AUGUST 2017EAST MIDLANDS LEADING BUSINESS E-MAGPRINTING &PACKAGINGReturn to senderSUPPLY CHAINMANAGEMENTthe middle manACCOUNTANCYREVIEWBalancing the bookswww.blmgroup.co.ukWWW.EASTMIDLANDSBUSINESSLINK.CO.UKWWW.EASTMIDLANDSBUSINESSLINK.CO.UKFRESHTHINKINGFRESHTHINKINGSunday 6 August 2017River Trent, Victoria EmbankmentAct now!Form a crew and enter the challenge!Tel 01780 470718www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/nottinghamBoat sponsorship opportunities available! StaoB 6yaydanunSuopihsrosnops 2tsusguuAseitinutroppo 7102!elbaliavavs wwwwontAcviRS eftaobnogard.w8710leTeercramrmoFo!wciV,tnerTrev6yaydanunSu on/ku.oc.slavitse1707408tretnednawenabmEairotc2tsusguuA mahgnitto81egnellahchehthtnemkn7102 !e g g www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 3EDITOR’S NOTESHow fares the East Midlands against this current politicaland economic climate? Well, it’s a mixed bag. Althoughuncertainty is permeating into nigh on every sector – acrossour region and nationally – the East Mids remains resoluteand on the up. As explored in this month’s commercial property feature,the market is bucking the national trend, though roadblocksremain. New investments are stimulating the regionaleconomy, with Bombardier winning a near £900 billioncontract to build trains at its Derby plant. Elsewhere, East Midlands Airport haspledged £250 million to improve railway links to its nearest station. This shouldkeep us fed and watered until HS2 moves beyond a concept and into reality. Thefinal route, recently unveiled by Government, looks great on paper, what with itsEast Midlands hub on the way up to Leeds, but we all wait with baited breath forthe next announcement.So here we are, already in August with the bulk of the year behind us. It isn’tall that far until Christmas, which means businesses will have already organisedtheir yuletide shindigs. The importance of booking early forms the backbone ofour corporate events feature, with the rest singing the praises of wining anddining clients and customers, new, lapsed and long-standing. Our printing and packaging spotlight shines a light on one of the fastestgrowing sectors. Inched along by sustainability issues, the rise in e-commerceand disruptive technologies such as 3D printing, this industry is forever on theprecipice of the cutting edge. We’ve also got a supply chain management featurewhich extols the virtues of improving efficiency, and what increased automationmeans for business.Although our exposés explore the region from all angles, our monthly newsround-ups put into perspective the concerns, achievements and developmentstaking place across the East Mids. Add to that our events spread and executivemotoring pages nd you’ve got everything you need, in one place. Michael FisherEditorClear Waters?ContentsAugust 2017LATEST NEWS 6The latest news from around the regionDEALS NEWS 8The latest news from the dealmakers around the regionAPPOINTMENTS 10East Midlands on the moveMANUFACTURING NEWS12News and views from around the regionACCOUNTANCY REVIEW14An accountant may not work for your company, but there arefew who want you to succeed more than they. Choosing the rightone can be a difficult process, however – and many smallbusinesses put far too little thought into it• Duncan & ToplisBUSINESS SCENE 18BioCity is the UK’s leading bioscience incubator, providing theconditions that sustain more than 80 fast-growing businessesCOMMERCIAL PROPERTY20The East Midlands’ commercial property market is going againstthe national norm with robust demand from occupiers andbusinesses moving into high quality industrial space, butchallenges remainQ&A - SALLY SWANN 24JLT SpecialtyDRAGON BOAT RACE26This year’s Nottingham Riverside Dragon Boat Challenge has soldout with a waiting list and you can watch the 44 teams battling itout in spectacular four boat races on the River Trent on Sunday6th AugustPRINTING & PACKAGING 28E-commerce has led to an upsurge in packaging waste, but theindustry is responding with more sustainable alternatives thatsave on space and transport costs but remain big on impactQ&A - ANN BHATTI 32Connect Derby ManagerBUSINESS SCENE35Midlands property professionals collaborate post-MIPIMSUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT36Supply chain management is an aspect many companies turn towhen it comes to cutting costs. As a non-profit generating, butnecessary, part of a business’s operation, it’s imperative that itworks at peak efficiencyPUBLIC RELATIONS40Regular columnist Greg Simpson of Press for Attention discussesthe latest hot topic in PRBUSINESS SCENE43Streets Golf Day secures hole in one for Air AmbulanceCORPORATE EVENTS44The Christmas party is a time honoured practice, but that doesn’tmean businesses are beholden to traditionalAUTOLINK48The car industry is constantly innovating –probably just as wellgiven that one minute we’re all told to buy diesels becausethey’re better for