FIRSTWORD FIRSTWORD
THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF DEVON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CONTACT DETAILS
Devon Chamber of Commerce 22 Lockyer Street, Plymouth, Devon PL1 2QW T: 01752 220471 E:
chamber@devonchamber.co.uk W:
www.devonchamber.co.uk
News and articles should be sent to: E:
Marketing@devonchamber.co.uk
All material is used at the editor’s discretion.
Front cover: Phil Davies Principal City College Plymouth, Andy Shepherd Kier Construction
Published by Kemps Publishing Ltd 11 The Swan Courtyard, Charles Edward Road, Yardley, Birmingham B26 1BU T: 0121 765 4144 W:
www.kempspublishing.co.uk
Managing Editor Laura Blake Designer Lloyd Hollingworth
Advertising Jon Jones E:
jon.jones@
kempspublishing.co.uk
Printed by Buxton Press Buxton, Derbyshire W:
www.buxtonpress.com
Chamber Profile is produced on behalf of Devon Chamber of Commerce by Kemps Publishing Ltd and is distributed without charge to more than 1,500 key businesses and all Chamber members in Devon. The publisher is committed to achieving the highest quality
standards. However, views expressed in the magazine are independent and while every care has been taken to ensure that the information it contains is accurate, the publisher cannot accept any responsibility for any omission or inaccuracies that might arise. This publication (or any part thereof) may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in print or electronic format without the prior written permission of Kemps Publishing Ltd.
Looking forward
It is always daunting returning for a holiday to face mountains of emails, new issues that have arisen and sometimes new moods and sentiments. For many, 2017 has been a relatively good year for business. What does the future hold? Forecasting is always risky however there are pointers to help. There is still strong demand for labour and with more and more people in work there is more money to be spent. However, with higher inflation workers are seeing their incomes being squeezed and this means less disposable income. This is hampering demand particularly for luxury goods and services. The fall in the value of the pound has also had varying effects. It has encouraged more overseas visitors to the country which has been good for tourism and hospitality businesses, but it has added to cost for businesses importing goods and raw materials. It has certainly helped exports and it has been encouraging to see more companies starting to sell their goods and services abroad. For many, investment is cheap due to low interest rates but there is nervousness
surrounding taking decisions in advance as more details emerge on the nature and potential impact of Brexit. This is going to have greater prominence as the autumn goes on, and the negotiations continue to develop. It is vitally important however, that business continues to be ambitious and grow. In “Chamberland”, Devon Chamber registered the second fastest growth of membership
SOCIAL MEDIA
Follow us on Twitter
www.twitter.com/@chamber_devon
Like us on Facebook Devon Chamber of Commerce
Join us on Linkedin Devon Chamber of Commerce
of any Chamber in the UK and is now significantly bigger than Cornwall Chamber of Commerce and is now close in size to Dorset and even Business West, which covers greater Bristol, Gloucestershire and much of the area within. It is vital that Devon Chamber grows and becomes powerful to give the leadership which the region so badly needs.
GEORGE COWCHER CHIEF EXECUTIVE, DEVON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CHAMBER PATRONS
4 Chamber Profile September/October 2017
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
