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Rumpus inks deal with Printerland

Blog

Sam Whitear

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11/09/2018

Manchester-based PR agency, Rumpus, has been appointed by the UK’s largest independent printer reseller, Printerland, to help drive national brand awareness.

Managing media relations, Rumpus will focus on showcasing Printerland’s expertise across a range of diverse sectors, as well as promoting longstanding community and charity involvement.

Established in 1993, Printerland has grown rapidly to dominate the printer and consumables reselling market, now employing over 60 people at its head office in Altrincham. With turnover predicted to reach £50million in 2018, Printerland has ambitious growth plans and is prioritising innovation to remain ahead of the ever-evolving digital curve.

This partnership follows a period of strong growth at Rumpus and a complete brand overhaul.

James Kight, managing director of Printerland, said: “Customers are seeking out industry expertise and guidance on maximising budgets now more than ever, so it’s the perfect time to highlight the specialist, bespoke service we offer at Printerland.

“We were impressed by Rumpus’ experience in building national and industry brand awareness for its clients, and look forward to working alongside a local agency to take us to the next level.”

Gareth Clements, director of Rumpus, said: “With security and cost efficiency such hot topics in IT at the moment, Printerland has the required expertise to lead national conversations on progress and innovation.

“We look forward to working with such an ambitious team to position them at the forefront of such developments, building national brand awareness and reputation as we go.”

Foresight supports the partial buy-out of ABL Health with £2.5m investment

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Finance

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11/09/2018

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Foresight supports the partial buy-out of ABL Health with £2.5m investment

Foresight Group has invested £2.5 million to support the partial buy-out of Bolton-based community healthcare and wellbeing provider ABL Health Limited.

ABL is a provider of community healthcare and wellbeing services across the North of England. The company was founded in 2009 by Denise Leslie and Dr Sheena Bedi, as a means of providing a range of innovative, evidence based, healthy lifestyle, behavioural change and wellbeing programmes including weight management, nutrition support and smoking cessation.

The business has helped approximately 12,000 clients record weight loss in the North West region, mainly in Manchester, St Helens, Wigan and Blackpool, and over 5,000 clients have significantly improved their mental health. On the Wirral, over 3,000 people have stopped smoking as a direct response to the ABL program in the last two years.

Considered one of the regional market leaders in clinically-led, healthcare in the community programmes, ABL operates from its own premises on Redgate Way, Farnworth, Bolton, within the grounds of the Royal Bolton Hospital as well as satellite offices in Manchester, Stockport, the Wirral, St Helens and Hull.

Denise Leslie will continue to lead the business as CEO, with Dr Bedi becoming a non-executive director to provide strategic clinical input. Denise will be supported by a strong second tier management team and a staff base of almost 200. To help drive the growth in the business Foresight has introduced Chris Jessop as Chairman, who has held senior leadership roles in Optima Health, Nuffield Wellbeing, BUPA and AXA PPP.

Foresight’s equity investment, which was supported by a debt package from Barclays, will help with the Company’s geographic expansion, whilst widening its service offering across both the public and private sectors. ABL will continue to focus on the end results of its programmes and on delivering care to the community.

Matthew Pomroy, Investment Manager, Foresight commented: “Foresight is delighted to support ABL, a company that prides itself on its social impact within local communities. We are looking forward to working with Denise and the management team in supporting the company in achieving its growth objectives.”

Denise Leslie, CEO & co-Founder, ABL, commented: “We are excited to have partnered with Foresight and look forward to achieving the next stage of growth in the UK. Foresight has experience in the healthcare sector and have a strong reputation of growing SMEs in the North-West.”

New Graphene Business Bounces out of The University of Manchester

Sam Whitear

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11/09/2018

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New Graphene Business Bounces out of The University of Manchester

Grafine Ltd is a new business created to develop innovative high-performance rubbers, elastomers and other such soft materials enhanced with graphene – the extraordinary 2-dimensional material first produced in Manchester.

The business was founded by two University of Manchester academics, Dr Maria Iliut and Dr Aravind Vijayaraghavan. Both founders are world experts in graphene, and its use in making rubbers and elastomers stronger and more durable.

