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Brian Robbins joined family firm Robbins’ Timber as alabourer 70 years ago. Now the chairman, his firm’s stillgrowing – and he’s not going anywhere soon.

FAMILY GUYSPECIAL REPORT

– Pages 6&7

MANUFACTURING

Former F1 wheel maker mullsmove to city factory – p3

292014OCT

BUSINESS RATES

Shopping centres back ourcampaign for reform – p4

BRAD SUGARS

No-holds-barred talk energisesbusiness leaders – p11

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2 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 3We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

� Andy Mackinson, left, and John Tugman, of Brunel Print in Bedminster, which has invested £1.5 million in new equipment

C o n st r u c t i o n M a n u fa c t u r i n g

Dream rolesfor Bristol Citysuppor ters?� IT could be a dream role for anyBristol City fans among theconstruction trade...subcontractors are being soughtfor the Ashton Gate stadiumre d e v e l o p m e n t .

Main contractor BarrConstruction, along with clubowner Bristol Sport andgovernment constructiondatabase Constructionline areworking together to find localcompanies to work on the£45 million scheme.

More than 50 contracts areavailable ranging fromconstruction to fitout of the stadium– which is hometo Bristol Cityand now BristolRugby – f ro minteriors toexteriorsincludings c a ff o l d i n g ,plastering, turnstilesand seating.

Mike Henderson, projectmanager at Barr Construction,said: “We have significantexperience of deliveringstate-of-the-art sporting facilitiesfor clients all over the UK and weare confident local contractors willsee this as a great opportunity tobecome involved in an interestingconstruction challenge. At Barr,we are committed to givingopportunities to local businesseswherever possible and theupcoming event will allow us tomeet with south west contractorsand discuss how our activities inBristol can benefit them.”

Martin Griffiths, pictured,chairman of Bristol Sport, which ismanaging the rebuild added: “It isa great opportunity for Bristolbusinesses to get involved. Wewant local people to benefit fromthis multi-million pound project. Itis estimated that up to 400 jobopportunities will be createdduring the two-year build. Wehope lots of local contractorscome and talk to Barr about thepossibilities ahead.”

The industry is suffering from ashortage of skilled subcontractorsas the economic recover filtersthrough to the ground. An eventfor potential subcontractors takespalce Dolman Exhibition Hall,Ashton Gate Stadium, from 4pmto 8pm tomorrow.

Creative industries

Print still thriving Firm invests£1.5m in cutting-edge technology

THE demise of print has beenlong predicted but nothingcould be further from thetruth, judging by one Bristolc o m p a ny.

BrunelPrint has invested £1.5 mil-lion in the latest print technology tosupport Bristol’s thriving creativesector. While most people focus onsocial media and digital media, prin-ted materials remain a major part ofthe marketing mix.

Marketing and other creative com-panies employ 16,000 people in Bristoland Bath, and contribute £60 millionto the South West economy.

Which was evidence enough for the

Bedminster firm to invest inhigh-end, advanced print and finish-ing technologies.

The new equipment, include a Mo-tioncutter & Scodix printer, meansthe firm can print bespoke marketingmaterials in quantities from one to10,000 using advanced finishing tech-niques to give effects such as waterdroplets on a bottle or the grain ofleather on a luxury product.

John Tugman, director of commer-cial print, said: “Despite the fact thatwe ’ve only just taken receipt of thenew equipment, interest is high.

“We ’ve already joined forces withBristol Media, the local members’organisation for creative businesses,to become a preferred industry sup-plier and print a range of person-alised materials for its upcomingVision conference in November.”

The firm traces its roots back to

1844 when Elisha Smith Robinsonfounded the Bristol Printing & Pack-aging Company.

Somewhat more recently it has ap-pointed John to spearhead its newinitiative. He was part of the team atBrunelPrint which created the per-sonalised greeting cards businessFunky Pigeon, before selling it on to amajor high street retailer.

The firm aims to learn from thesuccess of Funky Pigeon by helpingbusinesses personalise the way theycommunicate with customers on aone-to-one basis.

John said: “In some ways it’s nat-ural for us to be at the forefront ofinnovations in print technologies andpersonalisation when you think backto the foundations of our business.

“When Elisha Smith Robinsonbought his first equipment due to theopportunity that steam-powered

presses gave commercial printing, hewas quick to exploit this by printingthe name of grocers’ shops on the sideof customer bags.

“Realising the market for this typeof personalisation, he quickly starteddoing the same with calendars andother business stationery.

“More than 150 years on and ourbusiness is still centred on helpingclients to exploit the latest in printingtechnologies to create deeper rela-tionships with their customers.”

As part of its growth plans, the firmrecently recruited Andy Mackinsonas its commercial print manager.Andy joins has worked as a creativedirector and designer previously forbrands such as Sony, Dolce &Gabanna, Louis Vuitton, Harrods andthe BBC.� ANOTHER PRINT SUCCESS:PAGE 10

H ea l t h c a re

Pioneers of wearable technology

Squash Stix strikes big Virgin trains dealM a n u fa c t u r i n g

On track Former F1wheel maker couldinvest in city factory

BRISTOL is perfectly placed to takeadvantage of the huge potential ofwearable technology in the health-care industry.

T hat’s the view of Cities and Uni-versities Minister Greg Clark, whowas in Bristol as part of the Presidentof Singapore’s State visit to the UK.

The minister said there were “hug eap p l i c at i o n s ” for wearable techno-logy in healthcare around the world.

And he said Bristol had vital thecombination of research skills andtechnology businesses to make themost of the opportunity.

Mr Clark said: “Bristol has expert-ise across a technology, innovationand design.

“This is one area where you can

bring these strengths together.”He was speaking at the launch of

the Sensor Platform for HEalthcarein a Residential Environment(SPHERE). The project focuses ondeveloping sensor systems to mon-itor the health and wellbeing in thehome, such as:�How video analytics can be used tobenefit the older population by help-ing to prevent falls.� A prototype interactive data “dash-b o a rd ” that displays real-time in-formation from various sensors. Thedashboard is the first step to un-derstanding how clinicians will in-teract with health sensor data.� An internet-enabled wearable pro-totype for monitoring vital signs.

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

The project is a partnership thatincludes Bristol City Council, IBM,Toshiba and Knowle West MediaC e n t re.

The President of Singapore TonyTan was on hand as to witnesses thesigning a memorandum of under-standing between the University ofBristol and the Nanyang Technolo-gical University to collaborate onhealthcare research.

Mr Clark added: “As global leaders,forging these strong academic part-nerships together will improvehealthcare technology and boost eco-nomic growth even further.”

Professor Bertil Andersson, Pres-ident of NTU Singapore, said: “T heUK and Singapore have much to gain

� MP Greg Clark Minister for Universities and Science with Dr MassimoComplain, of the University of Bristol BRML20141023D-004_C

from combining our strengths intechnology and innovation to im-

prove care among vulnerable pop-ulations, including the elderly. “

A COMPANY that built its reputationsupplying the wheels on which NigelMansell and Ayrton Senna masteredFormula One circuits around theglobe plans to invest in a new factory

at the cutting edge of the industry, hopefully inBristol.

Dymag was a top supplier of wheels for thecar and motorbike racing world in the 1980sand 1990s but eventually fell behind betterresourced rivals and went bust.

Former owner Chris Shelley has sincebought the remnants of the company, includingthe expertise and designs for using the latestcomposite materials, and is embarking on aplan to not just restore past glories, but leavethem for dust.

The Bristolian, brought up in Frenchay,plans to expand the business in two ways. Oneby adding cycle wheels to the mix but first bymoving the composite and carbon car wheels itproduces from racing cars into the potentiallylucrative, and much bigger, supercar market.

The company is based in Chippenham but forChris’ vision to become reality it needs to grow.He is weighing up three options, expanding thecurrent base, moving to South Wales with thepossible lure of Welsh government incentives,or relocating to Bristol’s northern fringe.

“I want to keep this business in the UK,”he said. As a Bristolian, he would be keen tobase it here but it will be a business de-cision.

“There are three factors that drive theultimate location,” he said. “Where areyour customers, where can you get accessto the right technical support andtechnology and finally, cost.”

While Wales might have a lure ofpublic money to attract the in-vestment, Bristol’s big draw is inexper tise.

“Bristol has a great cluster ofknowledge with the NationalComposites Centre (NCC)h e re, ” said Chris. “If we canfind a way to do this here we’llbe rubbing shoulders with bigplayers in the composite in-dustry and that’s one of the bigattractions of this centre.

“We are talking to NCCabout how we can take ordersof magnitude of cost out of ourproduct. The performance ofcomposite wheels is proven, theissue is how to you make it

quicker and cheaper.“We want to work with NCC to use its

fantastic testing facilities and equipment tobuild pilot products and projects in order to goout and build out our own infrastructure.”

Chris said the market was going to “explode”partly due to European environmental legis-lation coming into force in 2018 which is mak-ing car makers focus on weight. Currentlycomposite wheels are only in the after-caremarket but Chris believes the legislation willsee high-end car manufacturers start to adoptthem.

“Every gram counts,” he said. “Wheels havedisproportionately large impact on weight asit’s a big rotating mass and you’ve got four ofthem.

“But to get car manufacturers to adopt it weare looking at trying to get the cost down by 50per cent over the next three to five years,” hesaid. “£20,000 for a set of four wheels is a lot ofm o n e y. ”

Chris is re-financing the business, after thathe will start to “tool-up” – make the tools formanufacturing – ready to be producing carwheels by March next year.

At the same time he is hammering out thedetails of his collaboration with NCC and aimsto have a site and factory built by the end of2015.

“I can do that with £1 million,” he said. “T hefollowing year if we get the traction that in-vestment could rise to £5-10 million.

The vision is by 2018-19 to be “bashing out”25,000 car wheel sets a year, employing 100-200

people in mostly skilled high end pro-duction jobs.

For Bristol, the benefit could bewider than just those jobs. The city isa world leader in composite tech-nology for the aerospace industry.Around the NNC, it has the potential

to expand to the automotive in-dustry. Dymag maybe small, it

currently employs eightpeople turning over£500,000 a year, but if Bris-tol is to break into theautomotive market, lur-ing small companieswith big dreams couldbe the road to success.

“The world haswoken up to this mar-ke t , ” said Chris. “T hisis an area where theUK is as strongly po-sitioned as anyone.But we have to move.Now is the time.”

� A BUSINESS manufacturingand selling single portions ofsquash concentrate has secureda big new contract.

Squash Stix, a smallbut growing Bristolbusiness, has woncontract to supplyVirgin Trainspassengers.

Vi rg i npassengerstravelling firstclass at theweekend receive acomplimentary box ofsnacks with a bottle ofwater and a Squash Stix. Thefirm’s managing director TomAnderson-Dixon said: “I’m verypleased to be working with Virgin

to offer Squash Stix to customers.“The feedback we have had

from customers so far isoverwhelming and we

hope to use this as aplatform into the travel

s e c t o r.“We have already

been approached bynumerous firms onthe back of thelaunch.”

Squash Stix alsorecently started to

supply Flybe for itsstaff drinks offering

onboard aircraft, and theNHS for patients, as a way of

encouraging increasedrehydration within hospitals toincrease patient recovery.

� EngineerSimonH a rd i s t yworking on acarbon fibrewheel

� Chris Shelley ofDymag

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2 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 3We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

� Andy Mackinson, left, and John Tugman, of Brunel Print in Bedminster, which has invested £1.5 million in new equipment

C o n st r u c t i o n M a n u fa c t u r i n g

Dream rolesfor Bristol Citysuppor ters?� IT could be a dream role for anyBristol City fans among theconstruction trade...subcontractors are being soughtfor the Ashton Gate stadiumre d e v e l o p m e n t .

Main contractor BarrConstruction, along with clubowner Bristol Sport andgovernment constructiondatabase Constructionline areworking together to find localcompanies to work on the£45 million scheme.

More than 50 contracts areavailable ranging fromconstruction to fitout of the stadium– which is hometo Bristol Cityand now BristolRugby – f ro minteriors toexteriorsincludings c a ff o l d i n g ,plastering, turnstilesand seating.

Mike Henderson, projectmanager at Barr Construction,said: “We have significantexperience of deliveringstate-of-the-art sporting facilitiesfor clients all over the UK and weare confident local contractors willsee this as a great opportunity tobecome involved in an interestingconstruction challenge. At Barr,we are committed to givingopportunities to local businesseswherever possible and theupcoming event will allow us tomeet with south west contractorsand discuss how our activities inBristol can benefit them.”

