OCTOBER 2023 EAST MIDLANDS LEADING BUSINESS MAGAZINE www..co.uk WWW.EASTMIDLANDSBUSINESSLINK.CO.UK WWW.EASTMIDLANDSBUSINESSLINK.CO.UK £3.50 Navigating the legal landscape Line of defenceMeeting increasing demand NTERN NATION AL Fut pro Fut ture fi g coding bility ce g Labelling, c and traaceab Food scienc Environmen spotlight ntal agingkc aa P rld o our guide to the pharmaceutical wY Issue 4 1olume 1 V mpeeee T profitable Sustainable, ature er bl a Unyielding i contro em l ll a Handlingth handli M net www .pbiforum.ne SEPTEMBER 2023 EAST MIDLANDS LEA £3.50 EADING BUSINESS MAGA AZINE een going gr WW The business case eo DMS Comms, Collab WW the barriers Organisatio bs and ANDSBUSINE rstoexceence ning - onal lear ESSLNKCOU w UK .co.uk www EMPOWER Your Business T OCTOB £2.95 BER2023 BreastC Hair & B Cce Bty WithLou In Love Month Awaren B th BLM GROUP www.blmgroup.co.uk Heritage Lincolns hi WWW.LINCWWW.LINC OLNSHIRETOOLNSHIRETO ODAYNEODAYNE september 2023 yorkshire & lincolnsh £3.50 shire’s leading business ma magazine VOLUME38SSUE09 .blmgroup.co.ukwww organ c Over Automation driving adaption success Driving business ning isational lear comngbaeso V w Often Imitated - Never Equalled www.blmgroup.co.ukwww.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.ukEast Midlands Business Link 3 EDITORS NOTES We’re moving ever closer toward Christmas now, and though it may feel too early to talk about that it’s worth keeping in mind that renting a place to hold a Christmas party isn’t going to be very easy if you leave it until November. We’ve just held our own Bricks Awards at the end of September, which you can read about in the magazine, and I can tell you that organising and speaking at an event is something that takes a lot of planning. Ours begins 10 months before the event, but a Christmas party can probably afford to be a little later than that. A little, but not much. We’re taking a look at some of the achievements of local businesses over the last few decades in this issue, along with the latest local happenings across the B2B industry in our region. It’s looking to be a busy end to 2023, and possibly also a controversial one with the news just in that the Conservatives under Rishi Sunak may be leaving us with the highest tax burden since after WW2, and further hesitation and confusion over HS2. But, for all of us, it’s business as usual and that means rolling with the punches and getting on with things despite, or perhaps in spite, of how our economy is being handled. Good reading, as always Michael Fisher Editor@BLMEastMidlands BLMEastMidlands Latest news 6 A round-up of the latest news from our region. EMEC Ecology Q&A 16 Unlocking the future: the impact of Biodiversity Net Gain on development. Commercial property 18 While the market starts to calm post- pandemic, the East Midlands remains a popular location for businesses seeking out industrial and logistics properties. The East Midlands Bricks Awards 22 With the East Midlands Bricks Awards complete for another year, it is time to reflect on the glittering event and reveal the winners. Legal services 39 In a complex world of regulations and legal intricacies, securing the right legal partner is essential for safeguarding your business interests. • Bond Legal Q&A Tax 44 James Pinchbeck, partner at Streets Chartered Accountants, considers how businesses can safeguard themselves from inflation. IT and communications 46 The influence of the internet on traditional communication services has been nothing short of transformative. What began as a slow but steady shift has gained momentum year after year. Public relations 50 Greg Simpson, founder of Press for Attention PR, shows you how to make the most of award losses. Supporting business growth 52 It used to be that money was the sole limiter on business growth, but filling the spaces that open up when a company grows may be much harder in today’s economic climate. Facilities management55 Facilities managers are a business’s sword and shield, safeguarding employees, assets, and operations. We take a closer look at these vital professionals. Warehousing and distribution 58 Warehouses and distribution centres can optimise operations, harness technology, and adapt to evolving consumer trends to ensure seamless supply chain management and customer satisfaction. Business Link Magazine Group 62 The Business Link Magazine is proud to announce that its offices have gone green, with the installation of new solar panels and energy-saving installations. OCTOBER 2023 EAST MIDLANDS £3.50 LEADING BUSINESS MA AGAZINE Line of defen W nce landscap Navigatin WWWEASTMI Meetin pe ng the legal IDLANDSBUS easing demandg incr INESSLINKCO OUK .co.ukwww. Cover photographs courtesy: • stock.adobe.com/ Yeti Studio • FrameAngel • REDPIXEL • didiksaputra • Irina Sharnina Contents October 2023 AutoLink 64 We look at some of the motors expected to come soon - with some of them entering the market as early as spring 2024. Events68 A timely look at forthcoming business events around the East Midlands. And finally...70 Here’s Frazer’s collection of the weird and wonderful ‘news’ that came his