insideKENT Magazine Issue 64 - July 2017 | Page 170

BUSINESSNEWS
EXPANSION ON THE DRAWING BOARD FOR
DESIGN AND BUILD SPECIALIST DIRECTLINE
STRUCTURES
Katy Barker and Duncan Murray
with Lord Pendry
BETTER CONNECTED ASHFORD
After nearly 30 years in business,
Ashford design and build specialist
Directline Structures is gearing up
for further investment and
expansion.
Their innovative approach to
construction – bringing together
architect, engineer, project
manager and contractor into one
multi-disciplinary company –
enables the firm to deliver the
highest quality buildings while
saving clients around 25%
compared to the general market.
The future is looking bright for the company. A new generation is on
board with Katy Barker, daughter of founder and
managing director Duncan Murray, now a chartered architect and
director. An ambitious business plan is in place, with turnover targeted
to triple by 2019.
“We are fundamentally very different to our competition because we
are a ‘true’ design and build company,” said Duncan. “Our rivals who
are consultants don’t have the practical knowledge that we have, while
other contractors don’t have the design skills or qualifications. We really
do stand out from the crowd.”
BLUEWATER FASHIONS SUCCESS AS
MISSGUIDED MAKES ITS DEBUT
Land Securities has
announced that
Missguided, the global
fashion brand, opened
its first store outside of
London in June at
Bluewater, Europe’s
leading retail and
leisure destination.
Situated on Bluewater’s lower Rose Gallery, the 16,200 sq ft statement
store has been designed by Dalziel & Pow. Using the retail space as an
extension of Missguided’s online expression, stand-out permanent
fixtures and seasonal installations bring trends and campaigns to life.
Social media also plays an integral part of the experience, blurring the
lines between physical and digital whilst creating a two-way
conversation with the target customer, aged 16-35.
The store includes many ‘Instagrammable’ moments that reinforce
the ongoing #BabesofMissguided movement the brand has become
known for.
Designed to create a completely immersive brand experience whilst
browsing, the store has floor-to-ceiling digital screens on entrance and
above the cashier desk that display the most recent campaigns.
Russell Loveland, portfolio director at Land Securities, co-owner and
asset manager of Bluewater, said: “Missguided’s fast-paced approach
to retail and engaging their customers makes them a very exciting
addition to Bluewater. The anticipation surrounding the launch weekend
was very high and the store has already been a great hit with our guests.
Missguided’s decision to open a statement store at Bluewater as their
first step outside the capital is also a great endorsement of our position
as Europe’s leading retail and leisure destination.”
170
Bigger is better! Virgin Media brought a big red armchair to Ashford High Street to draw
attention to their launch of ultrafast broadband services. Cllr Gerry Clarkson, leader of Ashford
Borough Council (right), welcomes Neil Bartholomew, regional director for the South East
at Virgin Media, to the town
Ashford – long recognised as one of the best connected towns in the
South East thanks to its high speed rail services to London, Eurostar
links to Europe and speedy motorway access – will also soon boast
some of the fastest broadband access in the UK.
Virgin Media has announced that homes and businesses in
the Kent town will be next to benefit from an ultrafast broadband
and entertainment boost. As part of its Project Lightning
expansion, Virgin Media plans to extend its fibre optic network to up
to 108,000 homes and businesses across Kent.
This has the potential to transform the quality of broadband in a county
where the average download speed is just 18Mbps. Those who take
Virgin’s internet services will be connected to ultrafast broadband with
entry level download speeds of 100Mbps, and reaching up to 300Mbps
for residents and 350Mbps for small businesses.
Work has already begun in Ashford to connect up to 8,000 new premises
and is expected to be completed across Kent before the end of 2018.
Cllr Gerry Clarkson, leader of Ashford Borough Council, said: “A growing
town like Ashford needs the very best modern technology and we are
delighted Virgin Media has chosen our borough for such a significant
digital infrastructure investment which will mean we will have some
of the best broadband access in the country. This will make a big
difference for our residents and businesses, making it easier, faster and
more efficient to connect.
“We understand the significance of this type of broadband investment
and Ashford has been at the forefront of pushing the fibre agenda.”
As a result of Ashford Borough Council encouraging housing developers
to have meaningful conversations with broadband providers, around
15,000 new homes to be built in the borough in coming years will
benefit from fast broadband connections.
Backed by parent company Liberty Global, Virgin Media is investing
£3bn to extend its ultrafast fibre broadband network to an additional
four million premises, to reach a total of 17 million homes and
businesses.