Cowes Business Association News
Supporting businesses across Cowes, East Cowes, Northwood and GurnardMember Profile Genie Lettings
Genie Lettings is a family run letting and property management company on the Isle of Wight. We believe in offering a straightforward, honest, professional, and competent service where the Landlords and Tenants interests are always of importance. Our aim is to take away all the worry and concerns from the Landlord, so that they are free to carry on with their busy life. Letting a property can be very stressful at times, which is why Genie Lettings are here to help you in any way or form. We...
Beach Clean Summary – 19th September
A small team of us took part in a beach clean along Cowes beach this afternoon. We walked from the Cabin on the Green, down the stretch heading towards Gurnard, stopping at the Best Western – about 1 mile of beach. Altogether we collected 1.3kg of rubbish including several cable ties, plastic wrappers, pencils, and sunglasses. We even found an odd sock! The guys at Plaza Ices very kindly offered us a free ice cream on completion, which was extremely well received in the heat of the afternoon...
Spotlight Sunday – Eat Street
Our first business for the first spotlight Sunday is Eat Street. Alex and Laurel formed the business in the middle of lockdown last summer after both being made redundant. Eat Street offers a range of street food from around the world from a mobile horsebox using completely contact free collection. They pride themselves on offering a wide variety of takeaway, at an affordable price whilst also being sustainable. All their takeaway dishes are served in home compostable packaging,...
Beach Clean – 19th September
Come and join us to take part in the first Cowes Business Association Beach Clean! Taking place on Sunday 19th September at 1pm. Meet at the Cabin on the Green. Compostable bags will be provided!
Improving membership engagement
As mentioned in last month's newsletter, we (Alex and Laurel) have joined the Cowes Business Association committee as the membership engagement team. We will also be looking after the social media pages for the CBA. We have discussed with our fellow committee members our ideas to increase engagement and awareness amongst the members and thought it would be a great idea to outline this to you all - and also ask for a favour! Committee introduction - as we have had several changes...
Member Profile IW Design and Print
IW Design and Print was formed in January 2016 so have just celebrated their fifth birthday. Their award-winning services include: Graphic Design | Printing | Websites | Corporate Photography The business owner Martin Timbers is highly qualified in both Graphic Design & Photography (in which he has won 16 awards) and he has worked for many Design & Marketing Agencies along with Global Corporations throughout his career. Over the 5 years in business IW Design and Print has built...
Sustainability Summer Finale
Last Wednesday we enjoyed a great evening at the CCYC to celebrate the close of our Sustainability Summer campaign.The summer started with Sustainability June – we had three great businesses that were featured throughout the month, all of which have sustainability at the heart of their business. We had hoped to hold our finale at the end of June; however, the various restrictions gave us a great excuse to extend the campaign throughout the whole summer, raising even more awareness of the...
Member Profile Snowdrops and Rosemary
Snowdrops and Rosemary was formed by Roger and Lisa Lyness. After several bad experiences with Care, they realised that the area was in need of a complete revamp. Lisa and Roger are both based in Cowes, with Roger being an Army Veteran and Lisa a business leader. They saw that traditionally home care had people going into people's homes, popping a meal in the microwave and leaving. Roger and Lisa wanted something different, starting with Cowes. They demanded that home care should be more...
Member Profile – Sue Matthews
Sue Matthews BOSS Business Office Support Services Business owners often feel that they have only two options when it comes to tackling admin tasks: take on additional staff or struggle on. However, there is a third option – call Sue Matthews who knows a thing or two about supporting businesses. Before launching her business, BOSS Business Office Support Services, in 2015, Sue worked on the Island as an Executive Personal Assistant working with Directors and Chief Executives and now brings...
Sustainability June – My Funky Bags
The founder and owner of My Funky Bags, Molly Linton’s dream began as a young girl. Her parents took Molly and brother David on a trip to Italy back in 1976 and by chance Molly had the opportunity to spend a day in charge of a handbag shop in Taormina, Italy at just 10 years old. This set Molly on a path which led to where she is today. Now the eco-conscious brand ‘My Funky Bags’ is fulfilling her dream — and making a huge contribution to the environment at the same time. Australian-born Molly...
