Tag Archives: Invest in Nottingham

May 29 2012

The Invest in Nottingham Club

As I intimated last weekend, I went to the Invest in Nottingham Club AGM last week. I’ll shorten the club to IINC…

The Club has grown significantly in the last couple of years. There are now 158 members (up a third) – and last year 23 events were held. I went to quite a few (and was at the heart of the MIPIM one!). The Club met with around 1200 people at these events in the year. That’s a good reach!

Of course it’s not all parties! The Club have become the organisation who can mobilise a group of people if the City get enquiries from companies looking to come to set up shop in Nottingham. In the year they helped with 149 enquiries. Sadly we didn’t land Standard Chartered or the Green Bank, but it wasn’t for lack of trying.

The club work alongside the Invest in Nottingham Team at the Council. And this is perhaps the way forward. As Public Finances continue to get squeezed it is going to fall to the private sector to help. I think we are at the start of that road. It takes time for the Council to get comfortable with getting into bed with the Private sector.

One of the big issues is that we often disagree with them (you already know I do!). But I see no reason to apologise for that. Paul Southby, Chairman of IINC put it succinctly – “we don’t have to agree with the Council all of the time, it’s healthy to have a debate. It is a part of a grown up relationship to disagree”.

So what about 2012/13? The club have set some goals – it still focusses on the growth points – Bio-Medical, Green technology and the digital and creative classes. But the key one for me is the City Centre. We must make sure that the City doesn’t slip further in retail tracings! But that’s a very big subject!

Mar 12 2012

Nottingham v Derby

As you will know if you read my blog, I was at MIPIM last week. As the organiser of Team Nottingham – and having been born here (and spent all of my working life here) it’s not difficult to see where my allegiances lie. But, my firm have a Derby office and we sponsor (as well as Team Nottingham) some of the Derby City presence.

Their day was Wednesday last week, with a breakfast and formal dinner. My firm paid for the latter. It was a smallish affair, 15 people, including the Chief Executive of the Council, Council Leader and a number of others.

There were some interesting discussions – civilised mostly – but heated in part.

The Leader of the Council, Philipa Hickson, challenged the room asking why none of us sought political office – it seems we snipe at those in such position, but rarely put ourselves forward. Fair point. Although I might suggest that of you can’t stand the heat perhaps you shouldn’t be in the kitchen.

There was then a challenge to Derby – asking why, despite the D2N2 LEP, the two cities didn’t work closer together more often. The example was that Nottingham had the Enterprise Zone and Derby had won some Regional Growth Fund monies – why didn’t the two Cities put that offer together and ‘market’ it to a wider audience.

Cllr Hickson response was whether Nottingham wanted to share in his RGF pot. He said that Nottingham had not let him forget that they had won the money. In the next breath he expressed his dismay at why Nottingham had been selected for the EZ, “Nottingham get more than their fair share”.

So my response to him about his earlier challenge was that his view of the EZ / RGF position was why I would’t do politics. This polarised view is something we don’t do in business.

In defence of him and his Council, I can see that they were seen in previous years as the ugly sister, but I don’t see this today. And I think that Nottingham and Derby do miss out by not working together. But don’t expect that to change anytime soon … unless the Leadership changes… And then perhaps the rivalry is so deep rooted that it will be generations before the two City’s collaborate.

Mar 5 2012

MIPIM 2012 – starting tomorrow

I can’t quite believe where the last 12 months went! It seems like 5 minutes since I was at MIPIM 2011. I also can’t quite believe that I was ‘elected’ to run Team Nottingham for the second year running. Next year I am not sure it is my turn again!

Team Nottingham are made up this year of 8 firms – Innes England (my firm), Gleeds, CPW, cpmg, Miller Birch, Geldards, Morgan Tucker and Rizc McCay.

