Why I’m BID-Positive
When I opened on Rosslyn Hill in 2010, I bought into Hampstead as a business community and as a residential community (I live in Hampstead too – lucky me). Previously I had spent 25 years in restaurants and bars in the West End and I’ve always been of the firm and commonly held opinion that businesses do not do well when they adopt a mindset of isolation and disconnection from their business sector or local community. It’s a counter-intuitive mindset and one that successful businesses, irrespective of their size, do not buy into (there is a good reason, based on commercial rationale, why the UK business community did not support Brexit).
It was a blessing that, back then, Hampstead had a business association, albeit quite small and with very limited resource. I joined and became actively involved in raising funds (going door to door to businesses to raise a bit of income and support) and contributing to plans for projects that would draw attention to Hampstead Village as a destination for our local residents as well as visitors to NW3. We were incredibly lucky to have a group of local residents who were prepared to give their time to organise the annual Christmas festival and to raise sponsorship for the festive lights. Modest contributions from shops allowed us to install summer flower baskets and to run a basic website, providing an online presence at a time when our competition (most other London villages) were racing ahead in this area. The problem was that the voluntary ‘gas’ ran dry after a few years. It was too much to expect a few volunteers to give their time and energy indefinitely, especially when expectations, including those of businesses that did not contribute, became unrealistic and laced with a free-riding attitude. The NW3 Business Association was quickly drying up and the volunteers could be counted on one hand by the time we researched a better model for the sustainable delivery of the facilities expected by our common customers: an interesting urban space, well-maintained, with seasonal features such as festive lights, floral displays and events, all promoted in a style that would enhance the Hampstead Village reputation and vibe and promote the village as London’s favourite destination. Essentially, the same philosophy as we all use in our own businesses, simply extended beyond our own four walls into the space that we all operate in and depend upon. There is little point in any business making their own space a great place to visit if the neighbourhood isn’t in itself attractive and well promoted.
BIDs had been well established in the UK and the USA. In 2016 there were about 300 BIDs in the UK and about 40 in London, most in their first terms. A few of us independent business owners took advice and spoke with other BID teams in Camden and other London areas. The feedback was exclusively positive. We received local government funding to carry out a survey amongst local businesses and when that proved overwhelmingly positive we set about building a simple costed plan and taking this plan to ballot, also funded by government. The smallest businesses would not need to contribute financially but we would still be able to generate enough income to meet the expectations of our community’s customers. The BID was voted ‘in’ in Autumn 2016. Since then the board, comprising about 10 owners of independent business in the BID area (including me), has worked on a purely voluntary basis* to deliver our village’s Christmas lights, floral displays, cleaner streets, social media presence, events, and so on. To get this done we employ a specialist management company and as a limited company ourselves we have some other costs, like insurance and accounts, necessary for any business in this day and age. As business owners the board members bring their own business acumen and all costs are rigorously interrogated, believe me.
Oh, *don’t believe the nonsense about directors being remunerated by even a single penny, or getting benefits of any kind. They get more work, a little aggravation, some input into decisions and that’s about it. You’ll find plenty of untruths if you listen to some of the sources.
I’ve been very fortunate this year, commercially. Food retail has done well during the pandemic and I and my team are very grateful. That does mean that my business has less cash flow worries than some other businesses in the village. However, I have always held the view that this approach to getting great value for a relatively small contribution to otherwise unaffordable community projects is no more than common sense. And my view will be the same when it’s the turn of food retail to take a knock (as has been the case in the past when the UK has suffered food scares). I also learned a very important piece of advice years ago when trying to navigate my previous business through the recession of the early ‘90s. Running a business can be tough and there will be times when cash is tight but its exactly when the chips are down that businesses need to maintain profile, remain vibrant and appealing and create a space that people want to be in. A hard reality.
It is not an option to do nothing. Hampstead is one of London’s retail, lifestyle and leisure jewels but complacency is the greatest threat to a business and to a commercial community. Anyone giving that advice cannot have any serious business credentials. Watch out for that mantra ("do nothing – we’ve always been ok before, so what’s the problem?"). It’s a dangerous and incredibly irresponsible gamble at best. It’s so disappointing that those with least experience and the poorest commercial acumen somehow get the ear of a few and have their noise amplified way beyond its worth. But there we go. Empty vessels and all that.
So now we are trying to get a positive vote at the upcoming ballot amongst businesses, to allow the BID to continue for a further 5-year term, doing the same things but at lower cost now that we have learned how we can tailor our energies and budget even more efficiently. Without a BID there will be no Christmas lights, no floral displays, no street cleaning (other than the inadequate level of cleaning carried out by Camden), no online presence, no promotion of our village in the face of increasing competition online and from other london villages and shopping malls, no collective voice that is used to hold Camden, the police and TfL accountable for their responsibilities. There will be more refuse, more vagrancy, more graffiti, less maintenance to our street furniture and lighting, cheaper and less attractive street furniture, less public spaces to encourage residents and visitors to spend more of their time and money in our village and in our businesses.
This time around even more businesses will be exempt from making any financial payment towards the cost of the projects organised by the BID team but they will all get the benefit (I’ve seen one very central small business that has a “no BID” poster in its window even though that business is below the threshold for making a contribution but will get all of the benefit. Begs the question about the quality of the advice and factual accuracy of information that businesses are being fed by the ‘vote no’ group). Charities will be exempt and some of the businesses that are on the fringe of the BID area will also have no payment to make. We try to keep it fair. But fair also means that the cost has to be shared. So if businesses don’t like the idea, they must consider the options and vote accordingly.
I have a shop in West Hampstead. There is no business association and no BID. It’s a mess, there are no festive lights, there are no attempts to enhance the visitor experience, there is no one making a case for better delivery of services by Camden. There is no business community and my customers and my business there suffer as a result.
I have a vested interest - I own a business in Hampstead. I live in Hampstead. I shop in Hampstead. I use the pubs cafes and restaurants of Hampstead. I want to make a fair contribution to making NW3 a place that I want to spend time in. And I am not prepared to commit my time and money if others do not pick up their fair share of the cost whilst getting all of the benefit. There we go, full disclosure.
