Events in region to put firms on global stage, says chief
Businesses in the Black Country and across the West Midlands need to market themselves nationally and globally to take advantage of events taking place this year, the chief executive officer at the Black Country Chamber of Commerce believes.
Corin Crane said: "With Coventry being the City of Culture, preparations for the Commonwealth Games and the Queen's Platinum Jubilee being planned, as well as huge investment in roads and towns, we need to market ourselves in this country and across the world.
"We have brilliant businesses and they will trade, they are innovative and have fantastic products.
"We have all these events planned and we do these things better than anyone."
Mr Crane remains upbeat about the future, despite businesses facing problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and confusing regulations in different parts of the country.
Above everything, he believes there is a need for a complete review of business rates to help struggling companies survive.
Mr Crane said: "We desperately need the business rate reviewed immediately, especially for the retail sector.
"Our high street shops have suffered from falling footfall and some of the big factories are suffering because the valuation of properties is out of date.
"There needs to be a complete transformation of the business rates and we also need a very clear plan from the Government and less reactionary thinking.
"The approach by the Government is generally to keep the economy going and we cannot argue with that.
"It would be good to have a plan and know what the indicators are and, if insolvencies are going up, to look at the furlough situation again."
He added: "It all feels very reactionary at the moment and it is the recovery beyond this, over the next five to ten years, that will be important.
"Businesses have been struggling because of seven to 25 per cent staff absences.
"It is not just about Covid and, we also have to remember, we were not starting from a good place, as we had record vacancies earlier in the year.
"Some of the more deprived areas had 50 per cent higher than the national average youth unemployment.
"There were 175,000 vacancies across the West Midlands and we have a thin workforce, which is a worrying situation for many businesses.
"Businesses want to make sure their workforce and customers are safe but it is important to keep things flowing and it is important to get people back on the shop floor.
"There is confusion because of different restrictions because of Covid in England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.
"There have have also been difficulties because of Brexit, the supply chain and energy costs but businesses will get through this.
"Within all the confusion we have some brilliant businesses and they will trade.
"We are lucky in the Black Country and the West Midlands that we have so many innovative businesses but we want as few hurdles as possible to be able to compete on a national and global stage."
