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Baxter Scoops Top Award

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A North East businessman has beaten off competition from across the UK to be named Business Coach of the Year by business advice and coaching specialists, Ology.

Chris Baxter, 41 from Chester-le-Street beat off competition from fifteen
finalists at the awards ceremony in Birmingham last month, showing judges just what it takes to guide businesses on the road to success.

Chris runs one of the Ology franchises, the fastest growing business coaching network in the UK. Ology, which literally means 'the study of', aims to help business owners close the gap between their business aspirations and the current performance of their business. This is achieved through the delivery of practical business advice, coaching programmes and training looking at all aspects of the business.

Chris, who previously worked with North East based manufacturing and retail businesses up to Board level for 20 years only set up his franchise 15 months ago showing just how strong a competitor he was for the award. Commenting on his award Chris said, "I am absolutely delighted to have received this award. I started my business with the aim of making a difference and helping more business owners to achieve their goals, and I think the award is testament to that".

The judging panel included Tony Jones, David Little and Dave Pike all Owner Directors of Ology. Tony said, "We are absolutely delighted for Chris, over the last 12 months he has stood head as shoulders above other Ology members due to his consistency, attitude and application of the Methodology. Chris has excelled and we are very much looking forward to helping him further develop his already flourishing coaching practice over the next 12 months".

Chris works mainly with owner-managed businesses and has been involved on a wide variety of projects across the region over the last year. Clients have ranged from a national motor trader to a small web developer.

One of Chris' satisfied clients, David Miller, Managing Director of The Bend it Shape it Company, is experiencing a number of positive results thanks to Chris. David said, "With Chris's help our business has changed and is more focused on results, productivity is up, sales have increased with less time wasted so I can concentrate on moving the business forward".

The award win isn't clouding Chris's view that he has yet to achieve his full potential; he said "I am really looking forward to growing my business over the next year and I am aiming for 300% growth. Alongside that I want to continue to build Ology into a major regional player in the business development field so I am on the look out for similar minded people to join me".

Amazing coup as TV's Anna Ford joins up

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Former BBC newsreader Anna Ford is joining the board of Tyneside educational software company The Amazing Group, as it gears up for further expansion.

Her new role will see Ms Ford promote The Amazing Group and help develop materials for the Newcastle company's adult learning side. It is her only other formal business post after becoming a director of Sainsbury's last month and is a coup for The Amazing Group.

Ms Ford was an Open University lecturer before entering television and is co-chancellor of Manchester University. She said: "Lifelong learning for everyone is a passion of mine. Having taught many years ago, I've long wanted to get into education again. The Amazing Group is a really exciting prospect, with all sorts of avenues to explore and I'm looking forward to joining their highly qualified and creative team."

Ms Ford joins the likes of Sage co-founder Tom Maxfield and Hugh Morgan Williams, Chair of the CBI's SME Council, on The Amazing Group board. The four-year-old company sees the appointment as key to its push for growth. Chief Executive Paul Campbell said: "We're tremendously excited that Anna is joining us. She has such a breadth of experience and interests, with particular expertise in and commitment to adult learning, which is a major growth area for us. We hope to bring the benefits of Amazing content and software to a much wider audience as a result of her involvement."

The Amazing Group has a portfolio of products for schools, colleges and the home. In January, Amazing Schools, a bundle of three products for schools and colleges, was made available free of charge to every secondary school in the North East under sponsorship from the Aspire campaign.

The company is due to release a range of products, including an extension of its Amazing People parenting strand, to include help for working mothers; Amazing Tunes, allowing musicians to sell their music without a recording contract; and Cancer Club UK, a collaboration with a charity to improve help for cancer sufferers and their families.

The Amazing Group expects turnover to hit £10m this year and has visions of becoming as big as Newcastle FTSE 100 software group Sage.

Serenity on horizon for city dwellers

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A hotel and leisure group is rolling out its spa brand to Tyneside.

Tom's Companies, owner of Seaham Hall in County Durham, is launching a version of the hotel's award-winning Serenity Spa in the Newcastle suburb of Jesmond.

Serenity in the City, as it will be called, is a scaled-down version of Serenity Spa, named the world's most stylish spa in 2003.

Due to open in September, it will include 7 consulting rooms, including two couples rooms and a male "wet shave" room. The 3,000sq ft spa will also include a "Buddha nail bar", express tan area and an outdoor hot tub.

Serenity in the City has been designed by the company's creative director, Jocelyn Maxfield, who designed the Serenity Spa at Seaham Hall.

Tom's companies chairman Tom Maxfield said: "After conducting extensive research, we believe that Serenity in the City will bring to the heart of Newcastle a convenient location that will satisfy demand for men and women who want to relax and be indulged in style. All the award-winning aspects of The Serenity Spa will be incorporated into a state-of-the-art facility that is just what Newcastle needs."

Sage signs up a big player in Germany

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Software group Sage has got into the World Cup spirit by snapping up a German company.

The Newcastle-based FTSE 100 business is buying business management software seller Bäurer GmbH fir about £16m in cash.

Sage is currently the market leader in Germany in the medium-sized enterprise market and number two in the small business market for business management software.

It sees the acquisition of Bäurer as a way of extending its product range in the country and reaching more companies in the 50 to 500-employee bracket, particularly in the manufacturing sector.

Sage chief executive Paul Walker said: "Acquiring Bäurer strengthens our market position in Germany by providing advanced and industry-specific solutions for mid-market customers. Sage's customer service and marketing expertise will enable us to sell more software and services to Bäurer's customer base."

Bäurer has about 2,000 mid-market customers and achieved revenue of £16m last year with earnings of £1.2m before depreciation and amortisation.

Sage first entered the German market in 1997 with the acquisition of KKR and has been selectively adding more software businesses to build up its stake.

Paul Harrison, finance director at Sage said: "This is one of the larger deals we have done in Germany and will add more choice and more functionality for businesses towards the top end of the market. The German market is very much a regional market with players who are strong in one particular area and the mid-market is highly fragmented because a number of businesses have industry-specific applications. It has got a lot of specialist players and our job is to identify which of those represent compelling products to add to our suite."

Mr Harrison said the timing, as the 2006 world cup kick off in Germany today, was "purely coincidental".

Jane MacAlister, of Wise Speke, a division of Sage joint broker Brewer Dolphin, said: "While this is a relatively small acquisition, we regard it as a positive move, stepping up Sage's market presence in Germany."

The Bäurer deal follows last month's move by Sage into the Asian market when it bought a Malaysian business software seller and a Chinese distributor.

Further acquisitions are likely to follow for the Tyneside group. A Sage spokesman said: "The group always has a pipeline of acquisitions but it is hard to tell when things will come to fruition."

Lottery Win For Zero Plus

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Thu, 08 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Audio-Visual specialist Zero Plus UK has won the lottery – contract, that is. The Newcastle company has completed the installation at the Big Lottery Fund's new operational centre in the city.

The centre, which becomes the fund's northern headquarters, creating more than 150 jobs, was officially opened by Sports Minister Richard Cabourn last month.

The fund has taken 38,000 sq ft of office space at St. James Gate, which Zero Plus has equipped with audio-visual systems. Video conferencing will allow staff in Newcastle to link up with other UK offices for management meetings. Five suites are fitted with video conferencing, including a linked series of rooms that can open up for a large conference.

Olly Henderson, of Zero Plus UK, said: "Creating an AV specification for a brand new building such as Big Lottery Fund's new operational centre is the type of contract we are now picking up, as word spreads about our expertise in the latest audio-visual communications systems for the corporate market."

Forum Judges Salute Biz Idol Finalists

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A soup bar, an art retailer and an importer of healthy white tea beat their rivals at the semi-finals of the Biz Idol competition.

The ten hopefuls were picked on Saturday from hundreds of entries to the competition for entrepreneurs from Wearside, County Durham and Tyneside and will go through to the finals which are the climax of Business Week in July.

James Surgeon of Heaton, Newcastle, was successful with 'Hot Bowl', an innovative speciality soup bar, as was Stacy Russell of Fall Pass, Gateshead, who went through with her idea for The Art Concept, a retailer of paintings and prints and Sharon Oliver of Castle Eden in County Durham who plans to sell boxed loose leaf organic white tea to outlets nationwide.

A judges' choice commendation was also given to Joshua March Cowan for his firm, Ethnic Style, which sells homeware.

There was also an impressive show of innovative ideas from teenagers competing in the first Biz Idol U18 competition. Jack Moore, 11, of Newcastle, plans to hold parties across the North East each with different themes and give half the profits away to local charities. Another finalist was cerebral palsy sufferer Jordan Raiye, 13, of Houghton-le-Spring, with plans for a manufacturer of disability aids such as leg braces and automated hands.

Glyn Connolly, 17, of Washington made it through to the finals with his idea for a health food café and juice bar.

To reach the finals the entrants had to present to the judging panel – made up for Forum members including Pete Hunt from Fresh Element, Paul Vaclik from Broadmedia Technology, Nick Bell of ZeroPlus and Angela Brown from Training in Childcare.

Paul Vaclik said: "All of the judges agreed that the standard of entrants was exceptionally high and the level of research put into their business plans proved their dedication and professionalism. We were especially impressed and excited by the Under-18 category. This competition proves the immense entrepreneurial talent that exists in this region and we look forward to seeing the success of all the new businesses develop, not just the winners."

The adult finalists are competing to win a support package including a branded Smart car for three months, office space, cash for equipment, broadband, consultancy and £2,000 cash to help them start their company immediately (plus £500 to two runners-up).

