The latest figures presented by Town Centre Manager, Janine Garner, showed that only 28 out of 307 retail units were empty in the town, equating to a figure of just 9%. Of those 28, only 16 were available as the other 12 were currently under offer.

In her report to the town council, Ms Garner presented an action plan, which included ways of attracting new retailers to Bishop's Stortford, one of which is to look in to the possibility of placing compulsory purchase orders on premises that have empty for more than 12 months. The old Sainsbury's site in South Street being a prime example of this as it is now over two years since their move to Jackson Square.

Further ideas put forward, were the immediate removal of unsightly fly-posters and using empty premises to showcase up and coming projects, similar to the new development on the Old Goods Yards which was displayed in Jackson Square.

Stansted Airport – The future and how it affects Bishop's Stortford.

In all respects, Stansted Airport has a massive effect on Bishop's Stortford, both economically and environmentally. Love it or hate it, there is no denying that BAA and the other companies based there are a huge provider of jobs for the area. But what of the Airport's future?

The current economic crisis, along with the Competition Commission's order to BAA to sell a number of the airports they control, including Stansted, has raised serious doubts as to whether a second runway is needed or will even go ahead. According to Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE), the latest Government figures show that a second runway would not be required until at 2030, 13 years after the now earliest possible opening date. A spokesman for the Department of Transport responded by saying that the Government was fully committed to their airport expansion policy. Whatever happens, it will have a profound effect on Bishop's Stortford and its surrounding areas, one way or another.

What about Bishop's Stortford's small & medium sized Businesses?

Bishop's Stortford is home to hundreds of small and medium sized businesses (SMB's), which along with the rest of the country are suffering from the so called, credit crunch. Apart from standard practices of cutting costs, laying off staff and so on, what can SMB's do to fight back? Well, here's one very simple idea…

FACT: According to a recent survey, over 50% of SMB's do not have a website.

You may find that hard to believe when we are bombarded everyday with ‘www' this and ‘www' that, but it absolutely true. Unbelievably over half of the UK's businesses still do not have a website for a variety of reasons from “I don't need one”, to “I don't believe the internet will ever catch on” and “I can't afford it”. However, the real question you have to ask yourself is ……. “Can You Afford Not To”?

A website can…

- save you time

- save you money

- make you money

Just by having a website people can see what your business is all about, gives you the ability to receive enquiries and sales, save on advertising costs and most importantly gives you and your business credibility.