Press release
1 August 2014
Love Northamptonshire attracts 200 inward investment enquiries with four
new businesses relocating to the county
Record-breaking car company, Bluebird Performance Engineering,
announces move to Northamptonshire
Four businesses are on the move to Northamptonshire thanks to an innovative inward investment
marketing campaign that incentivises businesses to relocate to the county with the offer of a
LOCATE grant of up to £20,000 funded by Northamptonshire County Council (NCC).
Record-breaking electric car company Bluebird Performance Engineering, GCRS Ltd. which recycles
fibreglass and gluten free bakery, Incredible Bakery Company have or are now planning to relocate
to Northamptonshire. They will be joined by online retailer, Uber Shop, with one other company
move also in the pipeline.
Love Northamptonshire tells the county’s inward investment story; bringing to the fore messages of
first class business support and incentives such as the Locate fund combined with unrivalled access
to UK and European markets.
The campaign, which was launched a year ago in July 2013, has received significant backing from
NCC, the University of Northampton, Northampton Borough Council and a host of local big brands
including Carlsberg UK, Weetabix, Avon, Barclaycard and British Gas.
Pitching for greater visibility
Partnership with the county’s home grown big brands is a fundamental principle of Love
Northamptonshire – put simply, their backing instils confidence in Northamptonshire as a location
for investment.
A new partnership formed with Northamptonshire County Cricket Club (NCCC) this summer is an
exciting one for the county. Crowds are at an all-time high, as is the associated opportunity to gain
high profile coverage for the county both locally and via Sky as a result.
David Smith, Chief Executive of Northants Cricket said: “We are delighted to develop a commercial
relationship with the Love Northamptonshire campaign. This partnership brings the exciting
prospect of a joint focus of raising the profile of our county to a broader audience. This is a major
part of our community based strategy that sees us working more closely with strong and iconic local
brands to achieve our aims.”
LOCATE
The businesses currently relocating are all doing so thanks to LOCATE funding. Funded by NCC and
managed by NEP, LOCATE offers grants of up to £20,000 encouraging companies to find a new base
or expand into Northamptonshire. As well as these LOCATE beneficiaries, there have been over 200
serious inward investment enquiries from other UK and international businesses considering a move
to the county.
County council Leader, Cllr Jim Harker, said: “This has been a tremendously successful initiative and
this emphasises that Northamptonshire has a great deal to offer businesses from a variety of
sectors.
“We believe that the county council can play a significant role in using a relatively small amount of
public money to attract substantial inward investment.”
The Love Northamptonshire campaign, with the majority of the creative designed by a local
freelancer, Clare Algate Design, includes website, billboard and online advertising and encourages
businesses elsewhere in the UK and overseas to consider moving to Northamptonshire. It
champions the county’s strong enterprise credentials, collaborative approach to business support,
leading recovery from recession and unique accessibility, persuading companies of the opportunities
that exist for development and growth in Northamptonshire.
The London campaigns specifically targeted London based businesses with posters at London
Underground and main line stations, walking billboards known as Look Walkers at Kings Cross, St.
Pancras International and London Euston stations and website and online advertising.
Delivering tangible results
Kate Dent, Head of Marketing & Communications at NEP, said: “It’s always rewarding when a
campaign delivers tangible results, even more so on this occasion when we can welcome four new
companies to the county. Tying a marketing campaign in with LOCATE funding meant we could send
a clear message to businesses – bring your business to Northamptonshire and we will back you.
“It has also been exciting to see the level of buy in from other companies and partners based in
Northamptonshire. We work collaboratively with organisations such as the University of
Northampton and big employers like Carlsberg UK who are all major stakeholders and supporters of
the local business community.
“Equally, it’s good to see many other local companies and organisations join in support of Love
Northamptonshire including Jackson Grundy, British Pepper & Spice, Farrington Oils and
Northamptonshire Chamber of Commerce.”
Northamptonshire has a strong track record of attracting inward investment and was recently listed
as one of the 10 best small regions in Europe for foreign direct investment strategy by the Financial
Times.
New companies moving to Northamptonshire
Bluebird has an increasing focus on electric vehicles – it is aiming to break the electric land speed
record in 2015 and is working on a limited edition electric sports car. Thanks to LOCATE the company
will move to Rockingham in Corby where it will have access to unrivalled test facilities. Corby is
renowned for its emphasis on electric vehicles with a strong local supply chain and a hub of
motorsport and performance engineering companies.
Martin Rees, CEO, Bluebird Performance Engineering, said: “The technology, expertise and mind-set
now exist to allow electric vehicles to compete credibly with traditional engines, whether breaking
speed records or on the daily commute. Moving to Rockingham means we’ll have the right
foundations in place to continue to push forward our development of cutting edge electric cars.”
Incredible Bakery Company moved to Northamptonshire from South-East London after seeing Love
Northamptonshire advertising on the tube. The business was finding property prices in the capital
too expensive especially since it needs to work from gluten and dairy free kitchens so cannot share
facilities with others.
General Composites Recycling Solutions recycles fiberglass, manufacturing products for industries
including construction and aerospace. The company, the UK division of US based Global Fiberglass
Solutions, is moving to Corby and expects to employ over 250 people by 2017.
Online eco-friendly parenting shop Uber Shop is relocating to Northampton from Pulloxhill in
Bedfordshire. The move will allow the company to expand and create six new jobs in the next three
years.
The next round of LOCATE funding will be launched in September. For more information, visit:
www.northamptonshireep.co.uk
Ends
For further information please contact Kate Astley, Annabel Parkinson or Charlotte Ashby at
CubanEight on 01869 238089 / nep@cubaneight.com
About NEP
NEP works because it was founded on one overriding principle: local enterprise. 2013 was an
important year for the Northamptonshire economy, our businesses and our workforce. We saw an
extra 2,200 new jobs created, alongside a significant reduction in the number of people looking for
work, which reduced by over 3,700 during the year. The county is on track to deliver an ambitious
annual growth target of 1% a year over and above national levels.
NEP has secured £47million of European funding, which will enable our businesses to grow and our
people to develop new skills. Our Strategic Economic Plan articulates our 2021 ambition to create an
extra 32,500 jobs, build an additional 37,000 new homes and grow our overall economy by 30%.
Locally, a £100million Revolving Infrastructure Fund has been created to help pump-prime the
development needed to deliver this ambition, and we will be looking for Government to
demonstrate a similar level of commitment.
NEP has an excellent record of working effectively with Northamptonshire businesses, and we see
the further development of this joint working as a key part of our business in 2014, helping our
businesses to go further, faster. Northamptonshire’s economy is set for continued growth during
2014, with the Strategic Economic Plan providing the necessary focus to achieve this. For further
information please visit www.northamptonshireep.co.uk