The sponsors include Argent Business & Conference Centre in Sunderland and City of Sunderland Council, as well as the bgroup, Ward Hadaway, O Communications, Statex Colourprint, BT, Mobilx and NECC.

Biz Idol is part of Business Week Tyne and Wear – A North East Chamber of Commerce initiative running June 30 to July 6th backed by public and private sector organisations and funded by the TyneWear Partnership from One NorthEast.

Region's top entrepreneurs are backing the bond

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

The region’s leading entrepreneurs are backing efforts to boost the North-East’s enterprise culture.

The Entrepreneurs forum has thrown its weight behind the North East Enterprise Bond, a £5m scheme which aims to plug into the region’s enterprise gap.

Figures show the North East needs to have 32,000 new businesses starting up in order to keep pace with the rest of the UK.

The Bond is trying to raise £5m worth of loans and use the interest earned on the money to operate Launch Pads – vehicles that will tour the region, take the concept of enterprise to the streets and inspire people to start out on their own.

Many Entrepreneurs Forum members have already invested in the Bond, including Sir Peter Vardy who has pledged £500,00 and Paul Walker of sage which has invested £250,000 and the forum says it will play an active role when Launch Pads start their tour later this year.

Carole Beverley, chief executive of the Entrepreneurs Forum said: “The primary aim of the Entrepreneurs Forum is to support and nurture existing and emerging entrepreneurial talent in the region – and like the North East Enterprise Bond – we believe that this can only be achieved through making people believe they can really do it.

“With the help and drive of our members, who all bring with them a wealth of invaluable experience, we have achieved much in terms of raising aspirations of North East entrepreneurs and helping them to fulfil their ambitions and we’re delighted to be able to extend this support to a wider audience through working with North East Enterprise Bond’s dynamic Launch Pad initiative.”

Nikki Wilkinson, chief executive of the North East Enterprise Bond, said: “The Entrepreneurs Forum represents some of the North East’s most dynamic business role models, so we’re delighted they are prepared to share their knowledge and wisdom, to encourage enterprising individuals to believe in themselves and to realise their potential.”

So far, around £3m has been raised towards the £5m target, but more investment is needed.

Sir Peter Vardy will be talking to potential investors about the North East Enterprise Bond at the Big Ideas Centre in Sunderland on July 6 from 6pm to 7pm.

To register a place or to find out more about the scheme, contact Nikki Wilkinson or Estelle Vasey on (0191) 275-5059 or email nikki.wilkinson@hortheastenterprisebond.org

Leading lights chart the North's e-future

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A new industry council is being set up to help drive the North-East’s digital economy. The eLeadership Council will advise One NorthEast on Information and Communication Technology (ICT), infrastructure and related areas to try to maximise the economic benefits of new technology.
The council has an appointed chairman and four non-executive directors, supplemented by the likes of DigitalCity and Codeworks, who will look for fresh economic opportunities for the region by promoting investment in technology.
Kevin Hart, strategic relationship manager for government and finance with Sage (UK) Ltd, is the new chairman. He said: “I am delighted to have been appointed. I’m very much looking forward to using my skills and experiences to the full in this new role – and ultimately to making a real difference to the North East.
“The council invites collaboration. We are not here to impose our views, rather to work hand in hand with the people and business community in the North East to drive the digital economy.
“We want our partners, current and future, to generally buy into our vision of a thriving and cutting edge digital technology in the North East - and collectively make that change.”
The councils’ four non-executive directors are Chris Fleetwood, managing partner of io solutions; Paul Campbell, founder and chief of the Amazing Group; Tom Harvey, chief executive of Northern Film and Media; and Phil Hughes, chairman of sustaiNE, the regional sustainable development forum.
As well as advising, the eLeadership Council will promote and improve the take-up of digital technology, identify barriers and enablers to progress, lobby for change, create peer pressure, form regional and national partnerships and keeping abreast of developments in the industry. One NorthEast director of the business and industry David Allison said: “I’m confident that the council can ensure the North East does not miss out.”
The eLeadership Council’s chairman and non-executive directors will also serve as the chairman and board members of Adit North East, the regional broadband aggregation body; and of the North East, the Regional Portal, which includes n-e-life.com

Exwold MBO goes for double

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A chemical company hopes to double its turnover after a management buyout and simultaneous takeover of a couthern rival.
The team at Hartlepool-based Exwold Technology Limited has bought out the business from venture capitalists who had contributed £500,000 and it has also merged with smaller Surrey firm Crack Processing Limited.
The deal sees Exwold, which has a turnover of around £2.5m, take on the expertise and technology of the Working firm as well as its roster of around 70 customers which were worth around £1.5m in sales last year.
All but four of Crack’s 23-strong workforce are being redundant, while more than 20 jobs are being created at Exwold’s growing headquarters on Brenda Road in Hartlepool. Exwold currently employs 65 staff at two sites in Hartlepool and one in Billingham.
The MBO frees the management to raise money for further expansion, possibly through acquisition, and will see it led by a team headed by Tames Robson, who founded Exwold 13 years ago and is currently business development director.
“I am very excited about the deal. It was a win-win situation for both sides. They had to get out of the Working property, which was a valuable site and were given a reward to do so,” said Robson.
Exwold is one of the World’s leaders in producing granulated chemicals. It specialises in producing agrochemicals, such as garden fertilisers and weedkillers including Weedol, as well as ingredients for personal care products.
We are already probably the leader in its field, there are two others in Europe and three in the States, and this will give us the ability to grow organically and possibly also by acquisition or two.
“I don’t think we can set ourselves targets just yet, but I would be surprised if we can’t double our turnover in the nest three to five years.”
Exwold raised around £250,000 debt for the deal, largely from Evolve Finance, the debt and mezzanine division of NEL Fund Managers, as well as with continuing support from HSBC Bank. Robson said it would have the opportunity to raise further funds if needed for acquisitions.
Mr Robson’s management team includes Kevin Martin and Peter Webb from Exwold and Michael Hamburger and Andrew Brown from Crack.
Clive Owen Corporate Finance, headed by partner Angus Allan, advised on the deal. Legal Advice as provided by the Teesside office of Dickenson Dees and was led by Nigel Williams.
Robson added: “Turning our goals and ambition for the business into a reality has been a fascinating journey which Angus and the Evolve team have helped us through. Our vision of the enlarged business supports Tees Valley’s and the national interests in the chemical sector, and is one we will continue to build and prosper.”

Projects raise area's sights

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Rokeby Developments has announced its acquisition of a prime sight at Bowesfield in Stockton less than three months after selling a £4m development there.
Rokeby has bought the nine-acre site, with a 12,500sq ft office block, from George Wimpey plc. The Property was used by the house builder as its head office before the company moved into new premises on Rokeby’s development at Preston Farm, Stockton, last year.
The developer has ambitious plans to redevelop the old Wimpey site to create 140,00sq ft of the high quality office and B8 accommodation with the self-contained work units.
Bowesfield Rokeby intends to use the building to provide short term accommodation for clients until offices are built. This si aimed at oppcupiers whose lease agreements at their present bases are due to terminate. Rokeby Development’s director Nick Fordy said: “We started on site at Bowesfield earlier this year and now have two office buildings under way, both of which were sold prior to construction.
“This latest acquisition marks our ongoing involvement ni Stockton’s commercial property market. With a value of £20m it is a significant commitment on our behalf in an area of Stockton that is enjoying major redevelopment, which is extremely good news for local people looking for employment opportunities as well as those who wish to own their own office space.
“In the coming months, we will be submitting planning applications, which once given the go-ahead will see the transformation of a rather rundown site to make way for much-needed high-quality office and B8 space.” Rokeby bought another riverside plot at the development last October and sold it last March for £4m before Miller construction had started work.
Rokeby received planning consent for the scheme last year before buying the land from mining company and developer Banks Mining. The two-building development is expected to be completed by November.
Stockton law firm Archers Law has bought what will be a 12.300sq ft office building through a Self-Invested Personal Pension (Sipp) and Winder House Developments the 6.100sq ft second building.
In keeping with earlier Rokeby developments, it’s commercial agents Dodds Brown and Sanderson Weatherall have received inquiries from interested parties.
Rokeby has £12m of developments under way in Stockton and North Yorkshire. In Newcastle and Surrounding areas, schemes with a combined value of £33m are at various stages of development.

Hard working heroes named and famed

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

An alternative funeral director, judo coach, pub landlord and estate agent have been nominated as pillars or the local business community.
They feature alongside high profile executives like Sir Mike Darrington or Greggs and Lorna Moran of NRG in the North-East Name and Fame Challenge.
People across Tyne & Wear are being given their local businesses heroes for the Name and Fame Challenge, set up to help celebrate this years Business Week Tyne & Wear, which ends tomorrow.
Nominations have been flooding in from business figures and the general public, including a local meat farmer nominated by a vegetarian.
Name and Fame organisers are encouraging people to nominate hard-working business individuals that make a difference to their lives or communities.
Gateshead-born Michelle Heaton of pop group Liberty X is among those backing the scheme. She said: “I think it’s an excellent idea to recognise people who go much further than necessary to get the job right.”
Nominations, which include a 50-word description of the person and the reasons they are being put forward, can be made on the Business Week website at www.business-week.org, or via the flyers and drop boxes being distributed around Tyne & Wear and on Metro FM’s Night Owls show.
Several other well-known figures and business people have kick-started the Name and Fame challenge by nominating their own heroes.
Maggie Pavlou, president of the North-East chamber of Commerce (NECC) and HR director of Parkdean Holidays, has Named and Famed Lorna Moran, CEO of NRG plc for “giving her confidence to network and ability to pitch”.
Sir Digby Jones, outgoing director general of the CBI, named and famed Paul Walker, chief executive of Sage and Sir Mike Darrington of Greggs.

