CONTENTS
THE TEAM
Editor & Founder Anita Jaynes anita @ tbesw . co . uk 01793 847966
Editorial Support Ben Carey press @ tbesw . co . uk
Special Features Fiona Scott Fiona @ fionascott . co . uk
Design Juicy Designs www . juicy-designs . co . uk
Artwork Studio Creative Services www . studio-cs . co . uk
Printed by Acorn Press www . acornpress . co . uk
Advertising Sales Sian Swift Business Development Manager Sian @ tbesw . co . uk T : 07710 566 145
Follow us on Social @ TBESW The Business Exchange South West tbeswindonandwilts businessexchangesw
© The Business Exchange South West Limited 2020 . Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that adverts and articles appear correctly , The Business Exchange South West Limited cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage caused directly or indirectly by the contents of this publication . The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of its publisher or editor . All rights reserved . This publication is copyrighted and no part of this publication may be used or reproduced without the written permission of The Business Exchange South West Limited .
KEY STATISTICS
Readership : 15,000 Our audience :
56 % business owner / director level 44 % partner , manager or senior executive
04
Disruptive tech from Wiltshire set to revolutionise plastics industry
REGULARS
04 Business News 10 SWLEP 13 Finance 17 Creative Thinking 32 Commercial Property 40 Connect
EDITOR ’ S NOTE
As I reflect on 2020 I feel a whole host of emotions , from grieving for a year ‘ lost ’, to being thankful that my business has survived it . Forever the optimist , I want to concentrate on the positive things this year has brought us and the highlights of our year at The Business Exchange . Highlight 1 : A heightened sense of community . In the depths of lockdown , our ‘ Lift-off from Lockdown ’ series connected 100s of people and businesses and helped us all to feel a sense of togetherness whilst apart . We tackled everything from where to get PPE and financial support , to agile working and mental health . Highlight 2 : Being ‘ in this together ’ helped us to forge even stronger relationships . Highlight 3 : Pivoting through lockdown . We were delighted that we could find a
10
The Growth Hub : Reborn for Regrowth
FEATURES
20
08 New Year , New Hope 31 It ’ s all about the people
The Techies 2020 Top tech teams celebrated - Lockdown didn ’ t stop us
way to continue to print and serve our readers through lockdown . We posted 10,000 magazines free of charge to people ’ s homes and gave them a reason to escape from their screens . It was fantastic to read all of the thank you messages as they came in on social and by email . Highlight 4 : Continuing to grow our business and readership . In the early months of lockdown we saw a 360 per cent increase in our web traffic and a rush of sign-ups to our newsletters , which we stepped up in the depths of the crisis . We ’ ve also attracted over 20 new advertisers this year . Highlight 5 : This one is still to come ! I can ’ t wait to host Reward , our award scheme recognising the amazing work of our region ’ s charities and not-for-profits in 2020 ( read page 36 to find out more ).
This edition concentrates on further
More news at : www . tbeswindonandwilts . co . uk and www . tbebathandsomerset . co . uk
28
In Profile Hugh Anderson , Downton Distillery
PEOPLE
36
30 10 Minutes With ... Polly Rathbone Ward
39 John Davies , Is it me ?
2020 ’ s Not-for-Profit Stars Revealed Reward finalists announced
positives found in this challenging year . Read our ‘ New Year , New Hope ’ feature on pages 8-9 and find out how lockdown didn ’ t stop us celebrating the best in Swindon & Wiltshire Tech at the Techies Awards 2020 – see pages 20-24 .
A HUGE thank you to everyone who ’ s supported The Business Exchange this year . I wish you a merry Christmas . Roll on 2021 !
Anita Jaynes E : anita @ tbesw . co . uk T : 01793 847966
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2020 3