And some of them are MIPIM ‘virgins’. I have been asked over the last couple of weeks for some helpful hints, so in the spirit of trying to be helpful…

1. Shoes – don’t wear new shoes. MIPIM is not the place to break them in. Your feet take a battering.

2. Sleep – get as much as you can – the days are long – breakfast meetings through to dinners. Bar Romma serve until everyone goes home (usually around 6am allegedly)

3. Water. You need to consume it as often as possible, together with caffeine. Alcohol is plentiful and it is not unusual for event staff to thrust champagne and bacon sandwiches at you before 9am. Liver damage is a hazard.

4. Sun and cold. In the last 8 years I have only seen sunshine, but the evenings get quite cold – so it’s quite easy to get a chill. A jumper is useful.

5. Money. It is eye-wateringly expensive. Beer is around 7 euros a bottle. We pay so they sell. Nothing is cheap in Cannes – if you are feeling really flush venture into the Louis Vuitton shop – where there are no prices…

6. Kebabs. It is possible to get canapé sickness. A real cure is a kebab – there are several shops that stay open ‘all hours’. This is highly nutritional and healthy food. And a welcome respite from this little scraps of food!

So that’s it really – a pretty easy week of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, meetings and networking events. And back home for a rest at the weekend!

Jan 26 2012

The internet – faster and faster … essential?

The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Autumn Statement the creation of a new £100 million Urban Broadband Fund (UBF) that will create up to ten super-connected cities across the UK with 80-100Mbps (megabits per second) broadband connectivity. That’s fast!

Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and up to six further cities are going to receive support from the fund over the next three years to deliver these speeds.

I think that the ability of super-fast broadband is going to become a critical feature of our cities of the future. It is incredible to think that the internet is just a few years old and that, back then, we survived on dial up lines. But today most businesses are 100% reliant on the internet; either to communicate with itself or its clients. Our ability to gain information is critical.

If Nottingham wants to remain competitive then it needs to be on this new backbone. We need to lobby Government that this is essential. We have a fantastic creative quarter, centred on Antenna. For that to continue to grow it needs, as we all do, to have the very fastest connections we can get. I do know that my friends at Invest in Nottingham are coordinating Nottingham’s efforts to secure this for us.

It is not difficult to see that this is the future. As the capacity increases, the use of file sharing / collaborative working and video conferencing will become more useful. There is not doubt that our world is getting faster, travel times and costs are getting worse, so that points to a newer method of communication.

We are starting to get enquiries from occupiers that now include broadband connectivity as part of their wish list. This super-fast connectivity would give us a competitive advantage…

Jan 5 2012

MIPIM 2012 – the planning starts now…

Actually this is not true. It started a couple of months ago. MIPIM is the world property show, held each year in Cannes.

For some reason, I seem to have ended up with the organisation again for Team Nottingham. It can’t be my turn next year!

I know I am getting old – MIPIM comes round with alarming regularity – it seems like five minutes since were there ‘on our own’ for the first time. You might recall that in the austere times we live in Nottingham City Council chose not to attend the show last year. The private sector paid for Lorraine Baggs from Invest in Nottingham to attend.

This year we have attracted another private sector sponsor – so the 8-strong team is now – Innes England, Gleeds, CPMG Architects, Couch Perry Wilkes, Miller Birch, Morgan Tucker, Geldards and Rizk McCay. The team is made up of teams who can make things happen in Nottingham – but we still need Lorraine Baggs and so we are paying for her representation again.

Last year there were 18,600 registered delegates from 90 Countries. But more importantly there were 4,000 Investors and Financial Institutions and 240 Corporate end-users. These are the people we are after!

For the first time, Low cost airline bmibaby has launched a special service from East Midlands Airport to Nice. The flight will depart from East Midlands Airport on 6th March 2012 and will arrive back on 9th March 2012. bmibaby is the only airline to offer flights to the MIPIM conference from East Midlands Airport.

We already have two events booked – a VIP Dinner and a drinks reception. We have more to do yet, but the foundations are set.

