Businesses gearing up for 2026 at magazine launch

Some of the major driving forces in the Lancashire economy were in the fast lane at the launch of the new edition of Lancashire Business View at Porsche Preston.

Issue 126 is the first edition of 2026 and shines the spotlight on businesses looking ahead to the new year.

Richard Slater, publisher of Lancashire Business View, said: “Bringing together more than 70 people for this latest edition launch demonstrates the strength and ambition that defines Lancashire’s business community.

“Hosting the event at Porsche Centre Preston gave us the perfect backdrop to celebrate the organisations that accelerate growth in the county.

“Networking events like this are great ways to help companies do better business with each other.”

Tom Fox, centre principal from Porsche Preston and Bolton, talked about the centre which opened in 2019.

He said: “We wanted to build big and create an environment that was a landmark.”

Tom told the delegates the centre had a ‘tremendous’ bounce back after COVID and it ‘moved into the top five centres in the UK in two years’.

One of the exciting new features in the magazine is the Big20 lists of the biggest businesses in Lancashire for profit and turnover.

Dean Rogers, director of accounts and advisory at PM+M, compiles the Big20 list in addition to the popular Hot100 list of most profitable SME businesses in Lancashire.

He shared his insight and said the Big20 demonstrates the breadth of companies and business sectors across the county.

Dean said: “You’ve got everything from massive property moguls to retail giants that are headquartered here.

“You've got your manufacturing businesses, which is your bread and butter, and then some really good tech, logistics and even food companies.”

One of the businesses featured in the Big20 is Chorley-based property and land company Northern Trust.

Neil McManus, senior development manager at Northern Trust, talked about the business being embedded in Lancashire.

He said: “The reason we are successful is because we support SMEs and the base of our business is small industrial units from the Midlands to Scotland. If the SMEs are successful, we are successful.

“Northern Trust was an SME business and was started by our late chairman Trevor Hemmings who was a bricklayer and worked his way through to build his first few houses.

“There is a succession set since Mr Hemmings passed away and now there are second and third generations moving through Northern Trust.

“Another reason for our success is the culture of being a family business.”

The cover star of Issue 126 is Lisa O’Loughlin CBE who talked about her journey to becoming chief executive and principal of East Lancashire Learning Group and being a driver for change and policy in education.

She said: “About 18 months ago, I got a call from chief executive officer of the Education Endowment Foundation Prof Becky Francis who leads research and provide policy advice for the government.

“She said they were putting a panel together of experts to do a review of the curriculum of key stages one to five from primary to post-16.

“There were two college principals invited on it and one of them was me.

“It is a once in a generation opportunity to review the curriculum and advise the government about what the next steps are.

“It is about looking at technical education and making sure it is robust and delivering the skills to the next generation for the workforce.”

Alban Cassidy, town planning director of Cassidy and Ashton architects in Preston, shared with the audience his thoughts about the year ahead with opportunities for the future.

He said: “One market that is growing is data centres. We are working with three at the moment.

“It is changing the dynamics of the Fylde coast and Blackpool. There's ootentially an AI centre which creates a lot of investment, growth and jobs.

"It also links to the project with Blackpool Council at Silicone Sands too.”

Morgan Rothwell, from D&M Creative told delegates about the Barrowford design, programming, marketing and social media firm which has a two-page feature in the magazine.

He said: “We started the company in 2002 in a back bedroom in Cliviger.

“Now 70 to 80 per cent of our work is digital based. The way we deliver communications has changed so radically but the principles of marketing set by the likes of Coca-Cola in the early 1900s, and the way that brand communicated, are the same.”

Morgan added that the methods of delivering communications are changing including new technologies to give personalised messages to mass markets and individuals are ‘delivering results’.

Mark Edwards from Burnley based managed services provider Seriun gave a practical presentation about using AI to make some decisions on it and speed up the data solutions for businesses.

Editor Ged Henderson gave an insight into the current edition Issue 126 and about Issue 127 of Lancashire Business View which will focus on Lancashire’s women in business.

The event was supported by Porsche Preston and was powered by Seriun.