The architect behind Nottingham’s Acres Group has designs for huge growth for 2022 after already achieving phenomenal expansion since the start of the global pandemic. Edward Acres, who founded Acres Architects from a laptop in his parents’ spare bedroom in 2008, has seen his business expand from a turnover of a few hundred thousand pounds to an empire projected to turn over £10m in less than two years. His team of three people at the start of the pandemic has expanded by around 600 per cent to 20 full-time staff in the same period – and the Acres Group is looking to almost double that number this year. The success is partly down to Edward’s hard work, vision and refusal to stand still, while many competitors were making cuts in the face of Covid-19. But his decision to offer diversified services and formally set up a growing list of non-architectural companies within his group is the main reason why the business has grown so much in such a short space of time. Now, the group boasts various additional divisions, including Acres Investments, Acres Developments, Online Media Video Productions (OMVP) and Acres Construction. Established only 18 months ago, Acres Construction began with a pipeline of works to support Acres Architects, which was struggling with its existing crop of contractors, which largely specialised in residential projects. Acres Construction has now secured larger scale business and commercial contracts such as property developer residential projects like apartment schemes and luxury private gated developments, as well as dilapidation works, SEN schools and interior fit-out works. It is currently working towards a sales pipeline of £25m in 2022. Edward said: “These new facets of the business have created this amazing company growth. Our clients love the one-stop-shop, where we add levels of accountability and security that other practices can’t offer. All processes are effectively delivered under one roof. “This linear process and, most importantly, our ability to provide clients with straightforward communication throughout all aspects of a build, has generated huge interest and popularity. “As a result, our client base has sky-rocketed – and we are planning for even greater expansion of our services and projects in 2022.” Edward said that there was a very simple reason that he was able to achieve something in two years that might typically take decades to achieve. “I stopped thinking like an architect, and started thinking more like a businessman,” he said. “More and more investors are coming forward for support, and this full, turnkey solution provides them with a combined set of assets and a holistic overview that they value highly, and which architects alone do not offer.” The Acres Group’s record-breaking 2021 included a decision to exhibit for the first time at Grand Designs Live – a significant investment which paid off in the shape of a large spike in client enquiries. This, and the enormous traction created by the setting up of several new arms of the company, has led to growth in all aspects of the business. Acres Architects alone is seeing a big increase in enquiries for residential developments, particularly countryside barn conversions – citing 13 separate barn conversion projects on the go currently. “We are still gaining momentum,” said Edward. “While 2021 was an incredible year for us, our sights are firmly set on adding more commercial projects, targeting more property developers across the UK, adding more turnover and building a bigger team in 2022. We’re thinking big and we’re going places.” Acres Architects is a multiple award-winning, RIBA accredited firm. The Acres Group operates from its expanding head office at Nottingham Science Park, near to the University of Nottingham. To find out more about the services provided by the Acres Group, please visit www.acresarchitects.co.uk, email info@acresarchitects.co.uk or phone 0115 838 9738.

The majority of Northamptonshire firms expect their turnover will increase during 2022 but are bracing themselves for rising prices, according to the county’s largest business survey. Service sector companies were the most upbeat about 2022 and although the majority of county manufacturers were also confident about their future turnover figures, this was offset by many suggesting they expected to see their profits fall in the next 12 months. The revelations came in the latest Quarterly Economic Survey (QES) carried out by Northamptonshire Chamber of Commerce at the end of 2021 to find out how businesses were faring. Northamptonshire Chamber head of policy, Sean Rose, said: “It’s good to see that Northamptonshire businesses are positive about the future. However, despite the optimism, concerns about price pressures are once again dominating our survey results. “Almost 90 per cent of service firms and nearly 60 per cent of manufacturers who responded to our survey indicated that they expect prices to increase during the first three months of 2022.” The survey also revealed that nearly half of the county’s service firms had seen a rise in their domestic sales during the last quarter whilst more than 80 per cent of manufacturers had seen their current and advanced domestic orders remain constant or increase. Nearly 80 per cent of Northamptonshire’s service firms reported that their overseas orders had increased or remained at the same level as the previous three months. Around half of service firms said their workforce had grown at the end of 2021 and nearly 70 per cent of manufacturers reported that their numbers had remained stable. However, businesses in both sectors which tried to recruit at the end of 2021 said they had experienced difficulties in hiring new staff.