Grafine Ltd will be based at The University of Manchester’s Innovation Centre on Grafton Street and will use the University’s world-class facilities including the brand-new Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) for its product development work.

Grafine is offering a range of technical development services to manufacturing companies from around the world who wish to profit from the performance benefits that graphene can add to their products.

Elastomers and rubbers are used world over in products such as tyres, shoes, gloves, industrial components, construction materials, coatings and medical devices. The global market size for rubber and elastomer products is forecast to be more than £70 billion by 2021.

Grafine Ltd is looking to exploit the potential of this massive global market and has already excited interest from global manufacturers of elastomer and rubber products. Grafine is currently negotiating development contracts with such companies.

Dr. Vijayaraghavan, who has been at the forefront of research into graphene for more than a decade, said: “We are very excited to launch Grafine Ltd because we have the specialist skills and know-how to help global manufacturing companies use new 2-dimensional materials like graphene effectively and cheaply.’

He continued: “Businesses in many sectors are continually striving to improve the properties of elastomeric compounds in order to enhance product performance in both existing and new applications. Graphene can further enhance the already excellent properties of rubber and elastomers by improving their strength, elasticity, flexibility, thermal stability, resistance to chemicals and durability. With the support of Grafine Ltd, manufacturing companies will be able to give product designers even greater flexibility when they create new products.

“By working with Grafine Ltd, manufactures will be able to accelerate the speed with which they can bring these new elastomer composites to market while reducing risk and lowering cost”.

Dr. Iliut, the academic co-founder and Chief Technical Officer of Grafine, added: “Our business, Grafine Ltd, offers a range of consultancy services to companies wishing to exploit the benefits that these nano-materials can bring to their elastomeric products and coatings. Grafine will also sign commercial deals to license its know-how and patents allowing knowledge and technology transfer to its industrial customers.”

The University’s wholly owned subsidiary, Graphene Enabled Systems Ltd, has supported the academic founders and, with assistance from UMI3 Ltd (the University’s IP commercialisation company), created Grafine Ltd.

Its CEO, Andrew Wilkinson, who represents the University on the Grafine Ltd board, is very optimistic about Grafine’s future: “Grafine offers manufacturers the skills and know-how in graphene-enhanced elastomer and rubber composites and coatings that would take them decades to develop in-house. As the company builds its customer base and grows we predict it will have a major impact on the use of 2-dimensional materials in the global rubber and elastomer market.”

‘Fresh’ recruitment drive to create jobs in Greater Manchester

Blog

Sam Whitear

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10/09/2018

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‘Fresh’ recruitment drive to create jobs in Greater Manchester

An Oldham-based business specialising in IT services will create new jobs in Greater Manchester following a strategic recruitment drive.

DCS is one of the UK’s most experienced business system providers – delivering Sage and SAP software solutions to SMEs for more than two decades.

The 50-strong company, which has 16 employees based at its office in Hollinwood, has teamed up with Lancashire BIBA Award finalists Fresh Perspective Resourcing to assist them with expanding their workforce – a project that will double the current number of team members in Greater Manchester over the next 18-24 months.

“We are pleased to be in an economic position where we can expand our team based in Oldham and build upon the strong working foundation we already have in place,” said Dominic Ball, Managing Director at DCS, who recently acquired the company along with business partner Richard Stathers.

“To ensure we find the right people for the consultancy and account manager roles we are looking to fill, it was crucial to work with the right recruitment business. I initially became aware of Fresh Perspective through social media and discovered they had experience of working with other companies in our sector; their industry knowledge and positivity really impressed me.”

Fresh Perspective Resourcing, based in Chorley, is run by sisters Laura and Emily Leyland. Together, they are committed to revolutionising recruitment across the North West – saving their clients up to 50 percent by only billing for the time spent searching for ideal candidates, rather than charging traditional placement fees.

“We are thrilled to be working with DCS and excited to start the search for amazing candidates!” said Fresh Founder and Managing Director Laura, aged 34.

“Emily and I are relatively new in business, so it’s exciting to be working with Dominic and Richard, who are also in the process of building a great company which is contributing positively to the Northern Powerhouse by investing in skills and innovation.”

