In its 6th year, Brighton Fashion Week was bigger and better than ever, featuring designers from all across the country. Signs Express was pleased to be one of the lead sponsors this year, providing a range of promotional items for the event.

It all began in 2005 when a group of fashionistas living in Brighton began a show called Brighton Frocks, 6 years on it has grown into something truly amazing and worthy of being a week long event – Brighton Fashion Week.

The week long extravaganza showcases some of the very best up and coming UK designers, with truly inspiring collections, capturing Brighton’s eclectic feel.

In their role as lead sponsors, the Signs Express Marketing team were delighted to accept an invitation to the couture show and VIP after party. Commenting on the event Hayley Forder, Marketing and PR Executive for Signs Express said, “It was a fantastic event and great for us to see all of our banners and other promotional signage in place. All signage including banners, roller banners, window stickers and our newest product Phototex were used to sponsor the show.

Hayley continues, “Phototex was the perfect solution for the temporary backdrop required to frame the models during photo shoots. It has been great to see it used to its full potential. Sponsoring the show came on the back of a month long marketing campaign we organised in Brighton. Whilst sponsoring the event, we have also been undertaking an advertising campaign promoting our franchise opportunity available within the area and received many positive enquiries.”

Franchising has become increasingly popular with Britain’s entrepreneurs as a recent survey by Natwest shows in the height of the economic downturn, the franchise industry’s turnover increased to £11.8 billion – with 94% of franchisors optimistic about the future.

Tony Marsh, Sales and Marketing Director of Signs Express said, “This is great news for people who are considering starting up a business on their own. Owning a franchise has become especially popular as you are operating within a proven business model. It’s a great way to give people an opportunity to start up their own business and become their own boss but with all the benefits of having an experienced brand and support team behind them. We offer a fantastic training programme, and our franchisees always feel they are part of one big family. Having the support of an in-house marketing team is also very attractive to the new franchisees.”

Tony continues, “Our franchise model has been designed to provide a full professional service to a vast marketplace of potential customers within the B2B sector. As a management franchise, prospective franchisees require no sign industry experience as full training is provided. This is a great opportunity for someone to start up a business in Brighton, covering also Hove and surrounding areas.”

Signs Express has been through more than 20 years of sustained growth, and has developed into the largest sign company in the UK and Ireland with more centres than any other business in the industry. It has been uniquely positioned to meet the needs of its customers. Enjoying a national reputation for providing quality products and supreme customer service, Signs Express combines total coverage with local knowledge to offer its clients the most effective sign solutions.

April 4th saw the opening of the first Tapeo BCN restaurant in Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France. This first restaurant is located in the new Confluence shopping and entertainment centre. It has a capacity of 100 seats in the diner area, plus 50 seats in a beautiful area overseeing the Saône River, just before it flows into the Rhône River. This restaurant will play an important pilot role for Tapeo BCN in that the Confluence is a new generation shopping centre, combining excellent commercial offerings with the latest in entertainment, including a premium restaurant area.

The second restaurant is at the heart of the Lyon Presqu’ile, in the historic location of Le Casaty, which used to be the first salon de thé in France. Located in the very city centre, near the pedestrian zone, and its decoration seamlessly integrates existing ancient wood paneling with the contemporary Tapeo BCN image. Come try our tapas and Spanish specialties in this unique surrounding.

In keeping with our plans to expand Tapeo BCN, this summer we will be opening two new restaurants in Germany, in the cities of Cologne and Kiel.

At the same time, two new venues are foreseen in France, one in Paris and another north of Lyon.

The Italian granite, quartz and recycled glass agglomerate surfaces produced exclusively by Granite Transformations are usually associated with kitchen worktops. But for the TV property series, Beeny’s Restoration Nightmare, the material was used in a quite different way, for cladding walls and bath surrounds in the bridal room’s en suite facilities, two dramatic shower rooms and a particularly flamboyant ‘Dream Green’ bathroom. Emphasising its versatility as an interior finish, it also features as matching 300mm square floor tiles in all five completed rooms.

Far from being part of the ‘restoration nightmare’, which relates to the challenges of renovating a decaying 97-room mansion in East Yorkshire, Granite Transformations’ contribution to the project went very smoothly, prompting Sarah Beeny to comment ‘We found them brilliant’. Featured in Channel 4’s three-part series, the emerald green bathroom with its backlit bejewelled effect makes an eyecatching appearance, whilst a boxed bath and separate washroom grace Rise Hall’s brand new bridal suite, in readiness for Sarah’s first wedding ceremony.

The opportunity arose when Sarah Beeny and her artist husband Graham Swift, who were already clients of Granite Transformations, realised that the agglomerate material could be used in an innovative way. In view of its light weight, slim dimensions and large slab sizes, they felt it would be ideal for cladding complete bathroom walls, with no visible grout lines.