Martin Griffiths, pictured,chairman of Bristol Sport, which ismanaging the rebuild added: “It isa great opportunity for Bristolbusinesses to get involved. Wewant local people to benefit fromthis multi-million pound project. Itis estimated that up to 400 jobopportunities will be createdduring the two-year build. Wehope lots of local contractorscome and talk to Barr about thepossibilities ahead.”

The industry is suffering from ashortage of skilled subcontractorsas the economic recover filtersthrough to the ground. An eventfor potential subcontractors takespalce Dolman Exhibition Hall,Ashton Gate Stadium, from 4pmto 8pm tomorrow.

Creative industries

Print still thriving Firm invests£1.5m in cutting-edge technology

THE demise of print has beenlong predicted but nothingcould be further from thetruth, judging by one Bristolc o m p a ny.

BrunelPrint has invested £1.5 mil-lion in the latest print technology tosupport Bristol’s thriving creativesector. While most people focus onsocial media and digital media, prin-ted materials remain a major part ofthe marketing mix.

Marketing and other creative com-panies employ 16,000 people in Bristoland Bath, and contribute £60 millionto the South West economy.

Which was evidence enough for the

Bedminster firm to invest inhigh-end, advanced print and finish-ing technologies.

The new equipment, include a Mo-tioncutter & Scodix printer, meansthe firm can print bespoke marketingmaterials in quantities from one to10,000 using advanced finishing tech-niques to give effects such as waterdroplets on a bottle or the grain ofleather on a luxury product.

John Tugman, director of commer-cial print, said: “Despite the fact thatwe ’ve only just taken receipt of thenew equipment, interest is high.

“We ’ve already joined forces withBristol Media, the local members’organisation for creative businesses,to become a preferred industry sup-plier and print a range of person-alised materials for its upcomingVision conference in November.”

The firm traces its roots back to

1844 when Elisha Smith Robinsonfounded the Bristol Printing & Pack-aging Company.

Somewhat more recently it has ap-pointed John to spearhead its newinitiative. He was part of the team atBrunelPrint which created the per-sonalised greeting cards businessFunky Pigeon, before selling it on to amajor high street retailer.

The firm aims to learn from thesuccess of Funky Pigeon by helpingbusinesses personalise the way theycommunicate with customers on aone-to-one basis.

John said: “In some ways it’s nat-ural for us to be at the forefront ofinnovations in print technologies andpersonalisation when you think backto the foundations of our business.

“When Elisha Smith Robinsonbought his first equipment due to theopportunity that steam-powered

presses gave commercial printing, hewas quick to exploit this by printingthe name of grocers’ shops on the sideof customer bags.

“Realising the market for this typeof personalisation, he quickly starteddoing the same with calendars andother business stationery.

“More than 150 years on and ourbusiness is still centred on helpingclients to exploit the latest in printingtechnologies to create deeper rela-tionships with their customers.”

As part of its growth plans, the firmrecently recruited Andy Mackinsonas its commercial print manager.Andy joins has worked as a creativedirector and designer previously forbrands such as Sony, Dolce &Gabanna, Louis Vuitton, Harrods andthe BBC.� ANOTHER PRINT SUCCESS:PAGE 10

H ea l t h c a re

Pioneers of wearable technology

Squash Stix strikes big Virgin trains dealM a n u fa c t u r i n g

On track Former F1wheel maker couldinvest in city factory

BRISTOL is perfectly placed to takeadvantage of the huge potential ofwearable technology in the health-care industry.

T hat’s the view of Cities and Uni-versities Minister Greg Clark, whowas in Bristol as part of the Presidentof Singapore’s State visit to the UK.

The minister said there were “hug eap p l i c at i o n s ” for wearable techno-logy in healthcare around the world.

And he said Bristol had vital thecombination of research skills andtechnology businesses to make themost of the opportunity.

Mr Clark said: “Bristol has expert-ise across a technology, innovationand design.

“This is one area where you can

bring these strengths together.”He was speaking at the launch of

the Sensor Platform for HEalthcarein a Residential Environment(SPHERE). The project focuses ondeveloping sensor systems to mon-itor the health and wellbeing in thehome, such as:�How video analytics can be used tobenefit the older population by help-ing to prevent falls.� A prototype interactive data “dash-b o a rd ” that displays real-time in-formation from various sensors. Thedashboard is the first step to un-derstanding how clinicians will in-teract with health sensor data.� An internet-enabled wearable pro-totype for monitoring vital signs.

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

The project is a partnership thatincludes Bristol City Council, IBM,Toshiba and Knowle West MediaC e n t re.

The President of Singapore TonyTan was on hand as to witnesses thesigning a memorandum of under-standing between the University ofBristol and the Nanyang Technolo-gical University to collaborate onhealthcare research.

Mr Clark added: “As global leaders,forging these strong academic part-nerships together will improvehealthcare technology and boost eco-nomic growth even further.”

Professor Bertil Andersson, Pres-ident of NTU Singapore, said: “T heUK and Singapore have much to gain

� MP Greg Clark Minister for Universities and Science with Dr MassimoComplain, of the University of Bristol BRML20141023D-004_C

from combining our strengths intechnology and innovation to im-

prove care among vulnerable pop-ulations, including the elderly. “

A COMPANY that built its reputationsupplying the wheels on which NigelMansell and Ayrton Senna masteredFormula One circuits around theglobe plans to invest in a new factory

at the cutting edge of the industry, hopefully inBristol.

Dymag was a top supplier of wheels for thecar and motorbike racing world in the 1980sand 1990s but eventually fell behind betterresourced rivals and went bust.

Former owner Chris Shelley has sincebought the remnants of the company, includingthe expertise and designs for using the latestcomposite materials, and is embarking on aplan to not just restore past glories, but leavethem for dust.

The Bristolian, brought up in Frenchay,plans to expand the business in two ways. Oneby adding cycle wheels to the mix but first bymoving the composite and carbon car wheels itproduces from racing cars into the potentiallylucrative, and much bigger, supercar market.

The company is based in Chippenham but forChris’ vision to become reality it needs to grow.He is weighing up three options, expanding thecurrent base, moving to South Wales with thepossible lure of Welsh government incentives,or relocating to Bristol’s northern fringe.

“I want to keep this business in the UK,”he said. As a Bristolian, he would be keen tobase it here but it will be a business de-cision.

“There are three factors that drive theultimate location,” he said. “Where areyour customers, where can you get accessto the right technical support andtechnology and finally, cost.”

While Wales might have a lure ofpublic money to attract the in-vestment, Bristol’s big draw is inexper tise.

“Bristol has a great cluster ofknowledge with the NationalComposites Centre (NCC)h e re, ” said Chris. “If we canfind a way to do this here we’llbe rubbing shoulders with bigplayers in the composite in-dustry and that’s one of the bigattractions of this centre.

“We are talking to NCCabout how we can take ordersof magnitude of cost out of ourproduct. The performance ofcomposite wheels is proven, theissue is how to you make it

quicker and cheaper.“We want to work with NCC to use its

fantastic testing facilities and equipment tobuild pilot products and projects in order to goout and build out our own infrastructure.”

Chris said the market was going to “explode”partly due to European environmental legis-lation coming into force in 2018 which is mak-ing car makers focus on weight. Currentlycomposite wheels are only in the after-caremarket but Chris believes the legislation willsee high-end car manufacturers start to adoptthem.

“Every gram counts,” he said. “Wheels havedisproportionately large impact on weight asit’s a big rotating mass and you’ve got four ofthem.

“But to get car manufacturers to adopt it weare looking at trying to get the cost down by 50per cent over the next three to five years,” hesaid. “£20,000 for a set of four wheels is a lot ofm o n e y. ”

Chris is re-financing the business, after thathe will start to “tool-up” – make the tools formanufacturing – ready to be producing carwheels by March next year.

At the same time he is hammering out thedetails of his collaboration with NCC and aimsto have a site and factory built by the end of2015.

“I can do that with £1 million,” he said. “T hefollowing year if we get the traction that in-vestment could rise to £5-10 million.

The vision is by 2018-19 to be “bashing out”25,000 car wheel sets a year, employing 100-200

people in mostly skilled high end pro-duction jobs.

For Bristol, the benefit could bewider than just those jobs. The city isa world leader in composite tech-nology for the aerospace industry.Around the NNC, it has the potential

to expand to the automotive in-dustry. Dymag maybe small, it

currently employs eightpeople turning over£500,000 a year, but if Bris-tol is to break into theautomotive market, lur-ing small companieswith big dreams couldbe the road to success.

“The world haswoken up to this mar-ke t , ” said Chris. “T hisis an area where theUK is as strongly po-sitioned as anyone.But we have to move.Now is the time.”

� A BUSINESS manufacturingand selling single portions ofsquash concentrate has secureda big new contract.

Squash Stix, a smallbut growing Bristolbusiness, has woncontract to supplyVirgin Trainspassengers.

Vi rg i npassengerstravelling firstclass at theweekend receive acomplimentary box ofsnacks with a bottle ofwater and a Squash Stix. Thefirm’s managing director TomAnderson-Dixon said: “I’m verypleased to be working with Virgin

to offer Squash Stix to customers.“The feedback we have had

from customers so far isoverwhelming and we

hope to use this as aplatform into the travel

s e c t o r.“We have already

been approached bynumerous firms onthe back of thelaunch.”

Squash Stix alsorecently started to

supply Flybe for itsstaff drinks offering

onboard aircraft, and theNHS for patients, as a way of

encouraging increasedrehydration within hospitals toincrease patient recovery.

� EngineerSimonH a rd i s t yworking on acarbon fibrewheel

� Chris Shelley ofDymag

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4 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 5We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

SHOPPING centres in the cityand further afield are backingthe Bristol Post’s campaigncalling for serious reform ofbusiness rates.

The Post is calling for:�Greater local control over how ratesare spent so they can be used toencourage more investment and jobcreation. This happens around en-terprise zones, such as TempleQuarter, and is being used to helpfund the Bristol Arena, but shouldbecome the norm.� A simpler system that small busi-nesses can understand.�Break the deterrent to expansion.This could be done by replacing rateswith a local sales tax or a profitstax.

Andrew Lowrey, centre manager atYate Shopping Centre, said business

rates had become an increasing issuefor tenants,

“The cost of business rates for ten-ants are getting closer to rents,” hesaid.

“Rental prices have fallen and rateshave risen. It used to be that if yourrent was £100,000 a year, your busi-ness rates would be 30-40 per cent ofthat, so £30-40,000. Now your rentmight be £60-70,000 but your rates arestill £30-40,000.”

He said that made it particularlytough for independent shops.

“We want a mix of shops, not justbig retailers,” he said.

“If a fruit and veg operator waslooking for a retail unit, we as alandlord could do a deal and offerincentives on rents to get them in butwhen people look at the businessrates, they are huge and we can’t doanything about that.”

He added: “The level of businessrates doesn’t help when you are try-ing to find tenants.”

Rikki Teml, operations manager atClifton Down Shopping Centre, said:“I think reform is needed. If you takewhat you pay in council tax, for thatyou get a lot of services, the counciltakes your waste and cuts the grassverg es.

“What you pay in business rates,you don’t really get any services – yo ustill have to pay your own wastecollection and for street cleaning.

“It needs reform not just in terms ofthe costs but what you got for itt o o. ”

Rates reform Shoppingcentres back campaign

‘Heartwarming tose e ’ 3 D - p r i n te drobotic hand a first

AMAN who was born without a handhas been fitted with a 3D-printedrobotic one, thanks to a Bristol en-gineer. Joel Gibbard, 24-year-oldfounder of Open Bionics, has been

working to develop robotic hands at a frac-tion of the current market price to makethem more affordable.

Daniel Melville, 23, from Reading, wasborn without a right hand and contactedJoel after seeing his crowd-funding cam-paign to develop affordable robotic handslast year.

He volunteered to help Joel test hisp ro d u c t s.

He visited Joel at the Bristol RoboticsLaboratory where his right arm wasscanned with a 3D sensor, a mesh createdand then a 3D printer used to create thehand.

It is believed to be the first time a cus-tom-fit hand has been made on a 3D print-e r.

The socket took 40 hours to print, whichsounds like a long time but is a lot less than

manufacturing other ways, but fit firstt i m e.

Daniel said: “It fitted like a glove. I can’tbelieve how easy that was. Usually I’d haveto have a mould taken of my arm then waitweeks or months to get the socket.”

Daniel said he had stopped wearing hiscosmetic prosthetic hand because it got inthe way.

