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Adam and Dan discuss a new UK headquarters for Puma, the potential impact of tariffs on the automotive sector, and a new Warburtons advert featuring another Oscar-winning star.

Transcript

00:00New UK headquarters for Puma, a warning for the automotive industry and another Walburns

00:05advert featuring an Oscar-winning star featuring today's business briefing.

00:10Good morning, Dan.

00:15Morning, Adam.

00:16You're kicking us off today with some big property news.

00:18Some interesting news from the South East.

00:20Boma and Kirkland have been named the main contractor for Fabrica, a major development

00:25by Mission Street and BGO in central Oxford.

00:28The firm was founded more than a century ago and the Fabrica scheme is set to be the

00:32UK's biggest science project to start in the first half of 2025.

00:37Construction will begin in May 2025, following groundworks and site preparation by Colman's

00:42and the 180,000 square foot development is set to complete in early 2027.

00:47It's located on Botley Road in Oxford's West End.

00:51Fabrica will be a five-floor scheme designed to adapt to the evolving needs of science and

00:54innovation companies.

00:56It will include over 7,000 square foot of amenities such as a food and beverage space and it will

01:01be Oxford's first living wage building which ensures that all employees receive the living

01:07wage or higher.

01:08So quite an interesting scheme and I'm sure that Insider will be keeping an eye out for it.

01:12Definitely will be tracking progression I'm sure.

01:15Moving on to a slightly different story now with bakery brand Warburton's, we've all seen their bread

01:21on our shelves for years and years, launching their new advert featuring yet another Hollywood A-lister.

01:28This follows adverts with the likes of Samuel L Jackson and Robert De Niro appearing and this

01:33time it's Britain's own Olivia Colman appearing alongside a bakery boss, Jonathan Warburton.

01:40Of course, Colman won a Best Actress Oscar for The Favourite a few years back, so definitely a big

01:47name to feature in the advert. Now, Walburton have said that their work with these big stars has

01:53actually helped their performance, you know, in the latest accounts, pre-tax profits more than doubled

01:58at the business which can actually trace its roots back to 1876 as a historic British staple.

02:04Now, the new two-minute ad with Olivia Colman will premiere on ITV on the 3rd of May during Britain's Got Talent,

02:11so I want to keep an eye out for during the ad.

02:14Definitely, it's quite interesting because I imagine it's quite an investment to get these big names involved,

02:17but obviously it's paid off for them.

02:19It definitely is, it definitely is.

02:20Well, going from one big brand to another, Puma is relocating its UK headquarters from London to Manchester.

02:27The sportswear brand has leased 20,000 square feet of space at Circle Square, a new development for tech, digital,

02:33and creative businesses. It's located in Manchester's Knowledge Quarter,

02:37and it will house Puma's sales, marketing, merchandising, finance, and other departments.

02:42The building is part of an £87 million project by Bruntwood SciTech, and it will open this summer.

02:48And that move follows Puma's announcement of its first European flagship store,

02:52opening on Oxford Street in London in Autumn 2025.

02:56That's great. On slightly less positive news now, we've got some figures from an auto sector expert

03:06who has said that up to 75,000 jobs are at risk in the UK automotive industry

03:12if the government cannot convince Donald Trump to reduce tariffs on British-made cars.

03:16This comes from Professor David Bailey of the University of Birmingham.

03:20Now, he told an insider event that if Britain cannot get the US President to reduce its tariff,

03:26then UK plants, notably that in Oxford making the iconic Mini, could be forced to close its doors after passing a tipping point.

03:36Now, there have been widely reported figures that up to 25,000 jobs could be affected by the tariffs in the UK automotive sector.

03:44However, Bailey believes that this could actually be an underestimate and it could be three times more than that.

03:51Now, these comments were made at the Navigating US-UK trade breakfast,

03:56a full report of which can be found in the next edition of Midlands Business Insider.

04:00That does sound quite concerning.

04:02It does indeed.

04:03That's it from us today.

04:05But you can read more about these stories at insidermedia.com

04:08where you can subscribe to our newsletters and hear about upcoming events.

04:14We'll see you next time.

04:15Bye.

Watch: Insider's Business Briefing - 1st May 2025

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