North West business briefs: Widdop Bingham; Liverpool FC; RE-SCULPT; The Pledge Partnership; Fibrus; LCRCA

Chadderton-based family-owned wholesale gift supplier, Widdop Bingham & Co, is preparing for its next phase with fifth generation members of the Illingworth family, Stephen and Daniel, taking ownership of the business as joint MDs in a deal being supported by Shawbrook.

Founded in 1883 by William Widdop and recently celebrating their 140th year, Widdop Bingham & Co boasts a product range of more than 8,000 stock keeping units spread across 12 product categories, and 26 brands. Key products include clocks, candles, figurines, cards, puzzles, photo frames and albums. The business also has the rights to use licenses including Disney, Warner Brothers, Hasbro and Paramount.

The group currently operates a UK and Asian design team with more than 80 years of cumulative sourcing experience. This allows the team to innovate quickly and exclusively from a supply base of around 200 factories. The multimillion-pound asset-based lending facility offered by Shawbrook will support the well established business as it transitions to its next phase under the new leadership.

Daniel and Stephen Illingworth said: “We’re excited to begin the next phase of Widdop following the transfer of ownership. We’ve gained significant experience working in the family business for 15 years and are looking forward to continuing, and growing the family legacy further.”

Matt Greenhalgh, director at Shawbrook, said: “It’s been fantastic working with Daniel and Stephen to help them through this transfer from one generation to the next.

“We’re pleased we were able to offer a bespoke structure that enables the smooth transfer of ownership and creates a fantastic foundation in which to continue to grow this long-running business.”

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SME pitch-side advertising

VistaPrint, the design and print partner to small businesses, is working with Liverpool FC to provide a platform for SMEs on matchdays at the Premier League side’s Anfield stadium.

It is once again running its Small Business of the Match initiative with the club, having supported more than 36 small businesses so far through its partnership deal. During the upcoming 2023-2024 season, the 15 chosen small businesses will receive: Hospitality tickets to a home match including access to the Legends Lounge; private transfers to and from the match; a chance to advertise their business on the pitch-side LED screens during the match; a tour of Anfield stadium; a personalised LFC shirt with their business name on the back; and the opportunity to be a part of future LFC and VistaPrint initiatives.

Over the course of the Small Business of the Match initiative, more than 8.5 million viewers have seen the Small Business of the Match winners showcased on pitch-side LED screens during Liverpool matches. One local barber’s found that its business went up by 20% over the two months following its selection as the Small Business of the Match, and the number of people who downloaded its app also increased by 20%.

Sabine Leveiller, marketing director for Europe at VistaPrint, said: “The role of small businesses in our economy is huge, and the impact each and every small business has on its local community cannot be understated. At VistaPrint, we want to make small businesses feel as big as their impact on everyone else around them.”

Ben Latty, LFC commercial director, said: “The VistaPrint Small Business of the Match initiative is incredibly impactful, and has made a big difference to the many small businesses involved so far. I’m very proud that Liverpool FC can continue to work alongside VistaPrint to put a spotlight on businesses that sit at the heart of their local communities.”

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Becky Barrett

A new fitness concept creating six jobs has launched in Manchester, thanks to a £100,000 investment secured by local fitness entrepreneur Becky Barrett.

RE:SCULPT, an eight-bed reformer Pilates studio on Chapel Street, combines controlled, low-impact movements with the latest reformer Pilates technology to provide intense 45-minute fitness workouts. Traditionally, reformer Pilates beds are popular for incorporating low-impact training however RE:SCULPT expands on this by being the only studio in the UK to use ‘Reformer+’ beds, it said.

Founder Becky Barrett, 44, a former ballerina and fitness instructor and entrepreneur with two decades of experience, moved to Manchester from London after the pandemic. Her vision for RE:SCULPT came from anticipating a post-pandemic fitness trend for people living and working around the central Manchester area looking for an exciting and invigorating way to set new fitness goals.

Becky said: “The journey hasn’t been without set-backs. Early on when securing investment, I was a victim of cybercrime by hackers who took personal information from my emails while I was liaising with a potential supplier. Still, I’ve held true to the vision, determined to bring something intense, impactful and fun to everyone, at all levels of fitness.”

She added: “I think people are always looking for new and exciting ways to fit fitness into their lives. What worked for them over the last three years doesn’t necessarily fit into what works today and we’ve got an innovative and invigorating solution for your next health chapter.”