way over the last few weeks.36 Group Editor Steve Fisher s.fisher@blmgroup.co.uk Editor Michael Fisher m.fisher@blmgroup.co.uk Journalist Tess Egginton t.egginton@blmgroup.co.uk Sales Director Angela Cooper a.cooper@blmgroup.co.uk Tel: (01472) 310310 Accounts & Subscriptions Angela Sharman accounts@blmgroup.co.uk Tel: (01472) 310301 Fax: (01472) 310311 Design & Production Gary Jorgensen, Mark Casson studio@blmgroup.co.uk Tel: (01472) 310304 E-Mail: eastmidlands@blmgroup.co.uk Publisher Haychart Ltd, t/a Business Link Magazine Group, Huntingdon House, 278-290 Huntingdon Street, Nottingham NG1 3LY All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, photocopied, recorded or otherwise without express permission of the copyright holder, for which application should be addressed first to the publisher. While every reasonable care is taken, neither the publisher nor its participating agents accept liability for loss or damage to prints, colour transparencies, negatives or other material of whatever nature submitted to this publication. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the views of those held by the publisher. East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk GENERAL NEWS Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Angelique Foster, joins the East Midlands Cyber Resilience Centre’s Governance Board The East Midlands Cyber Resilience Centre (EMCRC) have announced that the Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Angelique Foster, is joining their Governance Board. Commissioner Foster was elected to the role as PCC in 2021. She has been a key figure in local government for more than a decade. As well as joining the Board at the EMCRC, the Commissioner provides funding to the Business Crime Reduction Partnership which supports the work of the East Midlands Chamber in protecting businesses across Derbyshire. The Commissioner is also a local County Councillor at Derbyshire County Council. As Police and Crime Commissioner, she currently sits on a number of boards including the East Midlands Criminal Justice Board, Derbyshire and Derby Road Safety Partnership and both the Derbyshire and Derby City Safer Communities Board. The EMCRC are looking to make further additions to the board – this is an opportunity for businesses and organisations to join together with senior law enforcement officials and government to inform regional developments on cyber resilience and reduce the risk posed by cyber criminals to their supply chains, customer bases and the wider SME community. Nottingham auction house secures multi-million pound emergency services framework Nottingham-headquartered auction house John Pye & Sons Limited has secured a four-year nationwide framework worth up to £50,000,000 to oversee the disposal and auction of end-of-life emergency service or “Blue Light” vehicles. The ‘Framework for the Provision of Auction and Disposal of End-of-Life Vehicles and Items’ was awarded by BlueLight Commercial, an organisation established by the Home Office in 2020. John Pye will oversee the disposal and auction of emergency vehicles that are no longer fit for purpose, such as police cars and fire engines. The framework includes managing vehicles that must be scrapped or recycled with components made available for the ‘green parts’ market and redistributing other premium vehicles that are suitable for resale. The auction specialist’s Government and Vehicles departments will work closely with garages, second-hand vehicle traders and the primary target of end-consumers across its network of UK suppliers to ensure all premium, decommissioned vehicles generate a healthy interest. Free eco scheme to help local fleet operators Leicester City Council has become the latest UK local authority to join the ECO Stars Fleet Recognition Scheme. The voluntary scheme encourages and supports operators of HGVs, buses and vans to run their fleets more efficiently and help improve air quality. The city council has teamed up with international transport consultancy TRL to encourage more local fleet operators to sign up to the scheme. Funding for Leicester’s ECO Stars scheme comes from the Government’s Joint Air Quality Unit and joining is free of charge. By signing up, organisations will receive an expert appraisal of their fleet along with practical advice about how to improve efficiency and cut fuel consumption. So far, over 30 local fleet operators have joined the city council in signing up to Leicester’s ECO Stars scheme. Samworth Brothers are one of the organisations who have already signed up. Paul Marrow, Samworth Brothers supply chain operations director, said: “This scheme has been of great use for Samworths. We are doing our bit for the city by lowering the emissions our vehicles produce and are grateful of the support ECO Stars has offered our organisation.” £1m high street revitalisation celebrated by Stapleford businesses Local business owners are celebrating the success of a £1m grant scheme that has transformed Stapleford’s high street. Through the £21m Government-funded Stapleford Towns Fund, 75 businesses have received a share of a £1m