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Top story
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Work together for regional brand, says Roberts
The North West needs to trade more on the brand strength of Liverpool and Manchester rather than promote a single regional identity, according to Kevin Roberts, the chief executive of global advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi. Speaking at Insider’s Creative Forum, held at The Lowry Centre in Salford last night, Roberts said that the two cities have tremendous international recognition and should be at the forefront of marketing the region. “The North West is a meaningless thing unless you work on councils or for government agencies,” he said. “We’re moving to a city economy, not a regional one, and I think the region is very fortunate that it has two cities like Liverpool and Manchester. The North West will never be an effective brand as we define ourselves by our differences. It therefore needs to make more of those differences.”
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Business
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Innovation awards open
The Merseyside Innovation Awards 2009 are now open for entry. Individuals and businesses with fewer than 50 employees with innovative ideas and inventions are invited to register online at www.merseysideinnovationawards.co.uk for the chance to be a monthly winner or next year’s overall winner, who will receive £10,000 in cash and £4,000 worth of invaluable business advice, as well as publicity for the idea. The awards are sponsored by Insider, Amatica, BBC Radio Merseyside, Brabners Chaffe Street, Business Link, Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, Liverpool Ventures, Paver Smith, RBS NatWest, RTC NorthWest, University of Liverpool Business Gateway, Vanguard Corporate Finance and WP Thompson & Co.
Powder company opts for new technology
C&O Powder Coatings has hired Manchester-based application design agency PRWD to develop a new software system to replace its current paper tracking system. The move is part of a strategy to double the St Helens-based company's turnover in the next five years. PRWD's previous clients include The Co-operative and home-shopping business JD Williams.
Gibsons feeds young minds
Gibsons Foods, based in Ellesmere Port, is to become one of the first local employers to participate in a new national education scheme, offering young people vocational training. The scheme involves the awarding of a new diploma and Gibsons is spearheading its introduction by offering work-experience placements in its factories and offices to all interested diploma students in the area.
UU on target
United Utilities this morning issued a trading update for the last six months in which chief executive Philip Green said that the quoted group is on track to deliver interim results in line with expectations. This strong performance comes despite cost pressures. In August the group submitted its business plan to regulator Ofwat for the period 2010 to 2015, which detailed a proposed £4bn capital investment programme, of which £2.4bn would be spent on waste services following demand from business customers.
Cheshire firm buzzing in the US
Health and wellbeing website realbuzz.com has become the official online partner of 11 major North American marathons and running events. The Cheshire-based company's move into the US and Canadian running markets started last year. The site, which provides branded online forums covering all aspects of training, has now partnered nearly 50 running events. The site first entered the social networking market in the UK four years ago, hosting bloggers from the Flora London Marathon and other running events.
Fishing for submersibles
James Fisher and Sons, the marine and nuclear engineering services provider headquartered in Barrow-in-Furness, is set to undertake sea trials on a rescue submarine for the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) in November. Subsidiary James Fisher Defence (JFD) today announced it had named the submersible ROKS DSRV II. JFD has also delivered an extensive training programme for the ROKN and completed a major upgrade on the navy's existing rescue submersible. The contract, worth £10m over a period of three years, was awarded to JFD in December 2006.
Entrepreneurs' exit planning poor
Almost three-quarters of UK entrepreneurs are not giving adequate thought to how they will eventually exit their businesses, according to business advisory firm Deloitte. The survey findings, published in the report Entrepreneurship UK: 2008, revealed that in 72 per cent of cases the founders were still involved in the day-to-day running of the business, yet 39 per cent of those had no exit plan in place. Thirty-five per cent were simply waiting for an opportunistic approach from a third party. Anthony Farnworth, partner in entrepreneurial business at Deloitte, said: “They will often only consider selling that business when first approached by a potential buyer. This can leave them unprepared and at a disadvantage.”
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Property
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Axe falls on Halliwells
Property lawyers at Halliwells face an uncertain future following the announcement of a redundancy consultation programme across its national real estate division. Up to 40 lawyers are set to lose their jobs in the cull, which will include both fee earners and support staff. Mike Edge, head of real estate at Halliwells, said: "The property market is experiencing a sustained downturn and, having conducted a strategic review of our real estate department, it is clear that a restructuring process is required." The division is based across the firm's offices in London, Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield.
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Events
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Regional manufacturing in the global age
As the region’s manufacturers battle with economic uncertainty and rising costs, Insider and manufacturers’ organisation EEF are organising a breakfast summit in Lancashire - home of some of the UK’s biggest manufacturers - to discuss the future of manufacturing. Being held on 23 October at 7.30am, the breakfast event at Stanley House in Mellor will feature an expert panel who will tackle key issues for the region’s manufacturing base: Lee Hopley, head of economic policy at EEF; Andrew Jones, managing director of Klarius; Andrew Brian, managing director of Optare; and Phil Humphreys, director of supply chain strategy for Military Air Solutions at BAE. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. For further information on the event, please contact our events team on 0161 907 9723 or email lucie.knight@newsco.com.
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Contact Us
Insider
8th Floor, Boulton House
17-21 Chorlton Street
Manchester
M1 3HY
Telephone: +44 (0)161 907 9711
Email:
nw@insiderdaily.co.uk
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