London-based soft prosthetics company, Koalaa, is celebrating after securing investment from British Design Fund (BDF), to help bring its innovative prosthetics to children and adults across the world. BDF works with ambitious British startups who are ready to scale-up and build thriving stand-out businesses. Alongside capital investment, BDF provides expert mentoring to support such companies to accelerate their growth plans. BDF invested in Koalaa under the EIS scheme and is the company’s first institutional investor following an angel round in May 2020. The funds from BDF will be used to increase manufacturing capacity at the company’s west London facility, in…

It is not just the weather that is getting better: restaurants are fully booked; city centres are bustling again and the vaccination programme is exceeding expectations. The question for SMEs is no longer how they will weather the storm, but how they will get ready for the commercial upswing as the economy opens up again, particularly when it comes to managing cashflow and adapting to a business environment that has fundamentally changed. To take the temperature of UK businesses, Allstar Business Solutions surveyed 500 SME business owners and senior decision makers at the end of 2020 and found that, as…

Capital Business Media has joined the Mayor of London in backing an art project to paint a giant mural on a community centre wall. The Mayor of London’s office has pledged £5,000 and Richard Alvin, group managing director of the global business media group, has also made a significant contribution. The mural will be painted by local artists and co-designed by people of all abilities and backgrounds from the community on the wall outside Sundial Community Centre and will celebrate the community spirit of Tower Hamlets and Hackney in east London. However, the project, run by artist Rose Hill, can…

Crasner Ventures, the early-stage venture capital investor that supports businesses led by female founders and entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds, announces its investment in Umwuga Ltd, an emerging markets-focused social network that connects workers and employers. Umwuga is Crasner Ventures’ second portfolio company. Umwuga is revolutionising the recruitment industry in emerging markets, by enabling workers to connect and communicate on their own terms, showcase their abilities, experience and personality and engage and negotiate directly with prospective employers. The platform opens up employment opportunities to those often excluded by a recruitment industry and social networks designed predominately for white-collar workers. It also…

TSB Bank has delivered a boost to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) with a new offer of 25 months’ free banking, up from six months previously. This free banking offer will give start-ups breathing space to get up and running, and help businesses that have been hit by the pandemic to get back on their feet. The business banking offer also comes packaged with a wide range of support to give SMEs the tools they need to grow and prosper. Through TSB’s partnership with Enterprise Nation, business customers have a year’s free membership worth £99, which also gives them access…

Location Collective will launch a new 224,000 sqft film studio in the capital during late summer 2021 to help meet film and TV industry build space needs. Increased studio facilities will mean new, and more, productions can choose to shoot in the UK during the current post-Covid filming boom as major studios and streaming companies look to catch up on content production after the pandemic. Filming in the UK post-pandemic is proving more popular than ever as the successes of the vaccine roll-out to date add to the confidence provided by the UK’s stringent Covid-19 safety protocols, along with all…

The team at innovative technology company Ntegra is celebrating securing a contract with utilities giant Northumbrian Water Group to create a new intranet allowing their 3,000 staff to communicate effectively. The company are thrilled to be chosen to work with the Durham-based organisation for a five year contract, which starts with a full intranet rebuild project. Andy Langley, CEO of Ntegra, said: “We are delighted to be working with Northumbrian Water.   They have a truly unique approach to driving innovation and change. We believe their ‘can-do’ culture coupled with our experience of successfully delivering digital transformation will prove to be…

It’s not a surprise to say that the future of business is global. By 2025, almost 50% of the world’s biggest companies will be based in emerging markets. While the English language is widely used throughout business, communicating in English only can have large disadvantages in today’s markets. As most markets have been opened internationally due to globalisation there is lots of competition. By being able to speak in multiple languages, your business can cross both cultural and linguistic barriers. You are likely to make a better first impression communicating in at least one other language because it shows respect…

