Small business centre The Base reveals a significant percentage of its tenants are trading or collaborating with each other. Tony McDonough reports

A survey of SME tenants at The Base business centre in Warrington has reached that 44% have other tenants as customers.

And it showed that 11% utilise their neighbours as suppliers while 22% of businesses in the facility are collaborating on projects with other firms in the building. 

The survey, carried out by The Base owners Warrington & Co, also revealed 94% of businesses at The Base on Dallam Lane say they intend to recruit more staff in 2023.

Warrington & Co annual tenant survey, suspended for two years due to the pandemic, has lifted the lid on the building’s occupiers. It has shown them to outstrip regional averages on a number of key indicators.

It claims tenants hold more patents and recruit more trainees and apprentices than the national average. There are 28 companies registered at The Base, employing more than 250 staff.

READ MORE: North West businesses ‘expect success’ in 2023

In the 12 months covered by the survey tenants recruited 14 new employees and 15 new trainees. And 50% reported growth in sales over the previous 12 months with none reporting a decline in sales.

Jayne Furnival, group property director at The Base operator Langtree. Said: “We’ve put a huge amount of effort into business support for occupiers, and into curating a culture of collaboration and our findings bear out its impact.”

Key issues constraining businesses were identified as recruitment (highlighted by 38% of occupiers) and cashflow (22%).

“This level of collaboration holds the key to how Warrington can cement long-term growth,” says Eleanor Blackburn, head of inclusive growth and partnerships at Warrington Council.

“What’s particularly encouraging is the extent of the innovation amongst our clients, whether singularly or via collaboration.”