Shane Schutte

OP

Opinion 4 min read

First Women Summit: “Growing a serious business takes your whole life”

Building a business is like getting pregnant and falling in love even if it’s an ugly baby. At least, that’s what Sofia Fenichell, CEO and founder of Wonder Place said at the First Women Summit. Becoming an entrepreneur is all about having the confidence to transform ideas and let go when you know it’s a sinking ship, something which the panel agreed on.

IN

Interviews 3 min read

UK bank brands steadily in decline

The 'Brand Finance Banking 500', conducted by The Banker, is a league table of the world’s biggest banks, ranked by their brand value, has found that the UK’s banks collectively lost three per cent of their value this year.

IN

Interviews 2 min read

Businesses become more cautious about their prospects in the year ahead

Skills shortages and staff turnover continue to be an issue for businesses in Q1 2015, found recent ICAEW and Grant Thornton Confidence Monitor. After three quarters of strong growth, capital investment figures have slowed and salary growth remains muted.

IN

International Trade 4 min read

Kelly Hoppen: “Everyone focusses on a gender divide, but it’s all about drive”

Only one in five UK SMEs currently export. This is a worrying statistic given that businesses are 11 per cent more likely to survive if they export, according to CBI. And despite recent government focus on gender equality, women are an even smaller part of the equation. We talked to former Dragon Kelly Hoppen about the export gender divide.

BU

Business Law & Compliance 3 min read

Woolworths collective redundancy court decision draws near

Woolworths and Ethel Austin redundancy case may have significant implications for how businesses with multiple sites undertake redundancy programmes in the future.

IN

International Trade 5 min read

The hilarious banned import guide

An increase in UK exports has been a rare good story amid an anaemic recovery. But when picking which country to target next, SMEs need to be mindful of banned imports.

IN

Interviews 3 min read

If we can remove SME fear of funding rejection, we can release the brakes on the UK economy

Issued on 22 January, the latest Bank of England ‘Trends in Lending' report clearly showed the divide that still exists between large and small companies when it comes to borrowing money. But according to FundingKnight CEO Graeme Marshall, years of being turned down for finance has resulted in the hesitancy of smaller companies to borrow money. This seems to holding back the UK economy.

BU

Business Technology 3 min read

Government to boost UK innovation by challenging manufacturers to find new ways of developing skills

Manufacturing firms have been invited by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) to bid for a share of £1m in order to boost UK innovation.

OP

Opinion 3 min read

Alibaba spin-off to put pressure on Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer

Yahoo has announced plans for a tax-free spin-off of their remaining holdings in Alibaba into an investment company called SpinCo. This move will most likely save Yahoo's core business.

BU

Business Technology 3 min read

The secret sauce behind Apple’s success

According to a new report, Apple is a master of 'Quantum Strategy', which is “both unconventional as well as extremely difficult to implement”. It is due to this strategy that Apple will stand the test of time.