Jonny Walks

Find out more about the breadth and possibility of working with Jonny Gould and his team right here. Drop jonny.gould@sportsmedia.co.uk a line to find out more.

This week's episode has reportage and audio from the British Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, on security issues he personally eyewitnessed over the sakies of Abu Dhabi, Manchester United owners confirming they are putting the club up for sale which has specific interest for potential Middle East investors - and Abu Dhabi majority-owned Manchester City agree new terms with their manager, Pep Guardiola. We also have coverage of the first round of matches at the Qatar World Cup and exclusive content brought home from my trip to the Global Media Congress in Abu Dhabi. Exclusive audio actuality: British Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly. Duncan Drasdo, CEO Manchester United supporters' trust. Senior police officer, Abu Dhabi police “happiness patrol”. Pep Guardiola, Manchester City manager. Rishi Sunak, British prime minister.

This week's episode has reportage and audio from the US midterms as Donald Trump's bid for the White House stalls, a round-up of deals made for the Middle East from COP27 at Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, comments from NATO's head, Jens Stoltenberg on the Ukraine War and reaction to the ethics of the Qatar World Cup which starts later this month. The podcast features audio comment from Andy Gray, beIN Sports presenter, Geoff Shreeves, Sky Sports and Fox Sports presenter, Rishi Sunak's opening address to COP27, President of Israel, Isaac Herzog and Mr Sunak, Boris Johnson, former PM, King Abdullah II of Jordan speaking at 10 Downing Street and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the transatlantic alliance around the Ukraine War.

This week's episode includes reportage and audio from Tuesday's US midterms, COP27 in Egypt and reaction from Israel's election victory for Netanyahu. I also have financial comment with a senior analyst covering the shock of 75 base point rises in Britain and the US. *Audio actuality:* President of COP26, Alok Sharma, British MP. Craig Erlam, Senior Market Analyst at Oanda. Ambassador Dore Gold, Israel's former permanent representative at the United Nations and closest adviser and friend to new prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. *Other audio actuality* President Donald Trump confirming he will "very, very, very probably do it again", run for the presidency in 2024. JC Bua from Reel Political News in Washington DC on the mid terms. British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt on the Bank of England decision to raise interest rates in line with America's Federal reserve.

Jonny hosts this weekly digest of international stories as they affect the Persian Gulf and Middle East/ In this episode, we have Rishi Sunak's doorstep speech as he enters Downing Street for the first time as prime minister, followed by his comments about not attending the forthcoming COP27 climate conference which takes place at Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt. From the British Parliament, we have a full urgent questions exchange on Iran. Bob Blackman MP and Foreign office Minister Gillian Keegan discuss whether Western nations should withdraw their ambassadors and embassies from Iran as continuing street protests dominate the news. We also have a financial roundup withLaith Khalaf, Head of Investment Analysis at AJ Bell covering the biggest stories of the week, Shell's huge profits surge and Elon Musk‘s purchase of Twitter. And part two of Jonny's exclusive with the Chair of Republicans Overseas, Greg Swenson as we continue to discuss the midterm elections in America and how they affect the Middle East.

In this episode of the Daily Middle East podcast, Jonny discusses: The US congressional election and how it will affect Amereican policy in the Persian Gulf and Middle East. The UAE pledges $100 million of humanitarian aid to Ukrainian civilians. Iran sells long and short range missiles to Russia, which are then used in airstrikes against Ukrainian civilian targets. The resignation of Liz Truss and what happens next in the United Kingdom. The Israel maritime border dispute with Lebanon over two new discoveries of gas in the Mediterranean appears to be resolved. The bulletin includes exclusive audio actuality about and with: CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS AND ITS EFFECT ON THE GULF AND MIDDLE EAST: Chair of Republicans Abroad, Greg Swenson. RESIGNATION OF TRUSS: Richard Holden, MP for North West Durham MILITARY STRATEGY AND ENDGAME IN UKRAINE WAR: Afzal Ashraf, International Relations and Politics expert at Loughborough University.

Jonny Gould hosts a weekly digest of the big international stories as they affect the Persian Gulf and the wider Middle East. In this episode, Jonny focuses on the UK's self-imposed financial crisis and the opportunities it's creating for the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. It includes audio actuality with the Prime Minister, Liz Truss and her new Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt.

