Platinum Business Magazine - issue 60

THE LARGEST CIRCULATION REGIONAL BUSINESS PUBLICATION IN THE UK

ISSUE 60. JUNE 2019

ISTANBUL Where East meets West

Focus on

CRAWLEY

REGENERATION

12

ways to energise your team

HERO OR TRAITOR?

Julian Assange

Spotting discrimination in the workplace

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AWARDS CEREMONY JULY 25th 2019 HILTON BRIGHTON METROPOLE The Brighton & Hove Business Awards, now in its 14th year, is the mustattend annual celebration of the city’s best companies.

The award ceremony will take place at the Hilton Brighton Metropole on Thursday July 25th, attended by hundreds of Brighton and Hove’s business elite. This will be the networking event of the year.

As well as revealing who will be taking home the coveted trophies, the stunning gala presentation will also include a champagne reception, superb three-course meal and two bottles of wine on each table, followed by the awards ceremony, spectacular entertainment and DJ till late!

“These awards are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate all that’s great about doing business in our city…”

Paxton Access Company of the Year 2018

“Wow! Well done on a fantastic awards evening – entertainment was really great too…”

Search Seven Corporate Fundraiser of the Year 2018

Clients are our business Dedicated to your success DMH Stallard is a full service, award-winning law firm that is passionate about winning and passionate about client care. It’s not by chance that we have one of the highest levels of repeat business in the industry.

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CONTENTS 9

NEWS National, international and local news

16

NATWEST Growth in activity, but concerns remain

50

YOUNG ENTERPRISE Find out who have been crowned best Young Enterprise companies in Sussex

ACUMEN BUSINESS CONVENTION Highlights of the 10th anniversary convention in Brighton

80

THE BIG STORY Ian Trevett chronicles Julian Assange’s time in the spotlight DMH STALLARD Take control of your business

26

KRESTON REEVES Is it time you re-thought your business model?

28

CARPENTER BOX Business benefits of customer loyalty programmes

CHURCHILL SQUARE A rarity for Platinum... a fashion parade. Smart.

52

INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS Taking responsibility for recycling and environmental sustainability

54

SUSSEX INNOVATION CENTRE University of Sussex’s Entrepreneurs of the Year announced

30

57

32

58

RIX & KAY Time’s not up on discrimination in the workplace SHERRARDS Restrictive convenants in employment contracts

33 matter

CHESTNUT TREE HOUSE Cherishing moments that

36

COAST TO CAPITAL LEP Highlighting Growth Hub’s innovative new ScaleUp programme

38

KEN BLANCHARD The benefits of a selfleadership culture

NATWEST ACCELERATOR Focus on May 2019 Founder of the Month - Percept Imagery Ltd

84-91

PLATINUM TRAVEL Rose Dykins offers business opportunites in Istanbul, and ticks Rio de Janeiro off her bucket list. Plus Travel News

92-95

PLATINUM MOTORING Maarten Hoffmann reviews the VW Amorak and the Audi Q3

MOVERS & SHAKERS Who’s going where... Harvey John tells us who is moving on in the world of Sussex commerce

60-71

MANOR ROYAL A look at Crawley’s burgeoning business sector, featuring Driver Hire, Blue Lizard, Honest Hemp, DNA, Mayo Wynne Baxter - and interviews with Jeff Alexander and Jonathan Sharrock

40-48

HEALTH & WELLBEING Platinum focuses on improving mental, physical wellbeing in the workplace, including ViiSana’s ideas for energising your workforce, the Thrive Team’s encouragement to have conversations about mental health, and Posturite’s take on being comfortable in work

LOYALTY AT THE HILTON Interview with two longstanding directors at the Hilton Brighton Metropole

78

18 24

74

96

CHAMBERS LISTINGS Events at the Chambers of Commerce across Sussex

98

ANGER MANAGEMENT The ludicrous concept of men telling women what they can and can’t do with their bodies

101-114 72

CORPORATE DAYS OUT Have fun with your colleagues

PLATINUM SPORT Laurence Elphick runs the rule over the latest sports news in Sussex and across the world, including a preview of the prestigious Gold Cup - the top trophy in polo played at Cowdray Park; a tribute to the late Niki Lauda and part five of the Platinum Challenge

5

Knowing you.

We work alongside businesses and understand the challenges that they have to navigate in order to attain and sustain growth.

We can work with you to help achieve your growth goals through; • Business advice and growth strategies • International expansion support • Corporate and international tax advice • Corporate finance support In addition to dynamic businesses we also advise not for profit organisations, private individuals and their families, on their tax and financial planning needs.

For further information, or to find out how we could help you, please contact us using the details below.

For all your business, tax and wealth needs.

Call: +44 (0)330 124 1399 Email: enquiries@krestonreeves.com Visit: www.krestonreeves.com

WELCOME

Welcome W

elcome to the 60th issue of Platinum. It’s been quite a ride and we sincerely hope you have enjoyed the last 59 issues.

In this issue, Coast to Capital LEP look at how to scale up your business, the Thrive Team discuss mental health, and SINC announce the Entrepreneurs of the Year.

And while you’re here...

Not only do we have the largest number of print readers on planet Earth but you can also join our 468,000 online readers. If you can’t wait for the next issue then jump onto our social media platforms and join the conversation.

Maarten has been busy losing his ‘virginity’ by reviewing his first ever pick-up truck along with the great Audi Q3, and Ian has been busy running a profile of Julian Assange – who will extradite him first, Sweden or the US? And he notes that the Ecuadorian Embassy now has a room to rent!

Rose has been to Rio and Istanbul looking at the MICE scene for your next company trip, and we cover the 10th Acumen Business Convention.

There is so much more. Reading this issue is the only way you will find out everything that is going on in our region as Platinum is your definitive guide.

We hope you enjoy this issue and if you want to get involved with the largest circulation regional business magazines in the UK, reaching over 700,000 readers, get in touch at info@platinumpublishing.co.uk

@platbusmag Platinum Publishing Group

The Platinum Team

www.platinumpublishing.co.uk

The Team

Maarten Hoffmann – Director

Lesley Alcock

Fiona Graves

maarten@platinumpublishing.co.uk 07966 244046

Business Development Director

Events Director

Ian Trevett – Director ian@platinumpublishing.co.uk 07989 970804

Rose Dykins Travel Editor

Lydia Bunyard

Laurence Elphick

Events Executive

Head of Sport

Alan Wares

Kate Morton

Steve Elford

Head of Design

Copy Editor

Head of Web Development

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ADVISORY • TAX • ACCOUNTS • AUDIT • WEALTH

Now, for tomorrow

Our thinking starts with you With our relationship led service, we look to understand the opportunities and challenges faced by your business. Our focus is always on client service, with open and honest relationships.

Switching to MHA Carpenter Box is easier than you think: we make it hassle-free from start to finish. Get in touch today for a free and informal consultation.

Call: 01903 234094 • Email: info@carpenterbox.com

www.carpenterbox.com

Sussex

news BUSINESS SURVEY

Lunch club rocks for charity

K

ingston Smith’s Gatwick Lunch Club has appointed Rockinghorse as its partner charity.

Ryan Heal, CEO of Rockinghorse Children’s Charity, said: “We’re thrilled to partner with Kingston Smith in their Lunch Club. Having attended over the years, I appreciate the quality of guests and speakers the Club at-

Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.

tracts. I hope that Rockinghorse can provide added value to it by opening it up to our own regional corporate network.”

Membership is open to businesses with a turnover above £1 million or with five or more employees. For further information email Meg Milton at mmilton@kingstonsmith.co.uk.

Young engineers win Innovation Award

BUSINESS WISDOM

President Chay

A

team from Hurst College’s Lower Sixth Form picked up the fiercely-contested Innovation Award as part of the Engineering Education Scheme.

K

Bella Shepard, Matt Bridger, George Rodriguez, Olivia Hampshire and Trinity Stenhouse spent six months and more than 100 hours each working on a project sponsored by Southern Water to improve coagulation and floccu-

The appointment for a three-year term was ratified at the AGM in May. Chay said: “It is a great honour to be elected President of the Worthing & Adur Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber is very active across the region, with a well-attended regular programme of events, networking, training and mentoring. It is the hub of the business community.”

reston Reeves partner Chay Took has been elected as President of the Worthing & Adur Chamber of Commerce.

lation in waste water treatment.

The judges feedback described their project as ‘phenomenal, innovative and outstanding’.

The secret of getting ahead is getting started.

BUSINESS WISDOM

Burgess Hill is the Biz

T

he biennial BHBiz Awards took place in May at the Amex Stadium with PVL UK Ltd leading the way with a hat trick of awards (Risen Star, Nick Broom; BHBPA Special Person, Emily Darnell; and BHBPA Special Company, Wesley Earp from Preview, owned by PVL UK).

Warrior), and Travail Employment Group (Winning Workplace).

Three awards were reserved for the directors of BHBPA to make at their

discretion. Emily Darnell and Esther Dawson from Ridgeview jointly won ‘Special Person’, and former chairman, Paul Shearing, was given an ‘Outstanding Contribution Award’.

The award winners included Bio-Productions Ltd (Best Business), Extech Cloud (Team of Stars) Ruth Everest of Sussex Cleaning & Care (Invaluable Star), Chris Freeman (Star Apprentice), Brandon Barnham from Ridgeview Wine Estate (Rising Star), Sutton Winson (Charity Champion), Steve Willis Training (Community Champion), Bluelite Graphics (Eco

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10

Sussex Foodies take centre stage

news

A

fter a record-breaking year with 18,000 public votes, the Sussex Food & Drink Awards took place in May at the Amex Stadium.

Isabella Raccagna from Farmer, Butcher, Chef in Goodwood was announced as the first woman ever to win Sussex Young Chef of the Year.

The Young Sussex Farmer of the Year went to Kate Lywood from Marshalls Farm in Kirdford.

Brighton Gin took Sussex Drink Producer of the Year. Cowdray Farm Shop in Midhurst took top spot for Sussex Food Shop of the Year and Sussex Farmers Market of the Year went to Shoreham Farmers Market.

while Sussex Street Food of the Year was picked up by Mann & Moore from Horsham. Cottenham’s of Lindfield won Sussex Butcher of the Year and Sussex Eating Experience of the Year went to The Parson’s Table in Arundel.

Brighton’s Real Patisserie won Sussex Food Producer of the Year and

Lorama Foods in Bosham was awarded Sussex Newcomer of the Year,

The full list of winners can be found at sussexfoodawards.biz

You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

BUSINESS WISDOM

Fastsigns celebrations

A

fter working for a combined 70 years experience in the sign industry working at FASTSIGNS, Melanie Martinez, Jose Martinez and Alan White decided to undertake a management buyout. To celebrate they hosted a reception at their Manor Royal base, and the Crawley / Gatwick business community came out in force to support them. They were also joined by the Mayor of Crawley and Henry Smith MP who enjoyed a lavish spread provided by The Surrey Squad.

Everyone at Platinum wishes Melanie, Jose and Alan the very best in their new venture.

Manor Royal Gets Neighbourly

M

ore than 280 people attended this year’s Manor Royal Know Your Neighbour event in May at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Crawley. A record 75 stands were booked by Manor Royal firms, including Platinum!

The aim of the event, now in its sixth year, is to encourage local trade, helping local companies showcase themselves to each other and identify business development and

supply chain opportunities.

Trevor Williams of Thales UK and Chair of the Manor Royal BID said: “This event just goes from strength to strength and it was pleasing to see some of the new companies who have chosen to relocate to Manor Royal attend and become part of our vibrant business community.” www.manorroyal.org

Basepoint in Crowborough

B

asepoint Business Centres has opened a new flexible workspace on Pine Grove in Crowborough, with 270 workstations spread over three floors. The centre is fully equipped with private offices, spacious co-working areas and meeting rooms, and is situated just next to Crowborough’s local council offices and library.

Caroline Miles, Crowborough Town Council Clerk, said: “Basepoint will provide a space for established businesses to grow and develop as well as a place for new business owners to begin their journey. The Council hope that this venture will not only strengthen the community of Crowborough but will also encourage the many entrepreneurs of today and those of tomorrow.”

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.

BUSINESS WISDOM

11

Gatwick Airport connects you directly to over 120 stations

You’d have to go a long way to beat that

We’re more than just an airport 12

national Big boys’ toys

H

amleys, the world’s oldest toy shop, has been sold to Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, in a deal worth almost £70m. Mr Ambani’s Reliance Industries bought the store from Hong Kong based fashion conglomerate C Banner International.

Founded in 1760 and famed for its flagship seven-storey shop on Regent

news

Street, London, Hamleys has now had four owners since being bought off the stock exchange in 2003. Each buyer has struggled to turn it into a global brand with most success coming from India where 88 of the franchise’s 167 stores are located. The deal will see Hamleys become Reliance’s first overseas retail brand.

Ideas are easy. Implementation is hard.

BUSINESS WISDOM

A nation of workaholics

Social savvy Canadians

S

ocial media platform Instagram has unveiled a potential new change to its software, and unsurprisingly, it has chosen Canada as the testing ground. Instagram said it plans to hide the number of likes on photos and videos from public view – only the person who made the post will know just how many people liked it. Facebook, owners of Instagram, says Canadians are “highly social and tech savvy”, noting there are over 24m people using a Facebook-owned app each month in the country.

B

rits work longer hours than people in the rest of the EU because of a ‘long hours culture’, according to new analysis from the Trades Union Congress (TUC).

The TUC said full-time employees in Britain worked an average of 42 hours a week in 2018, nearly two hours more than the EU average – and equivalent to an extra two and a

half weeks a year. But it said productivity wasn’t boosted by these longer hours – and claimed workers in other economies were “much more productive for each hour they worked”.

Eden Project plans for Anglesea

A

UK charity that redeveloped a china clay quarry in Cornwall into The Eden Project is set to transform Alcoa’s former coalmine in Anglesea, Victoria. The Eden Project and Alcoa have announced a plan to turn a portion of the site into a $150m ecotourism attraction.

The project could create 300 fulltime jobs and attract thousands of visitors if it gains community support, finds investment funding, and passes the planning and approvals process.

The Eden Project turned a former china clay pit into a series of gardens that feature large domes, known as biomes. Its proposal in Anglesea is for an ecotourism project that would be built alongside Alcoa’s plans to transform the open-cut coalmine into a lake.

Is inequality driving us to despair?

S

oaring inequality in Britain could lead to the country becoming as unequal as the US, warns a Nobel prize-winning economist. Sir Angus Deaton is spearheading a landmark review of inequality in the UK with the Institute for Fiscal Studies. The think tank said the economist would “point to the risk of the UK following the US” which has notoriously high levels of inequality in pay, wealth and health.

Speaking at the report’s launch, Deaton said: “There are things where Britain is still doing a lot better [than the US]. What we have to do is to make sure the UK is inoculated from some of the horrors that have happened in the US.”

Fall down seven times and stand up eight.

BUSINESS WISDOM

13

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE

FOR WOMEN

Platinum is launching a brand new national magazine Dynamic is a highly informative magazine for women in business, written by women in business

D

namic

Y

THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR WOMEN ISSUE ONE

ROME Shake hands in the eternal city

INTERVIEW Amber Rudd shares her journey

GIRL TORQUE The new Audi Q8

THE BIG DEBATE Glass ceiling or glass floor

HOW

The Baroness of Mayfair

Michelle Mone OBE LEARNT TO SLOW DOWN

COMING SOON To get involved in advertising, writing thought leadership articles or requesting that the editorial team cover your event, get in touch info@platinumpublishing.co.uk GROUP

PLATINUM PUBLISHING

national

news

British diving heroes set for Hollywood

T

he British divers who last year completed the rescue of 12 boys from a cave in Thailand will have their heroic story turned into a feature documentary film – thanks to the help of Irwin Mitchell lawyer, Aurelia Butler-Ball. The rescue captured the world’s attention for more than two weeks and culminated in John and Rick successfully reaching the boys on July 3rd.

Aurelia Butler-Ball, a senior associate

who specialises in media and entertainment law at national law firm Irwin Mitchell, was instructed

by Rick, John and five of the other UK divers, to negotiate a deal to turn their stories into a documentary film.

The film is being financed by NatGeo, which recently won the Oscar for ‘Free Solo’. It will be directed by Kevin Macdonald (director of ‘Touching the Void’) and Emmy-winning producer, John Battsek.

Supermarket exits mortgage market

T

esco said that its banking unit would withdraw from mortgage lending amid increasing competition and tough market conditions. Tesco Bank, which serves more than 23,000 mortgage customers with total balances of £3.7 billion, said that it would stop new lending and seek to sell its existing portfolio of home loans.

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.

The second best time is now.

BUSINESS WISDOM

Royal Mail thinking outside the box

P

arcel postboxes are due to launch across the country as Royal Mail tries to cater for the continuing growth in online shopping.

The postboxes will allow people to post pre-paid parcels around the clock, while customers will be able to return things more easily.

The company said 1,400 of the new postboxes would be installed in more than 30 locations over a six-month period, starting in August.

Japan brings modular housing to UK

Locations will include Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff and Leeds.

J

A waste of time for commuters

apan’s biggest house builder, Tokyo-listed Sekisui House, has teamed up with government body Homes England and property developer Urban Splash to bring factory-built homes to London, in a £90m housebuilding scheme.

Homes delivered through the joint venture will be built in factories, rather than on-site, using a technique known as modular construction.

T

rain users lost around four million hours to significantly delayed trains in 2018, analysis shows. The delays, which have been described as “staggering”, relate to 8.1 million passenger journeys, according to a report by the consumer group Which?

A train is classed as significantly late

if it is delayed by at least 29 minutes, with around 80 trains a day falling into that category.

To add to that, an average of 660 trains a day were cancelled in total last year, making it the highest figure for cancellations since records began in 2011.

Yoshihiro Nakai, President of Sekisui House, said its “technology and knowhow can help resolve pressing social issues in the UK.”

Outstanding people have one thing in common: An absolute sense of mission.

BUSINESS WISDOM

15

Growth in activity but concerns remain...

Private sector activity rises in April despite no change in new business

G

rowth of private sector business activity in the South East resumed in April and there was a modest rise in employment, according to the latest NatWest PMI® data. Less positively, the volume of new business received was broadly flat for the second month running and companies remained relatively subdued regarding the 12-month outlook.

In a sign of spare capacity, the volume of outstanding business fell at the fastest rate since July 2016.

The headline NatWest South East Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that measures the com-

16

SURREY BUSINESS

bined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors – recovered to 51.7 in April, having dropped to 50.0 in March. The latest figure signalled a modest rate of expansion in output and was above the UK figure (50.9), but well below its long-run trend level of 54.9.

Sector data indicated that the upturn in overall output was driven by the manufacturing sector, while services activity was broadly stable.

Demand conditions remained stagnant in April, as the volume of incoming new business was broadly unchanged for the second successive

KEY FINDINGS • Companies support output by cutting backlogs • New order intakes remain broadly unchanged • Output expectations among weakest since 2012 month. This reflected weakness in both the manufacturing service sectors. Export conditions remained challenging, with overall growth in the region’s largest international markets

inflation than the UK as a whole.

BUSINESS SURVEY

Prices Charged Index Input Prices Index rise in average Strongest

Prices Charged Index

sa, >50 = inflation since previous month

80

APR

53.4

prices charged since January

sa, >50 = inflation since previous month

70

70 60

60

dex rose 50 onth 40 e South East Last six months SE v UK The Index was 30 till the second'97

e of input price

Continuing the trend shown since September 2015, private sector firms in the South East increased their prices for goods and services in April. Moreover, the rate of inflation strengthened to a three-month high, average '99and '01remained '03 '05 faster '07 '09than '11 the '13 long-run '15 '17 series '19 (since late-1999).

50

40 '97

'99

'01

'03

'05

'07

'09

'11

'13

'15

'17

'19

Sector data signalled solid increases in charges at both manufacturers and service providers.

close to a three-year low.

months of 2019. The latest increase contrasted with no change in private sector employment across the UK as a whole.

increase was still the second-weakest since August 2016. Meanwhile, prices charged rose at the strongest rate since January, and one that remained sharper than the long-run trend.

With no growth in new business, companies further depleted their levels of incomplete work. Backlogs declined for Future Business Activity Index– the long- Average input prices rose at a slightthe seventh month running Private sector firms in the South East est sequence in nearly six years – and at ly faster rate in April compared with Prices Charged Index expectations Future Business Activity Index Companies' remained confident of output growth the sharpest pace since July 2016.

March.

This marked the fi rst accelsa, >50 = inflation since previous month >50 = growth expected over next 12 months for business activity among over the next 12 months. That said, eration in cost inflation for private APRCuts to backlogs lowest on record April sector firms in the South East since sentiment moderated during April and were partly in faciliwas among the weakest since the exSeptember 2018. Though strong in tated by an increase in employment pectations series began in 2012. the context of historic data, the rate of during April. Private sector jobs were ember 2015, Private sector firms in the South East expected created for the second month runcreased their growth of output over the next 12 months, according the fidata. rst two Moreover, the ning, followingtodeclines the April in survey That said, sentiment eased

62.6

Last six months SE v UK

e-month high, series average

charges at ers.

to a three-month low. Moreover, the Future Business COMMENT Activity Index was at the fourth-lowest level since it Stuart Johnstone, Managing Director, London & began in mid-2012.

South East, Corporate & Commercial Banking

Anecdotal evidence suggested that uncertainty regarding the UK's departure from the EU remained a factor undermining confidence in The the outlook. rise in business activity in the

© 2019 IHS Markit

Future Business Activity Index “Private sector firms in the South East remained confident of output xpected hs, according growth over the iment eased ture Business next 12 months”

level since it

certainty EU remained a utlook.

>50 = growth expected over next 12 months

South East seen in April is encouraging, but fails to make up for what has been a subdued 2019 so far.

The region grew at a slightly faster pace than the UK average at the start of the second quarter, in terms of both output and jobs, but is being held back to some extent by weakness in London.

“Growth has also been propped up by firms working through their backlogs, which fell at the fastest rate since July 2016. Worryingly, new business again failed to in-

Stuart Johnstone

crease, which undermined firms’ expectations for total workloads over the next 12 months.

METHODOLOGY The NatWest South East PMI® is compiled

by IHS Markit from responses to questionnaires sent to South East companies that participate in IHS Markit’s UK manufacturing and services PMI surveys.

17

HEROIC FREEDOM CAMPAIGNER OR RECKLESS TRAITOR?

Julian Assange’s eviction from the Ecuadorian Embassy gives the UK government a tricky dilemma with both Sweden and the US seeking extradition. By Ian Trevett

I

n the end the Ecuadorians had had enough. Julian Assange’s seven-year stay as an asylum-seeker in the Ecuadorian London Embassy came to an abrupt end in April when the UK authorities were invited in to remove the WikiLeaks founder. Ecuador had withdrawn Assange’s asylum “after his repeated violations to international conventions and daily-life protocols.” Apparently one such pro-

18

tocol was his refusal to clean up his cat’s poo. And there was the small matter that Assange had sued the Ecuadorian government for violating his fundamental rights and freedoms, after the internet connection had been switched off.

Assange is now serving time at Her Majesty’s pleasure at HMP Belmarsh for the crime of skipping bail back in

2012. But Home Secretary Sajid Javid has a decision to make. Does he send Assange to Sweden to answer accusations of rape, to America on the charge of conspiring with an army intelligence analyst to illegally obtain secret US military and diplomatic documents, or does he refuse both extradition requests? As always with Julian Assange, there is no simple answer.

THE BIG STORY

The Early Days - the hacker

Born in Queensland, Australia in 1971, Assange had an unsettled childhood, staying in over 30 Australian towns and cities by the time he reached his mid-teens, including three years living with a controversial New Age cult called The Family.

A bright child, he became adept at computer programming. Wikipedia reports that in 1987, aged 16, Assange began hacking under the name Mendax (Latin for ‘liar’). He and two others, known as Trax and Prime Suspect, formed a hacking group called ‘The In-

emails from vice presidential candidate (and hero of the conservative right) Sarah Palin’s Yahoo account. In 2010, it posted a classified U.S. military video of two US Apache helicopter gunships firing on what the military says were believed to be armed fighters in Iraq. Among the 18 killed were two Reuters journalists. It was reported that the pilots mistook their cameras for weapons.

Unsurprisingly, It quickly became popular among those who were suspicious of the secrecy of governments and institutions, with support coming

“When asked if he had a title for an autobiography, he responded ‘Ban This Book: From Swedish Whores to Pentagon Bores’” ternational Subversives’. In September 1991, Assange was discovered hacking into a multinational telecommunications corporation. The Australian Federal Police charged him in 1994 with 31 counts of hacking and related crimes and he was ordered to pay reparations of AU$2,100 and released on a good behaviour bond.

In the early 1990s, he was also using his skills for more conventional activities.

He gave technical advice to the Victoria Police Child Exploitation Unit and assisted with prosecutions. He was involved in starting one of the first public Internet service providers in Australia and he ran Best of Security, a website giving advice on computer security that had 5,000 subscribers in 1996.

During his time at the University of Melbourne, he joined up with a group of fellow students and the idea of WikiLeaks evolved, launching in 2006 as a non-profit organisation that publishes news leaks. Early on, it exposed secrets the rich and powerful would rather had kept hidden. In 2007, it posted the procedures manual for Camp Delta, the US detention centre in Guantanamo Bay. In 2008, it released

from left wing politicians, freedom activists and conspiracy theorists.

It was also no surprise that WikiLeaks was attracting less welcome attention from the authorities.

Assange accused

The Apache Helicopter footage (known as the Collateral Murder video) had been supplied to WikiLeaks by a serving intelligence analyst, Bradley Manning.

In 2010, Manning provided WikiLeaks with reams of classified data, including 400,000 documents relating to the Iraq War and 91,000 documents from the Afghanistan database, known later as part of the Afghan War logs. Assange was later charged over allegedly helping Manning to crack a Department of Defence password. It was this charge for which the US has tried to extradite him from the UK. Manning was raised as a boy and in the army had an unhappy time, serving as a gay man in a time when homosexuality was illegal in the US forces. Manning was also appalled by the ways in which the wars were being run.

Wikipedia notes, “In November 2009, Manning wrote to a gender counsel-

lor in the United States, said she felt female and discussed having surgery.

The counsellor told Steve Fishman of New York magazine in 2011 that it was clear Manning was in crisis, partly because of her gender concerns, but also because she was opposed to the kind of war in which she found herself involved.”