the environment, only to be told a few yearsdown the line that we shouldn’tTAX52Making Tax Digital – Where are we now? Michael Ball, StreetsChartered AccountantsEVENTS54If you haven’t yet signed up for the Nottingham Riverside FestivalDragon Boat Challenge - now’s your chance…OUT OF OFFICE56Sustainability awards, charity dinners and trentbarton busesAND FINALLY...5920Group EditorSteve Fishers.fisher@blmgroup.co.ukEditorMichael Fisherm.fisher@blmgroup.co.ukJournalistsDominic Cuthbertd.cuthbert@blmgroup.co.ukStuart Pearcey s.pearcey@blmgroup.co.ukSales DirectorAngela Coopera.cooper@blmgroup.co.ukTel: (01472) 310310Accounts & SubscriptionsAngela Sharmanaccounts@blmgroup.co.ukTel: (01472) 310301 Fax: (01472) 310311Design & ProductionGary Jorgensen, Mark Cassonstudio@blmgroup.co.ukTel: (01472) 310304Fax: (01472) 310314E-Mail:eastmidlands@blmgroup.co.ukPublisherHaychart Ltd, t/a Business Link Magazine Group,Armstrong House, Armstrong Street, Grimsby, N.E. Lincs., DN31 2QE.All rights reserved. No part of this publicationmay be reproduced, transmitted, photocopied,recorded or otherwise without expresspermission of the copyright holder, for whichapplication should be addressed first to thepublisher. While every reasonable care is taken,neither the publisher nor its participating agentsaccept liability for loss or damage to prints,colour transparencies, negatives or othermaterial of whatever nature submitted to thispublication. The views expressed in thispublication are not necessarily the views of thoseheld by the publisher.@BLMEastMidlandsBLMEastMidlandsCOVER PHOTOS: • shutterstock.com - 06Photo • garry l • Jason Batterham • simplyday • gualtiero boffiEast Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk6£250m Midlands Engine Investment suffers set backsThe £250m Midlands Engine Investment Fund, aimed at boosting the region’s economy and supporting thegrowth ambitions of 780,000 smaller businesses within the region, announced in the March 2016 Budget, hassuffered set backs.The hold up is said to be due to issues with the procurement process and midlands engine bosses learned thatthe money will not be available until early August now – and that only 60% will be distributed to businesses.Maria Machancoses, Programme Director, Midlands Engine, explains: “There has been an unfortunate delay in thelaunch of the Midlands Engine Investment Fund due to some issues identified by the British Business Bank (BBB) inthe procurement process for awarding contracts for the Equity and Proof-of-Concept funds. BBB are confident thesefunds will now be launched in the Autumn, with 60% of the total fund made up of debt and small business funds tobe open for investment in early August.“The Midlands Engine Investment Fund is aimed at boosting the region’s economy and supporting the growthambitions of the 780,000 smaller businesses within the region and as such is an important aspect of the Midlands Engine Partnership.We will work closely with BBB to ensure its successful delivery.”The Fund is a joint agreement between the British Business Bank and eleven Local Enterprise Partnerships across the Midlands. It isdesigned to bring forward legacy funding from existing programmes, new funding from the British Business Bank and new Europeanfunding.Global surveyfinds boomingbusinessoptimism underthreat fromgrowing skillsshortageRising optimism amongst both East Midlands and global businesses ispotentially under threat due to growing fears over workforce skills,according to the findings of new regional and global studies by businessand financial adviser Grant Thornton UK LLP.New findings from Grant Thornton’s International Business Report(IBR), has revealed that while global business optimism is rising to newquarterly highs, a storm may be brewing in the shape of a skilled workershortage.The IBR is a long-running global survey of 2,500 businesses in 36economies. The most recent study finds that global business optimismhas hit an all-time quarterly high of +51% in the second quarter of thisyear – marking five consecutive quarters of increases.However, the IBR finds that increases in revenue and profitabilityexpectations are being tempered by growing fears over workforce skillswhich could impact confidence around the world.The percentage of businesses which identify a lack of skilled workersas a constraint has increased globally to just over one in three (35%),according to the IBR – its equal highest quarterly level ever. In the UK,30% of businesses identified a lack of skilled workers as a constraint togrowth.And in a recent Grant Thornton survey of the East Midlands’ mostprofitable businesses this apparent worldwide battle for talent is alsobeing felt on a local level, with more than half (56%) believing theregion’s talent pool is lacking, with a short supply of individuals with theskills and qualifications they need.LATEST NEWSBoots signs ten yearalliance with FrenchcompanyFrench company Fareva has signed a 10 year deal withBoots’ parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance forthe “manufacture and supply of own beauty brands andprivate label products, including products for sale in theUSA”.A statement says: “The proposed agreement willcreate a partnership to provide Walgreens Boots Alliancewith a core multinational manufacturing anddevelopment resource, enabling the company toaccelerate its global product strategy.