Factory wraps up £190,000 grant

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Seventeen jobs are being created at an engineering firm after it was awarded a £190,000 grant.
TDX is adding its 45 staff after the cash injection from regional development agency One NorthEast.
The money is part of a package of almost £1m to be invested in new equipment at the company’s base in Team Valley, Gateshead.
The aim is to enhance the company’s ability to make and supply extruded plastic sheeting to general foods and non-food sectors and the grant will safeguard 11 jobs as well as creating 17 additional posts.
Mark Simpson and Chris Stonehouse, of the chartered accountants corporate finance department at Newcastle financial services firm unw, helped the management team at TDX with their business plan and forecasts which they submitted in their grant application.
Mr Simpson said: “This grant will extend the capability of TDX to provide a new package of just under £1m to install a new extrusion line, dryer, laminator and granulator.
“The grant will enable them to complete their project to move into additional premises to accommodate this new process/machinery.”
TDX was founded in July 1991 by entrepreneur Harry Reed and offers a design and manufacture service supplying moulds for the thermo-packaging industry.
TDX managing director Mr Reed said: “Unw’s expertise was a key factor in acquiring the grant to enable us to expand and move into new premises, thereby safeguarding and creating jobs in the area.”

The Office Co. Launched

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A new business community is to grow out of a former North East broadcasting landmark.

Lynn Gate, founder of The Storage Company, has launched a new division called The Office Company UK after buying the former Metro Radio building, close to the Metro Centre in Gateshead.

Tenants are already lined up to take office space in the building, which is currently undergoing a major refurbishment and re-branding programme.

The work is due to be completed by September and with the level of interest already high, Lynn expects it will soon develop into a thriving business community.

She said: “There is a shortage of high quality offices to rent on flexible terms in this area and I’m very confident that all the space will be taken up quickly. We have helped many businesses over the years with out easy approach to space and acquiring this building is allowing us to take that one step further.

“We are offering a variety of office space from short-term flexible lets to long term tenancies of up to ten years. My passion has always been to help others in business and this site is a great opportunity for new entrepreneurs who struggle to find premises and get stuck in the nightmare of red tape.

“Anyone starting out in business can have a furnished office with telephone and broadband connection from day one. We will have on-site personnel which means people can start their business the moment they walk in.”

Air-conditioned office space will be bespoke to individual business needs, furnished or unfurnished with the option of being fully serviced with administration support and book-keeping service. A state of the art access control system will allow tenants 24-hour access.

The 18,000sq ft, three-storey building will have a reception, conference facilities and in-house catering. Ground floor offices will be fitted out for wheelchair access.

Lynn added: “I want it to become a community, where people can get to know each other and the businesses, whether they are start-ups or established enterprises, will find like-minded people who they may be able to work with.

“The Metro Centre and Western Bypass are on the doorstep but this is also a peaceful oasis in the heart of Tyneside. We’re right next to the River Derwent and green space with walkways and picnic areas. I knew it would make a fantastic office centre.”

Once complete, the building, that was owned by Emap, will also become the operational base of The Office Company and The Storage Company.

“We are a family business and we believe in working face-to-face with clients. It’s important for tenants that we are on site too so they know any issues will be dealt with promptly,” explained Lynn.

Her mother Hazel Stephenson is company secretary and Kate Beverley has just joined as operations manager.

A graduate of Northumbria University, Kate is managing the launch of The Office Co. and is in charge of business development for both companies, including working towards the ISO9001 quality standard, BS5454 and Investors in People.

As well as a large storage facility at Dunston, The Storage Company has a new centre at Newton Aycliffe, popular with law firms and other businesses who need secure archive and document storage.

Lynn added that the development of The Office Co. was part of wider expansion plans for the group.

She said: “While we provide office space at our existing sites, the former Metro Radio site is our first standalone office building, which is very exciting. But we’re also looking for more strategic sites for flexible storage and warehouse space across the region.”

For more information on storage or office space contact Kate on 07946 604964.

Van hire firm aims to accelerate profits

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Van hire company Northgate is gearing up to accelerate profits by a third over the next year as its expanded UK and Spanish operations get up to full speed.
Darlington’s sole plc has set a course for underlying earnings to rise from £59.9m to around the £80m mark by April next year on the back of revival in the UK market and continued strong growth in Spain, where it owns Fualsa and Record Rent businesses. It is also not ruling out further acquisitions, following the successful purchase of North transport operator Arriva’s vehicle rental division earlier this year.
Northgate made bottom line pre-tax profits of £56.1m on revenue up 10% to £372.6m in the year to April 30.
While that represented just a 2% rise in profits, stripping out exceptional costs associated with the £124.4m if Arriva Vehicle Rental (AVR) meant underlying profits rose 10% to £59.9m.
The AVR buy – the largest acquisition in Northgate’s 25-year history – added 10,500 vehicles to the group’s UK fleet, increasing it to 64,000 at 88 sites across the country. Northgate said that while trading in the first half of its financial year had been hit by increased competition and lower residual values for vehicles it sold on, the picture had improved since January with rental sales increasing by 2%.
The group added that AVR had now been fully integrated and that plans to slim the UK branch structure down from 35 primary sites to 20 would improve the efficiency of the operation.
Phil Moorhouse, managing director of Northgate in the UK, said: “Currently, trading is in line with where we expect it to be and we expect organic growth in both the UK and Spain. We expect to see the benefits of the AVR acquisition come through because we have only had that for about three months. At the moment, the market consensus (for Northgate) is £79m to £80m in pre-tax profits, which is significant increase.”
In Spain, Northgate’s Fualsa van hire business has increased its fleet by 21% to 23,000 vehicles and the group also bought Record Rent outright in May, adding a further 24,000 vehicles and taking its branch network there up to 35 locations.
A boom in the Spanish construction industry fuelled by EU money, combined with the relatively fragmented state of the vehicle hire market there means Northgate expects Spain to grow sales by about 15% over the next three years.

Estate agents get home from home

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

The North-East’s largest independent estate agency is hiring hundreds of home workers in a bid to boost sales by more than a quarter.
Newcastle-based Pattinson, which currently has 225 staff at 29 branches across the region, is recruiting up to 500 self employed agents working from home under its name.
It aims to capitalise on the growing taste for flexible working and the difficulty many people fine negotiating for property in normal working hours to offer an evening sales service over the telephone.
It is understood to be the first estate agent in the North-East to try the system, although travel agencies, such as Sunderland-based Hays Travel, are finding it an effective way to profitably boost sales.
Justin Anim, managing director, said: “fewer people want to go round estate agents these days. They just don’t have as much time as they used to.
“So now they can contact us anytime and out phone and IT technology will automatically put them through to someone who can help. We have sales of £8m a year at the moment. I would hope we can increase that by 25-30% as these new workers arrive over the next three to six months.”
He insisted it was not in response to tougher competition caused by the slump in the housing market over the last 18 months. “We just see it as a way to increase sales and improve service levels,” said Anim.
And he said that the strategy would not affect the number of people employed across the firm’s branch network or at its call centre in Whickham, near Gateshead, where it has 20 staff.
The company made the move after looking at similar schemes in other firms, including Hays Travel. The £250m turnover travel agency has credited the quick-growth of its 150-strong home-based workforce with increasing sales in the last three years.
And even through it has only just begun advertising the posts, Anim said that there had been a huge response to its call for home workers. We have been inundated. There have been hundreds of applications from all over, even some from abroad, although most we are taking on are from the North-East because that is where most of our properties are,” he added.
“Our burgeoning success in this area reflects the popularity of this style of flexible working nationally. Figures show that the number of home workers nationally has risen to 3.1 million from 2.3 million in 1997 and its an excellent opportunity for us to engage potential workers in the North-East who want a career but cannot commit to full-time hours.
“Understandably, much of the interest we’ve seen so far has been from parents seeking a career with flexible hours to fit around childcare, as well as a number of retired men and women who want to stay in a professional role and ear an income.
“Using their own home as a base, home workers are connected to the Pattinson database via an internet connection and an innovative telephone routing system ensures they receive geographically relevant customer queries.”

£1,000 cash Biz Idol win is Sharon's cup of tea

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Two fledgling entrepreneurs toasted a healthy boost to their futures after winning a contest to find the region’s best business ideas at the climax of this year’s Business Week Tyne & Wear.
The Big Day Event, at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light, was the setting for Sharon Olver, 36, of Castle Eden in County Durham, to be announced overall winner of 2006 Biz Idol competition.
Head of catering at Sunderland University, Ms Olver’s plan for a tea importation and distribution business was judges by panel of business people as the best business idea out of a total of 145 entries.
Her company, which imports healthy white tea from China, has been trading for three weeks and has wracked up 140 lbs of sales to 40 customers.
The prize package, which includes £1,000 cash, use of a car festooned with Ms Olver’s business logo for three months, office space for a year at Sunderland Argent Business & Conference Centre, as well as free accountancy, legal, marketing and PR advice, is valued at nearly £50,000.
Ms Olver said: “The sales have been direct sales so far mostly and through a gym. I have had a couple of stockists in Newcastle show some interest and hopefully because I have won this and have the finished article ready to supply it will be a real boost.”
She said she was “going on holiday for a couple of weeks to think about her next move.” She said she would initially target high street stockists with her packaged loose-leaf tea before diversifying into iced white tea, sorbets and ice creams.
Glyn Connolly, 17, from Washington, County Durham, picked up the top award for teenagers in the Biz U18 contest, with his concept of a mobile fruit juice and smoothie bar. Glyn, studying for his A-levels at St Robert’s in Newcastle, won £250 cash, a dinner with the Entrepreneurs' Forum, mentoring from Newcastle entrepreneur Steven Bell, and a pocket PC from Bell’s company Mobilx.
After discovering he had beat 38 other young entrepreneurs to win, Glyn said he would now do “market research” and amass the £10,000 of capital he reckoned he would need to start his business.
“Through the competition I got to meet lots of business professionals and people form different business people who know what they are talking about,” he said.
Mr Connolly, who had already completed a Young Enterprise programme as part of his GCSE’s, said he was starting up his business “to take advantage of the government’s move to get people eating more healthily.”
The contests were held on the last day of this year’s Business Week Tyne & Wear, a series of events and activities aimed at promoting employment and business opportunities, including interactive business showcases targeted networking that will see a mix of top North-East business people and visiting experts joining together.
More than 1,500 people had attended the Big Day and a spokeswoman said the week had been an “outstanding” success with a further 500 people expected to attend a music festival last night as a finale to the week.
A highlight included the success of the Name & Fame Challenge which saw people from Tyne & Wear make 1,000 nominations for their local business heroes.
The names will be inscribed on a giant business card which will be entered as an attempt on the Guinness Book of Records record for the world’s biggest business card.

