Members of the Forum are feeling the positive effects of an upswing in business confidence, its chief executive has revealed.
Many of the 300 entrepreneurs it represents are reporting increased levels of optimism regarding business growth in the coming year.
Jonathan Lamb said the formation of the new government seems to have ended the previous period of uncertainty which caused many to put plans to expand their businesses on hold.
He said: “The consensus in 2019 was that many in business were waiting for certainty to emerge before they were willing to make any firm decisions about the future.
“However, entrepreneurs are a resilient bunch and while the majority of our members continued to grow their businesses in 2019, they are now reaping the benefits of an upswing in optimism.”
Pete Watson, chief executive of Newcastle-based IT solutions company Atlas Cloud, said that the business had continued to grow rapidly during the past 12 months but that 2020 was looking particularly promising.
Currently raising £2m worth of investment, it is creating 30 extra jobs and is preparing to expand its London office.
He said: “Our determination to expand the business never diminished, but Atlas Cloud is now in the process of securing several major new clients.”
Pacifica Group, the UK’s leading domestic energy and appliance services provider, is forecasting continued growth in the current financial year with turnover reaching £53m. The Houghton-le-Spring headquartered firm has also announced plans to recruit a further 50 engineers to its nationwide network in line with a growing demand for its home energy services and domestic appliance repairs.
Earlier this month it also completed the acquisition of Oakes Energy Services to support its growing presence in the renewable energy solutions market.
Kevin Brown, CEO of Pacifica Group, said: “We increased turnover from £36m to £41m during the financial year ending March 2019 but, given the rise of both domestic and commercial customers, I anticipate another very successful year ahead.”
Kim Cattin, CEO of Durham-based brow and skin preparation specialists WBCo, said it had grown from three members of staff in December to 15 – with major plans to double the size of its headquarters, introduce its products into major retail stores and expand its international market.
She added: “WBCo was evolving in 2019 but this year our plans are bigger and better than ever. We are focused, have a very clear direction and are looking forward to a very exciting 12 months ahead.”
Jonathan Lamb added: “This snapshot reflects the experience of many Forum members and I hope entrepreneurs in the North East will continue to take advantage of the increasing opportunities available.”
