Forum OVER TO YOU
closely with our suppliers, we have built up our range of more eco-friendly products that we can offer from biodegradable banner to recyclable honeycomb boards - all without sacrificing on quality.
Where do you see the greatest wide-format opportunities? Opportunities often come from the most unexpected places. It’s important to keep your eyes and mind open. Always push yourself to try something new even if it’s out of your comfort zone … who knows where it might lead.
What would make your day-to-day operations easier?
Luke Roberts, Director of operations, Onward Display
https://www.onwarddisplay.com/
What’s having the greatest impact on your business at the moment? Sustainability is the key. Environmental concerns are influencing a lot of our client’s decisions, and we have to strive to ensure we are able to support them with recyclable and sustainable substrate options. Working
This is a hard question to answer as we have been focusing on streamlining our day-to-day operations for the past year. This has led us to investing in a CRM system, implementing a production meeting every Monday to plan out our week, and using software like Trello to keep track of projects and targets. We are always looking for the small gains that make the company run smoother.
Your favourite bit of kit is..? My favourite machine is always the newest. This is currently the EFI Pro 30h we bought in October. We originally purchased this machine to replace our Mimaki UJV55-320 3.2mtr but we have been blown away with the production speed and quality. Its hybrid capability has enabled us to pint our sheet media through it as well. It’s changed the way we work.
What’s the best bit of business advice you’ve been given?
‘The customer isn’t always right’. Each project should be treated as a creative partnership with the client bringing the ambition and us bringing the know- how. It’s important to understand what the client is trying to achieve, but to use our own experience and knowledge to guide them. Just because a client likes the finish of Phototex doesn’t mean they should use it on their exposed brick wall.
What are you most proud of achieving? We recently celebrated Onward Display’s 20th year which was a proud moment for us all! This is an incredibly hard industry to succeed in as there are so many hard working, knowledgeable and brilliant people in it, that if you’re not offering exactly what your client requires, they will find it elsewhere. It is a testament to the work that we do and service we provide to have made it to this fantastic milestone. On a personal level it would be completing the management buyout in 2019 that saw Michael Brighty and I join the board of directors. It was a huge accomplishment for me as I had started as a junior back in 2006 as only the second employee!
What lesson does the wide-format sector need to learn? I don’t think any industry can ever stop learning. As soon as you rest on your laurels you start to fall behind. The advancements in technology are growing exponentially and it’s important to keep up to date, not only in print but the wider landscape.
VITAL STATISTICS
FOLLOWING A CONSULTATION IN 2023, THE INSOLVENCY SERVICE WILL MERGE ITS MONTHLY AND QUARTERLY STATISTICS, WITH THE NEW FORMAT ROLLING OUT THIS APRIL. MEANWHILE, HERE’S
THE LATEST QUARTERLY DATA FOR OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2023 - FOLLOWING SEASONAL ADJUSTMENTS MADE IN JANUARY 2024 - AND FULL YEAR FIGURES.
6,788 9%
25,158 9%
1 in 186
Between 1 October and 31 December 2023 (Q4 2023), there were 6,788 (seasonally adjusted) registered company insolvencies, comprising 5,578 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 780 compulsory liquidations, 379 administrations, 50 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) and one receivership appointment.
After seasonal adjustment, the number of company insolvencies in Q4 2023 was 9% higher than in Q3 2023, and 14% higher than in Q4 2022. This quarter saw the highest quarterly total insolvencies since Q4 2008 and the highest quarterly number of CVLs since the start of the time series in 1960. Administrations in Q4 2023 fell but still remained higher than levels seen throughout 2021 and 2022.
In the whole of 2023, this was the number of registered company insolvencies, comprising 20,577 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 2,827 compulsory liquidations, 1,567 administrations, 185 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) and two receivership appointments. The number of company insolvencies was the highest annual number since 1993.
Across 2023, CVLs increased by 9% from 2022 to a new record high number in the time series going back to 1960. Numbers of compulsory liquidations (up 44%), administrations (up 27%) and CVAs (up 67%) were also all higher than in 2022.
53.7 per 10,000 active companies entered insolvent liquidation in 2023. This was an increase from the 49.6 per 10,000 active companies that entered liquidation in 2022. The rate in 2023 was the highest level since Q3 2014. Although company insolvency volumes were at a 30-year high in 2023, the number of companies on the Companies House register has increased over time, so the 2023 rate remained much lower than the peak rate of 94.8 insolvencies per 10,000 active companies during the 2008/09 recession.
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