Jonny Gould hosts a weekly podcast reviewing the week in news for the Daily Middle East. In this episode, we look at the economic fallout from the forthcoming cut in oil production decided by the OPEC+ countries including Russia and Saudi Arabia. Jonny also looks at the maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel over the discovery of a gas field in their Mediterranean offshore boundaries.

We return to a single subject format this week with the Kwarsi Kwarteng's “mini budget“ as the fallout from it continues in the markets. This bulletin includes audio actuality from: Britain's new Chancellor, Mr. Kwarteng. Treasury chief secretary, Chris Philp With audio interview commentary from: Ben Clift, Professor of Political Economy at the University of Warwick Alistair Milne, Economics professor at Loughborough University Including quotes on the state of the economy from: Roger Bootle, economist and chairman of Capital Economics, an independent macroeconomic research consultancy. And IEA (Institute of Economic Affairs) fellow Dr. Jamie Whyte

Jonny Gould hosts the biggest international stories this week. We cover the UN General Assembly and Security Council meetings in New York, the fracking moratorium lifted in the UK and the start of work on the Karish gas field in the Med between Israel and Lebanon. It's also the second anniversary of the Abraham Accords with continuing negotations over the JCPOA Iran nuclear deal and growing civil protests in Iran. The bulletin also includes two exclusive interviews with Jason Greenblatt, author of President Trump's Peace Plan and Jon Medved, OurCrowd CEO. Additionally, there is audio interview actuality with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, UK opposition climate spokesman and former Labour leader Ed Miliband.

The period of National Mourning reaches a crescendo in the United Kingdom as the Queen lies in state at Westminster Hall. A private family funeral will take place after a ceremony for the nation at Westminster Abbey on Monday 19th September. Jonny Gould wraps up an eventful week in London including reflections from the nation's Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities - and we also hear from Britain's longest serving diplomat, the Kuwaiti ambassador, Khaled Abdulaziz Al-Duwaisan with his three decades of friendship with Her Majesty.

Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest serving monarch passed away peacefully at Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland on Thursday after 70 years on the throne. Her Majesty The Queen made an unparalleled contribution to our country and the world - in her seven decades on the throne, shaping Britain to be what it is today. Her loss is indescribable, her passing has seen the most extraordinary outpouring of grief from across the nation and the world. Jonny Gould presents the unforgettable days following the sad death of Queen Elizabeth.

Jonny Gould produces a deep dive weekly bulletin in English with comment from the newsmakers and experts on the top national and international stories. In this bulletin, Jonny focuses on the policy priorities of the new British prime minister as polling draws to a close and the leadership winner is announced. We have audio comment from outgoing Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, plus the man he sacked just before his own resignation, Michael Gove. We also have comment from former British foreign secretary, Malcolm Rifkind on the legacy of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, who died this week, aged 91.

The first Merseyside derby of the season, Arsenal's 100% record set to be challenged by vastly improving Manchester United and a record billion spent on transfers in the window as player make their debuts up and down the country. Jonny Gould previews the action.

President Joe Biden completed his first visit to the region as US President as the Tory Party leadership campaign continued in London to seek a replacement for Boris Johnson as the UK's Prime Minister. Sir Mo Farah revealed he was trafficked to Britain as a child and his name isn't actually his and a Scottish museum found a self-portrait of Van Gogh which had previously not been known of.

It's been a week of high-drama in British politics as Boris Johnson resigned as Conservative leader, but will stay on as Britain's Prime Minister until a new Tory leader can be elected. Jonny Gould speaks to the first MP to declare himself for the leadership. Tom Tugendhat and discusses the Labour opposition's pledge not to open old wounds over Brexit, if Sir Keir Starmer is to form a future government. We also discuss warming relations between Israel and Poland and how the Gulf's airline industry is making a startling return to business form after the terrible problems it faced during the pandemic.

A Plus Tard has won the Gold Cup at the Cheltenham Festival as Rachael Blackmore became the first woman to ride a horse to Gold Cup glory. She made history last year as the first female to win the Grand National. And it was a glorious final day for Willie Mullins as the Irish romped to victory over Britain in the Prestbury Cup with 18 victories to 10 - but as Sandro di Michele reports from the Festival, at least the British have closed the gap on the dominant Irish.

Can any horse challenge the dominant Irish chasers in this 2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup? They lead the betting on the morning of this huge event in the sports calendar. But what about the going? It's good to soft and the sun may quicken the ground. What will that do to the market? Jonny Gould talks to 888Sport's Sandro di Michele with his tips for the race.

