New Business Development Manager for Energus appointed


Louise Gardham - the University of Cumbria’s new business development manager at Energus - speaks English, French, German and Spanish.


But, having worked for Disneyland Paris and a tile export company in Valencia, the 31-year-old from Wigton near Carlisle is equally fluent in the language of business.


“My new job is a terrific challenge but it’s great to be able to offer local businesses in West Cumbria so many fantastic opportunities,” she says.


Louise who works within the Centre for Leadership Performance inside the futuristic Lillyhall building has been busy promoting its first tranche of business-related events and free and funded workshops and courses to companies in Allerdale and Copeland.


These include courses on how to build a website and e-commerce platform, a series of motivational speaker masterclasses—one of which involved Cumbrian mountaineer Chris Bonington— and workshops in marketing, IT and finance. Reflecting her remarkable linguistic fluency, Louise is proud that she can walk the business walk and not just talk the talk - citing European commercial experience.


After leaving sixth form she took a year out to work in retail on the Disneyland complex outside Paris. “I was interviewed for the job over the phone in French and within a day I was on the plane to Paris,” she says. “It was incredibly hard work but great experience. I was sent on lots of courses and I used my languages all the time as the park brings in millions of visitors from around the world.” After a year at the attraction - in which she got to ride the daunting Space Mountain rollercoaster dozens of time - Louise shot back home to Wigton.


She won sponsorship from local film company Innovia and took a degree in French, Spanish and German at Sheffield University which included placements on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean and Seville in Andalucia.


After graduating Louise accepted a summer job in Carlisle while contemplating her future but the travel bug quickly bit her again. “I was sitting in the office one afternoon and the weather was miserable, raining and grey,” she remembers. “So I booked a one-way flight to Malaga and headed off to stay with a friend for a couple of weeks. “Then I headed north to Valencia and started teaching English to businesses.”


Later, she worked for a Spanish company exporting tiles to Africa, Asia and South America. She also travelled further afield with work to places such as South Korea but after three and half years she returned home. “I had begun to think about my family more and also Spain didn’t have the same


level of career opportunities open to young people that was available in England,” explains Louise. “Part of my current job is to make people aware of exactly what help and support is available for them to access. I also missed England. You don’t appreciate it until you go away.”


However, the business contacts she made in Spain stood her in good stead and within a few weeks she was running a store in Carlisle importing Spanish tiles. “I learned so much about the headaches and excitement of running a small business,” she says. “This helps me with my current position as I am able to view things from the point of view of a business.”


Her next career move brought her to the University of Cumbria’s business school in Carlisle where she worked on graduate recruitment and logistics projects. In February she moved to Energus. “It seemed like such a great challenge to be on the west coast,” she says. “There aren’t many people from the university out here and it’s important that we reach out to the business community. I love coming to Energus to work. It’s a great building, very European in feel and in fact it reminds me of the many of the offices I used to drive past every day in Valencia. It’s a great addition to the landscape.”


Her new role involves speaking to other agencies such as Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, West Cumbria Development Agency and the West Cumbria Business Cluster. “In much the same way that languages are portals to other worlds, so technology can open doors to new markets and different ways of working,” she says. “The first tranche of offers comprised free workshops in web design and search engine optimisation and accredited university courses that would normally cost up to £465 were just £75 due to business subsidies. Masterclasses and business events will be running throughout June/July and our Growth Fund in turn can offer businesses access to grants up to £1,000. We can also access funding to place students and graduates in a local business. We have been asking businesses what they would like to see provided out here so that we can shape our future offers, and we hope to work in conjunction with other universities, colleges and organisations in order to make sure that businesses on the West Coast can take advantage of all of the expert help and training available to them.”


The Bluebox Centre for Leadership Performance was officially launched on 2 June at ENERGUS. “Energus is a great place to work and learn and I want to make it absolutely relevant to the West Cumbria business community.”


Louise can be contacted on: louise.gardham@cumbria.ac.uk


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