Manning was imprisoned from 2011 (although the trial was not until 2013) but released in 2017 after a pardon from President Obama. During the incarceration, Manning dropped the forename of Bradley in favour of Chelsea and now lives her life as a trans woman. This year, she returned to prison, after refusing to testify in a US government case against WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.

Manning has spent years behind bars, but the US authorities are still set on putting Assange on trial for his involvement on the leaking of military data. It seems that Manning, at least, is remaining loyal to Assange.

Back in 2010, Assange faced more serious allegations, this time unrelated to leaking information. The international public prosecution office in Gothenburg, Sweden issued an arrest warrant for Assange after two women came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct.

Chelsea Manning

19

The women had similar stories of encounters that began consensually but allegedly developed into coercive and even violent experiences. Swedish police wanted to question the WikiLeaks founder on suspicion of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion.

es have hardly covered him in glory. In fact, there is a worrying misogyny. He has dismissed the charges as a “radical feminist conspiracy” and in 2011, when asked if he had a title for an autobiography, he responded “Ban This Book: From Swedish Whores to Pentagon Bores”.

The rape accusation is that on August 17th 2010, in the home of the injured party in Enköping, Assange deliberately consummated sexual intercourse with her by improperly exploiting that she, due to sleep, was in a helpless state. It is an aggravating circumstance that Assange, who was aware that it was the expressed wish of the injured party and a prerequisite of sexual intercourse that a condom be used, still consummated unprotected sexual intercourse with her. The sexual act was designed to violate the injured party’s sexual integrity.

On the principle of innocent until proven guilty, he should be judged, for now at least, primarily on his WikiLeaks activity - but it wasn’t long before even his

of the American diplomatic cables, having disagreed with the decision of the newspapers to publish only redacted ones the previous year. The Economist reports, “His five partners condemned the move, pointing out that Mr Assange had revealed sensitive personal information and national security details with little news value.

Some named sources, such as an Ethiopian journalist, were forced to flee their countries.”

The Economist: “Mr Assange may not be an enemy agent, but he has at least been a useful idiot.”

While the investigation was still underway, he left (or fled) Sweden for the United Kingdom, where he fought extradition for two years. It was in 2012, when he finally lost his appeal, that he knocked on the door of the Ecuadorian Embassy.

Freedom campaigner, journalist, enemy or dangerous idiot?

The rape accusation was an inconvenient truth for Assange’s followers, who had elevated him to the status of a freedom fighter, standing up to the vested interests of secretive governments and ruthless dictators. Many commentators (including Assange) have described the rape claim as a set up, designed to destroy WikiLeaks.

Seeing as Assange has taken on the US military, The Church of Scientology, the British National Party, the Turkish government and exposed many corruption cases, he is hardly short of powerful enemies. A plot to smear him is hardly far-fetched.

However, his response to the charg-

20

associates began to have serious misgivings. Assange built relationships with some of the world’s heavyweight newspapers: The Guardian, The New York Times, El País, Der Spiegel and Le Monde. Unsurprisingly, all rubbed their hands with glee when offered such powder keg information. However, as valuable as the data was, all have robust codes of conduct and operate to strict (and important) guidelines. The journalists printed only what they felt was ethical and in the public interest.

Assange wanted to go further. In 2011 he published the unredacted version

A journalist has a responsibility beyond a great headline and reader numbers. The newspapers feared that Assange had no such boundaries.

The greatest irony of Assange’s work is that possibly his most notable achievement was helping Trump get elected, albeit unintentionally. Assange told Amy Goodman of Democracy Now that, “An election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is

THE BIG STORY “An election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is like being asked to choose between cholera or gonorrhea.”

like being asked to choose between cholera or gonorrhea.” But WikiLeaks clearly assisted the cholera option!

During the Democratic Party presidential primaries, Assange unleashed waves of leaks to discredit Clinton, whom he despised. Undoubtedly he was trying to influence the vote to secure a Bernie Sanders nomination but the person who most effectively used the WikiLeaks was Donald Trump.

Vanity Fair’s Tina Nguyen, reported on the extent of Donald Trump’s (temporary!) love of WikiLeaks: “Back in 2016, Donald Trump seemingly couldn’t get enough of WikiLeaks, praising the organisation roughly 160 times for publishing hacked e-mails that embarrassed Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee. ‘I love WikiLeaks,’ the then-presidential candidate said in October 2016. ‘It’s been amazing what’s coming out on WikiLeaks,’ he said days later in Ohio.

At times, he criticised the media for not reporting on WikiLeaks dumps (‘So dishonest! Rigged system!’), and he once told the audience at a rally that he’d been tempted to stay on the plane and keep reading the latest revelations: ‘They were just announcing new WikiLeaks!’ he shouted to applause.

‘And I wanted to stay there, but I didn’t want to keep

you waiting. Boy, I love reading those WikiLeaks.’”

The biggest question about WikiLeaks’ character assassination of Hillary Clinton is where the leaks came from.

Did Russia hand them to Assange and co. knowing they would do Putin’s work for him?

The Economist neatly defined the issue: “Most responsible journalists would not implore an authoritarian country’s spies to send them secrets for the purpose of disrupting a democratic election; nor would they fail to inform readers about the dubious provenance of the information.

“WikiLeaks’ willingness to serve as an uncritical and enthusiastic laundromat for Russian intelligence reflects the group’s longer history of publishing material with little or no newsworthiness, but calculated to undermine American interests. A cache of CIA hacking tools published in 2017 was one example. In contrast, WikiLeaks almost never publishes leaks that might undermine America’s autocratic rivals. Mr Assange may not be an enemy agent, but he has at least been a useful idiot.”

What next?

The case of Julian Assange prompts many conundrums. He was the

man brave enough to expose the secrets the authorities did not want us to know about. He shone a light on those who suffered under dictatorships and exposed people who abuse power. It is no surprise that he became a heroic figure to many.

But heroes have a habit of letting you down. He was the man who exposed leaks in a reckless way which endangered lives. He may have colluded with the Russians to undermine a democratic process. He may be a rapist and a molestor.

The potential extradition to America, whether he deserves it or not, is problematic in that it may set precedents for freedom of expression.

The Observer set out its position: “Many have questioned whether Assange is a ‘real’ journalist and whether he should therefore be protected under the law. That is irrelevant. Whatever one thinks of Assange’s status as a journalist, the US indictment against him poses a threat to all journalists and potentially undermines press freedom.”

For this reason, I hope the Home Secretary accepts the extradition request from Sweden. Assange should face the rape charge and we should trust the Swedish legal system to give him a fair trial. If found guilty, a jail sentence in Sweden would prevent some very difficult ethical questions having to be answered.

21

In association with

2019, THE YEAR OF INNOVATION! The Let’s Do Business exhibition is the leading business to business exhibition in the South East.

This year’s event takes place at The Amex Stadium in Falmer on June 13th. We’re pleased to announce our headline sponsors are Quantuma and Clean Growth UK. Register to visit for FREE seminars, access to our brand new Innovation Zone and the chance to meet key decision makers from across Sussex, Gatwick and beyond.

What’s new?

Why visit?

• Opportunity to explore the latest technologies and innovations for FREE in the 2019 Innovation Zone • Networking with some of Brighton and the South East’s top companies • Complimentary seminar access for free learning, tips and thoughts from dynamic, successful business and thought leaders • Dedicated work and break out zones so business doesn’t have to stop!

• FREE show guide to takeaway with details of key businesses REGISTER FOR FREE: letsdobusiness.org/why-visit/visitor-registration/

Brand new for 2019 is the Innovation Zone sponsored by East Sussex College Group. The Innovation Zone will feature the latest in cutting-edge technology and the opportunity to discuss ways of encouraging innovation in your company.

Why stop by the Innovation Zone?

• Live demos of the latest in innovative technology • Discover how the education sector is inspiring the next generation of the workforce to think innovatively • Find out about support for funding innovation • Discuss the impact innovative technology will have on the future of business • Find out how you can use technology to futureproof your offering • Advice on encouraging your workforce to think innovatively

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Innovation Zone sponsored by

BUSINESS SURVEY

Join the pre-show breakfast hosted

by Brighton and Hove Chamber of Commerce. Buy tickets at www.businessinbrighton.org.uk/ event/lets-do-businessnetworking-breakfast

Headline Sponsors We’re pleased to announce this year’s headline sponsors are Quantuma and Clean Growth UK.

Join us on June 13th Pre register to visit now at: letsdobusiness.org/why-visit/ visitor-registration/

Quantuma is a leading business advisory firm – speak to them about maximising business value on stand S2.

Clean Growth UK will be on hand on June 13th to discuss how businesses can help to tackle climate change

With thanks to our other sponsors

NEW FOR 2019 is thought provoking discussion panels!

Don’t miss out on your chance to have your say about key business topics in the region!

10:15 – 10:45 Switchplane – The Future of Social Media – What’s next?

11:00 – 12:00 Discussion Panel – Funding Innovation 12:15 – 12:45 Clean Growth UK – Cleaner and Greener Innovation in Business 13:00 – 14:00 Discussion Panel – Accessing Innovation Support 14:15 – 14:45 Showstorm – Virtual & Augmented Reality 101

23

Stay in control of your business Don’t let your contracts fall foul of the law. Cathryn Culverhouse, Solicitor at law firm DMH Stallard, Guildford, explains why it’s important to review any implied terms at the outset of a business agreement implied terms in your contract and expressly exclude them.

Planning ahead and accounting for implied terms at the contractual stage helps you to reduce risk to your business and ensure that your contract covers you in the way you expect it to. So, how do implied terms come into play?

Cathryn Culverhouse

W

e all start with the best intentions and, in many cases, business agreements run smoothly. However, if you are involved in negotiating an agreement, it pays to review at the outset any terms likely to be implied by the Court should things not go to plan.

Implied terms are terms that do not expressly feature in your contract, but that you are likely to be legally bound by should a dispute arise between you and the other party. Implied terms can cause uncertainty but there are steps that you can take to minimise this for your business. For example, you could make a decision not to be bound by

You may believe that all statements made by you or the other party during the course of your negotiations will become legally binding, whether or not these have been included in the contract. This is not the case. If a dispute arises, the Court will look at a number of things in order to decide if a verbal statement should effectively be treated as a contractual term. This includes seeking an understanding of what your intentions were in relation to the statement, the importance of the statement in question, when it was made and whether it was known to be true. Only significant statements or those that are key to the contract will become terms which, if breached, will give rise to damages.

Additionally, it’s important to know that the Court can imply a range of other terms, including:

“Planning ahead and accounting for implied terms at the contractual stage helps you to reduce risk to your business and ensure that your contract covers you in the way you expect it to”

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1. Terms implied by fact The Court may imply terms to reflect the intentions of the parties in each situation. These are amongst the most common terms implied.

LEGAL 2. Terms implied by the parties’ previous dealings Where the contracting parties have consistently and regularly conducted business on certain terms, the Court may imply those same terms if it can be shown that this was what the parties intended.

4. Statute Contractual terms contained in various statutes are automatically implied. For example, the Sale of Goods Act 1979 implies, amongst other things, terms about the ownership of the goods, their description and their quality and fitness for purpose.

3. Terms implied by usage or custom The Court may imply certain terms that are customary to a particular trade or place, subject to certain conditions.

5. Common Law The Courts may imply certain terms because they are seen as necessary characteristics of a certain type of

“You may believe that all statements made by you or the other party during the course of your negotiations will become legally binding, whether or not these have been included in the contract. This is not the case”

contract. For example, it is an implied term of a mediation agreement that the mediation is confidential. Typically, the Courts will imply terms into contracts for the supply of goods and services, employment, carriage of goods and landlord and tenant contracts.

Below is an example of when the Court needed to imply a term to resolve a situation.

A manufacturer of kitchen cupboard doors in Northern Ireland contracted with an adhesive supplier in Staffordshire, UK. In 2003 the kitchen manufacturer installed a new production line. The kitchen manufacturer alleged that the adhesive suppliers had visited its premises after the installation of the new production line and stated that the adhesive would be suitable for use in its existing manufacturing process and materials.

The kitchen manufacturer began using the adhesive in 2003. However, between 2003 and 2005, the kitchen manufacturer received a significant number of complaints stating that delamination had occurred. It was found that this had occurred because the level of wax in the MDF had affected the adhesive. Given the importance of the assurance by the adhesive supplier that the adhesive would be suitable with their existing materials, this was implied as a term of the contract and the adhesive supplier was found to be in breach of contract.

In summary, if you want to ensure that your contract represents the terms you require, it is important, when drafting the contract to consider those terms (both implied and express) necessary to fulfil the contract satisfactorily for both parties.

If you would like to find out more about what to include in your commercial agreement or need general legal advice, just get in touch.

Contact Cathryn Culverhouse on: 01483 467405 cathryn.culverhouse@dmhstallard.com www.dmhstallard.com

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Is it time... that you re-thought your business model?

Re-thinking your business model can help your company grow, says Tim Levey, Partnership Chairman and Head of Business Advisory at Kreston Reeves

H

ow often have you stopped and looked at your business model? How often have you changed your business model? I ask that question having sat down with many clients over the years who have been frustrated with a lack of growth.

There are typically a couple of different scenarios at play here:

group. They have reviewed what is going on around them, looked at where their strengths lie and have been bold enough to make some changes. All they normally need is to be patient, keep the faith and be confident with their team who may be losing confidence. These tend to be businesses which, in the past, have chased one-off short-term work with many different customers and have got to a stage of exhaustion with chasing their tails. They have then planned a way out of this to find work which is more stable and predictable.

I’m not so happy if all the plans revolve around what I would term “business model extension”, which involves tak-

• They are still doing what they started doing maybe 20 years “The process of “business ago and are frustrated that they can only remodel extension” is one place customers.

• They have looked around, seen trends in their market and have changed direction, but the results have not come as quickly as they hoped.

example where a traditional business has some unlearning to do before it can break through to exceptional growth”

The first group give me great cause for concern. Twenty years ago Google had only just launched and it wasn’t until 2007 that the iPhone was introduced. Surely these events have turned the world upside down and new rules of business apply, such that a “pre-digital” business can only look forward to diminishing returns?

I’m usually happier with the second

26

ing your existing business and moving up or down your supply chain to set up a new business.

I have personal experience of being the FD of a group of care homes where, before I arrived, they had set up a building firm, on the basis that they had lots of properties to be looked after, and a vehicle service station, on the basis that they had a number of minibuses that needed servicing.

Both extensions diverted management from the core business of the care homes; so we ended up cutting the tail off and re-focussing back, but it was all a waste of time and energy.

BUSINESS PLANNING this figure had jumped up to 84%, showing that intangible assets, many of which don’t get shown on a Balance Sheet, are more important than ever.

This is why businesses with old school bricks and mortar mentality are “We are aiming to shift being left on the sidelines by school business that have businesses into the future new a strong culture and online comand develop the emotional munity. These spread messages virally in a way that drives sales connection between your and ultimately drive up the value of the business. business and brand”

The process of “business model extension” is one example where a traditional business has some unlearning to do before it can break through to exceptional growth.

We now do business in a world where the biggest taxi business in the world owns no vehicles. It means that we have to unlearn much of what we thought we knew, including:

• Re-considering the spending of large amounts of the marketing budget on pushing your company brand in an age where LinkedIn has now been with us since 2002. We used to look to celebrities as the market influencers, but now anyone with a strong opinion and a large enough online following can be a brand ambassador.

• Focusing sales growth expectations on building business development teams who cold call prospects and work on gaining a small ratio of appointments into a narrowing pipeline.

• Competing on price in a way that becomes a zero-sum game.

There is another trend over a longer period which is tough for us accountants to deal with. In 1975, intangible assets represented just 17% of the value of S&P 500 businesses. By 2015

This is why we are now finding that lots of entrepreneurs and business owners have forgotten the reasons why they started in business. Our belief is that we can bridge the gap by educating and supporting them through what could be an emotional journey to the future.

As accountants and business advisers we also need to face up to the new world that we live in now that digital accounting is becoming the norm. As the face of modern accounting we are aiming to shift businesses into the future and develop the emotional connection between your business and brand. Would you like to know more?

In the summer we will be offering a Kreston Reeves Growth School in the Gatwick area, where businesses can attend and build their own Growth Business Plan having understood where they are and where they can realistically get to.

Contact us at events@krestonreeves.com to get on the invite list.

Tim Levey can be contacted by email tim.levey@krestonreeves.com.

Visit www.krestonreeves.com for further information.

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Business benefits of customer loyalty programmes Jeff Huggins, Business Services Director at MHA Carpenter Box, explains the far-reaching benefits of customer loyalty programmes for your business od and improve their lifetime value, which also optimises your return on marketing investment.

2. Customer data A customer loyalty programme allows you to collect additional data about your target audience. Most individuals are willing to share a little extra information in return for loyalty rewards, and you can use this to improve your understanding of your customer base.

I

t is often underestimated how important customer loyalty programmes can be and how surprisingly simple they are to implement, especially in today’s digital age.

They can, of course, bring many benefits to your business – beyond the simple fact of adding satisfaction for your regular customers. Here we outline five ways your business can profit from starting a loyalty scheme: 1. Customer retention The most obvious benefit of a customer loyalty programme is that it improves retention. Customers want to accumulate points to get the rewards or exclusive benefits on offer and will be tempted to favour your business over a competitor’s in order to achieve these.

As retention improves, so does the lifetime value of your customers.

This metric considers the value of a customer since the first time they completed a purchase, instead of focusing on their current worth. By retaining customers, your business can generate maximum revenue from each customer over a longer peri-

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The extra information helps segment your customers into different categories, which improves your ability to better target them with marketing campaigns. Your loyalty programme thus turns full circle: your customers give you information in return for rewards, and you give them what they want, with better marketing and the products they love – which also improves customer retention!

3. Business planning Once you have implemented a loyalty programme and gathered extra data on your customers, you can use

this information to better plan your business strategy. Whether the information is in terms of money spent, demographics or buying behaviour, it will help you plan your business decisions based on solid data, instead of guesses and assumptions.

For example, suppose you are thinking of starting a new product line.

Your market research will provide details of your target demographic by age, gender, location, income and other factors. Comparing those to the information you have gathered through your loyalty scheme will instantly show you whether you have a good match or need to reconsider.

4. Increased customer purchases The mere presence of a loyalty scheme encourages customers to spend more at each visit, to earn more rewards. You can further extend this effect by running limited-time promotions, offering extra points on a specific product or service range (usually the ones you want to clear from stock), or even creating ‘treasure hunts’ for promotional codes hidden

CUSTOMER LOYALTY throughout your site. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination and your site developer’s ability!

New probate fees delayed

Combining your loyalty programme with marketing campaigns can also generate extra purchases. For example, you could run a simple ad that offers extra loyalty points for signing up and bonus points for spending more than a given amount on their first visit, provided they use the correct coupon code.

5. Competitive advantage In a competitive global market, you need to make the most of every possible advantage to beat the competition.

Having a customer loyalty programme gives you a strong advantage with many benefits as you can see from this short list. To put it simply, the more creative you are with your loyalty programme, the further ahead of your competition you will be.

Remember to make sure the programme is attractive to your target audience and kick it off with a starter bonus to get them to sign up. Once the programme is set up and rolling, it will gain momentum with every new registration and every promotion you run!

How we can help If you want to find out how something like this could benefit your business, please get in touch with Jeff Huggins and our friendly Business Services Team on 01293 227670

T

he government’s proposed huge increase in probate fees (due to take place on April 1st 2019) has been delayed because the necessary legislation has not yet been laid before parliament.

While the uncertainty continues, personal representatives are being allowed to submit their probate applications before HMRC has finished processing their Inheritance Tax (IHT) liability.

In November 2018, the government announced increases in probate fees to come into force on April 1st, to be used to fund the courts, not just the cost of dealing with probate applications. Critics slammed the increase as a “stealth tax”. The House

of Lords called the proposed rise “an abuse of fee-levying power” and the Labour Party stated that they will attempt to block the increase in fees in parliament.

Whether or not the proposed fees ever make it onto the statute book, it makes sense to get probate applications in as soon as possible. The relaxation of the rules allowing probate applications before HMRC have finalised the IHT position will allow more families to take advantage of the current fees of £215 (£155 if applying via a solicitor).

Choice, not Chance: Estate Planning Seminar

Join us for our next Estate Planning seminar on Thursday 20th June at Cisswood House Hotel in Horsham, where we take you step-by-step through the maze of traps and pitfalls of Estate Planning. If you’ve been putting off planning, then our seminar is the perfect opportunity to find out what is involved.

Find out more at www.carpenterbox.com/choice-not-chance

29

Time’s not up

on discrimination in the workplace

How to spot discrimination in the working environment and the measures employers can take to stamp it out

mistaken as tongue-in-cheek passing comments.

What preventative measures can employers take?

A good starting point would be to implement and commit to an Equal Opportunities and Anti-bullying and Harassment policy to help you follow clear and recognised procedures when tackling inappropriate behaviour. You might also want to review the existing workplace culture and, where necessary, take steps to minimise ‘banter’ that includes inappropriate comments and jokes.

Amy White and Georgina Hardcastle

T

he #MeToo and Time’s Up social media movements have created significant awareness and encouraged employees to speak out openly against sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace.

Both these movements continue to trend on social media platforms almost daily and have highlighted how widespread sexual harassment continues to be in the workplace. For all the positive steps that have been taken to stamp out workplace discrimination, it remains an increasingly publicised topic. Amy White and Georgina Hardcastle of Rix & Kay’s Employment Team take a closer look.

Shocking Statistics

A report produced following the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements found that, of the 1,000 employees questioned, three-quarters had experienced sexual harassment at work

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(Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) ‘Turning Tables: Ending sexual harassment at work’ March 2018).

Can employers easily spot discrimination in the workplace?

The answer is no, not always. Discrimination can take various forms and occur at all stages of the employment life cycle. It can be subtle and is often not easy to spot.

What one person might consider playful insults and jokes, another might find highly offensive. This type of workplace ‘banter’ can amount to harassment and can be very easy to miss. Additionally, employees who make a complaint of discrimination or sexual harassment often fear being victimised by way of bullying or intimidating behaviour by management or colleagues. Once again, this can be

There exists a degree of unwillingness to report experiences of sexual harassment in the workplace. As such, employers must not ‘brush off’ unwanted treatment as ‘unimportant’.

Rather, they should encourage a more open and transparent working environment where victims of discrimination feel comfortable enough to come forward and report their experience.

The importance of effective diversity training for all employees cannot be overstated. Best practice suggests that online training tools or links to the Company’s Handbook might not provide the most beneficial training.

Rather, interactive training sessions that teach employees how to display empathy and respect for others, reinforce what behaviour and language is deemed inappropriate and what they should do if they have an issue, are likely to have the greatest impact. You

LEGAL could also consider further targeted training for management, including appointing diversity champions.

And if employers don’t take preventative measures?

Reputational damage resulting from claims can be caused in an instant through the power of social media.

Widespread workplace discrimination often leads to poor employee morale and productivity, trust is broken and there is, inevitably, a financial impact on the business. In an analysis of more than 500 workplaces it was found that workplace discrimination costs the UK economy £127 billion every year (‘The Value of Diversity’ report – Centre for Economics and Business Research February 2018).

Employers can also be held vicariously liable for discriminatory acts committed by their employees during the course of employment. Would you expect to be held liable for sexual harassment committed by an employee in the car journey home from the work Christmas party? Well, in such a situ-

Would you expect to be held liable for sexual harassment committed by an employee in the car journey home from the work Christmas party? ation, as the employer, you could be held vicariously liable for the act of harassment. Employers can potentially avoid liability if they can show that they took all reasonable steps to prevent the employee from committing the discriminatory act, including providing effective training, not simply paying lip service to equality policies and procedures.

What does the future hold?

Employers are often concerned that discrimination cases are being brought over increasingly trivial matters. Such concern should not however, stop employers from seeking to establish an open workplace culture free from inequality of employment. In light of the recent high profile sexual harassment cases, there have been calls for the

government to take action to address the prevalence of discrimination in the workplace, but in the meantime employers should do everything they can to stay on top of their game.

For more information on managing discrimination in the workplace, contact Rix & Kay’s Employment Team.

Amy White: amywhite@rixandkay.co.uk Georgina Hardcastle: georginahardcastle@rixandkay.co.uk

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LEGAL

Restrictive covenants

Restrictive covenants in employment contracts sounds like a pretty dull and turgid subject; until a key member of staff leaves and takes significant customers and/or members of staff with him says Harry Sherrard, Principal at Sherrards Employment Law Court injunctions and awards of damages against miscreant ex-employees who chose to ignore the terms of their restrictive covenants, and tried to take customers away from their ex-employer.

Harry Sherrard

A

s a potential crisis unfolds, the terms of restrictive covenants are transformed from technical and uninteresting wording buried deep in an employment contract, to business-critical status.

Thought needs to go into the terms of the restrictive covenant, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. In some cases, a geographical restriction will be relevant and appropriate, but in other industries geography is immaterial.

The length of restrictions depends on a number of factors, in particular the seniority of the individual and cycles of the business concerned. For example, in insurance, where there are annual renewals, a six month restriction would be of little value to the employer, and a 12 month restriction would

solicitation by the ex-employee.

I have also dealt with situations where a senior employee has taken a group of staff to a competitor, causing immense damage to the business. Covenants preventing ex-employees from employing their former colleagues are also enforceable, provided they are appropriately drafted and appropriate to the structure of the business.

A covenant preventing recruitment of all members of staff would be unlikely to be enforceable, and therefore the employer needs to define which employees the restriction applies to, by grade, salary or other method.

When employers offer promotions and salary increases, they are entitled to require in return that employees sign appropriate re“It is an urban myth, and one that I hear strictive covenants.

The old adage I always recommend about bolting the often, that restrictive covenants ‘are not that when doing so, stable door afemployers do not ter the horse has worth the paper they’re written on’” simply repeat pregone all too often vious terms of restrictive covenants, be more appropriate, to ensure that applies. Employers have promoted but assess the situation and ensure the annual renewals of customers fall high performing members of staff to that covenants are up-to-date, fit for within the restricted period. key positions, but have neglected to purpose and enforceable. ensure that employment contracts reMany times, I have seen restrictive flect the increased seniority and influcovenants that only seek to prevent ence that the senior employee exerts, solicitation of customers. All very over both customers and members well if the employee is soliciting, but of staff. Then, when the employee what happens if, as is often the case, chooses to jump ship, either to set up evidence of solicitation is difficult or their own business or to join a comimpossible to uncover? But it is nonepetitor, the employer is left with little theless evident that the business is or no protection. losing customers to the ex-employee.