Given Sarah’s reputation as the ‘Queen of TV property shows’, her exceptional eye for design and materials, and the chance to showcase Granite Transformations surfaces in a Grade II listed stately home, Chief Operating Officer Danny Hanlon was delighted to become involved in the Rise Hall project, eventually supplying around 115m2 of agglomerate slabs and 30m2 of floor files, together with sundry materials and installation by its qualified fitters.

Following an on-site meeting with Sarah and Graham, Granite Transformations’ Italian design studio produced computerised renderings for the bridal suite’s corner bath and separate washroom, the feature ‘green’ bathroom and two separate shower rooms. The worst winter in thirty years notwithstanding, in February the Granite Transformations installation team started work, consisting of qualified fitters Luke, Steve and Kamil, expert tiler Antonio and, proving he can still roll up his sleeves, on occasion Danny.

The green issue was a consideration for Sarah and Graham, so the material selected for the feature bathroom was Trend G in Dream Green, made from 70% post-consumer recycled glass and one of the most eco-friendly finishing surfaces on the market. It contains fragments of green and clear glass from beer, wine and mineral water bottles, blended with around 5% high performance polymer for strength and resilience, and creates a diamond-polished finish of vibrant greens and bright crystals of light.

Exploiting a unique property of this slimline agglomerate, the bath’s fascia panel has been ‘back shaved’ to remove the opaque backing material, enabling illumination from a switchable light source to shine through the now-translucent surface. This back-lit twinkling twilight effect contrasts beautifully with the solid Dream Green panels and tiles used on the walls and floors, creating a sophisticated ‘nightclub’ look.

The same Trend G eco-friendly, recycled glass finish is used in the first shower room, this time in dramatic Black Star with silvery highlights. Originally designed as a wetroom, but later ruled out because the plumbing was prohibitively expensive, the room’s virtually seamless agglomerate walls are nonetheless impermeable to water, while floor tiles made from the same material are laid on moisture-resistant, dimensionally stable board, as indeed are all the agglomerate tiles.

The second shower room sees a change of material to Trend R in Rosso Alpi, with its mix of brick red, rose pink, terracotta, deep brown and cloudy white. A classically-styled finish made from Italian granite enhanced with polymer, it is practical, hardwearing, non-porous and much stronger than natural stone, with up to 67% recycled content.

For the corner bath in the bridal bedroom and a matching washroom reached by connecting corridor, Sarah selected a muted Trend Q natural quartz finish in Palm Desert, a subtle mix of oatmeal, warm golden brown and flecks of white, grey and black that evokes desert sand at daybreak. The horizontal top slab on the bath surround has a bath-shaped cutout to form a recessed rim, with side fascias creating a stylish oblong box and wall-mounted panels providing waterproof splashbacks.

In the washroom, there was to have been an ironic three-position ‘thunderbox’, but this was changed to a central WC and adjacent storage boxes, all concealed by a hinged Trend Q lid, reminiscent of an updated commode. The twin sinks opposite are mounted on a matching Palm Desert plinth, with the same composite quartz material also applied to sink splashbacks, walls and floor. The look is ‘modern boutique hotel’ and the chosen finish should last until fashions change, at which point it could simply be refaced with another Granite Transformations design.

So delighted is Sarah with the newly transformed rooms that she is already talking with Danny Hanlon about upgrading six more bathrooms. Excited by the unique capacity of Granite Transformations materials to fit neatly over existing surfaces, “so you don’t have to rip the bathroom apart”, she is looking to reface existing splashbacks and tiles, as the simplest, most economical solution. With a choice of more than sixty different designs and materials, she should have more than enough scope to satisfy her interior designer’s eye. The fact that Granite Transformations always fits its own products, she also views as a bonus.

“It was delightful working with Sarah, Graham and the rest of the crew and pleasing to see our materials used in this distinctive manner,” says Danny Hanlon. “It also highlights the range and versatility of our agglomerate surfaces, which are not only ideal for kitchen worktops, but bathroom and many other interior and exterior finishing applications too.”

PC PAL Engineer John Savage, who covers the Bristol East and Bath region for PC PAL, is taking part in a 24-hour sponsored race for the charity ‘Jamie’s Farm’ on 7th July 2012.

The whole PC PAL team will be supporting him all the way and encouraging everyone to sponsor John for this tough and challenging task. John said: “On 7th July, I’ll be competing in the Bontrager 24/12 mountain bike race at Newnham Park near Plymouth, I’m entered as a solo rider in the 24 hour event, which is tough for a young man, let alone an old git approaching bus pass age.

