BUSINESS FIRST INNER 3-38:Layout 1 9/6/08 17:03 Page 3
03
Dear Reader,
Welcome to the second issue of Business First. Since our launch in
March, we have been astonished at the response generated by our
magazine. We always knew there was a place in the south east business
market for a magazine that combined quality editorial with high
production standards and useful information, but we have been amazed
at how well it has been received. Most rewarding of all was our winning
approval to distribute Business First via the Eurostar Business Premier
Class lounges and carriages. In this way five thousand extra copies will
reach one of the top business audiences in the country every quarter.
The internationally renowned advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty has a
brilliant strap line to describe what makes their approach special.
“When the world zigs, zag.”
That’s how we feel about Business First. We want to defy expectations about
regional business magazines, to surprise readers with an eclectic variety of
stories and articles that add dimension to everyday business thinking. That’s
why in this issue we look at the business-led regeneration in Southampton and
at the effect the looming skills shortage is having on business – and how to
counter it. We also report on Kent’s bold initiative to attract investment from
France. Solid business stories. But then we report on how Tenon, one of the
country’s top 10 accountancy firms, is taking clients on inspirational trips with
a difference - sleeping under the stars on the Great Wall of China. And we
talk to students at Portsmouth Business School about their vision for business in
years to come. Prepare to have your preconceptions challenged.
Inevitably we have to touch upon the Great Credit Crunch of 2008. But you
know, we think there is simultaneously more to this than meets the eye - and
less. There never was a crisis that wasn’t made worse by people screaming
blue murder about it. So we note the crisis, we understand some people are
going to find things tougher out there than they did. That is the nature of
business. But we are not going to sink into an orgy of despair as some would
have us do. Better times will return. They may be very different from what we
had before and that may just be a good thing. We believe in the creativity
and resilience of business people to adapt. And we must learn to tell the
difference between those with good intentions and the snake oil salesmen
who promise the earth but deliver ashes. They were the ones who sold us the
sub-prime bubble that blew up in our faces. Increasingly, the price of
prosperity will be vigilance.
Kind regards,
NICK PETERS
Editor-in-chief and Publisher
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84