He said: “This is great now and it willcontinue to get better but it would have beenamazing to have this when I was younger. Iwould have loved a 3D-printed Power Rangerhand. It would have made me feel betterabout my difference.

“There are robotic hands out there that Ican buy but they’re more expensive than mycar. Who can afford that?”

Joel said: “It was heartwarming to seesomething I’ve been working on for a yeargive someone some extra capabilities.Watching Dan write, pick things up, and justplay with stuff was pretty exciting for every-one. I did get to shake the hand I made onDan and it was a bit surreal.”

“The next hand I’ve designed weighs halfthe amount as that prototype which willmake a huge difference for the user and itlooks far better.”

He hopes to have an affordable roboticprosthetic on the market next year.

THE Bristol office of a regional fundinggroup has celebrated the organisation’s 25thanniversary with record figures, after lend-ing more than £130,000 in the city in the lastquar ter.

SWIG Finance lent £138,650 to 21 Bristolcompanies in July, August and September –the most it has lent in one quarter since thegroup was set up in 1989.

Across the South West, the organisationposted record figures of more than £1.4 mil-lion loaned, supporting more than 100 busi-nesses ranging from start-up companies toexisting firms looking to invest in futureg rowth.

Available funding streams include the Gov-ernment-backed Start Up Loan scheme, Re-gional Growth Fund and European RegionalDevelopment Fund finance for businesseswith growth potential and the South WestMicrocredit Fund which is also Europeanfunding.

In Bristol, the SWIG office is based in TheCoach House in Upper York Street and isstaffed by Fund Managers Graham Mitchelland Sarah Osborn.

Regionally, the record figures were markedat the 25th anniversary celebrations forSWIG Finance, held near Truro in Cornwall.

Among the businesses to benefit from SWIGFinance lending in Bristol was Brisling-ton-based catering company A Fair Shot,which provides office lunches and caters forcorporate clients and events.

The company first received a £1,500 loan in2011 to improve its retail outlet in SandyPark, before resulting increased cashflow ledto investment in contract catering facilities.

A second loan of £2,000 in March 2012 sawthe purchase of a second delivery van and,following the employment of more staff forthe contract catering side of the business, athird loan of £20,000 earlier this year hasfacilitated a move to new premises in White-f r i a r s.

Recently, sports physio Shawnika Sergeantopened her Up And Running clinic in StGeorge thanks to a £6,000 loan from SWIGFinance, after becoming too busy to continueworking from home.

She said: “Without their support I don'tthink my business would have been able tohave its own premises.

“My business and client base has grownand the signs which the money went towardsare bringing in passing trade, which I neverhad before.

“It’s been a real help.”

Record figures for lender

Gridlock drives updemand for fringe� GROWING traffic and parkingproblems are driving demand forout-of-town offices, according toa property agent.

Paul Williams at BrutonKnowles’ Bristol office, says dailytraffic gridlock – exacerbated byever expanding residential parkingareas – risks turning the city into ano-go area as companies andindividuals vote with their feet andlook towards fringe locations tohouse their businesses in order toavoid the traffic problems.

He said: “With easier roadaccess and plentiful parking, outof town offices are definitely invogue again.

“This is partlyfuelled by acombinationof increasedlevels ofdemand inthe citycentre andthei n c re a s i n gscarcity ofqualityaccommodationresulting from recent changes tolegislation which have made it fareasier to convert empty officesinto residential accommodation.

“But clients are also reporting

Proper ty

Hive business centrealready one third full� NORTH Somerset’s new businesscentre, The Hive, is one-third full –just three months on from its officialopening.

Located in the Business Quarterof Weston Park in the Junction 21Enterprise Area of Weston-super-Mare, The Hive was opened byNorth Somerset Enterprise Agency(NSEA) in July, to provide theworkspace, facilities and supportthat start-up, small and growingbusinesses need, all under one roof.

It offers workspace with easy-ineasy-out terms, conference andmeeting rooms for the use oftenants and the wider community, abusiness lounge, hot desks andvirtual office tenancies, alongsidebusiness advice, support andtraining from NSEA’s team ofexperienced business advisors, whoare based on-site. Its first eighttenants, which between themoccupy 13 offices and 33 per centof available office space, include;high-technology research anddevelopment company XenintLimited, chartered town planningconsultancy services providerRenplan and telecommunicationsservices provider First ClassComms. Chief executive AngelaHicks said: “Whilst we have hadhigh hopes for The Hive, tenantnumbers are above plan andmeeting room use has exceededexpectations.”

John Reynolds, director of Xenint,said: “The Hive offers a very modernand fresh facility located in a primeposition.”

FOOD retailer The Co-operative isinvesting £3.2 million in a rollingprogramme to transform its storesacross the Bristol area.

The latest to benefit was the Avon-mouth store, which reopened follow-ing the £350,000 refit last week.

The makeovers aim to redefine thestores with a better in-store bakeryrange, more healthy fresh foods andmore meal ideas rather than justindividual products.

So far, the firm reports the revampshave delivered on average double-digit sales growth.

Mike Pengelly, regional operationsmanager for The Co-operative Food,said: “I am delighted that there hasbeen such significant investment inthe Bristol area.

“The new format stores form partof our new food strategy, they aredelivering real growth and helping usto achieve our ambition of becomingthe UK’s number one conveniencefood retailer.

“In addition to improvements inthe store environment, innovationsin our own-brand, ‘Loved by us’,range, plus, a commitment to lower-

Retailer invests £3.2min city store revamps

ing prices on hundreds of everydayessentials under our ‘Fair and Squareprices’ banner are also contributingto growth.

“As a member-owned co-operative,our new-look stores will also work toestablish a distinctive communityconnection. We are piloting dedicatedcolleagues called Community Pion-eers, a title which harks back to theoriginal Rochdale Pioneers and seescolleagues working to foster real com-munity partnerships, from fundrais-ing initiatives to helping tounderstand and develop solutions tomeet local community need.”

Recently re-launched stores in-clude Holloway Road, Stockwood,which re-launched last month, andBishopsworth Road, BedminsterD ow n .

Stores in Broomhill Road and Whit-church are scheduled for majormakeovers ahead of the Christmastrading period.

Business ratesStar t-ups

Fo o d

F i n a n ce

Te c h n o l o g y

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

� Sophia McCormack and friends from the Waycroft Academy open therevamped Stockwood Co-operative convenience store after a re-fit

� Daniel Melville tries out his 3D printed hand

widespread dissatisfaction withBristol’s congestion and parkingproblems and are looking to maketheir lives easier by basingthemselves on the popular northBristol fringe.

“Speaking from experience,commuting into Bristol fromoutlying areas has become moreand more difficult over the pastfew years, and I’m sure that this iscontributing to the recent increasein demand for out of townlocations.”

The firm is marketing a numberof offices at sites such as smallsites at Vantage Park on the OldGloucester Road, where it thinkssmall, flexible units will appeal tosome smaller firms who want toget out of the traffic jams.

“Speaking fromexperience, commutinginto Bristol fromoutlying areas hasbecome more andmore difficult.

WHAT ’S WRONGWITH RATES?

� Business rates are linked toRPI, which is seen as anunpredictable measure ofinflation.

Property values are out ofdate and don’t follow themarket. When the economycrashed, business rates didn’tfall with it making them a heavyburden on business in hardtimes. In fact, rents fell in thecrises, but rates rose.

They discourage expansionand investment. Ratesdiscourage firms from taking onmore space because their taxbill goes up even if profits don’t.They discourage retailers fromtaking the step onto the highstreet and penalisebricks-and-mortar againstonline competition. The result isempty shops and offices.

SIGN THE PLEDGE

� We are calling for businessleaders, owners andentrepreneurs to sign-up to ourcall for business rates reform.Simply scan this QR code orgo tobristolpost.co.uk/business.

� Rikki Teml

� Clifton Down ShoppingCentre, Whiteladies Road,Bristol BRBE20141027C-2

Part of the Local World group

AN Event Services provide audio visual equipmentand support for all your event needs. We offer aprofessional and experienced approach withpre-show, on-site and post-show technical support.

Staging your event doesn’thave to cost a fortune...

Whatever the event, we’ve got it covered

Call us on: 01684 575832Email us at: enquiries@aneventservices.co.ukVisit us at : www.aneventservices.co.uk

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4 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 5We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

SHOPPING centres in the cityand further afield are backingthe Bristol Post’s campaigncalling for serious reform ofbusiness rates.

The Post is calling for:�Greater local control over how ratesare spent so they can be used toencourage more investment and jobcreation. This happens around en-terprise zones, such as TempleQuarter, and is being used to helpfund the Bristol Arena, but shouldbecome the norm.� A simpler system that small busi-nesses can understand.�Break the deterrent to expansion.This could be done by replacing rateswith a local sales tax or a profitstax.

Andrew Lowrey, centre manager atYate Shopping Centre, said business

rates had become an increasing issuefor tenants,

“The cost of business rates for ten-ants are getting closer to rents,” hesaid.

“Rental prices have fallen and rateshave risen. It used to be that if yourrent was £100,000 a year, your busi-ness rates would be 30-40 per cent ofthat, so £30-40,000. Now your rentmight be £60-70,000 but your rates arestill £30-40,000.”

He said that made it particularlytough for independent shops.

“We want a mix of shops, not justbig retailers,” he said.

“If a fruit and veg operator waslooking for a retail unit, we as alandlord could do a deal and offerincentives on rents to get them in butwhen people look at the businessrates, they are huge and we can’t doanything about that.”

He added: “The level of businessrates doesn’t help when you are try-ing to find tenants.”

Rikki Teml, operations manager atClifton Down Shopping Centre, said:“I think reform is needed. If you takewhat you pay in council tax, for thatyou get a lot of services, the counciltakes your waste and cuts the grassverg es.

“What you pay in business rates,you don’t really get any services – yo ustill have to pay your own wastecollection and for street cleaning.

“It needs reform not just in terms ofthe costs but what you got for itt o o. ”

Rates reform Shoppingcentres back campaign

‘Heartwarming tose e ’ 3 D - p r i n te drobotic hand a first

AMAN who was born without a handhas been fitted with a 3D-printedrobotic one, thanks to a Bristol en-gineer. Joel Gibbard, 24-year-oldfounder of Open Bionics, has been

working to develop robotic hands at a frac-tion of the current market price to makethem more affordable.

Daniel Melville, 23, from Reading, wasborn without a right hand and contactedJoel after seeing his crowd-funding cam-paign to develop affordable robotic handslast year.

He volunteered to help Joel test hisp ro d u c t s.

He visited Joel at the Bristol RoboticsLaboratory where his right arm wasscanned with a 3D sensor, a mesh createdand then a 3D printer used to create thehand.

It is believed to be the first time a cus-tom-fit hand has been made on a 3D print-e r.

The socket took 40 hours to print, whichsounds like a long time but is a lot less than

manufacturing other ways, but fit firstt i m e.

Daniel said: “It fitted like a glove. I can’tbelieve how easy that was. Usually I’d haveto have a mould taken of my arm then waitweeks or months to get the socket.”

Daniel said he had stopped wearing hiscosmetic prosthetic hand because it got inthe way.

He said: “This is great now and it willcontinue to get better but it would have beenamazing to have this when I was younger. Iwould have loved a 3D-printed Power Rangerhand. It would have made me feel betterabout my difference.

“There are robotic hands out there that Ican buy but they’re more expensive than mycar. Who can afford that?”

Joel said: “It was heartwarming to seesomething I’ve been working on for a yeargive someone some extra capabilities.Watching Dan write, pick things up, and justplay with stuff was pretty exciting for every-one. I did get to shake the hand I made onDan and it was a bit surreal.”

“The next hand I’ve designed weighs halfthe amount as that prototype which willmake a huge difference for the user and itlooks far better.”

He hopes to have an affordable roboticprosthetic on the market next year.

THE Bristol office of a regional fundinggroup has celebrated the organisation’s 25thanniversary with record figures, after lend-ing more than £130,000 in the city in the lastquar ter.

SWIG Finance lent £138,650 to 21 Bristolcompanies in July, August and September –the most it has lent in one quarter since thegroup was set up in 1989.

Across the South West, the organisationposted record figures of more than £1.4 mil-lion loaned, supporting more than 100 busi-nesses ranging from start-up companies toexisting firms looking to invest in futureg rowth.

Available funding streams include the Gov-ernment-backed Start Up Loan scheme, Re-gional Growth Fund and European RegionalDevelopment Fund finance for businesseswith growth potential and the South WestMicrocredit Fund which is also Europeanfunding.