Town Centre Recovery Fund pot aimed at regenerating and revitalising the high street after the economic downturn of the pandemic. Beneficiaries include Peak My Body fitness centre, Sewing Bee, Wake Cup Café, Millepede micropub, Larry’s Bar, Rowells, Gurkha Nights, Affinity Dance School and Little Driver’s Play Centre. Grants have enabled external building and signage work to many businesses to modernise their premises and improve the look of the high street, as well as internal decoration, accessibility and energy efficiency improvements, equipment, furniture and marketing. Business owners came together at the first of a series of business networking events to share their achievements and network with each other and business experts from East Midlands Chamber, Nottinghamshire County Council and Broxtowe Borough Council. www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link GENERAL NEWS • Commercial • Events • Headshots • Automotive • Fashion CALL OR EMAIL FOR A QUOTE 07506 998855 STEVE@STEVEEDWARDSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM STEVEEDWARDSPHOTOGRAPHY.COM Creating eye-catching images to help businesses build their brands and engage with clients. Ideagen to make fourth acquisition of 2023 Nottingham-based Ideagen are looking to strengthen the portfolio of solutions they offer to organizations in regulated and high compliance industries by entering into a definitive agreement to acquire San Francisco- headquartered DevonWay, a provider of compliance and operations management software to sectors such as energy and utilities, advanced manufacturing, nuclear power generation, and US national laboratories. Speaking about the news, Ideagen CEO Ben Dorks said: “The addition of DevonWay will provide us with a very exciting opportunity to strengthen solutions for those complex high-risk industries that may have to meet the requirements of multiple regulatory bodies. “Chris and the team have built a great solution and have supported a loyal customer base to transform how they manage their risk, quality, safety and compliance and we believe that together we can support its global growth.” DevonWay CEO, Chris Moustakas, said: “Joining Ideagen offers us the opportunity to scale at pace. We always knew that to take the business to the next level would require some form of investment. After running a highly competitive process over many months, Ideagen emerged as the clear choice.” © stock.adobe.com/ Kalim Ben Dorks, CEO of IdeagenAPPOINTMENTS High profile property development director joins BRM Solicitors Regional law firm BRM Solicitors has appointed a new director to its Real Estate team. Julie Carr joins from national law firm Knights, bringing with her extensive background in handling residential property development, guiding conditional contracts for purchasing and selling development land, and managing options and overage agreements. Julie also oversaw planning promotion agreements, joint ventures, and various collaborative arrangements, coordinating land assembly, and establishing development sites for plot sales. BRM’s 26-strong property team now includes nine directors and counts Woodall Group, Gleeson Homes, Reef Group and Global Brands among its clients. Adrian Sheehan, head of BRM’s Real Estate department, said: “The addition of a new director is a significant move for us and reflects our ambitious strategy for BRM’s Real Estate Department. Julie’s strong track record and breadth and depth of experience highly complement our growing residential developer client portfolio, whilst we provide her with a platform regionally and nationally.” East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk Criminal lawyer adds experience to Smith Partnership One of Derby’s most experienced criminal lawyers is looking forward to continuing to represent people in court after taking up a new position at East Midlands law firm Smith Partnership. Andy Cash, who has more than 42 years’ experience in the industry and is extremely well known in Derby’s legal circles, has joined the firm as a solicitor in its crime department. It is the latest staging post in a career which began in Devon in 1979, followed by Andy’s arrival in Derby, via a stint in Hong Kong, in 1986, when he joined city firm Eddowes Waldron, where he later became a partner. Ten years later he joined fellow city firm Nelsons as a partner and was most recently a director for Derby law firm Cartwright King, before taking up his new role at Smith Partnership. Andrew Oldroyd, partner of the firm and head of the crime department at Smith Partnership’s Derby office, said: “Andy is hugely experienced and has an excellent reputation locally, so naturally we are delighted to welcome him to Smith Partnership.” New senior recruit at Michael Cummins Employment Solicitors Specialist law firm Michael Cummins Employment Solicitors has welcomed Sarina Mahal as its new senior associate. The solicitor has joined the Leicestershire-based legal firm which provides employers with advice and representation on all aspects of employment law. Sarina started her career in HR at Boots and British Gypsum before