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Why every day should be Buy British Day

Today is Buy British Day, launched to celebrate and encourage UK manufacturing and - as the name suggests - to get more of us, whether businesses or consumers, buying British!

It’s a subject that’s close to my heart and one that really forms the core of our identity as a business. One of the most important things to many of our customers is the fact that we are British. As a hosting company, we’re an alternative to the big American firms, especially for UK-based clients who want to know not only where their data is being stored but also that it isn’t subject to the Patriot Act, which is the case with the US alternatives.

I do think, however, that we need to push our economy to the next level, and that requires us to create momentum and get people committing to really making an effort to buy British components and British products.

When the UK was at it its very strongest, we had a thriving manufacturing industry and we built products that we exported right across the globe; from the slate mines in Wales right through to the Victorian clothes mills. Sadly, since then, other countries have taken that role and have learnt how to manufacture more cheaply. But it’s not only that; they’re also very innovative and they’ve got a point to prove.

I believe that if we were manufacturing more, not just for ourselves but for the rest of the world, and we could manufacture at cheaper prices and be cost-effective globally, then we would have a much stronger economy. But it all starts with buying British. That’s the way to influence the global brands.

If you think about it, Britain has got one of the strongest internet economies. We use the internet a lot and we have a propensity to shop. It’s a very buoyant economy for online and offline shopping. Even though we’re a very small island, we’re quite a wealthy island, and we have a good reputation for making high quality products.

There is more manufacturing coming back to the UK and you can feel it. The most important thing we can do to keep this momentum is to start buying British whenever we have the choice to.

Not only that; let’s encourage the whole world to buy British. If we make ourselves affordable and cost-effective, there’s nothing to say we can’t become one of the greatest nations to interact with. There is no better time to set up a business in Britain than now - the opportunities are there for the taking. It’s time to put the Great back into Britain.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Lawrence Jones .