Thame.net

Category: Business News

  • Thame photographer’s portraits raise funds for Thomley

    THAME portrait photographer, Mark Hewitson, has raised £240 for locally based charity, Thomley.

    Mark (right) hands the cheque to Joe Kitchen, Service Manager at Thomley

    The Thomley charity held their annual ball on May 28, at the Oxford Belfry and Mark was the official photographer on the evening, taking images of the guests as they arrived and throughout the night. Mark also donated an auction prize worth £795, valid for a portrait experience and one of the company’s popular 20” wall art products.

    Mark told Thame.net: “Having seen first-hand how Thomley supports people of all abilities, and with them being so local, I knew that I wanted to offer my support in any way I could. When I found out about the ball, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to put my skills as a portrait photographer to good use and raise money for this worthwhile local charity.”

    Thomley is a local charity which supports people of all abilities and disabilities, bringing together disabled people, their families, carers and friends. It relies entirely on charitable donations with over 2000 people a year using the centre. For many of these people, the centre is a lifeline.

    Joe Kitchen, Service Manager at Thomley who received the cheque from Mark, said: “We are really appreciative of Mark’s support at the event. The money generated by Mark’s photography on the evening will go towards a new sensory room, which will benefit hundreds of people with varying sensory needs.”

    Thomley can be contacted via their website at http://thomley.org.uk and Mark Hewitson Photography can be found at http://markhewitson.co.uk/

  • Thame store window winner ‘Dressed to Impress’

    THAME High Street retailers showed off their creative sides last week, with eleven shops taking part in a competition that saw them styling their shop windows to tie in with the 1940s theme of this year’s Carnival.

    Part of Green’s 1940s winning window display

    Green’s Furnishings (4-5 Upper High St, Thame) was crowned the winner of the first ever ‘Dress to Impress’ competition, judged by Mayor Tom Wyse and Lucy Wyatt, one of the carnival organisers. This winning display used the 1940’s theme to both promote the Carnival and seamlessly link in with the extensive range of Haberdashery products that they sell. Austins of Thame and Thame Jewellery workshop both received Special Commendations, with the staff of Thame Jewellery Workshop going the extra mile and dressing in costume on the day, to match their display.

    Each year teams of volunteers work hard to run events in the Town Centre that engage the whole community. This competition aims to see Thame’s retailers joining in to make the sense of occasion even bigger.

    “It was great to see so many shops taking part in our community event,’ said Mayor Tom Wyse. “The competition entries were all of a very high standard, and are definitely worth the short walk around Thame to appreciate the effort and creativity that has gone into them.”

    The other shops that took part were Baban, Helen & Douglas House, Oxfam, Oxfam Bookshop, Piece of Cake, Shaw Trust, The Book House, and What’s Cooking.

    The next ‘Dress to Impress’ competition will take place in the run up to Thame Town Music Festival on July 8, so look out for some ‘music’ themed windows to amaze and inspire.

    If you are a shop owner and want to take part, please contact Becky becky.reid@thametowncouncil.gov.uk

  • PCMS Design are 2017 LABC Regional Finalists

    THE architectural design and project management team from PCMS Design, based in Haddenham, has been recognised for its work on new Community Pavilion for Chinnor Parish Council.

    Spokesperson for PCMS Design, Debbie Mellor,told Thame.Net: “We were delighted last Friday, May 8. to attend the Local Authority Building Control (LABC) Central Region Awards ceremony in Milton Keynes. This Black Tie awards dinner is held each year to recognise and celebrate the very best construction projects in the area in a number of different categories.

    “This year, PCMS Design was a finalist in two awards categories. The first was Best Public Service Building for our work on a new Community Pavilion for Chinnor Parish Council. This large mixed use building, which opened in early 2016, incorporates changing rooms, a social hub including function room as well as a new Parish Council office. Since opening, the Pavilion has become a very popular and well-frequented facility in Chinnor.

    “Our second finalist nomination was Best Educational Project for our design and project management of a new three-classroom block on the site of Biggleswade Academy in Bedfordshire, with some facilities specially designed for pupils with physical and sensory difficulties. Our design included a distinctive barrel-vaulted zinc roof and bright, cheerful interiors.

    “We were honoured to receive these nominations and to attend the ceremony with clients, contractors and building control representatives involved in each construction project, and would like to congratulate all of the winners from the evening.”

  • How’s your business doing in Thame?

    THAME Town Council is running a survey to capture a snap shot view of the pros and cons facing businesses in Thame.

    It also wants to hear about improvements local businesses think are needed . The information gathered will be used to prioritise the work of Becky Reid, the new Market Town Coordinator.

    “The results will also give focus and direction to the Town Centre Working Group / Town Team that we hope to establish over the coming months,” explained the council in its weekly newsletter published today.

