Yorkshire property company Opus North has bought a development site in Runcorn for £3m. The Ilkley-based company bought the four-acre site in West Lane, opposite Halton Lea shopping centre, from a private investor. The site comprises a 25,000 sq ft two-storey office building called Vestric House and was occupied by AAH Pharmaceuticals, which has surrendered its 13-year lease. Opus, backed by Palmer Capital Partners, recently sold a Ford dealership site in St Helens for £3.45m.

Birkenhead accountancy firm Woods Squared has urged small businesses not to be put off by being rejected for bank finance following an IoD report that said half of all applications are being refused. Director Alan Woods said: “Entrepreneurs simply cannot afford to become disheartened - banks will still lend to viable businesses that approach them in a better way. Speak to financial experts who know the score and ensure your books are absolutely water-tight. But critically, don’t ignore other sources to help the bank spread their risk. That is now the name of the game.”

DG Office Supplies (DGOS), based in Altrincham, has completed its fifth acquisition in as many years. The company has bought WBM Office Supplies in Warrington for an undisclosed sum. Although the terms of the deal were undisclosed, DGOS said it will add 150 new clients to its roster and help push turnover to the £3m mark. DGOS was established ten years ago and now supplies more than 25,000 product lines. The group also includes Hyscribe in Oldham, Square One in Bury and Macclesfield Office Supplies.

Liverpool Community College and Skillfast UK are set to launch a new training initiative for businesses working in the fashion and textile industries. The North West Regional Skills Headquarters will deliver sector-specific skills training to individuals and businesses in the region. It is set to be launched at an event in Haydock next week. Jan Schofield, the curriculum group manager of fashion and clothing at Liverpool Community College, said: “The aim of this project is to bring together businesses, not only to ensure that the North West stays at the top of the industry, but also to allow employers to share good practice and create a unified approach to securing the future of the industry.”

Insider is pleased to report that 2010 has got off to a flying start for top niche business Southport-based Balloon Hangers. Headed by David Manning, the company that makes hanging balloons easy now has its wares for sale through Hawkins Bazaar, supplier of “things you thought had gone for ever and things you never even knew existed.” And that’s not all. Manning said: “I am currently negotiating a deal with a company in Japan, and the product has reached the next stage with a major supermarket chain in the UK.”

Life would be better if more companies had slightly wacky workplace awards, we think, so hats off to Wirral-based office supplies firm Penketh’s, which held its awards in late January after several weeks of secret staff voting. Disappointingly, the awards weren’t called the Penkies, but there were gongs for categories like “friendliest member of staff” and “most forgetful employee”. Clearly a good man to have on your team, Iain Scott bagged the “most reliable” and “most likely to go out of his way to help” double.

Yesterday’s news from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) rural market survey that commercial farmland prices in the North West could be good news for some – particularly those interested in developing racing yards, if the RICS press release is anything to go by: “Demand is coming from investors who view farmland as a stable venture.”