For Dominic, aged 42, and Operations Director Richard, aged 38, the emphasis is on finding candidates who are a cultural fit for DCS – a professional challenge they are more than happy to entrust to Fresh Perspective.

“My experience of traditional recruitment agencies is that it is very transactional,” added Dominic. “What Fresh Perspective offer is something different, something fresh – genuinely living up to their name.

‘Laura and Emily took the time to get to know Richard and I as people, and to understand the ethos of our business. They get it that the people we are looking to recruit need to be a cultural match; it isn’t just about their competency and professional experience.”

DCS are confident that their recruitment drive will be a success in Greater Manchester’s thriving economic region.

“The North West has a great talent pool within our industry, but we’re not the only business looking to recruit from that pool,” explained Dominic. “Working with Fresh Perspective, we want to become the leading name in our catchment area and attract that talent to us.”

Chris Marsh joins Datacentreplus as a Brand Ambassador

Appointments

Sam Whitear

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10/09/2018

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Manchester-based hosting company Datacentreplus are delighted to announce that leading technology and digital sector figure Chris Marsh joins us as a brand ambassador.

Chris will assist us in developing strategic partnerships with businesses in and around Manchester and the North West, whilst supporting client’s growth strategies and making introductions.

Chris has extensive knowledge and experience of this sector, having previously worked for several well-known technology companies as a senior figure in business development and promotion.

Datacentreplus is an independent data centre and hosting provider based near MediaCityUK in Manchester which provides cloud hosting and other data centre solutions. The company is founded on the ethos of providing superlative customer service and is currently experiencing rapid growth, particularly in the digital agency sector, who appreciate its unique personal service aspect.

Chris Marsh, said: “I know Manchester and I know its people and digital community. I understand the creative and digital industry and I am excited to be working with the team at Datacentreplus to continue to develop these relationships.

“Working with Datacentreplus is a fantastic opportunity to work with an emerging player with so much potential. It is an exciting time for the technology sector in Manchester and Datacentreplus is set to play a big role in being part of this.”

Mashukul Hoque, Datacentreplus, CEO said: “We are delighted that someone of Chris’ calibre will be working with us. His involvement and experience in the digital and technology sector will really help to establish us as the one of the leading hosting companies in the North.”

Velvet donates 5% of its pride takings to LGBT foundation

Blog

Sam Whitear

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10/09/2018

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Velvet donates 5% of its pride takings to LGBT foundation

After an incredible weekend of non-stop pride celebrations last week, Canal Street’s Velvet Hotel, Bar & Restaurant has opted to keep the positivity going by donating 5% of its weekend takings to LGBT Foundation.

Following a successful three days, the business has donated £4,600, the equivalent of 5% of its overall weekend takings, to LGBT Foundation in Manchester, a charity which delivers lifesaving advice, support and information services to LGBT communities.

Over the weekend Velvet, which is perfectly located at the heart of Canal Street, saw a host of fantastic DJs and outdoor entertainment during the pride festivities. Highlights included sets from DJ E.M.A with Trumpet Fiesta and DJ Sandro Valentino.

Another big success was the bottomless prosecco brunch. Due to overwhelming demand Velvet’s restaurant Mr. White’s English Chophouse will re-introduce the offer of one brunch dish and unlimited prosecco every Saturday starting from October. The two course traditional Sunday lunch will also have the option to add bottomless prosecco, and the venue is set to introduce a DJ from 1-7pm, with booking strongly advised to avoid disappointment.

Kim Eivind Krohn, owner of KRO Hospitality, said: “We have had the most amazing weekend with spectacular DJ Sandro Valentino, DJ Keef, DJ Sean, DJ E.M.A, Trumpet Fiesta, DJ Jason Jeffery and DJ Jamie Bull, who all made the perfect vibe for the celebration. Manchester Pride is one of the biggest events for raising awareness of issues that affect the LGBT+ community and we are happy to be playing a role in this ongoing campaign.

“We’d like to thank everyone who came down to the party and all the Velvet crew who worked so hard to make this event such a positive experience. Hopefully it has left an even greater impact with the news that the money generated will make a positive impact in the community we’ve been celebrating.”