Flooring Porter won a second successive front-running victory in the Stayers' Hurdle, the feature on the third day of the 2022 Cheltenham Festival. The Gavin Cromwell-trained seven-year-old, under Danny Mullins, went straight to the front and dictated the race before landing victory. 888Sport's Sandro di Michele witnessed this very strong performance, rounds up the rest of the day and looks ahead to the biggest race of the Festival, tomorrow's Gold Cup.

Day 3 of the Cheltenham Festival is St Patrick's Day and features two 'Championship' races in the form of the Stayers' Hurdle and the Ryanair Chase. Punters have a good record in the Stayers' Hurdle in recent years, with several favourites obliging - including Paisley Park in 2019. Other races on the third day of Cheltenham include the Turners Novices' Chase, and two particularly competitive handicaps in the form of the Festival Plate and the Pertemps Final. 888sport's Sandro di Michele joins Jonny Gould live from Cheltenham and assesses the going - after yesterday's unrelenting rain played havoc with betting markets and the talk going round about the Festival being extended to five days.

This is the report of PMQs for Wednesday 20th January 2020, presented by Jonny Gould, featuring exchanges between the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, Leader of the Opposition, Sir Keir Starmer and the MP for Hampstead and Kilburn, Tulip Siddiq.

Football is a global business with financial numbers to match. Fuelled by unending resources of billionaire owners, Manchester City signed Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish for a record transfer fee. The previous biggest was £89m which Manchester United paid for Juventus and France midfielder, Paul Pogba. But as Jonny Gould explained to Paul Franks on Birmingham's BBC WM football will always be more than business

Office and retail spaces in towns and cities face permanent change, so what next? Coronavirus isn't the reason why retail is reeling. It's just sped up the process. Famous High Street stores, some of them hundreds of years old will never be seen again. They're migrating online, Debenhams and more recently The Gap have disappeared. And those huge four and five storey flagship department stores buildings are being drawn up and quartered - but into what? Well, seaside towns are turning them into budget hotels but the process of filling these mighty Victorian behemoths remains locked in huge questions marks. Before Covid, city centres were turning into leisure destinations, mixing up restaurant chains with train stations and major stores. But after Covid, even that's up for grabs. Planning consent is being simplified and eased by councils for town centre residential accommodation to replace office blocks built in the sixties and seventies. But what's the knock-on effect to big out-of-town L-shaped shopping warehouses with car parks? Someone's thinking big in this space. His name is John Hoyle, founder of Sook. Sook is transforming the way we use physical spaces in our towns and cities. Sook reactivates empty spaces with a modular digital fit out that any occupier can quickly and easily tailor to their requirements. Renting by the hour, Sook maximises footfall and income for landlords whilst making it simple for occupiers to reach the right audience, at the right time, at the right price. Let's find out more with John Hoyle of Sook.

Sarah Jane Thomson's business career has lessons, experiences and inspirations for all of us in the SME sector. It can be a Groundhog Day of unending challenges without reward, but Sarah says “never, ever give up, believe in your business mission - because it's all in the implementation not the inspiration”. In part 1 (the previous episode), Sarah reflected on the challenges of bringing up three young boys while leading businesses with her husband Steve. It's full of compromises despite all the progress for women in the last two generations. A struggle and a juggle you might say. Now in this part 2, we talk about the unremitting focus of fundraising, how committed you have to be in that mission - and investors: are we more risk averse here than in gung-ho America? And what about the knowledge curve, keeping up to date with the increasing regulatory environment and new tech platforms. Does she keep it simple with old principles or make sure she's right on it?

It's a pleasure to welcome Sarah Jane Thomson to my SME Walkabout with BOOST&Co. Sarah Jane is one of the UK's foremost female entrepreneurs with a long and successful track record in building multi-national businesses from the UK. She's founded, floated and acquired firms, winning multiple business awards. She was the youngest female CEO in the City of London during the 1990s. On a personal note, I've known Sarah Jane for six years as I invited her onto my first night on a then brand new station, talkRADIO where we discussed her business passion, First News. First News is a children's only newspaper for 7 to 14 year olds with a staggering two-million readers. It doesn't just distill complicated news stories for the younger generation, but also campaigns for their demands and needs. First News joined a campaign to abolish the abuse of Child Soldiers and was presented to the G7 Summit. Sarah Jane exudes energy and inspiration and if you're an SME entrepreneur who's despaired a bit during the pandemic, listen to this episode of #JonnyWalks for some valuable and timely encouragement. Everyone goes through challenges.

