Author: Rhys Gregory

Welsh HR experts Jayne Jones and Sam Heighway have joined forces to launch a timely business, Be Business Fit, to help SMEs navigate the ever-changing business landscape.  With HR backgrounds spanning multi-national organisations and expertise in culture change, organisational development, leadership and executive coaching, the duo launched Be Business Fit to help organisations in Wales plan for post-COVID-19 recovery and beyond.  Its distinct model focuses on, and helps prioritise, the fundamentals that are critical to strengthening the business, increasing resilience and achieving growth.  Speaking of the launch, Jayne Jones said: “We’re very excited to be officially launching Be Business Fit this summer and…

A £135m Swansea regeneration scheme is set to take a major step forward this week. The first four huge steel panels of a striking landmark bridge are due to arrive in the city where, with others that will follow, they will be expertly fitted together over the coming months. The gold-coloured bridge is due to be installed in one piece over the main Oystermouth Road early in the New Year for finishing touches to be carried out. It will range in width from 12m to 6m, will stand 6m off the road, will be 6m high and 49m long. It…

Lockdown has brought challenges never before faced by the human race. There has never been a situation like it in the history of the planet. The last time we faced something similar was in 1348 when the bubonic plague hit. Fortunately, we have evolved scientifically and have a better grasp of illnesses and how to deal with outbreaks. The way we have dealt with the Coronavirus pandemic is by placing everyone into a worldwide lockdown, no leaving the house and many people stopped working meaning there was plenty of time to do other things. Some chose to learn a language,…

Following a recent report suggesting 1/10 employees have frozen their pension contributions during the pandemic, Stuart Price is using this Pension Awareness Day (15 SEPT) to encourage the public to re-engage with their pension obligations.

A Neath business that sources and sells natural and organic health and beauty products has hit the £25 million turnover mark, after increasing sales by 25% year on year. Naissance, based in a 40,000 square foot warehouse on Neath’s Milland Road industrial estate, was founded in 2005 by entrepreneur Jem Skelding from his spare bedroom. His childhood in Africa inspired Jem, where the shortage of retail products and an abundance of raw materials meant his mother would often make her own skincare and natural remedies. When e-commerce started to take off, he spotted a gap in the market for an…

Sharp End, the long running political series from ITV Cymru Wales returns this week with a new look and a new presenter. National Correspondent Rob Osborne takes over in the hot seat as Political Editor Adrian Masters launches a new political podcast and concentrates on daily news coverage on air and online. It’s the latest step in a 12 year career for Rob who joined ITV Cymru Wales straight out of university.  In that time, he has won multiple awards including TV Journalist of the Year, Scoop of the Year and the overall Journalist of the Year prize at the…

NatWest Wales Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors – registered 51.5 in August, up from 50.2 at the start of the third quarter. The upturn in business activity indicated was only marginal overall, but the fastest since February. Firms stated that higher output was linked to the reopening of businesses following the easing of lockdown restrictions and greater client demand. Welsh private sector firms signalled a renewed upturn in new business in August, thereby bringing to an end a five-month sequence of…

A food distribution company has created 16 jobs after achieving record sales over the summer with demand for burgers going through the roof. Harlech Food Service, based in Criccieth and Chester, say easier online purchasing, fixed pricing with competitive prices on key lines and the UK Government’s Eat Out To Help Out scheme all played a part in the increase. Overall, turnover by the end of August was 4.7 per cent higher than last year while there was a meaty 385 per cent growth in demand for burgers with 130,000 of them being sold. At the same time there was…

Honesty has been the best policy for an award-winning organic ice-cream business which has found lockdown salvation in farm gate sales after its summer events programme was wiped out by the pandemic. Chilly Cow ice cream,based in the Vale of Clwyd, set up a portable freezer and an honesty box at Stryt Faw, Llanychan, near Ruthin, and the results have been amazing with as many as 150 customers a day. It has meant that a planned expansion of the business threatened by Covid-19 is now very much back on the agenda with a 20-foot container bought from Denbigh-based Container Sales…

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has highlighted the importance of a trade deal with the EU at a meeting with Minister for Trade Ranil Jayawardena MP and Montgomeryshire MP Craig Williams. The round-table discussion, which included representatives from the FUW and NFU Cymru officials, at Pickstock Farm in Llanfechain was arranged by Craig Williams MP. Speaking after the event, FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “We had a good meeting with the Minister and a lively debate around the dangers of allowing cheap substandard food imports after the Brexit withdrawal period.” Mr Roberts highlighted that food in other non-EU countries was…