In Bristol, the SWIG office is based in TheCoach House in Upper York Street and isstaffed by Fund Managers Graham Mitchelland Sarah Osborn.

Regionally, the record figures were markedat the 25th anniversary celebrations forSWIG Finance, held near Truro in Cornwall.

Among the businesses to benefit from SWIGFinance lending in Bristol was Brisling-ton-based catering company A Fair Shot,which provides office lunches and caters forcorporate clients and events.

The company first received a £1,500 loan in2011 to improve its retail outlet in SandyPark, before resulting increased cashflow ledto investment in contract catering facilities.

A second loan of £2,000 in March 2012 sawthe purchase of a second delivery van and,following the employment of more staff forthe contract catering side of the business, athird loan of £20,000 earlier this year hasfacilitated a move to new premises in White-f r i a r s.

Recently, sports physio Shawnika Sergeantopened her Up And Running clinic in StGeorge thanks to a £6,000 loan from SWIGFinance, after becoming too busy to continueworking from home.

She said: “Without their support I don'tthink my business would have been able tohave its own premises.

“My business and client base has grownand the signs which the money went towardsare bringing in passing trade, which I neverhad before.

“It’s been a real help.”

Record figures for lender

Gridlock drives updemand for fringe� GROWING traffic and parkingproblems are driving demand forout-of-town offices, according toa property agent.

Paul Williams at BrutonKnowles’ Bristol office, says dailytraffic gridlock – exacerbated byever expanding residential parkingareas – risks turning the city into ano-go area as companies andindividuals vote with their feet andlook towards fringe locations tohouse their businesses in order toavoid the traffic problems.

He said: “With easier roadaccess and plentiful parking, outof town offices are definitely invogue again.

“This is partlyfuelled by acombinationof increasedlevels ofdemand inthe citycentre andthei n c re a s i n gscarcity ofqualityaccommodationresulting from recent changes tolegislation which have made it fareasier to convert empty officesinto residential accommodation.

“But clients are also reporting

Proper ty

Hive business centrealready one third full� NORTH Somerset’s new businesscentre, The Hive, is one-third full –just three months on from its officialopening.

Located in the Business Quarterof Weston Park in the Junction 21Enterprise Area of Weston-super-Mare, The Hive was opened byNorth Somerset Enterprise Agency(NSEA) in July, to provide theworkspace, facilities and supportthat start-up, small and growingbusinesses need, all under one roof.

It offers workspace with easy-ineasy-out terms, conference andmeeting rooms for the use oftenants and the wider community, abusiness lounge, hot desks andvirtual office tenancies, alongsidebusiness advice, support andtraining from NSEA’s team ofexperienced business advisors, whoare based on-site. Its first eighttenants, which between themoccupy 13 offices and 33 per centof available office space, include;high-technology research anddevelopment company XenintLimited, chartered town planningconsultancy services providerRenplan and telecommunicationsservices provider First ClassComms. Chief executive AngelaHicks said: “Whilst we have hadhigh hopes for The Hive, tenantnumbers are above plan andmeeting room use has exceededexpectations.”

John Reynolds, director of Xenint,said: “The Hive offers a very modernand fresh facility located in a primeposition.”

FOOD retailer The Co-operative isinvesting £3.2 million in a rollingprogramme to transform its storesacross the Bristol area.

The latest to benefit was the Avon-mouth store, which reopened follow-ing the £350,000 refit last week.

The makeovers aim to redefine thestores with a better in-store bakeryrange, more healthy fresh foods andmore meal ideas rather than justindividual products.

So far, the firm reports the revampshave delivered on average double-digit sales growth.

Mike Pengelly, regional operationsmanager for The Co-operative Food,said: “I am delighted that there hasbeen such significant investment inthe Bristol area.

“The new format stores form partof our new food strategy, they aredelivering real growth and helping usto achieve our ambition of becomingthe UK’s number one conveniencefood retailer.

“In addition to improvements inthe store environment, innovationsin our own-brand, ‘Loved by us’,range, plus, a commitment to lower-

Retailer invests £3.2min city store revamps

ing prices on hundreds of everydayessentials under our ‘Fair and Squareprices’ banner are also contributingto growth.

“As a member-owned co-operative,our new-look stores will also work toestablish a distinctive communityconnection. We are piloting dedicatedcolleagues called Community Pion-eers, a title which harks back to theoriginal Rochdale Pioneers and seescolleagues working to foster real com-munity partnerships, from fundrais-ing initiatives to helping tounderstand and develop solutions tomeet local community need.”

Recently re-launched stores in-clude Holloway Road, Stockwood,which re-launched last month, andBishopsworth Road, BedminsterD ow n .

Stores in Broomhill Road and Whit-church are scheduled for majormakeovers ahead of the Christmastrading period.

Business ratesStar t-ups

Fo o d

F i n a n ce

Te c h n o l o g y

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

� Sophia McCormack and friends from the Waycroft Academy open therevamped Stockwood Co-operative convenience store after a re-fit

� Daniel Melville tries out his 3D printed hand

widespread dissatisfaction withBristol’s congestion and parkingproblems and are looking to maketheir lives easier by basingthemselves on the popular northBristol fringe.

“Speaking from experience,commuting into Bristol fromoutlying areas has become moreand more difficult over the pastfew years, and I’m sure that this iscontributing to the recent increasein demand for out of townlocations.”

The firm is marketing a numberof offices at sites such as smallsites at Vantage Park on the OldGloucester Road, where it thinkssmall, flexible units will appeal tosome smaller firms who want toget out of the traffic jams.

“Speaking fromexperience, commutinginto Bristol fromoutlying areas hasbecome more andmore difficult.

WHAT ’S WRONGWITH RATES?

� Business rates are linked toRPI, which is seen as anunpredictable measure ofinflation.

Property values are out ofdate and don’t follow themarket. When the economycrashed, business rates didn’tfall with it making them a heavyburden on business in hardtimes. In fact, rents fell in thecrises, but rates rose.

They discourage expansionand investment. Ratesdiscourage firms from taking onmore space because their taxbill goes up even if profits don’t.They discourage retailers fromtaking the step onto the highstreet and penalisebricks-and-mortar againstonline competition. The result isempty shops and offices.

SIGN THE PLEDGE

� We are calling for businessleaders, owners andentrepreneurs to sign-up to ourcall for business rates reform.Simply scan this QR code orgo tobristolpost.co.uk/business.

� Rikki Teml

� Clifton Down ShoppingCentre, Whiteladies Road,Bristol BRBE20141027C-2

Part of the Local World group

AN Event Services provide audio visual equipmentand support for all your event needs. We offer aprofessional and experienced approach withpre-show, on-site and post-show technical support.

Staging your event doesn’thave to cost a fortune...

Whatever the event, we’ve got it covered

Call us on: 01684 575832Email us at: enquiries@aneventservices.co.ukVisit us at : www.aneventservices.co.uk

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6 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 7We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business Special feature Special feature

THE NETWORKYOUNEED TO SUCCEEDBuilding the right connections is essential for a business to thrive

Despite facing challenges, withthe impact of the floodingearlier this year, the South

West has had a good couple ofyears economically. Manufacturingis looking good, with the latestBarometer survey fromManufacturing Advisory Services(MAS) showing 58 percent of SMEmanufacturers in the regionincreased sales in the last sixmonths and nearly three-quartersexpected sales to rise before theend of the year.Director of Corporate Banking

for Bristol Steve Wilson is proud ofhow local businesses are thrivingand has witnessed the rise inentrepreneurial spirit – and histeam are playing their part.“Whether you’re an established

local business, or just starting out,my team and I strive to help youreach your full potential,” Steveexplains. “If local business doeswell, then it has a positive impacton the local economy, which isimportant for everyone. It’s in ourbest interests to work together.”Steve has a team of 10

relationship managers, withdecades of experience, to steerlocal businesses through the goodtimes and bad. They can meet youat your convenience and really geta sense of your business – thatway they can work out how to helpyou the most.

“Part of our role involvesfinance, but we’re eager to showwe offer so much more,” Steveexplains. “Every business needsconnections to thrive and ournetwork in thelocal community is full of like-minded professionals andorganisations that could takeyour business further.“You can attend our business

events and seminars and develop

skills to help you tackleany potential challengesyou might face. It’s all part ofthe service.”To keep your business

always one step ahead, RBSoffers facilities for when you’reon the go, such as 24/7 telephoneand online banking. The Bristolteam can guide you through thecomplexities of internationalbanking or help you see thewider picture when it comesto planning for the future, andthe bank’s online businesscommunity, Bizcrowd, is a usefulgo-to resource.“Right now, we have a fantastic

portfolio of local businesses, fromhealthcare to retail, frommanufacturing to hospitality. Everysingle one is unique, which is whyour packages are tailored to you,”Steve says.“Whether you’re purchasing

new equipment, hiring staff ordeveloping a new product, we’ll sitdown with you and guide youthrough the process. If we can’thelp you, we’ll find someonewho can.”After almost 30 years in

banking, Steve knows how muchevery local business needs supportand his team does too. “We’vehelped hundreds of businessesachieve success and we want to dothe same for you.”

Gina Fucci is ManagingDirector of Films at 59.Films at 59 is a television and film

post-production company in Bristol.They have 135 employees and provideservices to over 1000 programmemakers globally. In their 25 yearhistory, they have serviced theproduction of 50,000 hours ofcontent for TV, film and the web.Films at 59 has invested in the

latest equipment and training toprovide the best service for itsclients as managing director GinaFucci explains:“We started in 1990 because we

wanted to create a business to servethe production community in Bristoland also across the world. Wesupport production with cutting edgetechnological solutions so they canrealise their creative ambitions andstay on budget. We work oneverything from fast-turnaroundproduction, such as daytimegenres, right through to featurefilm production.

“We provide equipmentand assistance for any location –we’ve provided kit in all climates:‘Fromminus 20 degrees to plus40 degrees’.“RBS has been our bank for 25

years and, even when the opportunityhas arisen to change banks, we havedeclined. In my opinion, RBS hasbeen instrumental for us. For me, wehave a traditional bankingrelationship - we communicateregularly and are open about ourbusiness. We believed in our bankthrough the tough times in 2008 – asthey’ve always believed in us. It isour relationship manager that is thekey to that trust. We take out leaseswith them and loans for growth asour industry is investment heavy innew technology.“In the last 10 years our business

has grown and we have used thebank’s robust services to fuel thatgrowth for our clients.“But most of all, the bank

understands our business.’www.filmsat59.com

If you have a business success story to share,we want to hear from you. Visitwww.bristolpost.co.uk/business and share yourstory with the local business community

WHO TO CALLON YOURDOORSTEPRBS Mentorrbsmentor.co.ukRichard James07748 887 939

Lombard(Asset Finance)lombard.co.ukPhil Ollerenshaw07876 390 916

Private BankingDominic Chadwick07789 481 378

Business BankingGavinWintrell,Business Manager07920 502 685

RBS Invoice Financerbsif.co.ukIan Hussey,Relationship Manager0117 9544378or 07766 206 003

External RBS contactsBristol Chamberof Commercebusinesswest.co.uk/bristol01275 373 373

Gregg LatchamsLimited7 Queen Square, BristolBS1 4JE01179 069 407

“THE BANK UNDERSTANDSOUR BUSINESS”

Steve Wilson, Director of RBSCorporate Banking Bristol

Connect to business insight and opportunities with RBS. Find out more at rbsbusinessconnections.co.uk

A DIFFERENT A DIFFERENT MINDSET BEYOND SELLING A PRODUCTChris Price, Regional Managing Director South and South Wales (future Williams & Glynn).Here he explains why he wants to see a more old-fashioned approach to banking make acomeback, focused on mutually-beneficial relationships between bank and business.

We work withall types ofbusinesses,fromstart-ups to

established companies.Start-ups of today couldbecome the corporates oftomorrow and that’s whywe like to build arelationship which enablesus to support a businessthroughout its journey.“We’re proud to have a

team of dedicated localrelationship managerswho are accessible, face toface or on the phone, totalk and, moreimportantly, listen. Inaddition, behind everyrelationship manager,there is a whole team ofspecialists making surethat we keep ourcustomers’ interests atthe heart of everythingwe do.“We believe

entrepreneurs are the keyto helping the localeconomy grow andprosper - and what’s goodfor the local economy isgood for everyone.“We don’t do things just

because it generatesincome for us. We aregenuinely interested andpassionate about helping

local businesses and wedo what we think is theright thing to do. Thatmeans integratingourselves into localcommunities; it meanshelping.“We have developed a

network of support forbusinesses, drawingtogether professionalsfrommany organisationsand creating inspirationand support forbusinesses planning thenext stages of theirgrowth.“Questions from our

customers are not limitedto finance. I could beanswering questions asbasic as: ‘How do youemploy somebody?’ or itcould be: ‘How do you setup some performancemanagement?’ It’s goingbeyond just talkingbanking.

