#Exeter

EaRTH Cycles' 100th donation

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Mon, 03/16/2015 - 7:45am

A BICYCLE recycling and repair project based at Bicton College has reached a significant milestone, launching a new 'Bring Your Own Bike Night', aimed at training people to fix their own wheels.

Founded just over a year ago, EaRTH Cycles has been taking in unwanted bikes and refurbishing them, recently receiving their 100th bike donation.

As well as diverting waste from landfill, the project gives people a chance to learn bike maintenance through refurbishing the donated bikes.

Sam White, EaRTH Cycles Coordinator, said: "Our 100th bike donation is a real milestone...

Networking lessons...from Geese

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Sun, 03/15/2015 - 4:32pm

If you want to learn successful strategies for networking says SEAN HUMBY then you might be best looking to the skies for lessons.

Possibly because my father is an ardent twitcher and probably because of seeing geese so regularly whilst out and about I have always been fascinated by why so many birds fly in a V formation. What follows are my interpretations for business and for networking!

Goose fact 1 . As each goose flaps its wings it creates 71% more uplift for birds that are following, so by flying in formation the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than by...

Starting up a new business? Sid Gibson gives his advice

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Sun, 03/15/2015 - 1:02pm

Over half a million businesses starting up in the last twelve months create a challenge for anyone hoping to stand out and be successful by making their firm recognised and heard above bigger competitors.

The good news is that new and small businesses don’t have to spend unnecessary cash or be a big company to make a big impression.

Knowing what makes a strong and recognisable corporate identity which attracts customers (and identity isn’t just visual and ‘looking nice’) gives the power to get firms noticed and helps build a reputation. The right identity provides a...

Businesses and Devon's significant tourism industry

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Sun, 03/15/2015 - 12:01pm

Nick Agg-Manning, Managing Director of Outside Adventure Consultants Ltd, reveals how businesses in Devon can get the most out of the county's large tourism industry.

Chickens and eggs are excellent words for a magazine serving a county such as Devon, but in business terms…which came first: the chicken or the egg? Do businesses in Devon react to, and create, some of our tourism or does the amount of tourism we get, create businesses off the back of it?

Jurassic Coast; moorland and National Parks; rivers and beaches; castles and manors…yes, we have it all here in Devonshire...

Bishop Fleming apprentices promoted

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Sun, 03/15/2015 - 10:39am

Apprenticeships do work, say one of the region's fastest growing accountancy firms, as two of their office apprentices are promoted to senior members.

Bishop Fleming, with seven offices and 300 staff, believe they have proved the effectiveness of in-house training with Plymouth-based former apprentices, Kevin Connor and Daniel White, being appointed as senior managers.

Charlie Thomson, partner in charge of Bishop Fleming's Plymouth office, says: "As a firm, we take huge pride in ‘growing our own', as well as recruiting people from ‘the Big Four' accountancy firms.

"...

Damian Cook: Devon's Commercial Property Market

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Sun, 03/15/2015 - 10:16am

The first quarter of 2015 has seen improved confidence resulting in an increase in activity within the commercial property market throughout Devon. Exeter in particular is experiencing substantial growth and has become the South West’s most vibrant commercial hub.

Demand for both industrial and business space remains healthy with agents experiencing a shortage of current supply, which has not been helped with the lack of new development over the past seven years or so due to the challenging marketing conditions during the recession.

This will be eased with the future...

Adam Stone: Social media and your business

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Fri, 03/13/2015 - 1:22pm

We live at a time where thoughts zip around the world at the speed of light. A cataclysmic event or a compromising photo is instantly witnessed by millions of people in the blink of an eye. In so many ways the internet, not even a concept just a few years ago (the worldwide web was 25 last year!) has changed our lives in immeasurable ways and, I like to think, for the good.

To many, social media services such as Twitter and Facebook ARE the internet with the amount of active users on a day by day basis counting in the hundreds of millions and growing. For a lot of people from my...

Dairy farm introduces milking robots

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Fri, 03/13/2015 - 12:44pm

If Devon farmer Jon Williams' late father had been told his dairy herd would be milked by robots in 2015, he would have laughed disbelievingly. However, that is exactly what is happening at Higher Hampton Farm in Kilmington as 21st century technology hits the age-old occupation.

But it is Ben, Jon's eldest son and the third generation of the family to work on the farm, who has been the driving force behind this radical change to their livelihoods.

Since the 1970s, much research has gone into investigating methods to alleviate time management constraints in conventional...

24 hours with... Deborah Clark

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Fri, 03/13/2015 - 12:18pm

In 24 Hours With…we take a well-known local businessperson and ask where they go for lunch, spend their downtime and visit for inspiration or advice.

Former City lawyer Deborah Clark and husband Tony Orchard own Burgh Island in Bigbury-on-Sea and Southernhay House boutique hotel in Exeter. Here, Deborah tells us what the city has to offer:

FOR BUSINESS LUNCHES

Harry's Bar, situated in Exeter’s Northernhay Gardens, is the best place to get steak tartare. But ask for the DIY version, not the pre-mixed! It's also quiet, discrete and has excellent staff. You can watch...

My Office: Richard Stevens

Authored by AbiBram
Posted: Fri, 03/13/2015 - 11:32am

Richard Stevens, 47, is the managing director of Plymouth Citybus. He’s worked his way through the ranks since his first job as a bus driver in 1990.

He lives in Crownhill, Plymouth, and is married with two children.

Here, he gives Devon Life Business & Professional a tour of his office at Plymouth Citybus HQ in Milehouse:

1. Investors in People certificate of accreditation – Gold Standard

“We were presented with this last year and it makes me so proud. It’s the national standard of how you manage people as a business and to get the gold standard is a...

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