We’re heading to BOOST&Co’s sister company, Growth Lending in this episode, to find out how they’ve turned the disruption of the pandemic into opportunity for the SME sector. Principal Vicki Taylor, based in Growth Lending’s Manchester office is highly experienced in big banking and started life in supermarket retail, but she’s now enjoying the pace and flexibility of a smaller-scale lender to make a big impact in companies looking to grow and scale up. And Tom Seymour, regional director of Growth Lending, and based in Bristol sees the opportunity of matching his firm’s many lending products in a low-interest environment. While you’re digesting out chat with both experts, visit the “contact us” page at Growth-Lending.com to get in touch.

Neurodiversity is increasingly recognised as a metric to improve educational standards. We learn differently from one another. Some are left behind in the classroom, but it’s not because they’re less clever. It’s that we all ponder logic in different ways. Today we talk to Michael Hall, strategic chief financial officer of Cognassist, who says “as long as you have a brain, we can show you how you think and learn!” The Newcastle-based data analysis company is shaking up adult education, with a new digital approach to identifying learning difficulties. Too many of us leave education without a single qualification. Cognassist has assessed more than 70,000 people and prospective students can access bespoke learning programmes. It makes a significant difference to the process of learning. Cognassist enables colleges and independent trainers to cognitively assess their learners through digital means

Foodhub has become Britain’s third biggest online food-ordering portal with a combination of sound judgement and a bit of cheek! It’s the no-frills entrant to the UK’s food delivery sector. In a recent promotional campaign, they encouraged users to “Just Delete” other competitor apps! FoodHub now has 22,000 takeaways on its books, compared with 18,000 restaurants for Uber Eats, having grown 160% in 2020, thanks to a surge in demand during the pandemic. Based in Stoke-on-Trent but also with staff in India, Australia and the US, FoodHub has increased its turnover from £3m to around £30m in the past three years. And they’ve now secured significant funding from BOOST&Co as it enters negotiations with private equity firms to raise £100m. Jonny Gould spoke to Mohamed Chaudry, the company’s chief financial officer.

This is Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout with BOOST&Co. We're heading to Norwich as first point on our of tour of East Anglia as we celebrate world-class innovation once more with the Cofinitive 21toWatch Awards. Celebrating Nicholas Parsons' best weekend work in Norwich, we talk to Dr Berwin Clarke of Iceni Diagnostics, who use revolutionary carohydrate-based technology in biotech, we check-in on the fascinating world of holography with Aleksandra Pedrasewska of Vivid-Q and Gita Khalili of Glycovue brings mobile diabetes management to the world.

We’re heading east again to talk to three extraordinary entrepreneurs, recognised by The Cofinitive #21toWatch awards, sponsored by BOOST&Co, which celebrate the world-class people, companies and things they make and do across Cambridge and the east of England. Flusso, the world’s smallest flow sensor designed for low-cost, high-volume applications. Cambridge GaN Devices, who’ve found a brilliant way to make transistors that are over 100 times faster, lose 5 – 10 times less power and are 4 times smaller than existing silicon equivalents. And Spotta, which combines AI, machine learning and IoT sensors to create a digital way of tackling pests. They cause over $440bn in damage each year, affecting industries as diverse as hospitality, farming and forestry.

Another episode, another trailblazing female entrepreneur. Welcome to Jonny Gould’s SME Walkabout, Emma Sinclair MBE! During lockdown, Emma started an initiative which caught my eye: a way to give more SMEs the critical advice they needed to navigate the commercial emergency of lockdown. With a full-time day job and a full-on family, she didn’t have much time or bandwidth - yet she knew when she did reach out, it really helped. So Emma opened up a few half-hour slots every week asking for £50 in return for 30 minutes of her time. She then spent that money gifting something from another SME. That way she derived some tangible value, sending people gifts and reaching people who otherwise wouldn’t be on her direct radar. Emma founded car park management firm Target Parking (which she has since exited) and now co-leads tech company EnterpriseJungle. She’s the youngest person in the UK to take a company public and her determination and entrepreneurial zeal led to an MBE in the Queen’s 90th Birthday Honours for services to entrepreneurship. Emma’s also the first mentor of Building Young Futures, a UNICEF initiative aimed to teach disadvantaged youths in developing countries business and life skills so that they’re better equipped to find work or start a business. LISTEN

We’ll be updated by Lance Forman, CEO of H Forman & Son, smoked salmon manufacturers since 1905. We’ll also be replaying a part of the interview with the WEIRD CEO, Charles Towers Clark, who’s revolutionary thinking on running businesses has proved spectacularly right with the onset of the pandemic. Ironically, I interviewed him about the changes we can expect in our work-lives - just as lockdown in March 2020 was starting. And as the cofinitive #21toWatch prepares for its awards ceremony, I catchup with a nominee who’s on the shortlist for a second successive year, it’s Agile Analog’s CEO, Tim Ramsdale.

