Coastal Success
The Mail on Sunday has featured local success story Beaming in a story about regeneration of Britain’s coastal towns. The story included the following:
The British seaside is back in fashion and much has been done to regenerate rundown resorts and support their small firms. But with spending cuts and the imminent demise of the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs), what is the fate for coastal enterprises?
Research from Sheffield Hallam University shows that employment in the seaside tourist industry has increased by one per cent, representing 20,000 jobs, since the late 1990s.
Over ten years, £341 million of funding from Government, EU and private sources has boosted regeneration in Hastings and Bexhill, East Sussex.
Sonia Blizzard relocated her internet service provider, Beaming, to the local Creative Media Centre from her Hastings home soon after launching in 2005. The centre, run by the South East England Development Agency, accommodates 39 small creative businesses, offering mentoring and advice.
Sonia, 39, now has separate premises for her firm which employs eight staff and provides broadband and telephony packages. It turns over more than £1 million each year.
She says:
“The growth in diverse businesses has provoked interest in Hastings from outside investors and renewed our sense of local pride”
For more information on Beaming, please visit www.beaming.biz .
Thursday, 9th September, 2010
