By Beverly Rademacher
Copyright expressandstar
The business roundtable was an opportunity for companies from across a number of sectors to highlight the challenges they are facing and talk about potential headwinds or growth opportunities in the next year.
The event on Wednesday (September 24) was hosted by the Chamber’s CEO Sarah Moorhouse at The Hawthorns, home of West Bromwich Albion FC, and included chamber member representatives from some of the region’s business leaders.
The visit came during a significant week for the Chamber, as it launched its ‘Bostin Black Country Business’ campaign highlighting the economic strengths of the region and also launched a snap survey of businesses affected by the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) cyber attack shutdown.
Governor Bailey told businesses: “These regional sessions are really always hugely valuable to us. You tell us what’s really going on.”
The meeting, held under Chatham House rules which means attendees must not disclose who said what, saw business leaders from Walsall, Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton share experiences of current trading conditions, with discussions covering inflation pressures, labour market challenges, the impact of recent policy changes including national insurance contributions, and concerns about business investment.
The Governor outlined current economic conditions at the event, with CPI inflation currently running above the Bank’s 2 per cent target, at 3.8 per cent.
Sarah Moorhouse, chief executive of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, said: “We’re extremely grateful to Governor Bailey for taking the time to visit the Black Country and hear directly from our local businesses about the real challenges they’re facing on the ground. It does help hopefully that as a third-generation West Brom fan he was also able to meet businesses on home ground and take the opportunity for a quick stadium tour as well!
“I’d also like to thank all the businesses who participated – their insights are invaluable in helping the Bank understand the economic conditions affecting our region.
“These are undoubtedly challenging times for Black Country firms, particularly with the JLR shutdown affecting many companies in the supply chain. However, our new Bostin Black Country Business campaign demonstrates the remarkable resilience and strength of our local economy and it was valuable for the Bank to hear about this resilience during our conversations.”
Businesses around the table included Thomas Dudley, Richardson, Bowers & Jones, MoRServ, Robinson Brothers, the University of Wolverhampton, Fortress Safety, Robert Hopkins Environmental Services, Dudley Building Society, Assa Abloy Opening Solutions, Higgs LLP, Paycare and West Bromwich Albion FC.