Paul Martin OBE, CEO of LGBT Foundation, said: “On behalf of everyone at LGBT Foundation, I would like to say a big thank you to Velvet for the wonderful donation. This act of kindness will help us to continue the life-saving work our team carries out day in, day out, ensuring that we are here when people need us.”

Stephen Donnelly, General Manager of Velvet, said: “What a great weekend we had. I am so incredibly proud of my team here at Velvet. The atmosphere was just amazing. We had some extremely talented DJ’s performing and from September, most of them will return to perform at our regular DJ sets every Friday and Saturday night. In October we will also be introducing Chilled Sundays with DJ’s on from 1pm, so we have many more exciting days and night ahead.”

Sharks and AJ Bell unveil ‘Snow-Camp Stand’ ahead of first home game of the season

Blog

Sam Whitear

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10/09/2018

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Sharks and AJ Bell unveil ‘Snow-Camp Stand’ ahead of first home game of the season

Premiership Rugby side Sale Sharks has announced that the North Stand at its home ground will be renamed as the ‘Snow-Camp Stand’ this season in support of a national youth charity.

Ahead of the club’s first home game of the season this Sunday against Worcester, the new stand was unveiled at a special ceremony in partnership with the club’s principal sponsors, AJ Bell, which recently announced an official partnership with the charity.

Snow-Camp operates programmes across the UK, helping to improve the lives of 13 to 21-year-olds through skiing, snowboarding, life skills training, qualifications and work experience.

Sale Sharks Commercial Director, Mark Cueto, said: “Snow-Camp is a fantastic charity that really engages young people across the UK and we’re delighted to be helping them raise their profile this season with the renaming of our North Stand.

“Our principal sponsor, AJ Bell, recently announced its support for the charity so this is a natural extension of that relationship and we recognise how important this kind of support can be.

“We hope this move helps even more young people find out about the charity and go on to build their skills and confidence.”

The Snow-Camp charity in conjunction with AJ Bell, launched its debut North West programme – First Tracks – at Chill Factore near the Trafford Centre last month when a group of 30 local young people took to the slopes alongside the charity’s ambassadors – Chemmy Alcott, Britain’s most successful skier, and Emily Sarsfield, a Team GB Winter Olympics star.

“I have been a Patron for Snow-Camp for over ten years and I am so proud to see how the charity has developed and grown into the national charity it is today,” said Snow-Camp Patron and four-times Winter Olympian and BBC presenter, Chemmy Alcott.

“To have the Snow-Camp Stand at the AJ Bell Stadium is fantastic and I hope it will encourage many more people and companies in the area to support the charity.”

AJ Bell’s Marketing Director, Billy Mackay, added: “Snow-Camp’s programmes will be a great asset to youth groups in the North West, and we are delighted to help Snow-Camp extend their reach in this area.

“We are also pleased that we can help spread awareness of the charity’s great work by renaming the North Stand at the AJ Bell Stadium as the Snow-Camp Stand.”

BDO Manchester welcomes 13 new trainees

Appointments

Sam Whitear

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07/09/2018

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Accountancy and advisory firm BDO LLP expands its 200-strong workforce in Manchester by welcoming 13 new trainees to the fir. A further 5 trainees are confirmed to join BDO in December.

The new trainees will sit within tax, audit, advisory and the business services and outsourcing streams throughout the firm’s office.

Alongside their relevant professional qualification, trainees will get the opportunity to work towards a Level 7 accountancy or taxation professional apprenticeship, equivalent to a master’s degree.

Ed Dwan, Partner and Head of the North West at BDO, commented: “Welcoming our new intake of trainees is one of the highlights of the year at BDO. It is fantastic to see so many fresh faces and support the next generation of accountants and advisers.

“We place great emphasis on the personalities, skills and drive of our colleagues rather than focusing on their background or education, so I am proud to announce that BDO is offering an increased number of apprenticeships this year compared to last, as well as more graduate roles.

“As the business landscape changes and technology continues to disrupt the way we work, now more than ever we focus on attracting trainees with commercial acumen and the personal skills required to offer the best service to our clients and to ensure we stand out from the competition.”