“Under the terms of the offer, Fareva will takeownership of BCM, Walgreens Boots Alliance’s contractmanufacturing business, which operates factories in theUK, France and Germany.”Fareva manufactures in 11 countries, including theUSA.The proposed agreement, which is subject to WorksCouncil consultation and regulatory approval, isexpected to be completed by the end of 2017.University poised to set up £5minnovation hubA multi-million pound centre to foster and accelerate the nextgeneration of innovators and innovations is being established in the cityby the University of Leicester.The Leicester Innovation Hub, a £5.1m dedicated creative incubationand innovation space, is being part-funded by the European RegionalDevelopment Fund, and will provide an easy to find ‘front door’ to theUniversity’s innovation support, expertise and facilities.In addition, qualifying SMEs in Leicester and Leicestershire andgraduates interested in starting technology businesses, will also benefitfrom a range of free or heavily subsidised innovation support offered bythe University from now until March 2020.The new Leicester Innovation Hub, based on the junction of RegentRoad and University Road and on Salisbury Road, will be fully operationalfrom September next year and in the interim will be operating out of 7-9Salisbury Road from August 2017.Businesses interested in finding out more can contact Ms AnjuuTrevedi: anjuu.trevedi@le.ac.ukDerby now one of the UK’s top10 economiesDerby is now fastest growing city economy in the East Midlands, andone of the UK’s top ten, according to a new report, benefitting from thecity’s exposure to international markets.The UK Powerhouse report, which is produced with the Centre forEconomics and Business Research (Cebr), provides a quarterly estimateof GVA and job creation within 45 UK cities 12 months ahead of theGovernment’s official figures.The report, which is published this month, found that Derby’s economygrew by 2.3% in the 12 months to Q1 2017, placing it 10th in the UK, theonly Midlands Engine city to rank.Looking ahead to 2027, the report currently says Derby will have thefastest growing city economy across the East Midlands over the nextdecade with GVA increasing by 15.1%. Nottingham’s economy isexpected to grow by 14.7% and Leicester’s economy predicted to be12.9% larger by Q1 2027.7www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link Widespread anger asGovernment announce£30bn rail line forLondon, just days afterpulling plug on EastMidlands electrificationEast Midlands Business leaders, who questionedthe logic of the government’s decision to pulling theplug on East Midlands rail electrification plans, appearto be justified as the home secretary announces planstoday to back another London scheme at a cost of£30bn.East Midlands businesses have long felt that railwaypassengers outside London and the South East are“poor cousins” and the decision to pump £30m intoanother London scheme, just days after dropping thebombshell on extending rail electrification plans northof Kettering, speaks volumes.Commenting on the news, David Ralph, ChiefExecutive of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership,told East Midlands Business Link: “Whilst we’dsupport the decision to further develop the £30million CrossRail 2 programme, announcing this justafter cancelling crucial parts of the Midland Main Line(MML) electrification seems to reaffirm the London-centric nature of current Government policy. “The new MML proposal would create an‘electrification gap’ of 70 miles, with improvementsstopping at Kettering and resuming at Clay Cross.This is illogical and relies on the use of bi-mode trainson the section without electrification, an under-developed technology. This is not the kind of longterm vision we need, one which provides certaintyover infrastructure; changes which will allowtraditional rail to interface with high-speed rail,providing a super connected network linking the greatcities of the Midlands and the North.”The government insist that so called bi-mode trainsare the way forward and announced yesterday thatMr Grayling and Mr Khan had agreed the need for anew infrastructure in the capital, as well as a fundingpackage which “works for both London and the restof the country”.SHUTTERSTOCK.COM/ PITCHRRubbing salt in the wound - Grayling’s twitter postRefresco swoops on Cotts Beverages in deal worth €1.1 billionKegworth-based Cott Beverages, which