    Business are asked to contact Becky Reid directly via becky.reid@thametowncouncil.gov.uk if there is other information or other ideas they may have that are not covered in the survey; ideas that will be fed into the survey.

    LINK HERE to the town council’s website for more information and to complete the survey which should take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

  • The Perils of Updating your Computers

    THAT’S the theme of this month’s Late Breakfast networkin event in Thame, at The Spread Eagle Hotel, Thame, on Thursday, April 13, 2017.

    The Late Breakfast – Monthly networking

    This month’s Speaker, Paul Carpenter is described as:  “…a down-to-earth IT specialist, who will bring an interesting and practical voice to what can be a challenging experience – updating your computers!”

    More details and booking information via The Late Breakfast website HERE

  • DAF to leave Thame

    Image courtesy of http://www.commercialmotor.com

    DAF is leaving its Thame Headquarters and moving to a new, purpose-build facility in Haddenham.

    The truck manufacturer and dealer network has been in Thame for 30 years and is expecting to move to the three-storey facility with an auditorium and almost 50,000 sqft of office space in July 2018. The £20m site with a four-bay workshop, will also provide training facilities.

    Senior executives from the manufacturer’s UK and Netherlands operations and parent company Paccar were joined at a ceremony last week by Simon Smits, the Dutch Ambassador to the UK, representatives from local authorities and the project management company.

    Tesco recently sold the site to Angle Property, after Tesco failed several attempts to obtain planning permission for a supermarket on the site.

     

    READ MORE via the http://www.commercialmotor.com website

  • Help for businesses taking their first digital steps

    THE Do it Digital Roadshow is coming to a town near you! From March 30-31, the Do it Digital bus will be hitting the road to Oxford and Aylesbury to bring you a series of talks and workshops to help improve digital skills for small business owners.

    The workshops will provide small business owners with an understanding of the basics they should consider when taking the first steps to getting their business online. The aim is to enable any small business to establish the foundations of an effective online marketing strategy.

    All the workshops are free to attend. See LINKS HERE  and HERE – click on ‘EVENTS’ page 3 for Oxford and Aylesbury dates

  • Thame businesses shine in new business awards 2017

    THREE Thame Businesses have reached the final ten in the recent Southern Oxfordshire New Business Competition 2017, organised by Jennings, commercial property landlords and business mentors, and supported by Olympic rowing gold medalist, Tim Foster MBE.

    Thame Photographer, Mark Hewitson

    The Thame finalist are Mark Hewitson Photography Ltd, based in Thame, Tekat, and The Deli at No: 5, in Buttermarket, Thame. Mark Hewitson now has his own studio and is fulfilling is childhood dream, creating beautiful imagery of families, children and animals.

    Tekat started as a web design business but has grown to offer websites for mobile devices, alongside services including search engine optimisation, online security and branding advice.

    The Deli at No: 5, after taking the plunge and turning their love of quality foods into a business that offers a wide range of hand sourced produce from the UK, is a developing family business.

    SONBC Finalist, Mark Hewitson, added: “I am honoured and humbled to be a finalist in SONBC. Since our opening last year we have gone from strength to strength. Winning this award would provide recognition of our place among the finest South Oxfordshire businesses while the support provided in the prize package will no doubt assist with ensuring our continued future growth.”

     

     

    The eventual SONBC winner will be presented with an award by Tim Foster and his wife Joy (founder of digital start-up resource agency, Tech Pixies, and social enterprise Made with Joy) on April 7, 2017.

    The winner’s prize package, worth over £10,000, will include:
    * A free Jennings office or workshop for a year at Monument Park in Chalgrove (or virtual      office if better suited to the winner) in addition to a business mentoring package from         Jennings Business Mentors
    * Website, brand and marketing consultancy from Blooberry Design
    * Professional IT consultancy including Cloud set-up for all devices from Ask4Support Ltd
    * Social media mentoring from Mushroom Soufflé
    * Guidance from Clark Howes accountants and business advisors

    Chris Williams, commercial manager for organiser and sponsor, Jennings, said: “The SONBC 2017 finalists represent a diverse number of sectors, but all share a passion for making a success of their business. We would like to offer our congratulations to all finalists who should feel proud to have got this far on what we hope will be a long prosperous business journey. Whittling down our class of ten to just one winner and runner up will be a tough process for the SONBC judges.”

  • Expert advice for Thame’s winning Young Entrepreneurs

    THE winners of Thame’s Small Business Saturday, Young Entrepreneurs Competition held back in December 2016, were able to pick the brains of long-standing business experts, on Saturday (February 25).

