, Castle Business Finance engages with many young, growing companies, and with a senior team that has a combined wealth of close on 60 years’ experience in the business, we understand the challenges that smaller businesses may have to face.

“In our experience, the South West has many small businesses that have the potential for great things, and we were delighted that a company of Aquarian Cladding’s calibre were selected as winners of this award.”

Almost 600 guests including CEOs, VIPs, business leaders and professionals attended the black-tie event at Ashton Gate Stadium in Bristol, which featured a champagne reception, gala dinner, awards presentation and charity casino. The winners were presented with their awards by Michael Portillo.

To find out more about invoice and trade finance, visit Castle’s new website at www.castlebusinessfinance.com or call 01275 390 665.

Sir Ben Ainslie's America's Cup challenge backed by SW accountancy firm A British sporting challenge involving the country’s greatest sailors, including Olympic gold medallists Sir Ben Ainslie and Giles Scott, is being backed by a South West accountancy firm.

PKF Francis Clark has been named as the Official Supplier of accountancy services to INEOS TEAM UK, the British team for the 36th America’s Cup. The America’s Cup is the oldest international sporting trophy in the world and the next edition takes place in Auckland in 2021. The PKF Francis Clark team is led by Martin Aldridge, Partner and Head of Marine.

Team Principal and Skipper, Sir Ben said: “I am delighted to have Martin and the team at PKF Francis Clark on board again for our forthcoming America’s Cup challenge. They have supported me throughout my career and their professional services and expertise have been invaluable to our finance team throughout our America’s Cup programme.”

Martin Aldridge said PKF Francis Clark was ‘proud and honoured’ to be appointed as an official supplier to INEOS TEAM UK. He added: “Sir Ben is a long-standing client and we were also pleased to support Ben’s last campaign for America’s Cup title in 2017.

This is an incredibly exciting project and with Sir Ben at the helm, we have high hopes for INEOS TEAM UK’s success in the 36th America’s Cup.” Issue 11: November - December 2019

LATEST NEWS

Cheltenham recovery drink revitalises the UAE A Cheltenham-based soft drinks supplier has secured a contract with an importer in the UAE, which is set to be worth £4.29m over the next five years.

Founded in 2014 by a father and son duo, NFSG Ltd is the business behind the natural recovery drink, Overhang.

Based on a century-old Italian family recipe, Overhang is a preservative-free, natural blend of ginger, orange and lime, with added milk thistle, burdock, raspberry leaf and vitamins.

contract estimated to increase NFSG Ltd’s annual turnover by up to 50%.

NFSG Co-Founder William Wilkinson, said: "The prospect of our treasured family recipe being shipped abroad and enjoyed by people in the UAE for the first time is really exciting.”

Runway East opens second co-working space in Bristol One of the UK's largest start-up workspace providers has opened its second Bristol hub in 18 months, in response to a tech boom in the South West of England.

Only 500 metres from Temple Meads station, Runway East's new site is set to host more than 250 members of the South West's start-up and digital community.

Natasha Guerra, Runway East’s CEO, said: “London is still a great place for start-ups, but with the Bristol’s index of unicornsto-startups now outstripping the capital, it really has huge momentum behind it.

In the first year, the new deal will see the company’s recovery drink stocked in an expected 500 stores across the UAE through ELS Export Trader General Trading FZC with the

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Since opening our first 600-person space, it quickly filled up with some of the best start-ups in the city. Our mission is to bring together entrepreneurs, innovators, dreamers and doers from all corners of the city to build the best space for start-ups.”

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LATEST NEWS

Hinkley Point C nuclear plant £2.9bn over budget

Albert Goodman relocate to larger Taunton office South West-based chartered accountants, tax consultants and financial planners Albert Goodman has relocated its 150 Taunton employees to larger premises at Goodwood House on Blackbrook Park Avenue in Taunton, Somerset.

Moving from Mary Street House in central Taunton, where Albert Goodman has been for over 30 years, the team are set to enjoy the benefits of being nearer the M5, allowing easier access for clients and providing better links when travelling to other Albert Goodman offices across the region.

The new 17,500 sq. ft. premises will almost double the space that Mary Street House offered and provide the capacity to attract new clients and staff.

Richard Bugler, Managing Partner of Albert Goodman, comments: “We’re confident Blackbrook Business Park will serve us well as a location and puts us at the centre of the professional services community in Taunton. We look forward to joining other like-minded firms here and continuing our commitment to a town that is a great place to do business.”

French energy company EDF has today revealed that Hinkley Point C nuclear power station is currently running at a cost of £2.9bn over budget.

This means that the project is now set to cost a total of around £22.5bn once completed. EDF also announced that there would likely be a delay of 15 months on the project.

EDF previously rose the estimate back in 2017 by £1.5bn, and this follows other major projects facing issues in the UK – most notably HS2. The cross-country high-speed railway saw its costs rise from £62bn to £88bn in October.

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Issue 11: November - December 2019

ADVERTORIAL BARCLAYS

How are Barclays supporting John Anthony?

BLM recently sat down with Mark Brewer, Director at John Anthony (Swindon) Ltd, to talk about how they established themselves as a fashion brand in the South West, the challenges facing the retail sector, and how Barclays have helped the business.

Can you give me an overview of the company?

John Anthony was first established in 1979, the founders, John and Joe, were involved in the hospitality industry but wanted to be more involved in fashion. They established their first shop in Swindon by providing men’s fashion at a reasonable price that was a cut above the usual run-of-the-mill high street clothing that was available at the time. From there on they embarked on an expansion process over a number of years, culminating in five shops located in the South West.

How has the company changed over the last 40 years?

In the first instance, the ownership has changed from the previous owners, with an agreed internal take-over with three of the original employees that had worked in different parts of the company. These three individuals were selected for their experience and dedication. We are also now one of the largest independent men’s fashion companies in the UK. The internet has also been a major player in the evolution in the company, whereby 15% of our sales are achieved online.

How have you established yourself in the South West and what sets you apart from other outlets?

Our initial store was in Swindon and then

expanded to Bristol, followed by stores in Bath, Bournemouth and Southampton. We felt the towns in question had a need for our take on fashion and had the capacity to sell the brands we had. With this and our outstanding customer service, we have achieved repeat sales and have a customer loyalty card that offers rewards, this gives us a lot of repeat order sales with a very loyal customer base. We also endeavour to be part of the community where we have stores, by supporting charities and other good causes.

What are the main challenges facing the retail sector?

Brexit has taken its toll on the retail industry.

Due to the political uncertainty it has been very difficult to plan any expansion of the business – we don’t know if tariffs will be put in place or whether the country could face a recession. With a number of our brands coming from Europe, the Euro exchange rate has a big part to play in this as well. Also, business rates and rents need to be addressed as they have become a burden on the high street for small and medium sized companies.

The internet has also affected our footfall into our bricks and mortar outlets – as the internet is price driven, other companies are discounting or promoting online constantly, affecting margins – so with low margins,

high rates and Brexit uncertainty we have a lot of challenges to deal with going forward.

How have Barclays helped the business?

The Barclays' team support and commercial knowledge has helped us move the company forward. They have also aided us on our day to day banking requirements, such as introducing Barclays Collect. They have introduced us to other local business owners, enabling us to share ideas and methods. We now use Barclays BARX platform and have a dedicated FX trader, who have visited our offices to provide advice. This helps us monitor and trade in Euro, which enables us to plan better and reduce some of our exposure to currency fluctuations.

Have they been a vital business partner?

Barclays provided support and guidance throughout the management buyout process. Our Barclays Relationship Director, Martin Crook's knowledge of the business and sector greatly helped over this period.

Martin and his team have continued to provide good advice on our ideas, with a commercial approach which has helped us achieve a good level of growth in a changeling retail environment.

John Anthony (Swindon) Ltd Email: help@john-anthony.com Call: +44 (0)1761 435833

To find out more about how we can help your business success please contact Martin Crook, Relationship Director: Mobile: +44(0)7920 266032 Email: martin.crook3@barclays.com

www.barclayscorporate.com

Barclays Bank PLC is registered in England (Company No. 1026167) with its registered office at 1 Churchill Place, London E14 5HP. Barclays Bank PLC is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority, and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Financial Services Register No. 122702) and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Barclays is a trading name and trade mark of Barclays PLC and its subsidiaries November 2019 + Please note: this is a mobile phone number and calls will be charged in accordance with your mobile tariff.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

7

AGENDA

What is behind the WeWork crisis?

BLM investigates the recent challenges WeWork has been facing and also explores the topic of company valuations

Article written by Patricia Cullen Unveils IPO documents to go public

T

he cautionary saga of WeWork involves a combination of corporate failures and a tenacious CEO who, in the face of conflict, jumped ship before his coworking empire hit the skids.

Founded in 2010, WeWork was at the forefront of the shared workspace industry, and until recently, it was amongst the most valuable start-ups in the US, disrupting the sector at every turn. Operating in 29 countries, 111 cities and 528 locations, and counting businesses like Reddit and PepsiCo as customers, the company played a crucial role in popularising co-working, with a motivated CEO who had ambitions to “change the world".

The darling of Silicon Valley investors, WeWork was valued at $47bn (£37bn) during its peak, and positioned as the 2nd largest IPO of 2019, trailing only behind Uber.

Within 33 days the offering was destroyed amid doubts over governance and valuation, 8

with a more realistic $15bn-$20bn (£12bn£15.5bn) advised by Wall Street. Since then, its biggest backer, SoftBank, the Japanese tech conglomerate, is building an emergency funding package valuing WeWork at less than $8bn (£6bn), while JP Morgan Chase is trying to organise financing packages with outside investors and lenders.

Rupert Dean, co-founder of new co-working space, x+why said: “The problem with private company valuations are that they can be easily propped up by just one willing buyer (in this case the Vision Fund) based, not on the fundamentals of the business, but on a “vision” and the allure of the CEO to paint that vision.

“This is not what the public look for anymore.

Get-rich-quick schemes are yesterday’s news. The public now look at the underlying business plan, fiscal responsibility and performance as well as positive environmental and social impact – all of which WeWork have lost their way on, and the reason their IPO has been resisted.”

Almost a decade ago it became clear that the traditional office rental market didn’t suit modern companies, and serviced office use in London rose 600% between 2010 and 2015, peaking at 1.4 million sq. ft., of which 558,000 sq. ft. was acquired by WeWork. “The way people work is undergoing a fundamental shift, and more enterprise leaders are recognizing the correlation between physical space and performance,” said Dave Fano, Chief Growth Officer at WeWork. WeWork were initially onto a winning formula, and in a move toward domination in the business sphere, it acquired tech startups like Welkio and physical data software company Euclid.

Dean goes on to explain: “You will note, no-one is saying the WeWork’s product is a bad one. There is a large gap between saying Issue 11: November - December 2019

WEWORK CRISIS something is overvalued and saying the product is flawed. They still fundamentally have a good product and they have still tapped into the changing way in which we work, including happy employees, increased freelancers and a sense of community.”

Approaching 2020, a flat white and a mellow workplace are standard office expectations, and WeWork positioned themselves as the champion of this social change. Before WeWork, the typical rent model was a closed office space. Their first innovation was offering hot desks with flexible rent terms, catering for the growing freelance market.

However, it appears that WeWork had merely copied an old business model of office leasing, modernised it with some tech lingo and fooled venture capital investors into valuing the firm at more than 10 times its nearest competitor.

IWG, an early mover in serviced offices has more sq. ft. and earns more revenue than WeWork, but has a market cap of $3.7bn (£2.8bn), less than 10% of WeWork’s recent valuation. Neumann’s removal may placate the company’s critics, but it won’t correct the risk innate in WeWork’s business model, which includes lease timescales that are far longer than what’s typical in the industry.

Concerns about the flexible workspace model include companies taking out longterm leases but only renting to clients on a short-term basis. According to WeWork’s IPO filing, it owes $47.2bn (£37bn) under its leases. “The average length of the initial term of our U.S. leases is approximately

Mounting losses - Operating losses 0

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Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

Dec 2018

Belle continues: “The whole market stinks of misallocation of capital. Low rates lead to equity risk premium compression and this is causing massive risk distortions. At the current price/earnings levels, coupled with the corresponding lofty index levels, the market is thin on confidence and IPO-ing up here is ridiculous.”

Dean concludes: “While there may be a short term market tremor around flexible real estate it won’t have medium or long term consequences on commercial real estate.

This product, hopefully manifested in a less obviously financially greedy way, is here to stay."

SoftBank announces $9.5bn (£7.4bn) rescue deal

Sept 2017

David Belle, author of the Macrodesiac Newsletter and Macro Trader reveals: “It was very telling that they tried to push for WeWork to be classed as a tech firm. Classing yourself as a tech firm in this market gives you a ridiculous multiple. As we've seen over the last year or so, big name IPOs haven't been hugely successful. The way in which Neumann conducts business leaves a lot to be desired, in that he picked the $702m (£545m) debt issuance figure from thin air because he believed the number to be lucky, whilst also leasing the WeWork buildings to his own company."

However, WeWork isn’t a lost cause yet.

Will it perform the biggest U-turn in history?

Possibly. Could it go straight to bankruptcy?

Maybe. Will the Vision Fund make money?

This depends on numerous variable factors.

However, WeWork remains a bricks and mortar company, and the impact on the wider industry is forecast to be minimal.

Adam Neumann steps down as CEO

June 2017

15 years,” WeWork noted in its IPO filing. By contrast, from 2006 to 2017, the average term for leases signed by US publicly traded property investment trusts was 6.8 years, according to Morgan Stanley.

Mar 2019

Jun 2019

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Belle reiterates: “The problems WeWork faced was largely internal. One thing that may be an issue is the short term hit that many start-ups will face. If anything, being made to find alternative space is a plus for the London commercial property market and may provide a short-term boost to commercial property data. Of course, the business cycle will have a bigger effect on practically everything versus this, however, and the commercial property market will always be based on the strength of consumer and business demand for goods and services.”

With a variety of outcomes still possible, WeWork is still a work in progress.  9

COVER STORY

JO FAIRLEY

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS SUCCESS BLM met with Green & Black’s Co-Founder Jo Fairley to talk about her business journey and the challenges she faced in scaling the business.

CAN YOU TELL READERS ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND? I left school at sixteen and then trained as a secretary. One of my first jobs was working for the boss of a magazine and I ended up becoming the youngest ever magazine editor at the age of 23. This happened after he started to give me things to write and I ended up falling into the role full-time. I loved working as a journalist, and it was certainly more interesting than typing up other people’s letters.

HOW DID YOU END UP FORMING GREEN & BLACK’S CHOCOLATE? I started living together with my now husband Craig Sams in 1989 – he was a health food pioneer and had formed and run various businesses in this space including Whole Earth. One of his suppliers came to him with some cocoa beans and asked if he could do anything with them.

He said that he couldn’t as his Whole Earth products were no added sugar brands and this was the product’s whole USP, but he organised for a contact to get a sample chocolate bar made with the beans and myself and Craig ate the bar and it was excellent. The rest, as they say, is history, and we founded the business in 1991.

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HOW DID YOU GET THE BUSINESS OFF THE GROUND? We leveraged invoice discounting to finance the growth of the company for the first nine years. It’s not the cheapest way to grow a business but it means you’re not giving away equity to grow the company; and you don’t need to keep raising extra capital.

The business grew very quickly, and we knew after nine years that it was really rocking because we had achieved supermarket distribution and were exporting all across the world. We realised that we needed to take investment to catapult the business to the next level and this is when it started to grow exponentially.

DO YOU FEEL YOU WERE AHEAD OF THE TREND REGARDING SUSTAINABILITY IN BUSINESS? The business was always a reflection of our values and we didn’t realise at the

time that we were doing anything that was extraordinary. It was interesting because I belonged to a group that was set up by The Body Shop founder Anita Roddick.

It was a group of people that were all trying to achieve social good through their businesses. For example, Ben and Jerry from Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream were members of the group.

They would get together to discuss ideas and reassure each other that we weren’t mad. Traditional businesses didn’t seem to understand the message about the importance of looking after the planet and having a social purpose.

Here we are thirty years later, and it seems that this is changing the business world which is much more aligned to this purpose.

