Watch: Insider's Business Briefing - 28th August
Alice and Dan discuss the richest businesswomen in the North West, a huge mixed use scheme in Bristol, plans to redevelop historic swimming baths in Yorkshire and a senior appointment at Fairstone.
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00:00The richest businesswoman in the North West plans to redevelop Rippon Spa Baths, a major
00:05scheme in Bristol and news from wealth management firm Fairstone all feature in today's business
00:10briefing.
00:11Good morning, I'm Daniel Zambartis.
00:18And I'm Alice Bird.
00:19Well, Dan, as you know, the last few weeks we've been breaking down the North West rich
00:24list which is featured in our most recent magazine and we've now published a special
00:28ranking of the richest businesswomen in the region.
00:32So top in that list is Emma Hindle and family.
00:35They have a huge net worth of £360 million.
00:39Aside from being a businesswoman, Hindle is actually a very accomplished equestrian.
00:43She competed for Great Britain in the Olympics twice.
00:47Since then, she established the construction firms Lancet Homes and Woodhouse Bespoke,
00:51which have obviously contributed to her net worth.
00:54However, the bulk of her wealth does actually come from Brook House, which is the commercial
00:58property empire that she inherited from her late father.
01:03Second on that list is Anne Jones, who co-founded the jewellery brand Warren James with her
01:08brother John.
01:09Now, she still owns 50% of the business, which along with her other investments has helped
01:13her accrue a massive net worth of £273 million.
01:17Plus, there's lots of other well-known names on that list, including the co-founder of
01:22Boohoo, which we all know.
01:25While we're on the topic of insider content, we also published a story about our Liverpool
01:30ones to watch.
01:31Now, that list comprises businesses from across the Liverpool City region, and it includes
01:35a sustainable packaging firm and a zero-alcohol drinks company.
01:39So we do have a short version of the list on our website, but if you would like to read
01:44both of the full list, you can get the most recent edition of Northwest Business Insider.
01:49Well, definitely be sure to check that out.
01:52So staying in the north and moving across to Yorkshire, plans look set to go ahead for
01:56Ripon Spa Baths to be redeveloped into offices and apartments.
01:59So that's quite a major conversion for a very historical building.
02:03It was originally constructed as a spa in 1904, and was remodelled to incorporate a
02:08swimming pool about 30 years later, but it closed in 2021 because it was deteriorating.
02:14So that original spa building would be converted and extended to create two commercial buildings
02:19with the boiler house and water tower transformed into an office building.
02:23And that swimming pool extension I just mentioned would be demolished and in its place a courtyard
02:27and four apartments would be built.
02:30So it's done properties supported by Architecture AB, seeking planning permission from North
02:34Yorkshire Council for the scheme, and we'll find out the outcome next Monday on the 2nd
02:38of September.
02:39So that's quite an interesting one to look out for.
02:41Yeah, I always loved those kind of conversion schemes.
02:45And I always think the people who live in those apartments are quite lucky because they're
02:48just really like, they're nice, aren't they?
02:50Like they're so much nicer than the new build ons.
02:52Yeah, definitely.
02:53And we'll see if those plans go ahead.
02:54But we do know that a major development in central Bristol has been granted planning
02:59permission.
03:01So that scheme would include apartments, a hotel with a restaurant and an apart hotel
03:05in the site that lies adjacent to the Floating Harbour and Cheese Grater Bridge in Bristol.
03:10I'm not sure if you've had the chance to visit Bristol, but my sister lives down there.
03:14I've been a few times and this is a really nice upcoming area.
03:18I've actually never been to Bristol, but I have heard really good things about it.
03:21I know a lot of people as well seem to kind of move to from London to Bristol because
03:26it's a little bit cheaper, but it still has like a lot of a lot going on.
03:29Yeah, definitely.
03:30And that area in particular is very nice on a summer's day.
03:33So that scheme includes three new buildings, a 234 room hotel operated by De Lattre Maldren,
03:39a 168 room apart hotel operated by Room 2 and a 108 built to rent apartments.
03:45So the proposed hotel, the eight stories high and includes a restaurant on the first
03:49floor.
03:50IKP Developments managed by Marek Real Estate are developing the project, which has been
03:55granted full planning permission by Bristol City Council.
03:57So maybe when I go to see my sister in the future, I might have to check out that development
04:01for myself.
04:02Yeah, I'm sure that's probably one of the bigger developments in Bristol as well.
04:05It's got a lot of components.
04:06Yeah, for sure.
04:07And there's a lot going on at the moment, so one to look out for.
04:10Well, up in the northeast, we've got news from wealth management firm Fairstone, which
04:14has appointed a group managing director as part of its restructure.
04:18Now, Fairstone in the last few years has grown a lot.
04:22It's extremely acquisitive.
04:23It buys buying businesses up and down the country.
04:27And it's now got this strategy up until 2030.
04:31And in order to support this growth strategy, it's appointed Russell Bignall as group managing
04:36director.
04:37He'll take up the position on the 1st of October.
04:40And now he has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry.
04:45So he's very well-placed to take the business forward.
04:48Chief executive and founder Lee Hartley will still be in his position as chief executive.
04:54But he said that the firm has now reached a scale that requires a more robust organizational
04:59structure.
05:00And he also said that the plan is the first step towards creating a succession plan for
05:04himself.
05:05So quite big news for them.
05:07They're very interested to see how he gets on there.
05:09Yeah.
05:10Well, if you would like any more information on that story or any of the stories that we've
05:14discussed today, you can go to insidermedia.com.
05:17While you're there, feel free to subscribe to our newsletters and our magazines.
05:21That's all from us.
05:22Thanks for watching.
05:23Thanks for watching.