Chamber News

A majority of UK manufacturing exporters are reporting a stark worsening in sales and orders, with indicators showing a substantial drop compared to 2017 and 2018 levels.

The Quarterly International Trade Outlook for Q3 2019, released by British Chambers of Commerce and DHL today, reveals that indicators for exporting manufacturers in Q3 2019 have undergone large declines, with several key indicators for orders and cashflow now in negative territory. 

The percentage balance of exporting manufacturers reporting an increase in export orders fell to -1 per cent, down from +9 in the previous quarter. The balance of those reporting increased domestic orders fell to -4 per cent in Q3, down from +8 per cent in Q2.  

The balance of exporting manufacturers reporting improved cash flow stood at -5 per cent in Q3, down from +6 per cent in Q2. In Q3 2018, one year ago, the balance stood at +13.  

While exporting manufacturers saw large declines across the QITO indicators, the exporting services sector also saw indicators well below historical levels. In Q3 +8 per cent of exporting service sector firms reported an increase in domestic orders, down from +12 per cent in Q2.  A balance of zero per cent reported an increase in export orders, down from +5.   

BCC Director General Adam Marshall said:

“A strong and balanced economy needs healthy exporters at its core. But while there are some companies bucking the trend, future sales and orders are now well into negative territory, after a steady downward trend in export performance this year. 

“On top of Brexit uncertainty and global trade tensions, election turbulence won’t be helping.  The next administration will need to most fast to restore confidence, with action to upgrade infrastructure, boost skills and cut business costs.  

“Without urgent clarity around our future trading relationship with the EU, firms across the UK will increasingly struggle to fill order books, and jobs and prosperity in many of our communities could be at risk.” 

 Vice President of Marketing at DHL Express, Shannon Diett said:

 “This quarter’s report shows clearly that it continues to be a challenging environment for UK exporters.  

“Whether expanding to new markets within the EU or elsewhere in the world, diversifying the portfolio of countries in which you operate will help stabilise your business in the coming months and provide a future engine for growth. In this regard a number of non-traditional markets present a significant opportunity for UK exporters. 

“Working with logistics providers to ensure the transition to any new trade arrangement is as smooth as possible will be vital for exporters looking to mitigate the uncertainty and thrive into the future.  

“Along with broadening exposure to more markets, taking simple actions like ensuring you are electronically transmitting your customs documentation or sharing your EORI number with your shipper is advisable regardless the ultimate outcome.” 

67 per cent of exporting manufacturers cite exchange rates as a factor of concern to their business, up from 63 per cent in Q2. This remains the top factor of concern for exporting manufacturers. 

Walking up to the doors of The Boathouse delegates were treated to the sight of not only a motorbike from Norfolk Blood Bikes but also their car, both of which are used to quickly get blood products, samples, and other super important supplies from one hospital to another. The beautiful setting outweighed the drizzly weather and there was a lovely buzz as delegates got to know one another before the main event.

Once seated delegates networked on their tables, coming up with ideas of their business plans for 2020 ahead of Rachel Blackburn from US2U Consulting‘s presentation on building a robust business plan. The breakfast was absolutely delicious and so generous that some were even defeated by it! After breakfast Rachel was up, skilfully trimming her 2 hour presentation into 15 minutes to give delegates the key areas to consider when building their business plans. The main areas she encouraged delegates to consider were: identify clear goals; understand your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (and not to be afraid of the threats), compile competitor analysis so you can really understand what they do and how you can be different and better, and practice saying your elevator pitch out loud so you sound confident.

Delegates left full and feeling confident with their business plans and how to make 2020 their year!

Big thanks to the lovely guys from Norfolk Blood Bikes for being our featured charity, bringing their fabulous bike and car, and talking to delegates about the super important work they do across the county. Massive thanks to Rachel Blackburn from US2U Consulting for being our presenter and to The Boathouse for being our excellent venue as always.

If you’d like to get some of Rachel’s tips you can find all her slides here.

