Building Better Business
Building Better Business
The cranes that have loomed over Wandsworth for the last few years as the iconic landmark of Battersea Power Station has been brought back from the brink are set to stay on the skyline for quite a while yet.
Top image: Brendan Bell
The world-class regeneration of the power station and the district of Nine Elms is due to continue for another decade at least as a new town centre is built, ensuring massive flows of cash continue to pour into the construction work along the riverside. This is an exciting time for local businesses and construction businesses who had the opportunity to build relationships (pun intended) at the new Building Business Wandsworth network held at The Power of Place exhibition in one of the former turbine halls of Battersea Power Station.
The event was launched by Beverley Corson, CEO of Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce with the support of the Clapham branch of Handelsbanken, a local relationship bank with a unique offering, which counts many of the borough’s property companies and businesses among its customers. Local businesses, property and construction businesses with the help of Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce and Handelsbanken put their ideas forward about the issues they are facing and the help they need to make the area’s continuing regeneration even more fruitful for the community. “The vision was to create the opportunity for them to connect with other suppliers, contractors, developers and stakeholders, to encourage referrals between local businesses and enhance their opportunity to thrive,” said Beverley.
“In that sector, businesses generate a lot of their work through relationships and referrals. Not only that, I also wanted to find ways to open up the supply chain of the bigger developers to the smaller companies.” Handelsbanken Clapham is a patron member of the Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce, and this is one of a number of collaborations between the two organisations designed to help local businesses. The branch serves Clapham, Battersea and Wandsworth, offering personal and corporate banking along with a wealth management service. Handelsbanken’s decentralized business model means customers benefit from swift, clear decisions, made in the branch by people they know.
“We believe it’s important to support local businesses and business growth,” said Michelle Groome, the manager of Handelsbanken Clapham. “Building Wandsworth is a really good initiative, and as soon as Beverley mentioned it to us we didn’t hesitate to sponsor the launch event.” “For Handelsbanken, supporting local business is really important, and a number of our existing customers are members of the Chamber. We just felt that if we can help the Chamber work with landlords and property companies to address some of the issues they’ve raised, then it helps the borough grow and thrive, and essentially in the long term that is beneficial for Handelsbanken too.”
This month, Handelsbanken will host a seminar on sustainability for property companies, with the Chamber’s backing. While all sustainability issues are close to Handelsbanken’s heart, the main topic will be the new EPC rules in place since April, requiring all commercial properties in England and Wales to have at least an E rating for energy efficiency: a rule that for 74% of landlords will mean modifications such as installing costly new boilers, insulation and double glazing at an average spend of £95,400 per portfolio. With proposals being put forward to extend the rules to cover residential landlords, the seminar is timely.
Michelle said: “Handelsbanken has a lot of experience working with property companies, and because of our local relationship banking model, we felt that we have the ability to truly understand the challenges faced by landlords in the area. A large part of our lending book is to property companies and landlords of all sizes, and we are very aware of their current issues, which are directly related to rising costs generally, rising interest rates, and what is really key at the moment are sustainability issues around the new EPC regulations for landlords.”
Handelsbanken Clapham
Office 5, 16 Porteus Place, Clapham, SW4 0AS
020 7498 5022, handelsbanken.co.uk/clapham
Factfile: Supporting Business
- Building Wandsworth was launched on 25 May at a networking evening at Battersea Power Station
- Follow-up events will be announced on the Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce website
- Handelsbanken Clapham’s free Sustainability seminar will be held on 14 June at the Pestana Chelsea Bridge Hotel on Queenstown Road; contact Handelsbanken Clapham for more details, and enrol to attend via Eventbrite
- In September the UK chief economist of Handelsbanken will speak at a business breakfast organised by Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce.
Relationship banking with sustainable thinking
Rooted in community with a prudent approach and unique decentralised model, we’re well placed to make a difference to our customers and society. With a focus on long-term relationships we can help customers plan for success in a sustainable way.
Would you like to experience the Handelsbanken difference?
Call Clapham branch today on: 020 7095 5030