Just the job as insurance broker expands its team

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A national boom in demand for a new insurance policy has promoted a North-East broker and underwriter to expand its team – and offer jobs to staff made redundant by a company closure.
Darlington-based BiB has recruited three extra underwriters following the success of its re-launched Farmcare motor policy which it supplies wholesale to 750 brokers across the UK.
Farmcare provides cover for farm vehicles such as combine harvesters, tractors and private cars and is administered fully through BiB Underwriters in Darlington.
Earlier this year the company announced a new underwriting partnership with Kent-based Chaucer Insurance to grow its market for the product.
The expansion of the team has provided fresh career opportunities to two women who lost their jobs when RAC insurance closed its Darlington office two months ago.
Judie Wakeham, from Darlington, worker for an insurance broker in Germany. She worked for the RAC for seven years.
Elizabeth Armstrong, from Spennymoor, worked for a high street broker before joining RAC 17 years ago, making her way up to technical underwriting team leader.
Elizabeth said: “It’s great to be able to carry on our careers and stay in the same town, but also be with a well respected company.”
The expansion has also allowed Danielle Davies to begin a fresh challenge with BiB. Danielle worker in personal lines insurance in the company’s Northgate office before moving to underwriting as a trainee.
“I wanted to learn a different part of the business and make the most of the career opportunities the move across offered me,” said Danielle.

Internet firm Onyx speeds up growth

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Internet and It company Onyx Group has doubled estimates of its growth as it looks to become a £20m business within the next three years.
The Middlesbrough company has seen turnover rise to £6m this year and had previously aimed to hit the £10m mark by 2008.
However, Onyx has now radically revised its projections and is now setting its sights on clocking up annual sales of £20m by 2009.
The group says a combination of strong organic growth, moves into new markets and an aggressive acquisition strategy will help it to hit the ambitious target.
Onyx is also confident of successfully floating on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in 2008 to raise funds for its expansion. Neil Stephenson, sales and marketing director at Onyx said: “If you look at what we currently do, in three years’ time we will be turning over about £10m just be organic growth.
“In terms of the underlying business, that’s quite nice, but it is really interesting what else we can do with new products in new areas and new strategic relationships.”
Onyx originally started as an internet service provider for businesses, but it now has three divisions – the original Onyz Internet, disaster recovery and data back-up centre DataBanx and network and internet security business Askaris.
The group was bought out by its management team earlier this year and the new owners are looking to buy up complimentary businesses to grow the business further.
Mr Stephenson said: “We will look to acquire at least one business a year for the next three years.”
Onyx has brought on board the former One NorthEast head of knowledge, information and ICT, Maitland Hyslop, as business development director.
Mr Hyslop’s brief will include focusing on the strategic growth of the group, boosting its presence in the public sector and developing its disaster recovery and business continuity capabilities.
Mr Stephenson said: “We have hired Maitland to help close the gap between the £10m and £20m levels by working in a number of new areas.” Mr Hyslop said: “This role is one I am relishing, as I have joined the company at a very exciting time, especially with the planned flotation in two years. This will be a challenge, but I’m looking forward to playing an integral role in the next step of Onyx’s development.”
Onyx currently employs 42 staff, which will grow with its planned expansion, although no figures have yet been put on the eventual size of the workforce.
The Onyx Group began life as Onyx Internet in Middlesbrough in 1994.
It added Newcastle data security centre DataBanx to its portfolio three years ago, and snapped up Richmond-based Askaris a year ago to provide consultative security advice.

Doors open in Shanghai

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Companies are being urged to use a bureaucracy-busting agreement to tap into the huge potential for business with China.

Bosses of Newcastle’s Peacocks Medical Group will tell a seminar on Thursday how they used contacts cemented by North agencies to reach the verge of signing a deal for medical equipment with a Shanghai hospital.

Personnel from One NorthEast, UK Trade & Investment, the Centre of Excellence for Life Sciences (Cels) and RTC North will reinforce the message of huge opportunities in one of the world’s fastest growing economies.

One NorthEast head of business development and international relations Simon Good said: “North-East England has signed unique agreements with the city of Shanghai and the Jiangsu province – two of China’s economic powerhouses – to give our region prime access to business opportunities.”

The 9am seminar, at Wynyard Centre, Billingam is aimed at process industries, renewable energy, environment, digital, life sciences, design and electronics.

Peacocks is confident of signing a deal with a Shanghai business partner, which could create up to 15 jobs at Benfield Business Park. Director Chris Peacock said: “This is a major step forward for our company into a potentially massive marketplace.”

Fast Move From Nonlinear

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A hi-tech North-East company has recruited the help of a top industry guru to become up to six times more responsive and stay ahead in one of the toughest and fastest moving markets in the world.

Nonlinear Dynamics, based at Cuthbert House in Newcastle, has made a name for itself as a leading worldwide provider of software for the life sciences industry to clients such as GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZenica since setting up in business in 1989.

Now, with help from Business Link in Tyne and Wear, the company is shifting up a gear to ensure it becomes increasingly successful when competing for business in a league that includes some of the world’s biggest companies such as General Electric.

The firm was put in touch with renowned ‘programming guru’ Kevin Rutherford for advice on agile programming – the IT equivalent of lean manufacturing.

Chief executive office Will Dracup said: “In the past we’ve needed about six months to change direction on big projects but now we can shift approach every month if we need to respond to market developments or activity by our competitors. We need to remain on the leading edge of science and technology to compete in our industry and thanks to this expert advice we are now much more responsive and competitive. By making relatively subtle changes to the way in which we work we have succeeded in making major differences to our working methods and a fundamental difference to the productivity of our company. The quality of consultancy was superb and we couldn’t have achieved this without Business Link.”

Nonlinear Dynamics has worked with Business Link in Tyne and Wear throughout the development of the company and on this occasion was supported with a financial contribution towards the expert advice.

Business Link advisor Harold Gartside said: “The improvements resulting from the implementation of the new techniques has significantly enhanced the relationships Nonlinear Dynamics has with its high profile client base. It has dramatically improved the way in which the company works and the rate of release of new and improved software releases.”

Nonlinear Dynamics, which employs 61 people, specialises in writing software for the study of proteins and DNA for scientists and for pharmaceuticals developing new products.

Its customers include all top 20 pharmaceutical companies as well as many large biotech corporations, a huge range of research institutes and academic bodies throughout the world.

Laybourne Venture Scoops Top Award

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Jesmond Dene House has been named best hotel in Newcastle, less than a year after it opened. The £7m hotel and restaurant, developed by Tyneside restauranteur Terry Laybourne and property developer Peter Candler, received the accolade from the AA hotel guide.

Jesmond Dene House, which dates back to 1822 and was used as a school before its transformation, received a four star rating from the AA, which commended the hotel's grounds and bathrooms in particular. It awarded the 40-bedroom hotel a merit score of 83% and its restaurant with two rosettes.

Eric Kortenback, general manager at Jesmond Dene House said: "I'm delighted that we've been able to achieve such an excellent merit score just nine months from opening. We aim to offer the best possible service and it's reassuring to know we are well on our way to doing that. This success is due to our people as well as the amazing surroundings. Their passion and enthusiasm complement the charachter of the building and enable us to provide the understated, relaxed atmosphere that our guests enjoy."

The hotel is in the process of gearing up for a series of events to mark its first anniversary on September 1st.

Nomad on the right line

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 25 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Technology company Nomad has raised £8m of investment to fund the roll out of its revolutionary wireless broadband connection for trains.

The UK company, which has already partnered T-Mobile to provide broadband to train operator Southern on its London to Brighton line, is now poised to exploit global markets.

It will use its cash injection to open UK offices in Newcastle and London, supplement its technical team and take on sales and marketing staff to support its accelerated drive for growth.

The company is working to expand the availability of broadband internet access for passengers on Southern's network and is introducing the system into the US and European markets.

It is also exploring further deals in China, India and the Middle East.

The potential market is huge, with 141,000 trains worldwide, transporting 25.6 billion people over 10.5 billion kilometres annually.

Nomad's system works by connecting the train to wireless base stations along the track. This means the train runs along a corridor of wireless coverage, allowing information to be sent and received at speeds 25 times faster than domestic broadband internet access.

The system is unique in that it provides continuous high speed coverage, even through tunnels and on underground sections of track. The high bandwidth allows innovative applications such as real time CCTV to be implemented.