Cont.  Issue 11: November - December 2019

THE PERFECT GIF T THIS CHRISTMAS. greenandbl acks.co.uk

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

11

COVER STORY

JO FAIRLEY

IN WHAT WAY WOULD YOU SAY THAT THE BUSINESS WORLD IS MORE ALIGNED TO THIS PURPOSE? For example, Fairtrade alone is now a $2bn (£1.5bn) a year business. It has achieved from a standing start in 1994.

The message is finally getting through that businesses have a responsibility to embrace sustainability and consider the treatment of its workers and supply chains, both at home and abroad.

You can no longer go to market and offer people a product or service that isn’t offering something better than what they can currently buy; and more importantly isn’t trying to help the planet in some way.

"I’M PROUD THAT CRAIG AND I ARE STILL INVOLVED, AND THAT CADBURY AND KRAFT COULD SEE THE VIRTUE IN THE FOUNDERS OF THE BUSINESS STILL HAVING A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BRAND."

Craig Sams and Jo Fairley

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY WERE THE MAIN CHALLENGES YOU FACED WHEN SCALING YOUR BUSINESS?

until you’ve sold it, so you’re working on the business right up until the sale. You can never assume that the sale has happened, so you’re occupied with both selling the business and running the business.

running it. It was hard for me to relinquish control of the company, but they brought in so much fantastic talent to run the business that I felt comfortable they were going to take it to the next level.

I would say cashflow, cashflow, cashflow. The faster you grow, the bigger this challenge often becomes. You are never paid as fast by your customers as you need to pay your suppliers and contacts.

We had planned to go to a trade show in California, but we were in negotiations to sell the business until 3am and we then had to go and collect our suitcases and go to the airport for the early morning flight.

Invoice discounting was crucial in this sense as it meant we could draw down 75% of what we were owed by suppliers and this allowed us to fund the next purchases of stock.

We had finished the negotiations before we left but there was no inflight Wi-Fi, so we didn’t know if the deal had gone through. It was torturous and when we landed in Los Angeles, we called the lawyers and the deal hadn’t gone through, but we agreed to leave it in their hands.

I’m proud that Craig and I are still involved, and that Cadbury and Kraft could see the virtue in the founders of the business still having a relationship with the brand. 14 years on we still have a role at the company and I’m proud that we’ve managed to make that work.

CAN YOU TALK ME THROUGH THE SALE OF THE BUSINESS? Cadbury acquired us in 2005, but in business nothing stays the same for very long and Kraft then gobbled up Cadbury, which is what we didn’t expect.

What has been good to see though is that our values have rippled up into that organisation and provided a beacon of how big businesses can change.

We then had to spend the next three days at the trade show and that was a stressful period. I remember on the third night in America, I told Craig that I felt something was wrong. We called our lawyers and they told us there was a spanner in the works.

This ended up being resolved and the business ended up getting sold but it was stressful at the time.

WHAT WAS THE MOST STRESSFUL PART OF SELLING THE BUSINESS?

HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN THE DEAL WAS FINALLY COMPLETED?

The night before. When you're selling a business, you are still running your company

It was a relief and very quickly they started to take control of the business and start

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WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO ANYBODY LOOKING TO GROW AND DEVELOP A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS? Well the first thing is to start because things only get done if you do them. At some point you must stop telling your friends about your ideas and go and make it happen. In the early stages there are a million things that need to be done but once you've done them, you can cross them off.

In today's climate you shouldn't need to use your property as leverage as there are so many funding options you can use. On this subject, the next bit of market research you can do is to create a pitch and put it in front of investors to see if they will back it. If they are willing to part with their money, it’s likely you have a good business idea. 

Issue 11: November - December 2019

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Heather Frankham – Whiteoaks Capital

Jenny Tooth OBE – UKBAA

What are investors really looking for when being pitched ideas?

T

he investor landscape is changing – with more focus now being placed on what market problem the business solves, in addition to how inspirational the person pitching is. There is also more of a focus on emerging sectors and ensuring businesspeople from more diverse backgrounds receive investment. To find out what investors are looking for from business owners – BLM brought together an expert panel that operate across the full business cycle, investing in start-up and scale-up companies.

DO YOU FIND THAT MOST PITCHES FOR INVESTMENT YOU RECEIVE HAVE WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR? John Stapleton: "Most don’t. Occasionally, there is a gem, but these are the exception to the rule. However, this stands to reason, given the explosion in start-ups and early stage growth businesses in the food and drink sector.

"Many entrepreneurs pile into the food and drink sector – which is where I specialise – 14

because they believe they have identified a gap in the market but have very little idea how they should go about addressing it."

parameters, whether because of size or maturity, we politely and swiftly decline so that we don’t waste anyone’s time."

Heather Frankham: "I would love to say yes – because I receive a lot of pitches, however only 10% are relevant to me. The pitches I spend time looking at are those that understand what I’m looking to invest in. Unfortunately I get many pitches, often through LinkedIn, where they have not even read my profile and understood the areas I’m interested in investing in.

Ian McLennan: "No, in fact most pitches we see are unfortunately not what we are looking for. We receive over 1,000 opportunities a year in terms of companies looking for funds.

"I would always advise those seeking investment to carefully consider what they are looking for and then focus on finding an investor who can support them achieve this and who is looking to invest in their area."

Tim Smallbone: "We receive a large number and range of proposals which vary in terms of quality as well as our ability to back them.

We are looking for companies which are well established, led by ambitious teams, with a rhythm of profitable growth, typically with profits in excess of £2m.

"If a proposal is clearly outside of our

"Often the most basic problems are that companies are slightly too early stage for us to consider and that they do not fall within our investment themes (Impact EIS and B2B Software). Many companies are completely pre-revenue generation and we only allocate a max of 10% of funds to that stage."

"I BELIEVE PITCHES WOULD BENEFIT FROM INCLUDING MORE DETAIL AROUND NON-FINANCIAL METRICS, FURTHER INFORMATION ON AREAS SUCH AS THE HUMAN CAPITAL AND PHYSICAL RESOURCE REQUIRED" Andrew Boyle Issue 11: November - December 2019

PITCHING FOR INVESTMENT

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Andrew Boyle: "Most pitches focus on financial forecasts and detailed projections.

However, I believe pitches would benefit from including more detail around non-financial metrics, further information on areas such as the human capital and physical resource required, the knowledge that has to be gained to properly market the product or service, the skills that need to be developed in the company and the corporate culture that should be fostered to enable the business to deliver and succeed."

WHAT DON’T YOU LIKE TO SEE WHEN YOU’RE BEING PITCHED? John Stapleton: "Valuations which are not based on reality. Evaluating an early-stage business is notoriously difficult and, is quite subjective. However, the entrepreneur needs to base their valuation in the real world, reflecting all three elements: potential, evidence and momentum. Secondly, not having a target market. In FMCG, it is essential to define one’s target market very carefully.

"Thirdly, entrepreneurs who don’t listen. I’m all for being challenged and being pushed back by the entrepreneur with a better idea or reasoning for doing something differently.

However, when an entrepreneur simply ignores or becomes defensive in the face of a challenge or searching question, then I lose interest rapidly. Finally, business ideas which are not scalable."

Heather Frankham: "I don’t like to see pitches that only tell part of the story, or ones that look like an academic exercise rather than a real business. A good pitch tells the full story of the business. Firstly, it must tell me why – why is it a good idea and why are the founders better placed than someone else to deliver it? It needs to be clear on what it is. You would not believe the number of pitches I read where I still don’t know exactly what the business does at the end of the pitch!

"Finally, it needs to have sensible financial projections – that relate to the rest of the pitch! Cost of sales need to be consistent with the proposed route to market and ideally should reference related examples."

Tim Smallbone: "Because we only back established, fast-growing companies, we don’t like to see lumpy earnings growth.

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staff. Therefore, high turnover of key staff may suggest the team isn’t as cohesive or ambitious as we’d like to see."

Ian McLennan: "At a high level we don’t like to see a pitch that is too rehearsed – we like to see an honest explanation of the founder’s story. We don’t like to see labour intensive, one-off revenues. So, for example, a business that has a large element of consultancy work may be one that is good for the consultants,

but it is unlikely to be one that is attractive for venture capital. We prefer to invest in less capital intensive, less labour intensive digital or software products where companies or consumers will sign up for repeat business."

Cont.  15

FEATURE

PITCHING FOR INVESTMENT Tim Smallbone – Inflexion

Andrew Boyle: "Probably the element in pitches that investors most recoil from seeing is a hockey stick revenue projection with no substance to support it. The pitch has to make clear what capital requirement is needed, how much investment, what are the overall costs that will be incurred to deliver on the forecast so potential investors can take an informed decision on whether the revenue projection can be achieved or not."

WHAT ARE THE EMERGING TRENDS YOU ARE SEEING AMONGST THE COMPANIES THAT PITCH TO YOU? John Stapleton: "Over the last five years there has been an explosion in food and drink start-ups. Several drivers have fuelled this such as the difficulty big food is having trying to convince consumers (particularly Millennials and Gen Zs) that they have their best interests at heart.

"Younger consumers are increasingly sceptical of big food claims and motives and find start-ups, with savvy entrepreneurs explaining how they are going to make the world a better place, much more convincing."

Tim Smallbone: "In our 20 years of backing businesses, we’ve noticed a shift in what founders and owners are looking for when they seek a partner for their growth.

Ian McLennan – Triple Point

"We’re seeing more UK businesses looking for support to grow their businesses internationally.

"Many companies are seeking capital as they wrestle with technology changes in their markets. We are also seeing an increasing number of deals which seek to provide liquidity for existing shareholders who wish to cash out."

Ian McLennan: "Some emerging areas where we are starting to see good ideas are the circular economy; open banking; the agile workforce and wellbeing."

Andrew Boyle: "We see three sectors dominate regarding companies looking for investment. Fintech firms; Healthcare companies, principally, Medtech and biotech firms, and engineering companies."

Jenny Tooth OBE: "I am delighted to say that I am receiving more proposals from female founders and co-founder teams, although still not enough.

"I am also seeing more entrepreneurs coming from the regions outside the Golden Triangle to seek investment, but this also reflects that gaps in funding that still exist in many other parts of the UK and which we are working with all key players to resolve."

Andrew Boyle - LGB&Co

"YOUNGER CONSUMERS ARE INCREASINGLY SCEPTICAL OF BIG FOOD CLAIMS AND MOTIVES AND FIND START-UPS, WITH SAVVY ENTREPRENEURS EXPLAINING HOW THEY ARE GOING TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE, MUCH MORE CONVINCING. John Stapleton

IN YOUR OPINION WHAT MORE NEEDS TO BE DONE TO ENCOURAGE INVESTMENT INTO FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS? Jenny Tooth OBE:"A key challenge for women entrepreneurs is the lack of gender balance among the angel and venture capital community and this results in either deterring many women from going forward for investment or affects their experience when pitching for investment.

"We need to attract many more women to engage as business angels across the UK since we know that women who invest tend to back female entrepreneurs. With so many women who are now successful in business and other professions, we need them to bring their spare financial capacity and business experience to back more female entrepreneurs." 

16

Issue 11: November - December 2019

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REPORT

Delivering a smoke-free future

PHILIP MORRIS LIMITED

South West businesses would back employees to go ‘smoke-free’ Survey finds companies lack facts and advice on how to help smokers quit or switch

YES

AS AN EMPLOYER, WOULD YOU CONSIDER ALLOWING STAFF TO ATTEND SMOKING CESSATION SERVICES OR ADVICE ON SWITCHING DURING WORKING HOURS?

37.9%

NO

17.2%

1

UNSURE

44.8%

IN

6

BUSINESSES

WOULD INCENTIVISE OR REWARD EMPLOYEES FOR QUITTING OR SWITCHING TO A LESS HARMFUL ALTERNATIVE

8 IN 10 BUSINESSES DO NOT CURRENTLY OFFER SPECIFIC HELP FOR SMOKERS

AS AN EMPLOYER, WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN RECEIVING A TOOLKIT TO HELP YOUR ORGANISATION SUPPORT EMPLOYEES IN MAKING HEALTHIER CHOICES IN GENERAL?

51.7% 27.6%

YES

NO

20.7% UNSURE

62% OF BUSINESSES WERE AWARE OF THE UK GOVERNMENT’S HARM REDUCTION APPROACH TO SMOKING THAT ENCOURAGES SMOKERS TO SWITCH TO LESS HARMFUL ALTERNATIVES IF THEY DO NOT QUIT.

18

Issue 11: November - December 2019

CLEAN AIR

PHILIP MORRIS LIMITED

A

lmost 40% of businesses in the South West would allow their staff time off to attend smoking cessation services during work time, a new survey commissioned

by Philip Morris Limited has found.

1 in 6 companies would incentivise or reward employees for giving up smoking. However, the majority of businesses were unaware that smoke-free alternatives are less harmful than cigarette smoke.

Delivering a smoke-free future

Do businesses have a responsibility to help their workforce go smoke free?

Peter Nixon, Managing Director at Philip Morris Limited (PML)

employees to quit cigarettes is that many are simply unsure as to whether it’s even their place to do so. The good news for businesses is that they don’t need to hire a team of experts or run complicated programmes to start creating a smoke-free workplace.

Businesses in the region were responding to a survey asking what support they have for employees who smoke. They were also asked questions on their familiarity with quitting aids and smoke-free alternatives for smokers who do not quit.

Key findings of the survey include: • 8 in 10 businesses do not currently offer specific help for smokers.

• Over half of the businesses polled would be interested in a toolkit to help employees make healthier choices in general.

Mark MacGregor, Director of External Affairs at Philip Morris Limited, believes that while the survey uncovered a desire for businesses in the South West to support their employees, it also showed that many lack the practical information and advice to do so: “This survey shows local companies are committed to helping their staff to go smokefree. But they need much more information and support to translate this into action. Businesses can play a vital role in helping employees to either quit altogether or switch to a better alternative.”

There are currently 577,000 smokers in South West England, with 56,000 smokers in Bristol alone1. According to Public Health England, nearly half of all smokers do not realise that smoke-free alternatives are less harmful than cigarettes.2

1 Office for National Statistics, Adult smoking habits in the UK: 2019 . 2 Public Health England, December 2018.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

Peter Nixon, Managing Director at Philip Morris Limited

Every business wants the best for their workforce. That is why many support wellbeing initiatives to help employees cope with the different stresses of life. But, as a recent report by the British Safety Council concluded, there’s much more to employee wellbeing than free bowls of fruit in the office.

Ensuring that employees receive the support they need can be difficult.

But one of the biggest challenges is how to help people give up smoking.

Although numbers have been falling in recent years, more than 7 million people still smoke in the UK. We know, however, that many employers want to play their part in helping their staff to quit cigarettes.

Our own research found companies in the South West would allow their staff time to visit smoking cessation services during work hours. One in six would even reward their employees if they stopped smoking.

But what is stopping more companies from providing help for their

I have seen first-hand what can be achieved when businesses partner with, for example, those equipped with the tools and knowledge needed to help smokers make better choices. In Japan and Russia, we have developed programmes with numerous businesses that enabled thousands of smokers to switch.

Here in the UK, Business in the Community (BITC) recently published a toolkit setting out a range of practical steps on how employers can support their staff stop smoking.

We are partnering with BITC to ensure that advice reaches Bristol businesses.

Critically, employers need to be aware of all the options available so they’re in a position to give guidance to those smokers who either want to quit or switch to a better alternative.

Philip Morris Limited is working with businesses across Bristol to understand the facts about smokefree alternatives, so that employers feel confident in being able to offer practical guidance when needed.

By working together, I believe we can help businesses in Bristol and beyond achieve a smoke-free future.

19

GROWTH

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES FACING TECH COMPANIES LOOKING TO SCALE?

B

usiness Leader Magazine recently hosted an event at Level39 in London, looking at the challenges facing tech companies looking to scale; and provide an insight into current tech and business trends in the UK.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN CHALLENGES FACING YOUR BUSINESS? Oz Alashe MBE: "Cybsafe has grown year on year since its inception and we now employ more than 50 staff; and one of the issues we have faced is attracting and retaining the right talent. The political situation hasn’t helped this, as many people aren’t sure whether they want to come and work in the UK." Romina Savova: "I started Pensionbee after I left Morgan Stanley and I had to move my 20

pension and found that nobody wanted to take my money without me having to fill out reams of paperwork.