PROVIDING SUPPORT“Early on, a small businessis, understandably, justinterested in sales; somejust haven’t got the timeto devote to otherimportant considerations,such as forward planningand strategy. I’m keen toreally add value byproviding

the support thatbusinesses want.“All banks give out a

message: Write a businessplan and be clear aboutyour funding. Thedifference with RBS is thatwe have adopted apractical approach.“I tell my team to ask

themselves, everymonth:‘What have you done thatis positive, proactive andvisible?’“If you get that right,

the numbers will lookafter themselves.“It’s a different mind-set

that’s beyond just selling aproduct. It’s aboutcreating a relationshipbuilt onmutualunderstanding from thestart, and this should leadto a relationship that islong lasting.

REAL RELATIONSHIP“I have noticed adifference in the way weoperate. If a customercomes to us and says: ‘Ineed some finance to buysomemachinery’, then wehaven’t got a goodenough relationship.“What we want is the

customer to come to therelationship manager andsay: ‘I’m thinking about

investing in somemachinery.’ Then we’repart of that process. We’renot just advisors, it’s a realrelationship.“We have a duty to be

able to connect ourcustomers to the peoplethey need tomake theirbusiness successful - theirsuccess is our success.

PERSONAL TOUCH“We’re launching a ‘new’bank for UK personal andbusiness customers,Williams & Glyn. It has agood heritage in UKbanking and will provideretail and businessbanking services tocustomers via its networkof more than 300branches around thecountry, as well as online,on the phone and viamobile services.“Williams & Glyn can

offer a brilliantcombination of a trusted,old-fashioned, personaltouch, plus all the benefitsof modern, on-the-gotechnology.“We’ve asked

customers to help indesigning and building thebank, so we’re confidentwe’re offering what theywant, right from day one.”

So, how doyou get funding?

It may look like a bit of paper, but you hold in yourhand themost powerful piece of text you’ll everpossess – your business plan.You believe in it but will the bank?Youmay be passionate about your ideas but

your financial provider will need to see yourtargets are achievable.Top points you’ll need in your plan are:Where you want your business to be long-termWho your customers are and who yourcompetitors areHowmuchmoney you’ll need and what it willbe used forWhat are your business objectives? Howwillyou achieve them?

You need to be brutally honest. Are your costs inline? Will profits pay back the loan?And here’s the tough one: would YOU lendyourself the cash based on the plan?RBS is all ears for business ideas and can offer avariety of funding options. So, fine tune thatbusiness plan and there’s a wealth of fundingout there.

Got a great idea and need fundsto finance it? Follow these tips toget noticed...

EMBRACE THE ONLINE WORLD

Gone are the days of walking to your bank witha stash of payments, invoices and cheques. Inan information-driven age, companies who

don’t use online banking are, quite simply, at acompetitive disadvantage.

With online banking, you can check your balancein ameeting, make or receive payments on the trainor track invoices as you queue for a coffee – all viayour PC, laptop or mobile phone.

RBS has a range of online banking services tosuit all your business needs, from Bankline andBankline Lite – where you can carry out a widerange of regular transactions – to the BusinessBanking App for selected Blackberry, Android andiPhone devices – where you canmanage accounts,check balances and transfer money. RBS alsosupports Bizcrowd – a business social network – andthere’s somuchmore.bizcrowd.com. To register for online services,you need to be a RBS current account holder.Call us today to speak to one of our team.Opening hours: 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday.Calls may be recorded. Call 0800 529 8403

SECURITY MAY BE REQUIRED. PRODUCT FEES MAY APPLY.OVER 18S ONLY.ANY PROPERTY USED AS SECURITY, WHICH MAY INCLUDE YOUR HOME,MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON AMORTGAGE OR OTHER DEBT SECURED ON IT

We have aduty to be able toconnect our

customers to thepeople they need

to maketheir businesssuccessful: their

success isour success.

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6 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 7We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business Special feature Special feature

THE NETWORKYOUNEED TO SUCCEEDBuilding the right connections is essential for a business to thrive

Despite facing challenges, withthe impact of the floodingearlier this year, the South

West has had a good couple ofyears economically. Manufacturingis looking good, with the latestBarometer survey fromManufacturing Advisory Services(MAS) showing 58 percent of SMEmanufacturers in the regionincreased sales in the last sixmonths and nearly three-quartersexpected sales to rise before theend of the year.Director of Corporate Banking

for Bristol Steve Wilson is proud ofhow local businesses are thrivingand has witnessed the rise inentrepreneurial spirit – and histeam are playing their part.“Whether you’re an established

local business, or just starting out,my team and I strive to help youreach your full potential,” Steveexplains. “If local business doeswell, then it has a positive impacton the local economy, which isimportant for everyone. It’s in ourbest interests to work together.”Steve has a team of 10

relationship managers, withdecades of experience, to steerlocal businesses through the goodtimes and bad. They can meet youat your convenience and really geta sense of your business – thatway they can work out how to helpyou the most.

“Part of our role involvesfinance, but we’re eager to showwe offer so much more,” Steveexplains. “Every business needsconnections to thrive and ournetwork in thelocal community is full of like-minded professionals andorganisations that could takeyour business further.“You can attend our business

events and seminars and develop

skills to help you tackleany potential challengesyou might face. It’s all part ofthe service.”To keep your business

always one step ahead, RBSoffers facilities for when you’reon the go, such as 24/7 telephoneand online banking. The Bristolteam can guide you through thecomplexities of internationalbanking or help you see thewider picture when it comesto planning for the future, andthe bank’s online businesscommunity, Bizcrowd, is a usefulgo-to resource.“Right now, we have a fantastic

portfolio of local businesses, fromhealthcare to retail, frommanufacturing to hospitality. Everysingle one is unique, which is whyour packages are tailored to you,”Steve says.“Whether you’re purchasing

new equipment, hiring staff ordeveloping a new product, we’ll sitdown with you and guide youthrough the process. If we can’thelp you, we’ll find someonewho can.”After almost 30 years in

banking, Steve knows how muchevery local business needs supportand his team does too. “We’vehelped hundreds of businessesachieve success and we want to dothe same for you.”

Gina Fucci is ManagingDirector of Films at 59.Films at 59 is a television and film

post-production company in Bristol.They have 135 employees and provideservices to over 1000 programmemakers globally. In their 25 yearhistory, they have serviced theproduction of 50,000 hours ofcontent for TV, film and the web.Films at 59 has invested in the

latest equipment and training toprovide the best service for itsclients as managing director GinaFucci explains:“We started in 1990 because we

wanted to create a business to servethe production community in Bristoland also across the world. Wesupport production with cutting edgetechnological solutions so they canrealise their creative ambitions andstay on budget. We work oneverything from fast-turnaroundproduction, such as daytimegenres, right through to featurefilm production.

“We provide equipmentand assistance for any location –we’ve provided kit in all climates:‘Fromminus 20 degrees to plus40 degrees’.“RBS has been our bank for 25

years and, even when the opportunityhas arisen to change banks, we havedeclined. In my opinion, RBS hasbeen instrumental for us. For me, wehave a traditional bankingrelationship - we communicateregularly and are open about ourbusiness. We believed in our bankthrough the tough times in 2008 – asthey’ve always believed in us. It isour relationship manager that is thekey to that trust. We take out leaseswith them and loans for growth asour industry is investment heavy innew technology.“In the last 10 years our business

has grown and we have used thebank’s robust services to fuel thatgrowth for our clients.“But most of all, the bank

understands our business.’www.filmsat59.com

If you have a business success story to share,we want to hear from you. Visitwww.bristolpost.co.uk/business and share yourstory with the local business community

WHO TO CALLON YOURDOORSTEPRBS Mentorrbsmentor.co.ukRichard James07748 887 939

Lombard(Asset Finance)lombard.co.ukPhil Ollerenshaw07876 390 916

Private BankingDominic Chadwick07789 481 378

Business BankingGavinWintrell,Business Manager07920 502 685

RBS Invoice Financerbsif.co.ukIan Hussey,Relationship Manager0117 9544378or 07766 206 003

External RBS contactsBristol Chamberof Commercebusinesswest.co.uk/bristol01275 373 373

Gregg LatchamsLimited7 Queen Square, BristolBS1 4JE01179 069 407

“THE BANK UNDERSTANDSOUR BUSINESS”

Steve Wilson, Director of RBSCorporate Banking Bristol

Connect to business insight and opportunities with RBS. Find out more at rbsbusinessconnections.co.uk

A DIFFERENT A DIFFERENT MINDSET BEYOND SELLING A PRODUCTChris Price, Regional Managing Director South and South Wales (future Williams & Glynn).Here he explains why he wants to see a more old-fashioned approach to banking make acomeback, focused on mutually-beneficial relationships between bank and business.

We work withall types ofbusinesses,fromstart-ups to

established companies.Start-ups of today couldbecome the corporates oftomorrow and that’s whywe like to build arelationship which enablesus to support a businessthroughout its journey.“We’re proud to have a

team of dedicated localrelationship managerswho are accessible, face toface or on the phone, totalk and, moreimportantly, listen. Inaddition, behind everyrelationship manager,there is a whole team ofspecialists making surethat we keep ourcustomers’ interests atthe heart of everythingwe do.“We believe

entrepreneurs are the keyto helping the localeconomy grow andprosper - and what’s goodfor the local economy isgood for everyone.“We don’t do things just

because it generatesincome for us. We aregenuinely interested andpassionate about helping

local businesses and wedo what we think is theright thing to do. Thatmeans integratingourselves into localcommunities; it meanshelping.“We have developed a

network of support forbusinesses, drawingtogether professionalsfrommany organisationsand creating inspirationand support forbusinesses planning thenext stages of theirgrowth.“Questions from our

customers are not limitedto finance. I could beanswering questions asbasic as: ‘How do youemploy somebody?’ or itcould be: ‘How do you setup some performancemanagement?’ It’s goingbeyond just talkingbanking.

PROVIDING SUPPORT“Early on, a small businessis, understandably, justinterested in sales; somejust haven’t got the timeto devote to otherimportant considerations,such as forward planningand strategy. I’m keen toreally add value byproviding

the support thatbusinesses want.“All banks give out a

message: Write a businessplan and be clear aboutyour funding. Thedifference with RBS is thatwe have adopted apractical approach.“I tell my team to ask

themselves, everymonth:‘What have you done thatis positive, proactive andvisible?’“If you get that right,

the numbers will lookafter themselves.“It’s a different mind-set

that’s beyond just selling aproduct. It’s aboutcreating a relationshipbuilt onmutualunderstanding from thestart, and this should leadto a relationship that islong lasting.

REAL RELATIONSHIP“I have noticed adifference in the way weoperate. If a customercomes to us and says: ‘Ineed some finance to buysomemachinery’, then wehaven’t got a goodenough relationship.“What we want is the

customer to come to therelationship manager andsay: ‘I’m thinking about

investing in somemachinery.’ Then we’repart of that process. We’renot just advisors, it’s a realrelationship.“We have a duty to be

able to connect ourcustomers to the peoplethey need tomake theirbusiness successful - theirsuccess is our success.

PERSONAL TOUCH“We’re launching a ‘new’bank for UK personal andbusiness customers,Williams & Glyn. It has agood heritage in UKbanking and will provideretail and businessbanking services tocustomers via its networkof more than 300branches around thecountry, as well as online,on the phone and viamobile services.“Williams & Glyn can

offer a brilliantcombination of a trusted,old-fashioned, personaltouch, plus all the benefitsof modern, on-the-gotechnology.“We’ve asked

customers to help indesigning and building thebank, so we’re confidentwe’re offering what theywant, right from day one.”

So, how doyou get funding?

It may look like a bit of paper, but you hold in yourhand themost powerful piece of text you’ll everpossess – your business plan.You believe in it but will the bank?Youmay be passionate about your ideas but

your financial provider will need to see yourtargets are achievable.Top points you’ll need in your plan are:Where you want your business to be long-termWho your customers are and who yourcompetitors areHowmuchmoney you’ll need and what it willbe used forWhat are your business objectives? Howwillyou achieve them?

