As predicted, last week’s budget has put additional pressure on already hard pushed businesses across the fenestration industry with increases to the Living Wage and National Insurance.
Many business owners will already be running a pretty tight ship, but they will now have to factor in a rise in minimum wage as well as balance potential demands from other employees higher up in the organisation, who may now feel shortchanged.
For businesses that are close to the edge – particularly those that are beholden to the short termism of investors or venture capitalists – the budget could be the final straw. In fact, my sources tell me that there may be some high-profile industry names that are already teetering on the brink.
For many, additional efficiencies will have to be found, and as I outlined in last week’s comment, a good place to find them is with the latest generation of business management, quotation and manufacturing software.
You can read more on how to do this here, thanks to a comment from First Degree System’s sales manager, Greg Beachim.
We also have a comment from Purplex managing director, Andrew Scott, here , who outlines a three-point plan for business survival.
Is there any positive news to brighten the budget blues? Well, for a start, we can all thank our lucky stars that we’re not farmers, but we can also look to the latest Business Pilot Barometer for a more optimistic outlook as it would appear that the retail sector has ‘shifted up a gear’ in October.
Sales, leads and average order values are all up from the previous month, a reflection perhaps of the post summer seasonal upturn but encouraging statistics nonetheless, especially as the forecast of lower interest rates may further stimulate household spending.
And there is also good news from Conservatory Outlet , which has reported record sales from its network of installers, growth that it attributes to marketing support, lead generation, training and product selection.
The message from Conservatory Outlet’s Greg Kane, is that ‘if you work smart – then anything is possible.’
Bruising budget for business
As predicted, last week’s budget has put additional pressure on already hard pushed businesses across the fenestration industry with increases to the Living Wage and National Insurance.
Many business owners will already be running a pretty tight ship, but they will now have to factor in a rise in minimum wage as well as balance potential demands from other employees higher up in the organisation, who may now feel shortchanged.
For businesses that are close to the edge – particularly those that are beholden to the short termism of investors or venture capitalists – the budget could be the final straw. In fact, my sources tell me that there may be some high-profile industry names that are already teetering on the brink.
For many, additional efficiencies will have to be found, and as I outlined in last week’s comment, a good place to find them is with the latest generation of business management, quotation and manufacturing software.
You can read more on how to do this here, thanks to a comment from First Degree System’s sales manager, Greg Beachim.
We also have a comment from Purplex managing director, Andrew Scott, here , who outlines a three-point plan for business survival.
Is there any positive news to brighten the budget blues? Well, for a start, we can all thank our lucky stars that we’re not farmers, but we can also look to the latest Business Pilot Barometer for a more optimistic outlook as it would appear that the retail sector has ‘shifted up a gear’ in October.
Sales, leads and average order values are all up from the previous month, a reflection perhaps of the post summer seasonal upturn but encouraging statistics nonetheless, especially as the forecast of lower interest rates may further stimulate household spending.
And there is also good news from Conservatory Outlet , which has reported record sales from its network of installers, growth that it attributes to marketing support, lead generation, training and product selection.
The message from Conservatory Outlet’s Greg Kane, is that ‘if you work smart – then anything is possible.’
Glass Times
Related Articles
Is there a silver lining for the glass industry?
Will your new window fitter be a media graduate?
Revitalised AluFold Windows targets growth