Passengers can surf the net, send and receive e-mails, and transfer large files quickly, while operators can monitor the performance of their trains, install real time security CCTV and locate all their fleet at any one time.

Under the terms of the funding deal, Amadeus Capital Partners Limited and T-Mobile Venture Fund have invested in Nomad Holdings, the new parent company of service arm Nomad Digital and hardware arm Nomad Spectrum.

Co-founders of Nomad Graeme Lowdon (Group Chief Executive) and Nigel Wallbridge (Group Executive Chairman) retain the senior executive positions in the group.

Graeme Lowdon said: ``This investment marks a major watershed for Nomad. For the past three years we have been developing and refining the system, and we have proved it commercially on Southern's network. We now have installations in the UK, Holland and North America. `

`With this investment we can now exploit the huge, worldwide opportunities that exist for this system. Its potential applications include an enhanced travelling experience for passengers, a revolution in railway signalling and traffic control, and as a powerful security tool on rail transport networks.''

The company's business model is to acquire broadband franchise concessions from train operating companies and to sell rights to use the network to service providers for particular applications.

"The railway industry worldwide offers huge potential for the kind of specialty mobility networks that Nomad has developed" said Nigel Wallbridge, co-founder and Chairman of Nomad Digital, "Both railway passengers and rail companies want to have broadband connected services to their trains, and that is what Nomad gives them".

Amadeus director Roy Merritt also joins the Nomad board. He said: `` Passenger travel is a big, global business and, as internet connectivity becomes prevalent everywhere, Nomad's technology for providing reliable connectivity on board trains addresses a potentially huge market. The company is currently working on opportunities in three continents and we have every confidence it will develop into a very successful international business.''

``Nomad's solution offers a compelling extension of T-Mobile's Wi-Fi Hotspot network as well as a complement to T-Mobile's GPRS and 3G services,'' said Lars Michaelsen, investment manager T-Mobile Venture Fund. ``Demand from business users for secure e-mail access on the move is growing. T-Mobile is able to offer this by maintaining a constant data session for the entire journey.

`”We invest in Nomad as we believe in the potential of WiFi on trains for business users as well as for consumer applications.''

Siobhan sets out to create entrepreneurs

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 25 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A North-East businesswoman has been picked to represent the UK on an international forum aimed at lifting rates of entrepreneurship within Europe.

Siobhan Bales, who founded Newcastle marketing agency The bgroup, will sit on the EU Commissions forum on entrepreneurship.

The post, which runs until next Christmas, will see her attending meetings of the forum in Brussels which will devise ways of lifting entrepreneurship in Europe up to US levels. Ms Bales will join 22 others from the EU’s other member states on the panel. She is believed to be the only young business owner on the panel which consists mainly of media executives and policy makers.

She said: “It is a huge honour to represent the UK in shaping the future of entrepreneurship in Europe. My main role is to bring knowledge of the mass media and its impact on young people to make Europe-wide plans to communicate the merits of starting and growing your won business. Ms Bales said the forum’s aim was to present a career as an entrepreneur as “a viable options for all ages – and a suitable career choice as well as well as encouraging a more entrepreneurial mindset that will facilitate a growing socio-economic environment across all member states.”

She said the proportion of Europeans who could be classified as “potential” entrepreneurs is 41% compared to 61% in the US. Ms Bales is already a board member of Young Enterprise North-East. She was recently appointed onto the CodeWorks Connect board to contribute to the continued success of the digital industries in the North East.

NTE plans further growth

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

An award-winning County Durham telecommunications company is moving into new markets with a growth plan that will create 15 jobs in the next five years.

Peterlee-based NTE, which supplies business communication products, has already built its business to a £2.8m turnover and 30 staff outfit.

But now it plans to grow business further by expanding its installation business – which currently covers the North and supplies “re-seller customers” – and deal direct with companies right across the UK.

NTE specialises in a range of business communication products from phone and public address systems to conference equipment and also in converged voice and data business systems.

Marketing manager Pauline Herring said: “We have seen strong and sustained growth over the last few years and this new direct market offers a great deal of potential to us. Our new five-year growth plan will take us on to the next stage of our development and includes the creation of 15 new jobs. Business Link has been a key point of our business planning process and a sounding board for our ideas. Working with then has enabled us to fund and carry out a number of key business improvement projects in the areas of customer relations, systems integration and workforce development. We have also re-developed the company website to include innovative features such as technical support forums and product downloads.”

NTE customers in the UK include call centres, local authorities, travel agencies and include blue-chip companies such as Balfour Beatty Constructions and Hayes Accountancy and Finance.

The company won a small business and export award in 2004, when it increased turnover by 38% and secured contracts in the Middle East, Africa and the Far East.

With help from Business Link’s workforce development team, NTE director Glen Pickering has enrolled on an executive masters in business enterprise at Durham Business School and Pauline Herring is soon to complete the Durham MBA.
She said: “The help with workforce development is invaluable as it is not always easy for a smaller company to fund training and allow employees time off for study. We are very committed to workforce development and currently have three people undertaking the professional development programme (PDP) as Durham Business School as well as a strong apprenticeship scheme.”

Managing director Ron Elliot said: “Our people are the key to our future success and Business Link support has been fundamental in allowing us to secure a professional development programme for key managers. The skills they develop are central to the long-term growth strategies of the business.”

Sage strengthens its grip in France

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Software group Sage has strengthened its grip in France after buying a controlling stake in a French software seller.

The Newcastle-based FTSE 100 business has bought 51% of distribution industry software company Elit Group for about £10.8m in cash. It will now make an offer to Elit shareholders about buying the remaining 49% of the company. Elit sells business management software for the transport and food distribution sectors in France.

Sage is already market leader in France and paid almost £80m for French business management software maker Adonix in November.

Sage chief executive Paul Walker said: The acquisition of a controlling interest in Elit represents a further extension of our range of industry-specific business management software. Elit’s advanced mid-market solutions for the French transport and food distribution sector complement our existing C2G business, acquired in 2005.”

Elit has about 3,000 medium-sized business customers and reported a £500,000 loss on a £18.4m turnover for the year ending June 30, 2005. Sage paid 7 euros – or almost £5 – per share.

Andrew Miller, regional centre head of Gerrard Investment Management in Newcastle said: “Let’s face it, £10m is a drop in the ocean for Sage these days so it sounds very much like a bolt-on acquisition – something they can use to add to their existing Sage suite. It might be that it [Elit] has got something specific that they can use in other products of their own, they are clearly going to want to incorporate it with other operations in France.”

The news comes after Sage got into the world cup spirit last month by snapping up a German company.

It bought business management software seller Bäurer GmbH for about £16m in cash. It is currently the market leader in Germany in the medium-sized enterprise market and number two in the small business market for business management software. In April Sage failed to capture its largest prey after Norwegian firm Visma dropped its support a £334m takeover and then backed a higher offer from private equity firm Hg-Capital instead.

Esh in deal for MMP's offices

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Rapidly-expanding builder the Esh Group is taking over the offices of collapsed County Durham construction company MMP Group.

Bowburn-based Esh, which has a turnover in excess of £100m and plans to create 270 jobs over the next year, is also in talks with MMP’s former clients to see if it can take over outstanding contracts.

The deal, which includes furniture and fittings at the Newburn Industrial Estate factory, brings to a close weeks of speculation about who would take over the remaining assets.

It is believed many – up to 250 – of MMP’s staff remain out of work and the trail of debt left behind has not yet been confirmed.

This is the second time in as many months that the growing Esh Group has bought the assets of a collapsed construction company in the region, following the acquisition of Stephen Easten in May.

A spokeswoman for Esh Group said: “We are trying to help out on some of the contracts but we are still talking to people so can’t be more specific at the moment. We are taking space at the offices because, quite simply, we need more space to house our expansion plans.”

Esh will share the premises with the founder of MMP Group, who bought the assets of the off-site division – and re-employed 15 of his former staff. Michael O’Connell who founded the company 20 years ago, and managing director Steve Thompson bought the contracts of Metek Building Systems and renamed it Engineered Offsite Systems.

Meanwhile, 41 jobs were saved in the plastering and dry lining division the previous week, after it was acquired by its manager and renamed Plaslines.

Mark Firmin, of administrator KPMG Restructuring, said: “The sale of MMP Group’s assets represents the final stage in our negotiations with interested parties following our appointment by MMP’s directors. The administrators will continue to pursue payments for work previously undertaken by MMP Group in order to maximise the return to creditors.”

Around 250 workers were made redundant when the firm collapsed, just weeks after MMP’s boss spoke of increasing its sales from around £30m to £50m over the next 12 months. It is believed t have collapsed with debts of between £3m and £5m.

World First For Nomad

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

North technology company Nomad is on track to clinch a multi-million pound deal in the US after trialling its world-first broadband wireless internet service on a moving train in Silicon Valley.

Corbridge-based Nomad and the world’s biggest chip manufacturer Intel have successfully performed the first US high speed broadband communication with a moving train in Silicon Valley, home to much of the world’s IT industry.

Working with Caltrain, which operates trains between San Francisco and San Jose, the two companies demonstrated the technology along a 16 mile section of track. It allows several people to simultaneously surf the internet, watch streaming video and complete large file downloads, whilst maintaining continuous connectivity at broadband speeds.

Now Caltrain is seeking further funding, believed to be several million US dollars, to buy the system and install it along the full 50 miles of track to provide its 35,000 daily passengers – commuting to world famous hi-tech and bio-tech companies – with broadband connectivity.

Nomad chief executive Graeme Lowdon said: “We have successfully operated the system in the UK for more than a year now, but US standards differ from European ones so some adjustment was required. It is great that a UK company can take its technology right to the heart of Silicon Valley and be the first with that technology.”