You need to be brutally honest. Are your costs inline? Will profits pay back the loan?And here’s the tough one: would YOU lendyourself the cash based on the plan?RBS is all ears for business ideas and can offer avariety of funding options. So, fine tune thatbusiness plan and there’s a wealth of fundingout there.

Got a great idea and need fundsto finance it? Follow these tips toget noticed...

EMBRACE THE ONLINE WORLD

Gone are the days of walking to your bank witha stash of payments, invoices and cheques. Inan information-driven age, companies who

don’t use online banking are, quite simply, at acompetitive disadvantage.

With online banking, you can check your balancein ameeting, make or receive payments on the trainor track invoices as you queue for a coffee – all viayour PC, laptop or mobile phone.

RBS has a range of online banking services tosuit all your business needs, from Bankline andBankline Lite – where you can carry out a widerange of regular transactions – to the BusinessBanking App for selected Blackberry, Android andiPhone devices – where you canmanage accounts,check balances and transfer money. RBS alsosupports Bizcrowd – a business social network – andthere’s somuchmore.bizcrowd.com. To register for online services,you need to be a RBS current account holder.Call us today to speak to one of our team.Opening hours: 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday.Calls may be recorded. Call 0800 529 8403

SECURITY MAY BE REQUIRED. PRODUCT FEES MAY APPLY.OVER 18S ONLY.ANY PROPERTY USED AS SECURITY, WHICH MAY INCLUDE YOUR HOME,MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON AMORTGAGE OR OTHER DEBT SECURED ON IT

We have aduty to be able toconnect our

customers to thepeople they need

to maketheir businesssuccessful: their

success isour success.

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8 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 9We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

WHAT words spring tomind when you think ofthe phrase “f amilybu s i n e s s ”? Tradition?Heritage? Values?

Perhaps not, however, change, evol-ution or adaptable. But anylong-standing family business willhave proved itself adept at all of thosethings in order to thrive in anever-changing world.

Penny Lovell, head of private clientservices at Close Brothers Asset Man-agement, often works with familyfirms helping them with investmentand financial planning services.

She has worked with numerousfirms with “f ascinating” stories be-hind them and says change is key totheir success.

“My message is hold onto thosefamily values but don’t let your val-ues hold you back from progress,”

and succession planning, which areoften particularly challenging in afamily setting.

For example, business ownersmight not have saved for a pensionbecause they are expecting theirbusiness to support them in retire-ment. But is that realistic? And howwould it work? Another commonissue is transfer of ownershipthrough the generations.

The latest headache that couldcause family firms an extra com-plication is holiday pay. A recent legalcase suggested that such pay shouldinclude commission not just basics a l a r y.

Charlotte Williams, of Bris-tol-based law firm VWV, said familyfirms were particularly vulnerable.

“Family businesses often rely onthe goodwill of their employees more

than others,” she said. “E m p l oy m e n tarrangements may also be on a moreinformal basis, particularly if em-ployees are also family members, orhave been with the family businessfor a long period of time.

“They also often experience lowerstaff turnover than their non-familycounterparts and so could fall foul ofemployment legislation, particularlyif relationships turn sour.”

There’s something a bitspecial about familybusinesses, but they facetheir own challenges too.Gavin Thompson reports

she said. “D o n’t get stuck in a rut.Some of these businesses have beenaround for three, or four or five gen-erations, the reason for that is thatthey have allowed themselves tochange and embrace the new age.

“In this generation that might beabout embracing digital. You shouldhold onto your sense of your valuesbut make sure you are flexible andyou embrace change.”

Family businesses account for anastonishing 59 per cent of South Westfirms, employing nine millionp e o p l e.

Across the UK, they account for 40per cent of private sector jobs, 30 percent of turnover and pay £81.7 billionin tax every year.

Penny said one of the messages shereceived back from the firms sheworked with is that they want moreeducation on issues such as pensions

Astonishing milestone

Keeping a family feel at the digital cutting edge

Family business

HOLD ONTO YOUR VALUES – BUT EMBRACE CHANGE

Penny Lovell

“Some of these familybusinesses have beenaround for three, or fouror five generations. Thereason for that is thatthey have allowedthemselves to embracethe new age.

She said the cost of a back-datedclaim could date back to 1998 andpotentially “cripple” a small busi-n e s s.

Whether it’s on legal, financial orother matters, the key message isnot to flounder on alone, but ask forhelp. That support could come fromprofessionals or other businesses.

Penny said Close Brothers set upa family business club was so that

businesses could share networkand share ideas to support eachother. She added: “Businesses focuson their day-to-day business, that’swhat they are passionate about.”

Things like budgetary changes orgovernance might not be very ex-citing, but they need to be ad-dressed. And asking someone in theknow is one way to do that.

“It’s what we feel passionate

ab o u t , ” said Penny. Leaving thepeople running the business to geton with just that.� Close Brothers and FamilyBusiness United are staging anevent celebrating familybusinesses at the Bristol Museumand Art Gallery from 6.30-9pmtomorrow. The firm will belaunching its Oldest FamilyBusiness in the South West report.

� A GOLD clock or watch is thetraditional gift for 50 years ofservice, but all Brian Robbins wantsto his remarkable 70 years is tocome back to work againt o m o r ro w.

Brian joined the family firmRobbins’ Timber as a labourer inthe mill. He father wanted him to“start at the bottom”.

The grounding clearly served himwell as the 86-year-old has justcelebrated this 70th anniversarywith the business, a milestone thatis perhaps only achievable in theenvironment of a family business.

Things have certainly changed.Brain recalls: “When we were

kids, my father used to bring usdown to the saw mill and leave usthere, mucking about all the time.

“There was a dilly cart on a railused to push logs up to the milland there was a slope so we usedto sit on it and ride down to thebottom. You wouldn’t be allowed todo that now!”

When Brian started, the SecondWorld War still raged. Even once itended, soft wood was rationed untilthe mid 1950s affecting what workthe mill could do.

“Back in 1944, the saw mill wasdriven by steam, powered by woodchipping we produced and coal,”said Brian.

“We only had electricity in oneplace, the rest was gas, gas lightsin the office. I don’t think we hadelectricity in the office until 1951.”

Brian’s family ties and his drive toget up and go to work every day(“it’s important to have motivationin life,” he says) are behind hisl o n g e v i t y.

But there is more to familybusiness than that. The firm wouldnot have lasted so long, without theadded drive and emotionalconnection the family businessesc re a t e .

Brian explained: “My father was avery cautious business man.

“When he had more profitabletimes he just put the money in thebank. Turnover was about £30,000a year, which was quite a bit ofm o n e y.

“But we had lost £4,000 in thepast three years. We had £1,000left in the kitty and he wanted towind up the business so could payall the creditors and didn’t gobankrupt.

“I pleaded with him to let mehave a year and see if I couldn’t doany better.

“He agreed and said ‘you have ago for a year, see what you can do’.He came back to office, collectedhis personal effects and walkedout, having been managing directorfor many years and never cameback unless we invited him. He left

it completely up to me to do what Iwanted.”

Brian said his dad, Harold, didn’tagree with overtime, especiallywhen they were losing money.

But Brian changed that. He alsoinvested in new machinery.

“In that first year we made ap ro f i t , ” he said. “It was such a joy!”

And Harold was suitably veryp ro u d .

The firm celebrated its centenaryin 1981, not an exact year but theearliest documentation foundrelates to 1881 so a safe bet.

Brian said: “My father wrote amessage read out for the centenarysaying that the business haschanged but always at the heart ofit has been timber. That’s still truet o d a y. ”

A family business, like any other,needs to evolve and RobbinsTimber has done just that. It movedfrom its old base in CumberlandRoad and is now house in SouthLiberty Lane, South Bristol.

The business has now passedout of the Robbins family intoanother. It is run by managingdirector Richard Bagnall, employs40 people and turns over £6.5million a year. And it is growing,specialising in niche areas where itcan add value with expertisemachining and crafting the wood itsells.

But Brian remains as a reminderof its family values. And he’s notgoing anywhere soon.

“I have a contract until 2018,” hesaid with a smile.

� NOISY Little Monkey doesn’tlook a traditional family business,it’s a digital marketing agencybased in the offices aboveA a rd m a n ’s Bristol studio.

But while its trade is verymodern – “we help peopleunderstand what they doing onthe web and do it better andmeasure it better” – thechallenges are familiar to mostfamily firms.

The business began in thehome of owners Nicola and JonPayne, first in Bedminster thenShepton Mallet before movingback to Bristol.

Managing director Nicola, 45,says those early days werefraught at times.

“When it was just us and wewere working very long hoursfrom home, it felt as though wenever got away from each other,”she said.

“We went from having separatejobs and separate lives to allbeing about the business and wehad a year of it being quite tricky.

“As time has gone by, we havelearned what we have to do tomake it work. Having morepeople around helps as well ashaving a wall between us! I makeit habit to work from home one ortwo days a week so we do havesome separation, if only so youhave something else to talkabout.”

Nicola added: “Much of it isabout having clear delineation ofwhat we do. We do differentthings and respect what eachother does, I’m glad I don’t dowhat he does and he’s glad hedoesn’t do accounts.”

Jon, 44, who is technicaldirector, added: “We have wildlydifferent skills.”

And those differences are thekey to their success, according to

the firm’s creative director,26-year-old Natasha Baldwin.

“They are quite Yin and Yang,”she said. “I’m not sure they wouldwork independently.”

Jon and Nicola’s marriage isnot the only family tie in the firm.Natasha’s little brother Josh, 22,is now on the team too, as asearch and social adviser.

He started doing “odd jobs”around the office and has recentlytaken on the social mediamanagement duties for one of thecompany’s top clients.

“They liked having me aroundh e re , ” said Josh. “They saw myvalue which was nice because Ididn’t really recognise that inmyself at time.”

The family feel of the businesscan cause complications.

“We have to make sure we

think of it as a business,” saidNicola. “You do have to bebusiness-like. We have got rid ofstaff who haven’t worked out andthat has implications because wewelcome people as part of thefamily so when it doesn’t workout breaking up is quite difficult.”

But in a team of about half adozen, close bonds areimportant.

Nicola and John don’t havechildren to pass the businessonto, which makes their workfamily even more important whenit comes ensuring the businesshas a sustainable future.

Nicola said: “Our role asbusiness leaders is to geteveryone else to be better andbetter in order to secure theirfutures. It has to be aboutsuccession planning.”� Nicola Payne, Jon Payne, Natasha Baldwin and Josh Baldwin of Noisy Little Monkey

� Nicola Payne, managing director of Noisy Little Monkey

Case study

Case study

� PennyLovell, ofCloseB ro t h e r s

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8 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 9We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

WHAT words spring tomind when you think ofthe phrase “f amilybu s i n e s s ”? Tradition?Heritage? Values?

Perhaps not, however, change, evol-ution or adaptable. But anylong-standing family business willhave proved itself adept at all of thosethings in order to thrive in anever-changing world.

Penny Lovell, head of private clientservices at Close Brothers Asset Man-agement, often works with familyfirms helping them with investmentand financial planning services.

She has worked with numerousfirms with “f ascinating” stories be-hind them and says change is key totheir success.

“My message is hold onto thosefamily values but don’t let your val-ues hold you back from progress,”

and succession planning, which areoften particularly challenging in afamily setting.

For example, business ownersmight not have saved for a pensionbecause they are expecting theirbusiness to support them in retire-ment. But is that realistic? And howwould it work? Another commonissue is transfer of ownershipthrough the generations.

The latest headache that couldcause family firms an extra com-plication is holiday pay. A recent legalcase suggested that such pay shouldinclude commission not just basics a l a r y.

Charlotte Williams, of Bris-tol-based law firm VWV, said familyfirms were particularly vulnerable.

“Family businesses often rely onthe goodwill of their employees more

than others,” she said. “E m p l oy m e n tarrangements may also be on a moreinformal basis, particularly if em-ployees are also family members, orhave been with the family businessfor a long period of time.

“They also often experience lowerstaff turnover than their non-familycounterparts and so could fall foul ofemployment legislation, particularlyif relationships turn sour.”

There’s something a bitspecial about familybusinesses, but they facetheir own challenges too.Gavin Thompson reports

she said. “D o n’t get stuck in a rut.Some of these businesses have beenaround for three, or four or five gen-erations, the reason for that is thatthey have allowed themselves tochange and embrace the new age.

“In this generation that might beabout embracing digital. You shouldhold onto your sense of your valuesbut make sure you are flexible andyou embrace change.”

Family businesses account for anastonishing 59 per cent of South Westfirms, employing nine millionp e o p l e.