To attract the most ambitious and talented millennials, BDO also hosted its annual intern and summer school programmes. This year the firm welcomed 38 A-Level students on its Summer School Programme, with 39 undergraduates also joining on an Internship Programme, spending six weeks gaining invaluable experiences of the real world of work and a taste of BDO life.

BDO is also calling on the government to make changes that support and encourage the number of quality apprenticeships. In particular, the firm would like to see reform of the Ofsted assessment system for schools and colleges to track the number and quality of apprenticeship places secured by their students. Tracking progress of students to higher-level apprenticeships should sit alongside the numbers of those who have gone onto university.

Repair specialist on the hunt for neglected landmarks in need of restoration

Blog

Sam Whitear

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07/09/2018

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Repair specialist on the hunt for neglected landmarks in need of restoration

A specialist finishing and repair firm wants to breathe new life into run down landmarks across the UK.

Plastic Surgeon, the UK’s leading surface repair experts, is calling on the public to nominate cracked iconic statues, stained public artworks and tired local monuments desperate for renovation.

Their nationwide ‘Community Restoration Project’ campaign not only wants to restore a forgotten landmark somewhere in the UK, but forgotten civic pride too.

Gary Danson, Operations Director for Plastic Surgeon, said: “It’s a campaign inspired by an undertaking of ours in North Shields, which saw us restore a statue of Stan Laurel marking the fact he grew up within the area.”

“After 30 years of neglect and exposure to the elements, it was looking in a very sorry state until we stepped in and rectified the wear and tear. The feedback we received following its restoration was great, while it also seemed to create a sense of restored civic pride alongside the actual restoration itself, hence the concept of community restoration. It was this that inspired us to try and replicate the enthusiasm for the results of our repair work elsewhere.”

Suggestions will be shortlisted nationwide, and a popular vote will decide the winner.

Entries should explain why the installation is important to the community and why it is worthy of restoration, to whip up public support.

But the Community Restoration Project won’t be able to tackle something like a sprawling mansion.

Gary said: “While we’d love to restore every suggestion that’s put forward, unfortunately, resource won’t allow it. So, we’re looking to whittle it down to a worthy ‘winner’. Put simply, whichever entry gets the most votes, will be the one that we repair.”

Plastic Surgeon is no stranger to the weird and wacky too.

As the ‘rhino repair squad’ of Paignton Zoo’s Great Big Rhinos conservation fundraising project, they repaired life-sized rhino sculptures scattered across Torbay.

Gary said: “Our company ethos, given the fact we advocate repair over replacement, is centred on sustainability and corporate social responsibility. The local community is important to us and this is an approach we’re looking to extend to a wider audience. As a business that has a national reach, our ‘local’ community technically stretches the length of the UK and beyond.”

Entries will not be accepted after 28 September.

Gary said: “We’re really looking forward to seeing what comes to light and, hopefully, we’ll find a statue, public art installation or whatever it happens to be, that’s close to the heart of its community, allowing us to help promote some civic pride while also restoring a potential eyesore to its former splendour.”

Wilson Cooke celebrate trio of new hires

Appointments

Sam Whitear

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06/09/2018

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Wilson Cooke celebrate trio of new hires

Bury, following the expansion of its portfolio, integrated marketing agency Wilson Cooke has created three new positions to help coordinate key service deliveries.

Group Account Director, Kathryn Brown, formerly of BJL and McCann Manchester has been brought on board to help develop existing client relationships.

Lee Lambourne, previously of Western Union International Bank, will lead on new business opportunities as Business Development Director.

Digital Outreach Executive, Cain Wilkes, has joined Wilson Cooke to help deliver a brand new social media and outreach offering for both existing and new clients.

Commenting on the new additions, Wilson Cooke managing director Mark Law, commented: “This is a really exciting time for Wilson Cooke as we look to compliment our already amazing team with a number of key hires.

Kathryn, Lee and Cain bring a raft of experience in their respective fields and will be key drivers to the next phase of our growth as a result driven integrated agency and will help deliver huge value to our amazing clients.”

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