    Back row – Mr Mason (Amelie’s father), Tim Luscombe, Tom Wylam, Philippe van Caloen
    Front row – Katy Dyer, Amelie Mason, Lottie Moore, Rod Carmichael

    Meeting at the offices of specialist recruitment company, CarmichaelUK, based in Thame, the young entrepreneurs – Tom Wylam, Amelie Mason and Philippe van Caloen –  received expert advice on how to develop their winning business ideas. The local business experts were the competition judges, Tim Luscombe (Thames Valley Business Advisers), Rod Carmichael (CarmichaelUK), Lottie Moore (Mindset Metaphors) and Katy Dyer (style and image coach).

    The ideas brainstorm was part of the prize pot awarded to the young entrepreneurs in December. The first prize of £500 and 12 months’ mentoring went to Tom Wylam of Princes Risborough School for his idea, CupCycl, based on recycling disposable cups. The second prize went to Amelie Mason of Lord Williams’s School for her idea, Magical Maths, based on a new maths app, and the third prize went to Philippe van Caloen of Oxford Brookes University for his idea, WeCoach, aimed at helping students apply for their first job.

    Competition Co-ordinator, Helen Johns, said: “Tom, Amelie and Philippe were very enthusiastic about the brainstorming day, saying that they had gained valuable insights to make the most of their business ideas, which would help them develop and bring them to fruition.”

    Philippe commented: “The Small Business Saturday competition helped me translate my project into a really clear and simple business idea. The brainstorm gave me the chance to reflect on my idea and clarify my vision on how to make it a simple but sustainable business opportunity. Advice given by the coaches and judges was really valuable. Last but not least, it helped me build my confidence about this project, one of the main ingredients for any entrepreneurship journey.”

    The Young Entrepreneurs’ Competition is a new venture, sponsored by CarmichaelUK. Its Managing Director ,Rod Carmichael, said: “The competition offers a brilliant platform for young talent. It’s important that young people can express themselves outside the standard GCSE route to market, and they should be encouraged to try new ideas. Entrepreneurs don’t all have to come from one place; you can start your journey by doing something different. The markets have changed dramatically in recent years, and clients are challenging us to find people who can show talent, ideas and innovation.”

  • ‘Honour the doner’ and Thame’s is Britain’s Best !

    WE all knew it, but now it’s official. Thame’s kebab van is the Best in Britain as voted for by all Atalay’s customers and friends from the Thame area and far beyond, and a panel of expert judges from the food industry.

    A jubilant Resul Atalay, between two Lindas! His wife (L) and Linda Emery, Mayor of Thame

    Atalay’s Kebab Van is based at the top of North Street behind Market House in Thame. It has grown in popularity since it was first awarded a licence to trade there in 1988, and queues can be found most nights outside the van waiting to be served by Resul (or Russell as he is known to most of his fans) or one of his twin sons, Joshua and Jason.

    The announcement that Atalay’s Kebab Van had won the ‘Best Kebab Van’ category in the British Kebab Awards 2017, saw Resul leap up from his seat with joy and his fellow table-guests surround him with hugs, back-slapping and kisses, before all filing onto the stage to receive the award.

    The event organisers later told the Atalays that their nomination had received more votes than ANY other nomination, in the five-year history of the awards! This was, in no small part, down to Thame resident, Dominic Stanway Williams, who originallt nominated the Atalays for the award, drummed up media attention and urged Thame kebab fans everywhere to vote for them.

    The night’s celebration by the 26-strong Thame, Atalaly supporters group – including the Mayor of Thame, Linda Emery – who had travelled to the prestiguous Park Plaza Westminster Hotel for the event, ended at the London Eye, with a champagne shower and ‘bubbles’ all round.

    Top kebab man, Rosul Atalay, told Thame.Net: “This was the highlight of everything I have been doing all these years. All I care about is using the best ingredients, and making people happy. I am so lucky to have the support of my wife Linda, and my children, and the people of Thame who I love!”

    The British Kebab Awards were founded by London restaurant owner, Ibrahim Dogus, who is also the man behind Bira London, a new beer specially brewed to go well with kebabs. Welcoming guests to the ceremony, he said the history of the kebab could be traced back to Homer’s Odyssey in the 8th century BC.

    He spoke of the dedication of all the people who work in the £2.8 billion kebab industry, calling them: “…the refuge, the light that shines out late at night in our neighbourhoods, serving hot food on a cold night.” Ibrahim also paid tribute to the many Turkish, Kurdish and other peoples working in the industry, who had come to this country ‘to work hard, and who pay their taxes.’

    Several Members of Parliament attended the awards ceremony which was hosted by Radio One presenters, Scott Mills and Chris Stark, who read out messages of support from both the Prime Minister, Theresa May, and Jeremy Corbyn. A grand raffle at this year’s awards ceremony raised money for the veterans’ mental health charity, Combat Stress.

    You can find out who the other category award winners were by visiting the British Kebab Awards website HERE and see MORE PICTURES HERE