|
Top story
|
Stockport Council closes in on Grand Central deal
Stockport Council’s executive was yesterday formally asked to approve plans by the local authority to buy the town’s Grand Central development. The scheme’s owner, developer Targetfollow, was placed in administration by its lender Lloyds in October. Deloitte is acting as administrator. Council leader Dave Goddard told Insider: "If we don’t buy it there’s a chance that someone else could pick it up and sit on it for ten years."
|
|
Deals
|
The Hut moves for Mankind
Northwich online retailer The Hut Group has followed up its £19.4m acquisition of the Lookfantastic Group with a deal to buy Mankind Direct. It has paid £2.5m for the Farnborough-headquartered male health and beauty products business.
|
Brulines swoops for Amscreen
Stockton data management company Brulines has acquired Bolton machine-to-machine business Amscreen M2M. The company has paid an initial £2m, with a further amount of up to £1.4m which may become payable dependent upon Amscreen M2M’s performance.
|
Wellocks on the move
Lancashire food supplier Wellocks has secured a £1.4m finance package from Yorkshire Bank. The funding has enabled the company to move into a new storage and distribution centre in Nelson, while it is looking to take on 25 more staff.
|
|
Business
|
Record year for Victrex
Lancashire global polymer business Victrex this morning reported record revenues and profits in the year to 30 September following much-improved sales and exchange rate gains. The company also announced it is paying a special dividend of 50p a share.
|
Lancashire still divided over LEP bid
Local authorities in Burnley and Blackburn are remaining steadfast in their bid to form a local enterprise partnership (LEP) in Pennine Lancashire, despite allies in Hyndburn, Ribble Valley, Rossendale and Pendle withdrawing their support.
|
Deals boost Daisy Group
Revenue has climbed 288 per cent at Lancashire telecommunications business Daisy Group in the six months to 30 September, boosted by the company’s acquisitive strategy.
|
Bglobal posts maiden profit
Darwen smart metering company Bglobal has reported a maiden profit and an increase in revenues. The AIM-listed company said it “passed a number of milestones” in the first half of the year.
|
Complete Set of Top 500s - Purchase all Six
You can now purchase Insider’s Complete Set of Top 500 Companies 2010/2011 Databases at an exclusive promotional rate: A bundle of our accurate and comprehensive regional business marketing lists - featuring six UK regions. Special promotional offer expires 31 January 2011.
|
|
Property
|
Interserve expands following nuclear deal
Construction and maintenance business Interserve Industrial has moved into a new 230,000 sq ft Pioneer Point facility in Ellesmere Port. The expansion follows a £20m contract win to work on a £400m clean-up project at Sellafield in Cumbria. The contract has created 175 new jobs.
|
Galliford Try named in Halton BSF consortium
Uxbridge construction group Galliford Try has been confirmed as construction and investment partner of the local transformational partnership (LTP) that has been appointed as the preferred bidder on the £50m Halton Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.
|
DJD appointed in Cumbria
Property consultancy Drivers Jonas Deloitte (DJD) is to project manage the construction of a £20m research facility in West Cumbria. The scheme, which is being built at the Westlakes Science and Technology Park, is a joint venture between Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the University of Manchester.
|
|
Other News
|
Enterprise wins Severn Trent deal
|
Heinz workers vote to strike
|
Broadband boost for North West businesses
|
