26th January 2011: App Proves No Risk For Security Team

A global security firm that provides close protection services to international pop groups and Russian billionaires has chosen a South Tyneside software house to create a ‘James Bond style' top security iPhone application.

Boldon-based technology experts DEF Apps designed and developed the app for WF Special Projects, which protects VIPs, diplomats, sports stars and high profile business people.

The new iPhone app gives the company's team leaders access to data that allows them to plan and control detailed client protection operations across Europe and in some of the world's most dangerous hostile environments.

A typical job might involve providing security advice, planning routes, private home security planning, armoured vehicle provision, researching the backgrounds of people the client will come into contact with, and personally escorting the client to ensure their safety.

Teams of up to eight close protection officers are managed by a team leader, who needs access to all live project data on the clients - right down to their blood group - plus the protection team's CVs, radio details and information on the kit they will be carrying.

The app stores all the necessary data and stores it on a central system so updates can be deployed from a central location to individual iPhones if necessary.

David Frame, head of DEF Apps, said: "Many of WF's clients include famous, wealthy, or politically important people. Providing security advice and protecting individuals and their families involves a lot of detailed planning work and highly sensitive data, which has to be instantly available and updatable by all the authorised users.

"The team needs world class software to assist them in their work, and the iPhone app allows for mass storage and manipulation of information on their client and anything that could affect them or the project. This is a true business app and is deployed by the team whilst protecting some of the most high profile individuals on the planet."

Shaun West, managing director of WF Special Projects and a former Para who has served in Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Iraq, said: "Our role as security consultants is to provide expert risk assessment and threat avoidance, and in the event of an incident, protect our clients.

"Privacy and confidentiality are essential in our business, and this new app will give our operatives instant access to all the security review information they need to plan and control operations that keep our clients safe."

WF Special Projects have delivered operations across the world in both armed and unarmed environments, ranging from team protection for Champions League games, through to guarding the teams who burn Afghanistan's poppy fields.

24th January 2011: Restaurant Design Company Restores Medieval Banquet Hall

A North East design company has helped to bring a medieval banquet hall back to life at a Newcastle restaurant.

Hebburn-based Restaurant Design Associates (RDA) was appointed by the award-winning Blackfriars restaurant in Newcastle to renovate a 50-seat 13th century banquet hall. The restaurant is one of the oldest dining rooms in the UK, dating back to 1239, and the hall was the celebrated venue used by King Edward III for receiving royal Scot, Edward Balliol.

RDA has helped to fully restore the hall to its original glory, and also installed necessary modern additions such as a bar, kitchen, lighting, under-floor heating and toilets, as part of the meticulous year-long project.

The bar and kitchen are both hidden behind reclaimed wooden screens, and furnishings include large oak communal dining tables and matching chairs.

Judith Addyman, director of RDA, said: "We have been delighted to work with Blackfriars on such an impressive, historically significant restoration project and we're very proud of the finished result."

Andy Hook, owner of Blackfriars, said: "We have been passionately promoting the rich tapestry of Blackfriars heritage for almost a decade now and we are very grateful for RDA's hard work and dedication to the project.

"We are incredibly excited to re-open this stunningly beautiful medieval banquet hall for the local community, school children and tourists to enjoy, and RDA helped to make this a reality."

The hall is also available for corporate events, networking groups, functions, wine tastings, educational visits, private parties, anniversaries and weddings.

RDA has a wealth of experience in the design and installation of catering and retail facilities for multi-national blue chip companies, education and NHS Trusts, contract caterers and private businesses throughout the UK.

The firm has secured several orders for this year onwards, including a number of food courts, coffee outlets, workplace restaurants and commercial kitchens at sites such as Birmingham Hospital, Peterborough Hospital and Coventry University.

For further information about RDA, visit www.rdalimited.co.uk or tel: 0844 873 4993

Blackfriars Restaurant, Friars Street, Newcastle, NE1 4XN, (0191) 261 5945,www.blackfriarsrestaurant.co.uk

24th January 2011: Admiral Launches New Digital Service

Admiral, known for its PR and public affairs service offering, has launched a dedicated digital arm, Admiral Digital.