This situation highlights the imporIt is an urban myth, and one that I hear tance of having non-dealing as well often, that restrictive covenants "are If you require legal advice, please as non-solicitation restrictions; in othnot worth the paper they're written contact the team on 01273 834120 or er words, the ex-employee is not able on". Wrong. Properly drafted restricvisit www.sherrardslaw.com to accept business from the customtive covenants are effective in preer concerned, even if that customer venting ex-employees from damaging has made an approach, without any the business. I have obtained High

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BUSINESS SURVEY CHARITY NEWS

Moments that matter We hear from local children’s hospice, Chestnut Tree House, on why capturing the moments that really matter is so important

I

t’s Children’s Hospice Week this month (June 17th-23rd) and we’re highlighting the vital care services provided by Chestnut Tree House – our local children’s hospice, which cares for around 300 children and young people with life-shortening conditions across Sussex and South East Hampshire, all of whom are unlikely to reach adulthood.

Children’s Hospice Week is the UK’s only awareness and fundraising week for the 49,000 children and young people in the UK with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition, their families and the children’s hospice and palliative care services that support them.

The theme of the week is ‘Moments that Matter’ and will focus on how Chestnut Tree House and other children’s hospices across the UK help families create special memories and important moments in their lives together.

This might be a first swim in Chestnut Tree House’s hydrotherapy pool, hunting for bugs in their woodland walk, or simply spending quality time together as a family while their specialist care team are there to help.

Caroline McCullough, Clinical Nurse Manager at Chestnut Tree House said: “A lot of people misunderstand what a children’s hospice is, and expect it to be a sad place, only associated with illness and dying.

“Of course providing specialist palli-

ative care is our priority, which does include end-of-life care and supporting families in their final moments together. But there are also a lot of happy moments at Chestnut Tree House, where children and young people can enjoy the facilities and take part in a range of activities, from relaxing in our multi-sensory room to splashing about in the hydrotherapy pool.

“For us, our role is very much about children living for the now, and helping families create a lifetime of memories, however long they have together.”

To find out how you or your business can make a difference and help Chestnut Tree House support local life-limited children - during Children’s Hospice Week and beyond - visit www.chestnut-tree-house.org. uk, or get in touch on corporate@ chestnut-tree-house.org.uk or call 01903 871846 / 01323 725095.

Now is what life is all about.

Every moment spent together.

Every moment to remember forever.

Now is what matters.

So let’s make every one of them count.

Let’s live For all the Nows.

It costs Chestnut Tree House over £3.9 million every year to provide its specialist care services and less than 6% of that comes from central Government. All care is offered free of charge, so they rely heavily on the generosity of the local community.

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model, which is highly recommended by the ScaleUp Institute has supported over 40 businesses across five cohorts in the area so far with the cost to each business at only £100 per month.

The programme supports scale up businesses to achieve their potential through a series of facilitated peer to peer groups, which focuses on a barrier to growth with a solution driven outcome. The scheme is being delivered in partnership with the MDHUB, a business network that supports leaders to develop through groups of like-minded peers where they find the solutions and support they need. The

Support has been centred on a number of common themes including leadership, sales and marketing, and planning for growth which has been facilitated by a number of local experts.

Image by Emma Paxton, Imaginistic

usinesses in the Coast to Capital area that have the potential and ambition to grow, have been taking part in the innovative Coast to Capital Escalator Programme.

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“ScaleUp leaders continue to highlight the importance of meeting peers who are growing at pace.

Well organised peer-to-peer networks and high-quality mentors are the most prized leadership interventions. This is reinforced again in our 2018 survey where 6 in 10 scaleup leaders place peer networks as the most important guidance to their future growth. The number of peer-to-peer programmes is growing in the UK, with many run locally as standalone offerings or as part of hubs and broader leadership programmes.” – ScaleUp Institute

COAST TO CAPITAL Facilitator

Facilitator

Fiona Shafer, MD at MDHUB said: “This pilot programme is providing a great platform for us to bespoke the peer discussions to the MD’s needs and to experiment with new business tools as well.”

Helen Bailey, Facilitator at MDHUB said: “This programme is enormously beneficial in bringing local business owners together to share experiences and advice on how to build and grow their businesses expanding their network and their minds.”

Business supported

Simon Pringle, CEO at Red River said: “There is a real depth of experience and energy in my group and it has been brilliant to get that experience focussed on providing real advice from people who have done it. The highs, lows, the triumphs and difficulties are all discussed in the meeting with gravitas and humour and it is brilliant to exchange ideas clever and motivated people.”

Facilitator

Business supported

Lisa Kerr, COO at Man Bites Dog said: “Each of us is committed to helping others in our cohort to drive growth in their amazing businesses through the different skills and experiences we can share, while taking the same learnings back to our own business. I feel privileged to be part of such a lovely group.”

Rob Day, Facilitator at MDHUB said: “The breadth and depth of knowledge, experience and goodwill that peer-to-peer groups can nurture never fails to impress me – especially in environments like this where everyone is prepared to drop their guards and speak with real honesty in order to be supportive to one another. The potential for growth through support and knowledge sharing with fellow peers like this is always inspiring to be part of.”

Facilitator

Annabel Shilton, Facilitator at MDHUB said: “It’s exciting and motivating to sit amongst a group of entrepreneurs who show drive, positivity and resilience but who also want to share and partner with each other to support, offer insight and wisdom so that everyone can succeed in their business. It’s both humbling and refreshing to observe.”

Business supported

Luke Mead, MD at LMS Group said: “I’ve never been involved in peer-to-peer groups before so it was a real experience for me. There is such a wealth of experience and understanding in the cohort and the support from Coast to Capital with their free diagnostic tools and my Account Manager has been brilliant. I’m sure it’s going to help me grow my business much faster.”

Business supported

Jack Bedell-Pearce, MD at 4D said: “Running a medium-sized business comes with unique challenges, and it’s been liberating to be able to share experiences and knowledge with people in a similar position. Every meeting throws up constructive ideas on how we can improve our companies and for me personally, it’s already led to some positive changes for my business.”

Facilitator

Phil Ashford, Facilitator at MDHUB said: “It was great to see the level of empathy and understanding from each business owner on each other’s issues around growth. There is already a developing trust and openness which will lead to some tangible results as the programme continues.”

Business supported

Ana Christie, CEO at Sussex Chamber said: “I’m excited to be on the Escalator Programme.

Many of us face barriers to growth, so it’s great to receive fantastic guidance from peers with innovative solutions and ideas to develop the business. A wonderful way to review processes, structure and systems within the organisation.

Understanding your customers is key.”

Visit the Coast to Capital website at www.coast2capital.org.uk Visit the MDHUB website at www.mdhub.co.uk

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The benefits of a

Self leadership culture New research underscores the power of self leadership and the value it holds for individuals and the organisations in which they work

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new study conducted by The Ken Blanchard Companies® with 1,300 people in managerial and non-managerial roles found important correlations between an individual’s identification as a self leader and positive work behaviours.

• Self leaders are more likely to expend discretionary effort on behalf of their organisations.

• Self leaders are more likely to have positive feelings about their jobs.

• Self leaders are more likely to perform at high levels, endorse their organisation to others, remain with their organisations, and act as good organisational citizens.

For organisations looking to create a culture of self leadership in their organisations, Susan Fowler, bestselling coauthor of Self Leadership and The One Minute Manager, and one of the lead researchers in the study, recommends that everyone - regardless of their position in an organisation - learn the skills necessary to become a self leader.

“The research shows that frontline people are essential to making initiatives work, whether it’s implementing a change or a customer service program. Organisational leaders have to depend on those self leaders to make it happen.”

In Fowler’s experience, when L&D professionals equip individual contributors with the mindset and skillset of self leadership, they build a healthy and empowered workforce that is pro-

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ductive, innovative, and committed to getting results for their organisations.

Fowler explains that self leadership is a mindset and skillset that can be taught and learned.

The mindset of a self leader includes three attitudes: Challenge Assumed Constraints. For individual contributors to evolve into self leaders, they need to challenge their assumed constraints every day at work, says Fowler. For example, if you assume that no one will listen to your idea because you tried once and were rejected, you seriously limit your ability to effect positive change.

Activate Points of Power. To be a self leader, you need to recognise and leverage the power you have instead of focusing on power you don’t have.

Fowler explains that people often point to a lack of position power (having a position of authority to allocate budget and make personnel decisions) instead of recognising four other types of power they could leverage.

• Task power: The ability to influence how a job or task is executed • Personal power: Having interpersonal and leadership skills, passion, inspiration, or a positive personal vision of the future • Relationship power: Being connected or friendly with people who have power • Knowledge power: Having relevant experience, expertise, or credentials Be Proactive. Self leaders don’t always wait to be told what to do, says Fowler. Instead, they hold themselves accountable for getting what they need to succeed. They think for themselves and make suggestions for improving things in the department and in their roles. They conduct proactive conversations at every level of their development to solicit feedback and ask for direction and support.

With a proper mindset in place, Fowler says, people can begin to develop a three-part self leadership skillset.

Setting Goals. First, self leaders take the lead to make sure their goals are specific, motivating, attainable, relevant, and trackable. If a goal lacks specificity, they seek clarification. If a goal is not attainable or relevant, they negotiate to make it more fair, within their control, and tied to the company’s

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP metrics. If a goal is not optimally motivating for them, they reframe the goal so it is meaningful by aligning the goal to personal values or a noble purpose.

Diagnosing Development Level. Second, self leaders diagnose their own development level - their current level of competence and commitment for achieving a goal or task. Among the hallmarks of self leadership is learning to diagnose personal competence and commitment and identify what is needed to speed up the process of development and growth.

Matching. Finally, self leaders know how to ask their manager for the leadership style that matches their needs.

After diagnosing their own competence and commitment on a particular goal, self leaders proactively ask for the direction (guidance and clarification) and support (listening and problem solving) they need to make progress on the goal.

Fowler points out that because individual contributors are often underdeveloped and sometimes neglected, they can become disengaged in their roles.

Organisational initiatives fail because the people responsible for implementing them don’t

have the skills required to proactively reach their goals. Consider that 50% of employees feel their jobs are stagnant, and one out of three just do their jobs, nothing more (Source: DDI Pulse of the Workforce Survey). Why is this the case? We find that its largely due to the organisation’s lack of focus on this employee group. “People who are empowered self-leaders are proactive self-starters who look for ways to make your organisation flourish,” she says.

Fowler and her research colleagues identify the most crucial element of successful initiatives to be the proactive behaviour of individual contributors chosen

to carry out those initiatives. “Organisations would be wise to equip their employees with the mindset and skillset to diagnose their situation, accept responsibility, and hold themselves accountable for taking action,” says Fowler.

“If your people don’t reach their full potential, neither will your organisation. The bottom line depends on the front line.”

If you wish to receive a copy of the full white paper please contact uk@ kenblanchard.com or visit www.kenblanchard.com/Resources to learn more about Susan’s research.

Training the World’s Best Managers

SURREY BUSINESS

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CORPORATE

Health

&WELLBEING It has long been recognised that a healthy workforce has a dramatic effect on productivity, leads to less absent days, increased motivation, company loyalty and overall economic prosperity.

Throughout 2019, this magazine will partner with a selection of major companies in the sector to offer advice on how to deal with the growing crisis of avoidable employee absent days. We intend to lead the way on this subject to aid in the economic prosperity of our region.

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HEALTH & WELLBEING Mid-life crises are caused by people feeling pressured by advertisers and self-help gurus to live a better life after the age of 40, according to new research carried out by the University of Exeter Medical Xpress

Too much dietary fat in the brain may increase the risk of depression Medical News Today

Your ‘hidden sugar’ intake could be as much as

10-15 minutes If you pass out within a few minutes, it might mean you are sleep deprived sleepadvisor.org

People consume more alcohol, on a global level, compared with nearly 30 years ago – an increase of 70% The Lancet

Avocados can significantly suppress hunger in overweight and obese adults, a recent study suggests

The UK has seen an 18% increase in people diagnosed with diabetes over the last five years The British Heart Foundation (BHF), BBC Health

Z Z Z Falling asleep takes on average

46 teaspoons as day

Journal of the American Medical Association

Journal of Nutrients

Deaths from heart and circulatory diseases in the under 75s are on the rise for the first time in 50 years The British Heart Foundation (BHF), BBC Health

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Spring into action 12 IDEAS TO ENERGISE YOUR WORKFORCE

By Paul Ollerton, Managing Director at ViiSana Ltd

ACTIVITY The more we move, the better we are – fact.

Paul Ollerton

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o far in our monthly Platinum wellbeing feature, we have covered subjects such as what areas to focus on, how to pull a plan together and how to manage the issue of mental health and wellbeing at work.

In this month’s issue, our aim is to show you how easy it is to begin a programme with 15 simple, low cost and easy to implement ideas.

Champions

First things first, look for people in the team who will help you drive consistency. Choose someone (or a number of people) who are passionate about ‘being well’ and would be interested in helping to spread the message at work and help others. Maybe you could reward them for doing so with an extra day or two of holiday?

12 easy ideas

In an earlier edition, we discussed the key areas of wellness and identified the following areas through the Key Pillars of Wellbeing (issue 57). Please note that the area of mental health is not included in this issue, as the topic was covered in detail last month.

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We really are what we eat – our workforce will perform better if they eat well.

Promote cycle to work schemes and provide a safe area for cyclists to store their bikes. The scheme can be complicated with tax, so try www.cyclescheme.co.uk – they make it easy!

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NUTRITION

It’s easy to identify healthy dining options within a short distance from the office, and then use your staff notice boards to highlight who and where they are.

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If there is no catering on site, there are good healthy snack box and vending machine specialists who can provide healthy alternatives to sugary / fatty drinks and snacks. One of our favourites is www.healthynibbles.co.uk

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Fresh fruit boxes in the break rooms – this is a well-used but very effective way of encouraging employees to eat heathy snacks. BUT many companies fall foul of buying poor quality produce which then sits and goes rotten. Our tip is buy less, but more often and of higher quality with a longer shelf life.

Negotiate discounts with local gyms, or use an insurance provider like Vitality who provide massive discounts with selected gym chains.

Most importantly, encourage employees to take advantage; it might be worth thinking about flexible working hours to allow employees to attend in no-peak working hours.

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Try a walking meeting. As crazy as it sounds, conducting a meeting while taking a walk can lead to greater focus, less distraction and quicker decision making. Steve Jobs was a massive fan and used walking meetings as part of his daily schedule.

HEALTH & WELLBEING

USING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE WELLBEING AT WORK

GENERAL WELLBEING Creating a healthy and inclusive environment has massive productivity benefits.

Technology can play a pivotal role in embedding the long term benefits of wellness at work.

of stress alongside apps that are designed to support mental health issues.

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Wearable technology.

According to a survey by GlobalData in 2018, more than 40% of adults own a wearable tech device such as a FitBit or Apple Watch. However, only a

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Use a health calendar to make sure you stay abreast of topical campaigns. The NHS provide an excellent and free service which highlights the dates and content of the main wellbeing campaigns through the year. Go to www.nhsemployers.org for more details.

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Form an inclusive lunchtime ‘activity club’. It might be as easy as arranging a weekly walk, to encourage a better sense of community amongst the teams at work. Just half an hour of normal paced walking will cover 3000 steps and typically burn up to 150 calories.

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Standing desks. Did you know standing burns on average 0.7 calories per minute more than sitting? A typical worker would burn 30,000 calories over the course of a year, the equivalent of running ten marathons in a year! Check out fellow Platinum magazine contributors Posturite, they’re offering a 20% discount on certain ergonomic products – go to www.posturite.co.uk.

Flexible working. Technology solutions can signifi cantly reduce the stress caused by having to put long hours in at the office. Video calling, file sharing, and instant messaging can help employees to work smarter. The ViiSana team loves Zoom and PowWowNow for video calling, ZoHo for file sharing and instant messaging – with great results.

fraction of companies offer the use of wearable technology to encourage wellbeing. Their use can help to motivate increased activity, like moving away from desks, and can also help users to monitor the physical signs

Virtual GP services is one of the fastest growing technology driven wellness initiatives.

The services offer virtual GP consultations, most often via a mobile phone or webcam.

The speed of services means that most users are more likely to take active care of their health, as opposed to being put off by long waiting times. This can lead to a significant reduction in both absenteeism and presenteeism.

Contact us ViiSana specialises in creating wellbeing programmes through the implementation of company-wide Vitality Life and Health insurance. If you would like to discuss your company’s individual health concerns/ challenges, or if you would just like to discuss ideas for implementing a programme at your business, please get in touch: Email paul.ollerton@viisana.com Phone 0333 772 0761 Twitter/Instagram/Facebook/LinkedIn

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How to have

workplace conversations

about mental health

The Thrive Team’s co-founder Ali Trodd gives her tips on having a conversation about mental health in the workplace According to Mental Health First Aid England, 57% of UK employees say they have experienced mental health issues at work but less than half of that group felt confident to open up about it. I’d suggest that lack of confidence exists because:

Co-founder of The Thrive Team, Alison Trodd

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hriving at Work, a report commissioned by Theresa May in 2017 and written by Lord Dennis Stephenson (ex HBOS Chairman) and Paul Farmer (Chief Executive, Mind) sets out what employers can do to better support all employees, including those with mental health problems to remain in and thrive through work.

Encouraging open conversations about mental health is one of the six core standards set out in the report.

But how do you have a conversation about mental health? Most conversations about health can feel awkward for both parties, particularly if they’re taking place at work but it’s often much more difficult when that conversation is about mental health.

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• They were scared their honesty would affect their job in some way • They didn’t feel they would be listened to • They didn’t feel they would get support If you had concerns about someone’s mental health or if someone was honest enough to open up to you would you know how to handle that conversation confidently? It can feel daunting, you’re worried you’ll make someone feel worse but it’s more likely the individual will feel relieved that you showed that you cared.

Here are my top tips to help you have that conversation: CREATE the right environment – grab a drink and head somewhere quiet and free of distractions.

“HOW ARE YOU?” will normally be met by the standard “I’m fine” so be prepared to follow up with something

along the lines of “I’ve noticed you haven’t seemed yourself lately, is there anything you want to talk about?”.

LISTEN – I don’t mean hear the words as you plan your opening line to ask for the latest project update. I mean really listen without interrupting.

BE OPEN with your body language (e.g. appropriate levels of eye contact) and consider cultural differences. Look for clues in body language about how they’re really feeling.

SHOW EMPATHY and be NON JUDGMENTAL – try to put yourself in their shoes.

ASSUMPTIONS can be easily made but you shouldn’t try to guess what symptoms an employee might have and how these might affect their ability to function and do their job. Many people are able to manage their mental health and work to a high standard and may require support measures when experiencing a difficult period. Your perspective might be useful, but try not to assume that you already know what may have caused their feelings, or what will help.

57%

of UK employees say they have experienced mental health issues at work Mental Health First Aid England

HEALTH & WELLBEING Fig 1. The Thrive Team mental health training options

If you had concerns about someone’s mental health or if someone was honest enough to open up to you would you know how to handle that conversation confidently?

ASK QUESTIONS – How are you feeling at the moment? How long have you been feeling like this? Are there any factors at work/home that are contributing? Have you visited your GP? If so what did they recommend? What can we do to help? Keep the focus on feelings.

SILENCE is golden but can feel awkward for you as the listener. Try to avoid filling the gaps with another question and allow your colleague time to think and respond.

OFFER SUPPORT – practical and emotional, not glib platitudes. Let them know about any company support services such as your Employee Assistance Programme or Occupational Health department if you have them. Remind them to visit their own GP if they haven’t already and suggest other avenues of support such as Mind or Samaritans.

FOLLOW UP ON ANY ACTIONS and

keep the conversations going – check in at an appropriate point in the future to see how they’re doing.

CONFIDENTIALITY is vital for creating and maintaining trust. Only share information with the express permission of the individual. If you believe the person is at risk of harm to themselves or others you should seek professional medical help and support for the individual with their knowledge.

KEEP YOURSELF SAFE – It’s important to maintain strong boundaries and not take on the problems of others. Reflect on what you need to take care of yourself.

In the CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) Health and Wellbeing at Work Survey 2019 only 30% of respondents said managers are confident to have sensitive discussion/signpost staff to expert help.

ing and awareness sessions for all levels of the organisation to help build awareness and confidence in workplace mental health issues.

Get in touch If you’d like to find out about our training courses and how we can help you to feel confident supporting mental health in your organisation, get in touch.The Thrive Team discovering, and developing high performing leaders and helping them to thrive at work and in life. Find out more about our search, selection, coaching and mental health training offering at www. thethriveteam.co.uk Tel: 01243 957667 Email : ali@thethriveteam.co.uk Follow us on twitter @TheThriveTeam1 LinkedIn : The Thrive Team

The Thrive Team offer a range of train-

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Take a break Could microbreaks solve the UK’s ‘productivity puzzle’?

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urveys suggest we’re a nation of workaholics, putting in £31 billion worth of free overtime each year. Despite our apparent hard graft, the UK’s productivity has been in steady decline since the recession.

The Office for National Statistics dubs it the ‘productivity puzzle’. We’re putting in the hours but we’re not reaping the benefits. So what’s going wrong?

Many claim that, far from boosting the economy, our overtime culture is working against us. Graham Allcott, founder of Hove-based management training consultancy Think Productive, said: “We work too many hours in the UK right now. Not enough rest equals substandard performance, while working shorter hours changes people’s mindset for the better.”

But the problem doesn’t stop at the physical dangers of sitting. Traditional office life, which tends to be structured around start times and set breaks with people working at designated workstations, may be easy to monitor and manage, but it’s not necessarily conducive to productivity.

Studies show that the typical person has an attention span of just fourteen minutes. In meetings that drops to thirteen minutes.

Recent studies have found that for optimal performance, the brain requires periods of both focus and unfocus. While in unfocus mode (say,

believe that accessing this new, previously unearthed information enhances skills like self-awareness, creativity, idea-generation and the ability to make decisions.

So what should we be doing to make our time at work more inspiring? At Posturite we’re great believers in agile working - the practice of giving employees the freedom and autonomy to work in ways that suit them and the tasks their jobs require them to complete. Provided staff are given suitable equipment like laptop stands, detachable mice and keyboards and ergonomic chairs, they should be able to work in a variety of environments comfortably and productively.

“Microbreaks are thought to induce a range of benefits, from relieving physical pain, to reducing stress and reigniting creativity”

Our preconceptions about productivity and how it should look - starting at the crack of dawn, working through lunch, finishing late, may well be working against us. An office full of people rooted to their desks may appease a traditional manager, but being present isn’t always an indicator of productivity and we’re already familiar with the phrase ‘sitting is the new smoking’, with sedentary behaviour contributing to 11.6% of all deaths each year, according to a shocking Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University.

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gazing out of a window, doodling, or daydreaming), we engage a brain circuit called the default mode network (DMN). When activated, this circuit requires up to 20% of the body’s energy. Surprising perhaps, given that scientists nicknamed it the Do Mostly Nothing circuit. Beneath the surface the DMN circuit is hard at work, triggering functions such as activating old memories, switching back and forth between the past, present and future, and forging new connections between different ideas. Scientists

A key part of agile working is the taking of microbreaks - short but frequent pauses that usually involve stretching, standing, walking, or anything that takes the eyes and mind away from the screen.

Microbreaks are important for focus, but they’re also important for posture.

How often do you find yourself hunching over your screen because you’ve become immersed in something? It’s these prolonged postures that result in painful (and extremely costly) musculoskeletal disorders.

Microbreaks are thought to induce a range of benefits, from relieving phys-

HEALTH & WELLBEING “Recent studies have found that for optimal performance, the brain requires periods of both focus and unfocus” ical pain, to reducing stress and reigniting creativity.

The benefits of microbreaks include: • Gives your brain a rest • Increases accuracy • Increases oxygen and blood circulation • Disrupts poor postures • Allows time to process memories • Improves engagement • Boosts feelings of positivity • Avoids mental and physical fatigue • Lowers risks of aches and pains While microbreaks alone may not solve the nation’s productivity puzzle, a more flexible attitude to working that considers human behaviour and makes intelligent use of technology, could certainly help put the spark back into people’s careers.

At Posturite, we help clients establish healthy agile working practices by consulting, training and providing suitable ergonomic equipment. If you would like to chat to one of our consultants about agile working, please call us on 0345 345 0010, or visit posturite.co.uk/agile-working for more information.

Visit Posturite.co.uk/agileworking-products.html and use code PBACTIVE to get 15% off any products within the category (ends September 30th 2019)

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Health &WELLBEING

news

Get smart for kids health

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esearchers are developing a smartphone app that might help parents detect fluid buildup in a child’s ear — one symptom of an ear infection.

The app is still experimental and would require clearance by the Food and Drug Administration before it could hit

the market. But early data, published in Science Translational Medicine, suggests that the smartphone can perform as well as an expensive test in a doctor’s office. The app would work by using the phone’s microphone and speaker to make its diagnosis.

Source: npr

Sudoko for better brain health

Breakfast like a king

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kipping breakfast might increase your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The connection, found in a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, of 6,550 adults aged 65-75, was particularly strong for strokes. Almost 60% of the participants had breakfast every day, a quarter on some days, and 16% rarely or never – all were free of heart disease at the start of the study.

Over an average 17 years of follow-up, there were 2,318 deaths, including 619

C from cardiovascular diseases. Those who skipped the meal had an 87% increased risk of death from any cardiovascular disease and a 19% increased risk of death overall.

Drug giants’ plans for medicine boost

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ohnson & Johnson is expected to file marketing applications for at least 10 new drugs between 2019 to 2023, to strengthen its pharmaceuticals unit which has been a major growth driver.

The company said it would discuss four medicines that are new to J&J’s pipeline of drugs at its review as well as therapeutic areas such as gene therapy and RNA therapeutics.

Source: Reuters

ompleting a daily Sudoko could delay brain ageing by eight to 10 years, a study of nearly 20,000 people suggests. University of Exeter and King’s College London academics carried out research into more than 19,000 participants of an online survey. They were asked to report how often they engage in word and number puzzles, and to undertake a series of cognitive tests sensitive to measuring changes in brain function. The scientists found the more regularly participants engaged with the puzzles, the better they performed on tasks assessing attention, reasoning and memory.

Sunny side up tudies have shown that a sensible amount of sun reduces your risk of several cancers and other serious health conditions thanks to vitamin D, which is made by our bodies through the action of the sun’s UVB rays on our skin.