"The challenges we have faced have been different at each stage of growth and what works when you are at 30 employees, won’t necessarily work when you’re at 60 people or 90 people. You need to keep changing your systems and processes in order to maintain the culture in your business."

Andrew Scott: "We have four main businesses within the Ascot Group – a publishing business, tech/CRM software company, full-service marketing company and investment business. My challenge is being able to swap hats and go from working on the financial side of the business to then focusing on operations and people."

Paresh Modi: "One of the challenges we have at Vodafone is consumers and businesses knowing exactly what it is we do and how to navigate working with us.

"The UK brand is a very small microcosm of our global operation and is the fourth largest of our territories. We have over 500 million customers globally and the largest broadband footprint across Europe. We are also the biggest provider of TV content and distribution across Europe.

"My role is to connect the start-up and scale-up ecosystem with what we’re doing at Vodafone. Our goal is to be a world leader in what we do and we can’t achieve that only through our own efforts; which is why we want to talk to businesses because they will often have the solution.

"Our key priorities are leading on 5G, the Internet of Things (IoT) and digital transformation."

Vaidas Adomauskas: "Revolut has grown from £6m to £7m revenue in less than a month and we are signing up around 50 businesses a day to our service. As part of this growth, we’ve also gone from employing Issue 11: November - December 2019

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TECHNOLOGY

700 people to 1,500 in only six months. This presents a big challenge; as you must keep evolving your culture and how you work.

with a solution and then got traction in the market; rather than funding an idea which is much more challenging.

"A future challenge for us is also around scaling globally in countries like Australia, Singapore and Japan."

"In the UK many scale-ups say that funding is the biggest challenge, but I wouldn’t agree with that because there is lots of funding available, especially from overseas investors and this is partly because the UK is cheap now due to exchange rates."

HOW HAVE YOU FOUND SECURING THE FUNDING YOU NEED TO ACHIEVE GROWTH? Oz Alashe MBE: "We have undergone two rounds of funding – a seed funding round early on in our journey and a Series A funding last year. We will raise again in the future and this will most likely be a Series B funding round.

"We haven’t struggled to access finance and have found that there is a diverse offering in the market. This may be because we found the problem, came up Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

Andrew Scott: "I would like to highlight a potential bubble, whereby many tech entrepreneurs are too focused on raising capital and not always with making a profit.

"There is lots of funding available and that is due to the weak pound and trends such as pension funds that used to invest in property now investing in funds and businesses.

Romina Savova: "We raised capital at the idea stage, which was a seed round of around £1m as we needed a long runway to deal with product development and other factors, such as becoming compliant with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

"My concern is that with so much capital available, many businesses are focused solely on raising money and not making a profit. You can also get into the habit of creating technology but not focusing on what this means for the customer and how it solves a problem in the market."

"We like to raise money from individuals and have utilised government’s EIS scheme and have raised over £18m in total. We have also combined this with attracting funding from strategic foreign investors."

Cont.  21

DEBATE

Ann Hiatt: "I come from the crazy world of Silicon Valley, where we do things backwards and I have been surrounded by venture capital people and investors for many years. They have traditionally put people and ideas ahead of answering the question of how it converts into customers and profits.

"This is starting to change though, and the trend will be shifted I believe. The problem was created in Silicon Valley where the idea of the brilliant CEO and fundraising has been so prevalent, but you also need to know who your customer is, how you will make a profit and what the exit strategy is."

Paresh Modi: "What I find is when you see a customer facing pitch you can often feel that is this a customer facing pitch turned into a fundraising pitch. Honestly you can see it. The question I always ask is explain to me which of my problems you’re solving as opposed to how amazing the technology you have is. The pitches that are focused on problems are ones I will want to work with."

WHAT IS DRIVING THE US INTEREST IN UK TECH SCALE-UP BUSINESSES? Ann Hiatt: "We have really good value from dollar to pound right now and the quality of talent is high in the UK and universities are good too. You also find that most disruption and innovation come from the bottom up; rather than the top down in the UK." Andrew Scott: "Britain is also seen as a safe place to invest in as it has a very robust legal system and is seen as world leading in respect to its laws around employment and business practice."

"THE QUESTION I ALWAYS ASK IS EXPLAIN TO ME WHICH OF MY PROBLEMS YOU’RE SOLVING AS OPPOSED TO HOW AMAZING THE TECHNOLOGY YOU HAVE IS. THE PITCHES THAT ARE FOCUSED ON PROBLEMS ARE ONES I WILL WANT TO WORK WITH. Paresh Modi

22

REGARDING PEOPLE AND TALENT – WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND TO BE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES? Vaidas Adomauskas: "When you are growing very fast you need to look at how you recruit and retain talent, and how you maintain your culture. We are open that in the early stages of our business we had some bad press about our internal culture, but this is now in the past and our culture is changing a lot.

"Another challenge is making sure you hire the correct people at every stage of your growth cycle. We hired senior level people from other banks who were very good at getting the business to a certain level but don’t have the skills to then take it to the next level. At every stage of the business you need to consider your staff and the skill profile.

"A good way of getting this right is to invest in internal recruiters and not rely on external agencies. I would also say that having biweekly meetings where recruitment is put on the agenda and discussing what skills are needed helps a lot."

Romina Savova: "We have created our own recruitment process and tend to only hire

people who wouldn’t have planned to go to university or work in pensions. We bring them into Pensionbee and train them up initially within our customer services team; so they can learn the culture of how we interact with customers and stakeholders.

"We then recruit from this pool into other areas of the business and people have come through the team to work in roles as diverse as technology and marketing.

"You find that this allows you as a business to be sure that whenever anybody takes on a position of responsibility, they understand the company culture."

DO YOU FEEL ENOUGH IS DONE TO SUPPORT EMERGING FEMALE TECH ENTREPRENEURS? Romina Savova: "It is possible to be a successful female entrepreneur, but I don’t think it’s an easy journey though, especially if you want to raise venture capital. Women have a different approach to running a business, taking on capital and what they promise to investors.

"They are less likely to run multi-millionpound losses, and this doesn’t always align with what a VC wants."

Issue 11: November - December 2019

TECHNOLOGY

"The future of technology will be partly driven by how we democratise and make better use of data; and it will help to drive the use of autonomous vehicles, smart cities and the way we trade space and knowledge.

A future like this is not too far away from us; should we chose to lean into it."

Andrew Scott: "Clearly there are lots of tech advancements that will shape the future of business and life, but I also think it’s important to focus on the concept of speed.

The idea that you will place an order today and have it an hour later. All the companies that are leading in their markets are winning the battle around speed and delivery to their customers."

Ann Hiatt: "I would also say that the future of technology will be influenced by millennials and we’re already seeing a shift around consumers and employees only wanting to work – and engage with – brands that are solving the problems in the world that they care about.

Ann Hiatt: "This is an active discussion now in Silicon Valley because we still see females receiving 10% of what male investors do from VCs but the data shows that this trend is changing. The more forward-thinking organisations are now looking at this.

"We need to keep having this conversation because it uncovers unconscious bias that people may have. Education is a key part of this too as, for example, Google only recruit from the top five universities which means the base code for artifical intelligence (AI) is being written by white guys who all have the same level of education. We need to look at fixing this problem."

WHAT ARE LIKELY TO BE THE MOST DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN THE FUTURE? Paresh Modi: "In ten years’ time I would say it will be around quantum computing, DNA storage and data but in the short term – for us at least it’s about 5G. "5G is important because it will enable new experiences for consumer and businesses.

The key difference with it is that it will allow huge bandwidth and up to ten times what you would get with 4G. It is also ultra-low latency which means you can influence Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

something somewhere at the press of a button.

"The final point about 5G is how it will unleash the Internet of Things (IoT).

Compared with being able to connect thousands of devices in a square kilometre, you will be able to connect hundreds of thousands. This will open so many opportunities in relation to Smart Cities, planning and autonomous vehicles."

"ALL THE COMPANIES THAT ARE LEADING IN THEIR MARKETS ARE WINNING THE BATTLE AROUND SPEED AND DELIVERY TO THEIR CUSTOMERS." Andrew Scott

Oz Alashe MBE: "I would say it is access to and how we look at data sets. Data is becoming more relevant to people and we are realising that we own this data and that we are often giving it away too easily; or on the flipside it is taken from and monetised.

"People are willing to pay more if they feel the brand they are investing in aligns with their values and serves a higher purpose.

Data can help to drive these decisions."

WHAT ROLE DO PROFESSIONAL SERVICES COMPANIES HAVE IN SUPPORTING TECH SCALE-UPS? Oz Alashe MBE: "You are very well served in the sense that there are lots of legal and accountancy firms in the market giving advice. In some respect there is no shortage of advice and you must sift through it to make sure it’s the right advice. Regarding the cost advice – it’s hard to know if it’s at the right level and you need to consider whether the advice fits for the stage you’re at in your business."

Romina Savova: "I feel that accountants serve start-ups and scale-ups well and provide advice for businesses, whatever the stage of their lifecycle. I don’t see that in the legal sector and you often need a different firm, for whatever stage you’re at in the businesses growth cycle. You must keep moving around firms and you end up with a patchwork of legal support." 

23

TECHNOLOGY

What are the challenges facing UK tech companies looking to scale?

The UK is now home to more than one-third of Europe’s fastest-growing tech companies.

It’s an impressive achievement, but could that proportion be even larger if access to funding was improved?

Tech businesses face unique financial challenges because of the high research and development costs associated with proving their business models. Where traditional firms can offer a single product or service before steadily scaling-up, tech companies need large initial investments due to the cost of building their technology. Even if they prove this technology, they have limited funding options when it comes to scale-up and growth.

The government’s digital strategy boasts that the UK’s digital sectors received a record £1.57bn in equity finance in 2015, and although it’s crucial that seed investors and private equity firms continue to support start-up growth, this figure overlooks the next step in the process. Where can tech businesses turn if they’re ready to grow but don’t want to dilute equity any further?

Traditional banks aren’t interested because these companies may be loss-making or demonstrating minimal profitability.

Many alternative lenders also want to see profitability, with several years of financial accounting to back this up. For

BOOST&Co, the answer is venture debt because the product can support firms that are pre-profit but have high potential for growth – as many tech businesses do.

“The challenge for these businesses is to know who to go to for funding,” says BOOST&Co’s principal Lauren Couch, who leads the lender’s Bristol office. “It’s our job to educate the market and ensure they know that there is another option, beyond delaying growth or sacrificing equity. We want to encourage a collaborative approach with start-up lenders, so that UK tech companies are supported at every stage of their growth journey.”

BaseKit is one of the South West tech businesses that have benefited from BOOST&Co’s collaborative vision. Basekit first secured support in 2008, via the Seedcamp start-up accelerator and incubation programme, which enabled the firm to set up its first office in Chepstow.

© BOOST&Co/Eli H. Han.

Fast-forward a few years and a £2.5m venture debt loan from BOOST&Co enabled BaseKit to expand its reach within the telecoms sector and invest in sales, marketing and product development, advancing the company’s growth.

The tech business community needs to see more of this kind of collaboration. Seed and start-up investors must work with growth lenders like BOOST&Co so that the UK’s tech companies don’t simply dominate Europe, but become leaders in innovation and growth around the world.

SETsquared ranked top global university business incubator for third time The SETsquared Partnership has been ranked the global number one university business incubator for the third consecutive time by research and advisory firm, UBI Global.

The title, which was awarded at the World Incubation Summit in Qatar, continues SETsquared’s ongoing success, having maintained its world-leading position since 2015. This year, the Partnership was commended for demonstrating exceptional value for tech start-ups and the local ecosystem.

With bespoke entrepreneur training programmes and unrivalled access to a network of mentors, alumni, investors, corporate partners and the knowledge base of five research intensive universities, SETsquared has supported over 4,000 UK high-tech start-ups since its inception, helping them raise more than £1.8bn of investment and creating £8.6bn of economic impact to date – a figure which is set to rise to nearly £27bn by 2030.

24

Issue 11: November - December 2019

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

25

GROWTH

“People are saying that UK retail is dying – it’s not – it is just being disrupted. And we are central to that disruption”

Meet the multinational retail software firm that looks set to dominate the market

I

n each edition of Business Leader Magazine, we profile a UK business experiencing exponential growth in a feature called BLM FastTrack. This time it is Bristol-based software company, Brightpearl.

partner for many small merchants in the UK, but three-and-a-half years ago, Brightpearl appointed Derek O’Carroll to lead the company as its new CEO. From that point on, the company experienced exponential growth across the world.

One of the companies looking to take advantage of the evolution of the retail sector is Brightpearl – a multichannel retail operations platform for large wholesalers and brands – whether they are online, instore, or both.

O’Carroll comments: “I joined with a remit from the board to take the company onto a faster pace of growth and success. Since joining, we have invested $10m (£7.7m) to capitalise on the foundation that Chris had built and we are now serving over 1,000 companies, in 20 countries across the world. Our platform is now processing over $2.5bn (£1.95bn) in invoice orders, for those customers, every year. The average rate of growth for customers on our platform is 30% year-on-year, which is counter to the normal doom and gloom story you hear from UK retail.

Brightpearl’s platform offers a wide array of useful tools to help retailers manage their stock and orders, and help facilitate growth.

“People are saying that UK retail is dying – it’s not – it is just being disrupted. And we are central to that disruption.”

FROM SURFING TO SOFTWARE The company was founded in 2008 by entrepreneur Chris Tanner, who was previously selling surfing and skateboarding equipment – but soon realised the mounting challenges of the operations side of the business – especially as the company grew.

Today, the company now has almost 100 employees with 50% of the business in North America, and the other 50% spread across nine countries – with the HQ remaining in the UK.

The retail sector is currently experiencing drastic changes. With the rapid rise of ecommerce, the well-documented struggles of the high street, and the impact of Brexit – the sector hasn’t ever seen this level of disruption.

The company became an established tech

But, what has driven Brightpearl’s growth?

REPURPOSE AND REPOSITION The company’s initial plans for when

"BRIGHTPEARL HAD BUILT A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TECHNOLOGY AND CAPABILITY, WHICH WAS MORE SUITED TO BIGGER MERCHANTS THAN THE SMALLER ONES THE COMPANY HAD HISTORICALLY WORKED WITH. ALL I DID WAS REPOSITION THE BUSINESS TO SERVE LARGER MERCHANTS – THAT IS ESSENTIALLY ALL THAT HAS CHANGED OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.”

O’Carroll joined was to change the strategy and take a larger market share within the retail sector.

He explains: “Brightpearl had built a significant amount of technology and capability, which was well suited to bigger merchants. All I did was reposition the business to serve these larger merchants – that is essentially what has changed over the last few years.”

However, this move alone has resulted in significant growth for the company. Order values on the Brightpearl platform have increased by over 700% when compared to four year’s ago.

Year-on-year new business growth is running at 75% across the world – and the growth in the US is over 100% year-on-year growth.

The growth year-on-year is 40% in the UK. BRIGHTPEARL IN BRITAIN The growth is softer in the UK though, due to all the challenges across the retail sector and the general uncertainty in the market.

O’Carroll believes that merchants who are planning on taking advantage of that and disrupt the market with a high-quality service across multiple retail channels – both physical and online – are the ones that are winning and largely driving the firm’s growth.

He said: “Brands that are real disruptors in their own right tend to be the ones that are joining the Brightpearl platform and leveraging our tech to achieve their own growth.”

The company’s tech isn’t just helping firms grow, but also make plans for their future, due to extensive capabilities Brightpearl’s platform can offer.

In order for a large retail business to survive,

26

Issue 11: November - December 2019

BRIGHTPEARL

compete, and ultimately thrive in the sector, they need to embrace and utilise modern tech across the whole company.

O’Carroll comments: “With Brightpearl, our clients get the vendor and the tech provider of the service under the same company. In the modern world, to be successful in this industry, all retailers need to also be tech companies. Companies today that do not have a data-centric approach to marketing and customer service are not going to win.

