Business

PSG expands South West operations

Market leading national conveyancing search provider PSG is set to expand its South West operations.

From Friday 27 February, operations will move from the St Judes based office to a larger bespoke office based in Estover. The move will allow the Plymouth franchisee PSG branch to bring improvements to the services it provides clients as well as being able to hold in-house events and training.

PSG is involved in more than 1 in 5 residential property transactions and specialises in property searches and related products for conveyancing solicitors across England and Wales....

Exeter Chiefs commit to Exeter Pounds

The Exeter Chiefs have given their backing to a new local currency due to launch in the city this September. One of the largest independent businesses in Exeter, the Premiership rugby club has committed to become part of Exeter Pound. Not only will an image from Sandy Park feature on a special £E15 note issued to mark the Rugby World Cup arriving in the city, but the Chiefs have also pledged accept the Exeter Pounds and will look to spend them with their suppliers. The currency will be launched in September before the tournament comes to the city in a bid to encourage people to support...

Exeter BID: One week to go

With just one week to go until the Exeter Business Improvement District (BID) ballot closes, voters are urged to use their votes and look to a better future for Exeter.

Members of the Exeter BID steering group feel that Exeter must remain competitive and make sure it does not lose business to competing cities, online retail and newly proposed developments such as Junction 27. The steering group feel that in order for Exeter to become a destination fit for the 21st century they need to ensure that money is spent on projects that will generate a positive return.

The Exeter...

Women urged to switch on for business success

Authored by Mary Youlden
Posted: Fri, 02/20/2015 - 10:30am

A Government-backed initiative has launched in Devon and Somerset to encourage women business leaders and female entrepreneurs to adopt digital technology to grow their businesses.

The LOVE Digital project, part of the ‘Get up to Speed’ support programme designed to help businesses and communities across Devon and Somerset improve their computer and technology skills, aims to empower women-led businesses and women thinking of starting a business. It is hoped greater use of technology will help create more female entrepreneurs to close the current gap between men and women when it...

Crowdcube expands its team

Crowdcube, the world’s largest equity crowdfunding platform, has continued the strategic expansion of its senior team with the appointment of Dean Mayer as Head of Debt and Stuart Nicol as Growth Director.

Dean will develop Crowdcube’s new debt business, including its increasingly popular mini-bond offering. Stuart will lead the growth of Crowdcube through initiatives that include attracting more institutional and public funds to invest in businesses alongside the crowd. Stuart's new role sees him moving from being a Non-Executive to an Executive Director on the Board.

Dean...

National Portrait Gallery chooses WiFi SPARK for upgrade

The world-renowned National Portrait Gallery in London has upgraded its public WiFi system to allow visitors easy speedy access, with the help of Devon-based WiFi SPARK.

WiFi SPARK, which has provided the SPARK® managed service, is a major player in the competitive market of public access WiFi. The National Portrait Gallery has just gone live with the new free access system, which will allow visitors to log in by simply entering a few details about themselves.

Visitors also have a choice to opt in to receive the gallery’s enewsletter. Future login options using Facebook or...

Food allergy training for businesses

Allergy Aware Kitchen is holding its “Food Allergy Awareness & EU Food Allergen Law” training course at Colliton Barton Training Centre, in Honiton near Exeter, on Thursday 12th March in order to help local businesses in Devon meet the new government legislation.

Allergy Aware Kitchen is the number one food allergy training provider and is the only food allergy training course to be supported by Allergy UK, the largest allergy charity in the UK.

The Food Information Regulations EU1169/2011 came into force on the 13th December 2014. The new law applies to all types of...

Exeter firm secures £1.7m grant

Authored by Gill Vosper
Posted: Fri, 02/13/2015 - 7:50am

Exeter based Ashwoods Automotive Ltd has today been advised it has been conditionally awarded a grant of £1.17m from the Government’s Regional Growth Fund (RGF) to develop a new manufacturing facility. The new facility will be located in Devon and is expected to create 51 new jobs over three years.

Commenting for Ashwoods Automotive, Mark Roberts, Managing Director said: “This is really excellent news for the company. We’ve experienced a tenfold growth since 2009 and the new grant will ensure we can keep pace with the increasing demand for our products which includes Lightfoot® –...

Exeter office workers shun 9 to 5

Three quarters of Exeter professionals (75%) are required to work outside of their regular office hours more than they were five years ago, according to a recent research from Regus, the world’s largest provider of flexible workspace. The survey canvassed the opinions of over 3,000 business people in the UK on their attitudes and approaches to work.

A similar proportion of the Exeter workers surveyed (72%) say that fixed hours are no longer suited to their duties; perhaps offering some explanation as to why so much extra time is spent at the office. 57% also reported a rise in...

Get up to speed with digital mega trends events

Businesses in the South West can get hands on practical advice about social media, working with the ‘cloud’, understanding analytics and the benefits of utilising other digital technologies at two separate events taking place in February. Specialist Business support services from Superfast Business, The Digital Marketplace, Heart of the South West Business Support and Get up to Speed, all delivered by Peninsula Enterprise, have joined forces to deliver Technology Mega Trends 2015.

Taking place in Barnstaple on Tuesday 24 February and Exeter on Thursday 26 February, business owners...

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