bottles drinks such as Old Jamaica ginger beer and Ben ShawsDandelion & Burdock in the East Midlands, has sold its bottling activities to European rival Refresco in a dealworth use 1.25 bn (equal to EUR 1.1 billion.)Refresco is an independent bottler of soft drinks and fruit juices for retailers and A-brands with production inBenelux, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, the UK and the USThe transaction includes Cott’s North America, UK and Mexico businesses.Cotts is a business with healthy margins and strong free cash flow; 2016 revenues of USD 1.7 billion, adjustedEBITDA of USD 136.5 million and customer relationships with over 500 leading retailers.Hans Roelofs, Refresco’s CEO, said: “We are excited to welcome Cott Beverages to the Refresco family. Wehave been focused on growing our platform in both North America and Europe and this transaction is asignificant enhancement to our buy and build strategy which will provide Refresco with enlarged scale, synergies,and savings alongside Refresco’s manufacturing footprint, geographic diversity, product range and customerservice.”He added: “We will now have a well-balanced portfolio with exposure to all categories for retailers in NorthAmerica and Europe in addition to a scale contract manufacturing footprint throughout these geographies fromwhich to continue to grow both organically and by pursuing our buy and build strategy.”East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk8Smith Cooper gets top ten ranking in three Experian M&AActivity League TablesSmith Cooper have once again secured a top ten ranking in the Midlandsregion of Experian’s M&A Activity League Tables for H1 2017, being in 9thposition by deal volume. However, it has also broken into the top 10 in twoadditional regions, ranking 8th in both the North East and Northern Ireland. Thisplaces Midlands-based Smith Cooper in the top 10 in three of Experian’s 12regions.The Experian M&A review revealed that, while M&A deal volumes in the UKfell by 14.4% in H1 2017 compared to the same period in 2016, deal values haveincreased. The drop in volume is mainly due to the decline in mid-market deals, deals at the smaller end of the spectrum actually increasing.The Midlands reflected this national trend, with deal volumes decreasing 15% in H1 2017, albeit the drop in volume was utterly overshadowed by a100% increase in deal values to £8.8bn; this was largely due to the £3.7bn acquisition of Booker Group PLC by Tesco PLC, which ranked 7th in thetop ten UK deals.Smith Cooper’s Corporate Finance division continues to experience strong deal flow, completing no less than 13 deals in just Q1 2017 alone. Thesedeals include the MBI of Alca Fasteners, the acquisition of Ultrasound Direct by The Fertility Partnership, the MBO of Evac+Chair International, andthe sales of WFF (York) to a food retail group, and Adshead Ratcliffe & Co to a US group.Smith Cooper have facilitated further growth in corporate finance activity by the recent appointments of Chris Campbell and Nicola Whiting. Headof Corporate Finance, John Farnsworth commented “Our financial year to March 2017 was a record year for deal volumes in Smith Cooper’sCorporate Finance division – we chalked up 28 deals, against a tally of 25 in each of 2015 and 2016. It was pleasing to see this recognised by SmithCooper winning both the Insider SME Deal of the Year and SME Advisory Team of the Year awards last year, but more gratifying still to see that ourteam is sustaining that activity – a ranking inside the top ten in both the Midlands and further afield is testimony to the quality of our work and thegrowing strength of the Smith Cooper brand.”East Mids ready meals company prepares forfloatBakkavor, the East Mids food company that counts the likes of Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, Tesco and Sainsbury’s onits clients list, is readying itself for a stock market float that city pundits think could value it at between £1.5- £2bn.The pizza and ready meal supplier which generated pre-tax profits of £63.1m last year from revenues of £1.76bn, isrun by two Icelandic brothers Lydur and Agust Gudmundsson 31 years ago and appointed Rothschild to examine itsoptions in January, and has now brought in advisers from HSBC and Morgan Stanley.The, company which employs 16,500 people in the UK, has also drafted in bankers from Barclays, Citigroup, Rabobankand the stockbroker Peel Hunt to help manage the share sale, says city sources.Known as the “Bakka Brothers” and among Iceland’s most well-known entrepreneurs, the two brothers have turnedthe company from a fish processor into a food supplying giant that employs more than 18,000 staff.However, expansion has not been straightforward as the brothers have had to overcome a number of hurdles andcontroversies. First there was the financial crisis, which saw Iceland’s banking system go into meltdown then the firmwere forced