“Merchants need flexibility, so when they do adopt a technology-centric approach that allows them to play in a cost-beneficial manner, is to decide which channels they are going to activate. They can test different countries and markets at low costs to gauge the appetite for the products in that area.

That then gives them a better strategy going forward.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

“Through this, the customer can create a unique offering – either retailing online, in store, or both – and this can vary depending on which country they operate in – creating a bespoke retail offering. Having that single platform to run all those varieties of businesses is why Brightpearl have seen such growth in the last few years.”

THE B WORD Growth at Brightpearl has not come without its challenges – something shared with both the retail and tech sectors. One of the primary challenges the UK operation has faced is Brexit.

When the vote was made back in 2016 that Britain would leave the European Union, Brightpearl made the decision to shift its focus to the USA. O’Carroll explains: “In the UK, when the Brexit decision occurred, we made the

decision to really double-down on the USA – to give ourselves that insurance. Two years ago, we saw a real slow down in the adoption of the platform in the UK, so we decided to rebalance our resources. I then directed nearly all of our investments out of the UK and into the USA. We retained our significant investment in R&D – but maintained minimum investment levels in the UK.” This was in anticipation of a major decline, however, the implications of Brexit turned out to be nowhere near as bad first expected, and the numbers prove that.

He continues: “The numbers are 40% up year-on-year for new business, which was a massive surprise. I think it was down to the fact that the merchants that choose Brightpearl now are bigger companies, and they tend to be the disruptors within the sector."  27

GROWTH

HOW TO LAUNCH YOUR BUSINESS IN

SOUTH AFRICA F

or our latest business trip feature, where we look at the UK’s most interesting export markets, Business Leader gives you an in-depth look into everything you need to know about doing business in South Africa.

As Africa’s second largest economy, with an ever-increasing annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (2018; £272.3bn), South Africa has become an emerging import/ export destination for leading nations across the world.

Since the turn of the century, the country has risen to become the world’s 47th largest economy, 34th largest export nation (valued at £84.2bn), and 38th largest import nation (valued at £63.9bn), with only Nigeria being higher up on those lists from the whole African continent.

Bilateral trade between Great Britain and South Africa has increased to over £10bn annually, and with a drastically improved business infrastructure and political climate; is now the time for British companies to look at South Africa as a business destination?

What opportunities are available to UK companies?

Traditionally, South African business was focused around its abundance of natural resources. In recent years there has been an 28

emergence of modern professional, financial and legal services, among many other developing industries.

However, it isn’t just this modernisation of the country’s business environment that has made it emerge on a global stage.

Leon Ayo, British Chamber of Business in Southern Africa President, comments: “Traditionally, the South African economy has centred around natural resources and extractives such as gold and platinum mining. In recent years the decline in commodities prices has seen British companies in South Africa focus more on professional services.

One of these tech-focused SMEs is SoPost, an international online product sampling firm. The company has had a lot of success in the country.

“Over the past few years, SMEs in all sectors have steadily been coming in including in automotive, retail, food & drink, and more recently we’ve been seeing interest from companies in the medical/health sectors, technology and education.

CFO Russell Brown explains: “For companies like ours there is significant potential. Many of the global brands we work with in other markets are present in South Africa and we have the opportunity to gain first mover advantage in introducing our technology before anyone else.

“Technology and specifically smartphoneenabled products present good opportunity – we’ve seen technology ventures in the HR and retail spaces coming in from British companies, and these have been well received.”

“South Africa has a population of over 58 million, which provides a substantial consumer base as well as a well-established creative and media industry, with an infrastructure which can support our business services.”

Issue 11: November - December 2019

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

How developed is the business community?

South Africa has the unique feature of being both a sophisticated but largely untapped and developing economy. There are big opportunities in the education sector, particularly utilising technology and online options to deliver in various sectors.

Ayo continues: “South Africa is still one of the best gateways into Africa, so for companies with a view to develop further into the rest of Africa, this is a good base to operate from. Africa has the world’s youngest population and by 2035 will have the world’s largest working population. The opportunities presented by the scale of this potential market are significant, particularly given the shifting demographics of Europe.”

Sandra Warne is an International Trade Adviser for the Department for Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

International Trade (DIT), and worked in the country for several years.

She comments: “With just under £10bn of bilateral trade, there are opportunities in advanced engineering, agribusiness, creative industries, infrastructure, energy, education, professional services, food & drink, ICT, life sciences, sports and retail.

“There are 11 official languages, with English being the most commonly used in business. It remains the most sophisticated and developed economy in Africa and has an abundant supply of natural resources with a well-established and modern infrastructure including well-developed

financial and legal services. In fact, a lot of clients that I used to work with would often use South Africa as a springboard into other Southern African markets.”

Trade Commissioner for Africa at the Department for International Trade, Emma Wade-Smith OBE echoes this sentiment: “The scale, breadth and sophistication of South Africa’s economy and the relative ease of doing business means that there are a wide range of business opportunities for UK companies, across many sectors and industries.

Cont.  29

GROWTH

"South Africa’s regional position and ability to act as a base for critical services means it can also be a springboard to doing business across Southern Africa and beyond, extending the market base for UK companies looking to do business here.”

How has the relationship changed?

South Africa has emerged as a key outlet for British businesses looking to increase their global presence, and potentially start expanding into a new continent. But what are the challenges?

Despite the current and emerging opportunities for companies looking at moving into South Africa, there are unfortunately several difficult obstacles to overcome. As it is with starting a business venture in a new country, establishing local partnerships and working with government institutions can help businesses navigate the minefield that South Africa can be for international companies.

Wade-Smith comments: “Through a number of programmes and activities DIT are working with the South African government to increase transparency in public procurement and to build a market environment that supports the private sector to innovate and scale – a necessary driver of sustainable growth and diversification.

We are a strong supporter of President Ramaphosa’s personal commitment to mobilise c.£88bn of investment into South Africa over the next five years, which aligns with the UK’s ambition to be the leading G7 investor in Africa.”

The political aspect of the business relationship has conjured up several 30

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

"SOUTH AFRICA IS STILL ONE OF THE BEST GATEWAYS INTO AFRICA, SO FOR COMPANIES WITH A VIEW TO DEVELOP FURTHER INTO THE REST OF AFRICA, THIS IS A GOOD BASE TO OPERATE FROM." Russell Brown challenges British businesses need to be aware of.

Ayo comments: “Political uncertainty can be a concern to many investors and recent challenges to the constitution regarding land reform has been unhelpful. That said, South Africa’s institutions have proven to be robust and recent elections have been peaceful.

“Recently, visas for non-South Africans and their families coming to work and live in South Africa have been an issue. This is something that has been raised at many levels from business to government and we hope to see some improvement in the system soon.”

Another key element to South Africa business is the Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) programme, designed to raise the black population’s share of the economy through fixed quotas and shares, could discourage foreign investment due to the skills shortage.

Ayo continues: “You need to be knowledgeable about BEE legislation and requirements so you can incorporate this into a business strategy, as this can be a deal breaker. I think companies don’t always

understand the vast social-economic divide in the country and how this translates for their target markets and the way that they would need to operate.”

Tanya Giles, South West Regional Manager of trade credit insurer Atradius, echoes this and highlights several other issues to be aware of: “Unemployment is high with two-thirds of those unemployed under the age of 35 and there are still pockets of deep poverty, high crime rate and BEE legislation with affirmative action to right the wrongs of the past. The current market conditions are challenging, evidenced by South Africa’s fall in the Ease of Doing Business Index from 39th position in 2013 to 82nd this year.

With this in mind, businesses must ensure they fully understand the wider market as well as the opportunities and manage the risks accordingly.”

However, despite the concerns, the UK Government has recently announced an Economic Partnership Agreement with the Southern African Customs Union that will allow business to keep trading freely after Brexit. This will help further strengthen the trade relationship between both markets and lay the foundations for new trade and investment in the future.  Issue 11: November - December 2019

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Our services are designed and proven to help people believe things can be done differently, show them how to do this and give them the confidence that they and others in the organisation can and must continue to adapt to new opportunities.

At the core of our services lie well-proven techniques including agile methods, that have been applied in sectors such as software development for a couple of decades or so.

We’re excited by our continued success with clients, globally. We’re the global partner for one of the world’s largest software manufacturers, so we’ll continue to support them and the many hundreds of people we work with. We have just begun to work with a global financial services brand too.

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WHAT DO YOU FEEL ARE THE BUSINESS TRENDS THAT ARE LIKELY TO COME TO THE FOREFRONT IN 2020?

Businesses generally will continue to be expected to adapt or die. The necessary changes will be expected to be achieved at an ever-increasing rate. More organisations will identify the need for transformation across the enterprise, with many adopting agile practices in key business areas such as marketing, finance, HR and operations.

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REVIEW

BUSINESS LEADER LAUNCHES:

STEWART GOLF X9 FOLLOW F

or this edition, the BLM team got the opportunity to review Stewart Golf’s latest piece of tech – the X9 Follow – a revolutionary addition to the golf trolley market.

Gloucestershire-based Stewart Golf are a leading firm for British engineering within the golf industry – and for almost 20 years they have brought out a wide range of trolleys – both electric and push versions – to challenge the likes of other global brands, such as Powakaddy and Motocaddy.

The company’s innovations even led them to be a recent finalist at the Business Leader Awards for the Manufacturing Business of the Year.

Stewart Golf was founded with the sole intention of designing and building the world’s finest golf trolleys here in the UK. As a company owned and run by a group of engineers, the company’s ethos is to ‘design, innovate and build’ market leading golf trolleys.

SO, WHAT DOES THE X9 FOLLOW OFFER? Although Stewart Golf have several different electric trolleys on offer, the X9 is their flagship product.

The X9 has its patented follow technology, which allows golfers to stroll the fairways with their bag of clubs following them a short distance behind (two paces). This is achieved through a handheld device with Bluetooth connection between that and the trolley.

For those golfers who might find it unnerving having an unmanned piece of tech on wheels following you in close proximity, the X9 Follow also has incredibly responsive downhill breaking which means it will not crash into the back of the user.

The remote also allows users to control the movement of the trolley, in any direction, with a distance of up to 50 metres.

It is also possible to manually control the trolley by clicking the desired direction on

the remote, enabling users to then handle it through tight spaces, over bridges or in the car park.

A Stewart Golf spokesperson stated: “The X9 Follow lets you focus on your game, not your gear and gives you the best chance of playing your best golf.”

Weighing in at 14kg, and easily foldable to fit in a car, it is a quick and stress free set-up before a round.

One of the biggest advancements within the industry as a whole has been the introduction of lithium batteries – and even with the introduction of the follow/Bluetooth technology, the X9 will last a whole round, even on hilly courses and difficult terrain.

Price for the X9 Follow depends on which battery is selected; £1,499 for a ‘Standard Lithium Battery’, or £1,599 for the ‘Extended Capacity Battery’. It is also possible to get the trolley in three different colours; Pearlescent White, Metallic Black and Metallic Silver.

Stewart Golf even claims that out of a survey of 1,146 customers, 91% felt more relaxed on the course and 68% claimed an average handicap improvement of three shots.

But, does this hold up on a wet and waterlogged course in Bristol? BLM investigates.

34

Issue 11: November - December 2019

STEWART GOLF

BL REVIEW Assistant Editor, Barney Cotton As golfers, we are always looking at finding the latest tech or clubs to mask any shortcomings we have in our own game – and sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t help. The X9 can definitely make a difference to your game.

Once the X9 Follow had arrived at Business Leader HQ, it was easily assembled and comfortably fitted in the backseat or boot of a normal-sized car.

Both the lithium battery and handheld Bluetooth device were easily charged separately on household plug sockets. I will urge anyone to fully charge both, as when the X9 runs out of battery, with bag/clubs/etc, it is very difficult to push manually – and very heavy to carry.

However, once fully charged and ready to go, the X9 took the stress out of carrying a bag and left you handsfree to enjoy the walk, have a drink or snack, or maybe plan your next shot.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

In a world where many golfers have an electric trolley, the X9 Follow was definitely eye-catching and many other players stopped to ask about the follow function and how it works – showing that this is not just a fad, but the future of golf around the world.

The follow function affords the player to just enjoy the walk without having to carry or push a bag – often the cause of back issues for many golfers. Even on wet ground in the rough, the X9 Follow kept up with me and didn’t get stuck – despite the fact there were a couple of wheel spins.

I would advise purchasing the winter wheels for winter use – however, this comes at an extra cost of £99. This standard trolley is ideally suited to warmer and dryer courses – however, the X9 with winter wheels would be the most convenient as it allows golfers to keep both hands free to stay warm and dry.

The course I played was especially undulating and due to the integrated stabiliser, it never fell over or went miles off course. It may be initially unnerving to see your trolley pulling wheelies – but you don’t need to worry about damaging your bag or clubs.

On the remote mode, it is very useful to have the ability to turn 360 degrees, in order to drive the bag to your next destination – whether it be the next tee, near the green, or (hopefully) when you’ve bombed a drive past your playing partners.

The handheld device never loses connection from within the 50 metre range, and the variety of settings are incredible responsive.

You may feel awkward about the buggy following you or running away – but after a few rounds, you know you can have 100% faith in the product.

However, for future editions of this trolley, I would like to see more from the handheld device. Although the tech is sound and very responsive to your selections via Bluetooth, for the money the whole package costs, I hope in future the device has a digital display – maybe even with a built in GPS and scorecard, like it is with the golf watches?

Other improvements I would like to see is the ability to see how much life is left in the battery – something that many of their competitors have. I would also encourage anyone interested in the device to get the X Series Travel Bag (£50), as the back of your car will end up being covered in grass and dirt – especially if it has been through a wet and wintery golf course.

As it was when electric trolleys were first introduced, the price is quite steep for the X9 Follow. However, electric trolleys are now commonplace throughout golf courses across the country, and the X9 is blazing a trail for the industry to try and follow – no pun intended. 

35

ECONOMY, POLITICS & MARKETS

USA

£7.5bn

What do Chinese investors really think of Brexit?

CHILE

£5bn

BLM looks at the role Chinese investors are playing in stimulating the UK economy and how Brexit is influencing their involvement?

T

he ever-evolving story of Brexit has gripped the nation for more than three years, with every facet of business and wider-society feeling the impact of the vote to leave the European Union.

The major nations around the world have been interested onlookers, with some looking at the advantages a weaker Pound presents. But, what does the world’s largest economy think of the debate, debacle and, ultimately, the decision? BLM investigates.

What do the statistics show?

A total of 67 investments into 57 UK companies have included involvement from a Chinese fund since 2011.

However, since 2017, the number of annual investments into UK companies that included a Chinese fund has dropped slightly from 19 to 16 in 2018 and just 12 in 2019 so far. Q3 2019 has seen the most investments of any quarter, with Chinese investors participating in seven equity deals.

Henry Whorwood, Head of Research & Consultancy at Beauhurst, comments: 36

“The third quarter results are reassuring, and indicate that the yearly drop is unlikely to be because of political uncertainty. This fluctuation could simply be down to natural fluctuations in deal flow, or due to Chinese investors increasingly using different vehicles to invest abroad. This likely change in investor habits will have followed the highprofile scrutiny over Huawei’s attempted deal with US telecoms provider, AT&T. Instead, Chinese investors may be making investments as individuals or through Special Purpose Vehicles, through which deals are less visible.”

It appears that overall Chinese investment in the UK is only going to rise though.

According to FDI Markets, London is the leading European destination for Chinese Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the UK and Europe. In fact, it is the second largest recipient globally behind only Hong Kong.

Chinese contributions account for over 10% of total FDI into London.

Latest statistics compiled by law firm, Baker McKenzie and research company, The Rhodium Group, confirm that, last year, the UK overtook the US as the largest recipient of Chinese outbound foreign investment.

According to this joint report, Chinese outbound FDI in the UK stood at £3.83bn, followed by £3.73bn in the US and £3.14bn in Sweden.

What is driving Chinese interest in British companies?

To the Chinese, ‘Brand Britain’ has always represented quality, heritage and uniqueness, and still does. According to research recently released by Barclays Corporate Banking, Chinese consumers are still nearly 40% more likely to buy a product if the packaging features a Union Jack on it.

