Business districts

Business districts: from Town Teams to Business Improvement Districts, we are at the forefront of helping commercial organisations collaborate and improve their place

The means has outstanding experience working with the private sector. We help our clients to think beyond the boundaries of their own premises or scheme, and contribute to the making of a ‘whole place’. We have experience across a range of models, from Town Centre Partnerships to Business Improvement Districts. We were involved in the pioneering of Business Improvement Districts in the UK, establishing the country’s 3rd BID in Better Bankside, and are now involved in the emergence of Innovation Districts.

If you want to tier up from a simple meeting of businesses to a highly-sophisticated business-led agency, call us! We can:

Constitute and build the capacity of your Town Centre Partnership or traders group
Test the feasibility of a possible BID, and take it to ballot – Set up your BID, recruit its staff and procure its early services
Plan and implement projects, with the help of The means’ Placemakers
Navigate the public sector and deliver measurable change in relationships

If you are a Business Improvement District and need advice or support, get in touch. We can:

Conduct Performance Reviews and offer focussed advice, including: Governance / Systems Audit and Mid-Term Reviews
Provide ongoing mentoring or one-off training for BID boards
Help you focus on what matters and avoid bumps in the run up to Renewal Ballots, by providing strategic advice, support and planning

Key contacts

Peter Williams

Director

Peter is founder and managing director of The means. Over 30 plus years Peter’s skills and experience have been developed through undertaking a huge variety of consultancy assignments. His focus has consistently been on the issues of local economic development in very diverse settings. He is particularly interested in how the efforts of different sectors can be combined to best regenerative effect, and strengthening the contribution of urban centres in achieving social, economic and environmental goals. Peter has led the company’s work in Wales, London, Singapore, Albania and throughout England. Peter performed the Chief Executive function of the Better Bankside Business Improvement District (BID) for 20 yrs.

07710 337 594 [email protected]

James Thomas

Director

James is a director of The means. He is an experienced regeneration practitioner with over fifteen years in the sector. He has significant experience of community and business consultation exercises, undertaking socio-economic research, supporting economic and community development initiatives on the ground as well as devising programmes that exploit opportunities for business involvement. He has extensive experience of designing and delivering economic development programmes & regeneration plans, strategies, studies, business planning and evaluation exercises. James has considerable experience in socio-economic profiling, action planning, funding applications and project management, particularly where there is a requirement to harness resources from a range of sectors such as Public (Trans-National, National Government, Local Government), Private and Voluntary.

He has also developed particular expertise in financial & systems management and is experienced in developing policies which meet current regulatory / legislative requirements as well as anticipating new ones.

James manages the practice from The means’ Llanelli Office.

07921 691 380 [email protected]

Mandy Jenkins

Project Manager

Mandy is Project Manager at The means and is based within our Welsh team. She has over nine years’ project management experience in the public and private sectors and was most recently South Wales Regional Project Manager for the Welsh Government’s flagship £22million digital inclusion programme. A graduate in European Union Studies from Cardiff University, Mandy is a fluent French and Spanish speaker. She spent several years working for two high profile MEPs where she worked on a number of successful election campaigns. Mandy is currently working with several businesses across south Wales to assist in the development of BIDs.

[email protected]