Eighty jobs created at Joiners Yard in Chatham Historic Dockyard
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A 200-year old building in which the table used by US
Presidents was made is now home to 40 businesses and 80 jobs.
The Joiners Shop in Chatham Historic Dockyard has
celebrated its first anniversary as a centre for creative
enterprise.
The Grade II Listed Building was given a £3.3m facelift
funded by the South East England Development Agency
(SEEDA).
It is now run by Basepoint Centres and after just a year is
already 80 per cent full. Bill Ferris, chief executive of Chatham
Historic Dockyard Trust, said it was a good example of giving new
life to an old building. "It is a brilliant example of re-use," he
said.
Lee Amor, SEEDA's development director, said: "The creative
sector has an important role to play in leading regeneration at
Chatham Maritime. It contributes £60bn to the UK economy and has
grown at twice the rate as the average sector in the last year. 3.5
per cent of Medway's jobs are currently from the creative sector,
compared to 13 per cent of jobs elsewhere in the South East, which
explains why The Joiners Shop has attracted so much interest in its
first year."
Mark Gynn, co-founder of Liquid Blue Designs, a laser engraving
company, said it was an ideal location for setting up a new
business.
Sany Huttler, co-founder of lab10, a computer animation
business, moved its main production hub from London to The Joiners
Shop. He said: "It's been absolutely fantastic. I can't fault it.
Everything from management to the interior is really top-notch.
There's a real team interest in nurturing and developing
creativity."
Thursday, March 04 2010
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