Shared Asset Model unveiled at 20th annual CoMoUK Collaborative Mobility Conference

Enterprise Car Club and sharing economy pioneers, Liftshare, have today announced a partnership that will see the two collaborate on a new mobility model that will dramatically improve access to shared vehicles for both Car Club members and business users. The ground-breaking partnership was unveiled at the CoMoUK conference in Birmingham. The partnership will be the first real-world application of an innovative concept dubbed the “Shared Asset Model” (SAM) that means people can share a low emission Enterprise Car Club vehicle, reducing dependency on older, often higher polluting vehicles, and making better use of the 36 million ’empty’ car seats on the daily commute. Liftshare and Enterprise are already speaking to a number of private and public sector organisations about introducing the Shared Asset Model. SAM works on the principle that a car club vehicle is driven to work, shared with a colleague (or colleagues). During the day the car is then available for use either by employees for company travel, removing the need for them to use their own vehicle, or by the general public. To further increase utilisation, the vehicle is available as an Enterprise Car Club vehicle on a simple pay as you go tariff at weekends and evenings. The introduction of a supplementary commuter mode (in this instance a brand-new car club vehicle) is a benefit to staff and communities alike where public transport is unable to fill the gaps identified by Liftshare and their Scoping Smart Mobility technology. This means that vehicles which would have spent the majority of each day parked-up are replaced by fewer, more intensively used alternatives, delivering greater value for clients who use the scheme. A further client incentive is the option of a revenue share derived from commuter journeys in addition to the gains associated with taking single occupancy vehicles off an already congested road network. The partnership will utilise Liftshare’s Trip Authentication and Smart Parking technologies to ensure the people parking in allocated sharing bays are genuine sharers, allowing easy management of the car park by an organisation’s facilities team. Speaking at the CoMoUK Conference Oz Choudhri, Head of MaaS, Enterprise Rent-A-Car UK Ltd said: “Enabling people to share vehicles for their daily commute will play a big role in improving air quality and reducing congestion. By combining the strength of our growing national Car Club fleet with the exciting technology of Liftshare and working with progressive organisations, we can make this ambition a reality.” CEO and Founder of Liftshare, Ali Clabburn, said “We’re delighted to be working with fellow forward-thinking global mobility leaders, Enterprise. Their Car Club offering aims to make it the best use of resources, and our collaboration makes it much easier for those assets to be shared, thus increasing the efficiency further. Our focus on improving the commute and reducing the amount of single occupancy vehicles can be accelerated when we work with partners like Enterprise and the milestone of saving one billion miles becomes even more achievable.”

 Enterprise Car Club and sharing economy pioneers, Liftshare, have today announced a partnership that will see the two collaborate on a new mobility model that will dramatically improve access to shared vehicles for both Car Club members and business users. The ground-breaking partnership was unveiled at the CoMoUK conference in Birmingham. The partnership will be the first real-world application of an innovative concept dubbed the “Shared Asset Model” (SAM) that means people can share a low emission Enterprise Car Club vehicle, reducing dependency on older, often higher polluting vehicles, and making better use of the 36 million ’empty’ car seats on the daily commute. Liftshare and Enterprise are already speaking to a number of private and public sector organisations about introducing the Shared Asset Model. SAM works on the principle that a car club vehicle is driven to work, shared with a colleague (or colleagues). During the day the car is then available for use either by employees for company travel, removing the need for them to use their own vehicle, or by the general public. To further increase utilisation, the vehicle is available as an Enterprise Car Club vehicle on a simple pay as you go tariff at weekends and evenings. The introduction of a supplementary commuter mode (in this instance a brand-new car club vehicle) is a benefit to staff and communities alike where public transport is unable to fill the gaps identified by Liftshare and their Scoping Smart Mobility technology. This means that vehicles which would have spent the majority of each day parked-up are replaced by fewer, more intensively used alternatives, delivering greater value for clients who use the scheme. A further client incentive is the option of a revenue share derived from commuter journeys in addition to the gains associated with taking single occupancy vehicles off an already congested road network. The partnership will utilise Liftshare’s Trip Authentication and Smart Parking technologies to ensure the people parking in allocated sharing bays are genuine sharers, allowing easy management of the car park by an organisation’s facilities team. Speaking at the CoMoUK Conference Oz Choudhri, Head of MaaS, Enterprise Rent-A-Car UK Ltd said: “Enabling people to share vehicles for their daily commute will play a big role in improving air quality and reducing congestion. By combining the strength of our growing national Car Club fleet with the exciting technology of Liftshare and working with progressive organisations, we can make this ambition a reality.” CEO and Founder of Liftshare, Ali Clabburn, said “We’re delighted to be working with fellow forward-thinking global mobility leaders, Enterprise. Their Car Club offering aims to make it the best use of resources, and our collaboration makes it much easier for those assets to be shared, thus increasing the efficiency further. Our focus on improving the commute and reducing the amount of single occupancy vehicles can be accelerated when we work with partners like Enterprise and the milestone of saving one billion miles becomes even more achievable.”