With offices in Newcastle, Manchester and London, the new digital team of three will provide: web design and development, Flash animation and online advertising, search engines optimisation, app development and website consultation. The new digital team will work closely with the PR team to build Admiral's revenues.

Heading up digital, Seth Ridley comes with a wealth of experience in the creative industry working with big brands including easyjet, NHS, Vodafone and Yakult. With a combined 40 years of experience, the digital team will enhance the offering of the communication consultancy.

Speaking of the launch, Georgie Cameron, founder and managing director of Admiral, said;"We were constantly handing our revenue to partners for digital projects and decided it was time to bring the service offering in-house."

The launch of Admiral Digital comes after a new full-service office in Manchester recently opened along with a satellite office in London.

18th January 2011: A Tough Year Says Economist, But Better Days To Come

Entrepreneurs hold the key to driving forward the North East economy as it faces a squeeze on consumer spending over the next year, a leading economist has predicted.

After a tough 12 months, the region should begin to see an improving economic picture over the next two or three years as the budget deficit is reduced and government revenue grows.

Douglas McWilliams, founder of think-tank the Centre for Economics and Business Research Ltd and former chief economic advisor to the Confederation of British Industry, said North East entrepreneurs provided "the acorns from which oaks will begin to grow" but it would mean breaking out of a culture previously reliant on the public sector.

"The rate of business start-ups is relatively low. In a sense they have been stymied by a culture that has looked to the government rather than to do things for themselves," he said as a guest speaker at the Entrepreneurs' Forum annual Chairman's Dinner.

Cuts would have a greater impact on the region because of its disproportionate share of public spending, he said.

But North East entrepreneurs were particularly strong, and the IT revolution meant they were less dependent upon local customers.

"It's easier for a region to transform itself quickly than it would have been in the past," said Mr McWilliams, a regular economics commentator on television and radio and whose clients include Siemens, Vodafone, Oracle, Transport for London and The Crown Estate.

The North East was a distilled version of the national picture, which he said was looking much more exciting in a couple of years' time.

"At the moment we are climbing up the hill but when we get to the slide down it will be much better. 2013, 2014 and 2015 could be quite good years for the British economy," he added.

While the global economy goes through the biggest transformation ever, the UK was facing a "slightly bigger challenge" because of a mismatch between the economic cycle and the political cycle, said Mr McWilliams, who advises politicians on both sides.

Tom Maxfield, chairman of the Entrepreneurs' Forum, opened the event telling Forum members: "The future lies in our hands and each one of us has the opportunity to seize the moment and turn it to our advantage."

He posed the question if the coalition government was a good thing for business, and asked if members could ever take opposition leader Ed Miliband seriously after he said the budget deficit had nothing to do with Labour.

Mr Maxfield said it was the calibre of leadership that would prove critical, comparing the widely criticised performance of England coach Fabio Capello in the football World Cup to that of Andrew Strauss, captain of England's Ashes-winning cricket team.

One entrepreneur who survived a death threat by Russian mafia and spent five years trying to bring his business into profit before reaching stardom is Nick Jenkins, founder and chairman of Moonpig.com.

As guest entrepreneur at the dinner, held at Jesmond Dene House in Newcastle, Mr Jenkins said he was drawn towards starting his own venture by the "carrot of what might happen".

"As an entrepreneur it doesn't matter if you never get to the carrot; it's about the possibility and the chance to dream. You can't dream of winning the lottery if you don't buy a ticket," he said.

He spent nine years in Moscow working as a commodity trader for a sugar company and was involved in an MBO of the business, generating enough capital to invest in his own venture back in the UK.

Mr Jenkins, who failed to get the A level grades to secure a place at Newcastle Polytechnic but later went on to study Russian literature and an MBA, says the importance of having his own cash to invest in the business should not be underestimated when it came to securing external funding later.

"Lots of people have good ideas but don't have any money, but when it comes to raising finance it's more convincing if you've got some of your own," he explained.

"Investors are fairly cautious and if the owner has nothing to lose they are less likely to be interested. I do not think I would have got the funding if I had started it without my own money."