Jonny Gould’s SME Walkabout welcomes two guests today: BOOST&Co’s Cambridge principal, Faye McDonough and Lance Forman, managing director of H Forman & Son, smoked salmon manufacturer. We focus on the forthcoming Cofinitive #21toWatch, sponsored by BOOST&Co and a story of family business survival by emergency “pivoting” on more than one occasion. It’s a celebration of the people, companies and ‘things’ they create across Cambridge and the East of England, setting standards in innovation and entrepreneurship across the globe. #21toWatch showcases the lesser known, recognising exciting new entries across all market sectors and the panel of judges will assess each SME on Innovation, Challenge, Influence, Viability and Memorability. Entries have now closed and the shortlist is announced at the start of February, with the annual #21toWatch Top21 unveiled in a unique event on the first Thursday in March 2021. You’ll hear some of the winners right here! And if there was a world champion of “pivoting” a business plan to survive, to up sticks and restart to survive, the award might go to an independent salmon smokehouse in London’s East End. I talk to Lance Forman, the fourth generation family member of the only smokehouse left in that part of the country.

This is part 2 of Jonny's conversation with Kate Hardcastle MBE. In the first part, Kate discussed her 25 years at the heart of changing customer insight and how she advised SMEs and larger corporations on how to anticipate those changes. In this second episode, Kate argues there was "patterning" going on before lockdown - and Covid has only served to speed things up. Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout is supported by BOOST&Co.

Kate Hardcastle MBE, a.k.a. “The Customer Whisperer” is one of the UK’s leading ‘go-to’ business experts. You’ve seen her on TV & radio anticipating changing habits, consumer trends and how business both small, medium and large should adapt. All in all, she’s been at the heart of commercial trends for 25 years. I’ve worked with Kate on Sky News, talkRADIO and on an initiative called Indie Business Live where leading UK performers, lifestyle stars and businesses came together in the summer of 2020 for an online festival of performances and talks to showcase SMEs through the most challenging of times. And we keep hearing that word “pivoting” in the year just passed. How you’ve got to pivot or amend your product or service to navigate new Covid realities. Kate is a pivoter herself, starting life as a singer with Martha Reeves and the Vandelas. Listen

This is the second part of a two-part episode focusing on Birmingham's famous old metal manufacturing industries. In part one, Rowan Crozier, CEO of Brandauer explained how his state-of-the-art business, started way back in 1862, has thrived despite these straitened times. And now we hear from the President of the Confederation of British Metalforming, Stephen Morley with his summary of 2020 and his forecast for the industry once Brexit has been signed and sealed between the UK and the European Union. Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout is sponsored by BOOST&Co.

Birmingham’s famous Jewellery Quarter is our destination for this fascinating episode on metal manufacturing.  We take our appliances for granted. We press buttons, switch on the power and expect our laboursaving devices to do the rest. But the industrial processes behind the manufacture of this equipment carries thousands of hidden parts made of metal and plastic, built by different companies across multiple borders. This episode focuses on C. Brandauer & Co Limited, a state-of-the-art metal-stamping components business, which despite its ultramodern systems has been in existence since 1862! It’s a tradition which harks back to the Midlands’ earliest industrial heritage. But what are the challenges facing the company now? How are they navigating the pandemic? Are they making more of something and less of something else since Covid began? And in exporting to 22 countries, what effect does Brexit have on them? LISTEN to a compelling conversation with CEO Rowan Crozier. Jonny Gould’s SME Walkabout is brought to you in association with BOOST&Co.

Here’s part 2 of episode 8 as I review a highly valuable discussion in our previous episode about finding funding during these Covid times with four SME experts, who added optimism to the obvious opportunities which straitened times make. PLUS: next month #jonnywalks to my ancestral home, Birmingham. Heavy metal music out of my city and heavy-metal is a major manufacturing industry in it! we take a look at a fascinating industry which is both high-tech and Victorian in span. Honestly, it’s so interesting! Jonny Gould’s SME Walkabout is proudly sponsored by BOOST&Co.

