GOING FOR GROWTH
How does a business go for growth in 2023 ?
By Fiona Scott
Times are tough . There ’ s a cost-of-living crisis . Businesses are struggling with rising costs and the UK has only narrowly avoided a so-called technical recession .
In these times , we believe the best course of action is to proactively embrace and champion the positive .
With that in mind , we have been talking to some businesses in our patch of Swindon and Wiltshire for their tips , strategies and positive stories to encourage us all to embrace growth this year and beyond .
The Centre for Cities Report 2023 , which came out a few weeks ago , shows Swindon is performing well in many areas even if the national picture is rather grey .
This publication takes the temperature of major cities and towns across the UK . The overall theme of the report is that 2022 was a ‘ lost ’ year . Levelling up did not occur , the North and South divide seems wider than ever and the number of hidden unemployed increased significantly .
However , Swindon itself didn ’ t fare badly in the report .
It ’ s all about the people
For construction company Beard , with offices in Swindon , Oxford , Bristol and Guildford , it ’ s about a ‘ people first approach ’ both around its staff and around its valuable supply chain .
The company has recently been awarded a Gold accreditation from Investors In People for its family friendly approach and its commitment to the health and wellbeing of its large team . It ’ s also revealed its turnover has now reached £ 165 million with pre-tax profits of £ 3.5 million .
Neil Sherreard , Beard Deputy Chairman , said , “ It ’ s no secret that to be a successful business you first have to be a great place to work .
“ Our confidence comes from our reputation for construction excellence , our financial stability - complemented by a robust focus on cost , controls and safeguarding – and our people-first company ethos .
“ Our financial stability means we can set realistic growth and profit expectations over the next financial year and will allow us to continue to invest in areas of highest priority , including our people .
Keep an eye on the money
The town has seen population growth of 11.4 per cent between 2011 and 2021 rising to 233,700 . In the top ten cities or towns with rising populations , Swindon came 7th .
Its Gross Value Added ( GVA ) per hour is seen as good , and Swindon came 4th of the top ten cities or towns with strong productivity . London came 5th .
Swindon was also listed as 4th out of the top ten for the creation of private sector jobs , again ahead of London which came 7th .
The town dropped down to 57th though when it came to how many subscribers in the town had access to high-speed broadband .
Then came the Spring Budget . Chancellor Jeremy Hunt set out his industrial strategy which did not abolish the rise in corporation tax to 25 per cent for companies with profits of
“ This ethos extends to our supply chain . We are rooted in the areas where we operate and have 130 years of working relationships with customers , contractors and suppliers .
“ Beard takes these relationships seriously . We aim to support the local economy wherever possible , buying local services and materials .
“ We have long prided ourselves on being a prompt payer . In an industry where some contractors string out payments to beyond 90 days , Beard pays within just 28 – and continued to do so throughout the pandemic to ensure subcontractors received the income they desperately needed .
“ So while we fully expect the coming years to be more testing than most , we have confidence in our ability to overcome these challenges and emerge stronger in the process .”
For more info : www . beardconstruction . co . uk
more than £ 250,000 , yet pointed out that only ten per cent of companies will have to pay that substantial tax increase .
There was the new policy of full capital expensing for the next three years for companies investing in IT , plant or machinery , and the R & D credit for qualifying companies which devote 40 per cent more of their expenditure on innovation .
There was also another boost to the film , high value tv , animation and video game sector .
Changes to childcare support , alongside help for the over 50s to return to work through so-called ‘ returnships ’, are also seen as a positive for recruitment , which is an issue for several sectors across our patch . So , what can we learn from ambitious businesses about how to go for growth even if the overall business landscape is flat ?
“ It ' s no secret that to be a successful business you first have to be a great place to work ”
Another ongoing success story comes from IT company Mintivo based in Lacock . It has set a turnover target of £ 10 million on the next three years after doubling its size over the past 12 months . The team has increased from 15 to 29 and Mintivo sees people as being at the heart of its ambitions .
Managing Director Chris Gough expects another ten new staff to be joining by the end of 2023 .
“ We are winning at least one new customer each month so we need more quality people to join us . We ’ ve spent three years investing in policy , process and qualifications and now everything is in place to achieve a £ 10 million yearly turnover within the next three years " he said .
For more info : www . mintivo . co . uk
12 www . tbeswindonandwilts . co . uk