BEST REGIONS
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A glance at a road map of the UK clearly illustrates why the Midlands has the highest concentration of distribution businesses in the country. The region's motorway links mean that around 90% of the UK's population is within a day's truck drive and 75% of the population is within five hour's truck drive.
The cost of locating east of Birmingham is likely to be far higher than to the north west of the city, partly because of hold-ups between junctions four and 10 of the M6. This is reflected in property consultants Healey & Baker's latest survey of industrial rents which shows that 20,000ft' units are being leased at £4 a ft in Wolverhampton and £5 a fe in Solihull.
Melvyn Peters, director of logistics and transportation at the Cranfield School of Management, says that although the Midlands is attractive for single site operations because it is central, choice of location depends on the demand characteristics of customers. "It is unlikely you will want to be in the Midlands if you are particularly strong in the South-east."
Other parts of the country may not be as accessible as the Midlands but the cost of locating there is often considerably lower. The Healey & Baker survey shows rents for 20,000ft' units in Cardiff are £3.75 a ft', £3 in Norwich and £2.75 in Middlesbrough.
In addition, inward investment in large areas of south Wales, the North-east and central Scotland can qualify for grant aid from the government.
In England, the average grant awarded in these Development Areas is £4,600 per job which is created or safeguarded. Because unemployment is higher in these areas, winning planning permission for development is likely to be easier as well.
Advice about grant aid and development sites is available through the UK's nine regional development agencies. These can be contacted via the Invest in Britain Bureau (0171 215 2501). In addition, many local authorities have set up their own inward investment agencies. The one in Birmingham, for example, is called Locate in Birmingham (0121 235 2222).