Lucrative link to US on offer
5 things we learned yesterday
1 Historic links with one of America’s largest cities are being offered to boost businesses here in the North East.
Newcastle has been a ‘sister city’ to Atlanta since the visit of then US president Jimmy Carter in 1977, with the link giving companies on Tyneside access to some lucrative markets in one of the largest cities in the US.
Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed is set to visit Newcastle later this year.
Now Newcastle technology company Sage whose US base is in Atlanta - has launched an international exchange programme that will see two companies from the North East given the chance to pitch for business in the American city. The news of the growing links between Newcastle and Atlanta has come as the Government prioritises trade links with the United State of America, with International Trade Secretary Liam Fox in over in America to explore a post-Brexit free trade deal. 2 The hotel manager behind a number of the North East’s top hotels is hoping to welcome visitors from the region to her firm’s latest property – in Dubai. Northumberland-born Debrah Dhugga launched her career in hospitality as a receptionist for the Swallow Hotel in Gateshead and quickly climbed the career ladder, going on to launch Newcastle’s Malmaison and manage the luxury Seaham Hall and The Samling hotels before they were acquired. Now Mrs Dhugga is managing director of luxury operator Dukes Hotels, which has just opened a five-star hotel in Dubai which she operates alongside the firm’s London hotel in upmarket St James.
Based on the glamorous Palm Jumeriah, Dukes Dubai is the first British-operated hotel to open at the glamorous Palm Jumeriah, and Mrs Dhugga worked with a number of UK partners in the hotel’s fit-out. 3 A Newcastle bar and hotel group has saved around 125 jobs after buying two Scottish hotels out of administration. The Cairn Group has acquired the Holiday Inn Express City Centre and the Holiday Inn Aberdeen West for an undisclosed sum. The hotels were owned by Aberdeen-based European Development Company, which called in administrators last November.
4 Business students in the North East are hoping to provide a solution that will lead to the re-opening of a top historical site in the region. The National Trust caused outcry earlier this year when it closed the birthplace of railway pioneer George Stephenson at Wylam, Northumberland, citing rising costs and falling visitor numbers as reasons for the closure. At the time, the Trust said it would try to find “other ways to engage with visitors and tell the story of young George” and hoped the closure would be temporary.
Now it has linked up with students at Newcastle Business School, as part of Northumbria University’s successful Business Clinic initiative, to find a solution to the issue. 5 Shareshave risenin discount following retailer reports B&M that supermarket giant Asda is considering a £4.4m takeover. Asda, which is owned by Walmart, is mulling over a bid for the firm amid a flurry of consolidation in the supermarket sector, it has been reported. Acquiring the retailer would give Asda access to a network of high street shops through which to distribute its products, including the George clothing range.