July 30 2020

WARWICKSHIRE MEANS BUSINESS

So many reasons why we should all Buy and Eat Local

If every person in Warwickshire spent just £5 per week in the county, this would be worth around £122 million annually to the local economy.

As more shops, restaurants, hairdressers and other town centre businesses re-open, Warwickshire County Council is encouraging local businesses to source their personal protective equipment (PPE) from local suppliers.

Since the start of the pandemic, many Warwickshire firms have pivoted their businesses to start producing new PPE-related products and services, so there are plenty of options for sourcing supplies from within the county. These are helpfully llisted at CW Chamber Recovery Hub and Find it in CW.

The council's message is part of a wider campaign encouraging people to Buy and Eat Local . When we buy from a local business we are supporting their suppliers their staff and their families. If every person in Warwickshire spent just £5 per week in the county, this would be worth around £122million annually to the local economy

Among the many local firms to have started creating high quality PPE products are A Nuneaton-based design and print shop Parker Masters which now produces a range of products that aid workplace and public space social distancing such as signage for hand sanitiser stations, floor graphics and branded face masks.

Set up in 2009, the business had been specialising in innovating outdoor, UV-stable printing on to large outdoor dining furniture such as awnings, canopies, parasols, planters and café barrier screens, alongside the standard printing range. However, as Covid-19 hit, orders dried up overnight and the company decided to close temporarily.

Parker Masters owner and MD, Jonathan Masters takes up the story: “After a couple of weeks observing what was happening in supermarkets, post offices and other essential businesses, we decided to try to help local and national businesses create a plan of how to re-open using social distancing signage, hand sanitiser stations, floor graphics, branded face masks - anything that could help to communicate to customers how they would be expected to behave when they entered the premises.

"We provided signage to a wide variety of organisations including Warwickshire Business Centres; Moto Motorway Services; Savills; KMPG (N.I.) and MBDA Missile Systems.

“But one of the biggest successes has been our urinal covers! We were approached by a client to develop a cost-effective covering for urinals. We produced a super high-tack self-adhesive vinyl, branded with company logos and messages about social distancing. We have been sending these across the country, and even as far as Belfast.”

“Now our core business has bounced back as well. Many cafes, pubs, restaurants and shops are needing to utilise their outside areas, for seating, serving, queuing and of course to protect their customer from the great British weather! We are currently developing a number of new items required due to coronavirus, such as easy clean outdoor planters, printed with any images or design.”

Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Leader of Warwickshire County Council says: “We have many fantastic local firms now supplying a wide range high quality PPE. As businesses continue to ensure customers and staff remain safe, we hope as many firms as possible will source their PPE from local suppliers to boost our local economy, and support our local businesses.”

For more information on the Shop Eat Local in Warwickshire campaign, including links to local suppliers, please visit: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/buyeatlocal

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