This is a roundtable discussion, moderated by BOOST&Co’s Head of Content and Marketing, Ria Hopkinson with three experts discussing how to secure lending for your growing business during these unprecedented Covid times. Lauren Couch is managing director of Growth Lending, one of a small number of government accredited CBILS lenders to SMEs. Mark Hodgkins is Chairman of EnSilica, who encourages everyone to seek funding with just the same commitment as they would in more certain times. Colin Burns is Director of Shaw & Co, who’s urging SMEs to have a host of alternative plans in place to cope with the uncertainty of lockdowns. Jonny Gould SME Walkabout is brought to you with BOOST&Co.

Do you run a successful business which has had its grand plan compromised by the excesses of the Covid crisis. Do you believe your business could use additional capital to fund a key acquisition, hire new staff or service a vital contract? You’ve got time to get your head round borrowing upto £5m through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme. The CBILS application deadline ends at the end of November. Under the scheme, the government will pay the interest and fees of the loan for the first 12 months. One entrepreneur who’s done this is James Sutcliffe of The Founders Network. It’s a kind of self-help group to assist business owners collaborate and learn from each other as their companies grow. Founded just 18 months ago, the network has followed a similar trajectory to the innovative SMEs that make up its membership: growing rapidly. An experienced marketer, James saw there was a lack of support for business owners and founders. He was working for The Marketing Society, which brings together marketeers from the world’s biggest brands like Disney, Coca-Cola and Starbucks. But he realised it would have even more impact if, rather than focusing on individual career development, it worked to bring together the people who truly care about their businesses and their industries as a whole – the founders of SMEs.   Listen to James’s story. BOOST&Co need a few days in advance of the end of the month deadline to look at your application. So if you want a CBILS loan contact them now. Get in touch via contact@growth-lending.com

Are you a business considering applying for a CBILS loan? The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to give it its full name is a government-backed scheme for businesses who’s cashflows are affected by COVID-19. But the deadline is fast approaching to apply. It closes at 11.59pm on 30 September‬ and the application form requires you to collate a lot of information first. The loan could be used for making an acquisition or investing in people, for both your company and the wider UK economy. BOOST&Co’s partner Growth Lending is one of 40 authorised lenders accredited by the British Business Bank providing loans of up to £5m. We hear from Ryan Sorby in Manchester and Joanna Scott in London - both principals of BOOST&Co. BOOST&Co need a few days in advance of the end of the month deadline to look at your application. So if you want a CBILS loan contact them by ‪Friday 25 September‬ to give enough time to be considered. Get in touch via contact@growth-lending.com

The Cofinitive #21toWatch is an annual showcase of outstanding talent in disruptive sciences and tech industries around Cambridge and the east of England. This is the second episode of two interviewing some of the winners on their businesses, hopes for the future and why Cambridge is emerging as a highly sophisticated ecosystem of innovation. And the conversations pose thought-provoking questions on Cambridge's combination of urban and rural, university and commercial and its proximity to London has provided this hotbed of 2.0 companies. #JonnyWalks, Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout is sponsored by BOOST&Co.

The Cofinitive #21toWatch is an annual showcase of outstanding talent around Cambridge and the east of England in disruptive science and tech industries. Over the next two episodes, I talk to some of the winners about their businesses, the challenges of fast growth and hopes for the future. And the conversations pose some very interesting questions about why Britain lags behind the US in investment despite world-class innovation, why Cambridge has become such a hotbed of tech start-ups and how the to bounce back from the shock of Covid-19. #JonnyWalks, Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout is sponsored by BOOST&Co.

Russell Quirk, co-founder of Properganda PR is a property news specialist and joins me 5 weeks into lockdown. Coronavirus has caused market shutdown. Millions of jobs are being protected by the government's furlough scheme as moving home becomes a near-impossible task. But will the downturn cause long-term structural damage to the market? What will record-low interest rates do? And what about those landlords who've become the actual occupier of the property against the rules of their mortgage? Russell gives us his view.