Feature for SME Today, by Douglas Sloan, Investment Director, Big Society Capital The Covid-19 pandemic has further highlighted the need for innovative solutions to social problems, and we have seen many impact startups step up and adapt in response to the crisis in areas such as improving physical and mental health, fostering a greater level of financial inclusion, and eradicating education skill gaps. It is something the venture capital sector (specialist private equity financers for seed and early-stage startups) is taking a serious look at – and in recent years, we have seen it increasingly backing those entrepreneurs who are…

Sir Ken Robinson’s 2006 TEDx talk, ‘Do Schools Kill Creativity?’ is one of the most watched talks in TEDx history. His prolific and moving case highlighted the importance of educators nurturing creativity. According to ‘Skill shift: Automation and the future of the workforce,’ a report from the McKinsey Global Institute: “the demand for technological, social and emotional, and higher cognitive skills will rise by 2030.” This is great news if you are looking to enter the world of business and want to achieve and advance at an executive level and beyond. Now is the time to start thinking outside the…

Leading global professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) has released new research from its Disputes & Investigations practice around the effectiveness of the Disclosure Pilot Scheme (DPS). The survey of 250 senior legal professionals revealed that 97% of senior lawyers are frustrated with aspects of the pilot as it stands – with 70% deeming the scheme unfit for purpose. The survey, and associated report, highlights several key insights from senior lawyers around the effectiveness of the scheme currently being trialled in the U.K. Business and Property courts. With 74% of respondents judging that the DPS has exacerbated the adversarial…

John Lewis & Partners Edinburgh has opened its doors to customers once again after a multi-million pound refurbishment. A new shopping landmark for Edinburgh, the renovation is an important part of its strategy to invest in our existing estate, creating inspiring spaces to showcase products, experiences and services. The shop, which is located within the new St James Quarter – one of the UK’s largest regeneration projects, boasts a brand new range of services and experiences. This includes a Beauty Studio, Personal Styling services, the largest ever ‘World of Design’ to provide home design inspiration and advice, a refreshed Nursery…

Jodie Fraser, founder of Fraser Allen Estate Management, has been named as a winner in the Property Hero Awards 2020 for ‘going that extra mile in an exceptional year’. The awards celebrate extraordinary individuals within the property management industry who achieve things that often go unnoticed in the wider world. Entries for the awards are made on behalf of property managers, concierge staff, managers, contractors or anyone else in the industry who has ‘gone that extra mile to support leaseholders and the teams that support them in this exceptional year’. “I am thrilled to have won such a wonderful award.…

Julianne Ponan, CEO of leading free-from food brand ‘Creative Nature’ has been named as finalist in the national Free From Hero awards on the eve of Allergy Awareness Week (May 24th – 30th). The awards were first started in 2008 to celebrate and raise awareness of free-from products – as well as awareness around allergies and food intolerance. This year Julianne has been shortlisted for the Free From Hero award not only for her work on her own brand, Creative Nature, but for being a voice for those with allergies and her activism around bringing about real change in allergy…

The European Union has launched legal action against AstraZeneca claiming that the coronavirus vaccine manufacturer has failed to comply with its obligations under the vaccine supply contract. The dispute stems from the vaccine advance purchase contract the EU Commission signed last August for 300 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, with an option for 100 million more. Whilst AstraZeneca admitted earlier this year that its supplies would be reduced because of production problems. It has responded that the Commission’s claim is “without merit” and has said that it would “strongly defend itself in court”. So what lessons can be learnt…

A boom in the construction industry created unprecedented demand for the Target Group which specialises in digger, dumper and access platform hire across Colchester and Ipswich, London and Kent.   To fund new dumpers, tippers and excavators, Target Group turned to the Metro Bank at Colchester to help finance the equipment their customers urgently needed.  Each of Metro Bank’s 77 stores has a local director who specialises in supporting their local businesses and SME communities. “We were able to pull the asset financing together for Target in just a matter of weeks,” explains Colchester Metro Bank’s local director Chris Morgan. “Target was pleased with the speed at which…