State of the Region: Confidence on the up say bosses
BUSINESSES are in good heart at the start of 2014 with a strong majority expecting to see growth themselves and in the wider economy this year.
This is according to the findings of the annual State of the Region survey, sponsored by law firm DLA Piper and conducted last month by TheBusinessDesk.com. Readers were asked their views on a number of key issues, and last week a group of executives from leading regional companies gathered to discuss prospects for 2014 too.
When asked about turnover growth 84% of respondents said they expect some increase this year. There was a fairly even split within this between those expecting “minimal growth”, 44%, and those expecting to grow substantially, 40%.
Just 15% expect revenues to be flat this year, while the remainder, just 1% predict contraction.
Positivity was also the order of the day with regards to the wider economy, with 62% of those surveyed expecting slow and consistent growth, while 22% expect growth to be stronger than that. 13% expect it to be “flat or negligible” and just 3% believe the economy will get worse before it gets better.
Liam Cowell, managing partner at DLA Piper’s Manchester office said: “Business confidence is certainly gaining momentum, fueling hopes of continued growth throughout 2014.”
“These results are supported by our own experiences in our corporate and finance transactional teams; we haven’t seen the marked slowdown in business over the festive season that has been a feature of recent years and the time it takes for decisions to be taken and deals to complete is certainly picking up, all indicating a much stronger appetite to get deals done.”
“This positive sentiment seems to be developing a renewed appetite for new opportunities, moving away from a game of wait and see.”
Business leaders attending a round table to discuss the survey agreed that consumer confidence was improved on this time last year, and were generally upbeat.
Barry Nightingale, chief finance officer at BetFred group, and a close adviser to entrepreneurs Fred and Peter Done, who have a varierty of investments across a number of business sectors said: “The gaming business has growth through the recession, and has been very resilient.
“The Dones have interests in a number of sectors, from HR and health and sefety advice to construction. There is unprecedented demand among SMEs for health and safety advice, which I think is a clear sign that investment is picking up, while construction is also looking positive too.”