King’s Lynn town centre has the opportunity to potentially secure millions of pounds of transformational funding through the Future High Streets Fund – and your views are needed to help to shape the submission.

King’s Lynn is through to the next phase of the Future High Streets Fund and the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and its partners are working on the plans for the submission.

To support the submission, consultation is being carried out to understand how people use the town centre and how they feel about it. And, you can get involved in a number of ways:

• Online survey – have your say here
• Survey cards: these will be available for completion at shops, cafes and attractions around the town.
• Two consultation events: these will take place in the Tuesday Market Place.  People will be able to come along for a face-to-face chat about how they use the town, how they feel about the town, and what would improve their experience.
  • Saturday 16 November 2019 from 2pm to 5pm
  • Sunday 24 November 2019 from noon to 2pm

Feedback from the consultation will go forward to the Consultative Board overseeing the submission.  The survey is open to everyone, even if you only rarely or never visit King’s Lynn.

This survey builds on the original consultation in February 2019 which asked people for their views on King’s Lynn town centre. More than 750 people had their say and their feedback helped to inform the successful expression of interest to the Future High Streets Fund.

Updates about the Future High Streets Fund submission, and other funding for the town centre, will be shared across the Vision King’s Lynn social media channels Facebook @visionkingslynn, Twitter @vision_lynn and Instagram visionkingslynn.

Zoe and Trevor of Rhino Building and DIY Supplies are celebrating eight years! 

They put it down to their tremendous staff who always go the extra mile on a daily basis, and of course to their customers for their continued loyalty and support!



Is your business prepared for Brexit? Do you a contingency plan to mitigate the impact of possible changes? Are you a customs agent? Or does your company use customs agents and intermediaries to help you trade with the EU?

If so, you need to know how to meet customs requirements fast and efficiently after the UK leaves the EU. There will be new processes to follow and new forms to complete. We can help. Our training will highlight what you need to know to be able to accurately complete a simple customs declaration. Norfolk Chambers of Commerce have launched new dates for training courses on Customs Declaration to help businesses understand the procedure ahead of Brexit. Take action to be prepared for any possible scenario. Who should attend? Anyone who needs an understanding of Customs regimes and how to complete a Customs declaration form. There are no pre-requisites for this course. Dates:

Tuesday, 14 January, 2020

Wednesday, 26 February, 2020

Thursday, 26 March, 2020

Time: 09:00 to 16:30 Venue: Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, 9 Norwich Business Park, Whiting Road, Norwich, NR4 6DJ Prices Member Rate: £280 + VAT Non-Member Rate: £350 + VAT

You may be eligible to claim up to 100% of the training course cost back from HMRC. You can find out more if your business is eligible, how to register and submit an application at www.customsintermediarygrant.co.uk

To book your place on either course click on dates linked above. 

For any further information please contact Julie Austin on 01603 729706 or email [email protected]   

We have a wide range of exciting and interesting training courses coming up before the end of November. They will be perfect if you are looking to further your knowledge or up-skill a member of your team.