It was 1999 at the height of the dot come boom when he came up with the idea for Moonpig, realising that his own schoolboy nickname fulfilled all his criteria for a strong brand - simple, memorable and easy to spell.

The business now dominates the online greeting cards sector with 2.7 million active customers who purchased 12 million cards from the site during 2010.

18th January 2011: Knowledge and Experience Set OSM Resourcing Apart

After five years working at one of the world's largest shipyards, an aspiring entrepreneur is using his knowledge of the oil and gas industry, combined with a wealth of contacts in the sector, to launch a new recruitment business.

OSM Resourcing is the brainchild of Newcastle-born Dave Fox, who recently returned to North East from his role as a Lead Machinery Inspector for Qatargas, based at the vast DSME yard on Geoje Island, near Pusan, in South Korea. Having been involved in several roles related to oil, gas and the marine sector, Dave is now aiming to provide highly qualified professionals to fulfil similar roles within the industry.

"Having worked in a variety or roles, including a lecturing post at South Tyneside College and my last job at Qatargas, which involved overseeing a multi-billion dollar LNG carrier new-build project, I appreciate that you need the right people with the right skills," said Dave, 32. "OSM Resourcing will succeed because, with my inside knowledge of the industry, I know what my clients are looking for and the high level of service they expect.

"We will deliver the people that they want, on long or short-term contracts, at rates that are highly competitive compared to other companies in the sector. Companies in shipbuilding, engineering and offshore tend to have very specific requirements for each job role, so we will use our skills and technology to match the candidate to the position."

With a CV that includes two degrees, one in physics and the other in marine engineering, plus a qualification in the control of remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs), Mr Fox is no stranger to the diverse needs of the marine industry. After becoming one of the first students to graduate on the marine engineering degree at South Tyneside College, he spent two years working for Royal Dutch Shell, before returning to join the teaching staff at the college.

He added: "These are challenging times economically, so you really need to stand out to succeed. Having worked within the industry and spoken to people who take the key decisions, I know they prefer to work with people who understand the pressures they're under and the sort of people they need, which is where OSM Resourcing will differ from its competitors."

Adopting a similar approach, OSM Resourcing is also about to launch a dedicated recruitment service for the construction sector, offering services that are tailored to the specific requirements of each client.

12th January 2011: Simplicity Is Key To Success

Two years ago, Sarah Pittendrigh turned redundancy into opportunity when she set up her own business. Simply Bows and Chair Covers is now thriving, as Rebecca Eves discovers.

When I speak to Sarah Pittendrigh, managing director of Simply Bows and Chair Covers, she's between appointments on a day that's full of client meetings."We're working nearly 24 hours a day at the moment," she laughs. "But I certainly won't be complaining."

After nearly two years in business, the chair cover and table linen specialist has grown to incorporate six franchises, covering the whole of the North East, plus North Yorkshire and Cumbria.

Further franchises are on the way in Lancashire, London, Cheshire and the Midlands, with a total of 30 forecast to be up and running by the end of 2012. Sarah puts the company's impressive development down to its integral high standards of both product and service.

She explains: "I used to be a brand manager for Land Rover and Jaguar and then worked in event management. When we hired linen it didn't seem to matter where we went, the quality was poor and the service was very underwhelming.

"There was a definite gap in the market, so when I lost my job in 2008, I thought I would grasp the opportunity and set up my own business.

"We've become the preferred supplier to many of the key wedding venues in the North East and I would hope it is because we provide the complete package: it's a quality product, at an affordable price, supported by an exceptional standard of customer service."

The business took off thanks to Sarah's determination and strong work ethic, as she recalls: "I took the product to market myself - I sat down with wedding co-ordinators and general managers, and asked for feedback about the product. They loved it and we took notice of their comments and requirements.

"I set the company up in January 2009, and by September I couldn't cope with the amount of enquiries we were getting."

The resulting decision to franchise the company was clearly a smart move, but it wasn't an easy option.

