Issue #47 - Powering through 💨
What business licence does your company need? | How to prepare your business for power blackouts | A seasonal customer story | Holiday opening times | Advent calendars | Words | Festive Tunes | More
🦾 G O
Another year over 🗓
Welcome to Issue #47 of The Backbone - the fortnightly newsletter from Bionic.
It’s hard to believe that we’re almost at the end of another calendar year, but here we are staring down the business end of a Christmas cracker once more.
It’s difficult to sum up the last 12 months without simply concluding that 2022 has been another tough year for many, not least because the cost of absolutely everything is on the up.
It’s been an especially tough time to be a business owner. ONS figures have shown that company insolvencies hit a 13-year high in England and Wales. There were 5,629 insolvencies in the second quarter of 2022, the highest since the third quarter of 2009 when the UK was in the grip of the global financial crisis
It feels a little glib to say we should start the new year with new optimism, especially when 2023 could kick off with a recession (albeit a shallow one), but we need to have faith in what we’re doing and hope that things will get better (it would be a massive help if things could just stop getting worse).
If you’ve kept your business running through everything the last few years have thrown at you, then be confident that you can take on whatever the next one has to offer.
So, let’s make the most of this festive period. Let’s enjoy seeing friends and family, free from restrictions. Let’s let our customers and employees know much they mean to us. Let’s show appreciation for the hard work done by all those other local business owners. Above all, let’s just enjoy the break (and try to make sure you get one).
We’ll be back in a couple of weeks with our second, annual “It’s a wrap”, but until then, thanks for your support throughout the year and we hope you enjoy Issue #47 (and this Christmas cracker of a joke)
📨 S U B S C R I B E
Subscribe to The Backbone to get each fortnightly edition into your inbox at 7 am every other Friday. Perfect for a quick read at breakfast or on the commute.
What business licence does your company need?
If you’re putting on an event this Christmas and planning on selling alcohol, providing late-night refreshments, or putting on regulated entertainment, then you’ll need a licence. The good news is, you can get a temporary one to cover such events. Here’s all you need to know about temporary event notices and any other licences (alcohol or otherwise) you might need when running your business.
How to prepare your business for power blackouts
Just as 2022 began with power cuts caused by Storm Corrie and Storm Malik, the start of 2023 could be blighted by blackouts. The ongoing energy crisis means gas and electricity might be in short supply when the worst of the winter weather hits. Although the chances of us experiencing power outages are slim – the National Grid has said energy supplies are ‘adequate’ - if demand increases then we could be hit with temporary blackouts to ease pressure and save power.
🗣 S H O U T O U T
#BionicBusinessStory - Magic of Foresters 🎄
Bionic sat down with Julian Hitch from Magic of Foresters, we found out how he runs his Christmas tree business all year round and what special plans the team has for the future.
Bionic: How did you start your business?
Julian Hitch: My father, Alan was a professional forester in the 1960s and trees were his passion, so he decided to start growing Christmas trees. He worked right up until 89-years-old, and I took over the business when he retired.
B: What advice would you give to others hoping to set up their own business?
JH: I’d say make sure you really understand your own motivation. Who are you doing this for, and why? I’ve seen so many people start a business for other someone else’s reasons or motivation. Really work out your skills and passion, then find people to support you.
B: What is the biggest misconception about your business?
JH: How long it takes to grow a Christmas tree! Most people think it’s quite fast but it actually takes 6-10 years to grow a tree, I think that’s a huge misconception in this kind of business.
B: Do you have any exciting future plans?
JH: We’d love to expand but we’re limited by our land, there’s only enough space for a certain number of trees. There are possibilities elsewhere which I’m looking at. If we expanded, it would be more about the community though. We’d look into working with an organic partner and other businesses in the local community.
Click on the cutting below to read more of this Bionic business story.
📩 J O I N
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🤳 S O C I A L
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🎧 L I S T E N
Playlist
We shared this one last Christmas, but Glyn’s Cool Christmas Shortlist (or Sad Indieboy Christmas) is so good, we’re sharing it again. It’s a break from the usual #Whamageddon (though we’ll have no Wham! hate here) featuring Eels, The Shins, Teenage Fanclub, and loads more, along with the low-key classic (that was robbed of being Christmas number 1) Caravan of Love by The Housemartins.
Podcast
Actor Nicholas Cage (real name Nicholas Coppola - yes, he’s Francis Ford Coppola’s nephew) has two big passions in life - parties and comics. Stealing Superman takes a look at what happened when these two worlds collided and two of his prized possessions - Action Comics #1 and Detective Comics #27 (two of the most valuable comics in the world) - disappeared after a New Year party in his mansion. A podcast for comic nerds and whodunnit buffs alike.
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🚫 S T O P
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