The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 4: Summer 2017 | Page 20
MADE IN BATH
Celebrating all things manufactured, designed or
produced in Bath and the surrounding areas.
Whilst some manufacturers such as Mulberry are well-known for the items they produce locally,
there are many other firms that fall under the radar, quietly working behind the scenes on
exceptional products and services that we should be proud to say are home-grown innovations.
Examples include Cross Manufacturing,
renowned for producing innovative rotary
valve engines used in motorbikes and
sports cars, as well as specialist sealing
rings used in iconic British engineering,
such as the Harrier jump-jet. Just outside
of the city, in the village of Box, is the only
surviving tennis ball factory in the Western
World- J Price Ltd. Each week they produce
10,000 tennis balls alongside many other
sports balls such as squash and racket balls.
New designers and innovators in the city
NOVIA GLOBAL
For more info:
www.novia-global.com
are being spawn from our well-respected
universities and business incubator hub,
Bath Innovation Centre. Others are just
inspired by Bath’s natural and architectural
beauty igniting their creative talents.
Here we showcase the diversity of some
of Bath’s latest exports, saddling a whole
host of industries, from IT to financial
services and handicrafts.
@Novia_Global
Novia Financial is a well-known business institution that launched in Bath
nearly ten years ago. They’ve recently created a new company, Novia Global
that is already making its mark internationally. We met with Chris Skelhorn,
head of distribution to find out more about it.
What is Novia Global? Where are you currently exporting to?
Novia Global Ltd is an international online financial
services investment business that provides market-leading
technology, enabling professional advisers to efficiently and
effectively manage their client investments. Novia Global Limited is authorised and regulated by the
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom.
This authorisation allows us to trade in the crown
dependencies (Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man) and in
Europe under the Market in Financial Instruments Directive
(MiFiD).
Outside of Europe, the Novia Global service is available
in many other jurisdictions including the UAE and the
Cayman Islands.
How does it differ from Novia Financial?
Novia Global specifically targets offshore advisers and
trust companies and aims to provide them with the same
high levels of service and choice that is available in the UK
through Novia Financial.
How big is the Novia Global
team at present?
Novia Global has a core team based in Bath with a number
of distribution relationships established around the world.
How do financial services compare
internationally with the UK in terms of
pricing, regulation and red tape etc?
There is a clear, irreversible shift globally towards
transparency and a better deal for consumers in the
investment world.
In the UK, platforms have completely taken over the
retail savings space from life companies, the vast majority
of whom have disappeared, with the handful that are left
having had to transform themselves. The same thing is
going to happen in the ‘offshore’ markets and it is only a
matter of time until this happens.
What made you decide to base
the business in Bath and what
are the benefits?
Bath is usually associated with the Roman Baths, Jane
Austen and its World Heritage status, but it also provides
us with a number of key business factors.
Fantastic transport links to the rest of the UK and
Europe, access to highly experienced staff, and a number
of sports and social venues on our doorstep.
What are your ambitions for Novia Global?
Our aim is simply to see the same level of success for
Novia Global that we’ve seen with Novia Financial.
COMPLETE CONTROL
Based in Corston, on the outskirts of
Bath is leading children’s digital agency
Complete Control. For the last 18 years,
they have been producing interactive
content for the best in children’s media.
Their clients include Cartoon Network, Sky,
BBC, Premier League and Lego.
Complete Control is a double
BAFTA winning agency, with a creative
development studio producing games,
websites and apps for some of the most
loved children’s brands. They are also
digital publishers of their own children’s
brand Bebods. Glynn Hayward, creative
director said: “A Bebod is a little digital
avatar of you. Once you have created
your bebod, you can play games, star in
YouTube videos, share yourself with your
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THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017
friends and use as a sticker and a profile
picture. Bebods focus is on creating a
personalised, fun and creative experience
for children, their friends and family.
It’s also a positive tool to encourage
children to shy away from using photos
of themselves, protecting them from any
potential online threats.”
Still in its early days, Bebods is already
starting to make an impact with over
85,000 followers online and generating a
lot of industry attention. Bebods recently
won the best ‘early stage project’ at
MIPJunior in Cannes at the worldwide
market place for children’s media.
Glynn and the Complete Control team
is also one of just nine agencies, working
with the BBC helping on a prestigious
4 year contract, to help shape its digital
future for children’s online entertainment.
In April, the agency launched a brand
new game for CBeebies TV show ‘Down
on the Farm’ featuring JB from JLS - a well
fitting project as the Complete Control
studio was once an old pig farm.
For more info:
www.completecontrol.co.uk
@contweetcontrol