The South West’s small firms are the least confident in the UK about their prospects for this year as they continue to struggle against the state of the economy, high labour costs and the lack of available staff. Worryingly, one in five say they may have to cut their workforce to stay in business...
The South West office of growth finance group invested nearly £70m in small and mid-sized businesses in 2023, taking its total for the past three years to £190m. The long-term investor, which makes initial investments of between £1m to £20m for a minority equity stake, said it backed businesses across a wide range of...
The Bath area’s disused coal mines, which have been sealed up for more than 50 years, could be repurposed to supply clean energy to around 100,000 homes across the region. A major study will look at bringing many of the area’s 100-plus collieries back to life by harnessing their potential as sites for heat...
Private equity and investment firm Maven Capital Partners has strengthened its presence in the region to support its delivery of the £200m South West Investment Fund (SWIF). Launched last July by the British Business Bank, WIF aims to boost the supply of finance to small and medium-sized businesses across the South West. Maven manages...
The brewery behind some of Bath’s best-loved beers has installed hundreds more solar panels on its roof to harness as much renewable energy as possible for production. Bath Ales’ Hare Brewery at Warmley will now be able to generate an additional 230,511kWh electricity a year by adding the 608 new panels to its existing 892...
Defence manufacturer Avon Protection has secured its second multi-million pound deal in as many weeks with an order from US military chiefs for its state-of-the-art helmets. The Melksham-based group, which specialises in protective gear, masks and breathing equipment for the military and first-responder markets, is to supply the US Defense Logistics Agency with another...
Nine in 10 mid-sized firms based in the South West shrugged off the national economic gloom last year to achieve their forecasted growth, according to a new survey. Now nearly a third plan to launch new products or services to continue to expand this year, despite challenges linked to the ongoing cost of living...
Pre-Christmas sales at iconic Somerset-based fashion business Mulberry tumbled by more than 8% as the cost of living crisis forced shoppers to cut back on luxury spending. Mulberry, best known for its top-of-the-range handbags, also blamed what it described as “challenging macro-economic backdrop” for the sales decline. The firm, which has manufacturing sites at...
Defence manufacturer Avon Protection has landed a multi-million euro order to sell specialist breathing gear for divers to the German navy. Under the deal, precise details of which have not been disclosed, the Melksham-based group will supply its multi-role rebreathers and ongoing technical support. Avon Protection, which specialises in protective gear, masks and breathing...
Staff wellbeing will go under the spotlight at a business breakfast in Bath next month, with a panel featuring two of the city’s most successful entrepreneurs. The event, on 9 February, is being staged by Bath BID in partnership with Bath Forum. It is the first in a quarterly series linked to popular topics from...
