The drinks group behind Bristol craft brewery and pub chain Butcombe plans to make it the leading provider of premium accommodation in the South of England, it said this week. At the same time, Jersey-based Liberation Group is to invest in Butcombe’s brewery in Wrington to increase capacity for...
Confidence levels among businesses in the South West have bounced back from the gloom of earlier this year – making the region one of only two to register an increase in optimism. Overall confidence rose five points last month to 34%, while companies in the region became far more...
Bristol employers are being invited to take part in a new £2m programme that will support hundreds of individuals across the West of England to learn new skills. The scheme, launched by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA), is designed to plug the skills gaps in the region...
Passengers arriving at Bristol Airport are now greeted by an eye-catching artwork featuring many of the West of England’s family-friendly attractions. Produced by Visit West, the region’s destination marketing organisation, in partnership with the airport, specialist advertising experts Eye Airports and businesses, the 136 ft-long mural, pictured, weaves its...
Bristol recruitment specialist Baltimore Consulting has moved into new, state-of-the-art office space – taking it full circle back to the building where it launched 10 years ago. The firm was founded by Charmaine Vincent, pictured, in a small office in Castlemead, Bristol’s tallest commercial building, in 2013. Since then...
One of the UK’s largest regional fund managers has opened an office in Bristol to provide finance to small and medium-sized business through the British Business Bank’s new £200m South West Investment Fund. FW Capital will manage the debt finance fund for the north of the region, providing commercial...
Runway East has become Bristol city centre’s largest co-working operator, jumping ahead of rival Regus in a crowded and fast-growing market. The flexible workspace operator, which launched in London in 2014 and opened its first site in Bristol shortly afterwards, now has 82,000 sq ft of office space on...
Lawyers from the Bristol office of transatlantic law firm Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) have advised North Somerset Council in its successful legal battle to acquire Weston-super-Mare’s historic Birnbeck Pier. The council is working with the Royal National Lifeboats Institution (RNLI) and Historic England to secure the preservation of the Grade...
National law firm Foot Anstey has strengthened its energy and infrastructure sector team in Bristol by appointing new legal directors Laura Rajanah and Adam Weatherley. Laura Rajanah has dedicated 15 years of her career to the energy sector, focusing on the real estate elements associated with projects. She has...
Bristol and the West of England will become the UK’s centre for electric vehicle technology when the long-expected green light is finally given for a battery gigafactory in Somerset, according to business leaders and politicians in the region. The government this week agreed a deal with Tata Group, which owns...
Profit warnings from South West companies listed on the London Stock Exchange soared by 66% in the first half of this year as the cost of living crisis hit consumers. According to new research by international accountancy group EY, 15 warnings were issued by quoted firms in the region...
Regional alternative finance lender South West Investment Group (SWIG) lent a record £14m to ambitious small and medium-sized businesses across the region in the past year, new figures show. The non-profit group, which supports viable businesses that cannot secure sufficient funding from their bank, provided 559 loans to 478...
Bristol-based national law firm Burges Salmon has strengthened its standing as one of the few law firms specialising in the fast-growing vertical farming sector by advising on a major investment deal. The firm’s corporate group worked with sustainability-led alternative funding manager Foresight Group on its financial support package for...