"TO DATE, THE UK HAS YIELDED ROBUST RETURNS FOR CHINESE INVESTORS. THE 30 FASTESTGROWING CHINESE COMPANIES WITH INVESTMENTS IN THE UK EMPLOY MORE THAN 3,500 PEOPLE AND ENJOY A COMBINED TURNOVER OF MORE THAN £43BN." Wendy Wu Issue 11: November - December 2019

REPORT

FINLAND

£4.5bn

UK

£5.5bn Germany

£10bn

BANGLADESH

£4.5bn

NIGERIA

£5bn

AUSTRALIA

£2.5bn

As well as being an important trading partner for China, the UK is also considered to be China’s friendly ally in the West.

The UK was the first to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s 2015 visit to the UK, the counties entered a new golden era of political relations. This has led to many current investors from a Chinese perspective viewing the UK as a country that is open to doing business.

However, other global issues have impacted on the UK-China relationship. Wendy Wu, Director of China Outbound Desk at the TMF Group comments: “At a time when the UK’s traditional ally, the US, is at odds with China over a growing range of issues, Chinese investment into the UK is flourishing. We saw in 2017, intensified scrutiny on overseas deals, as the government sought to curb the unbridled outflow of capital and a build-up in corporate debt. Consequently, there was a steep 29% drop in overseas investment. However, from 2018 we noticed rising outward investment, thanks to clarity on the government’s strategic investment priorities, after new Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

rules governing outbound investment which took effect in March 2018.

“This development has impacted the increasing investment into the UK. China Daily reported in August that Chinese businesses invested more money into the UK between January and August 2019, than they did in all of 2018.

“To date, the UK has yielded robust returns for Chinese investors. The 30 fastest-growing Chinese companies with investments in the UK employ more than 3,500 people and enjoy a combined turnover of more than £43bn. According to the Tou Ying investment tracker, compiled

by Grant Thornton and the China Daily, these 30 companies saw 66% average revenue growth in 2018. In my observation, for many Chinese businesses, Brexit is not deterring investment. Chinese investors realise that Brexit is both a challenge and an opportunity.”

Jinzhao Li is the Managing Director of Cambridge China Centre and the cocurator of the annual Cambridge China Forum comments: “While 2018 began with

a large drop of activity, the second half of the year recovered to the previous year’s levels – and 2019 has seen continued growth to record investment levels.

“More long-term reasons for the increase in Chinese investment include London’s position as a world finance centre, access to world-leading experts, favourable conditions for establishing a presence in Europe, strong IP protections and the consistent record of innovation in the UK.” And the Chinese government has been open in its support of Chinese investors and entrepreneurs looking to expand into the UK. What sectors have received the highest levels of investment?

It is the Chinese focus on the tech sector that is the primary interest for investors – many of whom view Brexit as an opportunity, rather than a hindrance.

Cont.  37

REPORT

CHINESE INVESTMENT

Russ Shaw, Founder of Tech London Advocates & Global Tech Advocates, comments: “China has been a global leader in technology for some time, but now its innovation is going global. As with many prominent tech hubs, inward investments will stimulate growth to an extent, but the next stage is about connecting with other hubs around the world.

“According to FDI Markets, financial services, creative industries, business services and tech are the largest sectors of investment – together accounting for two-thirds (66%) of FDI projects from China. However, China’s investment in its technology businesses and rapid growth of its start-up ecosystem means that we foresee particular interest in the UK tech sector moving forward.”

British tech companies and, in this respect, Brexit has done little to dent Brand Britain’s reputation. UK assets are still considered to be high value. However, as Chinese investors tend to invest in the UK first before moving deeper into Europe, many of them are holding off for now until they see what’s going to happen with Brexit.”

"IN THE UK WE HAVE THE CREATIVITY, THE TALENT, THE INNOVATION – WITH CHINA OFFERING THE CAPITAL, AMBITION AND UNDERSTANDING OF SCALE – THAT COULD LEAD TO COLLABORATION IN A NUMBER OF AREAS TO MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL ENDS." Russ Shaw Ting Zhang is founder and CEO of Crayfish.io, a full-service platform offering expertise, connections and capital, enabling businesses to achieve better engagement with China. In August, Crayfish.io launched the first ever funded initiative in the UK to help tech start-ups and small businesses get ‘China-ready’.

She comments: “Chinese investors are still hugely interested in investing in innovative 38

According to a Tech Nation report, for the first seven months of 2019, foreign investment into the UK tech sector was £5.5bn, more than the whole of 2018.

However, it isn’t just tech that has received interest from Chinese investment. Wu explains: “We believe thanks to investment in long-term projects, there will be a sustainable investment flow from China to the UK. As Chinese companies further establish themselves in key UK industries, we believe there will be expansion into broader sectors of the UK economy.

“Consumer products, financial services, high-end manufacturing, healthcare, tourism and education, are well-known in the UK. It matches perfectly with China's demand to upgrade consumption and development thanks to rising living standards in China.”

Will interest in British companies increase?

Despite the looming spectre of Brexit, Britain appears to remain an attractive investment

opportunity, largely due to its thriving tech sector. Therefore, Chinese companies and others from around the world are still looking to invest in the UK and take advantage of the innovation, talent and resources available.

Shaw comments: “In the UK we have the creativity, the talent, the innovation – with China offering the capital, ambition and understanding of scale – that could lead to collaboration in a number of areas to mutually beneficial ends.”

Zhang continues: “From a Chinese perspective, Brexit has done little to damage ‘Brand Britain’ in Chinese eyes. Quite the opposite in fact. In China, ‘Made in the UK’ means three things: quality, heritage and innovation. And China remains as keen as ever to do business with the UK as a standalone unit from the rest of Europe, making this market a fantastic business opportunity for any UK business.”

It is this mix of accessibility, talent, innovation and openness to China – as well as the view that Brexit can provide opportunities – that has led to Britain and China forging a new expanding relationship that looks set to keep evolving in the years to come. 

Issue 11: November - December 2019

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39

LEADERSHIP

SHOULD BUSINESS LEADERS SPEAK MORE ON PUBLIC ISSUES?

A

s our world continues to become more divided on major issues, should CEOs take a public stance on contentious subjects? Does doing so boost a leader’s credibility and their profitability, or does it hinder it?

Charlie Mullins OBE

BLM investigates.

Is 2019 the time to take a stand?

An ever-increasing number of global brands are taking a more active stand on environmental and socio-political issues.

Firms like Ben & Jerry’s, Starbucks, CrossFit, Nike and Lush, have all recently used marketing campaigns and adverts as platforms to start a public debate around the importance of sustainability in consumption, racism, gun control, working conditions and the importance of LGBT rights and diversity, among others.

Tim Martin

Deborah Meaden

Dale Vince

40

Sir James Dyson

Not surprisingly, this activist orientation that many firms have embraced is often broadcasted through their CEOs, with a number becoming more vocal and more willing to step forward and discuss political and social values that go beyond their company’s core business.

Jackie Fast, star of The Apprentice, comments: “It is now time for businesses not only to stand for something, but to communicate their values to the world. Not only is this more sought after by younger generations from a purchasing perspective, but it’s also important as a differentiator in the market. A business with a clear mission and vision can become a brand – without it, you are just flogging a product or service.

Issue 11: November - December 2019

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT

“As part of this shifting communication between brands and consumers, it’s not only important for CEOs to fly the flag, but to lead the entire company towards their vision and having a viewpoint on leading public issues is a sign of strength.”

It is this shift in mentality that has seen many CEOs and leaders go from keeping their opinions in private to speaking out on public issues.

Dr Achilleas Boukis, Lecturer in Marketing, University of Sussex Business School, comments: “While further study is needed into the longer-term implications for activist CEOs, this is a phenomenon that is not going away and many will feel that CEOs have a duty to take a stance and have a say on some of the most fundamentally important political and social issues.

“To make the most of these opportunities and grow their company’s public standing and customer base, CEOs need to be seen to be taking a stand on important social injustices and to choose causes that are most relevant to their firm and its corporate history champion. Getting this right can be worth its weight in gold.”

This evolution of leadership has been a recent addition to the role of a leader of a business, and one that has implications outside of their own company.

Professor Michael Beverland, Head of Strategy and Marketing at the University of Sussex Business School, said: “Taking some form of leadership position has always been essential for brand authenticity and endurance. With the emergence of brand purpose, leaders taking a firm stance on key issues are a critical means to enhance the brand’s authenticity among customers, employees, and the wider public.”

"CEOS NEED TO BE SEEN TO BE TAKING A STAND ON IMPORTANT SOCIAL INJUSTICES AND TO CHOOSE CAUSES THAT ARE MOST RELEVANT TO THEIR FIRM AND ITS CORPORATE HISTORY CHAMPION. " Dr Achilleas Boukis

It is therefore an extra responsibility for a modern CEO, and something a business leader in 2019 needs to embrace.

Dr Liz O'Driscoll, MD at Exeter City Futures comments: “Many of the challenges facing our society today are beyond the power of government alone to solve. Businesses therefore have a critical role to play and have a powerful voice in discussions around carbon neutrality, sustainability, smart cities, and many major issues.

“CEOs can choose to directly engage in these conversations – but sometimes their decisions speak louder than works.

Collectively, businesses have the power to make decisions that can change our entire system: choices about supply chains, resource management, and engagement with our local communities, which can all make big, important statements that can ultimately influence public policy.”

Impact of millennials Another major influence on how leaders behave has been the changing demands of millennials, who will make up more than 45% of the workforce by the end of next year – overtaking the number of Gen X in employment (those born between 1965-80).

It is their influence that is set to revolutionise the workforce and how a company and its leaders portray themselves to the public.

Fast comments: “The influence that millennials have is completely different to that of previous generations, due to this demographic having grown up in the ‘Information Age’. With so much information available to them to inform their purchases and the direction with which they choose their careers, they are now able to make more conscientious decisions – and are choosing to do so. Brands need to have a strong and clear voice in the market if they are going to attract these savvy customers and this new workforce.

“Millennials demand authenticity in brand messages and quickly disregard obvious whitewashing. With only 4% trusting the advertisements they see, it’s now critical for brands to utilise other communication channels to show that they stand for something – and one channel of ease is the CEO, who is typically followed on social media more than the brand they lead.”

Jackie Fast

"IT IS NOW TIME FOR BUSINESSES NOT ONLY TO STAND FOR SOMETHING, BUT TO COMMUNICATE THEIR VALUES TO THE WORLD. NOT ONLY IS THIS MORE SOUGHT AFTER BY YOUNGER GENERATIONS FROM A PURCHASING PERSPECTIVE, BUT IT’S ALSO IMPORTANT AS A DIFFERENTIATOR IN THE MARKET." Jackie Fast

Role of social media Mirroring the emergence of millennials in the workplace, is the influence social media now has on our everyday lives. Leaders can be eulogised and criticised instantly on social media – which provides a platform where views can be amplified.

Journalist and broadcaster Neil Sean comments: “Businesspeople are always told that they need to personalise their brand or company. I disagree! What people want is direction, clarity and more positive information. CEOs are not movie stars or actors; they are running a company and how you portray yourself across the world of social media is vital to success.”

Cont.  Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

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FEATURE

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT

"PEOPLE LIKE TO HEAR FORTHRIGHT OPINIONS, PARTICULARLY THE MEDIA AND IT HAS HELPED OUR COMPANY AS WE ARE NEVER AFRAID OF PUTTING ACROSS OUR POINT OF VIEW." Scott Mullins In regards to whether or not leaders should be worried about having a presence on social media, Emeric Enoult, CEO of social media management software, Agorapulse comments: “Social media solves more problems than it causes for CEOs. It is a bridge for both online and offline conversations with the people that CEOs and business leaders most want to reach.

“At its core, social media itself is just a tool, but it needs to be wielded intelligently and purposefully. By listening, monitoring, and engaging in online conversations with target audiences, CEOs and business leaders can better understand them and ultimately strive to create better business products or experiences that make life better for customers.”

However, it took only a tweet from Houston Rockets’ GM Daryl Morey in support of protesters in Hong Kong (“Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong”) to create a major diplomatic incident with China which threatens to derail years of work by the NBA to open up a $4bn (£3.1bn) market.

With so much at stake from just 280 characters, many boards might well ask if it's worth the risk of having an outspoken CEO who wants to engage with controversial public issues.

Even more destructively, some CEOs unreasonably jump into controversial debates or share regressive and unpalatable views that polarise their audience and put the value of their brand at risk.

David Gelb, CEO of JBi Digital agrees: “If you have a genuine angle or personal experience, then express it, but do it in line with your company values or that of the industry you’re working within. Social media provides a platform for anyone to express an opinion with little fear of castigation.

“Too often CEOs put personal image above their company’s reputation by jumping on popular bandwagons for publicity. The end result often causes more harm than good 42

Scott Mullins

because the public is often quick to point out the hypocrisy of CEOs who’s personal and business conduct does not match the social media line they’re pedalling.”

“People like to hear forthright opinions, particularly the media and it has helped our company as we are never afraid of putting across our point of view.”

How to deal with an outspoken CEO So, with all these outlets for CEOs to speak their mind in a very public arena, how do marketing teams and PR companies deal with outspoken business leaders?

It is a different case for some outsourced PR companies, who must take into consideration that their client might say something damaging to the brand at any point. However, it also can lead to new opportunities to grow.

Gelb continues: “Social media has been a gamechanger for the public, CEOs, and their respective crisis management PR teams. Many CEOs leave their profiles in the safe hands of their PR agencies. That way everything can be fact checked and edited to ensure comments don’t cause the company’s share price to plummet, much like it did for Tesla when Elon Musk unexpectedly announced over Twitter he was taking the company private.”

Scott Mullins, Operation Director of Pimlico Plumbers, is the son of the outspoken and often controversial Charlie Mullins, and he believes that his father’s approach has overwhelmingly been good for the business.

He comments: “It’s an exciting experience – we have never been shy about putting our head above the parapet and its part of our approach to life and business. We’ve always been bold in how we run the company and most of our customers like the way we operate.

"TOO OFTEN CEOS PUT PERSONAL IMAGE ABOVE THEIR COMPANY’S REPUTATION BY JUMPING ON POPULAR BANDWAGONS FOR PUBLICITY." David Gelb Hannah Haffield, MD of PR firm Make More Noise comments: “From a PR perspective, working with an outspoken CEO provides the opportunity to be bold, as long as they are outspoken in the right way. In fact, we have achieved far better results for the CEOs that are happy to share their opinion, as the media are far more interested in those who have something different and disruptive to say.

“However, it is important to get this strategy right from the outset, where any ‘outspoken CEO' will need to be clear and consistent on what subject matters they can speak on, and how their opinion and content is positioned in the public domain.”  Issue 11: November - December 2019

NEWS

Neeta Atkar joins British Business Bank board The British Business Bank has appointed Neeta Atkar as Senior Independent Director to its Board.

Atkar steps up into the role having served as a Non-Executive Director since July 2016 and will continue to Chair the British Business Bank’s Risk Committee.

The previous incumbent, Christina McComb, steps down from the Board, having served two terms as Senior Independent Director since 2013.

Lord Smith, Chair of the British Business Bank, comments: “I am pleased to welcome Neeta to her new role as Senior Independent Director and look forward to working with her closely as we continue to make finance markets work better for smaller UK businesses.

“I would also like to thank Christina McComb for her contribution in providing valuable expertise and guidance over the last six years, including acting as interim Chair from October 2016 until July 2017.”

Lloyds bank profits wiped out by £1.8bn PPI claims The Lloyds Banking Group has recently announced that it has taken a huge £1.8bn hit from payment protection insurance (PPI) mis-selling compensation claims – which has almost wiped out its third quarter profits.

Lloyds has now had to pay out almost £22bn in compensation for PPI. This latest update in PPI payouts meant that the bank reported profits of just £50m, and had a knock-on impact on the first nine months profits, which have fallen 40% compared to the previous year, to a total of £2.9bn.

You could be eligible for R&D Tax Credits You might be surprised by what can qualify as R&D (it’s not always about white coats and hadron colliders).

We’ve helped numerous businesses claim back significant sums of money in all sorts of sectors.

Here’s one bit of research you needn’t spend any more time on. Ask us about your own tax affairs today.

