Insider Media Limited

Handbags at dawn

Now there's nothing like a bit of celebrity endorsement to get sales going, but Walsall's Launer has got its name literally hanging on three of the biggest names on the planet – Meryl Streep, the Queen and Margaret Thatcher: Insider leaves it to you to put them in order of priority.

The Black Country company makes the classic Launer handbag, one of which was seen swinging from her majesty's arm during the royal wedding. Were that not enough, Streep's performance as Mrs T in The Iron Lady was made complete only by carrying another piece of Walsall leatherwork prominently.

With so much free product placing – and we're talking billions of viewers here – sales of Launer's have rocketed by almost two thirds. In fact demands been so great that company's website crashed for two days.

It's good to talk

At last – some sense! We may be a nation of good sports, but most British workers think that doing more company team-building events would not help improve how they work with colleagues. A survey by Vodafone UK and YouGov suggests employees feel that some organised team-building activities can be a waste of time, and at worst, toe-curlingly awkward. British workers would much prefer being able to communicate with each other better at work rather than being forced to build rapport with their co-workers by sharing adrenaline experiences or performing 'trust' exercises.

The research among more than 1,000 British employees with colleagues uncovered some eye-popping examples of awkward and silly team-building activities, including enduring bikini-clad 'bed baths' and massages from colleagues, holding lingerie parties, and eating crickets as part of a 'bush tucker trial' style event.

While the majority of workers surveyed (66 per cent) have been made to do some form of team-building activity, more than half (54 per cent) don't feel that doing more would help them work better with their colleagues.

"British companies are spending a huge amount of time and effort in building more effective teams," says Peter Kelly, enterprise director at Vodafone UK. "This research confirms that people place more value on open, collaborative and flexible ways of working every day than one-off team-building exercises."