"To hand over the brand to franchisees is quite a daunting task," says Sarah, "so I spend a great deal of time selecting suitable individuals who demonstrate creative flair, exude enthusiasm to develop the brand and are totally customer-focused.

"I've turned people down because I didn't believe their motivation for coming in to our brand was right."

The team now includes Jo Harris (Northumberland), Charlotte Harris (Newcastle), Lucinda Thompson (Sunderland and Teesside), Kristy Small (West Northumberland and Cumbria), and Lesley Nockels and Chris Burgess (North Yorkshire). Sarah stills takes care of South Northumberland and County Durham herself.

Simply Bows and Chair Covers has certainly grown, but the simplicity of its offering remains at the core of the business, as Sarah points out: "We stick to what we do best - high quality chair covers with matching table linen - but we work with recommended partners who take care of any other requirements our clients might have, such as florists and stationers, allowing us to offer our clients the full package, prepared by specialists in each field."

When it comes to keeping their own products fresh, the Simply Bows team has a creative approach.

"We're constantly coming up with new ideas," says Sarah. "We might take inspiration from the catwalk and manipulate that to accessorise a chair, as well as seasonal trends in colours and accessories.

"We create bespoke events that make the most of the client's budget - we don't do anything off-the-shelf."

The company has also expanded its services for the corporate market in recent months.

"Napkins and chairs can now be branded with a logo," says Sarah, "and we've also got an extensive range of coloured linen, so a client can tie their corporate colours into the look for an awards ceremony or a product launch."

For those who like the idea of pursuing their own entrepreneurial venture, Sarah has some advice: "I think the key thing is to fully research and understandthe market you wish to enter," she reflects.

"Because I had ten years' experience in events, I had a lot of contacts and experience in that field, which helped me to get the business off the ground quickly.

"If you're passionate and you believe in your product, you've got to give it a go because if you don't, it will always be a ‘what if'."

For more information, log on to: www.simplybowsandchaircovers.co.uk

Story courtesy of Accent Magazine www.accentmagazine.co.uk

10th January 2011: Hedgehog Lab Recruited To Talk At Top Tech Conference

Software developer hedgehog lab is taking its mobile app expertise to the capital and beyond after being invited to present to the UK's top recruitment professionals at a dual city technology conference.

Newcastle-based hedgehog lab has been making its name in its North East heartland devising innovative mobile apps for everything from hotels and housing groups to global car brands.

Now hedgehog lab's co-founder and partner Sarat Pediredla will present to the recruitment industry in both London and Manchester on how they can use smartphone apps to bring their recruitment techniques bang up-to-date.

Sarat Pediredla said: "Most of our recent work has been in mobile apps so when I was asked to speak at this pair of recruitment technology events I thought it presented an ideal, national platform for us.

"What's interesting for the recruitment industry is that among younger people of graduate age, mobile usage is now much higher than the web. They are more interested in what they can access from their iPhone rather than having to boot up their PCs.

"So for job alerts, for example, email has become quite disconnected because you have to specifically go and check them to receive the alerts.

"Smartphone notifications are great because they can be developed to pop up every time someone looks at their phone.

And for job searches, recruiters could build bespoke job search apps.

"Generally speaking, recruitment IT systems are very out-of-date so if a recruiter is going in to head hunt a CEO then if they can use an iPad as a presentational tool then that shows that they are tech savvy."

Sarat will be speaking at The Recruitment Conference Technology London and Manchester, which is organised by national trade magazine Recruitment Consultant, in London on February 24 and Manchester on March 17.

He will explain to delegates how smartphone apps work, what type of interactivity they are capable of, what benefits they can bring to recruitment businesses and how to quantify the return on investment.

10th January 2011: North East Hair Company Continues Expansion And Announces Rebrand

Local eCommerce business Hair X-Tensions Limited is celebrating its fifth anniversary by announcing it is re-branding as Harland Corporation Limited to enable the company to develop new lines of business and operate in new markets.

The original company was founded in 2005 and specialised in supplying hair extensions and associated accessories via its eCommerce site. As the company has evolved and demand for its products increased both in the UK and across the US, Canada, Australia and Western Europe, it has identified a gap in the market and now aims to diversify and expand its product range to cover all aspects of the hair and beauty industry.