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Oli de Botton

The man who leads England’s school careers education said he was “truly inspired” by a trailblazing partnership that links Cheshire and Warrington businesses with students of all backgrounds to prepare them for the world of work.

Oli de Botton, CEO of The Careers and Enterprise Company told a skills conference that the work of The Pledge Partnership, which connects all 86 schools and colleges in the region with 550 businesses was “exceptional” and is “magnifying the impact on young people”.

The glowing endorsement came at the Bridging the Gaps Cheshire and Warrington Pledge Partnership & Careers Hub Annual Conference 2023 at Alderley Park. Attended by more than 200 delegates, the conference explored how employers, educators and other key local stakeholders can work further together to address local priorities based around three key themes, Skills, Inclusivity and Opportunity.

Underpinned by the Gatsby Benchmarks, a framework that promotes careers education excellence, the Cheshire and Warrington Careers Hub runs innovative tailor-made projects. These include students being interviewed by genuine recruiters at Mock Assessment Centres, multiple careers fairs attended in 2023 alone by 263 exhibitors and almost 6,000 people, and even Teacher Encounters which allow school staff to engage directly with employers to explore student career pathways relevant to their subjects.

Statistics unveiled at the conference revealed that more than 25,000 young people in Cheshire and Warrington a year were benefiting from the network which was not only seeing more students snapping up exciting jobs locally, but raising careers education standards across the region.

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Workington Town’s Derwent Park will now be known as the Fibrus Community Stadium as part of a significant investment in the club by full fibre broadband provider Fibrus.

The company is injecting a substantial sum into the Rugby League club in return for the stadium naming rights. The partnership was driven by a mutual focus on investing in the local community and the pursuit of improving sport in Cumbria. As well as stadium naming rights, Fibrus is also taking the front of shirt sponsorship for the newly-formed women’s team and the warm-up jerseys for the men’s side.

Laura Ivison, captain of the new Workington Town Ladies team, said: “It will be an honour to go out there in these shirts and lead the lasses onto the field for the town. It shows girls out there that there is a way forward to play rugby for your local team.”

Graeme Peers, director and commercial partnerships manager at Workington Town, said the cash injection would transform the club: “The deal will allow us to change the business model and help the women’s team get established. We will be able to employ paid professionals on the commercial side and in our community development. We aim to have a representative, a skilled coach, who can work with schools and colleges to nurture young players.”

Dean Jooste, stakeholder director for GB at Fibrus, said “The stadium is an iconic landmark in West Cumbria with deep community roots dating back to the 1950s. The launch of the Fibrus Community Stadium marks an exciting new era for Fibrus and for Workington Town, and we are honoured to be part of this journey.”

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A new scheme launched by Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram which aims to improve air quality and reduce congestion around schools got under way at two schools in Birkdale this week

Launched at Greenbank High and Birkdale High, the School Streets schemes restrict car access to streets outside school gates at drop off and pick up times, reducing the harmful emissions young people are exposed to and making it safer and easier for them to get to school on foot or by bike. Pupils from both schools have been instrumental in helping to bring the schemes to their schools, working with teachers and parents as well as representatives from Sefton Council, the combined authority and national walking and cycling charity Sustrans to make the projects a reality.

Kitija Bekmore, year nine pupil from Greenbank High School said: “By shutting the roads we’ll reduce traffic and create less air pollution which is good for the environment and creates a safe way for students to get to school.”

More than 1,000 deaths a year in the Liverpool City Region can be linked to air pollution, a recent study has revealed. The region’s Air Quality Action Plan committed to supporting projects that would help turn the tide and improve air quality across the region, while Mayor Rotheram has called on the Government to take stronger action to tackle pollution on a national level. The combined authority was the first in the country to declare a climate emergency with an ambitious target to become net zero carbon by 2040 at the latest – at least 10 years ahead of government targets.

To mark the launch of the new schemes, Mayor Rotheram and Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Emily Spurrell joined pupils from Birkdale High and Greenbank High Schools. Steve Rotheram said: “School streets are a valuable tool in ensuring we keep our kids safe. Alongside the investments we’re making in zero emissions buses and to build a London-style transport system that will not only make public transport more cheaper and more reliable, but much cleaner and greener too, we’re doing our bit to make the air we breathe much less harmful, reduce congestion and make our streets safer.”