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sun. It is essential for absorbing calcium, keeping our bones healthy, and for protecting against serious chronic diseases later in life such as osteoporosis, Type II diabetes, multiple sclerosis and many common cancers.”

Professor Michael Holick, of Boston University School of Medicine says: “We get about 90-95% of our vitamin D from the

He advises that we should go out in the sun without sunblock for between five and 15 minutes a day to boost our vitamin D levels.

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It takes an expert to appreciate expert guidance

We believe you can never have too much expert guidance.

That’s why our Relationship Managers are specialists in business banking. Their in-depth knowledge of the professional sector enables them to support firms in achieving their strategic ambitions and growth plans.

To find out how we can help, please contact Gary Chown, Director Commercial Banking, 07748 704484 gary.chown@natwest.com

0800 694 0042

Minicom: 0800 404 6161

Monday to Friday 9am-5pm (excluding public holidays).

Calls may be recorded.

Team Unum

Sussex Business – the Next Generation Eastbourne College and Hurstpierpoint College crowned the Best Young Enterprise Companies in Sussex

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he Young Enterprise (YE) county final took place at Ricardo in Shoreham, with two companies, Unum and Tok, chosen to go onto the Regional (South East) Company of the year competition Final on 5th June at the HG Wells Centre in Woking.

Over 14,500 young people aged 15-19 from across the country have set up and run a real business over the academic year as part of YE’s Company Programme. Students have made all the decisions about their business, from deciding on the company name and product, to creating a business

plan, managing their finances and selling their products.

Young Enterprise research shows Company Programme participants develop key employability skills and a longitudinal study of Company Programme alumni has shown that in the two years following their company’s closure, 95% are in education, employment or training [EET] – 7% higher than the national rate of 88%.

The students’ company from Hurstpierpoint College, Tok, sold Eco-friendly, hand etched, unique, portable, glass

water bottles. The team Unum, from Eastbourne College, sold Jewellery assembled by them with meaningful quotes created by them, projecting their key values and having an artisanal craft feel.

THE WINNERS Sussex Company of the Year Winner Unum – Eastbourne College Sussex Company of the Year Runner up TOK – Hurstpierpoint College Best TV Advert Soundwaves - BHASVIC Best Teamwork Unum – Eastbourne College Best Customer Service Unum - Eastbourne College Sustainability award TOK – Hurstpierpoint College

Team TOK

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Innovation award Soteria – Brighton & Hove High School for Girls

YOUNG ENTERPRISE Developing the skills of our future workforce Barbara Lombert on the importance of Young Enterprise

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oung Enterprise began in 1963 on a very small scale yet most people are now likely to have worked with someone in the Company Programme alumni. The person they have met will be inspirational, confident and up for challenges. They will demonstrate resilience and know that what employers are looking for and how they can add value.

Young Enterprise is the only programme that gives school pupils normally aged 14/15 (year 10) or 16/17 (year 12) an opportunity to set up a company and trade for real during the best part of a school year. In those eight months or so they get out what they put in and some of those teams are innovative, inspirational and thinking outside the box. All are conscientious and keen to make their business successful. They choose roles and their company name, they decide whether they are providing a product or service or inventing something new.

The change in confidence can be huge. Little mice develop into brave, confident and sometimes brilliant sales people. The competition, with its various elements, is the ‘icing on the cake’. Teams have to write a 10 page report, prepare a four minute presentation, demonstrate how they have maximised their digital presence, and deal with a team interview with judges (quite often sponsors of the awards).

Why volunteer with Young Enterprise?

I spent 12 years working in post-16 education funding for the Training and Enterprise Council (TEC) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). Employers told the TEC and

Matt Ryan, Young Enterprise Manager said: “I would first like to congratulate all the teams that made it to this stage, to compete at county level is a huge achievement.

“The Awards highlighted how the Young Enterprise Company Programme can inspire young people to become the entrepreneurs of tomorrow and help them develop practical business skills while they are still at school.

“I want to congratulate all the students

the LSC that they did not think young people coming out of education were job ready. Education was not preparing them for commerce. We live in such a competitive world with over 1 million graduates in China and India each year, so our home grown talent needs to reach its full potential.

In the five years I have been supporting school teams, and latterly as a member of the local board for Eastbourne & Wealden, I have learned a great deal and been able to share many of my own experiences. It is a role I can recommend to anyone with some commercial experience who wishes to work in management or wants to be on the fast track to promotion. Young Enterprise always needs more volunteers, and day programmes are another ideal way to become involved.

Always a need for more support

Young Enterprise is a charity with a national network of volunteer boards and county managers. It would not be able to complete this work without the sponsorship and support of employers.

The South East Finals will be held in Woking in early June where the Sussex winners will meet the winners from Kent, Surrey, Hampshire and the Channel Islands. From there the winners will go through to the national finals at the London Southbank later that month and those winners will go to Paris for the international finals hosted by President Macron.

For any company or individual wishing to support Young Enterprise please contact Bracey Parish, YE South East Regional Manager, on 07814 523534 or check out the website www.young-enterprise.org.uk.

Barbara Lombert is the Communications Lead for the Eastbourne & Wealden Volunteer Board and a Business Adviser for Young Enterprise

for taking part in the programme and for all their hard work this year. In particular our runners up, Hurstpierpoint College and our winners, Eastbourne College.

“A huge thank you must go to all our participating schools; centre leads and business advisors for their efforts through the year. We would like to give a special thanks to our judges and supporters of the programme and event, Ricardo Ltd, King William Street Capital Management, HSBC, The Body Shop and Eastbourne Chamber of Commerce to name a few.”

Michael Mercieca, Chief Executive of Young Enterprise said: “It is exciting to see who is going on to represent Sussex as Young Enterprise continue the search to find this year’s Best Young Enterprise Company.

“It's the ultimate measure of many months of hard work from the students, representing their creativity, resilience and business acumen. You don’t get this stuff from a text book” www.young-enterprise.org.uk

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INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS

Reassuringly Recycled Reducing the amount of waste that goes into landfill is an important issue for the construction industry. Paul Hetherington, IoD Sussex Ambassador for Construction and Manufacturing, discusses the responsibility manufacturers have towards recycling and environmental sustainability products for more than 20 years. Our PVC-U trunking is manufactured from 80% recycled material, with some extruded white trunking profiles manufactured from 100% recycled content – meaning we are saving the weight of 300 double decker buses worth of PVC-U waste entering landfill each year. If all PVC-U cable management manufacturers increased the portion of recycled material in their systems to just 50%, it’s estimated that this figure could triple.

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n the UK, approximately 120 million tonnes of waste is produced by construction activity each year – this amounts to nearly 60% of all UK waste. An estimated 25 million tonnes of this waste is sent straight to landfill.

While sustainability has been a talking point in the industry and improvements have been made, there needs to be more action taken to prevent waste from reaching landfill. Plastic and PVC-U has been at the forefront of scrutiny for environmental causes, but it is possible to adopt manufacturing practices that ensure this material is part of the recycling revolution.

For example my own business, Marshall-Tufflex, has been using recycled material to manufacture

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Offcuts from PVC-U window fabrication are ideal for recycling, as they are designed to withstand the external environment – making trunking created from this recycled content stronger than when virgin material is used. For the production process, the windows are taken to a factory where they are turned into chipped PVC-U pellets, which are then subsequently delivered to the manufacturer to use when creating new trunking systems.

Leading manufacturers should have strict quality control processes in place to monitor the quality of the recycled material. This will be in compliance with the REACH standards (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and restriction of Chemicals),

which regards the production and use of chemicals and their impact on both human health and the environment.

In addition, an ISO 14001 Environmental Management Accreditation will demonstrate that manufacturers have taken steps to reduce their impact on the environment throughout the production process.

The ultimate vision so far as we are concerned is that within ten years, all PVC-U cable management products installed in the UK are manufactured from a minimum of 50% recycled material. We want the conversation about environmental sustainability to be had throughout the entire supply chain – from architect to end-user clients, encouraging everyone to make informed decisions when specifying, buying, installing and using PVC-U trunking systems.

This will significantly reduce the sector’s environmental impact and contribute towards a more circular economy.

Paul Hetherington is IoD Sussex Ambassador for Construction and Manufacturing, and Chief Executive of Marshall-Tufflex. www.iod.com

PROMOTIONAL FEATURE

A World of Corporate Adventures

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hen booking corporate away days, it can be hard work to plan something that ticks all the boxes and pleases all members of staff whilst also ensuring a work element is maintained!

So, a compromise is not unusual. In business, mixed ages, abilities and life experiences are what make us stronger as a team all working together towards one common goal. At Foggs Adventures you can literally have it all – no compromises and a happy and inspired bunch of employees at the end of the day.

The Phileas Fogg’s World of Adventures is Brighton’s newest answer to team building away days – a challenge-based group activity featuring

16 different sets and over 30 brain busting games and tasks suitable for all ages and abilities. Your group are hosted by professional actors as you are transported back in time escorted

by Mr Phileas Fogg himself, on a journey around the world with amazing and unique sets designed by the creators of the world-famous James Bond, Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean film sets.

enquire about exclusive hire of the venue for a unique company event for your colleagues or clients.

Corporate visits are fully bespoke with pre-bookable additional options that can be added to the experience to create a full team-building day with a unique difference.

Enjoy free parking on site and the attraction has full wheelchair access throughout., including the experience itself. Conveniently located just off the A27 at Sussex House, Crowhurst Road, Hollingbury in Brighton.

Group experiences start from just £24.50+VAT per person* or why not

Additional upgrade options include hire of a Victorian themed boardroom with AV facilities, various catering options, multiple team challenges and pre-orders in our fully licensed Reform Bar with a capacity for up to 100 guests.

*experience only

COMING SOON...

Jack the Ripper ‘Walk of Terror’ Is your group brave enough??

The fantastic new Jack the Ripper Walk of Terror opens in Brighton on Saturday June 29th. Groups will wander the streets of Victorian London and hear stories of the murders that took place in 1888. True recreations of the very streets and locations where this mysterous serial killer took the lives of five women. Prepare to be scared to death!

Jack the Ripper Walk of Terror can be added as part of any Foggs Adventures corporate package.

Enquire on: 01273 007799 Or email: info@foggsadventures.co.uk

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University of Sussex’s

entrepreneurs of the year announced Recognising entrepreneurs and startups at the 2019 StartUp Sussex Awards, an annual programme for students and graduates from the University of Sussex

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gamified grammar-training app and a ‘point of care’ test for meningitis and sepsis were among the winning business ideas at the 2019 StartUp Sussex Awards, an annual programme delivered by Sussex Innovation for students and recent graduates from the University of Sussex.

The enterprise competition reached its climax with the award of a series of prizes, worth a total of £43,000, to five young teams of entrepreneurs.

the winners receive a £10,000 prize consisting of a cash award and ongoing membership, consultancy and marketing from Sussex Innovation.

Several runner-up prizes were also announced at an awards ceremony held in the Sussex Innovation Centre and attended by members of the local business community, University staff and students, and the Mayor of Brighton and Hove.

“It’s one thing to have a clever idea, and another to untangle how that idea can make money”

The 2019 StartUp Sussex winner was English Literature PhD graduate Lana Harper. Her business, Write Now, sets out to train students and young professionals in the fundamentals of good written communication, via a mobile app consisting of a series of minigames.

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The Social Impact Prize is awarded each year to the enterprise with the most potential to bring about positive social change. The 2019 winners were Mustafa Khraishi, a BSc Biology graduate, and his co-founder Fergus Morris of Adaptive Diagnostics. They will use their winnings to patent protect their

meningitis and sepsis test, as well as working with Sussex Innovation’s advisors to build a sustainable model around the product, which could have huge implications for healthcare delivery in the developing world.

As well as earning the title of University of Sussex Entrepreneurs of the Year,

The other winners:

In second place in StartUp Sussex 2019, Mark Rynston (LLB Law w/Business) received an £8,000 prize for his idea, TheLawMarketplace.com. His platform will act as a comparison site for solicitors and law practices, focusing on the B2C market.

In third place, Cristobal Matte (MSc Strategic Innovation Management) received a £6,000 prize for his enter-

SUSSEX INNOVATION CENTRE prise, Airkeep. His platform helps arrange peer-to-peer storage between travellers and hosts, ‘like AirBnB for luggage’.

A special ‘One to Watch’ award went to Austin Okolo (FDN Biosciences), who the judges recognised as a young entrepreneur with promise. Austin received a £1,000 prize for his business Born to Stand Out, a designer clothing and lifestyle brand.

In second place in the Social Impact Prize 2019, Jon McGlashan (MSc Project Management) and Carolina Avellaneda Cadena (MSc Environment Development and Policy) received an £8,000 prize for their enterprise, Bubble Life. They have developed an ethical bath and shower brand with products entirely free of plastic packaging.

“I don’t feel like my feet have touched the ground yet! The best thing I’ve taken away from this experience is learning to get out of my comfort zone, talk to people and sell myself and my idea. I feel very lucky to be here… it’s great to have a chance to celebrate with everybody.”

Lana Harper, Write Now

L-R: Mike Herd, former Executive Director, SINC, Lana Harper, Cllr Dee Simpson, Mayor of Brighton & Hove

The student enterprise award with a difference

Many universities offer some form of grant funding for their enterprising students, but the Sussex Innovation team believe that the intensive mentoring provided as part of StartUp Sussex sets it apart from other programmes of its kind.

“We realised, six or seven years ago now, that there was a flaw in the way student entrepreneurship was being facilitated through these sorts of

grants,” says Simon Chuter, the organisation’s Student Enterprise Manager. “Back then, StartUp Sussex was a much more straightforward competition, where students sent in an outline of their business idea, and we picked a winner. It’s great to receive start-up funding, obviously, but the team noticed that many of the winners either didn’t know where to start spending the money, or even worse, just didn’t

move forward with the idea at all. We decided that we wanted to do things differently.”

Starting in 2013, the programme was completely redesigned. Sussex Innovation’s business mentors began to deliver a series of workshops for students and recent graduates throughout the University’s autumn term. The sessions were designed to explore approaches to creative problem solving, how to test and validate an idea, and perform effective customer research.

“Instead of asking for fully formed pitches, we’re now encouraging them to hold their ideas lightly, interrogate them thoroughly, and really prove that there’s a commercial opportunity there,” says Chuter. “It means that the outputs we see later on are much more robust, and there’s the added benefit that even the students who don’t make it through have learned a lot of valuable skills along the way.”

People working on their canvases from one of the StartUp Sussex workshops

In December, following eight of these workshops, teams have two minutes to present their ideas to peers, and ten finalists are selected to progress to the second phase of the competition. These ten teams then start an

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SUSSEX INNOVATION CENTRE Where are they now?

Four former winners’ stories

2018 winner Molly Masters (above) launched her empowering literature subscription box service Books That Matter in September last year. The business already has more than 700 recurring monthly subscribers, and has been featured by the likes of Forbes, The Huffington Post and The Evening Standard.

2018 runner-up Julian Bourne has also won the People’s Choice Award in the national Pitch@Palace enterprise competition, and Startup of the Year at the Sussex Business Awards with his restaurant deals chatbot Waffle. The business was accepted onto the prestigious TechStars accelerator programme in Berlin and has received several rounds of investment to date.

2016 winner Darren Tenkorang (above) has received seed investment of £225,000 for his mobile barber business Trim-It, which was recently the subject of BBC News feature charting his entrepreneurial journey.

2015 runner-up Nick Musto has taken his event listings app Native to 17 cities and 300,000 users in the UK, securing £175,000 in seed investment and a partnership with BBC Radio 1 along the way.

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“It feels very satisfying to be able to get the ball rolling – we finally have the funds to patent our technology! StartUp Sussex was a really great experience, with brilliant support from the Sussex Innovation team and strong competition from the other finalists’ ideas, so it feels good to be standing here now as winners.”

Mustafa Khraishi, and Fergus Morris, Adaptive Diagnostics

L-R: Mike Herd, former Executive Director, SINC, Mustafa Khraishi, Fergus Morris, Cllr Dee Simpson, Mayor of Brighton & Hove

“We’re encouraging students to hold their ideas lightly, interrogate them thoroughly, and really prove that there’s a commercial opportunity there” intensive two month mentoring programme at the Sussex Innovation Centre, during which they are asked to write a full business plan.

Finally, they prepare a much more indepth presentation, which is delivered to a judging panel consisting of local investors, entrepreneurs and representatives from the University.

The programme has grown signifi cantly over the past six years, from a cohort of 35 students in 2013, to more than 100 who applied to join the first workshop this year. The last three editions have also included the Social Impact Prize, an award specifically for social enterprises, after an additional grant was donated by a Sussex alumnus.

“While it’s got bigger and more complex, the basic principle remains the

same,” adds Chuter. “We want to see the winners go on to build something real and grow it – which means that they have to get to grips with how they’re going to solve a problem for their customers and get people to pay for it. It’s one thing to have a clever idea, and another to untangle how that idea can make money. That’s the whole purpose behind StartUp Sussex, and the results are starting to speak for themselves.”

BUSINESS GROWTH

NatWest Accelerator

Founder of the Month – May 2019 Percept Imagery

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orking at a game development company in India, Akshay (CEO) with a degree in architectural visualisation and 3D design, quickly realised that although people could move ‘freely’ within environments when playing a computer game, the same user experience was not available in the architectural world.

Akshay got to work building a product to help developers and architects and they quickly secured a number of projects with local developers utilising the 3D models which they could navigate through using a computer or touch screen device such as an iPad – similar to Google street view.

They’ve come a long way in a short space of time since that initial product, thanks to their forward thinking.

From day one their focus was always on the opportunity that future developments would provide. In particular building a product that would be compatible with up and coming technologies, such as VR.

Equipped their new VR headsets and thanks to their forward thinking, they were able to rapidly convert their previous work into immersive environments while the competition had to re-design their processes before adopting the new technology.

Akshay and Rohan teamed up and co-founded Percept Imagery Ltd. and with support from the Sirius programme, they moved back to the UK to secure seed funding and seek out new opportunities. At the same time, they joined the NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator programme where they’ve been supported and challenged in equal measure to enhance both the business and their leadership abilities.

developer can be stood in the same room of a building despite one being based in London and the other in Barcelona.

In the last six months they set out to answer three key issues: the upfront hardware cost to clients, the ease of use and access to the technology.

They’ve done this by:

1

Building software that performs brilliantly with lower end portable VR headsets. No need for top of the range gear means that clients are able to invest in the technology without a blow to their cashflow.

2

Making their software cloudbased. This allows clients to (almost) instantly convert 3D designs into a virtual reality experience with incredible accuracy. It’s genuinely that simple!

3

Building a platform which encourages multi-person collaboration and communication. Each with a headset, an architect and a property

They’re now a revenue generating business and are in discussions with some of the Europe’s biggest architectural and property development firms.

They’re also in talks with distribution partners in India and have recently been voted in the Top 15 Most Promising Startups at the EU Startup Summit!

When asked what their best advise was for other aspiring and promising entrepreneurs they said: “Create something meaningful, be obsessed with your mission and be realistic”. Akshay added that being obsessed with your mission is key to maintaining motivation during tough times and to keep you focused on the longer term goal.

Percept Imagery are a UK-based startup offering a cloud-based immersive platform called Foresight. Foresight instantly converts any architectural design into a collaborative VR experience, providing accurate spatial projections and making the design and approval process sustainable by reducing costs and resources. www.perceptimagery.com

Each month the leadership team at Brighton’s NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator select a founder of the month to recognise the individuals that have demonstrated a growth mindset and entrepreneurial spirit to overcome challenges and accelerate the growth of their business in a short space of time.

To find out more about the Accelerator hub, email kristina.pereckaite@ NatWest.com

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SA RA M CG RI GO

DMH Stallard

IA J E S S V IC TO Ritors

UP

d orate an c sful Corp ommerPDT Soli c ’ succes rs ’s o T it D P lic o s T S then rcial joins PD nt streng ith their comme Jessup e pointme Victoria . The ap ssisting clients w law, including th m a te l ia a l ial Commerc , which includes w, as wel ommerc c la f n o io ct es te su ng cial offeri nd advising on is spects of data pro sa e nt a contract nforcem l property. c e an d e a s complian g their intellectu ria bring ey, Victo in ark Attorn leading brands as protect m e d a Tr lified ing for nts’ first part-qua ce work is the clie rk and itor and experien a , Victoria As a solic nsive in -house m ch e d su a s tr A te is. ding to PDT ex o and Philip Morr protection, inclu . d o es n h C su ra y b is t n m h Jim pyrig vice o all for ad nt a n d c o port of c forceme gs, IP en lin fi n ig des

LO RN A SI ZE R Galloways

lloways as a tancy practice Ga her ed Sussex accoun Lorna brings with s, me Lorna Sizer has join Ja ill Kn at usly Director ce. en eri Tax Partner. Previo exp tax st rs of speciali more than 25 yea to look after a l be on continuing nt Lorna’s focus wil anding the curre exp as ll In her new role, we as of private clients growing number specialists. tax team of eight and look forteam at Galloways thrilled to join the team. Galloways er wid d an Lorna said: “I’m nts h our fantastic clie I’m looking forward to working wit s the county and g reputation acros to simplif y and nts clie r ou g has such a stron lpin he our tax team and ward to growing affairs.” manage their tax

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R

&

Top 100 law firm DMH Stallard ha s made another ment at its rapidly senior appointexpanding Guildf ord office.

Sara McGrigor join s the private client team as a senior is ver y well know associate and n in Surrey havin g previously worke in Guildford, Cra d at Hart Brown nleigh, and Goda lm ing. Sara has als with her family for o lived locally many years and is looking for ward the close relation to building on ship the firm enjoy s with residents in the area.

Sara said: “With DMH Stallard gro wing so quickly in ver y exciting tim Guildford, it is a e for me to join the firm.”

Movers ELEANOR RICHAR DS, KAREN LORD , SOPHIE

Healys LLP

MACARTHY

Healys LLP co ntinues to grow ings by welco its corporate ming three ne and commer cial offerw highly expe its Brighton tea rienced female m. partners to Karen Lord he ads the corpor ate team and transactional specialises in work for UK an corporate d Internationa nised leader in l clients. Kare her field by Le n is a recoggal 500 and Ch Sophie Macar thy is a comm ambers and Pa ercial proper ty rtners. all types of lan specialist. She d and proper advises on ty transactions quisitions, lea , business sa ses and contra les and accts, portfolio Eleanor Richar management ds is an expe and finance. rt in advising civil disputes. clients on com She has esta mercial and blished experti (corporate an se in insolven d personal). cy litigation

MOVERS & SHAKERS

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N EI L GA RD N ER PVL Ltd

er to the new pointed Neil Gardn d PVL UK has ap -winning vehicle ard aw the s Burgess Hill-base join il ting Manager. Ne iting time, with position of Marke business at an exc brand promotion tical marketing tac d an ing safety livery and nn pla for ward strategic and maximise a remit to drive ccessful growth continue PVL’s su s. tor campaigns that t sec rtunities in targe key business oppo ting leadership -business marke d years business -to ovative prod20 r inn ove cy, s an ha ult il Ne g cons SME and within engineerin th ilt bo bu s , ros ce ac en es eri exp ser vic siand professional rwick Busi ualified from Wa uct manufacturing nts. He is MBA-q titute of me Ins on d vir ere en art 0 Ch 25 FTSE er of the has been a Memb ness School and st 10 years. pa the for g tin Marke

Shakers

ALIC E CA HI LL , AN TO NY BA RN ET T, CH AR LOTT E SC OT LA N D Harvey John In response to the buoyant market in these sectors, to introduce three we’re pleased new hires at Harve y John. Alice Cahill Barnett join us as Recruitment and Antony Consultants on desk and Charlott our Accountancy e Scotland joins the Legal desk as Consultant. a Resourcing Alice will be spec ialising in Corpo rate Finance & Re Antony will focus structuring and on the Private Cli ent Tax sector, wh assist the legal tea ile Charlotte will m in all sourcing needs.

Welcome to our second instalment of the latest business appointments and promotions across the business world; see who’s doing what and where, including those ones to watch How do you cut through the white noise of recruitment? You lower the volume.

At Harvey John, recruitment is far from a transactional service.

It’s about fostering long-term partnerships within our core markets. Quality over quantity.

Specialising in Accountancy, Tax, and Legal since 2004, Harvey John are an international recruitment firm with two offices in the heart of Brighton and a team of 15 individual skill-sets, each united by a shared vision of how recruitment should be.

By immersing ourselves in every corner of these markets, we maintain an incredibly niche expertise, enabling us to simplify the most complex of searches. And whether that assignment takes us across Sussex, London, Europe, Asia, or the Americas, our deep sector knowledge - paired with our multi-faceted methodology - means that we provide local solutions on a global scale.

And so, by lowering the volume, we strip ourselves from unnecessary pressures and, in turn, become a trusted partner to companies worldwide.

Contact us Tel: 01273 820808 Email: info@harveyjohn.com www.harveyjohn.com

RO B C L A R

Sussex Cham

E

ber of Com

merce

Rob Clare has been ap po Commerce , having alre inted Chairman of Su ssex Cham ady served director. ber of two terms as a non- ex ecutive Rob has lived and worked help of the in Sussex fo Chamber’s r most of hi CEO and Bo s life and, w business co ith the ard, he is ke mmunity an en to help th d give it a vo e local ice on key lo cal issues.

His career w as ed Innovatio in commercial banking, n Capital w following w hich he co -fo hich provid ness grow th es corporat advice to lo e finance an undcal owner m ranging fro d busi anaged busi m fintech to nesses with FMCG. clients

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Masters at work Manor Royal is the largest business destination at the heart of the Gatwick Diamond. We preview four new world-class commercial developments that have arrived in the business district

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anor Royal Business District is the biggest business park in the Gatwick Diamond and one of the largest in the UK. It covers an area of 540 acres, with over 700 properties and more than eight million square feet of commercial floorspace from grade A office accommodation to small workshops and everything in between. It’s a thriving and diverse commercial area that has seen significant investment and development in recent years with new offices, warehouse and small business space being built, planned and occupied.

When a company chooses Manor Royal Business District they become part of a business community with a real say in how the place works. Through the Manor Royal Business Improvement District (BID), companies are able to connect with one another and to represent, promote and deliver the services and improvements that matter to them and the people they employ. In 2018, 84% of all voting businesses voted to keep the Manor Royal BID for another five years.

ness park, including major new offices and much sought-after industrial buildings. Here Platinum Business Magazine showcase four exciting new office developments that are currently underway or on the horizon.