into a debt-for-equity swap in 2010 that shrank their stake in the firm.The brothers teamed up with American hedge fund Baupost last year to take back control and there was furthercontroversy earlier this year, when the firm revealed it planned to close its Welcome Foods factory in Huthwaite, puttingsome 300 jobs at risk.Elsewhere, the company continues to expand with their Newark operation looking to recruit 370 staff and its HolbeachSt Marks operation looking for 100 more.DEALSM&A activity betweenUS and UK up over80% by value in oneyearThe value of M&A deals between the US and the UKincreased from US $20,104 million in the first half of2016, to $36,605 million this year, according to thelatest US/UK M&A Deal Monitor from Deloitte.The value of acquisitions from the UK into the USwas $28,891 million, nearly seven times the $4,194million reached in the first half of 2016. However, thevalue of US acquisitions into the UK has halved from$15,910 million to $7,714 million in H1 of this year.Cahal Dowds, partner and vice-chairman of DeloitteUK, comments: “M&A between the US and the UK isone of the largest deal corridors by value and remainsrobust despite momentum from continuinguncertainties.“This year has seen a divergence between the twocountries. While UK M&A activity into the US is up,investment from US dealmakers here has fallen.Uncertainties over regulatory change, the taxenvironment and the terms of the UK’s exit from theEuropean Union are factors likely to have impacted onUS acquisitions in the UK.”The volume of deals in both directions remainedsteady, dipping slightly from 376 deals in the first halfof 2016, to 371 this year. By sector, the number ofdeals in technology, media and telecom (TMT) is thelargest. Since Deloitte’s Deal Monitor launched in Q3 of2015, there have been 246 TMT deals from USacquirers in the UK, with another 152 from UK buyersin the US.Cahal Dowds continues: “The rate of growth intechnology will continue to drive M&A across theUS/UK deal corridor, as well as lead many businessesto be reclassified as TMT ones.“Overall, there are currently more buyers for fewerbusinesses. High valuations are being driven by thisfierce competition for assets, combined with a beliefthat M&A is a primary strategy for growth, and nolonger second best to organic growth.”9www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link Howes Percival acquiresNorthampton niche insolvency firmHowes Percival istargeting further nationalexpansion of itsinsolvency teamfollowing the acquisitionof Summers Nigh Law,and the recruitment ofMichael Green,Weightman’s formerNational Head ofRestructuring/Insolvency.Summers Nigh Law isa niche insolvency firmwith a significant numberof local and nationalclients in thedevelopment &construction,manufacturing,technology, automotive, food & drink, agriculture and education sectors.Summers Nigh Law’s two partners, Katie Summers and Deborah Nigh, together withtheir five support staff have transferred to Howes Percival’s nationally recognisedinsolvency team. Katie and Deborah have joined Howes Percival as partners.Michael Green joins Howes Percival from Weightmans’ London office where he headedthe Disputes Team in London and was National Head of Restructuring/Insolvency. Michaelhas over 20 years’ experience of dealing with large complex commercial disputes and alsosits as a part-time Judge on the South East Circuit and as a Chancery Judge in London.The latest expansion follows a period of sustained investment and growth for the firmas a whole, and Howes Percival’s insolvency practice specifically. In recent years, the firmhas opened new offices in Cambridge, Manchester and Milton Keynes and seen partnernumbers grow from 28 to 43.In 2014, corporate and personal insolvency expert, Carl Mifflin was recruited fromShakespeares to establish a new insolvency practice in the East Midlands. Carl now headsup the insolvency team nationally.In addition to acting for insolvency practitioners nationally, Howes Percival’s insolvencyteam acts on a variety of disputes for two Government departments. Led by Alison Kirbyand Morris Peacock, the firm is contracted to HMRC to act on civil fraud and insolvencyrelated work and The Insolvency Service.Earlier this year, Howes Percival significantly extended its Government work, when inconsortium with PwC, Holman Fenwick Willan LLP and Sharpe Pritchard LLP it wasselected to the Crown Commercial Services General Legal Services Panel for CentralGovernment as a Tier 1 Provider.Geraint Davies, Partner and Head of Dispute Resolution and Litigation at Howes Percivalcommented; “At Howes Percival, we’ve always had a strong reputation for insolvencywork. Over the last three years we have strengthened our offering, investing in new officesand locations as well as broadening our expertise with some significant hires.”L-R: Katie Summers, Carl Mifflin, Michael Green,Geraint Davies, Deborah Nigh Next >