Business News

 “It’s official, the four-day week trial in the UK has been hailed a success, both for businesses and employees and it’s now on track to be continued by the majority of organisations and trialled even further”, said Lord Mark Price, Founder of WorkL, former Trade Minister and former Managing Director of Waitrose.

The UK has slipped to number 25 out of 51 countries on the quality of entrepreneurship ecosystem economies - according to the new Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) National Entrepreneurship Context Index (NECI) released today.

The ranking, reported in the ‘GEM 2022/2023 Global Report - Adapting to a New Normal’, is a fall from 18th last year, with the index score decreasing from 4.9 (in 2021) to 4.7.

A new West Midlands Metro tram has been named after Roy and Don Richardson. The twin entrepreneurs and philanthropists established a West Midlands business that now invests in real estate and growth capital around the world.

Their development activity, which famously included the Merry Hill Shopping Centre and Star City in Birmingham, has created tens of thousands of jobs in the region over many years.

A new and closer relationship between the UK and Germany was expected to be a core theme of Economic Secretary Andrew Griffith’s visit to Berlin yesterday. 

As part of the long-planned visit, the Minister hosted a breakfast roundtable with German financial services and banking chief executives.

A family-run Black Country manufacturer is to double the size of its operating base with a new, purpose-built factory thanks to a £9.5m investment by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA). Drywall Steel Sections Ltd has been at its existing site in Cradley Heath for more than eight years but has outgrown the facility which is also no longer fit for modern production methods.

Businesses from across the region have one month left to submit entries for the prestigious Finance Awards North West. Entering its fourth year, the Finance Awards North West is the one-of-a-kind accolade which recognises the work and achievements of the region’s top finance professionals and businesses.

A new survey of 777 UK-based retail investors has revealed how the current economic climate is impacting their investment plans for the next 12 months.

It found: 

A local fast-growing technology business is celebrating after being named as one of the ‘UK’s Best Workplaces for Wellbeing’. 

Self-employment technology specialist Wise, based in Solihull town centre, is now a top-25 company on the prestigious UK’s Best Workplaces for Wellbeing list which has been curated by employee satisfaction specialist, Great Place To Work.

The General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) of Saudi Arabia successfully hosted the Saudi Pavilion at IDEX 2023, which drew over 25,000 visitors during the five-day international defence show in Abu Dhabi. The pavilion provided a platform for showcasing the Kingdom's latest developments in the defence sector, highlighting investment opportunities and strategic partnerships.

Eddie Hughes MP, recently visited two affordable housing developments in his constituency, Eagle Works in Willenhall and Canalside Close in Blakenhall, to observe progress made on construction.

The two developments are owned by GreenSquareAccord, one of England’s largest housing and care providers, and will deliver a combined total of 84 affordable homes.

Aurrigo International plc, a leading international provider of transport technology solutions, has signed a formal partnership agreement with Changi Airport Group (Singapore) Pte Ltd for the continued joint development and testing of the company's autonomous vehicles, Auto-Dolly and Auto-DollyTug and its airport simulation software platform Auto-Sim.

New homes provider Bromford is encouraging property seekers to enquire about its Shared Ownership homes at the Blythe Valley development in Solihull that customers can move into this spring. Blythe Valley, located in the Blythe Valley Park, is a modern collection of Shared Ownership houses and apartments worth falling in love with this February.

Downtown in Business, in association with Sedulo Group and VSI executive Education, will host its inaugural ‘Business of Sport’ conference on Thursday 7th September at the iconic Lancashire Cricket Club, Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester.

The event will feature presentations from leading personalities and officials from a diverse range of sports including football, rugby, cricket, athletics, and tennis.

Digital marketing and communications group The MISSION Group plc has acquired global data science and digital analytics consultancy Mezzo Labs, with the support of Birmingham law firm Shakespeare Martineau.

Mezzo Labs is a leading provider of innovative data services with more than 16 years' experience in data strategy and architecture, web analytics, CX analytics, marketing automation, insights generation, data science, Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) and personalisation.

The chief executive of Manchester City Council Joanne Roney was in Birmingham this week, urging the city’s business community go get behind Manchester’s calls for the government to provide a high-quality link between the Midlands Engine and the Northern Powerhouse.

Speaking at an exclusive Downtown in Business event at the EY offices in the heart of Birmingham city centre Roney said: “The investment that we are looking for of around £98 billion, may sound like a huge amount.

Following the launch of its Seedrs public crowdfunding round on 24th January 2023, online lettings platform lettingaproperty.com has already achieved over 100% of its £850k funding target. The target – which includes an initial raise of £750,000 from the MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund, managed by Mercia and part of the Midlands Engine Investment Fund, and Mercia’s EIS funds – has now been uncapped, as the Seedrs campaign approaches its final week.