Flying in the Face oF jobs and growth - British Chambers of Commerce

48
Flying in tHe FAce oF joBs And growtH
CASE STUDY: ANDREW WEBRON lTD
Business: High-Tech
Manufacturer
Based: Preston and Bury
Turnover: £15 million
Discussion with: Julian Bickford,
Director
Key finding: APD is a barrier
to business
webron manufactures and sells
specialist media for industrial
filters. the company exports to
46 countries, including Australia,
Finland, indonesia, israel, Morocco,
taiwan and singapore. A recent £1m
investment new equipment and
research facilities in Preston and
Bury has enabled it to maintain its
edge over its german competitors.
webron uses a dedicated sales
team, who fly to trade shows to
maintain profile and gain new
business. Filtration products
have a three year life, and close
personal contact with clients leads
to repeat business, reduced cost
of sales and greater efficiency.
in addition, a team of technical
experts flies from the uK to
customers to advise them on
choosing the right products.
cost of travel is a significant factor
and employees fly economy for
flights up to ten hours.
IN QUOTES:
On the level of Air
Passenger Duty:
“My last flight to south Africa, i
think over 60% of that was tax. it’s
not the flight;it’s the tax. And in
many cases now the tax is greater
than the cost of the ticket. so
when we went to st. Petersburg
the other week, i think the tickets
were five or six hundred pounds,
but of that, £350 were taxes.”
On the effects of Air
Passenger Duty:
“there’s nothing we can do about
it; it’s an extra cost to the business.
it’s our cost; there’s nothing we
can pass on there. they take
departure tax - it reduces our
profitability.”.