Looking after the company’s money is a tough job in the current climate. But someone has to do it.
The area’s private banks and other wealth managers may be struggling to attract new customers in a climate where few owner managers are selling their businesses. Which is all the more reason to focus on the customers they have got.
Prior to our widely anticipated Dealmakers Awards Dinner we preview the runners and riders on the night and look at some of the key deals of the year.
For businesses with deep pockets, this is a good market for snapping up your rivals who may not be in such a fortunate position. The ability to do equity-only deals is allowing some companies to put on bulk in a relatively low-cost way.
Ideas such as networking and profile building have become intrinsically important to many businesses. Often the best way to do this is to put on an event and invite along the clients you want to thank and the people you would like to become clients or key contacts.
Is Belgium as well known for its international trade links in the Midlands as it is for its chocolate and fictional detectives?
Often heralded as one of the most attractive parts of the country in which to live, North Derbyshire also provides a convenient base for commuters to the Midlands and the North.
Our flagship feature on the regional manufacturing sector highlights those businesses that are unique in their offering or best of breed. Much is written about the demise of manufacturing but nobody has told those producers who are still out there, continuing to compete in national and international markets.
It may come as no surprise that design is key to a successful marketing campaign. But how do you weight the importance of image against message?
There is help out there. Companies who need expert advice can get it through the West Midlands Task Force and the likes of Business Link. Grants are available for research and development from universities and knowledge transfer partnerships with universities allow companies to dip into their expertise via a subsidised member of staff.
Leicester is at a crossroads. It is it aiming to attract that elusive big inward investor that would enhance the development work going on throughout the city in a market in which few big moves are happening and competition from other cities is intense.
Asian food production has become a huge business as a visit to any High Street supermarket will quickly confirm. A glance at the back of many Asian food products will reveal that many of them are made in the Midlands with centres of industry massed around Leicester and Birmingham.
The modern business park is a mixed-use development where occupiers can work and play, and sometimes even live. But in an era of regenerating city centres, do people still want to be out of town on a purpose-built business estate? Isn’t it an idea that has had its day? In this feature we look at the new generation of business parks and speak to their developers, planners and occupiers to find out how they reverse the tide.
Shifting sheds is a difficult business at the moment. The recession coming on top of the void rates issue has created an environment in which there is vast oversupply – certainly at the big shed end of the market.
The combination of repossessed properties and a need for new investment opportunities may be creating an interesting new marriage of convenience.
