Confederation of British Industry (CBI) figures have highlighted that manufacturing production rose for the first time in two years in the three months to January, and now a billion-pound fund has been launched to keep the sector buoyed up.
Representatives for RBS/NatWest say the loans are being made available following feedback from customers in the industry who are anticipating growing demand for their products during 2010 and beyo... Continue Reading
The business sale story of the decade (so far) has ended in defeat for that sweetest of British institutions: Cadbury. After maintaining last month that it would not be swayed by a revised offer from US food giant Kraft, the confectioner's board advised shareholders to give in and accept the cheese manufacturer's proposal of 840 pence per share, valuing the company at £11.5 billion.
Attention in the Midlands – home to Ca... Continue Reading
Millions of sole traders in the UK are leaving their businesses vulnerable by not insuring against profit losses or the cost of replacing their "key person", it's been claimed. That's despite 77 per cent of sole traders who have a key person in their business admitting their enterprise wouldn't survive the loss of that individual.
Research from the Scottish Widows Business Protection Report reveals that around 2.6 mill... Continue Reading
Many of us dream about quitting the rat-race and setting ourselves up with a nice café, B&B or guesthouse business in a beautiful area. Well they don’t get much quainter than this – a luxury B&B, tearoom and restaurant in Ludlow.
When buying a business, it’s important to consider if the business you are buying is a success (is it making a profit? does it have a unique selling point?). The Elizabethan De Grey’s Townhouse is a... Continue Reading
The number of new businesses being set up around the world has fallen as a result of the recession, according to new figures from Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM).
The report shows that the number of start-ups was down by 10 per cent last year in 20 of the world’s wealthiest nations.
The UK came off relatively well with only a 6 per cent fall in new businesses being registered while the US saw a huge 24 per cent d... Continue Reading
Following our observations towards the end of last year that Blackpool had guest houses, self-catering apartments and hotels for sale to the tune of £72 million, despite a healthy tourism season, budget chain Travelodge has defied the recession and announced plans to invest £115 million in 26 new outlets this year.
You might remember that a surge in the over... Continue Reading
The saga continues in what must be one of the most gripping cases of a business for sale for some time. Now, after US food giant Kraft tempted Cadbury shareholders with more cash than that promised by its initial £10.2 billion bid, the British confectioner has written off the revised offer as "derisory".
In an attempt to sweeten its offer for Cadbury, Kraft - maker of Toblerone and Terry's Chocolate Orange - unveiled plans to s... Continue Reading
Statistics might show that 80 per cent of businesses affected by a major incident close down within 18 months, but nearly half of small firms still don't have plans in place to deal with the effects of flood or storm damage.
That's according to the British Insurance Brokers' Association (Biba), which is using its research to stir the government into action to help small companies survive incidents like a fire, a flood,... Continue Reading
Small firms in Wales are welcoming the news that their government will be giving them more help with their business rates from April. The Welsh Assembly Government says that, from then, companies with a rateable value up to £7,800 will qualify for a 25 per cent reduction in their rates through rate relief, replacing the previous threshold of £6,500.
The threshold for 50 per cent general relief will also increase, from a rateable va... Continue Reading
Fourteen outlets had already closed over the past few months, and now cafe and coffee kiosk operator Puccino's has officially thrown in the towel. That means another 29 units will stop trading immediately and 43 are being transferred to Puccino's Worldwide Ltd.
Before collapsing into adminstration, Puccino's shifted more than 5.5 million espresso shots every year, holding 80 outlets in the south-east alone. Its fall ma... Continue Reading
It looks like a Derby establishment could be joining the growing list of hotels for sale in the UK, as its owners confirm they've appointed an agent to look into the possibility of putting it on the market.
Midland Road's three-star Legacy Aston Court Hotel is the latest in a long line of potential Continue Reading
Businesses in London are more optimistic now about their prospects for 2010 than they've been in the last 18 months. So say pollsters from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and KPMG, who have unveiled the results of their latest survey of firms in the capital.
Most companies are still cautious about future investment, though, and they have their doubts about London's longer-term status as a world city. An overly b... Continue Reading
Small business owners have awaited the chancellor's pre-Budget report with bated breath and now Mr Darling has spoken. The main proposals you'll want to take away from his last such report before a general election include:
• A six-month extension of the £1.3 billion Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme for small firms – that takes it to September 2010. First unveiled in March, the scheme means guaranteed 75% loans to e... Continue Reading
Get set for a bloodbath on your local high street after Christmas: a retail bloodbath of the insolvency kind, that is.
This year's drop in spending, alongside rising unemployment, means there's another wave of administrations on the horizon, much like the one witnessed in the opening months of 2009.
You'll remember the slew of closures that saw British high streets say goodbye to Woolworths, the music outl... Continue Reading
Do you own a small business? Having problems raising finance? NatWest and RBS are here to help! And all through the launch of a new "SME customer charter".
The banks say they're aiming to boost support for their 1.2 million business banking customers with the charter, which promises to lower overdraft rates, make fees more transparent and extend free banking so more start-ups have a chance to establish themselves.
"... Continue Reading
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