Scottish Businessbe down for Re Design & Development

Just a quick message to say we will be temporary down for re design and development of the website. In due course will have it back up and running! Sorry for that but we should have a much better site for the future.

Thus confirms recommendation to accept C&W’s takeover offer

TELECOMS business Thus last night said it had recommended that shareholders accept Cable & Wireless’ 180p-a-share takeover offer, knocking its share price down a penny to 179p.

London-based C&W confirmed earlier this week that it owned or had acceptances fromthe owners of 78.5 per cent of Thus stock. The Glasgow-based firm yesterday said in response that it acknowledged risks in being a minority shareholder, given C&W’s intention to de-list the firm, and recommended that the remaining shareholders sell up.

British Polythene Industries (BPI) revealed a rise in sales to £265.9 million from £226m in the six months to 30 June, sending its shares up 1.8 per cent to 230p. The rise came despite BPI admitting it had taken a hit from higher costs of raw materials.

Scotia’s Laundry Business effected by Smoking Ban

PEOPLE dry cleaning their clothes less frequently because of a lack of smoke in pubs and restaurants has contributed to the downfall of one of Scotland’s leading independent dry cleaning and laundry firms, with the loss of 17 jobs.

Scotia Laundry Services has fallen into administration following a downturn in trading in the wake of the smoking ban, coupled with hikes in fuel and energy costs to run its machinery and vehicles.

A further 91 jobs are still at risk, but administrator Tenon Recovery said it was confident it would find a buyer for the remainder of the business.

A total of four outlets have already closed in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Whitburn, while the remaining 15 are still trading.

Ian Fraser, administrator for Tenon, said: “Dry cleaning businesses have suffered over the last couple of years following the introduction of the smoking ban. Customers are not finding their clothes smell of smoke after one wearing and that side of the business has definitely taken a hit from this.”

He said he was unable to comment on how much Scotia’s turnover had dropped since the ban was introduced in March 2006.

Fraser added that fuel prices, for both its large-scale machinery and delivery vans, had escalated, while increased competition from large chains and supermarket dry cleaning businesses had also hit business.

He said: “They are a big commercial laundry company, so they go through a large amount of fuel every week. A combination of all of these factors meant they just could not go on any longer.”

As well as the dry cleaning arm of the business, Scotia, launched in 1992, has six sites providing industrial-scale laundry facilities for corporate clients, including hotels and ferry operators.

John Lewis says No to Job Cuts!

The chairman of the John Lewis Partnership today ruled out job cuts at the group this year to weather the current squeeze on the high street.

John Lewis, which owns the department store chain and supermarket Waitrose, is owned by its 69,000 staff or “partners”.

Last week it emerged that bitter rival Marks & Spencer is slashing its redundancy terms for staff, which unions fear is a precursor to possible job losses.

But John Lewis chairman Charlie Mayfield told Personnel Today: “There will be no job cuts. We are a business, we believe in pursuing a long-term approach to growing the business – we’re not into making knee-jerk cuts in staff costs just to protect short-term profit.”

Mr Mayfield highlighted the differences between the partnership and other listed companies which are accountable to its shareholders.

“Our ownership structure is key here, because we’re owned by our partners (employees), they want us to take a long-term not a short-term approach. Our structure means that at these times we might take a different approach to some other businesses,” he added.

In March, staff shared a record bonus pot of £181 million – with payouts equivalent to more than ten weeks salary – after the partnership posted profits of £379.8 million in the year to January 26.

But John Lewis has fared less well in more challenging retail conditions since then, with the company’s home and furnishings department under most pressure due to the declining property market.

While Mr Mayfield ruled out job cuts, he added that the group needed to cut back on spending to get through the tough trading period. He told the magazine: “We’ll certainly tighten up on costs, we’re not recruiting any people right now.”

Although he denied a full recruitment freeze, he added: “We’re not recruiting many people – only absolutely where necessary.”

Any potential redundancies at John Lewis would have to be approved by the partnership board, which has five elected members representing the wider staff.

The partnership governing system is based on principles laid down by John Spedan Lewis, the son of the original founder, in 1919.

He wanted a business able to make quick commercial decisions while representing the interests of workers, and giving them a share in the profits.

Hoy is the Pride of Scotland with a home coming welcome

TENS of thousands of well- wishers thronged the streets of Edinburgh yesterday as Scotland’s Olympic heroes returned home in triumph. Waving from an open-topped bus, the four Scots medallists – Chris Hoy, David Florence, Katherine Grainger and Ross Edgar – appeared shocked by the scale of the celebrations.

With the Royal Mile taken over by a sea of people – estimated to be 50,000 strong by the City of Edinburgh Council – it fell to triple gold winner Hoy to best sum up the experience. “For someone in a minority sport, to go from virtual obscurity to this is amazing,” the cyclist said.

