About

Nick was the Managing Editor for growthbusiness.co.uk when it was owned by Vitesse Media, before moving on to become Head of Investment Group and Editor at What Investment and thence to Head of Intermediary Communications at The Association of Investment Companies (AIC).

Opinion

The AIM dream lives on

Even in rosier economic times, who in their right mind would ever float their company on the stock market?

Exit Strategies

The seven deadly sins of business exits

Greed, pride, and an array of other human weaknesses can get in the way of a good exit. Nick Britton speaks to entrepreneurs about their triumphs and regrets in selling their businesses.

Legislation and Regulation

Protecting great designs

Patents and design registration are the two legal defences your product has against plagiarists. In essence, patents protect ‘new’ and ‘inventive’ ideas, while design registration protects the look of your product, provided it is ‘new’ and ‘of individual character’.

Technology

How to successfully commercialise and protect new product designs

The UK has come up with more than its fair share of iconic products. Nick Britton talks to product inventors and designers about the sources of their inspiration, and how they have commercialised and protected their ideas

Legislation and Regulation

A new home for your IP with a Special Purpose Vehicle

David Bowie's done it. Guess? has done it. Dunkin' Donuts has done it. And Yale University has done it. They have all created special purpose vehicles for their intellectual property, writes Thayne Forbes, joint MD of brand valuation consultancy Intangible Business.

Growth Planning

Growing a business without compromise – Case Studies

A soaring headcount may be a symptom of success but it can also create some serious problems. Nick Britton asks leaders of fast-growing companies how they have expanded rapidly without sacrificing the culture that made them successful in the first place.

Mergers & Acquisitions

Interim managers buy DavyMarkham

A Sheffield-based engineering group which makes components for projects such as the Thames Barrier, the Channel Tunnel and the Millennium Bridge has been bought by two of its interim managers.

Exit Strategies

How to sell your business

Executing a slick full exit takes preparation, thick skin and bags of raw cunning. Nick Britton finds out how to avoid the pitfalls and get the best price.

Entrepreneurs

Drive personnified: Toni Mascolo

Passion matters. It is why entrepreneurs start businesses. It is what persuades others to get involved, as employees, customers or suppliers. It is a sustaining force during bad times. But it is not necessarily inexhaustible. Successful growth creates plenty of ways that can diminish its force.

News

£10m for Keronite

Keronite, the developer of new metal-coating process that hardens the surface of aluminium and magnesium alloys, has concluded a £10 million funding round backed by hi-tech VCT firm Quester (£1.3 million) and private investor network Hotbed (£2.7 million) among others.

Entrepreneurs

Paul Woodmansterne’s challenge

Paul Woodmansterne inherited the family business with his sister and Watford-based Woodmansterne Publications has become a leading publisher of fine-art and culturally-inspired greetings cards in the UK. Founded originally in 1953 as a publisher of colourslides, the company introduced its first greetings cards in 1987.

Alternative Finance for Business

What makes one private equity funder better than another?

Looking for private equity backing? With the current market providing such rich pickings there is all the more reason to be discerning and the question is: what makes one private equity funder better than another for a particular management team?

Lexus Ernser

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