Find out more: rdtc@finchassociates.co.uk | 01275 867350 @finchassociates | www.finchassociates.co.uk Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

f FINCH

& ASSOCIATES

C H A RT E R E D TA X A DV I S E R S

43

INTERVIEW

CEO IN FOCUS:

CRAIG UNSWORTH C

raig Unsworth is the founder and CEO of ambitious tech business, Upgrade Pack. Here, he talks to BLM about his plans for the company.

CAN YOU TELL READERS ABOUT HOW YOU CAME TO START THE BUSINESS? I previously worked as a management consultant, where I would help companies that were around ten to fifteen years old and focused on what their next phase of growth would look like.

I gradually started to see that technology was running away from many of them and often they had created a business that was too reliant on the founder; so, I would work with them to create and build tech products that could create additional revenue.

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After several exits – including trade sales, Private Equity buyouts, and an IPO – I decided it was time to do it in the hot seat, as CEO. CAN YOU ALSO TELL US MORE ABOUT YOURSELF? I originally wanted to be an IT lawyer and studied at Edinburgh University. I have always manged to work at an incredible pace and get things done from an early age; for example, I completed my GCSEs in one year, which meant that I attended university at an earlier age than most.

I became involved with business at university and started to establish contacts in industry – at places like RBS who funded part of my time at university. Building these contacts and investing time to learn about business and technology is what inspired me to become a consultant whilst I was studying.

I set up a business helping companies to get the most out of new media and e-commerce opportunities. I had built a successful consultancy business in Edinburgh within six years, before selling it to my management team. Following this I moved to London.

"FROM THE BEGINNING I WANTED TO BUILD A GLOBAL BUSINESS, SO NATURALLY WE’RE EXPOSED TO GLOBAL PRESSURES BUT AT THE SAME TIME WE’RE NOT JUST A UK BUSINESS RESPONDING TO A MACRO AND MICROENVIRONMENT IN ONE PLACE."

Issue 11: November - December 2019

CEO IN FOCUS

"WE HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED OFFERS FROM PEOPLE WANTING TO BUY THE BUSINESS, BUT WE WANT TO BUILD SOMETHING VALUABLE; AND BUILD AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO CRITICAL MASS."

but we started in June. 14 months later, our tech platform are fully built with offices in London and Singapore and employing 26 people in total.

HOW IS THE BUSINESS BEING FUNDED? Last year, we raised £4.1m in private equity from investors. We actively decided to not take venture capital funding in the beginning, partly because we felt the restrictions and reserved matters that most term sheets had (we were made three offers by some truly brilliant VCs) would have slowed us down.

But mostly because we felt that if we were going to take a cheque and form a new partnership, we’d wait to do it properly i.e. when we look for significant scale-up capital.

Our aim is to be employee-owned and independent.

WHAT IS THE FUTURE FOR THE BUSINESS? We are doing something that has never been done; so, the future is exciting. We of course want to continue to maintain our pace; and keep doing things that aren’t being done.

SO, WHAT DOES UPGRADE PACK DO? We help large corporates and banks reward and retain their best and highest value customers and employees.

We do this by giving them exclusive access to rewards such as upgraded flights and discounts on hotels.

Upgrade Pack have created the technology and platform that they can access to do this.

We bring the airlines and hotels on board and don’t charge them fees.

All our revenue comes from the banks, credit card operators and corporates.

Originally this couldn’t be built because consumers don’t want to pay for discounts, so we needed to create the tech and marry up the consumers with the professionals.

The business was incorporated in April 2018, Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

We have already received offers from people wanting to buy the business, but we want to build something valuable; and build as quickly as possible to critical mass. We’re also open to looking at partnerships or acquisitions as part of our growth.

Flexibility is important to us and our staff can access a pot of 50 days a year holiday and work anywhere in the world.

ARE THERE ANY OTHER SECTORS YOU’D LIKE TO DISRUPT? I don’t think the venture capital sector is in a great place now. It’s very strong if you’re a 22-year-old software developer with an app and your happy to hand over a chunk of the business. But if you’re a seasoned businessperson with exits under your belt – there isn’t much in venture capital other than the money that you need.

I’ve often thought about creating a hybrid between VC and private equity funding – which can add more value.

I’m also curious about hotels. Could I build and run one? I don’t think I’ll ever retire.

HOW DO YOU SEE THE TECH SECTOR CHANGING? I’m looking forward to moving beyond the current phase where the tech sector is seen as a rockstar movement, where you have computer science graduates getting poached with ridiculous salaries.

Technology should be a facilitator and used to make change because we have phenomenal power at our fingertips. Is it right that our brightest minds are working on dating apps?

I want us to achieve unicorn status and have a billion-dollar valuation. We’ve already been valued at four to five times our current revenue.

I also think the novelty around fintech and AI is wearing off and we need to start taking advantage of how we maximise the opportunities they offer.

WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE MAIN CHALLENGES YOU FACE? From the beginning I wanted to build a global business, so naturally we’re exposed to global pressures but at the same time we’re not just a UK business responding to a macro and microenvironment in one place.

YOUR FINAL THOUGHTS? We are building a business that we hope is different. There is little textbook to how we’re building it but lots of instinct.

Another challenge we face is talent and acquiring the best tech talent.

We are building a different type of organisation that is very authentic and driven by diversity and inclusion, so finding the right people is key.

I believe that dropouts and entrepreneurs produce different thinking and outcomes and it’s always interesting to how they approach business.

We also have a huge amount of rigour and robustness in areas like finance and operations – so I guess it’s a hybrid approach. 

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HR

Technology in the workplace – a force for good or bad?

T

he workplace is going through one if its most disruptive periods of change in history, with the evolution of technology being the main driving force of its transformation. But, has tech changed the workplace for the better? Do we now have an overreliance on it? BLM looks into the true impact of technology on our working lives.

Communications, data, office design, HR and the workplace have been impacted by technology, and business owners looking to scale-up are always trying to find new ways to integrate tech into their business to improve the way their staff work and increase productivity.

The real impact of technology But is this always the case and does adding in layers of tech always benefit a scaling business?

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Christopher Allen, Founder and Managing Director of MONTROC Consulting Ltd, comments: “Technology in the workplace has made them more agile; laptops and mobile phones are the basic tools for agile working. However, it has also made them more connected; the workforce can reach more people, more easily, more often than ever before.”

Regarding agile or remote working, Susie Al-Qassab, Employment Partner at Hodge Jones Allen echoes Allen’s comments: “A key improvement of technology, is to enable remote working of employees, through the aid of laptops, mobiles, teleconferencing, and co-working spaces. While cloud technology and IM systems have allowed workplaces to become interconnected; workers can work from anywhere. This is particularly helpful for employees with young families, as it enables more flexibility in the working day than was previously achievable.”

almost three quarters of the UK workforce appreciate being offered flexible working, and many would now prefer this option to a pay rise.

With technological developments such as video conferencing, online project management platforms, and enhanced communications tools, remote workforces are now a real possibility for many businesses. Dispersed workforce technologies enable businesses to widen their recruitment pools and target the best possible talent.

A KEY IMPROVEMENT OF TECHNOLOGY, IS TO ENABLE REMOTE WORKING OF EMPLOYEES, THROUGH THE AID OF LAPTOPS, MOBILES, TELECONFERENCING, AND CO-WORKING SPACES. Susie Al-Qassab

A study from Powwownow in 2018 found

Issue 11: November - December 2019

TECHNOLOGY IN THE WORKPLACE

Rob Orr, Executive Director at Virgin Media Business comments: “Over the past few decades alone, technology has transformed offices from rigid, hierarchical, paper-based environments into collaborative, intelligencedriven and productive environments.

“It’s brought a wealth of opportunities for employees – the ability to work remotely; access and use data to improve performance and accelerate project delivery; and created countless ways to communicate with colleagues. It’s allowed businesses to manage their resources in a much more nimble and secure way, bringing the death of filing cabinets, ending reliance on network centres and enabling businesses to take advantage of cloud services as well as encrypted and scalable networks.”

Is there an over-reliance on tech nowadays?

It appears that technology has had a very positive impact on the workplace.

Companies of all sizes and sectors now benefit from increased productivity and a more streamlined process. However, it is not all positive – just picture the modern office when internet goes down, for example.

When the internet is working – emails are the primary source of communication for the majority of businesses. But, how has that impacted employees? Are there better alternatives on the market?

Allen comments: “We have an over-reliance

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

on email! Most of the tech tools we have access to are excellent but people often don’t know how to use them, mostly through a lack of training, are restricted from using them, or companies do not seek to analyse whether the tools they are using are still fit for purpose. Use of email should have reduced massively in favour of tools such as Slack, Workplace by Facebook, Microsoft Teams, Yammer and others.”

The average person in the UK checks their phone every 12 minutes. It is not just social media that is at our fingertips as work emails and office-based tools are just a click away. In the quest to create a relaxed office environment, it can sometimes be hard to keep any work boundaries at all.

Out of office worries can make the prospect of checking emails too tempting to resist. However, ‘checking in’ can have a detrimental impact on mental health, personal relationships and levels of productivity.

Orr said: “Technology is vital to today’s workplace but amid all the conversations around digital transformation, and the wide array of solutions available, businesses can sometimes forget about the human side of running an organisation – looking after employees and customers.

“Whenever a business leader invests in technology, they should challenge themselves. How will this impact customers? How will this make employees’

lives easier? The best examples of transformation combine an innovative spirit with an empathetic approach to people management and customer service.”

It is this symbiotic relationship that is the key to both utilise the tech tools available, but also not become purely dependant on them. When modern technology first made strides into the workplace, many thought it would make working lives better. However, it could be argued that it has just shifted the issues of traditional working conditions to new challenges.

Stephanie Kelly, chief people officer at IRIS Software Group comments: “At one time, it was predicted that our working week would become shorter, but instead, technology has created an ‘always on duty’ mentality. Having 24/7 access to work on your phone can be a double-edged sword, and technology should not be about squeezing more work out of employees.”

Impact on productivity It is this combination of tech and human interaction that is at the heart of any successful innovation that is brought into a business. No matter what tech is introduced, it will undoubtedly impact on productivity and output.

Cont. 

47

FEATURE

TECHNOLOGY IN THE WORKPLACE

FIVE TECH BRANDS THAT HAVE CHANGED THE WORKPLACE

Allen comments: “We thought computers and the internet were going to free us all to have more leisure time didn’t we! Ironically we thought it was the desk phone that pins us to our office desks and yet we see presenteeism and a culture of mistrust creating just the same bind. Tech has the ability to make us more productive if we buy the kit that works for us, train staff how to use it, then drive and model the change in behaviours required to embed it and make it grow.”

It is where this human understanding is key to introducing the right tech to improve productivity.

He continues: “There are thousands of tech solutions out there, hardware and software, so understanding the flow from your business mission and values and into how your culture works is key to adapting to new technology. Employees can be swamped by an ever-increasing list of tools so keep it simple, run pilots, and start early!”

But overall, the introduction of new technologies has increased productivity in the workplace claims Orr. He comments: “From retail to restaurants, architecture to the arts, technology underpins how we work today and provides an enormous boost to productivity.

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"Technology has moved us away from ploughs and paper records, to self-driving combine harvesters and SQL databases, putting an almost unlimited amount of information and power at our fingertips.

Technology allows us to connect with customers and colleagues in real time – supporting better and faster decision making – and helps boost productivity. It’s now virtually impossible for a business to have a meaningful impact without access to fast networks, mobile connectivity and the ability to complete tasks on the move.”

Impact on HR The traditional scope of human resources – covering areas such as learning and professional development, performance management, and recruitment – is fertile ground for technological innovation too.

Management teams now have access to a plethora of tech offerings, which shake-up tools like performance management models and training resources, or focus on specific areas for improvement like bias reduction in the recruitment process.

Regarding the modern recruitment process, tech also plays a huge role. Whether it is to do with the tools any prospective employee will use, to how they apply for the role – there are many different factors to consider.

Orr said: “Talented workers want to join businesses that invest in effective technology. Talented people increasingly expect to work in a collaborative, flexible and effective way. They need to be able to share files seamlessly with colleagues, work from the comfort of their own home and make use of emerging technologies to improve the quality of their work. Unless a business focuses on its technology, it simply won’t be able to deliver all this and will inevitably miss out on attracting skilled employees.” 

Issue 11: November - December 2019

ADVERTORIAL CASE STUDY

Leading marketing agency stands out thanks to Clip A leading full-service marketing agency has been the star of the show at two recent exhibitions after teaming up with Clip.

Purplex wowed delegates at two of the biggest events in the glazing industry calendar with the help of the Bristol-based leading exhibition stand supplier.

They enlisted Clip’s help to provide a festival vibe at Birmingham NEC for this year’s FIT Show, and the result was an impressive 120m2 stand which also featured an enclosed seminar space, meeting area, music and a bar.

The partnership continued for the Glazing Summit, a one-day conference that attracted around 350 industry leaders to Edgbaston for a day of debates and keynote speeches on the challenges facing the glazing industry.

This time Clip provided a small, easy to erect stand which also got attendees tongues wagging and can now be used by Purplex at other events.

A delighted Andrew Scott, CEO of Purplex, Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

said: “Exhibitions are hugely important for us as a business, but the challenge is to stand out and make sure your stand is the one that people want to go to.

“Clip turned our ideas and vision into a reality thanks to their great design team and they were hugely supportive throughout the process.

“The effectiveness and ‘pull’ of your stand cannot be underestimated at exhibitions and events, and thanks to clip both of our stands were stars of the show and we attracted great footfall at both events.

“Our motto is to make our clients’ life simpler, maximise their budget at a live event and make them stand out from the crowd and it’s great to hear that we did that.”

Founded in 1979, Clip’s exhibition services team provide everything from exhibition stand management and consultancy through to stand design, build and storage as well as training and other value-added services. Clip also supplies many multi-event and display solutions ranging from bespoke exhibition stands to self-build exhibition systems.

“It doesn’t matter if you need a huge, highenergy stand or a smaller one, Clip will help make sure it gets you noticed.”

Paul Runacres, Clip’s Business Development Manager, commented: “We’re delighted that Purplex enjoyed two successful exhibitions and our stands helped them connect with their audience. Their concept was challenging but our team enjoyed making it a reality.

To make sure your business stands out from the crowd, call 0117 937 2636 or visit www.clipuk.com 49

REVIEW

Business Leader South West legal guide Throughout the journey of your business you will need to take legal advice, but your requirements will be different for different parts of the growth cycles. As you scale-up and launch new technology; the type of advice you need will change.

This guide from Business Leader Magazine will review some of the leading firms in the South West and focus on some of their core specialisms via different verticals.

BLM RECOMMENDS

LEGAL FIRM IN FOCUS WHAT HAVE THRINGS HAS BEEN UP TO IN 2019?

We’ve been involved in some great financing deals, among them: assisting Baylis Estates with financing its ongoing commercial development projects at Cribbs Causeway and future schemes in Chippenham and Yate; securing finance for Stonewood Builders to develop 38 new homes in Wiltshire and; supporting the ever-evolving shared economy by closing a first round of funding for innovative ‘pay per stay’ insurer, Guardhog.

The Paragon, Counterslip, Bristol, BS1 6BX Simon Holdsworth Managing Partner, Thrings Tel: +44 (0) 117 930 9500 Email: solicitors@thrings.com Web: www.thrings.com

Thrings’ success. We were therefore delighted to announce our largest ever round of promotions this autumn, adding three partners, a legal director, six associates and eight senior associates (a brand new role for the firm).

In terms of M&As, the acquisition of specialist packaging manufacturer Honeywood by top-20 South West growth company, Wasdell Group, was a standout corporate transaction for us.

We actually received a double endorsement for our approach to recruitment, training, learning and development this year. Firstly from the AllAboutLaw Awards, where we’ve been shortlisted in six categories and, secondly, from our exceptional rankings in the Legal Cheek’s ‘Firms Most List’, which assesses the UK’s top firms from a trainee and junior lawyer perspective.

We came out particularly well for training opportunities, quality of work offered, peer support, partner approachability and work-life balance.

WHAT HAVE BEEN YOUR KEY ACHIEVEMENTS?