James Pinchbeck, partner at Streets Chartered Accountants and director of SBC Global Alliance, the firm’s international association of professional advisory firms, considers customs declarations on imports from the EU and the changes to them from January 2022. HMRC has warned businesses that customs declarations on imports from the EU will change once again at the start of 2022. Customs declarations From 1 January 2022, businesses will no longer be able to delay making import customs declarations under the Staged Customs Control rules that have applied during 2021. Most businesses will have to make declarations and pay relevant tariffs at the point of import. The tax authority says businesses should consider how they will make their declarations. They can either appoint an intermediary, such as a customs agent or submit the declarations themselves. Further advice is available via the Gov.uk website. Some businesses already have a ‘Simplified Declarations’ authorisation from HMRC that allows their goods to be released directly to a specified customs procedure without having to provide a full customs declaration at the point of release. Businesses that want to use Simplified Declarations will need authorisation to do so. It can take up to 60 calendar days to complete the checks needed for this and therefore a new application may not be authorised until late February or early March at the earliest. From 1 January 2022, businesses must use the correct country code for the country of origin and the country of dispatch when they complete their customs declaration. HMRC says that for EU countries, the individual country code of the relevant member state should be used. The EU country code must not be used and will be removed from HMRC’s systems. Border Controls Ports and other boarder locations will be required to control goods moving between Great Britain and the EU. This means that unless goods have a valid declaration and have received customs clearance, they will not be able to be released into circulation, and in most cases will not be able to leave the port. From 1 January 2022, goods may be directed to an Inland Border Facility for documentary or physical checks if these checks cannot be done at the border. It is important that those involved in transporting your goods are ready and understand how you intend to operate from January 2022. From the start of the year, you must also submit an ‘arrive’ export declaration if your goods are moving through one of the border locations that uses the arrived export process. If you do not follow the correct process from 1 January 2022, the new system will not permit your goods to leave the country and they will be turned away as they will not hold export clearance. If you use a service such as a courier or a freight forwarder to move your goods, you will need to check their terms and conditions about who will make the declarations and what other information they will need from you to do this. Postponed VAT Accounting If you are a VAT registered importer, you can continue to use Postponed VAT Accounting (PVA) on all customs declarations that require you to account for Import VAT, including supplementary declarations, except when HMRC have told you otherwise. With further changes to be introduced from July 2022, including requirements for full safety and security declarations for all imports and for Export Health Certificates, we strongly recommended that you seek advice from professional advisers and government agencies as the new changes are introduced.

It’s that time of year, when Business Link Magazine invites the region’s business leaders to offer up their predictions for the year ahead.  It has become something of a tradition, given that we’ve been doing this now for over 30 years. Here we speak to Nicki Robson, Managing Director, Breedon Consulting. 2021 has been a year of transformation for many businesses, but this doesn’t look set to change any time soon. As the pandemic continues to bite and hybrid working becomes the new normal, there is a rising shift in power between employers and employees. This is amidst an increasingly difficult recruitment market, which has seen previously loyal employees have their heads turned by speculative approaches. Employers are now willing to offer significant rewards and flexible working options to attract new talent. To counter this, 2022 is likely to be a year to focus on employee retention, and employers would be well placed to consider their retention strategies and how they differentiate their employer brand. Maintaining team morale, motivation and engagement will be key to reducing the likelihood of resignations, coupled with a focus on employee health and wellbeing. Flexibility of approach will also be an increasingly important consideration in 2022. Flexible working options are becoming more of an expectation from employees who have recognised the improved work life balance available to them, by changes that were adopted out of necessity. Employers who insist on returning to pre-pandemic fixed ways of working, are expected to struggle further with both employee retention and attracting new joiners, as the trend for flexible working is unlikely to disappear any time soon.