My personal belief is that Nottingham needs to be at the show. It not an option. We need to make sure we meet and greet potential investors in the City. This sort of investment doesn’t happen overnight. But not being there looks like we might be closed?

Sep 21 2011

Invest in Nottingham – go on!

On Monday Nottingham hosted another showcase event for potential investors. It was Invest in Nottingham day!

Last week at Downing Street a couple of our national clients commented on how good it was to see Nottingham promoting ourselves. One in particular, who does work in Bristol, suggested we were miles ahead of them. But that is no reason to pat ourselves on the back – we need to compete with other cities – Birmingham, Leeds and the like.

I was able to to attend two of the ‘events’ n the day – the lunch at Nottingham Trent University and (another) visit to Antenna.

The lunch, sponsored by Westfield, was really well attended and the keynote talk by David Greenaway, VC at the University of Nottingham was particularly well received. David is passionate about Nottingham – and outlined the impact the University has on the City. It has a turnover of £530m, but its economic impact is estimated to be £1bn each year. Their ground breaking work with the MRI scanner was mentioned (I learned for fly many years ago with Sir Peter Mansfield) but latterly there is much excitement about the new early cancer detection test. This is currently being trialled in the USA and the signs are apparently encouraging.

It was also apparent that our two Universities have a wider impact on the City. They contribute to the health and well-being of the place. They help in developing skills and adding to the arts and culture. Of course latterly they are making a global impact too – with the new campuses in Ningbo and Malaysia adding a student cohort of 8,500.

We still have some great stories to tell about Nottingham – but we mustn’t rest on our laurels. We have to keep pushing for the High Speed Two train and the widening of the A453. Our tram extension will be great news. The extensions of Broad Marsh and Victoria Centre will help too.

We have to keep these stories alive.

I was reminded of an old adage during the talks – it’s better to travel than to arrive. And this surely must be a moniker for us. Lets keep travelling… onwards and upwards!

Jun 23 2011

Invest in Nottingham – in London

I was in London last night – with my friends from Invest in Nottingham. It was another event to promote Nottingham – as a follow on to the work done at MIPIM back in March.

The event was held at the newly opened St Pancras Hotel. It’s very easy to get to – no taxi’s from the Station! Just a short walk down the platform. I had travelled with a number of fellow ‘promoters’ in First Class style – at a discount from East Midland Trains.

The new Hotel is an amazing annexe to the already brilliant St Pancras Station. The hotel is simply stunning – the train station isn’t bad either! The finishes are fantastic. These intertwined pieces of Victorian architecture really are jewels. They were built in an era of massive growth in the UK and they were very public trophies proudly displayed by their owners.

And that’s what we were doing on Wednesday; showing off Nottingham to a London crowd. It was all about meeting investors and promoting the City. We want people to put their money in our town. We need inward investment; there are competitors out there. But we have some great stories to tell. We are at the heart of the Midlands.

There were more than 120 guests, investors, end users and developers at the event, invited by the City’s business contacts. It was a very impressive turn out!

Capital Shopping Centres, Westfield, BioCity, our two first-class universities and our very strong professional sector were among those helping to extol the virtues of Nottingham as a great place to do business. Team Nottingham worked the floor hard!

I thought the whole event went well and hopefully this will turn into real enquiries for development or occupiers.

May 10 2011

Getting Nottingham noticed…

One of the key things about our visit to MIPIM each year is that is one of a number of ‘events’ which are carefully co-ordinated to make sure Nottingham is seen on a big stage. The City needs inward investment as we can’t just rely on home-grown talent (although that has a place too). It is critical we build on the contacts we make in Cannes – and elsewhere around the World.

Nottingham has now got the next three big inward investment events lined up.

The first is when we head off to London and descend on the fantastic newly re-opened St Pancras Hotel. This event, organised by the Invest in Nottingham Club, will be on 22nd June – and is already generating lots on interest. It gives us a chance to parade Nottingham in the Capital!

