Author: Rhys Gregory

Technical climbing and ski clothing brand Jöttnar have closed their second round of funding with a £400,000 investment from the Development Bank of Wales, Venrex LLP and angel investors, including Paddy Byng, former founding investor and Non-Executive Director (NED) of Rapha, who will also join the business as a NED. [aoa id=”1″]  Byng previously headed up the marketing for Polo Ralph Lauren and Dunhill as well as being CEO of Smythson and Asprey. He will help guide Jöttnar through the next stage of their development, including the expansion of the product range with a move in to technicalskiwear. The Cardiff…

Fiona has been shortlisted in the culture category of Wales’ St David Awards, which are nominated by the public and judged by Wales’ First Minister, Mark Drakeford. The culture award recognises individuals who have excelled in the arts, made a strong contribution to culture and have succeeded in putting Wales on the world stage. Green Man is Wales’ largest music, science and arts festival, attracting thousands of people from around the world to the Brecon Beacons, contributes £10 million to the economy every year and uses its 1.8 billion media reach to put Wales on the map. Fiona said: “It’s…

A proposed change in divorce law which would allow couples to separate without assigning blame, has been praised by a Newport legal expert as a game changer. [aoa id=”1″] Sophie Hughes, of award-winning local firm Watkins & Gunn, said the proposed new legislation, which would replace archaic divorce laws, would be a “turning point” for couples and present a less confrontational alternative. Mrs Hughes, who is the head of the Family Law team at the firm, has spoken out following Justice Secretary David Gauke MP’s decision to support legislation that would introduce a “no fault” divorce last week. Currently, unless…

Two staff members at Transport for Wales are set to star in a new BBC Wales series exploring the hidden world of night shift workers. [aoa id=”1″] Lynne Bartlett and Andrew French, both from Cardiff, are members of Transport for Wales’ Train Presentation team and spend hours every night preparing the carriages for the 12,000 commuters who use the network every day. The grime fighting duo, who between them have spent more than 30 years working the night shift, will now star in a new four-part TV series to be shown on BBC One Wales Aptly named ‘Nightshifters’, the series…

A 22-year-old from Pembrokeshire has launched a new tennis coaching business with the aim of finding the next Andy Murray. [aoa id=”1″] Joe Canning, from Haverfordwest, has set up JMC Tennis and Fitness coaching to teach and inspire the next generation of tennis players in Wales. Joe has played tennis since he was a child, securing a scholarship to train at a tennis academy where he was then hired as a tennis coach. With a coaching qualification under his belt, Joe launched his tennis coaching business late last year and has already built up a regular client base around Pembrokeshire.…

The Cardiff-based Orchard Media and Events Group has teamed up with the Football Association of Wales to help keep the capital’s homeless warm this winter. The FAW is generously donating a significant number of branded jackets to Huggard, the Cardiff charity set up to tackle the growing issue of homelessness, and Orchard is the link player to help make it happen. Huggard Chief Executive Richard Edwards said: “Whilst we endeavour to get homeless people off the streets and into accommodation, it’s plain for the people of Cardiff and visitors to see that there are still a number of rough sleepers…

Thirty Bridgend pupils, and over 600 Sony UK Technology Centre staff have come together to launch the Japan-UK Season of Culture. [aoa id=”1″] Sony UK TEC’s Pencoed site has hosted the first major event in Wales aimed at celebrating the achievements of the UK and Japan and showcasing their shared artistic, economic, cultural, and technological successes. The Welsh event, organised by the Embassy of Japan in the UK and Sony, is part of a wider global cultural exchange planned between the two nations in 2019/20, which will see Japanhostthe Rugby World Cup this year and the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic…

Austerity has led to an alarming rise in the number of people with mental health problems, according to the boss of an advocacy charity. Elfed Williams, the director of services at the Conwy and Denbighshire Mental Health Advocacy Service (CADMHAS), revealed there has been a 15 per cent increase in their workload over the past year. Mr Williams was speaking at a special event to mark the St Asaph-based organisation’s 10th anniversary. Appropriately, the venue for the celebration was the Eirianfa Community Centre in Denbigh where CADMHAS was launched to provide a voice for people unable to represent themselves. The…

Denbighshire businesses can get a helping hand from Google at a special event. As part of Denbighshire County Council’s March for Business month, a Google Digital Garage will be taking place in St Asaph. Industry experts will be on hand to explain how businesses are using the latest technology to make more informed choices, reach new markets and drive more sales. Help will be provided on how to reduce customer acquisition costs and understand data analytics and SEOs Lloyds Banking Group in partnership with Google and Superfast Business Wales will be holding the event at the OpTIC Technology Centre, St…

AN ENGINEERING degree has taken off thanks to a college partnership with a world-leading plane maker. [aoa id=”1″] The collaboration between Coleg Cambria, Swansea University and Airbus has attracted high-calibre students to the BEng in Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering. The second cohort graduated at the South Wales institution just weeks ago, having enjoyed working and studying at the Airbus factory in Broughton and Cambria’s multi-million-pound facilities in Deeside and Wrexham. Salah Berdouk, Deputy Director for the Engineering curriculum at Coleg Cambria, said the popular aerospace programme – and a new degree in Advanced Manufacturing – have taken higher education and…