Bedford In Business

GLP, a leading investor and developer of logistics warehouses and distribution parks, announced recently that is has let the entirety of G-Park Bedford Wixams to MH Star. The major new lease encompasses over 530,000 sq ft. of space across three newly developed buildings which remain under construction. This is MH Star’s first lease with GLP in the UK having previously leased space with the company in Spain.

G-Park Bedford Wixams is being developed on a speculative basis by GLP and comprises three buildings of 125,000 sq ft., 160,000 sq ft. and 250,000 sq ft. It is the largest single development in Bedfordshire and is an ideal location for logistics with easy access to both the M1 and A1.

MH Star UK, a London-based ecommerce company specialising in the home, outdoors and beyond, have been building their brand reputation since 2010; in particular seeing a significant uptake in customer demand since the beginning of last year. The new development will assist with the company’s continued progress, supporting them at this key moment in ecommerce where both customer and key chain demand increases at an exceedingly fast-paced rate. MH Star UK has experienced rapid growth over the last year, accelerated by the consumer shift to e-commerce following the Covid-19 pandemic.

You still have time to apply for a payment of £3,000 for apprentices with an employment start date from 1 April 2021 to 30 September 2021. Applications close on 30 November 2021.

From 11 January 2022, you will be able to apply for a payment of £3,000 for apprentices with an employment start date from 1 October 2021 to 31 January 2022. Applications close on 15 May 2022.

You must set up an apprenticeship service account before you can apply.

The payment is different to apprenticeship levy funds, so you can spend it on anything to support your organisation’s costs. For example, on uniforms, your apprentice’s travel or their salary. You do not have to pay it back.

The payment is in addition to the existing £1,000 an employer will already get for taking on an apprentice who is either:

– aged 16 to 18 years old

– under 25 and has an education, health and care plan or has been in the care of their local authority

Find out more at gov.uk/guidance/incentive-payments

The Green Business Network are hosting an exciting webinar covering Green security. Your environmental management should consider all the areas your business covers. This could be the products or services that you provide, or those that you buy in.

Do you know how much energy or waste they produce? Do you know what they actually cost? Have you fully considered your security measures and the impact they have on the environment?

Mark Chapple, an expert speaker for this seminar has and he will be sharing his thoughts with you so you can potentially implement them in your business.

A formal presentation will be followed by a Q&A session. The seminar is free to GBN members and you can book here

24^th November 2pm on Zoom

Non-members are welcome to attend at a cost of £20.

Organiser: SEMLEP Growth Hub & University of Northampton

Date & Time: 18 Nov 2021 – 9:30 am-1:00 pm

Growth Curve is an intensive and interactive leadership development workshop for business owners. During the programme, you will explore and develop the essential skills needed to create and implement business plans and achieve personal growth as a business leader.

After an initial one-to-one diagnostic meeting to look at where your business was before this pandemic and understand how it has been affected, you will have the opportunity to join a University masterclass.

These masterclasses will help you come up with strategies to stabilise your business, identify your priorities and objectives, and put yourself in the best possible position to achieve future growth.

Session 1 Thursday 18th November 09:30am – 1:00pm

Session 2 Friday 19th November 09:30am – 1:00pm

Session 3 Thursday 25th November 0930am – 1:00pm

You will have the opportunity to:

– Learn how to look at your business from different angles to gain insights into your growth challenges.

– See how other businesses are overcoming their challenges, and learn how you could apply similar solutions.

– Learn new ways of working to better lead yourself and your team.

– Discover how to develop an action plan to address the most urgent and important issues facing your business.

– Network with like-minded people who can be a source of energy, support and guidance.

Eligibility

To apply to join this programme, you need to:

– Have a business based in the South East Midlands

– Have between 3 and 250 employees.

– Current annual turnover of £200,000 with projected 20% annual growth minimum.

– Be experiencing or projecting high growth in the next 2-3 years.

SEMLEP are aware in this current environment, the opportunity to project and plan high growth is difficult. The team would like to still hear from business owners running a business that fit the eligibility previous to the coronavirus difficulties. *Growth Curve is suitable for most business sectors however due to funding criteria, there are some ineligible sectors. The SEMLEP team can let you know if you are eligible for the programme or other support, either offered by SEMLEP or partner organisations.

Further information on how to access the sessions will be sent once you have registered your details.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact SEMLEP Growth Curves Events and Engagement Officer, Samantha Hunter: Samantha.Hunter@semlep.com

Book your space here