As far as their cheerleaders were concerned, however, Scotland’s Olympians could not be congratulated enough. Whether crowded in shop doorways, waving from second-floor office windows or sitting high on postboxes, the people of Edinburgh felt compelled to turn up and show their adulation.

“They have made the whole country proud to be Scottish by what they did in China,” said Ben Reid, 31, a trainee teacher. “Athletes put in years of training for a single event, so it’s only right people get off their backsides and wish them all the best.”

Nicola Sturgeon, the deputy first minister, spoke of passing Lothian Road in the capital recently and seeing a giant poster of Hoy, with the words “King of Scotland” beneath. “Nobody in Scotland would disagree with that,” she said.

She chose not to repeat the SNP’s calls for a separate Scottish Olympic team, instead insisting the entire nation should use the “Beijing bounce” to encourage future generations. She went on: “Their success was achieved in China, a country where Eric Liddell devoted much of his life.

“Each of these athletes are fitting successors. The Scottish Government’s overriding priority is to see an increase in sporting participation throughout Scotland. The success of our four medallists can only be a major influence on our young people and help inspire the heroes of tomorrow.”

Louise Martin, the Sportscotland chairwoman, said: “The achievements of the four Scottish medallists will hopefully inspire and motivate our young people to take part in sport and physical activity and engender the belief that they, too, can succeed.”

George Grubb, Edinburgh’s Lord Provost, congratulated Hoy, in particular, and said he could rightly be hailed as an ambassador for his home city. “Everyone in Edinburgh is immensely proud of him,” he said.

Connery Launches Memoirs in Edinburgh

Edinburgh: He’s recognized around the world as the iconic face of James Bond 007. Sean Connery is also well known as a proud Scot, and yesterday he returned to his home town to launch his autobiography.

Being a Scot looks at Connery’s early life as a milkman in the city’s Fountainbridge neighbourhood, then delces into a wide – ranging look at Scottish culture including the work of poet Robert Burns, novelist Sir Walter Scott and Mary, Queen of Scots.

“It will illuminate what Fountainbridge’s most famous former milkman thinks of  many aspects of Scottish culture and life, including sport, arhitecture, and ofcourse the gothic tendency in Scots literature” said Edinburgh International Book Festival director Catherine Lockerbie.

Connery is a vocal supporter of the pre independance Scottish National Party. He lives in the Bahamas and has said he will not reside in Scotland until it gains independence from the United Kingdon. The unveiling of Being a Scot coincides with Connery’s 78th birthday. The actor is apperaring at the book festival alongside his co author, the filmmaker and writer Murray Grigor

Venturehaus to open Scotland branch in Edinburgh

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Venturehaus is delighted to announce the opening of its new office in St Andrew Square in Edinburgh. With the burgeoning Scottish financial marketplace and the growth of Operational Excellence in many Scottish institutions, Venturehaus is responding to the call to provide local support and knowledge to its clients north of the border.

Since 2002, Venturehaus has used its London Head Office as a base from which to conduct Operational Excellence engagements with clients as far a field as the middle East and the United States.

With the Scottish proportion of Venturehaus clients growing sharply over recent years, Managing Director Robin Davies and Alan Noble took the decesion at the start of this year to open a new location in Edinburgh, and provide on the doorstep assistance to Scottish financial services looking to cut costs and provide better customer service.

” To be honest, it wasn’t a hard decesion” says Davies ” the scottish financial market is booming and our consultants are travelling to Edinburgh and Glasgow particlarly on a weekly, sometimes even daily basis. We knew our clients in Scotland wanted a Venturehaus presence closer to home and the decesion to have an office in Edinburgh not only fulfils this need but also supports our long term vision to expand our successful business geographically.

To manage the new office Venturehaus has appointed John Salvin, former Logica’s UK Lead and Lean Six Sigma Champion. John brings with him over 20 years experience of Operational Excellence deployment in financial services, having worked for Logica, PWC and KPMG in clients such as RBS, Halifax, TSB, Allianca and Leicester, United Assurance, Zurich Financial Services, UBS Warburg, Dubai Bank, National Bank of Kuwait, GE Capital, Barclays and Chase.

“Im delighted to be joining Venturehaus” says Slavin” Its a agrat opportunity for me. not only to become a key member of internationally successful Operational Excellent consulting team but also, on a personal level to lead the growth of the new arm of the business in my home country”

For more information on the company or to attend the champagne reception in September for Venturehaus clients, friends and collegues please contact Carol James on email carol.james@venturehaus.com .

Business in Space Race to Beat Credit Crunch

Workplace experts have revealed how the credit crunch is forcing thousands of Scottish businesses to consider how they can make more efficient use of their business space. 

Space Solutions is Scotland’s biggest independent expert in managing workplace change and its fortunes have shown a dramatic upswing in the first half of 2008. 