As a result, the company has decided to re-brand the business and create a platform from which it could operate globally and without sector or product constraints.

The re-brand also follows the company's relocation to a bigger site at Seaham Grange Industrial Estate. The new facility is over 250 per cent larger that the company's previous site and provides 7,000 sq ft of office and storage space with the potential to add a mezzanine floor, taking the useable space to 10,000 sq ft.

In addition to the new site, the company has recently appointed two further members of staff and is currently recruiting an office manager and two additional web developers, creating an eleven strong team.

Speaking of the re-brand, Darren Williams, Director, Harland Corporation Limited, says: "Following a period of significant and sustained growth we decided to capitalise on the momentum and relocate to a larger site that would enable us to meet increased demand and evolve our offering more efficiently. At the same time we have invested heavily in planning for the future of the business, and following an extensive strategic overview, decided to re-brand before expanding any further.

"Re-branding as Harland Corporation Limited and trading as Harland Hair & Beauty, will enable us to market our brand and company offer more easily and compete on the global stage with major organisations. It's our vision to become the leading supplier of hair and beauty products and accessories to the global consumer market and despite operating in a continually challenging and unpredictable economic climate we are making great strides in achieving this. Our turnover has grown steadily throughout the recession and we are currently looking to close the financial year with a 100 per cent increase on the previous year. It is this success that has fuelled our ambition to extend our current offering, secure new brands and products to complement our existing range, and begin trading with new audiences in Europe and Asia."

Following the company's relocation it has also created a trade counter to display and retail its extensive range of products to the public and also to professionals in the hair and beauty industry.

Harland Hair & Beauty supplies an extensive range of products and accessories from leading luxury brands including Balmain, Tigi, Mark Hill, Jessica Simpson Hair Extensions, Tangle Teezer and its own brand of hair extensions, among others.

For further information about Harland Hair & Beauty please call 0191 521 3311 or visithttp://www.hairextensions.co.uk/

6th January 2011: Cruise Comparison Site Launches

Today marks the launch of the UK's first and only cruise comparison website. The independent site offers an unbiased service, giving customers the chance to search for the perfect cruise suited to their needs, across every cruise line.

Launching today is the first cruise comparison website of its kind, www.CruiseCompare.co.uk; an independent website that aims to deliver an unbiased and accurate service to both experienced and first time cruisers.

With no other website available offering the same service, CruiseCompare.co.uk have used a similar business model to many insurance providers, mobile phone providers and financial services; allowing site users to search for their ideal cruise based on provider, cost, location or duration.

Comparing over 34,000 cruises, many of which are completely exclusive to the site, CruiseCompare.co.uk simplifies searches by having six live prices and booking options clearly displayed along the side of each cruise.

CruiseCompare.co.uk offers cruises ranging from as little as £49 to £49,000; showing deals from all leading UK cruise liners such as Princess Cruises, P&O, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Costa Cruises and Carnival. Other innovative features available on the site include the ability to select a specific cabin on a selected ship in which the user wishes to stay.

Furthermore, as CruiseCompare.co.uk is not a ‘normal' travel agent, the customer does not book the cruise with them directly. Each user can independently choose a provider that they wish to book with, with no pressure from a travel agent to buy.

The Managing Director of the site is Danielle Fear. she had the following to say:"This is a really exciting time for everyone involved in the launch of CruiseCompare.co.uk. We have a great team working on the site and we plan to become the leading cruise website for research and bookings, as well as one of the UK's top 25 travel websites in the UK. The site is completely impartial, and offers cruises from all major cruise providers, allowing users to find the best possible deal for them."

She continued:"CruiseCompare.co.uk is the first website of its kind, and the concept is based on popular and successful business models used by insurance providers, mobile phone providers and financial services. We offer cruises to destinations all over the world, and the prices vary greatly. Whilst cruises can often seem like an ‘unreachable dream' holiday to many people, with the help of CruiseCompare.co.uk, I am confident that anyone can find their perfect cruise."