Paul Hargreaves

I am sure that – like us – you are running your business with fewer staff members than normal as the peak of the holiday season draws upon us

If anyone watched the most recent series of Mary, Queen of Shops you will have heard Mary Portas continually banging on about service

What a great summer we've had so far. Although as I write this I hear of heavy rain in the North West

I have just returned from a week away in Devon, which was a good chance to spend time with my children and re-charge the batteries

I write with particular reference to the speciality food sector, and am wondering whether the recent long-drawn-out election result will make any difference to us?

The ridiculously cold weather (and the fact that our Christmas catalogue is at the printers) must mean summer is on its way!

I am not going to make the mistake of pushing one particular party over another with the General Election pending, but do we think of our businesses when voting?

It seems that summer – or at least spring – has finally made a brief appearance. Let’s hope it doesn’t disappear again as quickly as it came!

I have always thought four days is too long for a food show, but the time simply flew by at the NEC last week

I have just come back from a UKTI trade mission in Mexico. This is the second such trip I have been on and I was struck with the potential for UK companies to do business in other countries.