A host of new developments have been planned on this premier busi-

Gatwick 33 On the back of the successful letting at Gatwick 55 to furniture retailer, Barker & Storehouse, Goya Developments and Barwood Capital have ventured back to Crawley in the form of Gatwick 33, a new 33,000 sq ft

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standalone unit built to the usual high specification and green credentials of Goya Developments. The unit is under construction with steels up and is ready for occupation in October 2019.

For further information call Tim Hardwicke at SHW on 07989 420989 or Luca Nardini at joint agents Montague Evans on 07818 012455. www.Gatwick33.co.uk

FOCUS ON CRAWLEY Centron Park Centron Park is a new speculative industrial development which was completed in Q1 2019. This top quality development comprises two units totalling 53,500 sq ft and benefitting from a minimum of 10m eaves, 50kn/m floor loading, self contained yards and parking for each unit plus fully fitted air conditioned first floor offices.

Unit 1 has already been let to MEL Components and Unit 2 is available to let comprising 33,402 sq ft.

Full information can be seen at www.centronpark. co.uk or from the joint letting agents Vail Williams (Stephen Oliver 07786 577323), and CBRE (Jamie Hargreaves 07468 711232).

Gatwick Park

London Training Centre L3 Technologies has invested over $100 million to create the new London Training Centre, an industry-leading airline training facility located on the Gatwick Road in Manor Royal. The facility which officially opens early summer 2019, has been designed to push the boundaries of pilot training, providing airlines and pilots with the latest environment and technology.

It contains Full Flight Simulators (visible through the glass walls at the front of the building), classrooms, briefing rooms and breakout areas. The site, which will train thousands of pilots a year, has been custom built to provide the smoothest, most efficient and most effective learning experience.

The facility will also be the headquarters of L3 Commercial Training Solutions and home to around 350 employees. It will be the base from which the company’s leading Full Flight Simulators will be designed, manufactured and exported globally, allowing over 30 devices to be built a year.

The centre helps to keep the UK at the forefront of global aviation training industry.

The Commercial Park Group (TCPG), the partnership between London-based developer John Baker and Sir Robert McAlpine, is set to deliver up to 200,000 sq ft of Grade A office space at Gatwick Park, a brand-new business destination on Gatwick Road. Phases one and two of the park have already received planning permission and TCPG is in discussions to redevelop further properties on the road, transforming the streetscape with a comprehensive design masterplan.

Gatwick Park is the most progressed scheme in the developer’s portfolio which will encompass 2 million sq ft of the best designed office space in the South East, making it the largest offices project in UK. All of TCPG’s developments, also including Haywards Park and Bromley Park in Haywards Heath and Bromley respectively, are united by the same vision; to pioneer a new movement to help workers liver better and work better. To achieve this, each building includes elements that will empower employees to take control of their health and wellbeing, such as garden terraces, all-glass frontages, nutri bars, and integrated concierge services, while enjoying the perks of working closer to home.

For further information, please email enquiries@commercial-park.com

www.l3commercialaviation.com/airline-solutions

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CRAWLEY ...at the heart the Gatwick Diamond

Jeff Alexander, Chief Executive of Gatwick Diamond Business, explains how plans to create a “dynamic hub” through the Crawley regeneration programme will strengthen this already flourishing economic area incentivised to relocate into Crawley and provide jobs for the residents of the New Town. The DNA of many of those businesses can still be found at the core of so many companies in and around the area and the ‘New Towners’ are rightly proud of the industrial heritage of Crawley.

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rawley town centre is the ‘city centre’ of the Gatwick Diamond and, with Gatwick and the Manor Royal, drives not only our economy but that of the Coast to Capital region. As a body representing businesses, we strongly support Crawley Borough Council’s Town Centre Regeneration Programme and its ambition to create a “dynamic hub” at the centre of the Gatwick Diamond economic area.

Gatwick Diamond Business and Crawley go back a long way. Formed in 1953 as Crawley Industrial Group, we were established to bring together employers on Manor Royal, who had been

Of course, Gatwick Airport also grew up in that era and as the surrounding towns started to develop an industrial and general business offering, we evolved into the Crawley and District Industries Association - or CADIA. In 2012 we changed our brand to Gatwick Diamond Business to better reflect our expanded geographical coverage and our role as a membership organisation for businesses of all sizes and sectors. Although we dropped Crawley from our name, we have remained located in the Borough – at the heart of the Gatwick Diamond.

We now have 420+ members building on the strong Crawley/Gatwick core.

We support our members by providing member-to-member trading and business development opportunities, not least through our extensive

networking programme. Our highest profile, flagship event is undoubtedly our annual Gatwick Diamond Business Awards. This year we were very pleased that Crawley Borough Council sponsored our Professional Services Firm of the Year Award reflecting the importance of that sector to the Town’s development ambitions.

We also act as the voice of business in the Gatwick Diamond, championing private and public sector investment to help create the best possible environment for Crawley and other Gatwick Diamond businesses to prosper and grow.

Crawley’s Town Centre Regeneration Plan is an excellent example of the type of investment we support. Not only will it be good for established businesses in the area, it will also provide an attractive environment to bring in new investment. This will provide higher-value jobs and encourage local people to work as well as live in the area rather than commuting long distances, particularly to London.

We look forward to supporting Crawley Borough Council, their development partners and our Crawley business members as the programme builds on the strong start it has already made.

If you would like to find out more about Gatwick Diamond Business, please visit www.gatwickdiamondbuiness.com Natalie Brahma-Pearl, Chief Executive of Crawley Borough Council, presenting the Gatwick Diamond Business Award for Professional Services Firm of the Year to MCA Consulting Engineers

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FOCUS ON CRAWLEY

Financing the Future We speak to Jonathan Sharrock, chief executive of Coast to Capital, about the economic growth of Crawley and why they chose to invest in one of the area’s biggest regeneration programmes

Crawley’s economy has gone from strength to strength in recent years. Can you explain the reason for this?

Crawley is a young town which offers huge opportunities for both small and large businesses. The most obvious of these is Gatwick Airport but there are so many excellent long term investors elsewhere in the town, especially at Manor Royal Business Improvement District. These opportunities attract a number of businesses to the area which are the ingredients for a successful economy.

What is Coast to Capital’s involvement in the regeneration programme?

We were delighted to contribute £14.6 million Local Growth Funding towards the Crawley Growth Programme – an investment package of infrastructure improvements and physical regeneration. This is tackling clear and present threats to Crawley’s economic output and sustainable growth, ensuring that Crawley can generate significant numbersof new homes and jobs and expand its role as a major engine for the Coast to Capital economy.

gress and it’s the role of public sector to provide this. We contributed £10 million Local Growth Funding towards the redevelopment of Gatwick Airport train station which will have a huge knock on effect for the rest of the area by improving customer journey times and improving the customer experience.

How important is Crawley’s regeneration to the region as a whole?

Crawley is vitally important, it has the eighth highest income per head in the country – higher than most London Boroughs and most of the northern cities. It draws 43,000 commuters in every day and is in a different league to most other towns in our area.

How do you see the region evolving over the next 10 years?

Our vision is for our towns and cities to be recognised as fantastic places to live, to grow and to succeed. We’re currently negotiating our Local Industrial Strategy (LIS) which is the key to future investment across our region.

We want our region to get as much

investment from the Government as any of the cities across England.

We are focusing on four unique product areas to help define our Local Industrial Strategy which include:

• Growth corridor to London • Development around Gatwick airport • Our unique rural opportunity • Coastal communities We aim to have completed the LIS by the end of the year.

Find out more at www.coast2capital. org.uk

Why is it so important to support key local infrastructures?

Local infrastructure is key to ensuring sustainable growth, in Crawley or anywhere else. Without roads, houses and business space, businesses can’t pro-

Queens Square, Crawley

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Drive into the future We talk to Nic Chaviaris of Driver Hire Gatwick, on how the recruitment industry has changed in recent years and why Crawley’s regeneration will be good for business Describe your business

We are an award-winning employment business who specialise in the transport and logistics sector. We are also a license checking bureau and deliver industry specific training.

As a family run business with strong ethics and values, we are constantly encouraging innovation, change, and development, whilst demonstrating a realistic career path. We have an established team and genuinely believe in organic growth – James who started as a trainee is now a shareholder in the business.

How did Driver Hire Gatwick begin?

Driver Hire Gatwick is a franchise of Driver Hire. Driver Hire has been operating for circa 40 years and I’ve been running this franchise for the last 11 years.

a day’s sickness, holiday or uplift of work. As we are in a short talent pool environment, we have built on expertise in order to stay ahead of the times.

Who are your clients?

We supply to a huge variety of established clients which vary from local and family run to national and international blue chip companies.

We aim to forge strong partnerships with our clients and strive to understand their needs so we can offer a custom solution to them. Here’s what

Have you seen a change in the industry in the past few years?

There has been a massive shift in the industry over the last few years as the talent market is shortening at a record pace. We have an ongoing task to try and remain fresh, offering opportunities to candidates as well as an unrivalled service to our clients in very adverse conditions.

“Effectively we are a first aid kit for a logistics and transport operation”

Having worked for some competitors in the past I was frustrated by some practices I was exposed to, and when the opportunity arose to invest in the Driver Hire Gatwick Office it was a dream come true. Despite my young age, I am full of old school values and ethics which I operate within!

What services do you offer?

We thrive on delivering a service that does not just meet standards and expectations but redefines them. We supply temporary labour, permanent solutions, various workshops as well as CPC (Certificate of Professional Competence) training.

Effectively we are a first aid kit for a logistics and transport operation, supplying a professional worker to cover

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Shareholder, James McElligott (l) and Director, Nic Chaviaris

Furthermore we try and educate our clients on the best practices for recruitment and how it is important now more than ever that strong partnerships are built with a good quality recruiter.

How will the regeneration of Crawley benefit Driver Hire?

Crawley is a vibrant, lively town which has been improved drastically over the last few years. The regeneration project will make the town even more appealing and desirable for people to move to.

Mike Harris, Head of Fleet Sales for Harwoods Group said about us: “I’ve been using Driver Hire since last year, running alongside my driving team. They are always friendly, professional and have met every request I have asked of them when booking in drivers from daily, to an hour’s notice. Our customers have been very happy with the handover they received on their new cars and I would highly recommend them.”

The various developments will attract more talent in the area and the town will become a magnet for various disciplines that we so desperately need.

Furthermore by doing so, retention of the working population will remain particularly high.

www.driverhire.co.uk/gatwick Twitter: @dhGatwick

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Sign of the times We talk to Dan Jackman of Blue Lizard Signs, on life at one of Crawley’s busiest graphics and signage companies Tell us about Blue Lizard Signs

I started Blue Lizard in my garage in 2000, moving into my first premises at the end of that year and taking on my first employee. We have slowly grown over the past 19 years (we’re now in a 3500 sqft workshop in the heart of Manor Royal) and have a team of ten dedicated and trusted staff including designers, installers and manufactures.

Although we cover all aspects of signage, over the years we have specialised more in commercial vehicle graphics and wraps, building on a reputation of supplying the highest standards of quality, professionalism and competitiveness.

What does an average day look like?

We have a team of three designers who all work in sales. They liaise with the clients confirming all aspects of the job, starting the production process using state-of-the-art software, digital printers and plotters. The production team then prepare the self-adhesive graphics, wrapping and signage, and the installation guys will then go on site to install the signage/graphics or they’ll stay at our climate-controlled workshop to install the graphics and wraps in the most ideal environment.

Who are your clients?

For the graphics side we have any individual or business with cars, race cars, vans, trucks, boats and even planes!

For signage, it’s any shop or business that needs promotion. We have a huge array of repeat clients from the largest PLC’s to individual traders – big names include Siemens Trains, Boeing and Virgin Atlantic. We have many large vehicle graphic clients such as SES Water, Rydon Homes, Intercleanse, Hansaflex, Amphibian Scoffolding, and First4vans.

Dan Jackman, MD of Blue Lizard (left), with business partner Gareth Marelli

We have also built up a great client base of haulage/grab lorry clients partly because we are the only graphics company in the Manor Royal area with a large enough workshop, offering perfect installation in a clean, dust free environment and at the right temperature for a long-lasting result.

and networking with our local clients has encouraged many businesses to recommended us to others time and again. Being in Crawley has enabled us to grow, and I feel if it wasn’t for Manor Royal, which gives a great sense of kudos, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

What are the challenges of running a creative business today?

What does the future hold for Blue Lizard Signs?

What are the benefits of being part of Manor Royal?

Blue Lizard Signs Ltd can be contacted on: 01293 553333 info@bluelizardsigns.com www.bluelizardsigns.com

Anything that’s creative and in manufacturing has a large labour cost so sometimes it’s hard to compete with one or two-man companies that are offering the “same” service! We have to educate our clients that; “you get what you pay for” in this industry.

It’s the hub from where the majority of our business comes from. There’s a great sense of community here

We’re 20 years old next year and the business is just as excited for the future as we were on day one. We’ll carry on servicing our current clients and hope to build more, investing in new equipment, more staff and maybe even a larger premises to cope with volume of work.

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The vaping revolution Christian Sanderson, Managing Director of SVC LABS LTD explains how quitting cigarettes opened his eyes to an innovative and exciting new industry was steep. However, three years in we moved to our 12,000 sq ft state of the art facility in Crawley, with a 54 strong team.

How has the vaping market changed since its inception?

It is an ever-changing landscape, so keeping abreast of the innovation, legislation and consumer demands is key.

Please can you describe what your business does?

SVC Labs Group is vertically integrated Hemp, Cannabidiol (CBD) and E-Liquid and manufacturer and distributor. See the box opposite for more on the brands.

Why did you start your business?

I wanted to get off cigarettes but I was addicted to nicotine. After years of trying everything under the sun to kick the habit and failing I was introduced to an E-Cigarette or Vape Pen back in 2013 and they just worked for me. Before I knew it I had accidentally given up smoking and now my passion is helping others to do the same.

Did you see a gap in the market or is it a product you have a passion for?

Both to be honest. I will always have a personal connection to the business as it changed my life for the better. At the time there was very little choice or quality UK products or manufactures on the market. I have always had a passion for British manufacturing and innovation so I approached my business partner, presenting my business plan and off we went into an unknown world of E-Liquids.

Coming from a fashion and design background, I knew very little about manufacturing so the learning curve

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When we started there was just overpriced American-made liquids or cheap, unregulated Chinese liquids on the market. We entered the market as a single branded company called Simple Vape Co (SVC) with only six flavours. It was soon evident we had to diversify and during our second trading year we launched two new brands and opened our White & Private Label arm, which saw us grow from £260k revenue in Year 1 to £1.7m pa in Year 2.

We have now opened up international distribution channels into the US, EU, Canada, Russia and Malaysia. We export over 40% of our products to the EU and 10% to the rest of the world.

What are your most popular products?

Our new Hemp and CBD based products are our leading product category (www.honesthemp.com). Our key products are CBD tinctures/oils, edibles, topicals & skincare and bulk raw materials. We have some new great products in development which will focus around hemp textiles.

Hemp & CBD is a product I passionately believe in and this plant has the power to change the world for the better.

How safe are e-cigarettes?

According to Public Health England, “E-cigarettes are 95% less harmful than smoking”

It is simply the best alternative choice and nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) on the market. We are seeing more and more positive studies and reports around the long term effects of vaping.

The Royal College of Physicians released a report in 2017 named ‘Nicotine without smoke: tobacco harm reduction’, which concluded that e-cigarettes are beneficial to UK public health. Smokers can be reassured and encouraged to use them as they are much safer than smoking.

How do you see the industry changing in the future?

FOCUS ON CRAWLEY From a consumer perspective the industry will continue to flourish. From the business side I see a lot of consolidation happening and this will continue. With Big Tobacco looking to reform its image, more acquisitions will happen and the entry to market for new companies will become and lot more difficult.

What are your ambitions?

My focus is on the UK Industrial Hemp side of the business. I believe we can complete our full UK supply chain by 2021, which means we would be perfectly positioned if legislation changes around medicinal marijuana, which I anticipate will happen in the near future.

With SVC Labs our goals are to focus on filling our capacity at the new factory, high margin sales, increase profitability and promote our own brands.

Looking at the company as a whole over the next 12 months we will be looking to find a strategic investment partner who align with our company goals of

becoming the house hold name in medicinal cannabis FMCG’s and smoke free nicotine delivery products.

What was the most difficult obstacle you need to overcome?

I found people management the most challenging, and equally I have found learning to become a better manager incredibly rewarding. Our fast growth meant we grew from a start up to a full-scale operation within months and we spent 16 months building and implementing our new back end system. Getting staff on board during such drastic operational change was hard. We brought in a manufacturing consultancy for eight months and they helped us to refine who we are and how we operate.

In 2018, we produced 8 million units on single shifts on a five day per week rota, compared to 2017, when we made 3.4 million units on three shifts per day on a seven days a week rota.

Efficiency is key.

What advice would you give to start-ups or budding entrepreneurs?

If you are ready to work hard, then don’t waste time thinking about it - just go for it. Test the concept, keep it lean, and surround yourself with passionate people who are more knowledgeable than yourself.

Why did you choose to set up in Crawley?

In 2016 we decided to move from Brighton to Gatwick - it was very difficult finding the right place as we only had one full year of filed accounts. However, David Bessant from Graves Jenkins and Michael Deacon-Jackson from FTDJOHNS believed in SVC and helped us find the perfect facility. We got the keys in June 2017 and within five months we had fully fitted the unit out with ISO Class 6 labs with state of the art automated machinery.

Manor Royal was our chosen destination as we have all our logistical partners arounds us, as well as great links to the city and airport.

The Brands SVC LABS LTD was founded in 2014 with the aim of providing customers with the best E-Liquids on the market, and a gateway out of smoking. SVC is now a volume driven E-Liquid / CBD / Bulk Raw Material / White Label and Co-packing Manufacture based in Gatwick, UK. It produced over 8 million units in 2018 and is currently on track to do over 12 million in 2019 in over 20 countries.

HONEST HEMP is a pioneering British Hemp & CBD producer with an end-to-end UK & European supply chain consisting of UK agriculture, extraction and finished hemp/CBD bulk and finished products. The long-term goal is a fully integrated UK supply. www. honesthemp.com Vape-Simple.com is our B2C retail platform with a retail store bolted onto the factory in Crawley and an online presence. It offers loyal customers value for money, straight out of the factory. We want to invite everybody along, support their journey to a smoke free life and make Manor Royal Smoke FREE.

SVC Labs Ltd | Honest Hemp 1 Gatwick Distribution Centre, Whittle Way, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 9RW Tel: +44 (0) 1293 26 55 50 Email: info@svclabs.co

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It’s in the DNA

We talk to Tony Bunn, owner of DNA, the logisitics business in Gatwick, now with over 50 people on the payroll

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ony Bunn had carved out a successful career selling air cargo space and charter flights, but in 2006 he decided to take the plunge and set up DNA, his own courier company. Now DNA is a well-established logistics business employing 54 people. He explains to Ian Trevett why he decided to go it alone…

How did you start in the logistics / delivery business?

I first started working in Gatwick in 1988 with an air cargo consolidator AMI Shipping & Forwarding, based above the old British Airways aircraft hangars on the Southern Perimeter Road. I then moved into the Cargo General Sales Agency (GSSA) arena and worked for some of the leading and pioneering companies of their day from the early 1990s to 2004 selling airline cargo space and air charter flights. I was also responsible for creating new and diverse traffic lanes and joining up trade and services globally.

I switched direction in 2005 to contracting for a cargo handling and air-

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line trucking company which was a very different side of the industry. At the end of my term in late 2005 I found myself looking for the next widget to invent which clearly wasn’t going to happen. I decided that it was either find a job or prove the self-sufficiency which I seriously craved - so I sold my motorbike and bought a van, and an-

nounced to my wife that I was going to be a courier!

With a six year old and a one year old, my wife probably thought I was having a breakdown but it enabled me to understand that I didn’t need a Eureka moment, just a desire to provide quality services to selected clients who valued service and cost effective solutions. It naturally helped having contacts that I had gained over the years and the integrity that I had built up within my career and before long we were brokering vans and articulated lorries all over the UK and Europe, and this continued largely in the air cargo sector until 2008.

A former colleague asked me to join Delta Airlines as a Cargo Operations Manager Europe, Middle East & Africa and after negotiating a favourable arrangement that enabled me to continue running my own business with my wife around this new position it became a very busy time. To say that we regularly burned the midnight oil would be an understatement, but it enabled us to continue to reinvest in

FOCUS ON CRAWLEY

our own business rather than having to use its profits to keep us personally afloat. This continued for three years with me returning to the business full time in 2011.

What prompted you to choose this line of business?

My father during his semi-retirement was brokering articulated lorries to airlines to move cargo from Heathrow to Brussels and he frequently asked if I knew anyone who could offer prices for a van to take some overspill. Invariably he was quoted three times the price he wanted to pay. This prompted me to start looking at the courier market as there was clearly a need for immediate and dedicated services - and the rest is history.

How has the business grown over the years?

When we first started out, we were a strictly dedicated same-day express operator, however with the recession in 2008 we quickly recognised that clients were looking for cheaper options to move their work and turning to parcel and pallet networks. We started supplying the multi-drop sector during their peak periods with vans and

drivers, and we soon established ourselves. As volumes continued to grow, the margins reduced and we grasped to opportunity to change tact and take up membership of one of the UK’s leading pallet networks (Palletforce), increasing our HGV fleet and running our own operations. This enabled us to control our own destiny.

& Milton (Oxfordshire), and this year we were also contracted by the Secretary of State to provide dedicated services to Government Ministers and their offices in Westminster. Our dedicated sameday services remain strong and its incredibly satisfying reading the feedback from our loyal client base who still value service and the fact we deliver on time, handling items with care.

“We offer a full range of logistics services including road, air and sea transport” From our humble beginnings of man in a van we have grown steadily and now employ 54 staff and have a fleet of 47 vehicles across the Group. At our head office in Crawley we have 14,000 sq ft of racked warehouse space enabling us to store palletised goods, so we can offer palletised distribution throughout the UK, Europe and beyond. Through our Palletforce membership we locally deliver and collect around 180 pallets a day and we have seen increases in this sector of around 15% year on year.

The business is also a contracted key supplier to TNT over two sites, Crawley

DNA is part of the Aloto Group. What other services do you offer as part of the group?

We offer a full range of logistics services including road, air and sea transport as well as palletised storage and network distribution. We also have an RTITB approved training centre within our facilities in Crawley where we offer, forklift training, First Aid, Manual Handling, Health & Safety amongst many other courses, as well as Train the Trainer. The new addition within the group is the acquisition of Lancing Driver Training. We also undertake consultancy services within the aviation sector.

Can you tell us a bit about your Driver Instructor business?

We purchased Lancing Driver Training as a going concern with an enviable

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reputation back in February 2019. Part of the driver for this purchase was to enable our logistics business to tap into new talent who were taking their tests and looking to get into work within the logistics industry. We are also able to upskill our work groups reducing our reliance on outside sources during times of annual leave and peak periods. Our driving centre offers driver training for vocational licenses such as HGV, Mini Bus, Coaches, Trailer Towing as well as Driver CPC.

Dealing with logistics means you have to comply with emission standards. How does the business ensure it is as environmentally friendly as possible?

critical to the clients business.

What sets DNA apart from its competitors?

Our staff. I cannot thank them enough for their dedication, hard work, loyalty and support. They are proud of our brand and go over and above every day to exceed the clients’ expectations, some of whom have been with us for over ten years.

Is Crawley a good place to do business?

“95% of our vehicles are all Euro VI compliant with the remaining 5% being replaced in the next four months”

95% of our vehicles are all Euro VI compliant with the remaining 5% being replaced in the next four months.

We have invested heavily in this area to ensure we have the most fuel efficient, clean vehicles which are continually monitored with drivers tasked on improving on idling times and planners mapping the shortest and least congested routes and gaining maximum efficiencies of all vehicles.

How has the logistics / delivery business changed in the years you have been in business?

Technology is probably the area which

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has seen the most changes. Having online sales interfacing to the technology behind many of the pallet and parcel networks has been a massive contributor to the growth that we have experienced. This enables huge volumes of goods to be purchased, picked, packed, transported and delivered at the right time and place. On the flipside, as consumers, we are all looking for free delivery when we purchase online and this has squeezed margins across the board. You have to be very creative

with your fleet and staff and suppliers to remain successful in this industry.

What do you predict in the future for the industry?

The switch from internal combustion engines to electric is already underway, as well as trials of drones and robots which may well suit the parcel and home delivery sectors. We will also see driverless trucks at some point which may well suit some operations, however we firmly believe that there will always be a need for dedicated delivery and collection services where the interaction of the driver with the client is

Absolutely, Crawley has always had a great industrial estate and with Gatwick Airport on its doorstep it has always been vibrant place to do business. The investment in new infrastructure and facilities in recent years has changed the landscape making it more attractive for larger companies to base themselves in Crawley. The manufacturing industries seem to be doing very well and its fantastic when you get see what is going on right under our noses.

DNA, Iain Stewart Centre, City Place, Gatwick RH6 0PB www.dna2b.com

FOCUS ON CRAWLEY

Sussex solicitors go from strength to strength Leading law firm Mayo Wynne Baxter’s recent move into Crawley makes this the fourth merger that the company has completed in the last few years

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ward-winning solicitors, Mayo Wynne Baxter, will further strengthened their position as the leading law firm in Sussex when they complete their merger with established Crawley solicitors, Russell & Co last month.

This merger is the fourth that the law firm will have completed in recent years having previously added offices in East Grinstead, Storrington and Pulborough.

The completion of this deal means that Mayo Wynne Baxter will have eight offices in Sussex including those long-established bases in Eastbourne, Seaford, Lewes and Brighton.

Russell & Co have been serving the Crawley Community since 1987 and share the Mayo Wynne Baxter brand values of delivering exceptional service through outstanding people.

Partners Alison Kinnersley and Grant Parker and their team bring a wealth of experience to Mayo Wynne Baxter.

vested heavily in communications and information technology to further improve its existing industry-leading client service delivery. This is to be further enhanced by the introduction of a secure web portal to allow clients to have direct 24-hour access to their matter.

has been a main sponsor at Crawley Town FC since 2013 and operated an office at The Beehive in Gatwick. They are Diamond listed by the Gatwick Diamond Business Association and are previous winners of the Gatwick Diamond Business Award for Corporate Responsibility.

