About

Marc was editor of GrowthBusiness from 2006 to 2010. He specialised in writing about entrepreneurs, private equity and venture capital, mid-market M&A, small caps and high-growth businesses.

Venture Capital Funding

Look to Venture Capital Trusts for expansion capital

Looking for expansion capital? Look no further than Venture Capital Trusts. As GrowthBusiness discovers, those running such funds - which must back small and growing businesses by law - have no less than £800 million to spend.

Technology

ASP: Death of the disc

Software upgrades are the bane of businesses everywhere, but now on-demand alternatives look set to change the way we work forever. GrowthBusiness investigates the growing trend for ASP.

PR and Marketing Strategy

Brand Affinity Marketing – What is the secret to effective brand partnerships?

Whether it's having things in common or opposites attracting, brand affinity marketing, sometime called 'brand dating', is becoming more and more popular between businesses of all shapes and sizes, with mutually beneficial results.

Financial Management

Bartering back with Bartercard

Bartercard is an innovative service that allows growing business to trade with each other without using hard cash. UK managing director Ian Jones talks to GrowthBusiness.

Insurance

Business back-up procedures

Recent events have put the issue of business continuity and disaster recovery at the forefront of many CEOs' minds. All businesses should prepare for the worst, be it the total loss of their premises, computer failure or simple human error; losing the information stored on systems can be catastrophic.

Human Resources

A guide to headhunting

There are three main reasons to employ the services of a headhunter: you need a high-performing individual at management level or above; the role to be filled can only be done by a few specialists; or, if the person currently occupying the post is as yet unaware that their days are numbered.

News

Cash shells: the clock ticks

Looking for a quick route to the stock market with a tidy sum of cash thrown in for good measure? Then why not take the cash shell route. There are 88 shells on AIM, with £77.1 million in cash between them - and most of it has to be spent in the next eight months.

Entrepreneurs

Cash Generator plays to its strengths

Brian Lewis opened his first outlet selling second-hand goods in 1994, offering televisions, trombones and a lot more besides to the residents of Bolton. Now, there are 80 Cash Generator stores across the UK and annual turnover exceeded £50 million last year.

PR and Marketing Strategy

E-commerce – Living the Online Dream

With website trade accounting for seven per cent of total retail sales, there's never been a better time to be online. But to really succeed you need to ensure your e-commerce strategy is built around consumer convenience, trust and simplicity - not the latest technological wizardry.

Entrepreneurs

Mitchell Tonks: Respect your shareholders

Mitchell Tonks has proved seafood restaurants do make money - Fishworks, the OFEX-listed (Now PLUS Markets) restaurant chain he founded in 1994, turned in its first annual profit this year. With five sites now up and running, Tonks has plans for another 15 establishments.

Alternative Finance for Business

Factoring for fast cash solutions

Invoice finance and factoring are becoming mainstream alternatives to overdrafts, term loans, letters of credit and even private equity. GrowthBusiness uncovers the facts.

Growth Planning

Exporting and new opportunities for expansion overseas

Exporting can be a sweat. But if you get it right, it can pay off handsomely in terms of margins and new opportunities for expansion. GrowthBusiness considers what steps you will have to take.

Marc Barber

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