POTTER CELEBRATES 30 YEARS IN BUSINESS AND DISMISSES IMPACT OF BREXIT ON HIS TRADE

The 87-year-old owner of a specialist pottery import business celebrating 30 years says he is not concerned about the impact Brexit may have on his company.

Barry Iskander runs ABS Pottery Imports Ltd from his home at Barton, near Bidford-on-Avon, and set up the company in 1989 after leaving his job at Rover.

The business imports terracotta to the UK from Catalonia and has also imported products from Portugal and Italy over the last three decades. It imports 40,000 pieces a year.

UK’s first greenfield high value manufacturing site opens

Lontra, a pioneer in advanced engineering technologies has opened what it says is the UK’s first purpose-built greenfield advanced manufacturing centre at Napton, Warwickshire, in partnership with Shield Group Engineering.

Lontra is the company behind the Blade Compressor® – the first clean-sheet compressor design in over 80 years.

This is the first phase of a rapid expansion driven by exports where Lontra is seeking to develop several advanced manufacturing centres, a global technology centre, assembly facilities and a revolutionary digitally driven services centre.

The new advanced manufacturing facility will complement the firm’s existing R&D Technology Centre enabling Lontra to better address a £69-billion market across 150 countries through its rapidly growing distributor network.

The facility is part of a new build hightech manufacturing and research park.

Barry has been working with regional accountancy firm Burgis & Bullock, for more than 10 years.

The accountants have been helping him with the Make Tax Digital initiative, the government’s flagship scheme that requires online tax filing and payment, as well as digital record keeping.

Barry primarily supplies trade in the UK and works with some independent retailers including Adnams Brewery in Suffolk and The Burford Garden Centre.

He said: “It will be a difficult 12 months with Brexit, but it is only a temporary concern for me and my business.”