Jessops' new marketing strategy

I am Business Editor of the Leicester Mercury and I have decided to begin a blog where I will talk about the stories and issues affecting Leicestershire businesses. It will provide comment and further information on stories in the Leicester Mercury and the weekly the Business supplement.

In tomorrow's the Business there is story about Jessops executive chairman David Adams announcing a change in direction in the troubled camera chain's marketing strategy and his admission that the 74-year-old Braunstone Frith-based group cannot compete with supermarkets and internet retailers, which have been a thorn in its side for years.

The chain has been working with HSBC - to which it owes £57m - on the new strategy as the bank prepares to take a majority stake in Jessops as part of a debt-for-equity swap. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the announcement is it shows the group almost certainly now has a secure future after concerns earlier this year the loss-making firm would not last until the end of the summer.

There is also a story about a Hamilton engineering firm which is re-employing 15 staff it had been forced to axe earlier this year after its attempt to drum up business from key customers resulted in a flurry of orders. It follows an upbeat assessment about the future of manufacturing in the East Midlands from PricewaterhouseCoopers.

On top of this, we have an interview with the boss of an organic baby clothing firm on its global expansion.

Meanwhile, I will be interested to hear what proclamations Business Secretary Peter Mandelson makes during his week in charge of the country, given the somewhat controversial views Harriet Harman took the opportunity to share with us during her stint at the helm last week.