“I’ve been training through the winter, trying to put in 6-8 hours riding a week, which hasn’t been easy due to work and getting motivated on cold and wet winters evenings! I’m also going to enter a few lead up events and will be spending a week training / enjoying life in Spain in May. Please help me raise money for Jamie’s Farm , a small local charity, as they do great work with children from challenging schools, enabling them to fulfill their potential in education and socially.

“A friend, Brian, has volunteered to be my pit helper to keep me and my bike going so it’s a joint effort and if you can spare some cash to sponsor me I would be very grateful. You can sponsor me for each lap completed, about 11-12 Km, for every hour I ride or for completing the event.”

John is one of our longest running franchisees, joining PC PAL early 2009, and has always provided a reliable and consistent service to his local customers around the Bristol East and Bath areas.

It’seeze Consultant Steve Axtel is the latest Spoton.net franchisee to hit the century mark having just signed up his 100th client! But, not only did Steve sign up seven new clients last month, he has also signed up a further seven clients in the first three working days of April!

It is exciting news for Spoton.net franchisees, proving the demand for affordable, professional websites is still sky high and even more so in this economic climate. With three other franchisees chasing down their 150th client, its very encouraging for new franchisees to see what is being achieved day in and day out.

Steve, like most franchisees, has put his current prolific run of form down to networking, and although he attends various local networking events, all of the seven sign ups which came through in the space of three days, were generated from the national business networking company, BNI, and Steve didnt have to ’sell’ a single site as they were all referrals coming to him.

Within the franchise business, it is not just the selling where Steve is standing out. He has given huge amounts of his own time in supporting and mentoring fellow franchisees and he has also developed a great rapport with everyone at HQ, not to mention his amazing track record in terms of customer care, support and retention.

Steve commented: “As far I’m concerned I’m just doing what comes naturally as I’m really enjoying being part of the team and can go out with confidence, knowing that I have a fantastic range of unique products and services I can offer under the it’seeze brand.”

National Home Care provider Caremark Limited, has just concluded its latest intensive training course for new franchisees, with new business owners Jo Fitzmaurice and Hayley Parkins being amongst the latest group to successfully complete the course.

Jo Fitzmaurice and Hayley Parkins, sisters, are now in the process of setting up their Bedford offices while awaiting their registration with the Care Quality Commission.

“We are really looking forward to getting our business started and are currently recruiting and training Care and Support workers in readiness for the launch day,” said Hayley. “It’s a very exciting time for us both.”

The sisters have lived in the borough for many years, with Jo serving as a Parish Councillor and a School Governor in the village of Wymington. Recognising the need for high quality home care in their community and the difficulties faced by families in the area, together with their own mother’s illness and need of care, has been a strong motivator for Jo and Hayley to give something back to their community.

Jo and Hayley reflected: “Our research into the availability of quality care and support provision, both nationally and locally, reinforced our belief that there is a need for the high standard of quality care such as that provided by Caremark Limited.

“Being able to sharing in the knowledge and experience of other Caremark offices in the network will undoubtedly be of benefit to us both as Care providers and to those to whom we deliver the service in the borough,” they concluded.

Caremark (Bedford) will be providing care, support and companionship services to all adults in need in the Bedford borough. Caremark (Bedford) is part of a national network of franchised offices, operating in England and Ireland providing home care services to adults and children in their own homes and their communities.

The Thames Valley Franchise Show will take place on Thursday 26th April 2012 at the Madejski Stadium, Reading. The event will be held between 1:30pm and 9:00pm, to allow flexibility for daytime or evening attendance.

There will be a number of franchise exhibitors at the event and also the opportunity to find out more about franchising as a business format.

Century 21 are looking for new franchisees to continue our office growth in England, why not come along and find out more about a franchise with the world’s largest estate agency brand and how to operate your own estate agency and letting business.

Kitchen worktops specialist, Granite Transformations, has celebrated Olympic year by creating a Union Jack-adorned island unit, clad in its tough, hardwearing, diamond-polished material. It then invited Britain’s top gymnast, Beth Tweddle, to show off its patriotic piece by performing a series of rhythmic routines on and around the unit. As a test of the material’s strength and resilience, Beth’s energetic vaulting, tumbling, jumps and acrobatics put it through its paces, although Granite Transformations would expect far more severe treatment in normal household and commercial use, on kitchen worktops, bar counters, tiled floors, shower surrounds and elsewhere.

The authentic Union Jack design, which is twice as wide as it is high, was achieved using a high tech water jet cutter, which sliced through the material with a high velocity mix of water and abrasive particles, to produce the various component triangles and quadrilaterals. These were seamlessly abutted together and bonded onto construction board, creating a countertop measuring 2m x 1m. The unit is finished with 80mm deep edge strips, featuring a 3mm pencil round profile, and double-faced waterfall ends to create a rigid 90cm high structure that could be at home in a sizeable kitchen, sports club, recreational centre or licensed premises.