Across the UK, they account for 40per cent of private sector jobs, 30 percent of turnover and pay £81.7 billionin tax every year.

Penny said one of the messages shereceived back from the firms sheworked with is that they want moreeducation on issues such as pensions

Astonishing milestone

Keeping a family feel at the digital cutting edge

Family business

HOLD ONTO YOUR VALUES – BUT EMBRACE CHANGE

Penny Lovell

“Some of these familybusinesses have beenaround for three, or fouror five generations. Thereason for that is thatthey have allowedthemselves to embracethe new age.

She said the cost of a back-datedclaim could date back to 1998 andpotentially “cripple” a small busi-n e s s.

Whether it’s on legal, financial orother matters, the key message isnot to flounder on alone, but ask forhelp. That support could come fromprofessionals or other businesses.

Penny said Close Brothers set upa family business club was so that

businesses could share networkand share ideas to support eachother. She added: “Businesses focuson their day-to-day business, that’swhat they are passionate about.”

Things like budgetary changes orgovernance might not be very ex-citing, but they need to be ad-dressed. And asking someone in theknow is one way to do that.

“It’s what we feel passionate

ab o u t , ” said Penny. Leaving thepeople running the business to geton with just that.� Close Brothers and FamilyBusiness United are staging anevent celebrating familybusinesses at the Bristol Museumand Art Gallery from 6.30-9pmtomorrow. The firm will belaunching its Oldest FamilyBusiness in the South West report.

� A GOLD clock or watch is thetraditional gift for 50 years ofservice, but all Brian Robbins wantsto his remarkable 70 years is tocome back to work againt o m o r ro w.

Brian joined the family firmRobbins’ Timber as a labourer inthe mill. He father wanted him to“start at the bottom”.

The grounding clearly served himwell as the 86-year-old has justcelebrated this 70th anniversarywith the business, a milestone thatis perhaps only achievable in theenvironment of a family business.

Things have certainly changed.Brain recalls: “When we were

kids, my father used to bring usdown to the saw mill and leave usthere, mucking about all the time.

“There was a dilly cart on a railused to push logs up to the milland there was a slope so we usedto sit on it and ride down to thebottom. You wouldn’t be allowed todo that now!”

When Brian started, the SecondWorld War still raged. Even once itended, soft wood was rationed untilthe mid 1950s affecting what workthe mill could do.

“Back in 1944, the saw mill wasdriven by steam, powered by woodchipping we produced and coal,”said Brian.

“We only had electricity in oneplace, the rest was gas, gas lightsin the office. I don’t think we hadelectricity in the office until 1951.”

Brian’s family ties and his drive toget up and go to work every day(“it’s important to have motivationin life,” he says) are behind hisl o n g e v i t y.

But there is more to familybusiness than that. The firm wouldnot have lasted so long, without theadded drive and emotionalconnection the family businessesc re a t e .

Brian explained: “My father was avery cautious business man.

“When he had more profitabletimes he just put the money in thebank. Turnover was about £30,000a year, which was quite a bit ofm o n e y.

“But we had lost £4,000 in thepast three years. We had £1,000left in the kitty and he wanted towind up the business so could payall the creditors and didn’t gobankrupt.

“I pleaded with him to let mehave a year and see if I couldn’t doany better.

“He agreed and said ‘you have ago for a year, see what you can do’.He came back to office, collectedhis personal effects and walkedout, having been managing directorfor many years and never cameback unless we invited him. He left

it completely up to me to do what Iwanted.”

Brian said his dad, Harold, didn’tagree with overtime, especiallywhen they were losing money.

But Brian changed that. He alsoinvested in new machinery.

“In that first year we made ap ro f i t , ” he said. “It was such a joy!”

And Harold was suitably veryp ro u d .

The firm celebrated its centenaryin 1981, not an exact year but theearliest documentation foundrelates to 1881 so a safe bet.

Brian said: “My father wrote amessage read out for the centenarysaying that the business haschanged but always at the heart ofit has been timber. That’s still truet o d a y. ”

A family business, like any other,needs to evolve and RobbinsTimber has done just that. It movedfrom its old base in CumberlandRoad and is now house in SouthLiberty Lane, South Bristol.

The business has now passedout of the Robbins family intoanother. It is run by managingdirector Richard Bagnall, employs40 people and turns over £6.5million a year. And it is growing,specialising in niche areas where itcan add value with expertisemachining and crafting the wood itsells.

But Brian remains as a reminderof its family values. And he’s notgoing anywhere soon.

“I have a contract until 2018,” hesaid with a smile.

� NOISY Little Monkey doesn’tlook a traditional family business,it’s a digital marketing agencybased in the offices aboveA a rd m a n ’s Bristol studio.

But while its trade is verymodern – “we help peopleunderstand what they doing onthe web and do it better andmeasure it better” – thechallenges are familiar to mostfamily firms.

The business began in thehome of owners Nicola and JonPayne, first in Bedminster thenShepton Mallet before movingback to Bristol.

Managing director Nicola, 45,says those early days werefraught at times.

“When it was just us and wewere working very long hoursfrom home, it felt as though wenever got away from each other,”she said.

“We went from having separatejobs and separate lives to allbeing about the business and wehad a year of it being quite tricky.

“As time has gone by, we havelearned what we have to do tomake it work. Having morepeople around helps as well ashaving a wall between us! I makeit habit to work from home one ortwo days a week so we do havesome separation, if only so youhave something else to talkabout.”

Nicola added: “Much of it isabout having clear delineation ofwhat we do. We do differentthings and respect what eachother does, I’m glad I don’t dowhat he does and he’s glad hedoesn’t do accounts.”

Jon, 44, who is technicaldirector, added: “We have wildlydifferent skills.”

And those differences are thekey to their success, according to

the firm’s creative director,26-year-old Natasha Baldwin.

“They are quite Yin and Yang,”she said. “I’m not sure they wouldwork independently.”

Jon and Nicola’s marriage isnot the only family tie in the firm.Natasha’s little brother Josh, 22,is now on the team too, as asearch and social adviser.

He started doing “odd jobs”around the office and has recentlytaken on the social mediamanagement duties for one of thecompany’s top clients.

“They liked having me aroundh e re , ” said Josh. “They saw myvalue which was nice because Ididn’t really recognise that inmyself at time.”

The family feel of the businesscan cause complications.

“We have to make sure we

think of it as a business,” saidNicola. “You do have to bebusiness-like. We have got rid ofstaff who haven’t worked out andthat has implications because wewelcome people as part of thefamily so when it doesn’t workout breaking up is quite difficult.”

But in a team of about half adozen, close bonds areimportant.

Nicola and John don’t havechildren to pass the businessonto, which makes their workfamily even more important whenit comes ensuring the businesshas a sustainable future.

Nicola said: “Our role asbusiness leaders is to geteveryone else to be better andbetter in order to secure theirfutures. It has to be aboutsuccession planning.”� Nicola Payne, Jon Payne, Natasha Baldwin and Josh Baldwin of Noisy Little Monkey

� Nicola Payne, managing director of Noisy Little Monkey

Case study

Case study

� PennyLovell, ofCloseB ro t h e r s

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10 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 11We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

In pictures Gemini West

Print’s charming Gemini Westcelebrates fantastic year with party

Business diary

Email your business events togavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk.Events are sometimescancelled without us beingnotified so please check withorganisers before travelling.

Celebrating Family Business:Family Business United andClose Brothers are invitingfamily firms to join them atBristol Museum and Art Galleryto celebrate The Oldest FamilyBusiness in the South Westfrom 6.30pm on Thursday,October 30. Register ath t t p : / / o w. l y / D 6 Z 6 2

One-to-one drop-in advice:University of the West ofEngland advisers are holdingconfidential, one-to-one drop-insessions for the region’sinnovative businesses todiscuss its innovation andbusiness growth service atFrenchay Campus November 4and Engine Shed, November 7.Email uwebusiness@uwe.ac.uk.

Bristol Distinguished Address:UWE’s series giving the chanceto meet the leaders of industrycontinues with Sir CharlieMayfield, chairman, John LewisPartnership. UWE Exhibitionand Conference Centre,Frenchay Campus, 6pm,November 4. Register via UWE.

Leigh Court 200th Birthday:Invitation only event at LeighCourt, home of Business West,from 6-9pm on Tuesday,November 4.

Chamber NetworkingB re a k f a s t : Popular event takesplace in the Terrace bar of theColston Hall this breakfastoffers views across the city soyou can network whilst taking inthe spectacular view. 7.30am to9am, November 6. Book atw w w. B u s i n e s s We s t . c o . u k .

Super-fast Business:Measuring Your OnlineSuccess: Understand how yoursocial media, online marketingand web strategies work for youby learning how to measureyour online success. Free eventat Bristol and Bath SciencePark, 8.30am to 11am,November 6.

Bristol Distinguished Address:UWE’s series giving the chanceto meet the leaders of industrycontinues with Anne Francke -CEO, CMI. Leigh Court, AbbotsLeigh, 6pm, November 13.Register via UWE.

Ladies Who Latte: Flexible,informal networking forentrepreneurial women. Held atNew World Business Centre,Station Road, Warmley,10am-12, Thursday, November20. Contract Sarah or Liz on0117 332 0900 or emailinfo@newworldbusinessc e n t re . c o . u k .

Bristol Junior ChamberP re s i d e n t s ’ L e c t u re : B a ro n e s sGillian Shephard, Deputy Chairof the Government’s SocialMobility and Child PovertyCommission talks on “What isthe economic importance ofimproving social mobility andwhat is the current state ofsocial mobility in 21st centuryBritain?” 11.30am on November26 at Clarke Willmott LLP, BathStreet, Bristol.

MORE than 120 gueststoasted Gemini West at acelebration party in Bris-tol. The event, held at theRiverstation, celebrated

the company’s fantastic year – withover £1 million invested in its Hock-eys Lane, Fishponds factory, in-creased turnover and new jobsc re at e d .

The company welcomed local coun-cillors and representatives from busi-nesses around the region.

Gemini Group owner John Boyle,said he believed Gemini West wasnow the most capable printing op-eration in the region.

During his speech he reiterated toall that buying print locally was goodfor the economy and good for theenvironment, reducing transport andfuel emissions.

The lively event also included aspeech by director of economy atBristol City Council, Alistair Reid,who congratulated the business,adding it was a real asset to the city.

Champagne and canapés wereserved to guests followed by what wasbilled as Bristol’s best fish andch i p s.

A roving silhouette artist cut outthe profile of each guest on paper ins e c o n d s.

The Gemini Group comprises Gem-ini West, Gemini Brighton, GeminiPress and Gemini Digital in Shore-ham-by-Sea and. Gemini Londonwas also unveiled earlier in the year.

No-holds-barred talk inspires business leaders

In pictures Brad Sugars

SALES and marketing guru BradSugars give some words of advice andinspiration to 400 business ownersand managers with a no-holds-barredtalk.

The Australian doesn’t mince hiswords but is passionate about helpingbusiness owners become more suc-cessful in business.

Bristol was one a handful of stopson Brad’s UK tour promoting hislatest book, Buying Customers.

Brad gave advice and strategies onhow businesses can improve theircustomer service, sales and market-ing skills to help them improve theirp ro f i t ab i l i t y.

He is the founder and of the Ac-tionCOACH franchise business butspends much of his time travellingand sharing his knowledge and ex-perience at free seminars.

Nigel Jew, ActionCOACH’s repres-entative for the Bristol area, said:

BUILDING strong relationshipsis the key to a strong business –that was the message fromStephen Varley, chairman andmanaging partner for the UK

and Ireland, at accountancy firm EY.He spoke to UWE students and busi-

ness people at City Hall in the second inthe new Bristol Distinguished AddressS e r i e s.

Mr Varley said that when he firstjoined EY – formerly Ernst & Young – hewas mentored by Charlie Smith, who hecalled a “wacky American coach”.

He explained that Mr Smith had asaying that stuck with him: “E ve r y t h i n gyou do in your life is based on the size ofyour relationship with people.”

Stephen said: “That saying has heldtrue for me over the years and I stillthink that is one of the most importantparts of a successful business.”

He talked about what made EY dif-ferent to other large accountancy firms,which he put down to global teaming,diversity and inclusion, and entrepren-e u r s h i p.

He told the audience that one way he istrying to make EY more diverse is bymentoring young women with high po-tential, some of whom have gone on tobecome partners.

The lectures are delivered by BristolBusiness School at UWE. ACCA, the citycouncil, Bristol Junior Chamber, theBristol Post, Business West, CBI, CMI,FSB, IoD, ICAEW, and West of EnglandLEP are partners.

