Watch: Insider's Business Briefing - 13th August
Laurence and Stephen discuss results at a thriving sports equipment retailer, a warehouse investment in Belfast and a major property development in Oxfordshire.
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00:00Developments in the world of sports retail, expansion for a family-run logistics business
00:05in Belfast, and a major planning scheme in Oxfordshire.
00:09That's all coming up in today's Business Briefing.
00:17My name's Lawrence Kilgannon.
00:18I'm Stephen Fowler.
00:20So yes, morning, Stephen.
00:22We'll start over in Wales, in North Wales, in Wrexham, where the founder and chief executive
00:28of Networld Sports has hailed a year in which turnover and pre-tax profits has increased.
00:33And Alex Loven said that the future is even brighter.
00:36I don't know if you're aware of Networld Sports.
00:38I can't say that.
00:39I am now.
00:40Oh, OK.
00:41Well, they sort of distribute sporting equipment.
00:44For instance, I'll give you a personal example.
00:47I have like a Fiverside goal in the back garden, which we ordered from them.
00:52Very happy with the service.
00:54And that's been the basis for many penalty shootouts over the years, especially in the
00:59recent Euros.
01:02And the business, they're also really investing in their hometown of Wrexham.
01:07Last year, they invested £25 million in a new warehouse.
01:12And that's contributed to turnover rising from £65 million to £77 million, and pre-tax
01:20profits also jumping up to almost £14 million.
01:23So really good to see.
01:25And yes, the founder told us that that showed that they were delivering for their clients
01:31and their customers, and said that as the investments bed in, they're looking to sort
01:36of grow yet further.
01:38It's certainly paying off for him as well, because he was actually named as Wales' richest
01:43entrepreneur under the age of 40 by the Sunday Times Rich List.
01:47So yes, all going great guns over in Wrexham.
01:51And sticking with retail, although high street retail, I understand you've got some expansion
01:56at GD?
01:57Yes, that's right.
01:58Yeah, obviously a very well-known sports retailer, stores familiar across the UK.
02:03As part of that expansion across the UK and Ireland, they're now opening four new stores
02:06over the rest of the summer.
02:08So we've got Lowestoft, Cork and Wembley opening in August, and then a store in Sheffield at
02:14the start of September.
02:15They've got some fairly major plans for those openings.
02:18They're offering a live DJ and also a game of Batak.
02:21Batak?
02:22What's this?
02:23I believe it's the game where you're tapping lights to get your score up there.
02:29So yeah, I mean, if you win that game, they're offering you JD vouchers at these openings.
02:33So yeah.
02:34Will you be heading along with your reflexes, Steve?
02:37I suspect I'm not going to be getting a chance of winning the prize, but you never know.
02:40I might get down there and have a try.
02:43And great to see them expanding, you know, a listed company.
02:47They're so important to the high streets, aren't they?
02:49They're in every town.
02:50Yeah.
02:51I mean, the high street obviously has had its challenges over the last, well, years.
02:55So it's nice to see someone opening up new stores.
02:57Yeah.
02:58And I think they are a major success story.
03:00I mean, I know, for instance, anecdotally, my own children, they love the bags.
03:06They've certainly cornered the market in those sort of trainers and athleisure sort of areas.
03:12Well, away from retail and over in Northern Ireland, with news that logistics business
03:18Manfreight is set to open a new £14 million warehouse.
03:24And that's with the support of HSBC UK.
03:28The warehouse is in Belfast Harbour, so right in the middle of town, and really great transport
03:34links.
03:35And in fact, you do see Manfreight, their lorries on the motorways going to and fro.
03:42And the warehouse has been built with sustainability to the floor, and they have solar panels on
03:48the roof and so on and so forth.
03:51So good luck to them with that.
03:54And then sticking with property, I understand you've got a big scheme for us in Oxfordshire.
03:59Yeah, that's right.
04:00So Dorchester Living, which is the developer behind the Hayford Park scheme, has submitted
04:06a scoping request for the next phase of its master plan for the Hayford Park development.
04:15So that's on the site of the former RAF Upper Hayford site.
04:18There's been development going on there since about 2009.
04:21So so far, about 1,200 homes, a village centre, a school.
04:25The next phase of the master plan includes an additional 6,000 homes, a railway station
04:30and renewable energy generation.
04:33We've also got plans there for a new commercial space, which has been estimated could create
04:36about 3,000 jobs.
04:38So yeah, really big development there.
04:39Sounds like, you know, I realise it's an extension, but almost like a town level of expansion
04:45there with those homes.
04:46It's game changing.
04:47Yeah.
04:48And great to see as well that there's going to be jobs brought in as well with the commercial
04:51space that you mentioned.
04:52Yes.
04:53Yeah.
04:54Excellent.
04:55Well, we'll look forward to seeing how that develops.
04:56And to find out more about the stories that we've been talking about today, go to insidermedia.com.
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05:08See you next time.
05:09Goodbye.