Business is never predictable and, while we generally like stability, order and routine in life, many argue that uncertainty can create new opportunities. Necessity is the mother of invention, as the saying goes and, from Richard Branson to Elon Musk, successful entrepreneurs often see opportunities during periods of change or disruption and go on to create successful companies to meet these needs.

The first half of this year has been particularly challenging with rising interest rates and the cost of living crisis impacting many firms’ operations and profitability. We recently launched our annual Business Survey to ask company owners to rank the issues which are taxing and affecting their ability to trade. It’s been interesting already to see how many feel about the current climate with increased costs, taxation, staffing and finance all cited as areas which are impacting the bottom line. If you haven’t already done so, please share your opinion here before 31 July as we would love to hear as many views as possible to gauge local feeling.

Despite a slightly pessimistic start to 2023, the headlines in recent weeks have been more positive with the EY Item Club predicting that the UK economy will now grow by 0.2 per cent, rather than contract, and interestingly UK bank loans are expected to rise by 1.2 per cent rather than the 0.1 per cent fall which was forecast in February.

So far we’ve avoided the recession which was widely predicted after last autumn’s financial crash and, while these figures are relatively low, it’s heartening to see a chink of light ahead. It’s easy to believe negative headlines and echo the doom and gloom sentiment found in many media reports, but perhaps by adopting a glass half full approach we can encourage greater positivity in our region.

We live in an area where leisure and tourism is a mainstay of the economy and, while many firms are reporting a little more caution among customers and a return to 2019 levels of activity, in some ways the return to normality should be welcomed as a baseline from which local businesses can reset their ambition to grow. What do you think? We’d love to hear from you, so get involved and add your voice to our survey – this is your opportunity to be heard.