Celebrate business success better - Carl Richardson

Britain should aim to get better at celebrating its successful entrepreneurs, a prominent businessman has suggested.

Carl Richardson (pictured), who jointly leads the Richardson family 's international business with his brothers from their Midlands headquarters, has advocated the move in the last of three articles written in response to a challenge from the Prime Minister which stated: “The world is moving faster, and therefore we have to� move faster with it. ”

In his final article, in which he also examines “Handbrakes on Business ” and “Tax Incentives ”, Carl (pictured) asks: “Can we get better - and quicker - at celebrating business champions and successes? ”

He adds: “The traditional method of doing so in this country is of course via the honours system.

“While this does have great merit, surely we can find better ways to recognise more specifically and celebrate publicly our brilliant entrepreneurs and wealth creators earlier in their careers?

“Take Ben Francis, the founder and now CEO of West Midlands-based Gymshark, for example. He is only 29, but less than 10 years after founding the company it now employs over 550 people, valued at over $1 billion, and regarded as a Unicorn business.

“What a great example for other aspiring entrepreneurs to follow and this is clearly somebody to be celebrated now while his is in the midst of building the business rather than in years to come. After all, a good coach doesn't encourage and motivate his team after the game has ended. ”

Looking at barriers to business, Carl asks for a “fundamental review of our philosophical approach ” to regulating the economy.

He says: “It feels far too obvious and a well-trodden path for a business person to simply call for the cutting of red tape.

“Instead, why not consider a fundamental review of our philosophical approach to the proper administration of our economy? Could we reappraise exactly what it is that government is aiming to achieve with various regulations set against the context of our economic plan and aims, and then set the legislative rules accordingly? ”

Pointing out that in the private sector, businesses - and the individuals working for them - are judged by results rather than intentions, Carl asks:

“Why not decide which specific metrics we wish to focus on to drive the country's economic growth in the coming years? For example, this could be around how much we wish to export or specific carbon neutrality targets.

“Then let's make sure that all of the regulations in place are designed to help those goals being achieved, rather than promulgating ill-fitting barriers that can dampen the enthusiasm of even the most ardent entrepreneur.

“At present this too often results in businesses chasing their tail, switching their time and energy elsewhere and away from the productive activity that would have been achieved had fit-for-purpose regulations been enforced. ”

On tax incentives, Carl writes: “A fundamental principle of our society is that businesses create wealth and generate tax income for the government, which is then used to pay towards public services, such as health, social care, schools and our armed forces.

“How to generate more tax while not losing votes is a challenge that all governments wrestle with. From a business perspective, we propose that a clear and ambitious programme of focused tax incentives to take on board the potential risk of failure would help to fuel growth of British businesses and create jobs in the years ahead.

“The ensuing economic expansion would thereby generate additional tax revenue to pay for public services while avoiding the need for wholesale tax rises.
“Levels of private sector investment in the UK have been low in comparison with other developed economies for some time, dating back to the global financial crisis of 2008.

“As we emerge from the pandemic in a post-Brexit world that business is still adjusting to, it feels more important than ever that the shackles holding back business investment, and in turn growth are released.

“A June, 2020, report for The Centre for Policy Studies that was led by former Chancellor Sajid Javid, now Secretary of State for Health, recommended that the government should 'commission a system-wide review of the UK tax system with a view to delivering a moderate increase in revenue over the medium-term through improved incentives and higher growth'.

He went on to suggest a number of initiatives, including an unlimited Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) that allows firms and sole traders to write-off investment on machinery each year.

“Currently capped at £1 million per year, this allowance will revert to £200,000 per year from 1 January, 2022, which is surely a move in the wrong direction and a step which will just discourage investment by businesses in the future.
“A full review of the tax system makes sense if done with a firm eye on driving business growth and creating jobs. Smart decisions can then be made on the likes of Entrepreneurs' Relief and Capital Gains Tax, which actually incentivise business owners, to tip the risk-reward balance in favour of 'having a go', with the resultant likely higher tax revenue to be to the ultimate benefit of the entire UK. ”

To read the full article from Carl Richardson, please visit www.richardsons.co.uk/news from 31/8/21.

This is the third in a three-part series of articles containing a range of ideas and suggestions that have been published throughout August.