“It represents a breakthrough in the North US market and when we were asked to do this with Intel, the largest chip manufacturer in the world, we considered that another key milestone. Just the fact that it is Silicon Valley is amazing because this thing runs straight past the front door of Microsoft and the world’s biggest technology companies, it’s a very tech savvy customer base.”

“If you’ve got products you want to test then you should always choose to test them in the best markets in the world to put them through their paces.”

The news comes a week after Nomad, which was founded by Graeme Lowdon and Nigel Walbridge in 2002 and went into profit in 2005, raised £8m in a deal with Amadeus Capital Partners and T-Mobile Venture Funds to fund it’s expansion.

It is currently on the look-out for premises in Newcastle to build up a technical team. Nomad’s chief technical officer arrived in the North East from Canada yesterday to begin assembly of that team. Mr Lowdon said: “We are seeing increasing interest in our system worldwide. Not only have we established it on Southern’s route and proved it in California, we are also exploring deals in China, India and the Middle East. The system has enormous potential applications beyond providing passengers with an enhanced travelling experience.”

Nomad Digital’s system is unique because it provides continuous high speed coverage, even through tunnels and on underground sections of track.

Caltrain director of information technology and telecommunications Randy Rudolph said: “With Nomad’s cutting edge WiMAX-based technology and the successful trial completion, we can now move forward with plans to implement a wireless network along the entire rail mainline.”

Miller Takes Chairman Role

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

One of the North East’s most successful manufacturing companies is restructuring in preparation for global expansion over the next decade.
Miller UK is already a world leader in the design and manufacture of attachments for earth moving equipment with factories at Cramlington in Northumberland, and China.
With the launch this year of a range of new products and growth into new markets in the Pacific Rim, Australasia and Europe, managing director Keith Miller is moving to the role of company chairman and a new managing director has been appointed.
John Lines has joined from Volvo Construction Equipment where he was sales and marketing director at the UK dealership.
Keith said: “We have come a very long way in the last 28 years but in reality we have only scratched the surface of what is going to be possible in the global construction market over the next five-ten years.
“Last year we manufactured more than 23,000 units with a team that has grown to 400 in China and 250 in Northumberland.
“For the company to be a true world player it needs someone to be able to step back and examine where we are going in the medium-long term, especially in emerging markets as well as in the established markets like Japan that are still not major users of coupler technology. There is truly massive market potential which we can only maximise by stepping back and looking at the big picture.”
New MD John brings experience of the construction equipment industry and considerable knowledge of running a successful major capital sales organisation.
He added: “During my time at Volvo I gained first hand knowledge of Miller products as one of their customers. I am proud to have been given the opportunity to become the first non-family managing director of Miller UK and I am looking forward immensely to this new challenge and to becoming part of the team.”
Since being established in Newcastle by former welder Keith and his brother Gary and sister Jacqui, who are directors in the business, Miller UK has built a worldwide reputation for buckets and couplers for large earthmoving machines.
Its customers include global companies like CAT, Volvo, Hitachi, JCB, Case and Komatsu.
The Mini range, launched earlier this year, has allowed the company to break into the mini excavator market which offers considerable opportunities for future growth.

Sage healthcare deal ups the temperature

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Sage has sent city pulses racing by snapping up a £300m US healthcare software maker in it's largest ever acquisition.

The Newcastle software group is buying Florida-based Emdeon Practice Services from parent company Emdeon Corporation in a £297m deal which will form the bedrock of a new division.

EPS supplies software and services for 20,000 doctors' practices and clinics in the US and while it plans to initially concentrate on the market in the States, Sage could also expand it's new business to the UK.

The acquisition is the single largest purchase in Sage's history and follows the FTSE 100-listed group's pattern of branching out into providing specialist software for a range of industries, from manufacturing to construction. It hopes that increasing use of software and electronic processesin the US healthcare sector, allied with opportunities to cross-sell its existing business management software, will rapidly grow sales.

Sage chief executive Paul Walker said: "Acquiring Emedon Practice Services enables Sage to market its products and services to a substantial new community of small and medium-sized businesses in the US. This market is showing clear demand for automation of business processes. This acquisition continues our strategy of providing industry-specific solutions by bringing dedicated Sage solutions to this business sector for the first time."

EPS has experienced rapid profit growth in recent years. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose from £3.7m in 2004 to £11.4m last year on sales up from £155.8m to £160.3m. EPS had gross assets of about £37m at the end of last year.

The company's software is used in practice management and maintaining patient data, covering elements such as prescriptions and managing electronic health records. The US health insurance system means doctors have to act as the middle man between patients and insurers, making the need to process financial transactions greater than in the UK.

Sage says there are more than 200,000 doctor's parctices in the US, with many looking to automate their businesses and it expects to expand it's doctor's practice division by organic growth and acquisitions.

Phil Branston, the group's director of investor relations, said that while the UK's different health system meant British doctors' demands were different, there was scope to expand the division domestically.

Mr. Branston said: "Doctors' practices in the UK are run less as a business than the US, with different flows of information, but I would not rule out the UK, although it's not something we could readily do with just this acquisition."

The acquisition of EPS is expected to be completed next month when it will surpass the £286.4m Sage paid for Best Software in 2000, previously its largest single purchase.

Workwear Win For Push Creative

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Push Creative, Design & Marketing Communications have secured a contract from Workwear Express to help them expand their corporate imagewear business.

From adhoc work Push Creative had already undertaken, Workwear Express had enjoyed a substantial increase in sales. Working closely with the management team, a new suite of direct mail and catalogues to create a corporate style has been introduced.

The introduction of seasonal mini-mailers means customers are increasing orders and are reportedly delighted with the new offering of the catalogue and bespoke managed workwear solutions.

Liz Bassnett from Push Creative brings a wealth of experience to the account from her days working with Janet Frazer and Empire. She helped to implement the original supermodel campaigns and superbrands, encouraging a younger market to buy from the catalogues - a campaign that also saw an upturn in sales.

Liz comments “We are thrilled to build on the work already executed, it is satisfying to see our work having a positive effect for Workwear Express and look forward to creating more campaigns for the company in the future.”
Push Creative have seen their client base expand rapidly since their arrival at The ‘Landmark’ Quadrus Centre in Boldon, Tyne & Wear. Their creative impact is coupled with excellent customer service and from this 90% of their customers come from referrals.

The company was formed in January 2004 and is fast becoming a key player in the North East. Last year saw Liz receive an accolade at The North East Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Awards and she also assisted South Tyneside as a private sector representative to secure £16.2M LEGI (Local Enterprise Growth Initiative) funding.

For more information about Push Creative, contact Liz Bassnett on 0191 519 7266 or email: liz@push-creative.co.uk

North Sea Turbines Boost Engineering Business

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A hugely ambitious project to install the world's biggest wind turbines in the North Sea is helping to take a Northumberland engineering company to new heights.

The Engineering Business has quadrupled in size inside two years, with turnover moving from £4m in 2004 to an expected £16m this year. And managing director Tony Trapp says further growth is likely, such is the global demand for high quality engineering work at the moment.

The Riding Mill-based company's profile is rising as the two 120m high turbines are floated out on barges to the Beatrice oilfield off the east coast of Scotland this week.

The Engineering Business has designed a system for lifting the turbines onto undersea pylons, known as jackets, which are fixed to the seabed 12miles off the Cromarty Firth, around 20 miles north of Inverness. It has commissioned 530 tonnes of equipment to be used in putting the 1,000-tonne turbines in place.

The turbines will generate five megawatts of electricity each, compared to the two megawatts generated by turbines such as those found on the harbour walls in Blyth.

The Beatrice turbines are being erected as a "demonstrator project" to help assess the effectiveness of offshore wind farms. They are being funded by US company Talisman Energy , along with Southern and Scottish Energy, with assistance from the DTI, the Scottish Executive and the European Union.

Mr. Trapp said he was confident more work would follow the Beatrice project, with The Engineering Business already heavily involved in producing equipment for pipelaying vessels and for a submarine rescuse system. The company has been in existence for less than 10 years, and two years ago employed just 35 people, with a turnover of £4m - now it employs 100 permanent staff with a turnover of £16m expected for 2006.

Mr Trapp said: "We are expanding, basically. There's quite a lot going on and we are certainly looking for substantial growth next year. It's another variation of the knowledge economy - with clever people and an entrepreneurial spirit. We have a reputation for delivering things that work first time, on time and on budget".

The Engineering Business pursues three main markets - off-shore oil and gas; offshorerenewables; and marine defence. As well as the high profile Beatrice project, it is working with Swiss firm Allseasto deliver equipment for the deck of it's pipeline laying vessell Audacia, which will be carried out at the Hadrian yard on the Tyne, formerly occupied by Amec.

And The Engineering Business is also working on an extremely valuable project to produce a full "deck spread" of equipment for a new vessel to lay power cables, which is currently being built in Spain.

Mr Trapp said: "The message is that the off-shore industry is alive and kicking and doing very well. There is huge potential. There is a huge amount going on in Holland and Norway, and there is no reason why a lot more should not be done here in the North East - but we have not got ourselves organised to do it. There is a lot of potential in proper, straightforward engineering - offshore oil and gas are subject to a continuing boom at the moment. There are a lot of people who want jobs, but they go off to Holland or Norway at the moment. We are very short of people - mainly design engineers."

Hays Beats The Scares To Keep Recruiting

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Holiday company Hays Travel is beating terrorist scares and a static market to keep recruiting on the back of soaring business.

