North West attracts 14 new inward investors
A total of 14 businesses have set up across the North West as part of a scheme offering free office space for new investors into the region, according to latest figures.
The Hello Northwest service was launched in January this year and was developed in partnership between the North West Development Agency, and the investment agencies for Manchester and the Liverpool city regions, Midas and The Mersey Partnership, plus serviced office providers, Avanta, Bruntwood, Orega, Manchester Science Parks, Liverpool Science Park and Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus.
The scheme includes Hello Manchester and Hello Liverpool and offers investors free and flexible office space for the first year of their move to the region and helps those companies to link into the wider support networks across the region.
Nine new investors chose Manchester city region, four opened up in Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus and one set up in Cheshire and have come to the North West from all over the world including India, China, Belgium, Spain, USA, Germany and Ireland.
Steven Broomhead, chief executive of the NWDA, said: "The Hello Northwest scheme is proving to be very popular with investors and I hope that this success continues long into the future. This scheme provides investors with the opportunity to test what the region has to offer, it is building on the region's strong track record for inward investment and will help us to secure even more overseas investment for the Northwest."
Successes of the scheme in the first quarter of the year include Pan-European agency Milk Digital's move to Bruntwood's 111 Piccadilly Place, P3ec, the international consultancy and engineering business moved into Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus, China lighting specialists JB Deco moving to Bruntwood's Portland Tower and HR firm Protime relocating to Manchester Science Parks.
Tim Newns, deputy chief executive of Midas, added: "Hello Manchester has become an important part of the Midas product portfolio and with this strong number of businesses relocating to the city region already it proves that the private sector incentives offered by the scheme can be instrumental in helping Manchester stand out from the crowd."
