Burberry move enhances high profile of the region

This fact was highlighted last week with the news that global fashion brand Burberry has announced its intention to open a new office in Leeds, strengthening its ties with Leeds City Region and the wider Yorkshire region. This is fantastic news for the international profile of both the city and the region.

Home to Burberry’s iconic trench coat, Leeds City Region is the spiritual home of the company.

As Yorkshire-born Christopher Bailey, its chief creative officer, has said, moving 300 roles to Leeds with the creation of the company’s centre for excellence will generate significant savings for the business through the reduction of its office space requirements in London.

The move not only further evidences Leeds City Region’s textile heritage but also emphasises why many businesses look to locate here; we offer them the chance to be part of leading sectors such as financial and professional services and combine it with a positive mix of innovation and digital excellence.

The LEP worked closely with Burberry to support the business case for the new shared services office and the wider move and it is an excellent example of the support we can provide for all sizes and types of business.

This support is helping to attract a multitude of other organisations looking to take advantage of the opportunities and benefits of relocating here, such as increased productivity, access to talent and world class research facilities. We are seeing increased levels of interest from FTSE 100 companies seeking to take advantage of our economic environment.

Burberry’s investment follows the announcement earlier this year that Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, the leading global life sciences company is investing in the region.

The group’s Covance Drug Development business announced it was growing its biopharmaceutical chemistry, manufacturing and control capabilities in Harrogate with a laboratory expansion at the National Agri-Food Innovation Campus (NAFIC) in York which is due to open later this year.

Covance’s recommitment to Leeds City Region follows news that Legal & General Capital launched a modular housing business, Legal & General Homes, right here in Leeds City Region.

The LEP played a significant role in securing Legal & General’s investment into Sherburn-in-Elmet, with Legal & General signing a long-term lease on a 550,000 sq ft warehouse, representing the largest modular homes construction factory in the world and bringing more than 400 jobs to the region.

The LEP is also supporting local businesses, especially SMEs which make up 99 per cent of our business base. One firm the LEP has recently supported is Racks Industries. The Bingley-based family-owned business has invested £87,000, including £17,000 through the LEP’s business growth service, in state-of-the-art robotic welding technology.

The investment has enabled the leading international industrial storage systems company to significantly increase productivity and plan for further international expansion by enabling it to compete with European manufacturers by automating the production of standard parts.

These examples show that the LEP has support in place for every type of business – from start-ups through to global firms and we are proud to have supported more than 3,200 companies to date.

If you’re based in Leeds City Region and want to grow, or based further afield and looking to invest into the region, then the LEP is your first port of call for tailored business support.

We have a range of new business support products, services and funding for growth available; our business growth team is here to help find the right support for your business.

Examples include our Ad:venture support service for start-ups which supports high growth businesses less than three years old to scale up through a full support programme including workshops and mentoring.

If your business is looking to grow, start up or locate in Leeds City Region give us a call on 0113 3481819 or visit www.the-lep.com/business.

Record levels of investment

Burberry is just the latest business planning to take advantage of the opportunities offered by Leeds City Region.

The region recorded its highest levels of investment from businesses in 2016/17 including Geoban, Perform Group, Sky Betting & Gaming, Amazon, MOBA UK and TK Maxx.

More than 2,000 jobs have been created as a result of this.

One sector experiencing a particular boom is the corporate tech scene, with fast emerging specialisms in data analysis, payment processing, cyber security, media and sports tech.

This is a result of the region’s world class academic institutions, large volumes of graduates and a fast-growing young population, which in turn leads to business confidence and this ensures the region remains an attractive destination for investment.