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS LOOKING AHEAD INTO 2020?

Career progression is something most people aspire to and it’s integral to

Our relationships with key national and South West banks and lenders have been

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going from strength to strength. Thrings’ expert Banking, Finance and Secured Lending team will be building on that, with exciting collaborations already on the horizon.

We’ll be continuing our great work with the tech sector and fully embracing the world of blockchain and cryptoassets, swotting up as a firm to help our clients seize new opportunities (and mitigate the risks). We’re also looking forward to seeing TechSwindon, Switch on to Swindon’s new initiative, come to life, with our own Head of Commercial (and Tech), Kate Westbrook, doing her bit as part of the steering committee.

WHAT IS GOING TO MAKE AN IMPACT ON THE LEGAL PROFESSION IN THE NEXT YEAR? Blockchain! It’s not just about bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. The technology is going to shake up every sector, including our own. Smart contracts have arrived and we expect them to take off in a big way.

Issue 11: November - December 2019

LEGAL GUIDE SECTOR FOCUS: TECHNOLOGY

BLM RECOMMENDS At Roxburgh Milkins, we provide business focused corporate, IT and commercial legal advice, with a personal approach. Our 15-year strong track record of supporting growing companies includes sales of owner managed businesses, private equity transactions, MBO’s and raising capital along with advising on IT, data protection and commercial law. All our advice is down-toearth, pragmatic and driven by our clients’ commercial objectives.

Merchants House North, Wapping Road, Bristol, BS1 4RW Ian Grimley Partner, Roxburgh Milkins Tel: +44 (0) 117 928 1910 Email: info@roxburghmilkins.com Web: www.roxburghmilkins.com

We have a regional interest and experience in tech, with clients listed as ones to watch in the South West by Tech 100, PwC scale up programme and SETsquared. For example, clients this year include Blu Wireless, i4C, TalkLife, Learning Science, KETS and Complete Control. However, our clients are nationwide and increasingly international.

We are ranked as a top tier firm in legal directories and as a group we have been described as "perceptive, personable and responsive, with a good understanding and respect for growth", offering business led advice and solutions.

Looking ahead, we are getting more involved in supporting growing tech businesses ready to scale up and take the next step for their growth. We are also keen to develop the expertise in the region through incubators, supporting UWE entrepreneurship students and building local networking groups such as Women in Corporate. We also have a carefully selected group of trusted avisors who can work with us to provide additional support in tax, employment, property and corporate finance.

Why not give us a call if you need practical advice that goes beyond the legal tick boxes?

Our technology lawyers have been involved in working with new technologies and the challenges they present for over 20 years, supporting our clients to stay ahead of the curve. We regularly work with innovative start-ups and SME companies, telecoms companies, outsourcers and cloud providers, software solution providers and payment systems operators and providers.

One Glass Wharf, Bristol, BS2 0ZX Jeremy Dickerson Partner, Burgess Salmon Tel: +44 (0) 117 939 2000 Email: jeremy.dickerson@burges-salmon.com Web: www.burges-salmon.com

Emerging technology is disrupting traditional models of service delivery and communications. Our multi-disciplinary team of technology lawyers are adept at providing pragmatic and commercial advice.

Our technology commercial lawyers advise on the technology transaction and licensing agreements needed to underpin and commercialise the next generation technologies. Our regulatory lawyers provide advice on the evolving UK legislative framework and the compliance requirements of technology companies delivering into highly regulated sectors. Our corporate lawyers advise on domestic and cross border mergers and acquisitions, equity investments and joint ventures in the technology sector.

The work we undertake is often international in nature and we specialise in multiparty, multi-jurisdiction licensing and implementation solutions.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

51

REVIEW SECTOR FOCUS: REAL ESTATE

BLM RECOMMENDS

2 Temple Back East, Bristol, BS1 6EG

45 Welsh Back, Bristol, BS1 4AG

Conrad Davies Head of the Real Estate and Infrastructure Sector

Simon East Partner, Commercial Property

Tel: +44 (0) 207 105 7556 Email: conrad.davies@osborneclarke.com Web: www.osborneclarke.com

Tel: +44 (0) 117 926 4121 Email: simon.east@meadeking.co.uk Web: www.meadeking.co.uk

Our integrated team of experts advise developers, investors, occupiers across a broad of residential-led assets classes, developments (from mid-sized to strategic regeneration) and complex structures and partnerships. Our fully rounded team of real estate experts are well placed to help clients see and capture opportunities other businesses might miss or dismiss.

Meade King’s Commercial Property team draws upon a wealth of experience that its solicitors have acquired over many years, in some cases decades, across a wide variety of practice areas.

Whilst our residential expertise is firmly grounded in mid-to-large scale build-to-sell projects, our team is also future focussed and has expertise in market leading resi-led mixed-use and institutional investor backed Build-to-Rent market.

Whilst all members of the team deal with typical commercial property transactions such as sales and purchases, lettings and financing, some have more specialist sector expertise in areas including development, investment property management, charities and healthcare.

Taking a real estate project from the ground up to create new homes, offices, shops or a school, is a major undertaking, and it’s rare to find a team like the experts at Harrison Clark Rickerbys, who can advise you on every aspect of the project.

Merchants House North, Wapping Road, Bristol, BS1 4RW Matthew Hayes Partner, Head of Real Estate and Hereford Office Real Estate Tel: +44 (0) 1432 349 662 Email: mchayes@hcrlaw.com Web: www.hcrlaw.com 52

Bringing together commercial and residential property expertise with construction experience, planning, property finance, quantity surveying, property litigation and commercial law skills, the team offers a complete end-to-end service for projects of all sizes, from a new higher education college to a lease renewal.

The 70-strong team can support real estate projects of all kinds; Matt Hayes, who is head of the firm’s Real Estate team said: “We do keep our ears to the ground, so we know how the market is shifting and while we are lawyers first and foremost, our involvement in the South West means that we hear about changes and opportunities.”

Issue 11: November - December 2019

LEGAL GUIDE SECTOR FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

SECTOR FOCUS: EMPLOYMENT

BLM RECOMMENDS

BLM RECOMMENDS

Broad Quay House, Bristol, BS1 4DJ

49/50 Queen Square, Bristol, BS1 4LW

David Thompson Partner in the Manufacturing team

Samantha Castle Partner

Tel: +44 (0) 1392 687656 Email: david.thompson@michelmores.com Web: www.michelmores.com

Tel: +44 (0) 117 325 2929 Email: s.castle@barcankirby.co.uk Web: www.barcankirby.co.uk

The Manufacturing team at Michelmores forms a core part of our offering and has a long history of providing specialist advice to businesses in the sector. We look to build long-term relationships with our clients and act for a full spectrum of UK and international manufacturing clients, from household names through to smaller owner-managed businesses. Cross-border work forms an important part of what we do, so we work collaboratively with an established network of overseas lawyers to support our clients.

Within the team, we have three employment law solicitors who advise both employers and employees on a variety of legal issues arising out of the employment relationship. For employer clients, we can provide HR advice, draft contracts and agreements, as well as dealing with more complex matters such as tribunal proceedings. We can also help with a wide range of employee related issues.

SECTOR FOCUS: ENERGY

SECTOR FOCUS: CORPORATE ADVISORY

BLM RECOMMENDS

BLM RECOMMENDS

2 Glass Wharf, Bristol, BS2 0FR

2 Glass Wharf, Bristol, BS2 0FR

Chris Pritchett Partner

James Worrall Corporate Partner

Tel: +44 (0) 117 9154928 Email: chris.pritchett@footanstey.com Web: www.footanstey.com

Tel: +44 (0) 7881 092464 Email: james.worrall@roydswithyking.com Web: www.roydswithyking.com

Foot Anstey has one of the fastest growing energy practices in the UK. Its clients are businesses looking to grow in grid battery storage, electric vehicle technology, smart grids, cloud data and payment technology. Head of Energy is Chris Pritchett and the team have a long-standing interest in data, and how energy data can drive business growth. Chris recently contributed to an Energy Data Taskforce report, which advised the Government on realising a modern, digital energy system.

Royds Withy King’s Corporate Advisory Team advises regional, national and international businesses on the full spectrum of corporate matters. With specific expertise in the financial services, technology and health and social care sectors, and a particular focus on working with business owners with an entrepreneurial mindset, we are the natural fit for forwardthinking, dynamic businesses and industry disruptors.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

53

REGIONAL FOCUS

BRISTOL AND ITS UNICORNS

W

hat have Ovo and Graphcore meant for the city?

A ‘unicorn’ has become the buzz-word within business in recent years, as the tech start-up space has risen to prominence. The phrase relates to a privately-owned start-up company that is now valued at more than $1bn (£700m).

Across the world, there are reported to be just short of 400 of these companies, with 16 of them based in the UK – predominantly in London. However, leading the tech emergence in the South West in recent years are two Bristol firms that have reached this status.

Ovo Energy and Graphcore are the crown jewel in the treasure chest of tech ingenuity within the city, with several other major tech businesses hot on their tails to reaching the billion dollar milestone.

Ovo Energy The tech-enabled energy provider, Ovo 54

(founded in 2009), is unique in the UK list of unicorns as it has largely not relied on any substantial venture capitalist or private equity funding to achieve its unicorn status.

In recent years, its turnover has soared from around the £311m mark and has rapidly rose towards the billion dollar valuation mark.

Earlier this year, Japanese car firm Mitsubishi bought a 20% stake in the company for £202m – which pushed it over the finish line.

This is impressive considering the backdrop of tighter regulations, price cap controversies and monetary fund issues for firms within the sector in recent years.

A spokesperson from Ovo said: “For the past 10 years, we’ve been investing in technology and customer services to build the energy system of the future for our customers.

“Our purpose as a business is to power human progress with clean, affordable energy for everyone. We believe that our progression need not come at the expense of the planet. We are constantly innovating to ensure we are well positioned to grow and take advantage of the changing market. From smart data capabilities to connected home

services to domestic vehicle to grid chargers.

“We put technology first – our software engineers are developing a proprietary technology platform that delivers outstanding customer service. OVO now has a team of over 1000, serving over 1.5 million customers across six brands with revenues now exceeding £1bn.”

Graphcore Graphcore specialises in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning applications.

Despite only launching three years ago, the company has experienced exponential growth within its market. The company creates semiconductors and microprocessors that include advanced machine learning tools. It has received hundreds of millions of pounds of funding from the likes of Microsoft, BMW, Samsung and Dell.

"WE’VE SEEN A GROWING NUMBER OF BOTH SEED AND VENTURE STAGE INVESTMENTS HAPPENING EACH YEAR IN BRISTOL." Henry Whorwood Issue 11: November - December 2019

BRISTOL for OVO to grow the business. We moved to Bristol in 2012, with its headquarters located at 1 Rivergate. Moving to Bristol seemed like a natural step. Bristol shares many of OVO’s values - a vibrant culture and tech community, entrepreneurial flair and challenger mentality.”

According to Beauhurst, Bristol-based businesses have secured 24 announced equity deals worth a combined £256m in 2019 so far, with funding in the region growing year-on-year since 2016. This represents 1.8% of deals and 2.7% of total pounds invested in the UK so far this year – not bad for a city that is home to just 0.7% of the UK’s population.

Henry Whorwood, Head of Research and Consultancy at Beauhurst said: “We’ve seen a growing number of both seed and venture stage investments happening each year in Bristol.

The number of deals made at the growth and established stages remain steady yearon-year. This shows that the high-growth ecosystem in Bristol is effectively nurturing young and ambitious companies through progressive stages of growth.”

Earlier this year they announced a new $200m (£155m) funding round which led to a subsequent valuation of the company at $1.7bn (£1.3bn).

Nigel Toon, CEO and co-founder of Graphcore, said: “Machine intelligence marks the start of a new age of computing which needs a radically different type of processor and software tools. This new, fast-growing market creates the opportunity for Graphcore to build a major global technology company that can help innovators in AI achieve important breakthroughs.”

What have they meant to Bristol’s highgrowth ecosystem?

Despite being two very different businesses, Ovo and Graphcore have established themselves as leaders within their respective fields – but how did Bristol play into their growth? And is it a great city to scale a tech business?

Ovo stated: “Bristol was the best place Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

The impact of Bristol’s tech companies, and its leading companies like Ovo and Graphcore, cannot be understated, and the city has created an ecosystem of exponential growth.

Robin Halpenny, Business Growth Partner and leader of the University of the West of England’s Scale Up 4 Growth (S4G) programme comments: “Bristol and the surrounding region has a well-established ecosystem of quality and relevant support for fast-growing and scaling businesses.

“The universities in the region provide a large range of services for growing businesses.

The support includes leadership and skills development, access not just to graduate talent but also academic expertise, research and specialist facilities. They also provide business space, incubation services and access to some really great networks.”

Bristol doesn’t just provide the universities and talent, but there are many programmes and scale-up entities that help promote rapid

growth within the tech sector. One of those companies is SETSquared.

Monika Radclyffe, Centre Director for SETsquared Bristol said: “We have two excellent unicorn businesses already in Bristol and many others that have successfully scaled, including those from SETsquared Bristol.

There’s already been some talk of Ultraleap – formerly Ultrahaptics – becoming the city’s next unicorn so there’s definitely more potential for opportunistic businesses. This is great news for Bristol as the more scalable businesses we have, the more attractive the region is to investors and those considering relocating to the city. It also creates a stronger business community as a whole.”

Which Bristol business is the next unicorn?

As Radclyffe alluded to, haptics and augmented reality firm Ultraleap are one of the companies looking to join Ovo and Graphcore.

But, what does Ultraleap believe the future holds for themselves? And has Bristol provided them with the opportunities to grow?

Steve Cliffe, CEO at Ultraleap comments: “When you compare Bristol to other tech hubs like London, Cambridge, San Francisco and other places, Bristol really does tick all of the boxes.

“The Bristol business ecosystem provides great opportunities to scale. Our own growth trajectory was successful in large part thanks to our beginnings at the Engine Shed. We were able to grow our initial team pretty quickly there as there was a lot of support for start-ups on hand, such as lawyers and accountants in residence. Once we grew too big for that space, we were able to use IBB (Invest in Bristol & Bath) to find ourselves a new home and we have continued to grow ever since.

“The city has a brilliant tech community, a great business hub, world-renowned universities and great links to the rest of the UK. The heart and soul of our company is, and will remain, in Bristol.”

When asked if Ultraleap are Bristol’s next unicorn, Cliffe said: “That’s the plan.” 

55

Business Leader events review

For this new feature, each edition Business Leader Magazine will showcase some of the most popular business venues and corporate event ideas. The feature will also bring you up to speed with the latest business event news from across the South West.

56

Issue 11: November - December 2019

Considered Longleat as a corporate venue?

• Conferences, parties, dinners, exhibitions, fun days, and so much more • 12 – 10,000 delegates

longleat.co.uk/business

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

57

GUIDE

BUSINESS EVENTS

First class business events space Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre

Set in superb locations, both Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre and Holiday Inn Bristol Airport offer guests all they require and more for the corporate leisure travel needs and conferencing.

In a busy hospitality market, these two hotels stand out from the crowd with their consistently high standards of service and delivery providing a modern, sleek operation whilst maintaining a competitive pricing structure for the clients. Both hotels offer complimentary Wi-Fi throughout as standard.

Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre, built in 2011, is situated in an ideal city centre location in close proximity to many restaurants, bars and shops. It's only two minutes from the M32 and one mile from Temple Meads station with an adjoining secure NCP, making it one of the most accessible four-star hotels in Bristol.

The hotel is modern, light and comes with floor to ceiling panoramic views. The 155 bedrooms are contemporary and spacious, with 14 balcony rooms and four suites. All guests can access the state of the art fitness suite.

The popular meetings Academy at Holiday Inn Bristol City boasts seven flexible function spaces seating up to 260 delegates across both rooms, a conference café and inclusive AV.

Just three miles from Bristol Airport, our 80-room Holiday Inn Bristol Airport hotel is the ideal choice for all flights and meetings for up to 60 delegates before travel in and out of the UK and is the only full service four-star hotel in the local area.

The 24-hour shuttle bus speeds you between the airport and the countryside location, where you can sit back and relax on the alfresco terrace. With onsite parking it’s the perfect location for all your airport travel requirements.