The Sunderland-based company is expecting sales to rise 20% this year to £300m, has just taken on 70 staff and plans to sign up another 50 this year. Founder and chief executive John Hays said yesterday staff numbers had now risen to 700 at its call centres, travel shops and growing network of homeworkers.

Hays, founded in 1980 took 21 years to breach the £100m sales barrier, then just four more to progress from £100m to £200m - and then hit £250m in January of this year.

"We are seeing a steady growth in sales and staff numbers. We are getting close the £300m of sales and we might get there before the end of this year. We are at £280m at the moment," said Mr Hays.

And he believes the company distinguishes itself from its rivals in having a choice of holidays from the big tour operators as well as a choice of ways to book them, as opposed to being tied to one company or one media.

This has helped it beat a largely static market, with ABTA members selling around £27bn of holidays in each of the last three years. Mr Hays said that the terrorist alert of two weeks ago had seen Hays' sales fall dramatically, but they had since recovered.

"The potential terrorist threat and increased security had an immediate and dramatic effect," he said. "We went from trading at 25% ahead of last year to being down 30% or 40% during the two days of the alert - quite a substantial drop. Trading was awful, but last week it started picking up again - up to +10%. We are going to have a good year."

The chief executive said he was very pleased with the company's success in hiring home workers. He said: "We were hoping to have 200 by the end of the year, but now we are looking at 250. We are looking for experienced travel staff - they have to be the right quality of person. There is a real growing trend towards home working as people are looking at quality of life issues - to work the hours that suit them. There's a whole lifestyle trend towards less of the nine to five - both in consumer behaviour and in the workplace."

Hays is also busy working on it's home working concept, to bring people in on a self-employed basis, but working from a conventional call centre desk.

Mr Hays said: "We've not got huge numbers, between 15 and 20, but it seems to be working OK. They come and go from one of our call centres during normal opening hours between 8am and 11pm."

Hays plans to keep recruiting throughout the winter months, and the company has recently taken on some more space at its Sunderland headquarters to accomodate more staff.

North East Business Link

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

The new merged Business Link is seeking applications for non-executive board members.

NRG plc, who are handling the appointments are keen to talk to successful entrepreneurs who want to make a real difference to the business support agenda for the region.

Interested parties should contact Mike Dixon of NRG Plc at mike.dixon@nrgplc.com.

TH_NK Aims For £4m Barrier

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 00:00:00 +0100

North technology company TH_NK is looking to break the £4m turnover barrier as it joins forces with some of the world's biggest hi-tech players shaping the future of the internet.

The Newcastle-based business has become the first new media company in the North East to be accepted as a member of the W3C - The World Wide Web Consortium.

TH_NK will now be working alongside the likes of Google, Microsoft and IBM in defining new internet standards and guidelines after passing the rigourous application process.

The brand technology company, set up by 25-year-old Tarek Nseir in 2002 while he was still a Newcastle University student, sees the appointment as an important step in its next growth phase. TH_NK has already grown from employing three people in 2004 to 42 today, with turnover rising from £400,000 to £2.4m thanks to web development work for companies including Northern Rock, ITV and NOrthumbrian Water.

The company is looking to take on six more staff on Tyneside and plans to open up a London office early next year as it looks to grow turnover to £4m.

Managing director Tarek Nseir said: "More and more buyers, especially in large corporates, are getting far more switched on to developing websites to W3C standards so to not only work to those standards but to play a part in creating them gives us a level of credibility which we would be hard pushed to beat. W3C is the most talked-about and most respected prganisation for the world wide web that exists, so to be part of shaping that is a huge credibility booster, especially for such a young company as ours."

"We are looking to win further national business and without a doubt, W3C membership will help us with that drive."

TH_NK also aims to open a staellite office in London in February, initially staffed by a team of three but with scope to expand as more work comes in.

Mr. Nseir said: "We are having talks with a number of Southern clients and are hoping to go down there having first won an account there. If it is successful, we will start to build a service pool in London."

The company is also on the move in Tyneside. TH_NK is in talks about relocating from it's current offices on Leazes Park road near St. James Park to larger premises elsewhere in the city. Expansion abroad is a possibility in the long-term, although the company is concentrating on the UK market for the forseeable future.

Mr Nseir said: "I would love to expand abroad, but at the moment we are focusing on two years ahead and the opportunity in the UK market is significant at this moment in time and we have to keep our eye on the quality of our delivery."

Business School Announces New David Goldman Visiting Professor

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Newcastle University Business School has announced that successful technology and communications entrepreneur and university alumnus, Paul Callaghan, will be joining the School as the new David Goldman visiting professor of business innovation this November.

Paul is passionate about helping North East England grow and prosper through the development of a talented and well educated population and by nurturing and encouraging entrepreneurs and business. The appointment will enable him to share his considerable business experience with students - a role which he welcomes with enthusiasm.

Paul runs the European HQ of his company, the Leighton Group, based in his hometown of Sunderland. Leighton operates throughout the world at the cutting-edge of technology in a broad range of sectors and with clients including British Airways, Microsoft, Lloyds TSB, Sir Robert McAlpine and Tesco. Paul has a first degree in Economics from the London School of Economics, a Master's degree in Management and Education from Newcastle University and a further Master's degree in Finance and Economics from the University of Salford.

The David Goldman visiting professorship in business innovation, which is an annual appointment, is named in memory of the founder of Sage plc, an entrepreneur who was also commited to the educational development of young people. The funds allow for an annual lecture, a permanent chair, visiting professorships and a research studentship. Paul Callaghan is the fourth holder of the post, and follows Chris Thompson, chief executive of the Express Group and chairman of the TyneWear Partnership.

R&B Poised For National Expansion

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 00:00:00 +0100

An events company is poised for national expansion after winning business including corporate videos, backing up the Royal Shakespeare Company and turning the Baltic pink.

Newcastle-based R&B Group started life in 1991, following on from a management buyout of the city's branch of national audio-visual hire company Viewplan.

It initially focused on conference and video production, but with an acquisition in 1998 it began to growseriously by focusing on conference services, equipment hire, set designand build and video production.

And after a few years of winning big name clients including RIBA, Sage plc and the Royal College of Nursing, it is now stepping up its expansion plans with other regional offices.

The company saw turnover reach £1m in 2003, which has since grown to £1.5m and the company now expects to reach £2m by 2007 and £4m by 2010. This is largely due, it believes, on the strength of it offering a 'one stop shop' for its services.

R&B employs 25 staff, has just added a new unit to its base in Walker Road in Newcastle and opened a Harrogate office.

Managing director Antony Crerar said: "We were originally expecting to expand outwards from the North-East, but now we are looking at going into other areas where they are under-served. We are looking at the South of Wales and the North-West of England for our next branch offices. We originally intended to open in Harrogate early next year, but because of reasons including the amount of business we are getting in from Harrogate International Conference Centre we were able to move in there earlier than intended."

"So we are now looking at opening the next branch early next year. There does seem to be a very strong demand for our services. The conference market is very strong as a whole. The number of corporate awards seems to be growing constantly and I think companiesrealise that they can deliver a broad range of services which cover all their needs for these events."

Mr. Crerar added: "We haven't investigated acquisitions. There are one or two opportunities around and we have a few open book discussions on-going, but not outside the region."

Although the vast majority of the work is for conferences abd award ceremonies, they do have some more unusual work too. Mr. Crerar's theatrical background - he was technical manager and then deputy manager of the Newcastle Playhouse before joining R&B 8 years ago - mean he still enjoys involvement in matters artistic.

The company still provides lighting and production services for the RSC when it visits the North East, works with Dance City and gets hired for large scale outdoor promotional work such as lighting up the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in pink for a corporate celebration.

Somers Set For New Book Launch

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Matt Somers, managing director of Sunderland-based Peak is launching a new book - Coaching At Work - in hardback on October 6th.

Happily it’s already causing a bit of a stir and has got business people talking about coaching once more, as recently endorsement by Storey Carpets chief executive, Simon Heptinstall:

"How much of your team's full potential do you see at work? 90%? 30%? 60%? Many of us simply don't know. In a world of relentless change is it any wonder that so much can interfere with how well we perform at work. In a practical approach Matt Somers explores how coaching can be used to release that potential."

"Matt recognises that the reaction in the work place to coaching can range from mild apathy to downright hostility. It is this firm grip on reality that considerably increases the reader's chances of becoming a successful coach. In today's business environment ignore the principles and ideas embodied in this book at your peril!"

Guerilla Productions Makes It In Newcastle

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 00:00:00 +0100

This month, Guerilla Productions, the TV production arm of Guerilla Communications will create the largest number of TV commercials ever produced within the North East region at one time, involving a project spend that is estimated to be in excess of £6 million.

The three day TV Shoot undertaken for national retailer Holland & Barrett will involve the creation of over 36 x 30” commercials and 100 x 10” commercials that will be aired over the next year across the UK and Ireland. The creative platform features an exciting combination of motion graphics to create a natural feel relevant to each season. All actors and crew have been selected from a talented pool across the region.

Rodger Bonnici, MD (Guerrilla Productions) commented, “The fact that we can film and produce such a large number of commercials in the North East shows how the region is progressing in terms of the talent now available. In past years we have gone to London to complete a project of this complexity, but moving forward we must keep as much work as possible within this region.”

The decision to make the commercial in Newcastle was also based largely upon the excellent studio facilities now available at Newcastle College where the live shoot is taking place.

Stuart Langford (Manager Of Performance Academy) Newcastle College said “When we showed the Director and Producer around our facilities they seemed very impressed. The decision to shoot this high profile TV campaign here at our College has given the place a real buzz”.

The advanced animation skills available at Imagine post-production were also a factor why Guerilla Productions decided to complete the project within the North East and not head off to London.