Companies need to rethink the way they motivate employees to accommodate the technlogical and societal changes that'll take place over the next fifteen years, says today's guest, Charles Towers-Clark. Having stepped down as chairman of the Pod Group at the end of 2019, Charles published a book called "The WEIRD CEO", which chronicled the fundamental changes he made to how he ran his own company. He's brutally honest about the change process he went through but says if CEOs don't address how they manage their employees, AI will do it for them leaving them with an outdated business. #JonnyWalks is taking a short break now because of Coronavirus. It turns out COVID-19 has disrupted the podcast telling the disruptove stories of SMEs who are making a difference. But with the help of our friends at BOOST&Co, we shall be back, bigger and stronger and determined to tell the story of how robust and brilliant innovators bounced back after this unprecedented crisis.

If the last few dramatic weeks have shown us anything, it's how fragile we are. This #JonnyWalks podcast has been all about disruption: new companies reinventing old processes to iron out old fashioned inefficiencies. But enter the scene, Coronavirus. What a humbling gamechanger. In researching this episode, Jonny located some apocryphal words from one of the world's greatest ever global entrepreneurs, Bill Gates, who made a TEDx talk on fighting global epidemics - FIVE years ago. Was the world listening? #JonnyWalks is proudly sponsored by BOOST&Co.

In this episode, Jonny heads to the Startup Nation to investigate a company who are making the impossible in medicine possible. Through artificial intelligence and machine learning, CytoReason are working with Big Pharma to find new targets to fight disease and improve drug development. They produce huge amounts of data, building disease models with it, so drawing parallels between what seemed unrelated diseases which doctors weren't able to see before. This is a remarkable story which offers human advancement to the world. #JonnyWalks is proudly sponsored by BOOST&Co.

Here's the mini-cast, part 2 of each month's record of Jonny's travels through the corridors of SMEs who are disrupting the big players and innovating with new processes and products. We return to "Furniture Central" in London's Tottenham Court Road for a shorter version of Jonny's interview with Keiran Hewkin, Lombok's Commercial Director, who with his partner, Paul Fielden have deconstructed then reconstructed "the way we think about buying furniture". Scroll back for the full interview with Keiran, Episode 3. It's really good! Then it's off to the Startup Nation, Israel, for an introduction to CytoReason, who use AI and Machine Learning to improve the efficacy of drugs. Their data will lead to better use of medication in patients and even cures for diseases. The full Episode 4 on CytoReason will follow in early March - but for a sneak preview we talk in this episode to Nurit Reder, who says after establishing themselves with no external investment - yes, they are entirely self-financing after just three years in business - they need to speed up Research and Development with a first round of fundraising. If they don't, someone will take their place at the top of computational biology. #JonnyWalks is proudly sponsored by BOOST&Co.

"Change the way you think about buying furniture". It's the mission statement of Lombok, who are unpacking the way a furniture manufacturer both retails and wholesales home furnishings. By swift making and delivery in modern designs, commercial director, Kieran Hewkin believes the company are on a path of disruption in dual marketp;laces and it's what attracted BOOST&Co to become their biggest investors. LISTEN to the Lombok story in the latest episode of Jonny Gould's SME Walkabout.

In this episode, we look back to the fascinating interview with Blighter's CEO Angus Hone and CFO Tracy Sambrook of Blighter Surveillance Systems and throw ahead to next month's focus on furniture at Lombok. Scroll back to Episode 2 for the full interview because my chat with Angus and Tracy was almost a real-time discussion about the security aspects of international affairs. Blighter have stepped into save Gatwick Airport from any future drone invasion, while their work with NATO and the US Military will help to ensure troops and sensitive buildings are kept safe in a world of rising tensions between Iran and the USA. I ask Angus if they've solved the Gatwick issue yet and Tracy about getting themselves in front of the security decision-makers faraway from their workshop and offices in rural Essex. Meanwhile, Lombok's set to be a fascinating discussion about their hybrid retail and trade furniture business. They're taking on the big guys with their ability to deliver furniture fast, which at the same time means they're disrupting and competing with the trade end of the business where landlords need sofas, tables and chairs right now! #JonnyWalks is proudly sponsored by BOOST&Co and is available where you listen to your podcasts.

Blighter Surveillance Systems moment is here. With their counter-drones, electronic scanning and ground radar systems protecting borders and perimeters across wide areas and coastlines in 35 countries and with tensions around the world. we scope the opportunities with CEO Angus Hone and CFO Tracy Sambrook, who also discusses the company's progressive approach to enable women to return to the workplace. #JonnyWalks is proud to be sponsored by BOOST&Co.