The doom and gloom of the news headlines is pretty depressing, lost jobs and falling currency values seem to dominate the news every single day and it’s hard to find much positive to be inspired or hopeful about.
I’ve spent much of the past week ringing round PR agencies, almost begging them for any slivers of positive news and I’m pleased to say some happy stories are starting to trickle in.
I’ve heard about an investment readiness programme for London firms (more on this in the coming weeks) and I’m hoping to sit in on one of their upcoming workshops and speak to some of the businesses benefiting from the advice on offer. There are also some positive stories about some well known stores who are seeing strong sales, safeguarding existing jobs and creating the potential for growth.
The downturn is a strange beast, I know many companies and individuals in the IT sector who deal with the US and I hear their pain over the falling value of the pound but elsewhere it’s claimed to be business as usual with homes still being built and developments going ahead.
The flip side of the falling pound is the obvious prospect for increased tourism so it’s no surprise that Visit London is aggressively pursuing tourists from the US and Europe. The challenge to make sure our hotels and attractions are up to scratch and leave visitors feeling they had a great time in a world class city.
It’s clear there’s a lot of pain ahead for many people but the myriad of work skills schemes which have been announced in recent months hopefully means many will be able to improve their prospects for work when the eventual upturn arrives. Plus there seems to be an ever growing range of support to help businesses survive the recession.
Meanwhile, if you know of companies creating jobs, increasing hotel room capacity or otherwise expanding, please let us know.
