Latest updates and stories from Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce and its Members

The latest Quarterly Economic Survey from the British Chambers of Commerce paints a fairly cautious national picture. Rising costs, including the recent hike in National Insurance, are squeezing businesses across the UK. Many are putting plans on hold, recruitment continues to be a challenge, and overall confidence is understandably low.

But here in Bedfordshire, there’s a different energy.

Fewer than one fifth (18%) of micro-exporters (fewer than 10 employees) increased export orders in Q2, with 29% reporting a decrease. 

By comparison, 29% of large exporters (more than 250 staff) increased their export orders with a fifth (20%) reporting a drop.

For Tyler Pickford, CEO of Luton-based taxi firm GoCars, resting on your laurels is never an option. “You can’t just sit idly by, you have to remain proactive, continuously adapting to change” he says. And this is perhaps why his business, with its roots in two well established family-run concerns that merged 15 years ago, is now the town’s biggest private hire and taxi service.

Our 2025 SME Bedfordshire Business Awards reached their thrilling conclusion on 19^th June, as the county’s brightest businesses and individuals were celebrated at a glittering Awards Final at the Riverside Suite, Venue 360, Luton.

This year’s event marked the culmination of months of meticulous planning and an exceptional response from the local business community. From carefully crafted entries to an electrifying shortlist reveal, the awards have been a showcase of the innovation, creativity, and resilience that define Bedfordshire’s vibrant SME sector.

With so many major new projects planned in Bedfordshire, there’s a strong sense in the county and its businesses of a new future on our doorstep.

It’s a groundswell of transformation that will bring with it wealth, job creation, strengthened infrastructure, greater connectivity, extensive new business opportunities for the regional supply chain, and – not least - the reinvigoration of communities and places.

For smaller businesses with little or no in-house HR expertise, the function can seem both daunting and costly. But Helen Stocker of HR Delivered, sees this in a very different way.

With her four-strong team, she has built a successful business – recognised as a double finalist in this year’s SME Bedfordshire Business Awards – by making HR skills accessible, affordable, and transparent for businesses with anything from 5 to 50 employees.

You can never rely on the British weather to deliver a bit of sun when you might expect it most, but here at Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce things are heating up, as we unveil the finalists in our forthcoming 2025 SME Bedfordshire Business Awards!

And what a hugely diverse and varied cohort they are covering everything from dog grooming businesses, to hotels, to IT support – and just about every type and size of company in between.

The University of Bedfordshire has officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOUs) with three leading regional business organisations, marking the start of a strategic partnership aimed at supporting students, driving economic growth, and fostering meaningful industry collaboration.

Reacting to news of a trade deal in principle with the US, Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the BCC, said:  

  
“This deal will be met with a huge sigh of relief by many British businesses. 

When Phil Solomon was working in the pressured world of recruitment, he saw the good, the bad, and the ugly of sales behaviour. But one company he worked for got it so right that it has influenced him throughout his career.

Move on a few years (and a few roles), and Phil is now the regional specialist for international organisation Sales Geek, which delivers sales training, part-time (fractional) Sales Director services, and some training that comes at absolutely no charge.

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” This famous quote, often attributed to Abraham Lincoln, is the essence of the entrepreneur in a nutshell. See a need, fulfil it profitably, drive your vision.

But where do entrepreneurs go to make connections, build relationships, get advice and a helping hand, and find new prospects?

Export is a massive focus for us here at the Chamber, and we can connect you to a range of solutions that smooth the passage of your offering into territories outside the UK. Everything from export documentation to research and overseas visits, consular services, translation, and interpreting.

But export isn’t always about shipping abroad in volume. If you take goods overseas – temporarily, including things like exhibition kit, professional equipment, or commercial samples, they’re classed as exports or imports too - and you could find yourself paying customs duties or taxes on them.

The drive to promote economic growth across the UK has long been a key focus for policymakers, with ambitious plans designed to stimulate business expansion and regional development.

As an accredited Chamber with the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce remains committed to helping local businesses understand and benefit from these evolving opportunities.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement, unveiled on 26th March, is a challenging one for businesses across the UK – with some redeeming features.

The overall impression is one of an economy failing to grow and perform, and business – the motor of that performance - being given precious few concessions to fuel it.

As Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), put it in their recent announcement, it’s as if we’re seeing firms “struggle to bloom”. The will is there but the way is lacking.

When a business does what it says on the tin, you know you’re in for a strong, clear proposition, and when we spoke to Bedford-based business owner Nathan Jacobs recently, he proved the point admirably.

At a mere 19 years old, Nathan is at the helm of Doorstep Promotions, which specialises in leaflet distribution and design, enabling local businesses to reach potential prospects in their own homes.