Garry Cosgrove, MD of Imagine explained “We have a great working relationship with Guerilla, when they said that they wanted us to post produce all the commercials we were frankly delighted’.

The first campaign is due to break in mid-October and will end in November 07.

For more information call James Allen 0191 2619799.

Are You The Winning Ticketholder?

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 00:00:00 +0100

The Entrepreneurs' Forum's 3rd annual charity bash raised over £50,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support on Saturday evening. Guests raised the huge sum through an auction, a dance game, a safecracking game and a silent auction.

There was also "No Ordinary Auction", where lucky prizewinners have already claimed flights to New York (ticket 56), a Bentley for the weekend (ticket 135) and vouchers for Serenity in the City (ticket 88).

However, the main prize of £1,000 of vouchers for Berrys has yet to be claimed - so if you're the lucky holder of raffle ticket 12 then you can claim your fantastic prize by contacting the Forum office on 0870 850 2233.

New Sector Launch For Dipsticks

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Northumberland based Dipsticks Research Limited (DRL) has launched a new division to provide market research to the public sector.

Dipsticks, which has a turnover of £2.5m and works for clients including Sony, the BBC and Yell, has launched the specialist division - Public Knowledge - after building up a team and experience for seven years.

Development director John Raglan said: "As DRL we've carried out dozens of research projects in the public sector over a seven year period, including one for regional development agency One NorthEast. We have assembled a team of people with direct experience of working in public sector organisations at senior level and it was a logical step to launch Public Knowledge to reflect that level of expertise. Through Public Knowledge we provide high quality market research and analysis based on first hand experience of the public sector."

John and wife Fiona Raglan, who is MD, founded DRL in 1997 as freelance market researchers. Since then, the company has grown rapidly.

The employ more that 40 staff at their Allendale headquarters, 160 at a computer-aided telephone interviewing centre in Hexham and more than 600 field interviewers in the UK.

One NorthEast chief executive Alan Clarke said: "One NorthEast is happy to give its support to a specialist business developed by two local entrepreneurs and now staffed by a regional team."

Internet TV Channel Launches For North Business Scene

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 00:00:00 +0100

A new joint venture company set up between Tyneside creative marketing agency The bgroup and corporate communications specialists twenty first century media, has signed up ITV news reporter Kim Inglis and radio personality Ingrid Hagemann as lead news anchors for the launch of the region’s first business-based internet TV service.

The deal will see the new company, bdaily Ltd. broadcast daily news bulletins and special reports covering hard-hitting business issues, together with a weekly synopsis aimed at giving instant access to regional and national business events and news. The new channel will also include business profiling and interview slots, designed to spotlight the region’s organisations and business personalities.

Simon King, head of Digital Media Technology at North East Centre of Digital Excellence Codeworks, is the first non executive director to be appointed to lead the company, which was launched to an audience of business people at the Codeworks Connect Digital Media 360 event at the Sage Gateshead recently.

ITV news reporter Kim Inglis said: "I'm thrilled to be involved with this project. Privately I'm a bit of a technophobe but not to the extent that I can't look to the future and see the different ways in which our news will be delivered. It's really exciting to be part of the launch and it's just fantastic to see innovative moves like this happening in our corner, the North East of England. I look forward to getting some feedback once people start receiving their business news from us."

Siobhan Bales, managing director of The bgroup, is equally excited about the new venture: “Delivering broadcast quality, on demand business news to thousands of organisations across the North East will take a team of top professionals, and we are delighted to have signed up two of the region’s established presenters to front this pioneering service, which we believe has massive potential to transform the way that people access news content.

“Internet TV is revolutionising the face of information and entertainment delivery, giving people more freedom to dictate how and where they access content. We have the expertise and the capability right here in the region, and the time is right for us to lead the way in the use of new and emerging communications technologies.

Nick Imrie, marketing director of partner company twenty first century media, said: “Today’s viewers have increasingly sophisticated expectations in terms of quality, consistency, and objectivity, which will be crucial elements in the success of the new service. Our technical and film for business use expertise allows us to maintain the same high standards that viewers expect from national TV, and combined with the bgroup’s specialist knowledge of the creative use of emerging technologies, we now have all the ingredients in place to create a massive shift in targeted business news delivery.

“bdaily Ltd is a natural extension of the very popular bdaily news service, which has more than 4000 subscribers, showing the demand for a truly regional, multimedia news channel. Taking this service a step further by using the best available audio visual media will allow us to cover a wider range of features in greater depth, and give the region’s viewers exactly what they want, when they want it.”

Estimated to become a market worth £977 billion by 2010, Internet TV and Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) is multi-channel, on demand television, available via computer screens, mobile devices or standard TV sets. Some experts predict that Internet TV could see the end of linear or scheduled TV, over the coming decade.

Seaham Hall Joins Elite as AA Awards 5 �Red Stars'

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Seaham Hall Hotel has been awarded the highest rating possible by the AA. Five red stars confirms Seaham Hall’s position within the elite of UK hotels who offer the highest standard of hospitality.

The only 5 star hotel in the North East, Seaham Hall was a derelict building when Tom Maxfield acquired it in 1997. Following a multi-million pound transformation, the hotel opened its doors to guests in 2001 and has become internationally renowned as much for its luxurious accommodation as its ground-breaking Serenity Spa.

Tom Maxfield said; ‘This is a fantastic achievement for the whole of the North East. Everyone was sceptical at the beginning when we set out to create a world class hotel in Seaham but now everyone can share our pride in this achievement. Seaham Hall has become an icon of the very best that North East England can offer.’

Debrah Dhugga, chief executive of Tom’s Companies said; ‘The Seaham Hall story represents an outstanding example of the rapid change that has taken place in North East England over the past decade. What has been achieved here provides a great parallel with the ambition that is now being demonstrated across the whole of the region.

“The five red star status is a tremendous accolade for everyone at the hotel and is a symbol of the North East's renaissance - it is something of which the whole region can be proud.”

She continued; “Fantastic design, beautiful furnishings and a wonderful location can only do so much. Our staff always go the extra mile and that’s what makes the difference. It’s a wonderful achievement and I’m immensely proud of everyone who has contributed to this.”

John Holmes, Director of Regeneration and Tourism for One Northeast said;
“The award of five red stars for Seaham Hall is richly deserved and is testament to the major investment and hard work put in by everyone at the Hotel. It is great news not only for Seaham Hall, but also for the whole of North East England’s tourism industry.

“As well as restoring a wonderful historic building with a fascinating story to tell, Tom’s Companies have provided an outstanding hotel and leisure facility that is being recognised nationally and internationally and we wish the team continued success.

“It is a hugely important milestone and demonstrates how far the tourism industry in the North East has come, offering real quality and demonstrating that this region can now compete with the best in the world as a visitor destination.

“As well as this fantastic news for Seaham, this year has seen North East England win a record five awards at the Enjoy England Excellence Awards, which reflects the increasing quality of the tourism offer across the region.”

World Spa Leader Expands

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 00:00:00 +0100

Tom’s Companies, the group behind the multi-award winning Seaham Hall and Serenity Spa, has announced the launch of a new urban day spa, Serenity in the City.

Located in the heart of Jesmond, Serenity in the City is a midi version of Serenity Spa incorporating the same attention to detail and an innovative range of treatments with a unique style in a convenient city location.

Due to open in October 2006, Serenity in the City will include seven consulting rooms, including two couple’s rooms and a male ‘wet shave’ room. The 3,000 square foot spa also includes a ‘Buddha nail bar’, express tan area and an outdoor hot tub.

Serenity in the City has been designed by the company’s creative director, Jocelyn Maxfield, who designed The Serenity Spa at Seaham Hall and more recently, the Hooker and Young Hair Spa. Jocelyn explains; ‘I incorporated a contemporary Asian feel with subtle lighting, tactile materials and an emphasis on supreme comfort. Serenity in the City will be a haven of luxury and tranquillity in the city centre and an easy and convenient way to relax and feel good.’

Company chairman, Tom Maxfield, said of the new expansion; ‘After conducting extensive research we believe that Serenity in the City will bring to the heart of Newcastle a convenient location that will satisfy a demand for men and women who want to relax and be indulged in style. All the award winning aspects of The Serenity Spa will be incorporated into a state of the art facility that is just what Newcastle needs.’

Chief Executive Debrah Dhugga, will be heading up the new venture and is excited for its opening; “After the success of Serenity Spa at Seaham Hall, I think this will be a welcome haven to city workers. Having an urban retreat in the city is very exciting both for our Serenity brand and to our customers.”

New Range Of Stupid Bags Launched

info@theroundhouse.co.uk — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Marie Difolco, founder of Stupid Bags, has launched her latest range at the Brand Licensing Show at Olympia in London.

Stupid Bags, who produce a range of quirky alternatives to the traditional bottle bag and gift bag have already been a huge hit with Fenwick’s, where the new lines are now available in the card department and wine shop. Marie has also secured her first first major multiple retail customer in the form of one of the UK's leading supermarket chains. She has also recently signed up Australian distributor Cellar Plus, who have a superb warehousing and distribution network and with Marie's products have a new sales category to exploit, having previously concentrated on wine-making equipment and accessories.

Although Stupid Bags are rolling out a number of ranges which include well known brands they have acquired licenses to manufacture; it’s their own character creation ‘Squiffy’ that is proving to be really popular. Squiffy attracted international interest at Olympia, so much so it has prompted the Pelaw based business woman to appoint a licensing agent to roll out the brand globally.

‘Squiffy’ aims to develop creative and commercial partnerships with the intention of producing fun products based on the character.