law Final Roundtable debate on Reading’s future


Commercial property was the focus of the last of four Roundtables organised by BDB Pitmans as part of its ‘Reading Future’ campaign


Held at The Roseate Forbury Hotel in Forbury Square, Reading, the Roundtable encouraged guests to discuss Reading’s commercial property needs and market trends.


Key guest speakers included Edward Harbison, corporate marketing manager at The Instant Group, who spoke about maximising value in the serviced office sector and analysed the influences behind the rise of flex spaces.


Rory Carson, vice president of Mapletree, also presented his thoughts on the reputation of business parks and how parks need to become communities in order to recruit and retain staff.


Tom Fletcher, head of the Reading office at Lambert Smith Hampton, rounded off the discussion by asking the attendees to consider Reading’s personal brand and reputation as a town, and whether enough was being done to publicise its merits.


The session was chaired by BDB Pitmans’ deputy head of real estate, Sarah Potter.


This was the last Roundtable in a series


focused on future-proofing Reading businesses, attracting and retaining talent and developing infrastructure in the town.


Attendees included guests from Vail Williams, Reading UK CIC, Connect Reading and Haslams Chartered Surveyors amongst others.


A report on all the Roundtables is being produced by BDB Pitmans and will be released soon.


BDB Pitmans’ head of business development Natalia Ruiz-Moreno said: “The report will amalgamate the key pieces of insight put forward by the industry expert speakers and guests from each event to showcase Reading’s strengths and goals for improvement.


“We’re lucky to be part of such a diverse business community and have access to the expertise of all our guests and speakers. This report will help us to share our findings with the wider community and help us work


finance


Sector Spotlight: Technology writes Ian Barton, partner, corporate finance


Background


The relentless pace of technological change has meant that growth in the UK’s technology sector continues to outstrip that of the economy as a whole. By the end of last year, the digital sector was worth £184 billion, up by 8.2% from the previous year.


Outlook


The positive health of the technology market, which comprises of clusters of balanced, scale-up and start-up companies in the UK, together with a proactive investor and acquirer market, is indicative of increasing M&A activity.


The opportunities presented by the accelerating technological evolution are far-reaching and include the generation of both employment and investment opportunities. However, the rapid growth also brings with it significant challenges. Although many companies wish to recruit heavily over the next few years, they are unable to do to so due to lack of existing funding and appropriate talent available to recruit. This has led to a boom in acquisitions and private equity (PE) investment in this space to fill corporate demands in the sector.


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – MARCH/APRIL 2019


So, what does this mean for technology businesses?


For many non-tech companies, harnessing the pace of rapid technological change can be best achieved by making strategic acquisitions of smaller, innovative technology players and then applying their developments to their own business offerings.


This situation represents real opportunities for smaller players to realise substantial value and for larger players to consolidate as well as differentiate their position in the marketplace.


Some of our recent successes


Having successfully completed a range of deals in this sector, the corporate finance team at Quantuma are in an optimal position to help you understand the market and achieve your ambitions. We can work with you to identify acquisition targets, support you in raising funds, or help you if you are looking to exit and maximise your returns.


If you are an ambitious, entrepreneurial business looking to explore growth


opportunities in this sector we would be delighted to share our expertise and experiences with you.


together to maximise our business assets in the town.”


If you would like a copy of this report when released email Edward Harris:


edwardharris@bdbpitmans.com


BDB Pitmans was established in 2018 following a merger between legacy firms Bircham Dyson Bell (BDB) and Pitmans Law, bringing together over 300 years of legal expertise across five locations – Cambridge, London City, London Westminster, Reading and Southampton.


Ian Barton 07881 816001


ian.barton@quantuma.com quantuma.com


businessmag.co.uk 35


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