Happy New Year and all that – seems soooo long ago now though! When do we stop wishing everyone that?

Anyways…

Potato? Tomato?

Just before we broke up for Christmas, we sent our clients a Merry Christmas and thank you for 2008 email newsletter. Whilst we were writing it, we began noting down the achievements of the year, hopefully not in an anal-gazing kinda way, but more to let everyone know how they’d contributed to an amazing year for us. In case you missed it…

• Grantham Journal, Business of the Year Runners up after 1st try!
• 4 to 12 folk increase
• New office expansion
• Major audio-visual investment
• Business coaching investment
• In-house development team
• 308 free muffins provision for downhearted business folk
• Stephen Fry review of B&T
• YouTube Dance Off fever
• Major pet investment
• Kimeera rebrand
• Tripled turnover

When I look back now to this time last year, I’m pretty sure no one could have forecast what we’d go on to achieve (well except for Scott probably). What is clear to me, is that there are things you can plan and prepare for (of course), but there’s so much that you can’t. I don’t want to write on about the credit crunch, there are far better qualified writers than I to do that, but I am so optimistic right now, more so now than ever and when next Christmas comes along, I’m hopeful that there are even more collective achievements to pat our clients on the back with!

Also, we promise to get our new site live before February!!! A case of plumbers bathroom I’m afraid.

Eddie.
R&D Director and Co-Folker.

How are you managing with the credit crunch media hammer bashing you over the head every day? It certainly isn’t helping confidence but Kimeera and its folk have been very busy so far with a record September. I guess the businesses that are determined to plough through the recession recognise the importance of our services.

The majority of our Lincolnshire clients are weathering the storm really well with new investment and diversification underway. This isn’t business rhetoric and I recognise it’s disorientating to hear good news, we do have some clients who are keeping a nervous eye on the economy but they’re directly affected by the property and consumer markets – if they weren’t jumpy then I’d really be perplexed.

If you are a Lincolnshire business owner and you have feedback on your situation we’d love to hear from you. Let’s give the credit crunch a run for it’s money by being adaptable and unique!

Months ago, I heard a HSBC spokesperson say something that really hit home for me “When you’re being chased by a tiger, you don’t have to be the fastest…just not the slowest”

So let’s make sure we’re doing more than our competition to stay in the race!

Scott Marson
MD & Co-folker

Over the weekend my Mother-in-Law passed me a load of magazines that she thought I’d like. She did good. One article in particular from a design company in York really caught my eye. In very few words, Mat Lazenby summed up perfectly what’s been in my head recently…

Welcome to the Party

Ever been stuck at a party with the guy who thinks life is against him, never quite getting the job he wants, football team always losing, moaning that the weather is too hot or too cold, never seeing the good in people?

Well guess what, were all stuck in a dingy corner with that loser, he’s called the UK media.

The new topic of doom-bringing is of course the UK economy, recession, depression, economic crisis etc. etc. If there’s one thing more damaging to the economy than a downturn, its people losing their confidence. Unconfident people find it hard to act decisively, they find it hard to meet new people – its the same with businesses.

One of the reasons we’ve seen such incredible growth in the Creative Sector over the past 10 years is a massive influx of bright, sparky and above all confident businesses punching way above their weight. The cost of entry into the creative sector has also dropped dramatically over that period, making it relatively easy for 1-2 person businesses to set up with little risk – the companies that have stood the test of time and will go on to weather this particular economic storm are those who can run a lean and effective service that retains its creativity and confidence.

As far back as 1942 Joseph Schumpeter passionately argued in his book Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy that recessions are a necessary evil in capitalist societies. He states The “job” of a recession is to clean the “fat” out of the system, mop up excess, and pave the way for the next expansion. Until that process is complete, there isn’t much from which a legitimate expansion can arise.

During these uncertain times it pays to go back to where you started, what was the original motivation behind the business, dust off the vision statement and return to that business plan. As a design business LazenbyBrown help companies locate and promote that special something about them, the unique service, approach or product that sets them apart from their competition. If you can place this uniqueness centre stage and make it the reason people do business with you it can have a profound effect on the strength of your business.

So, don’t listen to that loser at the party, be confident, be smart and meet the future head on.

Mat Lazenby, Director of Shambles-based design company LazenbyBrown
www.lazenbybrown.com

The article is taken from October’s issue of Beyond York magazine.  www.beyondmediagroup.co.uk