training as a lawyer at Eversheds. Whilst with Eversheds Sutherland’s Employment Group, Sarina worked in Birmingham, London, Nottingham and Dubai. During her time with Eversheds, Sarina worked with partners and the wider teams to manage contentious, non-contentious and international matters for FTSE and Fortune 500 companies as well as start-ups and owner-managed businesses. The fitness enthusiast then enjoyed a short family career break with her husband and two young children before joining Michael Cummins Employment Solicitors. Sarina said: “I am privileged to be part of this exciting new collaborative team as it grows from strength to strength. Michael has a friendly and forward-thinking approach, and really does knows how to create a motivated environment, promoting true flexibility and autonomy.” L-R: Kevin McGrath, managing partner at Smith Partnership, with newly appointed crime solicitor Andy Cash and Andrew Oldroyd, partner of the firm and head of the crime department Adrian Sheehan and Julie Carr Michael Cummins and new senior associate Sarina Mahal New MD appointed at Alfreton-based PermaGroup Building products company, PermaGroup has appointed Duncan Kirkwood as its new Managing Director to spearhead the organisation’s ambitious growth plans. Collaborating alongside long-standing director, Adrian Buttress, Duncan brings with him more than 30 years of experience in the roofing and building products industry, having held senior positions at the likes of Marley Building Materials, Icopal Limited and most recently as MD of Carlisle Construction Materials. Duncan said: “I’ve known of PermaGroup for many years and have always admired the business and Adrian’s vision for it. For me, now is the perfect time to take on this new challenge at a business that I really believe in. “I just love roofing and have been passionate about it my entire career, but I’m equally excited to expand my knowledge to the other areas of the business including modular builds and fencing – I can see real opportunities to grow the group as a whole.” Duncan added: “With me being based in the south, I’ve got fantastic connections that can further expand PermaGroup’s presence down here and into London. Adrian and I already have ambitious plans that we can’t wait to action but for me, it starts internally. “Company culture is hugely important, and I’m eager to implement things that improve on what Adrian has already established across the group. Of course, no company growth can happen unless the employees and clients are brought on the journey too.” BDO strengthens Midlands forensics team with senior hire Accountancy and business advisory firm BDO LLP has strengthened its Midlands team with the appointment of Georgina Connor. Georgina joins the Forensics Services team as a director. She brings more than 20 years’ experience to the firm, with expertise in compliance, risks management, and forensic investigation, gained in both the UK and emerging markets. Her experience spans a wide range of industries, including government and healthcare sectors. At BDO, Georgina will focus on anti-bribery and corruption, fraud risk management, and investigation. She will also be supporting clients to manage their risks, including to design, build, implement and monitor related risk and compliance programmes. She is a chartered accountant and previously worked at PwC and GE Healthcare. Sannan Khan, partner and head of Forensic Investigation and Economic Crime Risk Management in the Midlands, said: “Georgina is a fantastic addition to our forensic services team, as we continue to attract some of the brightest talent in the sector - people who have an in-depth understanding of the challenges facing regional businesses and the skills and experience to help guide clients through the complex landscape that surrounds fraud, compliance and other risks.” www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link APPOINTMENTS Senior appointment at Pick Everard with new national director Bolstering its consultancy services nationwide, Pick Everard has appointed a new national director to its building services engineering team. Joining the independent property, construction, and infrastructure consultancy, Justin Neil brings 24 years of experience to his new role with a background in design and construction, including four years in Doha, Qatar, where he worked closely on its widely celebrated National Library. Justin’s responsibilities are to lead and develop an industry leading building services team, growing the 90– strong team nationally, and delivering a consultancy service fully aligned with the requirements of its clients. Talking about his new role, Justin said: “My varied career and experience abroad has given me a unique, all-round perspective that melds well with Pick Everard’s multi- disciplinary approach. Having worked on all sides of the construction spectrum – for contractors, clients, and consultants – I’m ideally situated to hit the ground running and drive forward our department.” Adrian Buttress and Duncan Kirkwood in front of the PermaGroup headquarters Justin Neil Georgina ConnorNext >