Sustainability June – Catercycle
A new innovative business has just been launched in Cowes by Will Overton. Will is someone well known to CBA members, as his Cowes based business Vectis Refrigeration has been making things cold since 1999. This new business, Catercycle, focusses on the renewal of commercial refrigeration equipment. It is a new business that works to support the circular economy by providing high-quality ‘like new’, refurbished and used commercial equipment at a fraction of the cost of new. Over 2.8 million...
Sustainability June – Eco Street
Alex and Laurel launched Eat Street as a result of both being made redundant in the summer of 2020. The takeaway business strives to be as sustainable and innovative as possible, using only home compostable packaging, contact free technology to collect and relies on pre orders to ensure food waste is kept to an absolute minimum. With this ethos, they decided to launch a sister brand, Eco Street. This brand stocks a variety of eco household products, such as compostable dish washing products,...
Sustainability June
Sustainability is a foundation of what Cowes Business Association wants to achieve with and for all its members. We support the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and their drive towards a Circular Economy; we have many members for whom sustainability is a driving factor; and we know all members are keen to do their bit for the environment. So, as promised, our Sustainability June is now under way. We are featuring a member business each week in June, showcasing the sustainable products and processes...
Member Profile – Alex Tana
Being a busy networker I am often asked “What do you do Alex?” To which my reply is always more or less the same: “I am, and have now been for over 25 years, a business and life coach and an NLP practitioner.” But, I hear you say, what exactly is a business/life coach? We are all familiar with the word “coach” especially as it applies to sport activities and I am sure that you have heard this word so many times applied to anything and anyone in the sports arena, whether that is the correct or...
Live Networking
Our first post-“Lockdown 3.0” real live event last night (25th May) was a full to (permitted) capacity affair and our members clearly were delighted to be networking in person again. Island Sailing Club provided an excellent venue with outside space, views and plenty of ventilation under the – as it turned out, essential – cover. Chair Gavin Ford welcomed everyone and ran through the huge amount of activity the CBA is engaged in, including the banners and flags now going up, the high quality...
New Cowes Mayor
Congratulations to Councillor Paul Bertie, newly elected mayor of Cowes. We’re particularly pleased to see Paul Bertie installed as mayor since, as a local business owner, he was the original founder of the association, having started “Project Cowes” in 1985. This went on to become the Cowes Business Association and we know he will be hugely supportive in helping us achieve our aims. We also welcome back a long time member and supporter of the association in Jock Rafferty, re-elected to Cowes...
Member Profile – Madeleine James Events
Madeleine James provides a holistic approach to organising events for her clients. With a diploma in Wedding planning and Event Management and being project management trained, Madeleine is qualified to take care of you and your event. What really sets Madeleine apart from other event organisers is that she is a certified Life Coach as well as Meditation Teacher Practitioner so can help relieve any stress through one to one meditation sessions via zoom or socially distanced! If the wedding...
Place Plan
Another great drop-in session last week – Ian Boyd talked us through the main results and recommendations of the Cowes & Northwood Place Plan. It seems to us at the Cowes Business Association that there’s lots we can take forward to help realise our vision of Cowes as a thriving, resilient, dynamic and prosperous place to live, work and visit. Of the key broad objectives that emerge from the work, two seem particularly resonant for the CBA: The need for a louder voice for the North...
New Flags
We have the most exciting news! Get ready to advertise your business on a flag in Cowes High Street for you to showcase your business for roughly three months. We’ve got the special offer price of only £150 which includes your three months to advertise and FREE production of your flag. The flag is yours to keep once it’s been created. All you need to do is create some rough artwork that you’d like to use to showcase your business. Please give us a call on 01983 280972 and we can discuss in...