Here is a selection of what we have coming up:

e-zCert Workshop – 14/11/2019

Do you want to save time and money when producing your export documentation? Creating documents online with e-zCert is the way forward. More info

The Essentials of Email Marketing – 21/11/2019

A non-technical half day training workshop delivered by Holly Stibbon, 101 designed for people with limited experience in email marketing who wish to improve their knowledge and get better results. More info

60 Minute Workshop – Customer Service on Social Media – 26/11/2019

In this short session we will share our advice on how best to deal with customer service on social media. More info

How to be a Brilliant Communicator – 28/11/2019

Would you like to be an even better communicator – brush up your skills and learn some new ones?  You may be looking to lead your team more effectively, build strong relationships with colleagues, be influential during that important meeting or simply feel more confident in different situations. More info

We’re all aware of the impact technology is having on our private lives, most people now have a smartphones and a large proportion have tablets and laptops too. There is an increasing buzz around screen time and how we manage our relationship with technology, at our recent HR Forum the experts from Birketts took delegates through how technology is impacting on the workplace and what you as employers can do about it.

We had three Senior Associates with us, Laura Brown, Jenny Leeder, and Kitty Rosser guiding delegates through a number of case studies involving the fictional character Sam Sung. Laura started by outlining the positives technology has on our lives such as computational accuracy and flexibility as well as risks such as data protection and working time issues. The majority of businesses in the room gave employees work phones and Laura highlighted that these pose an interesting question around working times as they give employees the flexibility to work from anywhere but also have the potential to encourage a blurring of lines between work and home life.

The case studies covered social media use both personally and professionally, mobile phone use, emails and data protection, and employee surveillance. It was suggested to delegates that even personal social media use can have a professional impact and that in order to protect themselves they should have a clear policy in place. Many delegates said that they would consider looking at a potential candidate’s social media channels prior to interviewing them, it was suggested that actually the best time to do this is after the first interview and that all staff should be trained on the relevant policies. On the subject of employee surveillance delegates were given a number of ways to protect themselves and things to consider including ensuring surveillance isn’t excessive and that clear boundaries are set. Finally delegates were given some examples of emerging technologies such as HR chatbots that could have an impact on their businesses. 

Delegates left with a number of action points such as reviewing current policies to ensure that they cover all technology and are fair and reasonable, providing training to staff which was a clear theme throughout the afternoon, the importance of consistency when enforcing policies, and making sure they’re aware of potential vicarious liability risks. Overall it was a really informative afternoon that raised some issues that you would not necessarily consider when discussing technology and the workplace.

Big thanks to Laura Brown, Jenny Leeder, and Kitty Rosser for leading the afternoon and Birketts for sponsoring. All slides from the HR Forum can be found here.

Help us give a warm welcome to the newest members of Norfolk Chambers of Commerce for the month of October

Visit their business to explore what they have to offer. Click on a business name below to view the full listing in our Member Directory.

Aqcuity A niche consultancy specialising in organisation development, design, and leadership. I work with organisations seeking to refresh their strategies, renew their team and make step changes in executive performance.  Archive-Vault Ltd Proud to be a family-run business, we have provided clients with affordable solutions for secure document storage and records management since 2006.

Barkers Photos We also offer a lot of non-studio services (eg Event photography, wedding photography, cine and vhs to dvd, negative and slide scanning, photo restoration etc).

Bicycle Links Bicycle Links is a friendly bike-recycling workshop in central Norwich. We run workshops, repair and sell second-hand bikes and encourage safer cycling skill

Condimentum Condimentum is a new company with an established legacy which processes mustard seed, mint and horseradish to provide a range of ingredients for the food industry.

Hannah Sell’s Tea I’m Hannah Sell, and my helper and production partner Kev Wilson and I are starting out as tea merchants local to Norwich.

Housecheckr Buying a Home? Traditional house surveys don’t check for the practical things that could cost you money. Our Home Fixtures Survey does.

The Learning Tank  At The Learning Tank our philosophy is to provide comprehensive, uncomplicated and affordable E-learning for all business’s.

Method Marketing A content marketing consultancy

Satchells of Burnham Market Established in the 1880s, Satchells now boasts a huge selection of wines and spirits from all over the world, including several single malt whiskies.

Selesti A digital agency for brands with ambition. We use strategies, technologies and campaigns to help brands achieve extraordinary things.

Shepherds Health & Safety Ltd We are a health and safety training provider based in Norfolk, but we cover the whole of the UK.

The Hearing Care Centre East Anglia’s multi-award winning, private and independent hearing care company. 

