A new bespoke business growth service which aims to make Scottish companies more successful has been launched by the former Head of Business Investment and Operations for Riverside Inverclyde (Ri).
ARB Growth, based in Greenock and led by former RI executive, Andrew Bowman, is already working with clients seeking to improve their performance across a range of areas, including commercial property, funding, strategy, marketing, sales and business development.
He said: “Creating ARB Growth has always been a long-term ambition of mine. We like to work alongside businesses that are hungry for growth but in need of support to deliver their aims.”
ARB Growth’s launch follows the planned wind-down of Ri. As Head of Business Investment and Operations, Andrew was responsible for a significant increase in business activity in Inverclyde, attracting a clutch of dynamic companies to the area from other parts of Scotland and overseeing an 18 per cent increase in occupancy in Ri’s property portfolio.
Andrew started his career in Glasgow at Zurich Insurance in 2009 and was later promoted to a strategic leadership role, supporting its public sector arm, Zurich Municipal in London before leaving the private sector to join public sector regeneration charity, Ri in 2016.
He said: “My extensive experience in working with a wide range of companies, agencies and sectors, has provided an excellent base for the launch of ARB Growth.
“It is an exciting period, and I look forward to supporting businesses to achieve their growth targets, delivering economic growth both locally and nationally.”
He is also the Chair of Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) West region, Junior Vice-President of Inverclyde Chamber of Commerce, co-founder of social enterprise Creative Inverclyde and the founder of Taste Inverclyde, a vehicle to support food and drink businesses in the area.