North London bucks the trend

North London Business is pleased to announce the results of its second annual business survey.  The results, more positive from last year indicate that North London firms aren?t feeling the pinch of the recession as much as previously feared.  When asked what the expected change in their staff numbers would be, over 40% said they would increase staff and only 20% said this would decrease.  The general feel from the results implies that a lot of businesses will ride out the storm without making too many changes to their business.  However, as expected a small percentage are looking to relocate or expand their business. 

Over half the respondents claim to launch/develop new products in the coming year, demonstrating the innovative nature of local enterprises with less than 5% saying they will withdraw products or contract their business.

The majority of businesses declared a high level of satisfaction in North London as a business location.  The three top issues identified that need to be addressed were road congestion, crime and access to business support.  Almost 90% of businesses said they will remain in North London in the next three years which clearly highlights the business friendly environment that exists here and the work already done by business support providers and local authorities to support the local economy. 

The top three challenges businesses will face over the next 12 months are increasing turnover, maintaining cash flow and surviving the recession.  The two top improvements to the transport system were the widening of the A406 and minimising parking restrictions.

Overall, the results were very encouraging and business confidence remains high.  The relationship with the local authorities seems to have improved and new schemes put in place are having a positive effect on local businesses.  Business satisfaction with local councils rocketed threefold, rising from 15% last year to 40% this year recording a good relationship, indicating excellent progress in relationship building. 

Gary Ince, Chief Executive Officer, North London Business said: "Being located in outer London, we seem to have fared well in the current economic climate.  The area does not have a dominant business sector unlike other parts of London and this appears to be helping. I am delighted the respondents share my view in that this area is a catalyst for growth.  With so many projects in the pipeline the transformation over the next few years will be phenomenal.  North London is home to a good mix of companies of various sizes and industries which help it to be as resilient as it is.  Working with our local authorities we have worked hard to try and listen to business needs by addressing, where possible, the factors businesses have identified which create obstacles to their growth."

North London Business thanks all the businesses who took part in the survey and values feedback throughout the year.  We would also like to give a special thanks to our sponsors Natwest.

A full report of the results is available here.

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