Business Diary: July 12

Bradford charity QED-UK is bidding for funds to create a major retail innovation and visitor attraction for Bradford – a souk.

According to QED, a souk would boost the region’s economy by creating jobs and attracting visitors from all over the world.

Souks – traditional Arabic market places where goods are bought and sold in a bright, colourful, noisy labyrinthine market – are a strong tourism feature in countries such as Dubai and Morocco.

Mohammed Ali, the chief executive of QED-UK, said: “Rather than dreary shopping malls, souks are colourful, noisy, fascinating, inspired places to be. There’s a unique, authentic, raw quality to souks.

“It’s such an exciting idea for Bradford.”

The bid to the Government’s Regional Growth Fund proposes a souk that will cover 60,000 sq ft. The project would also have a knock-on effect on Bradford’s tourism and hospitality industries, according to QED-UK.

The planned souk would specialise in providing retail space to small businesses and retailers of “novel and high quality products”, providing a launch pad for new businesses and for people taking up self-employment.

Mr Ali said: “It’s time Bradford was re-energised with a radically innovative approach. We’re hoping there will be a ground swell of support for our proposals.”

Bid to clip wings of holiday flight tax

Leeds Bradford Airport and Jet2.com joined forces yesterday to launch a “Hands off our holiday, Mr Taxman!” campaign.

It is aimed at persuading the Chancellor to drop planned hikes in the tax levied on all flights leaving the UK.

Apparently the campaign is backed by a new poll that shows three out of four people say that Air Passenger Duty (APD) should not go up in the next Budget. Of those saying APD should not go up, 49 per cent said APD should be reduced. Only six per cent said that APD should be increased. Diary is intrigued to find out who the six per cent are.

Fresh thinking at Morrisons’ ‘lab’

WE are all used to seeing the latest high-tech product appear from behind a puff of smoke, but for Morrisons the innovation is the smoke itself – or rather the steam. The supermarket chain is trialling all sorts of products and layout changes at its store in Kirkstall, Leeds, including gently spraying jets of steam over some of the vegetables.

By doing this, as well as resting the veg on a thin layer of film with ice below, executives hope to keep produce fresher for longer.

Diary saw the steam when accompanying Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips and several other directors around the “lab” store last week.

If ever there was a sign of the brand’s changing image, however, it was not the steam but the presence of truffles on the store’s shelves -–undoubtedly the most expensive item in the firm’s range, said Richard Pennycook, the finance director.

We’re still a nation of shoppers

DIARY is never afraid of asking the big questions. With the carnage on the high street, it decided to ask Francis Salway, chief executive of Land Securities, if he thought the British public would ever tire of shopping.

“No, I don’t,” he said, after a thoughtful pause.

“Shopping has been around for a very long time, going back to medieval cities.

“It’s part of the way people express themeselves, whether its how they dress or present their homes.

“I do think people will always be looking for something new so the ability to attract the new up-and-coming retailers is important to making it an attractive shopping trip.

“So [retailers like] Mango, Cult, coming to Leeds at Trinity is part of that and I do think now people look for more catering and leisure.

“It could be, looking forward five to ten years, that there will be shopping centres which are anchored, not by department stores, but by a leisure destination.”

The quietly-spoken chief executive has some history in the city of Leeds.

He said: “I’ve certainly been involved in property transactions going back a very long time in Leeds.”

He was working for Standard Life at the time.

Deals included the sale of the city’s central post office building, now home to Restaurant Bar & Grill, and City House, next to the train station.