Rather than adhere to traditional red, white and blue, Granite Transformations chose muted white Cristallino, slate grey and blue steel finishes from its Trend G recycled glass collection, to introduce a ‘designer look’. Made from post-consumer recycled wine, beer and mineral water bottles, with an element of polymer resin for strength and a patented Flexiweb™ backing for flexibility, it outperforms most other finishing materials like natural or engineered stone and solid synthetics.

But what made this whole exercise possible, is the distinctive slimline profile and exceptionally light weight of Granite Transformations’ surfaces. Had it been made from solid granite or stone, the unit would have been far too heavy to be moved and displayed around the country, nor would it have the inherent flexural strength to withstand Beth’s energetic, flying gymnastic routines.

Three-times World, six-times European and seven-times National champion, making her Britain’s most successful gymnast of all time, Beth Tweddle was photographed in a state-of-the-art infinity studio that allowed the full height and breadth of her fantastic gymnastic feats to be captured. She was suitably impressed with the quality of finish and sophisticated looks of Granite Transformations’ one-off Union Jack unit and took time out to admire the latest iGranite app, which previews how its whole range of granite, quartz and recycled glass worktops could look in any kitchen.

Granite Transformations wishes Beth all the best in her Olympic endeavours and will be displaying her acrobatic images in all of its UK showrooms. Click here for further details on the Granite Transformations franchise opportunity.

Pistachios In The Park is a cafe franchise that combines a community focus with serving freshly prepared quality food.

When the first Pistachios In The Park cafe opened at Manor House Gardens in Lewisham, South London it helped to revive the area, making it a safer and more family friendly environment for parents to take their children. Since then every Pistachios In The Park franchise opened has helped to rejuvenate the park or green space in which it is located.

Along with its community focused agenda, Pistachios In The Park is also keen to promote good quality and healthy foods. For this reason all its cafes serve non-greasy cafe style food that is both child and adult friendly. Menu items consist of hot and cold freshly prepared organic and/or free range food and beverages, such as sandwiches, baguettes, kids beans on toast, scrambled eggs, crepes, cakes, handmade ice cream and smoothies.

In addition to food, Pistachios In The Park also offer a range of high quality hand-made wooden toys (made from reforested wood), greeting cards, and a selection of traditional ‘old fashioned’ loose sweets.

The total cost of a Pistachios In The Park franchise is £42,500 + VAT, which includes full training and support. Potential franchise owners do not need to have any previous catering or retail experience, however they should be physically fit; good with people and enjoy working with children; self-motivated; have a desire to own their own business; able to follow instructions; have an attention to detail; can manage people; presentable; have a full, clean driving licence; and should never have been declared bankrupt or have CCJ’s.

World’s Leading Digital Marketing Franchise Expands Services in France
WSI, the world’s #1 Internet franchise, has just announced the opening of a new Regional Master Franchise office in Paris, France. Operated by Jean-Francois Baudrais, the office will concentrate on delivering world class online solutions to small and medium sized businesses in the region, including Hauts de Siene, Yvelines, and Essone.

“According to eMarketer, the online ad spending in France will sky rocket to over $12 Billion in 2013,” says Ron McArthur, president of WSI. “In light of this growth we are delighted with our new presence in Paris, which I am certain will yield an incredible boost in profitability for the region’s local businesses. The internet continues to be a vital component to the marketing initiatives of businesses across the globe and this expansion presents extraordinary opportunities for local companies to discover and leverage new revenue opportunities available online. We are all very confident that with Jean-Francois’ leadership, local businesses will thrive online and, ultimately, produce remarkable profits.”

Prior to being awarded the WSI Regional Master Franchise in Paris, France, Jean-Francois served over two decades as Vice President of Sales and Marketing with Toshiba. Through his guidance and business acumen, the region’s local businesses will gain access to first-class digital marketing services including online lead generation, search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click advertising (PPC), social media optimization, content marketing and brand reputation management.

“In the last decade alone, online marketing has redesigned the entire business landscape,” says Jean-Francois Baudrais. “Without doubt, it is absolutely necessary that businesses – large and small – manage their online presence, leverage the most current mobile and social technologies, and envision their website as a sales team within itself. As WSI’s Regional Master Franchise in Paris, France, our office will work to help businesses seize profitable online opportunities in the largely competitive digital realm.”

WSI has Master Franchise offices located in Australia, Baltics, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Portugal, Brazil, Spain, Egypt, France, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Germany, Switzerland and the UK. WSI is actively seeking compelling, entrepreneurial-spirited individuals or organizations for its Master Franchise opportunity. Only those with a track record in sales, marketing and helping local businesses increase profitability will be considered. For more information about the WSI Master Franchise opportunity, please click here.