“Mayo Wynne Baxter has had a long standing association with Crawley and has been a main sponsor at Crawley Town FC since 2013”

Mayo Wynne Baxter’s Chief Executive, Chris Randall, said: “We are delighted to announce the merger with Russell & Co. This is a great move for both firms and means that clients in Crawley will have access to a much broader range of legal services.

“This central Crawley office in Queens Square extends our reach into West Sussex and is a further step towards Mayo Wynne Baxter being the dominant law firm in the county.”

The new Crawley office will benefit from these enhancements and Crawley clients will be offered the firm’s innovative Satisfaction Guarantee whereby if they are not completely satisfied with the service received, they can deduct up to a maximum of 20% off their fee. No quibble.

The announcement of this merger follows previous news that the firm has in-

Mayo Wynne Baxter has had a long standing association with Crawley and

Mayo Wynne Baxter has 230 staff across nine locations in Sussex. Their solicitors cover most areas of law for private clients and businesses with recognised specialists in medical negligence, professional negligence and international property. Edwin Wynne Baxter who founded the firm in the 1860s was the coroner in the Jack the Ripper cases and for the Elephant Man. For further information or to contact the team please call 0800 84 94 101 or visit www.mayowynnebaxter.co.uk

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Only £40 per person which includes all equipment, food, drinks and entertainment provided. You just need to turn up in sports gear with a towel, change of clothes and a sense of humour…

LAST CHANCE...

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riendly rivalry and competition against other Sussex based companies including Focus Group, 20SIX, Brighton CCTV, Silver Star Cleaning, Wave Leisure, LMS, Rix & Kay, and the all-conquering Platinum All-Stars.

Only £40 per person which includes all equipment, food, drinks and entertainment provided. You just need to turn up in sports gear with a towel, change of clothes and a sense of humour…

To enter a team please contact the Tournament Director: Neil Laughton / 07973 289552 / neil@laughton.co

15th IN CHICHE Medical, TheJUNE GourmetFace Chef, RLW Vidto SATURDAY our sponsors and supporters: Media Group Salone Events, Tom Foolery, Vesalius

Thanks eography, Applicado, Vivid Marketing, ViiSana, Platinum PublishingRedGroup, & Co, Salone Paddle Co, Laughton Loud Shirt Brewing Co, Events, Tom Foolery, Vesalius Medical, Gourmet RLW Harrie’s Coffee,The Co-Prom and WestLAST CHANCE TO ENTER A TEAM OFChef, FOUR IN bourne House School.

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A not-for-profit event. All proceeds go to...

Friendly rivalry and competition against other Suss including Focus Group, 20SIX, Bright A Not for companies Profit Event… www.speedee-boarding.com Silver All proceeds goStar to: Cleaning, Wave Leisure, LMS & Rix & Kay.

Thanks to our sponsors and supporters: Face Media Group, ViiSana, Platinum PublishingOnly Group,£40 Laughton Co, per&person

SATURDAY 15th

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To enter a team please contact the Tournament D Neil Laughton / 07973 289552 / neil@laughton www.speedee-boarding.com

Thanks to our sponsors and supporters: Face Med ViiSana, Platinum Publishing Group, Laughton & C Events, Tom Foolery, Vesalius Medical, The Gourmet C Videography, Applicado, Vivid Marketing, Red Paddle Shirt Brewing Co, Harrie’s Coffee, Co-Prom and W House School.

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All proceeds go to:

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15/05/2019 12:05:39

KAPOW! The fun 5k is back for 2019 and is supported by Martlets Ambassador Norman Cook

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artlets has announced that KAPOW! its super-successful superhero-themed 5k inflatable obstacle course is back for 2019 and will be held at Preston Park on September 14th.

Martlets Ambassador Norman Cook took part last year and is supporting the 2019 event, he commented “I took part with my family in KAPOW! last year and it was a really fun way to fundraise for a fantastic cause. Get

those superhero costumes ready and sign up – you’ll have an amazing time and be doing your bit to help Martlets as well.”

KAPOW! is open to everyone – anyone over 1.2m tall can join in the fun accompanied by a paying adult. The event starts at 11am and fun runners are encouraged to dress up as their favourite superhero and tackle a course of ten huge inflatables.

EVENTS

Charlotte Bolton from Martlets Fundraising Team said, “Kapow is an unforgettable fun-run with a difference! It is one of our most popular fundraising events it’s all about having a really good time dressed up as a superhero and enjoying taking on a bouncy obstacle course. It’s always a great atmosphere, come alone or with friends or family you’ll have fantastic fun and will be helping Martlets make a positive different to lives of people needing hospice care in the Brighton and Hove area.”

Visit www.themartlets.org.uk/kapow19 or call 01273 747 455.

About Martlets Hospice Martlets is a charity that cares for people living through a terminal illness in and around Brighton and Hove. It’s much more than a hospice and is working to change perceptions of hospice care.

Today, most patients receive care in their own home. The hospice in Hove is a place where patients and their families can use the therapeutic services, drop-in clinics, visit the in-patient unit or just sit and have a coffee in the café.

The hospice’s community teams care for people living and dying at home. Families and loved ones are supported into bereavement.

Martlets runs a 24/7 helpline for free, personal support.

Martlets’ care is only free thanks to the generosity of local people; every donation will help them change lives. For more information about Martlets Hospice visit www.themartlets.org.uk

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Promoting talent and loyalty Laura Hogbin and Katja Harjanne have both worked their way up to Hilton Brighton Metropole’s senior management team

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here is often an assumption that the best way to progress a career is to keep moving.

With 27 years combined experience at Hilton Brighton Metropole, Laura Hogbin and Katja Harjanne are now the Commercial Director and Director of Operations respectively, demonstrating that loyalty can be rewarded.

Laura and Katja spoke to Ian Trevett about life at the Hilton Brighton Metropole, the changes in the hotel industry - and why there have been so few female General Managers.

What responsibilities do you have as directors?

Laura Hogbin

Laura Hogbin, Commercial Director (LH): I manage the business development team which includes the sales team, conferencing and events, marketing and reservations.

local hotels, but more often than not the hotel is competing with large conferencing venues in other cities both in the UK and Europe, cities like London, Manchester, Barcelona or Prague.

On a day to day level, much of my role is supporting the team; making sure the team’s focus is aligned and we are all working towards the same goals.

I look at the long term plans for the hotel and put strategies in place to ensure we achieve the targets.

Hilton works closely with Visit Brighton and Visit England to really push Brighton as a destination for large conferences. Brighton is less well known than London or Edinburgh, so we are selling Brighton as a destination first, then the hotel afterwards.

We are the largest conference hotel in the South East outside of London. Due to our flexible function space, we enjoy a varied mix of events. One week there could be 500 guests staying three days for a conference, a wedding and a food or drink festival, no two weeks are ever the same! The sales team are always on the road meeting potential clients or attending trade events, such as the Meeting Show or IMEX in Frankfurt.

I spend a lot of my time building relationships and partnerships with local business. It is important for us to have a good working relationship and presence within the local community.

Sometimes we are competing with

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Katja Harjanne, Director of Operations: (KH): I have recently taken on the position of Director of Operations, and I now oversee the food and beverage departments (maintenance), housekeeping, conferences and banqueting, and the front of house team.

Katja Harjanne

Previous to this role, I was Groups, Conference & Events Sales Manager where my day to day role involved checking the reservations, managing the events diary and supporting the team in quoting and converting business. Now my role is very much on the floor, supporting the operational teams and ensuring all departments are ready for the day ahead.

I started my career within Hilton Brighton 20 years ago as a casual waitress within the conference and banqueting department. I have worked in many of the departments over the years. This has given me a great understanding of the hotel which now helps in my new role in managing the operations of this 340 bedroom and 33 meeting room hotel.

It is a priority of mine to ensure we meet and exceed our customers expectations on a daily basis.

We have our own customer satisfaction

INTERVIEW

system at Hilton as well as Trip Advisor and Booking.com, as a hotel these tools are important as they are a great indication of what and where we can improve.

many female GM’s and senior leaders.

What factors helped you work your way up the ranks in the hotel?

When I took on the new role I had a long conversation with my partner as our daughter starts school in September. It was important for me to ensure that whilst giving this role my very best I am still able to have a work life balance.

In my previous role and within the Conference & Events team we introduced

Hilton is leading the way within the industry offering flexible working across all levels where possible.

KH: Hilton is a great company to work for as they have many development programmes to support team members in achieving their career goals.

Both Laura and I had a two-stage interview for these current roles which both included presentations “There and face to face interviews.

and segments and so we are not dependent on any one single market.

What changes have you noticed in the hotel sector over recent years?

KH: Technology has enabled many of the processes to be automated so whereas 20 years ago someone would call to make a booking these are now sent via booking platforms. As an industry we have had to adapt and find new ways of building relationships with clients.

LH: Everyone wants an experience - and people want to post their experiences, good or bad, on social media. If we see a negative comment we ensure we do everything to solve the problem. There is more focus on Corporate Social Responsibility and, of course, we have our own programmes. A lot of people will include a CSR element in their conference, such as a volunteer beach clean.

are female GMs at Hilton but the group is actively trying to encourage more. One of the hurdles is probably the unsociable hours, which is difficult with childcare”

LH: I think we have both showed how much we care about the hotel, we always take ownership of a task and make sure that what needs to be done is done. We have both worked at the hotel a long time and have demonstrated our strengths in what we can do. We also work very well together and with other Heads of Departments.

Across the hotel industry there seems to be few female General Managers. Is this an institutional problem?

KH: There are female GMs at Hilton and the group is actively trying to encourage more. One of the hurdles is probably the unsociable hours, which is difficult with childcare. In fact my predecessor in this role has recently been successful in her application as the GM of Hilton Bracknell. It is great to see that across Hilton there are in fact

flexi-working and home working opportunities, this has worked very well and actually the team became much more productive.

LH: Both Katja and I along with other female heads of departments recently attended a Women In Leadership conference at Hilton Wembley, part of which was to encourage women to apply for senior roles.

How is the hotel faring in these times of uncertainty?

LH: We are having a very positive year, although conference and events bookings have much shorter lead time now, which can be a challenge for understanding and forecasting the business.

We are lucky that our business comes from many channels

It is important to us as a hotel that we give back and support our local community and so it is great to be able to support and work with clients on this also.

KH: Conference organisers are also much more conscious about the welfare of delegates therefore they look to include activities to inspire the mind, body and soul. This connects really nicely with Hilton’s Thrive initiative across the globe. We ofter offer organised runs and bike rides along the seafront or yoga in our Chartwell Suite with panoramic views across the seafront.

brightonmet.hilton.com

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SUSSEX AWARDS CEREMONY DECEMBER 5th 5 2019 | THE GRAND BRIGHTON

RECOGNISING THE MOST OUTSTANDING BUSINESSES IN SUSSEX DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES

SEPTEMBER 11th 2019

THE AWARDS ARE SPONSORED BY

Celebrating 31 years in 2019, the Sussex Business Awards are the most sought-after accolade by organisations of all sizes across the region

2019 CATEGORIES COMPANY OF THE YEAR LARGE BUSINESS OF THE YEAR SME BUSINESS OF THE YEAR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR BUSINESSPERSON OF THE YEAR EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR BUSINESS INNOVATION OF THE YEAR THE CREATIVE INDUSTRIES AWARD PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AWARD BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD NOT FOR PROFIT BUSINESS OF THE YEAR TOURIST ATTRACTION OF THE YEAR E-COMMERCE BUSINESS OF THE YEAR START-UP OF THE YEAR CSR EXCELLENCE AWARD

HOW TO ENTER • Visit www.sbawards.org.uk and review the categories • Download an entry form and answer the questions as fully as possible • Entries should not be more than four pages of A4 and less than 11pt size font • Save the entry as a PDF and upload online • Businesses can enter up to three categories and deadline for submissions is September 11th 2019

To discuss sponsorship opportunities, email sussex@platinumpublishing.co.uk

Convention CELEBRATIONS

Celebrating ten years of the Acumen Business Convention, a motivational and inspiring event where new meaningful connections are made

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he acumen business convention 2019 held its special tenth edition on May 8th with hundreds of decision makers from across the region in attendance. This year was absolutely packed with fan-

tastic speakers, entertainment and excitement.

This is most likely the only business convention where, as a delegate, you are greeted by tribal zebra people (and

that’s not just the Acumen team)! After a delicious lunch, zebras burst on to the stage to give a wild and exhilarating dance performance, wowing the audience and getting everyone energised for the afternoon.

The big build up was worth the wait when special tenth anniversary guest speaker, Tony Bloom, owner and Chairman of Brighton & Hove Albion FC took to the stage, sharing his fascinating business journey with the captivated audience.

A double whammy for this special occasion was top keynote speaker Simon Woodroffe OBE, Founder of YO! Sushi, who gave a most inspirational performance. He told his story with deep and meaningful thoughts for the audience to take away.

As well as thought-provoking speakers, the event featured an abundance

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BUSINESS CONVENTION

Tony Bloom, chair, Brighton & Hove Albion FC

of quality networking opportunities throughout the day, Link & Learn sessions (with essential legal tips) and lots of surprises too! To kick off, Penina Shepherd, best selling author and Founder of AcuMen business LAW, motivated everyone on ‘getting your foot in that door’ and shared her passion about ‘doing’ and getting on with it whilst giving some excellent expert tips.

This special edition convention saw the launch of speakers’ arenas which showcased extra TED style talks in a choice of topic. These were all facilitated by esteemed guest speakers, who are all experts in their field, sharing invaluable knowledge and experience, which made these sessions a very useful section of the day.

Hosting the day was the incredible MC Sanderson Jones! Co-founder of the unique business Sunday Assembly and his new mission Lifefulness At Work, he really did get the convention rocking and rolling. Unleashing positive vibes he made sure everyone made meaningful new connections and had an awe-inspiring fun packed day.

Simon Woodroffe OBE, founder YO! Sushi

Dragons’ Den, gave motivational and practical advice showing that everyone can get great results when they sell the human way.

The excitement didn’t stop there. The celebratory after-party rounded off the day perfectly with festival style stalls of tasty food, cocktails and beer.

What better way to wind down than a fantastic chance to catch up, chat, relax and have fun!

The acumen business convention always aims to give the business community motivation and inspiration, whilst gaining essential business know how and valuable new connections; all with the added enjoyment of the Acumen magic and surprises!

This year did just that.

Penina Shepherd, Founder of acumen business LAW said: “It’s been such an exhilarating and inspirational day. It’s really great to see so many business professionals together sharing the experience and making new meaningful connections. That’s what makes the convention so special. It’s been an amazing celebration of our 10th convention and we look forward to many more to come!”

To find out how to get involved next year and for more information please contact creative@acumenbusinesslaw.co.uk www.acumenbusinessconvention.co.uk

Thank you to the amazing Convention Partners

Guest speakers included Graham Moore, the co-founder of Humanutopia, one of the country’s leading speakers and authorities on improving wellbeing for students and staff in the workplace. He gave his moving story of how his own experiences inspired him to empower young adults from all walks of life. Jules White, the entrepreneur’s sales coach and author of Live it Love it Sell it, who with great experience won investment in the

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From corporate to Whether you’re dressing for a day in the office or planning outfits for a business trip, here’s how to dress your best this summer

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f you work in an office, you’ll know how hard it can be to stay cool in the summer months. But deciding what to wear each morning needn’t be tricky – in fact, with just a few simple additions to your wardrobe, those daily office air-con debates can be a thing of the past.

We sat down with the team at Churchill Square Shopping Centre to see what’s trending in the office wear world this summer. Located in the heart of Brighton’s bustling centre, Churchill Square is home to high street favourites, including Zara, Topshop and H&M, and it’s where you’ll find these super-cool handpicked looks.

COOL

Button-up business ➤ No work wardrobe is complete without a stylish white shirt. Not only do they look smart in meetings, but they can be styled with almost anything! This short sleeve crop shirt is perfect for the warmer months, especially when paired with your favourite wide-leg trousers.

Just be careful not to spill your coffee!

River Island, £35

“Never underestimate the power of the right accessory; it can take you from casual to ‘I mean business’ in a matter of seconds” Must-have midi

➤

This summer, say bye-bye to those clunky work trousers gathering dust in the wardrobe and replace with one of the season’s hottest trends, a patterned print midi skirt. Go for something that sits below the knee, or just above the ankle, with a splash of colour or a stylish print – you really can’t go wrong.

Style with flats and finish with a tucked blouse or shirt, for a simple, but smart look.

Next, £42

➤ Make them blush Updating your wardrobe with a statement jumpsuit (or two) is a must pre-summer and there’s some great styles to choose from on the high street.

No matter what you’ve got in the diary, you can easily style a jumpsuit to look work-appropriate.

This blush pink jumpsuit is ideal for a busy day of meetings and even impromptu after-work drinks.

Simply add your favourite feathered earrings and heels – or trainers – and this look will take you seamlessly from day to night.

Debenhams, £39

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FASHION ➤

Back to the 50’s

If you prefer to keep your outfits simple whilst at work, why not add a pair of culottes to your summer work wardrobe.

They’re loose, light, super comfy and a great way to inject a bit of personality into your look. We love this bold style from Zara – paired with the perfect shirt or blouse, they’ll keep you feeling professional – and stylish – all week long.

Zara, £29.99

It’s all about beige

➤

Bold and bright

➤

Often unsure on what to wear on those dress-down days? Trust us when we say that a polka dot dress with a pop of colour is a smart choice, as this 1950’s favourite shows no sign of slowing down this summer. One thing’s for certain, you won’t go unnoticed in this bold print from Monsoon.

Monsoon, £55

Is there anything better than bossing two fashion trends in one go? For starters, cropped trousers are a must-have for any guy in the office this summer. They look cool and they’re perfect for business trips. But, one question still remains… which colour do you opt for? Beige tones are hot on the catwalk this season, and there’s no denying that this Topman pair is a flattering colour that will help to keep your temperature down.

Topman, £75

It’s in the bag ➤ Never underestimate the power of the right accessory; it can take you from casual to ‘I mean business’ in a matter of seconds. A smart holdall is the perfect fit for a day at the office, especially if you’re venturing to the gym for a workout at some point.

If you go for a dark shade, then even with a splash of colour you can make sure that it fits with all of the potential outfits in your wardrobe. What more could you need?

River Island, £45

➤

Sling it to win it For those who spend most of their working day on-the-go, footwear is defi nitely the most important part of an outfit. Think comfort, think style, and think of your next shoe purchase as an investment. We adore these pastel slingbacks from OFFICE – understated, sophisticated and with a great size heel, you can feel dressy without worrying about your feet hurting.

Office, £69

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UNVEILED EST 1864

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grandbrighton.co.uk

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Shake Hands in...

Istanbul 84

TRAVEL

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With its new state-of-the-art airport, the Turkish city has taken a major step towards becoming a global aviation hub. Rose Dykins reports

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ven with the scaffolding that’s up at the moment inside Hagia Sofia, it is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. And there’s more to its soaring gold mosaic cupolas and intricate design than first meets the eye. With its radical display of Christian imagery side-by-side with calligraphic representations of the names of Allah and Mohammed – the building went from being a church during Byzantine Empire, to a mosque when the Ottomans invaded, to a museum in the 1930s by president Ataturk – it embodies Istanbul’s complex, fascinating past.

Istanbul today, from its design culture that trickles down to the trendy homeware stores in the boho district of Cucurkuma, to the city’s incredibly diverse dining scene (don’t leave without booking a table at Neolokal; neolokal.com).

Istanbul's historic role as a gateway for global trade is still going strong. Only these days, the majority of ‘merchants’ come here for conferences, bearing smartphones rather than silk.

And now, Istanbul is home to a massive, gleaming new airport – the second largest in the world after Dubai’s Al Maktoum airport. Since April, Istanbul New Airport has replaced Istanbul Ataturk as the city’s primary passenger airport. Ataturk Airport’s fate is still to be decided – it may continue to operate as an airport (along with Sabiha Gokcen Airport, on the Asian side of the city), but there’s also talk of its 400,000 sqm terminal buildings being

Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar

Located at the crossroads where east meets west, the bustling Bosphorus – it aims to double this by 2027, which Strait separates Istanbul’s Asian and would make it the largest in the world.

European sides. The city’s Grand BaGiven Istanbul’s proximity to major zaar, one of the world’s largest and cities in Europe, Africa and the Middle oldest covered markets, dates back East, and the already impressive netto the 15th century, where Silk Road work of Turkish airlines, the national merchants would convene. Today, carrier is better placed than browsing its wares is “Istanbul’s historic role as a ever to rival the model of gulf overwhelming – its seemingly endless maze gateway for global trade is still carriers Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways, which use of shops selling endless going strong. Only these days, their hubs in the centre of the printed cushion covers, brightly painted crock- the majority of ‘merchants’ come world to connect passengers onwards to elsewhere. Curery, jewellery, glass mohere for conferences, bearing rently, the airport’s 1.4 million saic chandeliers and piles of nuts, spices and smartphones rather than silk” sqm terminal has up-to-theminute facilities – such as jewel-coloured cubes of biometric screening, beacon technolconverted into a new convention cenTurkish delight coated in icing sugar. ogy and self check-in areas. Its fresh tre (so watch this space). infrastructure would make it a popular This place was the original melting pot place to transit through.

Located 30km northwest of the city, that that led to Istanbul’s unique fusion the $8 billion Istanbul New Airport can of Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and Minimalist hotel brand Yotel chose handle 90 million passengers per year Central Asian influences that linger in

Istanbul New Airport

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Hagia Sophia

TRAVEL

TOP PL ACES

for a meeting or event

Istanbul Congress Centre This versatile venue has 120,000 sqm of exhibition space spanning eight floors, including a 9,600 sqm terrace overlooking the Bosphorus. iccistanbul.com

Jumeirah Pera Palace Hotel Istanbul New Airport as the first global location for both its Yotel and YotelAir brands in one spot, with 270 ‘cabins’ at the airside Yotel property, and a further 174 cabins at YotelAir after security. The move is the biggest airport hotel investment in Turkey to date.

Back in the city, the big hotel news is that Mandarin Oriental is opening a second outpost in Istanbul. Coming in 2022, the luxury hotel brand will build three skyscrapers close to the city’s Central Business District. Two of the towers will hold 251 luxury residence, while the other will house the 158room Mandarin Oriental Etiler, complete with upscale meeting space.

And Radisson Blu Vadistanbul opened its doors in February in the business district of Maslak, opposite the Turk Telecom Arena. It adds 193 rooms and a 1,000 sqm ballroom to the city’s meeting and event facilities.

As power has changed hands in Turkey, Istanbul and its citizens have been through tumultuous times, adapting to its abruptly changing ideologies, religion and lifestyles. Challenges remain, as they do in many corners of the globe. Nonetheless, the city is a fascinating place to visit and do business. And, with the arrival of its new mega aviation hub, many more of us may soon find ourselves en route to the rest of the world via Istanbul.

Rumoured to be the place where Agatha Christie penned Murder on the Orient Express, this historic 115-room property has suites named after its famous guests, including Greta Garbo and Ernest Hemingway. Its neoclassical ballroom holds 120 people for elegant events. perapalace.com

The Seed

For events for up to 600 people, this contemporary, high-tech venue is perfect for events for creative industries. theseed.com.tr

CNR

This sprawling venue can accommodate 850 booths with its 150,000 sqm of exhibition space. cnrexpo.com

Shangri-La Bosphorus Enjoying a gorgeous location along a European shore of the Bosphorus, this 186-room five-star hotel has two chandelier-clad ballrooms and nine other meeting spaces. shangri-la.com

Lufti Kirdar International Convention and Exhibition Centre (ICEC) The range of sizeable modern conference spaces at this conveniently located venue include the three-floor Anadolu Auditorium and an open-air terrace that can hold 5,000 people. icec.org

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check-in Month-to-month changes shaping your travel, by Rose Dykins

Singapore airport opens world’s tallest indoor waterfall

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ingapore Changi Airport has opened Jewel Changi Airport – a 135,700 sqm, mixed-use complex that has been five years in the making.

Comprising an indoor garden with the world’s tallest indoor waterfall and more than 900 trees, a canopy bridge, a 130-room hotel

and more than 280 retail and dining options, Jewel Changi Airport is located on the site of a former car park at Terminal 1. The US$1.26 billion project – designed to reflect Singapore’s reputation as a “city in a garden” – was conceived by Moshe Safdi, the same architect behind Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands complex.

BA unveils new business class seat

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ritish Airways has revealed the design for its longawaited new Club World business class seat.

Named Club Suite, the cabin will debut on BA’s first A350 aircraft, which arrives next month. Club Suite comes with a suite door to give travellers more privacy, 40% more storage, wifi, an 18.5-inch in-flight entertainment screen, USB and PC power ports, and a vanity unit with a mirror. All seats will also have direct aisle access.

Alex Cruz BA’s chairman and CEO, says: “We’ve worked hard to ensure

Etihad to use 80% less single-use plastic by 2022

I

n April, Etihad became the first airline to operate a long-haul flight without single-use plastics. It also pledged to reduce the use of these items across its operations by 80% by 2022.

every aspect of the Club World experience from the lounges we’ve refreshed, to the new gourmet menus from Do&Co on flights from Heathrow, and the luxurious bedding we’ve introduced from The White Company exudes the very British style and quality customers expect from us.”

On World Earth Day, the Abu Dhabibased airline replaced more than 95 different single-use plastic items on the flight from Abu Dhabi to Brisbane.

For example, it opted for edible wafer coffee cups and blankets made from recycled plastic bottles. Tony Douglas, the group’s chief executive, said: ”We discovered we could remove 27 million single-use plastic lids from our inflight service a year and, as a leading airline, it’s our responsibility to act on this, to challenge industry standards and work with suppliers who provide lower impact alternatives.”

Gatwick gains ten new routes for summer 2019

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atwick airport will serve ten new destinations this summer, and offer 17 million passenger seats – practically doubling that of its winter season.

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New connections include Norwegian’s recently launched long-haul direct services to Rio de Janeiro, Miami and San Francisco. The airport will also fly to new European destinations, including Gdansk in Poland with Wizz

Air and Zadar in Croatia with Easyjet.

Stephen King, Head of Airline Relations, Gatwick Airport said: “It shows that, even though it’s one of the busiest in Europe, airlines can still acquire slots and grow at our airport.”

TRAVEL NEWS

Vinci takes majority Gatwick Airport stake

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ondon Gatwick has announced a new chapter in its ownership with VINCI Airports completing the purchase of a 50.01% stake in the airport.

Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) will continue to manage the remaining 49.99% interest in Gatwick. The new partnership promises continued investment to put passengers at the heart of Gatwick’s future plans. The purchase was revealed at a VIP reception at Marriot London County Hall in May. VINCI Airports, the world’s leading private airport operator, will bring its expertise to Gatwick including a strong focus on quality of service and programme management. Now part of a global network of 46 airports in 12 countries, Gatwick teams will have access to broader opportunities particularly in international career development and in-house training. As the world’s most efficient single runway airport, Gatwick will also share best practice with VINCI Airports as the company continues to pursue its operational improvement strategy.

The completion of the transaction is the ideal opportunity for Gatwick’s shareholders to express their shared vision for the future of the airport and to announce the evolution of Gatwick’s governance based on continuity. The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, as part of the 49.99% interest managed by GIP, will retain a 9.99% stake in Gatwick.

Sir David Higgins, Stewart Wingate and Nick Dunn will remain respectively Chairman, CEO and CFO of the airport, and will be joined by Cédric Laurier, from VINCI Airports, as CTO (Chief Technical Officer).

The airport’s ambitious plans for the future remain, with a further £1.1 billion Capital Investment Programme (CIP) set to deliver a range of passenger improvements by 2023.

Nicolas Notebaert, Stewart Wingate and Michael McGhee

Nicolas Notebaert, CEO of VINCI Concessions and President of VINCI Airports:

“This partnership marks the beginning of a very exciting future for London Gatwick and VINCI Airports. Applying our joint skills will add significant value to both VINCI Airports and London Gatwick Airport and benefit all our stakeholders, notably airlines and passengers. Combining our expertise will further improve our operational excellence and sustain our shared vision of putting passengers’ satisfaction at the heart of everything we do.”

Sir David Higgins, Chairman, Gatwick:

“Today’s announcement marks an exciting new era for Gatwick, its airlines and passengers. We welcome VINCI Airports to Gatwick and are grateful for this strong vote of confidence in Gatwick and the UK.”

Stewart Wingate, Chief Executive Officer, Gatwick:

“Today is the start of a new chapter for Gatwick, with new owners and further investment enabling the airport to continue on its successful journey. The management team and I will remain focused on delivering exceptional service to our passengers and to developing longer-term plans to grow our airport.”

Michael McGhee, GIP Partner:

“The GIP-VINCI partnership is focused on continuing the transformation of the airport. VINCI’s global airport expertise, coupled with GIP’s intimate knowledge of Gatwick and the UK market, offer a unique and complementary world-class airport capability to carry on delivering exceptional performance.”

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Rio de BUCKET LIST:

Mardi Gras

Maracana Stadium

Ipanema Beach

The vivacious Brazilian city won’t fail to seduce you, says Rose Dykins

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arefoot, we beach-walk along Copacabana towards Ipanema, stopping to buy skull-tingling caipirinhas from a cart. Joggers sporting brightly-coloured short shorts overtake us, seemingly immune to the afternoon sun baking my legs inside my skinny black jeans (far too overdressed). The ferocious Atlantic waves and towering backdrop of Sugarloaf Mountain add to the drama on the beach – the music, the street hawkers, the family outings, the show-boating,

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the intense games of volleyball. For cariocas, the beach is not a fair-weather feat, it’s a year-round social hub.

Rio de Janeiro stands out on the world stage for its larger-than-life personality. Its rainforest, favelas, samba bars – all of these invite you to suspend your Britishness and experience life more intensely for a short while. Whether you time your visit for the carnival (February 21st-26th next year), or stop

by Rio as part of a South American od-

yssey, it’s somewhere not to be rushed in and out of (you’ll regret it if you do).

Rio’s many neighbourhoods take time to explore. A cable car ride up to Sugarloaf Mountain one day, standing at the foot of the magnificent Christ the Redeemer statue the next – these are just the tip of the iceberg for a Rio itinerary. For nightlife, Lapa’s bars and dancefloors are where you want to be.

The art galleries of the hilltop Santa Teresa district are a must – and so is

BUSINESS LUXURY SURVEY TRAVEL

Janeiro have wicker swings and views across the sea towards the white cliffs of Cagarras Islands. Conceived by Oskar MetsavRio’s glamorous side is “Whether you time your visit for aht, a designer for Brazilbest experienced from the carnival or stop by Rio as part ian fashion brand, Osklen, the rooftop terrace of Hotel Fasano (lhw.com), of a South American odyssey, it’s it’s a bit like a high-end beach house, with beaupreferably at sundown, as the sun blazes be- somewhere not to be rushed in and tiful use of natural and locally materials, such as hind Sugarloaf Mounout of (you’ll regret it if you do)” blond freijo wood Travertain. The city’s increditine limestone, and blown-glass lamps ble markets (such as Feira Hippie de An enticing addition to Rio’s hotel made from recycled bottles. The perIpanema; feirahippieipanema.com), stock is Janeiro (janeirohotel.rio), fect place to escape to recuperate afmuseums (check out Museu de Arte an eco-friendly boutique hotel that ter partying, especially if you manage do Rio; museudeartedorio.org.br) and opened in February. Situated in the to keep up with the cariocas. parks (stop by Jardim Botanico; jbrj. peaceful area of Leblon, its 53 rooms a photo in front of the brightly tiled Escadaria Selaraon steps.

gov.br) are the things people miss during a flying visit.

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Amorak pick-up Having never reviewed a pick-up truck, l thought it time to see what all the fuss is about. By Maarten Hoffmann

T

here are not many areas in life in which l can claim virginity but pick-up trucks is certainly one of them. I have never driven one, ridden in one or ever really wanted to.

But seeing them in copious numbers on the street, they are getting better and better looking and l didn’t feel the need for tattoos, a copy of the Sun or a Yorkie bar.

A pick-up is a five seater estate with a large flatbed instead of an enclosed boot. The advantages are ease of load without having to open a boot or ruin perfectly good carpets hence they are generally seen in the hands of builders, tradesmen and the like.

There is a plethora of models out there and mine is the VW

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Amorak, the company’s first purposebuilt full size pick-up. If you forget about the flatbed, this is a perfectly normal SUV - high position, five seats and everything else you would expect.

There is a choice of two turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 diesel units, offering either 201bhp or 258bhp. There is plenty of torque available and plenty of grunt throughout the range. I am forced to repeat, this is essentially a car with the only slight difference being the light rear-end when unladen, for

obvious reasons. The combination of leaf-spring rear axle, a low-range gearbox, mechanical locks on the centre and rear diffs and traction control ensure that it can tackle all conditions with ease. It is a hoot to sit in a huge pick-up truck and hold on whilst it hurtles towards the horizon like a hot hatch.

The interior is a tad more spartan and work-like than standard VW cars but

MOTORING BUSINESS SURVEY

then this is a work vehicle and as such, needs to be tough, easy to clean and uncluttered. There are three models -the Trendline, Highline and the Aventura and each comes with a differing range of kit. In short, you could regard this as a Touareg with a long open boot. The load bed is one of the largest on the market to boot, with a volume of 2.5 square metres and a payload in excess of one tonne and can tow up to 3,100kg. There are four lashing rings to tie everything down or you can plump for the hard tonneau cover that encloses everything.

The variable servicing system monitors the owners driving habits and the on-board computer tells owners when it needs a service and, driven with care, the Amarok can go as much as two years or 25,000 miles between visits to the dealership. The offered four-year servicing package costing £675 whilst most competitors offer only three years. This is a great vote of confidence from the company on the hardy nature of this model.

The real kicker with such pick-up trucks is that if purchased through a business, you can reclaim all the VAT, the BIK rate is pegged low regardless of how far up the extras list you go and the road tax is capped at £250.

So, you have a perfectly good estate car with massive load space and great spec and you save a considerable

amount of dosh. Perhaps this is why we see so many on the roads today and look closer, as many of them are not driven by tradespeople but by average Joe’s going about their daily business with a smile on their faces when they ruminate on the cash they have saved. Looking butch I guess is just a bonus.

TECH STUFF Model tested: Amorak Highline 4Motion Engine: 3.0-litre TDI V6 Power: 258bhp Speed: 0-62 – 7.4 seconds Top: 127mph Economy: 33.6mpg combined Price from: £34,845 (after VAT refund)

“So, you have a perfectly good estate car with massive load space and great spec – and you save a considerable amount of dosh”

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Audi Q3 Form an orderly queue for this great crossover.

By Maarten Hoffmann

T

que. So, in any other business sector, light between their next smaller Q he Q series for Audi has been a who on earth would keep launching model, the Q2. great success and when l first new models into such a crowded mardrove the Q5 back in 2014, l ket? This never seems to slow down This whole crossover class of car has was very impressed. The range has excar manufacturers as if there is a slithbecome all the fad of late, with the panded greatly since then and here we er of a gap, insert another have the Q3, the baby brother “So, in any other business model. of the Q5 and the bigger brother of the Q2. sector, who on earth would The Q3 is a really good lookkeep launching new models ing car with sharp, angular This is the second generation in the bodywork, and comes with a body that is into such a crowded market?� creases eight-sided grille frame and bigger by 10cm, therefore affake intakes in the bonnet. It uses the BMW X1, Volvo XC40 and the Jaguar fording better proportions and more VW MQB platform, as in the Tiguan, E-Pace. Then Mercedes got in on the room inside. This has been done to and therefore there are no fundamental act with the GLA and JLR with the Evoprovide more space and to put some

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MOTORING

differences bar the party frock of the body. It is prettier than the Tiguan and more nimble.

The model they delivered to me is the Q3 45 TFSI quattro S tronic. Quite a mouthful. And what does the 45 mean? 4.5 litre one might presume but no, the numbers are quite confusing. The 35 offers 150bhp, the 40 offers 190bhp and the 45 offers 230bhp, dependant on whether it is diesel or petrol. Confusing but l am sure there is some base connection somewhere but it escapes me. The 150bhp is too turgid at 9.2 secs 0-62mph so this model with 230bhp from a 2.0-litre petrol engine would be my choice, and at 6.3 secs 0-62mph, it is very nippy and is actually powered by the Golf GTi engine. Pop it in Dynamic mode and it will blast

around all day and is actually good fun to drive. It’s an Audi – so solid as a Panzer tank, not a rattle in sight and quick. What’s not to like?

Inside it is all pure Audi DNA which is no bad thing. We have the much loved Virtual Cockpit with interchangeable

back and forth so you can alter the configuration as they grow or they want to load their mates in.

Of course, all Audis have the option of four wheel drive and as l constantly bang on about, why wouldn’t you? You really don’t know its there - until you need it and when you need it, it can be a life saver. Few will be dumb enough to enter the Baja 1000 in this, but it will work well when it snows, pours or you need to cross that muddy field whilst camping.

“Inside it is all pure Audi DNA which is no bad thing” dials at a the press of a button and the centre screen is touch controlled with fantastic resolution. Pop the nav up on the centre screen and the dash screen, and you have a panoramic view of where you want to go. It is all cloud connected so real time traffic news at your finger tips and the ankle biters in the back will be happy with WiFi and plenty of sockets. The rear seats slide

The company has flogged 1.1 million Q3’s since its launch which is no mean feat and l see no reason why this new version will not continue that trend. If you are looking for a compact crossover, this must be in your top three, if not at the top.

TECH STUFF Model tested: Audi Q3 45 TFSI Quattro S tronic Engine: 2.0-litre Power: 230bhp Speed: 0-62 6.3 seconds Top: 144 mph Economy: 32.1mpg combined Price from: £37,670 As tested: £47,555

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chambers listings Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce www.businessinbrighton.org.uk

Campfire session: Become the leader everyone wants to work with Date: Thursday 6th June Time: 2.30pm-5pm Venue: Stanmer House, Stanmer Park Road, Stanmer, Brighton If you’d like to become a stronger leader, join the School of the Wild around the campfire and discover how to become the leader everyone wants to work with.

The ‘Crunch journey’ Lunch

Annual General Meeting

Date: Tuesday 12th June Time: 12pm-2.30pm Venue: ASK Italian, 58 Ship Street, Brighton

Date: Thursday 20th June Time: 6pm Venue: Sovereign Harbour Yacht Club Price: Free to attend for Chamber members

Join us for a two-course lunch and glass of wine at ASK Italian, and hear from our speaker, Darren Fell, CEO and Founder of Crunch.

Save the date!

Brighton Summit: Crack on Date: Friday 11th October Bringing together 400 businesses and entrepreneurs from our city’s diverse business community, it’s a day for strengthening relationships and forging new ones. You’ll get inspiring speakers, expert-led workshops and energising discussions, with plenty of time for networking built in at every turn. Visit https://brightonsummit.com/ to find out more.

Behind-the-scenes: Future tech at University of Sussex (Members only) Date: Monday 10th June Time: 4.45pm-7pm Venue: University of Sussex, Jubilee Building, Falmer, Brighton Join us for an exclusive behind-thescenes tour of the University of Sussex’s future tech labs and get hands-on with Quantum - the computer that could change our lives.

The ‘Let’s Do Business’ Networking Breakfast Date: Thursday 13th June Time: 8am-9.45am Venue: American Express Community Stadium, Village Way, Brighton Hear from founder of Piglet’s Pantry Jo Hunter about her business journey at our June Pop-up Breakfast, hosted at the Let’s Do Business expo.

Bite-sized Learning: Pitch and present like a pro Date: Friday 14th June Time: 9.30am-11.30am Venue: The 1st Central County Ground, Eaton Road, Hove Whether you’re pitching to an executive team, delivering a keynote speech or presenting ideas in a meeting, discover how to grab your audience’s attention and keep them on the edge of their seat.

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Eastbourne Chamber of Commerce www.eastbourneunltd.co.uk

Chamber Breakfast Date: Tuesday 4th June Time: 7am Venue: The View Hotel, Grand Parade, Eastbourne Price: Members: £11 Non-Members: £16 (includes VAT)

Please join us for networking and to hear from our guest speakers. Drinks and canapés will be served afterwards and there will be opportunities for networking and discussion with the Chamber’s Board of Directors.

Fizz on Foot Walking Tour Date: Friday 28th June Time: 12pm Venue: Pick up from Eastbourne Train Station Price: £55 per person An afternoon of Fizz on Foot with a specially commissioned two vineyard visit with an easy walk along the Cuckoo Trail in between. Ian Shearer has put together this opportunity to visit Hidden Spring Vineyard in Horam and Off the Line vineyard near Hellingly with lunch, wine and cake.

Summer BBQ Date: Friday 5th July Time: 12.30pm Venue: The Hydro Hotel, Mount Road, Eastbourne Price: Members: £27.50 Non-Members: £32.50 (includes VAT) Join us for a delicious BBQ on a sunny day (hopefully) in the beautiful

Members are invited to attend this popular networking event and promote their business services over breakfast.

A great opportunity to meet with other local business people and showcase your business.

Late Breakfast Networking hosted by You Raise Me Up Date: Wednesday 12th June Time: 9am Venue: Faraday House, Eastbourne Price: Members: £11 Non-Members: £16 (includes VAT) Join us for our popular late breakfast networking event. This unique venue provides an informal environment for attendees to make new business connections or catch up with existing contacts.

University of Sussex, Falmer: Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce, June 10th

CHAMBERS LISTINGS gardens of The Hydro Hotel. With live entertainment and a summer cocktail on arrival, we can’t think of a better way to end the week.

Sussex Chamber of Commerce

www.sussexchamberofcommerce. co.uk

Clean Growth Innovation workshop (day 1 of 2) Date: Tuesday 4th June Time: 9am-4.30pm Venue: Barnsgate Manor, Herons Ghyll, East Sussex Price: Free Reducing your environmental impact isn’t just about protecting the planet for future generations, it drives down costs, increases profits, improves employee morale and gives your marketing a new angle. This free two-day workshop will give you an insight into what the opportunities are in your business, and how to implement them.

Clean Growth Innovation workshop (day 2 of 2) Date: Tuesday 2nd July Time: 9am-4.30pm Venue: Barnsgate Manor, Herons Ghyll, East Sussex Price: Free Reducing your environmental impact isn’t just about protecting the planet for future generations, it drives down costs, increases profits, improves employee morale and gives your marketing a new angle. This free workshop will give you an insight into what the opportunities are in your business, and how to implement them.

Cyber Security Forum Date: Tuesday 9th July Time: 8am-10.30am Venue: Venue to be confirmed Price: Members: £25 Non-Members: £35 (excludes VAT) The continuing and indeed growing cyber security threat poses significant risk to businesses of all sizes across Sussex. The role of this forum is to share information and challenges, raise concerns and get advice from an independent trusted advisor.

along and get some top tips for entering the business awards from a panel of previous winners, judges and sponsors.

The importance of Credit Control & Debt Recovery WiseUp2 Date: Friday 7th June Time: 9:30am-11:30am Venue: Centre For Leadership, GB MET, Broadwater Road, Worthing Price: Members: £35+VAT Non-members: £75+VAT This workshop is designed to provide guidelines and practical tips for anyone managing a business’s finances or is responsible for credit risk management within an organisation.

The Art of Selling WiseUp2 Date: Tuesday 11th June Time: 1:30pm-3:30pm Venue: Centre For Leadership, GB MET, Broadwater Road, Worthing Price: Members: £35+VAT Non-members: £75+VAT Identify different customer groups, understand who your best customers are, where you can find more and why they should do business with you.

Chamber Hub Construction Forum Date: Tuesday 6th June Time: 7.45am-10.30am Venue: Holiday Inn, Brighton Price: Members £25 Non-Members: £35 (excludes VAT) These forums bring together construction industry organisations to debate and discuss the current construction issues in the region. This forum will focus on disputes and how to avoid them.

Global Growth Date: Wednesday 19th June Time: 8am-10.30am Venue: Copthorne Hotel, London Gatwick Price: Members: £25 Non-Members: £35 (excludes VAT) Growth is one of the top agenda items for business leaders with companies targeting aggressive growth strategies in response to structural shifts caused by new technologies, changing regulations, evolving customer needs and sector convergence. Hear from keynote speakers KPMG and ILG.

Worthing & Adur Chamber of Commerce www.worthingandadurchamber. co.uk

Gear Up for Success – free business MOT workshop Date: Tuesday 4th June Time: 1:30pm-4:30pm Venue: Centre For Leadership, GB MET, Broadwater Road, Worthing Price: Members only. Free to attend Make sure you are in the right gear with this three-hour business workshop and make plans to fast track your success.

Adur & Worthing Business Awards Launch Date: Wednesday 5th June Time: 5:30pm-7:30pm Venue: Care For Veterans, Boundary Road, Worthing Price: Free to attend

Date: Friday 14th June Time: 12:30pm-2pm Venue: Impulse Leisure, Lancing Price: Free to attend Spend your lunchtime enjoying some informal networking with like-minded business people. The Chamber Hub is a well-established, popular networking event which attracts a vast selection of local businesses.

Speaking with Confidence WiseUp2 Date: Tuesday 25th June Time: 1:30pm-3:30pm Venue: Centre For Leadership, GB MET, Broadwater Road, Worthing Price: Members: £35+VAT Non-members: £75+VAT This workshop will help build your confidence in speaking and presentation skills by offering practical tips and techniques; opportunities to practice your skills in a safe, supportive environment; and constructive feedback and examples.

Thinking of entering the Adur & Worthing Business Awards? Come

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ABORT THE MADNESS

By Maarten Hoffmann

Y

backward lunatics. They then stated tempted to insert a clause exempting ou might have witnessed one that any doctor who performs any victims of rape and incest, and it was of the most shocking and gob stage abortion could face up to 99 voted down. Honestly. I know, l had to smacking laws ever passed years in prison. in our modern times on May 15th 2019. The US state of Alabama vot- “Self-righteous, indignant As many of you know, l am not ofed to ban all abortions, regardless idiots who feel it is their ten lost for words but l am totalof whether the women was raped ly speechless. This means that or a victim of incest. If you wanted right to stop humans should an unfortunate woman be a proof that the Americans have finaltrespassing on the rules victim of rape, the doctor who perly lost the plot, here it is. Voting in formed the abortion would serve a Trump was obviously not enough of God� much longer sentence than the basfor them. tard rapist. read it twice and then check the date to ensure it was not April fools day!

Whilst the Alabama Senate voted on Cannot get any worse l hear you say.

But that was not enough for these this archaic bill, a few members at-

Pro-Choice protesters voicing their right to well... choose

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ANGER MANAGEMENT

Oh really? Of the 35seat Alabama Senate, 27 of them are white, male politicians. Who the hell do they think they are telling women what to do with their bodies?

Of course, they all stand on a pseudo religious, self-righteous platform, that they are convinced affords them the right to rule over others for the greater good, over poor fools who know not what they do. That’s how world wars are started and how serial killers get started.

to other states, or countries, to have their abortion. Or, worse still, drive it underground therefore endangering the life of the women and the foetus.

Staci Fox, the President and CEO of Planned Parenthood stated: “Banning abortions is bad enough.

Imprisoning doctors for providing care goes beyond the brink. Alabama politicians will forever live in infamy for this vote and we will make sure that every women knows who to hold accountable”.

ing confidence of abortion critics after Self-righteous, indignant idiots who the Trump appointment of Brett M. Kafeel it is their right, and indeed their vanaugh to the Supreme Court, hope duty, to stop other humans from tresFurther, if the foetus is less that the that the justices will use the case to passing on the rules of god. Their accepted 24-week age for viability god mind you, who obviously outside the women, the right of speaks directly to them and “If you wanted proof that the this foetus trumps the rights of instructs them to act. What women. Where is the sanity Americans have finally lost the total self-indulgent bloody in telling you that your tumour tosh. has more rights than you do? the plot, here it is. Voting

in Trump was obviously not enough for them”

There has long been a drive by various US states to overturn the court case that allowed abortion in the US. Roe vs Wade was the case that recognised a woman’s constitutional right to end a pregnancy. It is thought that a lower court will block this bill but they anticipated that.

The bans architects, reflecting the ris-

Alabama moron, Eric Johnston

reconsider the Roe vs Wade case and allow the Alabama ruling to take effect and allow every other state to follow suit.

The moron who drafted this bill, Eric Johnston, who founded the Alabama Pro-Life Coalition and serves as its President, has spent more than 30 years trying to ban abortions. Of all the things to spend 30 years on - not gun control, drug use, immigration, the economy, unemployment, obesity along with the plethora of other major issues deeply affecting the country.

30 years devoted to trying to tell women what to do with their bodies for his own personal misguided beliefs. He stated: “When god creates the miracle of life inside a woman’s womb, it is not our place as human beings to extinguish that life”. Give me strength.

And it gets worse. The states of Georgia, Kentucky and Mississippi are all looking to change their abortion laws in this same vein.

The election of Donald Trump seriously affected the worlds opinion of the Americans and this outrageous law further advances the view that the entire country has lost the plot. Historically, they complain and attempt to unseat rulers of nations around the world that they feel follow barbaric laws that restrict the democratic freedom of their citizens and then they go and do things like this.

God save America? I think not – God save us from America might be more apt.

ANGER MANAGEMENT

Of course, all this will do is drive women

99

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FOOTBALL

A

fter the euphoria of four English Clubs reaching the finals of both the Champions and Europa League for the first time, it was announced that Brighton & Hove Albion manager, Chris Hughton would be leaving after four and half years following their Premier League status being secured for another season. A week later, Graham Potter was announced as the new head coach.

news Owner Tony Bloom took the decision following a run of only three wins in 23 games, despite a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace and a creditable 1-1 draw at Arsenal, their first point against a ‘Top Six’ side. Last month, yours truly was joined by Seagulls retiring ‘El Capitan’ Bruno and midfielder Pascal Gross for an evening of fundraising at the Eagle Lab in Brighton. Thank you to everyone that played their part in a great

WATER SPORTS

P

addle Round the Pier is the largest FREE charity beach festival in Europe which takes place on Hove Lawns on Saturday July 6th and Sunday July 7th. It features the very best in water, street and urban sports with live music, kid’s opportunities and plenty of chances for you to have a go at surfing, kayaking and windsurfing or even stand up paddle boarding and

event helping to raise over £8,500 for Chestnut Tree House.

SHOW JUMPING

kite-surfing. For more info go to www. paddleroundthepier.com

HANDBALL

T

he Starlings All Day of Handball Women’s Tournament will take place for the first time at The Dolphin Leisure Centre, Sunday 23rd June 2019 (12.00-19.00). It is the first and only Women Tournament for Handball Players in the whole of the UK. Players come from various regions and counties, teams, clubs and leagues to enjoy a day of competition.

TENNIS

Paul Hazlewood, Club Photographer, Brighton & Hove Albion

SPORT

S

urrey-based international showjumper William Funnell could set a new record this summer as he bids to become the first rider to win the Al Shira’aa Derby five times. Funnell secured a hat-trick of Hickstead victories in 2006, 2008 and 2009 with the Mondriaan, before adding a fourth win to his CV last summer with the homebred Billy Buckingham. In doing so, he joined an illustrious group of riders to have had four wins in Hickstead’s most iconic class, including Harvey Smith, Eddie Macken and brothers John and Michael Whitaker.

History could be made on the final day of the Derby Meeting at Hickstead (20-23 June). Tickets are on available from www.hickstead.co.uk

T

his month sees the return of the Nature Valley International Tennis tournament to Eastbourne, which will have former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki coming back to defend her title following her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s final. Currently ranked number 12 in the world, she’ll be joined by Britain’s Johanna Konta and a host of other star players. The 2018 tournament achieved a record attendance of 51,641 visitors to the event and this year’s tournament runs from June 21st-29th.

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H THE PLATINUM PAUL (Dev Assist) ADDISON v

PART 5 - ‘The British Airways i360 iDrop Abseil’ Paul and Laurence take on their toughest challenge yet, but who will come out on top?

W

hilst deliberating which challenges to participate in, it was randomly suggested we abseil from the British Airways i360 on Brighton seafront. Without too much thought given to what this might entail, we made the necessary arrangements and the ‘drop’ was planned.

miny of chickening out – particularly with us both scared of heights!?

only coming around as he bounced back up!!

As the challenge approached, I found myself spending an unnatural amount of time in the bathroom and despite my attempts to pacify this anxiety by Googling videos of the i360 drop, rather than help, this only enhanced the nerves!

At the top, three of us were fitted with the necessary kit so each time one ‘dropped’, the other two received their safety checks and had their pictures taken. The latter presumably to have some record of us, just in case anything went wrong!?!

Back then, it seemed a long way off and we weren’t unduly worried because anything could change; one of us could be ill, or perhaps the weather would intervene and spare us the igno-

Drop day arrived and as I deliberateThinking it was a good idea at the time, ly ambled slowly along the seafront, I asked for myself and Paul to go last, I couldn’t help wishing that Paul was a) to allow cameraman James to get going to bottle it! Unfortunately, Paul the best angles and was already there, …he was really b) so that we didn’t along with James from Picture Book scared of heights have an audience!