The next address will be Dr TonyCocker, chief executive of E.ON UK onTuesday at City Hall from 6pm.

working and what isn’t. If you don’tmeasure – how can you improve it?

“Sales and marketing should be aninvestment not an expense. Basically,for every pound you spend you needto get more back in.

“Brad focused on how to win morecustomers and keep them forever,which is obviously the holy grail ofbu s i n e s s. ”

The event was supported by LocalWorld, publisher of the Bristol Post.

“The feedback from the attendeeswas amazing! They said that they leftenergised, focused and with a clearervision and goal for their businesses.

“The session had fundamentallychanged their views on what theyneed to do in their businesses, withmany actually going to implementnew strategies the very next day.

“The key messages from Brad wereto test and measure all of their mar-keting activity, really know what is

� Rachel Hartles, Bristol NHS; Kate McCoy, Cloud Nine PR & Marketing; Anne Norgrove, GeminiWe s t

� Dan, Group of Seven; Bea Van Gelder, Group ofSeven

� John Boyle OBE,Gemini Print Group

� Kayleigh Sydenham,Empica PR, AndyChristopher, Gemini West

Relationships key Accountancy chief’s tipsIn pictures Bristol Distinguished Address Series

� Bristol Distinguished Address with Stephen Varley, Chairman and RegionalManaging Partner UK&I at EY Pics: Michael Lloyd BRML20141023E-002_C

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10 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 11We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014 w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/businessw w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

In pictures Gemini West

Print’s charming Gemini Westcelebrates fantastic year with party

Business diary

Email your business events togavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk.Events are sometimescancelled without us beingnotified so please check withorganisers before travelling.

Celebrating Family Business:Family Business United andClose Brothers are invitingfamily firms to join them atBristol Museum and Art Galleryto celebrate The Oldest FamilyBusiness in the South Westfrom 6.30pm on Thursday,October 30. Register ath t t p : / / o w. l y / D 6 Z 6 2

One-to-one drop-in advice:University of the West ofEngland advisers are holdingconfidential, one-to-one drop-insessions for the region’sinnovative businesses todiscuss its innovation andbusiness growth service atFrenchay Campus November 4and Engine Shed, November 7.Email uwebusiness@uwe.ac.uk.

Bristol Distinguished Address:UWE’s series giving the chanceto meet the leaders of industrycontinues with Sir CharlieMayfield, chairman, John LewisPartnership. UWE Exhibitionand Conference Centre,Frenchay Campus, 6pm,November 4. Register via UWE.

Leigh Court 200th Birthday:Invitation only event at LeighCourt, home of Business West,from 6-9pm on Tuesday,November 4.

Chamber NetworkingB re a k f a s t : Popular event takesplace in the Terrace bar of theColston Hall this breakfastoffers views across the city soyou can network whilst taking inthe spectacular view. 7.30am to9am, November 6. Book atw w w. B u s i n e s s We s t . c o . u k .

Super-fast Business:Measuring Your OnlineSuccess: Understand how yoursocial media, online marketingand web strategies work for youby learning how to measureyour online success. Free eventat Bristol and Bath SciencePark, 8.30am to 11am,November 6.

Bristol Distinguished Address:UWE’s series giving the chanceto meet the leaders of industrycontinues with Anne Francke -CEO, CMI. Leigh Court, AbbotsLeigh, 6pm, November 13.Register via UWE.

Ladies Who Latte: Flexible,informal networking forentrepreneurial women. Held atNew World Business Centre,Station Road, Warmley,10am-12, Thursday, November20. Contract Sarah or Liz on0117 332 0900 or emailinfo@newworldbusinessc e n t re . c o . u k .

Bristol Junior ChamberP re s i d e n t s ’ L e c t u re : B a ro n e s sGillian Shephard, Deputy Chairof the Government’s SocialMobility and Child PovertyCommission talks on “What isthe economic importance ofimproving social mobility andwhat is the current state ofsocial mobility in 21st centuryBritain?” 11.30am on November26 at Clarke Willmott LLP, BathStreet, Bristol.

MORE than 120 gueststoasted Gemini West at acelebration party in Bris-tol. The event, held at theRiverstation, celebrated

the company’s fantastic year – withover £1 million invested in its Hock-eys Lane, Fishponds factory, in-creased turnover and new jobsc re at e d .

The company welcomed local coun-cillors and representatives from busi-nesses around the region.

Gemini Group owner John Boyle,said he believed Gemini West wasnow the most capable printing op-eration in the region.

During his speech he reiterated toall that buying print locally was goodfor the economy and good for theenvironment, reducing transport andfuel emissions.

The lively event also included aspeech by director of economy atBristol City Council, Alistair Reid,who congratulated the business,adding it was a real asset to the city.

Champagne and canapés wereserved to guests followed by what wasbilled as Bristol’s best fish andch i p s.

A roving silhouette artist cut outthe profile of each guest on paper ins e c o n d s.

The Gemini Group comprises Gem-ini West, Gemini Brighton, GeminiPress and Gemini Digital in Shore-ham-by-Sea and. Gemini Londonwas also unveiled earlier in the year.

No-holds-barred talk inspires business leaders

In pictures Brad Sugars

SALES and marketing guru BradSugars give some words of advice andinspiration to 400 business ownersand managers with a no-holds-barredtalk.

The Australian doesn’t mince hiswords but is passionate about helpingbusiness owners become more suc-cessful in business.

Bristol was one a handful of stopson Brad’s UK tour promoting hislatest book, Buying Customers.

Brad gave advice and strategies onhow businesses can improve theircustomer service, sales and market-ing skills to help them improve theirp ro f i t ab i l i t y.

He is the founder and of the Ac-tionCOACH franchise business butspends much of his time travellingand sharing his knowledge and ex-perience at free seminars.

Nigel Jew, ActionCOACH’s repres-entative for the Bristol area, said:

BUILDING strong relationshipsis the key to a strong business –that was the message fromStephen Varley, chairman andmanaging partner for the UK

and Ireland, at accountancy firm EY.He spoke to UWE students and busi-

ness people at City Hall in the second inthe new Bristol Distinguished AddressS e r i e s.

Mr Varley said that when he firstjoined EY – formerly Ernst & Young – hewas mentored by Charlie Smith, who hecalled a “wacky American coach”.

He explained that Mr Smith had asaying that stuck with him: “E ve r y t h i n gyou do in your life is based on the size ofyour relationship with people.”

Stephen said: “That saying has heldtrue for me over the years and I stillthink that is one of the most importantparts of a successful business.”

He talked about what made EY dif-ferent to other large accountancy firms,which he put down to global teaming,diversity and inclusion, and entrepren-e u r s h i p.

He told the audience that one way he istrying to make EY more diverse is bymentoring young women with high po-tential, some of whom have gone on tobecome partners.

The lectures are delivered by BristolBusiness School at UWE. ACCA, the citycouncil, Bristol Junior Chamber, theBristol Post, Business West, CBI, CMI,FSB, IoD, ICAEW, and West of EnglandLEP are partners.

The next address will be Dr TonyCocker, chief executive of E.ON UK onTuesday at City Hall from 6pm.

working and what isn’t. If you don’tmeasure – how can you improve it?

“Sales and marketing should be aninvestment not an expense. Basically,for every pound you spend you needto get more back in.

“Brad focused on how to win morecustomers and keep them forever,which is obviously the holy grail ofbu s i n e s s. ”

The event was supported by LocalWorld, publisher of the Bristol Post.

“The feedback from the attendeeswas amazing! They said that they leftenergised, focused and with a clearervision and goal for their businesses.

“The session had fundamentallychanged their views on what theyneed to do in their businesses, withmany actually going to implementnew strategies the very next day.

“The key messages from Brad wereto test and measure all of their mar-keting activity, really know what is

� Rachel Hartles, Bristol NHS; Kate McCoy, Cloud Nine PR & Marketing; Anne Norgrove, GeminiWe s t

� Dan, Group of Seven; Bea Van Gelder, Group ofSeven

� John Boyle OBE,Gemini Print Group

� Kayleigh Sydenham,Empica PR, AndyChristopher, Gemini West

Relationships key Accountancy chief’s tipsIn pictures Bristol Distinguished Address Series

� Bristol Distinguished Address with Stephen Varley, Chairman and RegionalManaging Partner UK&I at EY Pics: Michael Lloyd BRML20141023E-002_C

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12 We d n e s d a y, October 29, 2014w w w. b r i s t o l p o s t .co.uk/business

The back pageEntrepreneurs pitch ideas as eco firm scoops top prize

A COMPANY that tests build-ings for radon gas has beennamed champion of the Bris-tol-based entrepreneurialcompetition The Pitch.

The all-day event at the Paintworkssaw 30 finalists pitching in front of anaudience of 200 people for potentiali nve s t m e n t .

Founded in Bristol in 2008, ThePitch is one of Britain’s longest run-ning small business competitions, or-ganised by BusinessZone.co.uk andUK Business Forums in associationwith AVG.

The winner was Bath-based Re-becca Coates, the co-founder ofpropertECO and the first women totake the crown.

Rebecca said: “It was really un-expected. There were so many greatbusinesses involved and it has beenquite a long journey so it’s a fantasticresult for our company.

“The Pitch is not just a competitionwhere you fill in an application formand there’s an award ceremony at theend and it’s all over.

“You get real value from it for yourbusiness. We’ve met so many greatpeople that we’re going to have re-

lationships with for a long time.“I love the value of putting yourself

out there to get your name known.Yo u ’ve got to take some risks andeveryone gets nervous about doing apitch, and that might be enough toput some people off, but I just say doit!”

Her company is one of the few UKfirms involved in testing buildingsfor radon and installing specialistventilation systems to reduce con-centrations if high levels are detec-ted.

Judging the event was by JudithBitterli, serial entrepreneur andchief marketing officer at AVG;Charles Carter, director of regions atICAEW; Karen Darby, founder ofCrowdMission.com and Lara Mor-gan, founder of Company Shortcuts.

Judith said: “The most successfulcontestants had one thing in com-mon; clarity of purpose, mission andhow they make money.”

The other finalists asked to ptichagain at the end of the night wereAlistair Callender from Gate8 Lug-gage, Paul Hutson from Night Zoo-keeper, Ed Ward from Veglo andRichard Graham from Pulsate.

As well as the pitches, speakers atthe event included Bristol mayor Geo-rge Ferguson and entrepreneur MarkPearson, who sold his business My-VoucherCodes for £55 million earlierthis year.� Rebecca Coates, co-founder of PropertECO and The Pitch 2014 Champion

Gavin ThompsonAssistant Editor (Business)gavin.thompson@b-nm.co.uk

Awa rd s� The Bristol Post Business Awards, above,has been made a finalist at the UK: EventAwards 2014. This year’s Business Awardswas bigger and better than ever, held atBrunel’s Old Station in Temple Meads,where Williams Automobiles drove awaywith a boot load of prizes. The event is afinalist in the Awards Scheme of the Yearcategory, shortlisted alongside the DigitalMasters Awards, The SpectatorsParliamentarian Awards and others. Thewinner will be announced at MarriottGrosvenor Square on Friday November 28.Fingers crossed!

Pe o p l e� Dr StephenFear, oftenreferred to as ThePhoneboxMillionaire due tothe way hecreated his firstbusiness aged 14from a phonebox on aBristol council estate, hasbecome a patron of Emmaus.

The charity which was started in France in1947 by Father Abbé Pierre in a bid toalleviate homelessness on the streets of

Paris, created by the Second World War, has24 homes through the UK where men andwomen who have becomehomeless can findrefuge and a job.

� An auditor fromthe Bristol office ofaccountancy andinvestmentmanagement group,Smith & Williamson,has been named asone of the UK’s Rising20 Stars of theAccountancy Profession. Samantha Barnes,aged 26, was one of 20 young accountantschosen for the accolade by ACA students’magazine Vital. Jon Talbot, a partner in theassurance and business services team atSmith & Williamson, Bristol, said: “Samstrives to excel at everything she does.”

� The woman who heads UWE Bristol’sbusiness school has been promoted.Professor Jane Harrington will becomedeputy vice chancellor of the university.Jane said: “I have made it my business tolearn from what others are doing with a viewto bringing best practice into the university.”

The university will appoint an executivedean to take the helm of the Business andLaw Faculty in due course.

Your digest of the week in business

� The team from Sift Media,organiser of The Pitch 2014 Pics:Virginia Allwood, LeShopUK.com

The Pitch 2014

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