News

When Warwickshire first became a fully-fledged member of the Coventry and Warwickshire MIPIM Partnership last year, it was about representing the area and initiating partnerships.

If ever anyone needed a reminder that we – like all other cities and regions – are competing in a global market place then MIPIM certainly provides it.

For that reason it is important that we are out there making ourselves known and felt in the property development and investment field.

Part of that is ensuring that our reputation as an easy and accommodating place with which to do business is transmitted.

We have enough evidence, both proven and anecdotal, that we have helped developers and investors realise their plans, and realise them quickly.

Coventry and Warwickshire has ranked highly in a report comparing cities across Europe and the UK for its business friendliness and economic potential.

The results of the fDi Magazine’s European Cities and Regions of the Future 2016/17 report were revealed at MIPIM – the world’s largest commercial property show which is taking place in France this week.

Coventry and Warwickshire has been voted seventh in the Small European Cities of the Future 2016/17 for business friendliness, ninth for economic potential among Local Enterprise Partnerships of the Future 2016/17 and seventh in the top ten of Local Enterprise Partnerships of the Future 2016/17 for business friendliness.

Plans have been announced to create a new £20 million Eco Riverside Business Park in Coventry as part of an ambitious plan to create a major new heritage trail in the city.

For HORIBA MIRA, MIPIM is not necessarily about unearthing new occupiers for the rapidly growing MIRA Technology Park.  Nor is the objective sourcing investors for the £300 million development, which – as part of MIRA – joined the HORIBA Group, a major Japanese technology company with a global reputation for automotive and clinical test equipment, last year.

In fact, both the MIRA and the Technology Park development is on a strong financial footing and well placed to continue the rapid growth of the business which supports one of the UK’s leading Enterprise Zones.

Coventry and Warwickshire’s two universities and their continued development will be the focus of a major European event this month.

The University of Warwick and Coventry University are investing more than £1 billion over the next five years on a range of academic, commercial and accommodation buildings.

That investment in facilities has played a key part in the two universities winning a string of awards which saw the Sunday Times/Times University of the Year and Modern University of the Year awards won by two institutions in the same city for the first time in their history.