Business Diary: June 19

Tonight, Redmayne Bentley in Leeds will be switching from finance to fashion as it hosts the launch of the new online womenswear label, Allium B.

Redmayne-Bentley’s Leeds shop will be holding the first in a series of ‘Pop Up Dress Clubs’ that will be travelling across the UK.

According to Redmayne Bentley, Clare Burgess, one half of the design duo behind Allium B, will be hosting a private sale where fashion followers can indulge in an evening of fabulous designs and ‘girlie gossip’. It’s a world far removed from ledger books.

High seas dream

JOHN McDonnell was not afraid to take on the challenge of starting a business from his kitchen table and growing it to a multi-million pound operation. In its last financial year, Wakefield-based Harvard Engineering, which designs and develops LED drivers and control products for the lighting industry, recorded a turnover of £21.35m.

But the managing director of the firm is now facing a different kind of challenge.

He is taking part in Leg 8 of the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race, from New York to Southampton, on the Geraldton Western Australia yacht.

Having set off from New York on June 7, Mr McDonnell is expected to finish at Southampton on July 22. He will have travelled more than 3,700 miles.

He described the feat as “a once in a lifetime opportunity”.

Hitting brick wall

PITY poor Ian Williamson at Carclo.

While his company is poised to create the latest touchscreens for tomorrow’s smartphone, Ian’s still using a brick.

The Carclo chief executive vowed two years ago when the company first got into mobile phone screens that he wouldn’t buy a smartphone unless it incorporated Carclo’s patented conductive inkjet technology (CIT) which lays fine lines of copper directly on to plastic.

Hence he’s still using a Nokia brick, much to the amusement of the rest of Carclo’s directors.

However there is hope for him.

The Ossett-based group is now gearing up for a major increase in touchscreen production in 2012 with volume shipments to a number of customers expected “shortly”.

Over the past six weeks, production samples have been supplied to eight major device manufacturers covering seven smartphone models and three tablets. Ian declined to be drawn on which smartphone and tablet manufacturers are involved, but he told Diary that he’s hoping to get one of each device incorporating Carclo’s CIT technology for Christmas.

“Yeah it’s true I refused to buy a smartphone until I had a CIT phone, but I’ll have a nice collection come Christmas,” he told us.

The next generation

ANOTHER Yorkshire businessman hoping Britain’s technological revolution gets a move on is Filtronic chief executive Hemant Mardia.

The Shipley-based firm is busy upgrading networks for mobile phone operators as they struggle to cope with increasing volumes of data from smartphone and tablet computer downloads.

His latest gadget, an iPad, comes complete with fourth generation (4G) capability, which allows streaming of broadband-speed mobile internet.

There’s only one problem. Britain doesn’t yet have 4G and is stuck on 3G.

“I got a 4G iPad having been a bit optimistic,” said Dr Mardia.

“But at least I can use it in the United States. We’re a couple of years behind in the UK.”

The perfect gifts

Local newly-weds who requested their guests donate to four charities instead of sending wedding gifts have raised £2,000.

Simon Eden, a senior hydrologist at Leeds-headquartered WYG and wife Jenny, an equine veterinary surgeon, didn’t want gifts from their 126 guests to celebrate their marriage, but instead asked that donations be made to the charities: Compassion, Tearfund, ACE and SPANA.

The Leeds couple, who have just returned from their honeymoon, will be splitting the money raised equally between the four charities which will help provide basics like water, education and medical and veterinary care in some of the world’s poorest communities.

“Jenny and I have all that we need and didn’t want our friends, family and colleagues wasting money on gifts when it could be better spent elsewhere,” said Simon. WYG has agreed to donate £1,000, bringing the total raised so far to more than £3,000.