But this is leaflet distribution with some clever twists that bring it bang up to date, as we discovered in this member interview.

Here at Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce, strategic partnerships are key to connecting businesses to organisations that can support their growth, and enabling those same businesses to give back to those same organisations, for the greater good of the communities we live in.

Mutual benefit equals effective cooperation – and our latest strategic partnership with The Bedford College Group, launched on 1^st February, is very much a case in point.

The best ideas often come from the realisation there’s a better way of doing the things you can’t do without – and the idea behind Greenwood Drones was no exception.

The business’s founder, 21 year-old Harvey Greenwood, saw there was an opportunity to use drones, rather than scaffolding or cherry-pickers, to survey roofs for his father’s roofing company – and Greenwood Drones was born.

The 2025 SME Bedfordshire Business Awards are shaping up to steal the crown of the 2024 Awards - which were themselves the most successful of the Awards programmes to date.

But they wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of our sponsors, so in this piece we’re going to make sure they get the recognition they deserve!

It has been an absolute honour to serve as the High Sheriff of Bedfordshire for the past 10 months, witnessing firsthand the incredible work being done within our community. One of the most common questions I receive from businesses is how they can contribute to the community, especially when financial constraints may limit their ability to donate.

The good news is that giving back does not always require money. 

When it comes to branding, the team at Dunstable-based Essential Workwear will tell you that quality, everywhere, is everything. From a facemask to a hi-vis jacket, to a smart office shirt, workwear is, in the words of founder George Georgiou, “a living advert for your company” – and the quality of the branding reflects the values of the business itself.

We were lucky enough to get some time in George’s busy schedule recently to learn more about what Essential Workwear does, the company’s successes and ambitions for the future, and – not least – its involvement as Headline Sponsor in the 2025 SME Bedfordshire Business Awards.

The next exciting chapter in the SME Bedfordshire Business Awards is already well underway!

As organiser and host, we at Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce are building on the resounding success of last year’s Awards to deliver a programme worthy of successful local businesses that employ local people and serve our local communities.

As the 2025 Awards proclaim, ‘It’s Time to Celebrate You!’ – because you’re the beating heart of Bedfordshire business.

Whether it’s enhancing production efficiency, adopting cutting-edge technologies like automation, digital transformation, and AI, or driving sustainability initiatives, research and development (R&D) forms the backbone of innovation in manufacturing. In this thought leadership article, we delve into what HMRC is looking for in a validating manufacturing R&D tax relief claim.

At Essential Workwear, we’re passionate about supporting businesses of all sizes, from emerging start-ups to established global corporations. We’re thrilled to announce our headline sponsorship of the SME Bedfordshire Business Awards, an event that aligns perfectly with our commitment to nurturing business growth and entrepreneurial spirit both in Bedfordshire, across the UK, and worldwide.

As we step into a new year, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the accomplishments of the past 12 months and set our sights on the opportunities ahead in 2025.

At Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce, this moment of reflection is just as important for us as it is for the businesses we serve. So, let’s take a look back at the recent past and venture a look forward at what’s to come!

Every Christmas Bonfire Creative Intelligence, like many companies, does something for charity - either by donating, fundraising and/or pro bono work. This year we set ourselves a challenge to find a way of using Ai to raise money for charity.

Reacting to the UK formally joining the Comprehensive and Progressive agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) today, William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the BCC, said:  
 
“This is a red-letter day for our traders.

The announcement of Vauxhall's decision to close its van manufacturing facility in Luton is undeniably a blow and a severe setback for our community.

“We strongly believe HR should add value to the business and help it grow.” When you hear a statement like that, you know the conversation will be about more than job specs, contracts, and pay grades, and at Haynes-based Resourceful People Group (RPG), they take HR far beyond this.

We caught up with Director Steve Botterill recently to learn more about how the company came into being, what it delivers, and how these services can benefit businesses of all sizes – particularly those in the throes of planning or executing change.

Competition is positive. It’s good for innovation, it’s good for motivation, and it’s good for customer choice. Yet the fact is that every one of your competitors could also potentially eat your lunch – or, at least, the tastiest bits of it.

And a quick look at our region paints a sobering picture. In Bedfordshire, 9,015 new businesses started in 2023, but the vast majority of these play into existing spaces – which, as a consequence, are becoming ever more crowded.

How, then, do you get ahead of these competitors?

Labour’s first Budget since 2010, announced yesterday, on 30^th October, certainly lived up to the hints the Government had been dropping over the past few weeks – but then any businessperson will understand you don’t find £40 billion in revenue shortfall without taking some pretty drastic measures.

Nonetheless, here at Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce, we do share the concern, expressed in an announcementreleased by Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), to which we belong.