The organisation tasked with helping shape the economic future of the West of England is hoping to attract more businesswomen to join its board to go some way to address its major gender imbalance. Out of the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP) 18 board members, just two are women. Now, as the...
Wyke Farms, the UK’s largest independent cheese producer and exporter, is to double capacity at its Somerset production site after gaining planning permission. The firm, which has been making its award-winning cheddar to a secret family recipe for more than 150 years, has grown to become one of the largest family-owned cheese makers in...
Business leaders in Bath are being encouraged to enter one of the region’s top award schemes for recognising excellence and enterprise in the boardroom. The Institute of Directors’ (IoD) South West Director of the Year Awards 2019 champion outstanding leaders and entrepreneurs and focus UK-wide attention on success in the region. Over recent years the prestigious...
A flurry of new business won by its space division in December gave specialist IT and software group SCISYS a better-than-expected end to 2018, it said in a trading update today. The Chippenham-headquartered group landed a series of contract wins with an aggregate value of £23m during the month. That bolstered its order...
One of the Bath area’s oldest firms, Hawker Joinery, celebrates 100 years in business with a grand dinner and dance this evening. Attended by the Mayor of Bath, Cllr Patrick Anketell-Jones, the event takes place in the the Pump Room of the Roman Baths and will bring together 17 direct descendants of the founder...
Leaving the EU without a deal would be ‘devastating’ for the South West’s economy, hitting the region’s output by a staggering £13bn a year, the CBI warned this week. As Prime Minister Theresa May continues to refuse to rule out a ‘no deal’ Brexit if her deal is not approved by Parliament, business groups...
Sales and profits have both surged by 22% at Bath-based sex toy firm Lovehoney as it continues to shrug off the limp UK retail market and win legions of new fans in bedrooms across the globe. The firm, which styles itself as a sexual wellbeing online retailer, said the profit rise from £9m to...
The “overriding priority” for both the government and Parliament must be to avoid a no deal Brexit following this week’s overwhelming defeat of the Prime Minister’s deal, the region’s largest business organisation has said. Business West, which runs Bath Chamber of Commerce, said firms in the region now found themselves “facing the unwelcome prospect...
Nearly 40% of West of England business owners back a second Brexit referendum while just one in 10 is confident the government will secure a good deal for the UK, according to the region’s largest business survey. Worryingly, more than 40% of the senior managers and directors taking part did not know whether their...
An innovative scheme encouraging and supporting Bath scale-up businesses has been praised by industry experts as a role model for other parts of the country. The ScaleUp Institute, a company which aims to make the UK the best place in the world to develop a thriving business, said the West of England Growth...