Member Profile – MND
We are delighted to have been accepted as a charity member of the Cowes Business Association and we would like to tell you a little bit about us. The IOW branch of the MND Association was formed in 1996 and is run entirely by volunteers, many of whom have personal experience of the disease. Our aim is to provide the best possible support to local people living with MND and their families and carers. We also focus on raising awareness of the disease, the association and fundraising. Please...
2021 AGM
We just wanted to tell you all that we havent forgotten about this years AGM. We are very much hoping that with lockdown easing, we will be able to have it face to face. For the moment we arent announcing a date but will update you all shortly. Fingers crossed it will be early JulyThe mission of the Cowes Business Association is to encourage, support and promote all businesses in Cowes
Member Profile Paul Walden Interiors
Our homes are our castles and many of us have relished our personal refuges during lockdown. No-one appreciates how much we love our homes more than wallpaper and wall-coverings specialist, Paul Walden, who provides premium decorating services. Paul Walden is an artist whose specialism is in wallpaper and wallcoverings. As an entrusted installer with many of the world’s leading specialist manufacturers like Rebel Walls, Phillip Jeffries to name but a few, he works alongside interior designers...
New Website
At the Cowes Business Association network event last night we were excited to launch the new website which has some great new functionalities to make things a little easier for members, those who’d like to join or simply would like to hear all our news updates. Such as:- A super new easy join up process https://www.cowesbusiness.org.uk/shop/ A member profile each month all about you and your business https://www.cowesbusiness.org.uk/member-profile-claire-lincoln/ FREE membership for charities...
Cowes Business Association Launch Free Charity Membership
Last night at the new website launch Zoom meeting, the Cowes Business Association announced free charity memberships are now live. We will also be choosing our Charity of the Year for 2021 from the new free member applicants that we receive before 1st March. If you are involved with a Local Charity or know of someone who is, please encourage them to register for their free membership now. https://www.cowesbusiness.org.uk/product/charity-membership/The mission of the Cowes Business Association...
Top-up Grants
Businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors are to receive a one-off grant worth up to £9,000, the chancellor has announced. It follows Prime Minister Boris Johnson's announcement on Monday night that these business will be closed until at least February half-term in order to help control the virus. The cash is provided on a per-property basis to support businesses through the latest restrictions. The Treasury said more than 600,000 business properties across the UK could...
Happy New Year – Sort of!
The news announced on the 30th December wasn’t what we wanted to hear but probably not unexpected if you’ve been following information on the spread of Covid-19. While many of our businesses are now locked down until further notice many of you have found solutions to continue to serve your customers and keep your businesses going. In these challenging times it’s great to be part of the Cowes Business Association among the amazing support we can offer each other. If you have any advice or...
Member Profile Claire Lincoln
Typically a new year sees us looking at starting a new regime to better ourselves. Whether that's to develop healthy eating, getting fit, or reducing debt, having the right belief system and being aware of how our thinking can potentially see us sabotage our efforts would be a great place to start. But it's not always that easy. I'd struggled with low self-esteem most of my adult life and it was eventually through my training as a Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapist that I was really able to...
Member Profile Dale Howarth
Dale Howarth has been a CBA member for several years and is well known across the Island for his work as a Business Mentor and Consultant to many of the Islands leading businesses, including Brightbulb Design, Lifeline, PC Consultants, Vectis Refrigeration and WightFibre to name but a few. But there is more to his work than this. As a business mentor and advisor Dale uses his experience and knowledge to guide and support individuals and their teams of new-start, micro, small and SME businesses...
Cowes and Northwood Place Plan
At our Cowes Business Association networking event on Thursday 22nd October (via Zoom of course), we were lucky to have Ian Boyd from Arc Consulting as our guest speaker. Ian and his team manage Place Plan which is a process to influence positive change in local communities and has been implemented in Ryde and Newport with great positive results. You can look at the reports here: Ryde Newport Now the focus is on Cowes and Northwood. Ian is passionate about supporting communities have their say...