Business West Chamber top for expert advisers, says national report

Gloucestershire and the South West is second to none when it comes to the availability of high-quality business advice, guidance and support, according to a British Chambers of Commerce report.

Of the 53 accredited Chambers across the UK, Business West Chambers of Commerce ranks first for the number of expert business advisors and support staff it employs, easily surpassing those attained by its rivals located in the major economic centres of London, Manchester and Birmingham for example.

More than 200 staff advise local businesses on start-up funding and financial planning to intellectual property and overseas market entry.

In the last two years Business West has worked with 22,000 businesses, creating 4,400 extra jobs and generating £650m in additional export sales.

British Chambers of Commerce's also named Business West as the top grossing and most profitable British Chamber in its report.

As a delivery partner for the Department for International Trade and Innovate UK, Business West offers business support services that add to its solid financial position, including its  export documentation service which experienced a record sales month in July.

All of Business West’s annual profits are reinvested back into the business to support activities that promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth or to fund cultural and charitable causes.

Managing Director Phil Smith said: “Size matters! Business West assets, including 200 talented colleagues, many directly talking to business every day, excellent data on the local business scene and leading-edge communication capabilities, allow us to listen to and speak for over 22,000 local businesses. The more scale and resources we have the better we can achieve our goal of helping our region’s businesses go further, faster.”