Sutton Coldfield Sutton Coldfield
Chamber of Commerce
Sutton Coldfield Chamber Patrons PR firm helps SMEs
CONTACT: Julia Gray T: 0845 603 6650
Start-up boom leads to boost for agency
Birmingham’s business landscape is booming and start-ups are springing up thick and fast, according to a Sutton Coldfield design agency. The Curry Design Studio, based in Sutton
Coldfield, has experienced a 300 per cent increase in local new business branding enquiries already this year, hinting at another record year for Birmingham start-ups. Figures released in January by StartUp Britain
showed that Birmingham is the most entrepreneurial city outside London, with a reported 25 per cent increase in new business start-ups based on the previous year – more than any other city outside the capital.
‘We have had a phenomenal number of start-up branding enquiries which has been really exciting’
Kate Curry, director of the Curry Design
Studio, said: “So far this year, we have had a phenomenal number of start-up branding enquiries which has been really exciting, and shows that despite the uncertainty of the political landscape, people are still willing to be brave and go it alone. “We’re really proud to be working in this great
city and to be helping brands and businesses with their graphic design. We have every confidence that Birmingham will retain its title when it comes to start up innovation and look forward to seeing what the rest of the year has to bring.” The Curry Design Studio has recently partnered with Boldmere Mums, which has
make their mark A Sutton Coldfield ‘mumpreneur’ has opened a new PR and communications agency, in a bid to help brands, start-ups and SMEs get more bang for their buck from their marketing support. Haiku Creative, founded by
Jessica Barker (pictured), combines traditional PR with copywriting, content marketing, digital and social to create compelling business narratives, both online and offline. As a former journalist and PR pro at agencies and businesses across the country, Jessica has worked with a wide range of clients – from start-ups and SMEs to blue chip organisations. Her most recent in-house position was
with supermarket giant Morrisons, where she helped run the consumer PR programme. She said: “During my career I have seen
many companies crippled by the high fees of large PR and marketing agencies. By offering top level experience at a freelance price, I hope to make communications more accessible and to keep it firmly in a company’s business plan. “I am very excited to work with local
Currying favour: Kate Curry
featured on ‘Midlands Today’ for its school budget cuts campaign, as well as with world renowned artist Paul Horton – who needed a complete branding solution for his new art gallery opening in Hagley Hall.
For more information on the Curry Design Studio contact
currydesignstudio@gmail.com or visit
www.currydesignstudio.com
How to manage money better
Not-for-profit company Auriga Services is taking part in a project aimed at finding out how people in the West Midlands can manage their money better. It is one of 58 projects designed to improve
people’s financial capability and is being underpinned by funding from the Money Advice Service. The Money Advice Service was set up by the Government to provide free-of-charge advice on money and financial decisions and is paid for by a statutory levy on the financial services industry. Auriga has been asked to examine how money management skills can help improve the well- being of people affected by long-term illness in University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trusts across the West Midlands.
Money Advice Service research shows that
four out of ten adults in the UK are not in control of their finances and around 16.8 million working age people have less than £100 in savings. However, very little evidence exists on the best way to address this issue. David Haigh is director of financial capability
at the Money Advice Service. He explained: “There is an urgent need to help people gain the skills and confidence they need to make good decisions about how to make the most of their money. “The insights from this project, and others like
it around the UK, will be vital in helping organisations to channel their efforts in the right places and to fund and deliver interventions that we know make a real difference.”
businesses and to launch Haiku Creative in the thick of a communications revolution. No longer is being heard just about traditional PR, it’s about how PR can work with other elements of the marketing mix to maximise opportunities. “After having my daughter in 2015,
working over 60 hours a week all over the country just wasn’t possible. I’d always had the bug to go it alone, so motherhood brought the perfect opportunity for me to take the plunge. “Now, in addition to benefiting other
businesses, I can set my own work-life balance and build something positive for my family’s future. It really is win-win all round.” In order to get to know local businesses,
Haiku Creative has joined the Sutton Coldfield Chamber of Commerce. Julia Gray, business development manager at Sutton Coldfield’s Chamber of Commerce, said: “We are very pleased to welcome Haiku Creative into the fold at Sutton Coldfield’s Chamber of Commerce and look forward to supporting the business throughout its infancy and beyond.” Jessica is giving an hour’s free
consultancy to businesses who get in touch through Haiku Creative’s new website before the end of August.
For more information visit
www.haikucreative.co.uk, or email
jessica@haikucreative.co.uk
July/August 2017 CHAMBERLINK 41
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