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www.eatdrinkbristolfashion.co.uk 58

@ YURTLUSH

Issue 11: November - December 2019

INNOVATIVE MEETINGS ARE OUR BUSINESS LET GUILDFORD HARBOUR HOTEL BE THE PERFECT ESCAPE FOR YOUR CONFERENCE THIS WINTER With spacious event spaces for up to 250 people featuring cutting-edge technology and beautiful breakout areas, all inclusive rates and a great gym, spa, restaurant and bar, It’s safe to say we specialise in making your meeting or event spectacular.

T: 01483 792300 E: guildford.events@harbourhotels.co.uk www. harbourhotels.co.uk/guildford Business Leader - InspireGuildford • Inform • ConnectHotel & Spa, 3 Alexandra Terrace High Street, Guildford, GU1 3DA Harbour

59

GUIDE

BUSINESS EVENTS

Why chose Longleat for your business event?

Longleat, nestled on the rural border of Somerset and Wiltshire, is generally known for its sprawling estate, exotic animals, and iconic stately home. However, did you know they also host legendary Christmas parties?

Over the festive period, delegates can enjoy exclusive parties in The Longhouse event building for up to 250, or shared party nights for groups as small as 10 (party nights are Friday 6th and Saturday 14th December). Exclusive or shared party nights include full bar service, a sumptuous sit-down Christmas meal and live music, to which you can dance the night away.

One of the things that sets Longleat apart from other party venues is the renowned Festival of Light, which is included in their corporate packages to sweeten the party deal. On selected dates from 9th November – 5th January, the lantern spectacular will once again transform the world-famous estate into a glowing winter wonderland on a spectacular scale.

Longleat’s much-anticipated sixth Festival of Light will showcase ‘Myths and Legends’. It draws inspiration from epic stories from around the world; from the gods and magical beings of ancient Greece, to heroic tales of British folklore. Expect to see Pegasus, the Genie in the Lamp, the Kraken and the Chimera, not to mention Zeus, Hercules, Medusa, Aphrodite and so many more.

Corporate clients have the advantage of 30% off tickets plus their own dedicated event manager, right from enquiry. In-demand dates are booking up fast, as well as the shared party nights, so get in touch with the team and illuminate your work-do this Christmas.

On the contrary, you may be in need of a reason to keep the mood upbeat during the dreaded January blues. Here’s where early planning of a company away day can stand you in good stead – a reason to get everyone smiling when trudging back into the office full of the woes of winter.

Consider a team building retreat disguised as a trek into the wild at Longleat. Enjoy an itinerary packed with up-close animal encounters, safari adventures, tactile team building tasks and behind-the-scenes access to Longleat House.

Inspire your group to turn the January blues into the January woohoos at Longleat.

Generator acquires freehand hotels for £316m Generator, whose design-driven affordable luxury has disrupted the hospitality industry across Europe since 2011, will now operate all four Freehand Hotels and their respective food and beverage outlets after purchasing the brand for £316m this week.

The acquisition led by London-based firm Queensgate Investments, which owns Generator, merges the original upscale hostel trailblazers and reaffirms Generator as a global pioneer in the hospitality industry. With Generator’s storied success in Europe and Freehand’s expertise in the US market, this new merger marks a momentous milestone in the brand’s history and future.

Following the brand’s acquisition transition, Generator will operate a total of 18 properties worldwide, including Freehand’s New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Miami hotels.

60

Issue 11: November - December 2019

No More Bored Meetings.

Meeting rooms don’t have to be just for work – our flexible spaces are yours to use how you like. holidayinn.com

Excellent Locations. Superb Service. Competitively Priced.

Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre • Meetings Academy with 7 flexible function rooms.

• Catering for up to 260 delegates.

• Complimentary AV equipment & Wi-Fi. • Complimentary car parking.

• Conference café & event desk.

• 155 modern & spacious bedrooms.

• Location; Superb central Bristol location.

0.5 miles from M32, 1.5 miles from Bristol Templemeads, 9 miles from Bristol Airport.

Holiday Inn Bristol Airport • 2 flexible function rooms for up to 60 delegates.

• Ideal for meetings before & after flights.

• Complimentary AV equipment & Wi-Fi. • Complimentary car parking.

• 80 comfortable bedrooms.

• Airport Shuttle Bus. • Location; Superb airport location.

3 miles from Bristol Airport, 10 miles from Bristol City Centre.

Holiday Inn Bristol City Centre Bond Street, Bristol, BS1 3LE Tele: 0117 924 5000 www.hibristolcity.co.uk meetings@hibristolcity.co.uk

Holiday Inn Bristol Airport A38 Bridgwater Road,Bristol, BS40 5RB Tele: 01934 861 123 www.hibristolairport.co.uk meetings@hibristolairport.co.uk

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

61

GUIDE

BUSINESS EVENTS

Find out more about our corporate adventures

Etex to expand UK presence with £140m investment The Etex Group has indicated its ongoing commitment to the UK construction industry, investing £140m in a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Bristol.

Etex Building Performance, the dry construction arm of the Etex Group, will develop an advanced plasterboard manufacturing facility for its Siniat brand at the Royal Portbury Dock in Bristol Port, adding significantly to its production capacity in the UK. Etex will work with North Somerset Council to develop plans for the new facility and will aim to start operations in 2022 subject to planning approval.

Neil Ash, Head of Etex Building Performance, said: “Over the past 30 years Etex has been at the forefront of dry construction innovation in the UK, pushing for a closer relationship across the construction supply chain to improve standards and investing to develop more modern, efficient ways of building.”

UK Space Agency confirms £7.35m funding to Cornwall satellite launch The UK Space Agency have awarded £7.35m to Virgin Orbit UK Limited, the UK branch of US launch operator Virgin Orbit, to enable horizontal launch of small satellites at Cornwall Airport, Newquay.

The funding will help to develop advanced ground support equipment, including UKbased manufacturing of key equipment, and conduct mission planning. Together with funding from the Cornwall Council for spaceport infrastructure, this grant helps secure the first satellite launch from Spaceport 62

For event planners looking for a daring and unique experience in an iconic landscape, look no further than the village of Cheddar. Nestled in the heart of the Mendips lies the extraordinary natural wonder that is Cheddar Gorge & Caves.

Not only is this prehistoric spectacle a famed Instagram-worthy location for national and international travellers, it is also the home to a newly developed array of corporate pursuit packages to inspire adventure in the hearts of even those least daring.

With two show caves and a huge stretch of the beautiful Gorge on offer, the attraction, synonymous with quality cheese and cider, has designed a variety of brand new packages to please even the most adventurous of teams.

Cornwall, which Virgin Orbit are planning for the early 2020s, pending regulatory approvals.

With packages and itineraries from just £35 per person, this iconic gem could be the setting for your next escape. The Lafferty Room, set into the cliff face of the gorge itself, can be hired as a base for your adventure. Enjoy a buffet lunch or hold your meeting overlooking the famous curling highway of Cheddar Gorge.

Spaceport Cornwall estimates a horizontal launch spaceport at Cornwall Airport Newquay could create 150 immediate jobs.

With world-class caving routes and towering limestone cliffs, the adventurous possibilities are endless. Enjoy a bespoke team building activity transporting fragile cargo through a series of caverns or support one another in a race to the pinnacles.

Brand new for Cheddar Gorge & Caves are two themed Escape Rooms. Test your team to a timed challenge of riddles, clues and lateral thinking to make you way out of Gough’s Vault or find an escape route before being caved in.

Boasting a fully refurbished meeting room, with a view out to the iconic gorge. As well as being less than an hour’s drive from Bristol city centre and walking distance to the quaint and picturesque village of Cheddar, the heart of the Mendips truly is a team building destination with a world of adventure on offer.

Issue 11: November - December 2019

Brand new corporate team building packages at Cheddar Gorge & Caves.

Business Leader - Inspire • Inform • Connect

cheddargorge.co.uk/business 63

INTERVIEW What was your motivating factor behind setting up IC Resources?

The only ‘deep tech’ recruitment companies in the UK were providing a poor service and had a litigious modus operandi. We saw the need for a recruitment organisation that worked in the long-term interests of companies and individuals and operated as a member of the technology community rather than an external supplier.

IC RESOURCES

an interview with...

NEIL DICKINS Meet one of the UK’s leading tech recruiters

FOUNDER | DIRECTOR IC RESOURCES

The recruitment industry hasn’t hugely changed You position IC Resources as a recruiter that since 1999. Technology has become an enabler that operates within the technology industry, rather than saves timeof and lot of paper (remember faxes?!?!).

BLMserving interviews Neilthe Dickins, Founder ICaResources simply it. What’s difference and whyand is Director There will always be a small minority of people this important? who refuse to engage with recruiters entirely, but What’s the difference between a good song and a ultimately I think there is greater recognition now truly great song? It’s hard to define and it’s subtle, that a specialist, well connected, ethical recruitment but it exists and it means everything. Being a partner is a necessary business ally in the battle for member ofyour themotivating technology community rather than What was factor behind because the talent pool has been shrunk by business partner representing them in the talent. ansetting external supplier informs everything we doSo – we up IC Resources? nine! the biggest challenge is achieving ‘employment market’ and also educating give that is recruitment in the best long term interest Theadvice only ‘deep tech’ companies consistentofsuccess, year on year, to great them about the skills picture in general the candidates and clients we work even ifsuchThe in the UK were providing a poor service and with, companies as Qualcomm, ARM,industry in and about own recruitment start-up tech the UK their is a huge growth process the is less optimal forWeussaw in the short term.and Ultraleap, area at the doparticular. you support start-ups hadresult a litigious modus operandi.

Graphcore all ofmoment. whom haveHow in They also need a partner who One example: in our first year of trading I sent a CV and why is it such a big focus for you? the need for a recruitment organisation exceptionally high standards. understands their funding struggles. We to a new client. The CEO contacted me to say the Startups are invariably had 100% focussed on needed the to hire a that worked in the long-term interests of a start-up client that candidate was perfect……and he alreadyYou had the high-profile, sponsor specialist challenges of product development and customer companies and individuals and operated senior technical person in order to obtain candidate on a ‘list to call’, he just hadn’ttechnology had timetrade fairs includingThey World need a business partner acquisition. as a member of the technology community funding, but they didn’t have the money to and was going to make the call on the Summit upcoming AI, AESIN and GSA Execthem Forum. in the ‘employment market’ representing rather thanContractually, an external supplier. pay a recruitment fee – classic catch 22. weekend. he ‘should’ have You paid us a also donateand to UKESF, support theirthem about the skills picture in also educating We undertook the assignment on the basis fee forposition our introduction we added any value?and general and about their own recruitment process in You IC Resourcesbut as had a recruiter campaigns sponsor awards, year in, that we’d only once they had secured Not really. So we waived our fee and organised the particular.

They also need a partner whoinvoice understands that operates within the technology year out. Why do you feel it’s so important interviews anyway because the CEO was so busy. their funding. their funding struggles. We had a startup client that industry, rather than simply serving it. to support the industry in this way?

We then worked with that CEO as a client for 17 needed toishire senior technical person in blog order What’s the difference and why is this The challenge of ‘deep tech’ in theaname, You’ve spoken on your about the need years until his recent retirement. to obtain funding, but they didn’t skilled have the money important? it’s deep, it’s ‘under the hood’.

So it’s not to attract workers from outside to pay a recruitment fee – classic Catch 22. We What’s the difference between a good in the general consciousness of society of the UK. What single thing do you feel undertook the assignment on the basis that we’d song and a truly great song? It’s hard to challenge at largethat and politicians in particular. They would make the biggest difference when What’s been the biggest recruiting only invoice once they had secured their funding. definefaced and it’sso subtle, don’t understand the value that technology it comes to attracting the skilled workers you’ve far? but it exists and Toit be honest, the biggest challenge means everything.

Being a member of is consistency. companies deliver to the economy and the UK so desperately needs?

Bythe definition, the 10th inthat thethe same technologyfilling community ratherrequisition than an UK leads the world in many cutting The government has need finally woken up to the You’ve spoken on your blog about the to skill-set a company is a lot harder thedomains first, (which externalfor supplier informs everything we do –than edge unfortunately Brexit value of the graduate visa scheme and the attract skilled workers from outside of the UK. What because the talent has been 9! eroded So thebut by we give advice that ispool in the best long shrunk term byhas no means destroyed). need for make international professionals across single thing do you feel would the biggest biggest is achieving success, interest challenge of the candidates and clientsconsistent we Therefore supporting organisations beat all fields.the What we need now is difference whenthat it comes totechnical attracting skilled year on year, to ifgreat companies such as Qualcomm, workers UKway sotodesperately work with, even the result is less optimal the drum of ‘deep tech’ is athe great give clarity needs? on Brexit, and a rise in the pound to ARM, Graphcore and Ultraleap, all of whom have Thethat government has finally woken upa viable to the value for us in the short term. back to an industry we love. make the UK option. exceptionally high standards. of the graduate visa scheme and the need for One example: in our first year of trading I How has the recruitment industry changed What areall the biggest challenges that international professionals across technical fields. sent a CV to a new client. The CEO contacted since IC Resources first started out? you foresee to recruitment within the What we need now is clarity on Brexit - and a rise in You sponsor high profile, specialist technology me to say the candidate was perfect, and The recruitment the industry hasn’t industry in the next five years? pound to hugely make the UKtechnology a viable option. trade fairshadincluding World Summit AI, AESIN he already the candidate on a ‘list to changed since 1999. Technology has The biggest challenge is the increase in and GSA Exec Forum.

You also donate to UKESF, What the biggest that you foresee call’, he just hadn’t had time and was going become an enabler thatare saves time and a challenges demand for ‘generalist specialists’ – for support their campaigns and sponsor awards, year to recruitment within industry in the firmware to make the call on the upcoming weekend. lot of paper (remember faxes?). There will the technology example full stack developers, in, year out. Why do you feel it’s so important to next five of years?

Contractually, he ‘should’ have paid us a fee always be a small minority people who engineers or system architects. support the industry in this way? challenge for our introduction had we added engageThe with biggest recruiters entirely, but is the increase in demand The challenge of but ‘deep tech’ is any in the refuse name,toit’s Finally, where would youstack hope to see IC for ‘generalist specialists’ – for example full value?

Not really. So waivedSo ourit’s feenot and in the ultimately I think there is greater recognition deep, it’s ‘under thewe hood’. general Resources in ten years’ time? developers, firmware engineers or system architects. organised the interviews anyway now that a specialist, well connected, ethical consciousness of society atbecause large and politicians We’ve built an outstanding team of leaders the CEO was so busy.

We then worked with recruitment partner is a necessary business in particular. They don’t understand the value that who are responsible for heading up our eight that CEO as acompanies client for 17 years until his in the battle for talent. technology deliver to the ally economy Finally, where would you hope to divisions; see IC Resources different Software, Electronics, recent and thatretirement. the UK leads the world in many cuttinginindustry ten years’ time?

The start-up tech in the UK is a Semiconductors, AI, Creative, Commercial edge domains (which unfortunately Brexit has We’ve an outstanding teamand of seniors / leaders What’s been the biggest recruiting huge growth area at thebuilt moment.

How do (Sales Marketing), IT and Operations. eroded but by no means destroyed). Therefore who are our different challenge that you’ve faced so far? you support start-ups and responsible why is it such for a heading So, as weup turn 20,8I hope to see a 30-year supporting organisations that beat the drum divisions; Software, Electronics, Semiconductors, To be honest, the biggest challenge is big focus for you? old IC Resources in a place AI, I can’t imagine of ‘deep tech’ is a great way to give back to an Creative, Commercial (Sales and Marketing), IT and consistency. By definition, filling the Start-ups are invariably 100% focussed right now, because our leadership team industry that we love.

Operations. So, as we turn 20, I hope to see a 30tenth requisition in the same skill-set for on the challenges of product development has taken it into areas I never would have year old IC Resources in a place I can’t imagine right a company is a lot harder than the first, and customer acquisition.

They need a dreamed How has the recruitment industry changed since IC now, because our leadership teamof. has taken it into Resources first started out?

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Issue 11: November - December 2019

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