Wymondham College Truly unique, World Class state school for day and boarding students aged 11-18. With ‘outstanding’ judgements from Ofsted for both education and boarding elements of the College and one of the few UK state schools to hold the ‘World Class’ accolade, we are amongst the highest performing schools in the country.

Ahead of the forthcoming general election, Norfolk Chambers, in conjunction with our members want to call on any future government to deliver a bold and clear strategy to support economic growth across Norfolk, all the regions and nations of the UK.

Health, immigration and crime, as well as avoiding a messy disorderly No Deal Brexit, are all important and relevant issues for business.  However, we feel that clear action is needed on a range of domestic fronts, including improving the competitiveness of the UK’s business environment; upgrading physical and digital infrastructure across the country; and supporting business growth; whilst balancing the need to be sustainable.

Norfolk Chambers want to support the Norfolk business community to send a strong message that this election cannot, and must not, be about Brexit alone.  So we have put together a manifesto which highlights some key asks of any future government.  We will be using the manifesto for all media enquiries and when talking to the various parties and future Ministers in Westminster.  These include:

• Infrastructure
• Skills
• Trade
• Sustainability
• Brexit

Our mission is to ‘connect, support and give voice to every business in Norfolk’ – therefore we want to hear your voice and opinions. 

Please can we ask you to provide your opinions on subjects such as infrastructure, skills, overseas trade, sustainability and of course Brexit.

Give us your opinion now.

The previous Quarter 3 results highlighted the continued impact of economic uncertainty on our economy.  The manufacturing sector reported the lowest level on exports since the EU Referendum in 2016.  And the normally buoyant services sector saw falling domestic and export sales and orders.

Norfolk’ manufacturing sector saw a marked downward shift in many indicators in the third quarter. The balance of firms reported weak sales and domestic orders and export sales dropped to the lowest level since Q1 2016. Business confidence in turnover and profitability among manufacturers fell.

The dominant Norfolk services sector also saw decreased domestic sales and orders and export orders. The balance of firms confident in turnover and profitability improvements fell in quarter three, as did the balance for investment in training.  

With Brexit postponed until 31 January and a General Election set for 12 December –  we need your help to clearly understand what shape the Norfolk economy is in.  The Quarterly Economic Survey for Quarter 4 is now underway and we need to hear from as many Norfolk businesses as possible. Please take the short survey Q4 Quarterly Economic Survey (QES).

The QES is the largest independent business survey in the UK and is used by both the Bank of England and the Chancellor of the Exchequer to plan the future of the UK economy.  It is also closely watched by the International Monetary Fund.  It is vital that as many Norfolk businesses as possible take part, so we get a true reflection of the local economy.

You can have your say by completing the QES online NOW.  It takes less than 3 minutes.  The completion deadline for this survey is midnight on Monday 25 November 2019.  The Q4 results will be published in the first week of January 2020.

Key findings in the Q3 2019 survey:

Norfolk Manufacturing sector  

• The balance of firms reporting increased domestic sales rose from -13 in Q2 2019, to 0, whilst those reporting increased domestic orders rose, but remained in negative territory from -19 to -11.
• The balance of firms reporting improved export sales fell from +23 to -6  and the balance of firms reporting increased export orders dropped from +15 to -24.
• The balance of firms reporting improved cashflow fell into negative territory from +25 to -5.
• The balance of firms increasing investment in plant/machinery rose in the quarter from -19 to +10 remaining historically weak, and investment in training rose from -6 to +10.
• The balance of firms confident that turnover and profitability will increase in the next 12 months fell from +50 to +38 for turnover and from +19 to +14 for profitability.

Norfolk Services sector  

• The balance of firms reporting increased domestic sales fell from +12 in Q2 2019 to +8. Those reporting increased domestic orders fell slightly from +4 to 0.
• The balance of firms reporting improved export sales fell from +4 to -5.  Those reporting increased export orders continuing in negative territory fell still further from -4 to -5.
• The balance of firms reporting improved cashflow rose very slightly from -5 to +2 but remains weak by historic standards.
• The balance of firms looking to increase investment in plant and machinery drastically fell from +2 to -14 and fell slightly from +10 to +7 in training.
• The balance of firms confident that turnover and profitability will improve over the next year decreased from +30 to +10 for turnover from +12 to -5 for profitability.