The second is the Tour De Nottingham on 8 July. This is the second such event and it gives Nottingham a chance to showcase the city’s regeneration areas and meet up with property professionals from across the UK. There is a 60 mile bike-ride to showcase Nottingham’s business opportunities and will culminate with a dinner hosted by key city business leaders and major private sector companies. Team Nottingham are sponsoring the lunch!

And then finally the date for this year’s Invest in Nottingham Day has now been confirmed as 19th September. This will be the third Invest in Nottingham Day the city has held, the event is now an official yearly date in the city’s business calendar. This day will be attended by business professionals looking to expand, move or relocate their business to a world class city.

My friends at Invest in Nottingham are arranging these days – and everyone in the business community should support them – as the saying goes, “treat all visitors as Angels – because you never know!”

Mar 8 2011

Team Nottingham at MIPIM – part one

Today is the first day of MIPIM 2011 – we travel from Birmingham airport to Nice on the Cote d’Azur as Team Nottingham.

Team Nottingham!

This is my seventh year of attending the property show in Cannes. 2011 will be very different from previous shows.

My view remains that is that this is the only property show in the world that gives us as a City such an amazing opportunity; we need to take advantage of the abundance of networking opportunities available to the team – and prove to the International property sector that Nottingham is a robust city that continues to offer opportunities for developers and investors. Even in spite of the cuts!

This is a no frills trip. The Yacht which has been our base for the last few years is simply out of our league. But my private sector friends and partners have raised £15,000 – which is paying for a Dinner tonight for 50 key influencers, potential investors, developers and friends – and then a drinks party for another 300 people tomorrow.

The team are also booked into numerous meetings, breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Whilst this all sounds rather grand I have always felt that it is easy to get ‘canape sickness’! If I was to write a ‘rough guide’ for the MIPIM Virgins (there are a few) it would be – sleep when you can, drink lots of coffee and water and wear very sensible shoes!

Our friends and partners on the trip are Geldards, Miller Birch, CPMG Architects, Nottingham Regeneration Ltd, Gleeds and Morgan Tucker. They are a great bunch of people who know how to network. But we will also be joined by Lorraine Baggs from the Invest in Nottingham team at the City Council. The private sector sponsors are paying for Lorraine to attend the show.

I will keep you posted on our progress…

I have also invited some of the Team to ‘guest blog’ – I’m not sure they are ready for the blogosphere yet – but I shall be harassing them – if only to give me a rest!

Jan 31 2011

MIPIM – the plan is set!

After much soul-searching we have reached a consensus agreement in Nottingham. After Nottingham City Council pulled out of the show last year we have managed to gather a group of like-minded private firms. Some are MIPIM die-hards, some virgins.

Team Nottingham 2011 will comprise:

Innes England
Gleeds – cost consultants
Morgan Tucker – engineers
CPMG – architects
Miller Birch – developers
Geldards – lawyers
Nottingham Regeneration Limited

We have all committed cash to create a brand (“Team Nottingham”) which will represent Nottingham on the world stage in March. We will be holding two events in Cannes – one a dinner for Investors, the other a less formal drinks reception. We have commissioned branding material for the event.

We have also offered to sponsor Invest in Nottingham to the extent of paying all the expenses for a key member of the IIN team to come out with us.

The real work is yet to be done to make sure we get the profile Nottingham deserves. We will be inviting key people to the events we have arranged in Cannes and we will hopefully be able to report on success stories in due course. As a team we are all optimistic about our chances. We are all very positive about our presence on the Cote D’Azur.

There has been much press interest in what we are doing – but I hope it will be seen as positive – unlike the rather negative coverage the City got last week in the Evening Post. Updated PR here from The Guardian though – more positive!

We are hopeful of keeping Nottingham on the world map! We are not really interested in the politics. There is quite a big picture here – which is about inward investment, jobs and wealth creation.

I will post updates here!