As time passed Films and much to my dismay, so were and even admitted (very slowly!), a concerned James kept about 30 or 40 othwhilst doing a enquiring as to our er people, most of wellbeing whom were there bungee jump that general where it became to support their he’d passed out…! apparent that one friends and family word typified our emotions – petrimembers who would be joining us. fied!! A feeling which only became more pronounced once the first vicFollowing the preliminary health and tim, sorry volunteer, took the plunge safety briefing, we had to empty our and proceeded to scream as she vanpockets of keys, wallets, change and ished from view. phones in case anything could fall and hit passers-by below. A brief but As the numbers in the pod began to much-needed toilet break preceded diminish, Paul became more anxious our entry into the ‘pod’ and off we and had had enough of waiting. After climbed towards our intended height successfully asking a few people if he of 450 feet. Taking in the spectacucould go before them, he strapped on lar views over Brighton and beyond, the various harnesses, ropes, helmet I enquired whether Paul had had a and array of metal clips, had his kit ‘flight’ on the BA i360 before? He redouble checked and moved into posiminded me that he was really scared tion on a thin ledge by the exit. of heights and even admitted whilst doing a bungee jump that he’d passed out as he fell forward from the crane, With a resigned look of terror on his

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SPORT | PLATINUM CHALLENGE

CHALLENGE H

LAURENCE (Platinum) ELPHICK worth it, despite everything I’ve just said!

Once I was back down, Paul and I hugged, and congratulated each other with an ice-cold beer. Paul remarked he was happy he’d done it, but perfectly happy to admit he never wanted to do it again.

face, Paul backed up slowly clinging on for dear life as he was instructed to lean out backwards and to keep going until he was almost horizontal.

An extreme case of Tourette’s kicked in, when at this point his feet suddenly left the ledge and he instantly disappeared from view! Paul was now hanging suspended in the seated position under the ledge and with the hardest part over, slowly but surely, he was lowered down to the ground.

Now it was my turn. To add to my already enhanced anxiety, I overheard the instructors saying Paul had nearly crashed his head into the ledge in that momentary swing after he disappeared over the side. A good idea to be wearing helmets then.

ence because they’re in control! Feeling brave, I decided on the hands-free option… a decision which very quickly reversed as soon as I began to lean out; there was no chance I wasn’t going to hold on!

As I tentatively edged myself out as far as I could go, my feet suddenly fell away from the ledge and in that split second of swinging back underneath I know I swore loudly! Now hanging 450 feet up from the ground, I found it incredibly exhilarating. If you get the chance, I recommend you try this. It’s an amazing experience, very safe and

We had both conquered our fears in what was for us, a breath-taking adrenaline rush, but remembering this is a challenge, there could only be one winner. Based on who looked the more composed/ in control on exiting the pod, the instructors chose me. Unfair on Paul perhaps, as it had taken a huge amount of courage for him to complete this latest challenge, but nevertheless it’s a competition and I’ll take that.

For more information about how to book your i360 iDrop Abseil, please visit www.britishairwaysi360.com

The Platinum Challenge – helping to raise funds for Rockinghorse Children’s Charity. If you can help, all donations will be very much appreciated www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/platinumchallenge10

The legs were shaking, the mouth was dry, even before I’d stepped onto the ledge! The instructors informed me they were (reassuringly!) in complete control, and I was given the option to hold onto the rope in front or put my hands on my head. Apparently, they prefer the latter as it makes no differ-

SCORE SCOREAFTER AFTERONE FIVEEVENT: EVENTS: PAUL PAUL 1-03-2 LAURENCE LAURENCE

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Polo: the King Power Gold Cup preview 2019 Who will win the British Open Polo Championship?

A

t the time of going to press, ten teams have entered the 2019 King Power Gold Cup, with one brand new side making its debut, all playing to decide the British Open Polo Championship.

2019 will be the first time for many years that Adolfo Cambiaso will not be seen at Cowdray Park, with the world’s number one player for almost two decades having decided to retire from UK polo.

However, several exceptional young players will be making their mark.

Seven of the teams return from the 2018 King Power Gold Cup. Amongst them are finalists La Bamba de Areco, the team of Jean Francois Decaux, who brings in young Englishman Kian Hall, 3 goals, to play alongside David ‘Pelon’ Stirling and 10 goaler Juan Martin Nero. Semi Finalists from 2018, La Indiana, sees patron Michael Bickford introduce young English player Jimbo Fewster to his team, playing alongside Rodrigo Andrade who has taken over from Nic Roldan, and 10 goaler Facundo Pieres. Corinne Ricard brings back

Winners El Remanso hold the Gold Cup aloft; King Power Gold Cup 2018

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Murus Sanctus with Facundo Sola and Gonzalito Pieres, this year also having recruited the talented Tommy Beresford to her side.

Park Place returns with patron Andrey Borodin playing at number 1, Byron Watson at 2, Juan Britos at 3 and 10 goaler Hillario Ulloa at Back. Spencer McCarthy retains ‘Tincho’ Merlos in his Emlor side, but brings in Alfredo Bigatti and Fred Mannix Jnr, both playing off 7 goals. Alessandro Bezzoni

SPORT | COWDRAY PARK

Images courtesy of Clive Bennett. www.polopictures.co.uk

‘The Gold Cup at Cowdray Park is the most exciting competition in European polo’

James Beim out in front for El Remanso at the King Power Gold Cup Final 2018

is joined in his Monterosso side by Juan Gris Zavaleta, Ignacio Toccalino and Joaquin Pittaluga. Edouard Carmignac brings back an unchanged Talandracas team with Fran Elizalde, Ale Muzzio and Julian de Lusarreta.

Returning after a year’s absence is King Power, with ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha at the front door, Juan Martin Zubia at 2, Polito Pieres at 3 and Marcos di Paola at Back. Returning after an absence of several years is the Albwardy family’s Dubai side with

Rashid Albwardy playing at 1, joined

by Camilo and Bartolomé Castagnola and South African Nachi du Plessis.

Brand new to the Gold Cup is ‘Scone’ the team of patron David Paradice, which sees Nico Pieres (9 goals) taking up the number 2 position and England captain James Beim (7 goals) and James Harper (6 goals) at number 3 and Back respectively. Beim and Harper were team-mates in the winning El Remanso side of 2018.

June 25th with Quarter Finals over the weekend of July 13th/14th, Semi Finals on July 17th and the thrilling Final taking place on Sunday July 21st.

Entry throughout the King Power Gold Cup is £5 per adult, under 12s free, except for the Semi Finals and Final when ticket prices start from £18 (pre-booked).

For more details please visit www. cowdraypolo.co.uk

The Gold Cup at Cowdray Park is the most demanding competition in European polo and once again spectators are in for a truly exciting season. The tournament for the King Power Gold Cup to decide the British Open Polo Championship gets underway on

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SPORT | GOLF ACADEMY

Do you want to ROAR like the Tiger?

Sussex has a new state of the art golf coaching and custom fitting studio, where you can get 50% off!

Just ask Ryan Fenwick...

T

he Ryan Fenwick Golf Academy based at West Hove Golf Club is proving to be the ‘go to’ place for Golf Coaching and Equipment fitting. Located on the driving range, you will now find a brand-new state of the art golf coaching and custom fitting studio.

correct equipment for you.

Open seven days a week, from 8am – 7pm providing coaching for all abilities, from beginners to touring pros, they use Trackman technology to help you understand your golf swing tendencies and recommend improvements.

The Ryan Fenwick Golf Academy can boast that they coach the Sussex performance team, England Regional team and several tournament professionals from as far afield as South Africa and the USA!

They can also custom fit Callaway, Titleist, Srixon and Ping clubs to your specifications and help pin point the

To book your session or to find out more, visit www.ryanfenwickgolf.com - use the code ‘Platinum19’ and get

Complete with fully trained staff and a PGA golf professional, the West hove golf shop attached to the academy is fully stocked with the latest under armour and Foot-joy clothing, along with shoes and the necessary consumables.

50% off a custom fitting session, or for new clients get 50% off a 50-minute golf lesson.

And if you’re a novice at golf and the ‘Tiger’ has inspired you to start, then why not try a ‘Get into Golf’ session from only £29.00, which includes 4 lessons!

SPORT | GOLF

What’s your perfect

GOLF ESCAPE?

Summer is here so start thinking about where you will be playing golf over the next few months. Have a look at three suggestions from Golf Escapes and plan your summer golf escape THE CANARY ISLANDS

H

otel Jardin Tecina is situated on the beautiful island of La Gomera with the resort on top of the village where you can find an array of bars and restaurants as well as a beautiful beach. Each of the guestrooms within the hotel boasts stunning garden or sea views which you can enjoy either from a private terrace or balcony. During the day, you can take a stroll into the fishing village of Playa de Santiago, enjoy a round on Tecina Golf or take advantage of the range of leisure facilities and activities offered at the hotel.

There are five pool areas, extensive

sporting facilities including tennis and squash courts as well as beach volleyball and table tennis. If you are looking to relax and indulge, take a visit to the

hotel’s spa where you can enjoy a signature massage or facial. For your next golf escape to the Canary Islands, look no further than Hotel Jardin Tecina.

PORTUGAL

V

ale do Lobo is Portugal’s biggest and most exclusive luxury holiday destination. The estate spans over 400-hectares and boasts beautiful scenery, two championship golf courses and a three-mile-long sandy beach. Within the estate, there are dozens of bars, shops, bistros, cafes and even a nightclub as well as extensive sporting facilities. For relaxation, there is the brilliant Vale do Lobo spa where you can choose from a range of different health and beauty treatments or just enjoy the facilities including the sauna, hot tub and jacuzzi. Within the estate, sits the brilliant five-star Dona Filipa Hotel which is located next to the Vale do Lobo’s Royal Course and boasts a wonderful peaceful location, but remains just seconds away from all the leisure facilities within the Estate. The hotel offers its guests a great range of leisure facilities as well as the children’s Kangaroo Club, private tennis courts and a large outdoor swimming pool.

SICILY If you are looking for a luxury golf holiday, the Verdura Resort lies on the South West coast near to the seaside town of Sciacca, where the hotel plays host to the fantastic Verdura Golf Course, a stunning course that will test golfers of all abilities. This resort has established itself amongst Europe’s premier golfing destinations and provides guests with an air of unspoilt exclusivity that very few places in Europe can rival. There are excellent facilities within the hotel including an award-winning spa, the championship golf course and other sports facilities including six tennis courts, a two-tiered infinity pool, a fully equipped fitness centre and various water sports. Each of the guestrooms has a private balcony or terrace from which guests can enjoy stunning views of the hotel’s surroundings and the rooms are all equipped with the facilities and amenities that you would expect from a hotel of this standard.

Whether you are looking to travel as a group, with your family, or just with a partner, we can tailor-make a golf escape which will meet your needs perfectly, so call 01342 811777 or visit www.golf-escapes.com to find out more

Platinum Golf

sponsored by Golf-Escapes.com info@golf-escapes.com • 01342 811 777 Golf Escapes Ltd, St Andrew’s House, Cinder Hill, HORSTED KEYNES, West Sussex RH17 7BA

LAST MINUTE DEALS ALL-INCLUSIVE PACKAGES

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EARLY BOOKING DISCOUNTS

BUSINESS SPORT SURVEY | RUGBY

A BRIEF HISTORY OF EASTBOURNE RUGBY CLUB

By Steve Snell, Vice Chairman / Commercial Director

E

astbourne RFC was founded in 1892, with their first competitive game against Brighton taking place on December 17th that same year. Back then, Eastbourne opponents were London based clubs and hospital teams. Between 1914-18 Eastbourne lost many of their young men during World War 1 and it wasn’t until 1928 that Eastbourne could field a full 15 side.

During 1947-1971, we were proud to have hosted The British Lions, who made Eastbourne their home prior to travelling to Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. Eastbourne was visited by these tourists, who trained at Eastbourne, prior to the international games against England.

In 1969 Eastbourne saw the opening of their new club house in Park Avenue which remains today as Eastbourne’s only Rugby Club and is often referred to as the Fortress. During the 70’s Eastbourne were playing rugby games against Harlequins and Wasps and also saw John Novak ex-Eastbourne 1st XV player selected to play for England against Wales, Scotland, and France in the 5 nations.

In 1977 our Mini and Youth Rugby sections were formed and what a success this has been, seeing players go right through the age groups to our senior sides. On Sunday mornings it is always great to see so many young children being taught by professionally trained coaches and in the past few years we have continued to grow year on year to now having over 200 players. These Sections are the life blood of our club and without them and their coaches, Eastbourne would not be a thriving Sussex club with our 1st XV currently in Sussex 1 division having won the Sussex Shield in 2018.

Recently we have seen Joe Marler (Harlequins & England & British lions) meet and greet our teams throughout our Mini and Youth sections, showing a local boy can do it.

Our Colts team has grown so successfully over the last year that we have been able to retain a squad of over 22 Colts players with a clear development path into Senior Rugby. We have continued to grow and in 2018 formed a Women’s and Girls Rugby section which is led by an ex-Harlequins Women's player.

School engagement for the club is developing at a rapid pace as an important element to engage within the community and to promote rugby. As a club, we have also become an RFU All Schools Club, which means we are delivering high quality coaching within local schools during curriculum lessons and after school clubs, engaging children into the sport and building a sustainable future of rugby in Eastbourne.

Due to the work we have completed as a club, the RFU want to use us in a new national campaign to highlight how important it is for grassroots rugby clubs to engage with their local community. Filming for this national campaign will begin before the end of this academic year.

The success of our club is down to our hard-working volunteers and without them there would not be an Eastbourne Rugby Club.

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SPORT | MOTOR SPORT

A TRUE RACING LEGEND

Last month saw the sad loss of Formula 1 great, Niki Lauda. Laurence Elphick reflects on the passing of one of the biggest names in motorsport

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orn in Vienna 70 years ago, Niki Lauda was a non-executive chairman of the Mercedes team and a three-time Formula 1 world champion, having won the world title twice for Ferrari in 1975 and 1977 and once for McLaren in 1984.

For many, it will be the memory of his incredible recovery and return to racing after being severely burned following a crash in the 1976 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring that people will remember. On August 1st that year, following his first title the previous year, Lauda lost control at a corner and hit an embankment whereupon his car burst into flames.

by one point to James Hunt in 1976, Lauda had reportedly fallen out with Enzo Ferrari, citing a lack of support following his crash. After securing victory in 1977, he moved to Bernie Ecclestone’s Brabham team. Unfortunately, with an uncompetitive Alfa Romeo engine, Lauda’s interest in F1 began to wane and during a practice lap at the Canadian Grand Prix, the penultimate race of the 1979 season, he announced he was “bored of driving around in circles” and promptly retired!

Two years after returning to Austria, he was tempted back into F1

by McLaren boss Ron Dennis and in 1984, he clinched the title by half a point over Alain Prost, the closest margin in history, but a year later at 36 he finally called it a day for good.

Niki Lauda Trapped in the wreckage, but con1949-2019 scious, he was dragged clear, sufIn 1993, Lauda briefly acted as a fering third-degree burns to his head consultant at Ferrari, and in and face. He’d also suffered “He combined heroism, 2001, Lauda took charge of the inhalation of toxic fumes from the burning fibreglass and it humanity and honesty inside Ford-owned Jaguar team, before being sacked at the end of was this lung damage which and outside the cockpit.

2002 when the team’s perforput his life in danger. Amazingly, Lauda made a miraculous His passing leaves a void in mances failed to improve. recovery and despite being Formula 1” In September 2012, he was apscarred for life, returned to racpointed a non-executive director of ing just 40 days later where he finished ommended him after his own move the Mercedes F1 team, and along with 4th in the Italian Grand Prix. The accithere in 1974. That year, Lauda lost out Ross Brawn, played a major role in the dent was the end of the Nürburgring’s on the title to Emerson Fittipaldi, but signing of Lewis Hamilton, whereupon time as a Formula 1 circuit. that all changed the following year, as he helped Mercedes win both the driv1975 saw him win the title in the now ers’ and constructors’ title in each of Lauda had entered F1 in 1971 and legendary Ferrari 312T. the past five seasons. joined Ferrari three years later when his team-mate Clay Regazzoni, recAfter narrowly missing out on the title A sad moment not just in F1, but in Motorsport. Mercedes Team principal Toto Wolff summed it up perfectly “… he combined heroism, humanity and honesty inside and outside the cockpit. His passing leaves a void in Formula 1”.

Niki Lauda RIP

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SPORT | ACTIVE SUSSEX

Sussex Parallel Youth Games showcases disability sport The thrilling, ‘mini-Paralympics’ event, in its 14th year, took place last month at K2 Crawley, with inspirational youngsters impressing on the day

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ver 400 young people, aged 10-18 years, from 15 schools from across Sussex, enjoyed the prestigious occasion by taking part in a range of non-competitive sports, including bouldering and climbing, dance, street soccer and new age kurling!

The Sussex Parallel Youth Games, organised by Active Sussex, with support from event sponsor Everyone Active and Sussex School Games Organisers, is the only event of its size for disabled children in Sussex and this year, for the first time, is part of the Specsavers School Games programme.

Former GB rower Charlie Cousins leads the children in the warm up

GB Rowing star Charlie Cousins

Specsavers and Claims.co.uk

The 30-year-old London 2012 Olympian and double World Championships medallist, Charlie Cousins, was on hand for the welcoming ceremony, inspiring the participants throughout the day and presenting medals.

Everyone Active also provided their fantastic Olympic training venue K2 Crawley for the event, which provided the perfect backdrop for the sports on offer.

“There is a sport for everyone and days like the Sussex Parallel Youth Games are so important because it gives the opportunity for young people to have fun, take part in lots of non-traditional sports and feel proud of their achievements. I was certainly inspired!” said the former GB Rowing Team sculler.

Young leaders provide vital support

More than 100 young leaders aged 13-18 also helped out on the day, assisting with the running of sports such as tennis and swimming, coordinating dance routines and providing logistical support.

Partnership working

This event would not be possible without the kind donations made by guests at the annual Sussex Sports Awards-hosted by Active Sussex, Everyone Active,

Youth Games and to welcoming back hundreds of smiling children giving sport and physical activity a go!

Active Sussex Chief Executive Sadie Mason MBE, Speaking about the annual event said, “The Parallel Youth Games gives young people the opportunity to be defined not by their disability, but instead by their inspirational achievements, and to celebrate ability in sport. It is also a fantastic day for everyone including young leaders and coordinators as it uses the power of sport to bring people together.”

Stuart Mills, from Everyone Active, said: “The Parallel Youth Games is a fantastic event which Everyone Active is proud to be a part of for the first time. I hope that the children coming enjoyed their experience and find a new sport that they enjoy.”

Looking ahead

With another successful event done and dusted, Active Sussex are already looking forward to the 2020 Parallel

For corporate opportunities relating to school sport, including disability sport please contact Ed Bartram, Events Officer, E: ebartram@activesussex.org T: 01273 644103.

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SPORT | CRICKET

Who will win the 2019 World Cup? Laurence Elphick tries to pick out the players and teams to watch out for

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311 runs from eight innings, including ast month saw the ICC Cricket day international at the Ageas Bowl. three half-centuries. Add to that, ButWorld Cup begin with 10 naSupported by the unpredictability of tler appears to be in top form after his tions vying for the title of the all-rounder Ben Stokes and the guile best one-day team in the of spin bowler Moeen Ali, World. England and Wales England will be the team “Buttler appears to be in top are the hosts with the tourto beat. nament showcasing the form after his spectacular 50-ball top ODI players from AusThe defending champihundred, including nine sixes” tralia, Bangladesh, Engons are Australia and their spectacular 50-ball hundred, including land, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, strength appears to lie with their batnine sixes, helped England beat PaSouth Africa, Sri Lanka, the West Inting element as they welcome back kistan by 12 runs in their recent onedies and Afghanistan.

Steve Smith and David Warner from their ball tampering bans and who This year the tournament will be played both look to be on fire, particularly in a round robin format, where all the the latter, who finished the IPL tournateams will play each other and the top ment as the highest run scorer, with four will qualify for the semi-finals.

692 runs from 12 innings.

England last hosted the World Cup back in 1999 with the winners being While India will undoubtedly pose Australia, but who will be the chama threat with the likes of Virat pions in 2019?

Kohli, Hardik Pandya and specialist bowler, Jaspit Bumrah, along with Last month’s Indian Premier League current Champions Trophy hold(IPL) has given us a glimpse into the ers Pakistan, my underdogs for the potential stars who could light up this tournament are the West Indians. year’s competition. After the Mumbai When your side includes big-hitting Indians secured a 2-run victory on the batsman Chris Gayle who will be playlast ball of the competition against the ing his fifth World Cup, along with IPL Chennai Super Kings, one thing is cerstar Andre Russell whose destructive tain and that is that many teams poshitting lit up the tournament with 52 sess players who can turn a game in sixes from 13 innings, your confidence an instant. is going to be high.

As the number one ranked side, England will be favourites, boasting an exciting batting line up, which includes captain Eoin Morgan, Jason Roy and Joe Root, together with Yorkshire’s no-nonsense Jonny Bairstow, who smashed 445 runs in 10 outings for Sunrisers Hyderabad, including the tournament’s highest score of 114 off just 56 balls.

He will be ably supported by the explosive hitting of Jos Buttler after he hit

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Platinum Cricket sponsored by Extech Cloud, Greenacre Court, Burgess Hill RH15 9DS 01444 443200 Email: hello@extech.co.uk www.extechcloud.com

Add into the mix Darren Bravo, Kemar Roach and Carlos Braithwaite who, if you remember, hit 4 sixes in a row off the bowling of Ben Stokes to win the T20 World Cup three years ago, then the WI are always going to be a dangerous side. The big question will be, can they perform in the 50-over format?

The Final will take place at Lord’s on July 14th, but who’s going to win? My tip? It’s one from five!

SPORT | BOUNDARY CLUB

Sussex networking for Sussex business Where business meets cricket, a perfect way to network this summer

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ith the 2019 cricket season well and truly underway, the second Boundary Club of the year saw another 120 people from the business community arrive at the Cow Corner Boundary Rooms for an afternoon of informal networking over a delicious three course lunch with wine.

Attendees were joined by Economist Marcus Wright, who gave an insight in to how the economy is changing and how Brexit is having/or not influencing businesses. Marcus then opened questions to the floor so that business owners in the Sussex area could ask about any of the topics that he had brought up.

Host of proceedings, and Business Relationship Manager Tony Cottey spoke about the Rathbones Arundel Festival of Cricket coming up on June 11-14th together with the availability of Match Day Hospitality at both Arundel and at The 1st Central County Ground.

Sussex Cricket’s very own unique networking Club always delivers the perfect mix of business and pleasure, with like-minded businesses from across the county swopping business cards and discussing opportunities for working together over a refreshing

beverage, and this month, guests were able to enjoy the backdrop of Sussex versus Somerset in the Royal London One Day Cup at the same time.

Boundary Club membership includes attending all this year’s events with many taking place whilst watching a Sussex CCC fixture at the same time. With the PLUS membership including two Executive Passes allowing admission to the SO Legal Executive Suite to watch all home games at The 1st Central County Ground, including the T20 Vitality Blast group matches, membership to one of the best networking events in the county is an absolute must.

Future events include a range of speakers from the business and entertainment world so make sure you make a note in your diary.

Wednesday June 26th Comedian Simon Evans Wednesday July 24th Welsh tenor and the Go Compare Man, Wynne Evans Tuesday August 20th BBC news presenter, John Young Monday September 23rd Double European Cup winning Captain of Nottingham Forest, John McGovern Thursday October 24th Double amputee and Invictus Games athlete, Murray Hambro Wednesday December 11th Boundary Club Christmas Party Where business meets cricket, a perfect way to network this summer.

Next month I’ll be reviewing May’s event with guest speaker comedian Jim Tavare as he entertains fellow guests from across the Sussex business community. For more information about how to become a member in 2019, call 0844 264 0201 or email the boundaryclub@sussexcricket.co.uk

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SPORT | WHEN BUSINESS MEETS SPORT

WHY I

LOVE

Q&A

CRICKET

Tamara Roberts, CEO, Ridgeview Winery Ltd

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ricket came into my life in the 1980s when Sir Ian Botham was in his prime and England were riding high on the back of a decade of Ashes wins (with one exception).

Having finally become an England cricket fan, I then had to spend the next decade watching Australia and others take most of the glory and life being sucked out of England’s international cricket – a harsh reminder of how important it is to constantly invest into the grass roots talent in any sport, complacency is not an option.

I also met my husband Simon during this decade which resulted in cricket (and pretty much all sports other than motor racing – phew!) becoming much more of a feature in my everyday life. Simon’s father even features in Wisden for his batting average in 1961 – so it is no surprise that both our children are also sport mad, playing rugby and cricket for their local com-

munity clubs in Burgess Hill which we have supported both personally and through sponsorship by Ridgeview.

It is also great to see Sussex CCC investing in grass roots cricket with their newly extended pathway scheme giving great opportunities to all talented young cricketers in the region which both our boys have benefited greatly from and will, at the very least, become life-long cricket and more specifically Sussex cricket fans.

It is for all these reasons that I love cricket – our family’s inter-generational love of the sport, the joy our children get from playing it, the new friends we have made at our local community clubs and our (Ridgeview’s) excellent experience as sponsors for Sussex CCC – I wish all partnerships could be so rewarding.

Ridgeview Estate Winery Limited, Fragbarrow Lane, Ditchling Common, East Sussex, BN6 8TP Tel. 01444 242040 www.ridgeview.co.uk @RidgeviewWineUK

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WHO’S YOUR FAVOURITE PLAYER OF ALL TIME? Sir Ian Botham because he sparked my interest in cricket in the 1980s and he’s now involved in wine industry!

WHAT’S THE BEST MATCH YOU’VE EVER SEEN? The 1981 Ashes match at Edgbaston – on TV but not live unfortunately.

HOW FAR DO YOU THINK THE WOMEN’S GAME HAS COME ON IN THE LAST FEW YEARS? Considering the limited sporting options there were for women when I was growing up, women’s cricket has come a long way in a very short period of time and has a very exciting future ahead.

WHICH DO YOU PREFER; WHITE BALL OR RED BALL CRICKET? I enjoy them both, however white ball suits me better currently in terms of the time I have available to watch live cricket.