Director Derek Binnie says the firm has seen an estimated 22% increase from the same period last year in contracts across the Central Belt as businesses of all sizes make changes to their premises to better cope with volatile market conditions. 

He said: “The credit crunch has created a general air of gloom around the property market, so people are often surprised to hear that, as a business whose entire currency is property, we are actually doing very well at the moment. 

“The reasons for that are pretty simple. For most companies, property is the second biggest cost on their balance sheet. When the market is tough they take a far more detailed look at how their premises are performing. That is where we come in.” 

With 130 staff and five main offices, Space Solutions operates UK-wide design, build, fit out and refurbish modern and productive business environments. Its team provides expertise in architecture, space planning, interior design, construction, project management and relocations. 

Derek added: “Forward-thinking businesses realise there is some pretty serious science involved in proper space planning – it is not just a case of knocking down walls and shifting desks around. 

“Having a responsive, well-planned workplace is a key factor in everything from efficient use of resources, motivating staff and creating the right impression with customers.  

“Factors involved include having the right amount of storage space to ensuring all the communications system work efficiently. With proper workplace analysis and space planning business can make significant savings.”

 

Space Solutions handles any part of the process from auditing and assessing existing space and future needs, through the technical aspects of drawing up plans and securing consents, to the practical delivery, including fit out and logistics. It offers services individually or from start-to-finish.

Derek said the firm had recently worked with a major company helping it to consolidate its business HQ. Space Solutions experts identified so much wasteage in unnecessary storage, it was able to free up an entire floor of the building.

 

He added: “As a result it has now sublet 1500 sq ft and can focus more money and attention on long-term growth because it has more capital to play with. It not only makes sense financially, but allows far better and more responsive business planning.”

 

Space Solutions regularly advises businesses of all sizes – from those with single bases, to those with multiple offices looking to slim down. It can set up efficient remote working and hot desking – helping firms which have previously baulked at reducing desk numbers. 

Increasingly, concern over global warming has forced businesses to look at their carbon footprint, and many choose to take action while reshaping offices or other premises.  

Derek added: “We recently launched a full Sustainability Service to help businesses become more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. What most of them find amazing is the amount of savings they can actually make in the process.”

 

As one of four directors who masterminded a successful MBO of Space Solutions in 2007, Derek is delighted the £12m-a-year business is in a healthy position, despite the credit crunch.

 He added: “It’s not just that we are doing well, it is also very rewarding to see that we can really make a difference that will help our clients weather the economic slowdown.

 “Yes, there is an outlay, because businesses have to spend to make a saving. But the returns from a successful streamlining of the workplaces can be vast and long-term for most businesses.  

“There is no doubt the careful and expert planning and management services we offer will be increasingly in demand in 2008 and 2009. Particularly in the Central Belt, where the credit crush is having more of an impact than the oil-rich area around Aberdeen.”

 

Global Ruling going to cause Chaos for Internet

IT and legal experts have predicted chaos on the internet following a global ruling adversely affecting the selling power of many of the high street’s largest brand names.

It follows a surprise decision by the body that controls the net to sanction a free-for-all online auctioning of disputed internet domain addresses.

In a landmark ruling, the California-based International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) decided last week that auctions will be staged whenever two organisations compete for the right to use a website name.

ICANN’s decision looks certain to cost blue-chip firms millions to sort out.

One senior tech source condemned the move as a “nightmare” for brand owners.

Andrew Watson, managing director of Quorum, an Edinburgh-based network resources firm, said: “It raises a whole host of issues around brands and trademarks and if a company can actually legitimately own a name.”

Following the ICANN ruling, once a brand name or derivation of that name is registered, the brand owner will need to act fast to be the first to claim that name for website addresses. Many will feel compelled to spend an inordinate amount of time and money buying their brand’s name on each of the new generic top-level domains expected to appear.

Savvy Scots cut on spending not investments

MOST Scots are resisting the temptation to reduce their investment levels despite growing pressure on personal and household budgets, new research has suggested.

Just 16 per cent of Scottish savers aged between 30 and 60 are cutting back on investing in equities, according to a Mori survey commissioned by IFA Bestinvest.

Instead, a third of those surveyed are making a conscious effort to reduce the amount they spend on fuel, while 28 per cent are trying to limit their energy consumption and almost a third are trimming their household food bills. The research also said that almost half of Scots aged between 30 and 60 are socialising less in an attempt to cut costs, while a quarter have reduced the amount they plan to spend on holidays.

“What we’re seeing is a distinction between long-term goals and the short-term need to cut costs,” explained Paul Fox, head of investment advice at Bestinvest.

“Most Scots are financially savvy enough to know that pulling out of the stock market now is not a smart move – they’re in it for the long-term.”