Trading Gossip

Apr 23 2008 by Tony McDonough, Liverpool Daily Post

* ARTISTS have a reputation for being sensitive souls, but those at Liverpool’s Bluecoat centre clearly have a bit more bite to them.

The creative types running businesses in the centre are working hard to maintain Liverpool’s cultural identity and provide a balance to the big brand experience being created at Grosvenor’s Liverpool One shopping extravaganza just yards away.

Trading Gossip hears that the activities of the arty set in the building are a source of curiosity to some of the building workers beavering away on Liverpool One.

The people running one outfit called Nook & Willow are somewhat amused by this, and have taken to holding up a sign in the window which reads “get back to work”.

* TRADING Gossip will normally have nothing to do with our vulgar, celebrity obsessed culture. But we feel duty bound to point out one of the quirkier aspects of the takeover of a Wirral company announced last week.

A consortium of Manchester businessmen paid £3m for Wirral-based door manufacturer Vista Group.

The consortium was led by one Simon Orange, brother of Take That star Jason, above.

* SOME people do take their charity activities seriously. A combined team from Wirral-based surveyors Brewster Associates and drainage engineers Auger are soon to do the Three Peaks Challenge to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. And they have hired Greg Pye, a former Royal Marine commando, to train them.

Brewster senior partner David Brewster said: “Many of the team are physically active, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re used to commando-style training.”