Agency helps firms do biz in London

It will now be easier for Bengaluru businesses to expand globally, thanks to the introduction of a London agency in the city.

After more than a decade of business in Mumbai, London & Partners has launched an office in the country’s technology capital of Bengaluru.

The organisation, which is the promotional agency for the Mayor of London, helps Indian companies seeking to develop and build their international scope.

International market managing director Julie Chappell helped officially launch the new office in October 17, ahead of London deputy mayor Rajesh Agarwal’s visit next year.

She says she’s looking forward to getting to know the city better as well as explore the opportunities it will bring for the company.

“We want to establish ourselves as the go to. So if someone wants to expand internationally they know who to call,” Julie says.

“So many companies don’t know we exist so we need to maximise our social presence,” she adds.

London & Partners chief representative in India Hemin Bharucha agrees.

“A lot of companies don’t know how to go global and we have that point of knowledge.” Hemin says more than 70 per cent of Indian investments in the United Kingdom go to London, and of those, about 33 per cent are from Bengaluru.

A lot of the companies they work with are focused on clean technology, social enterprise, and new innovation, he says.

Most of them are looking for new customers and Hemin points out that the London base makes for a great headquarters leading into Europe.

With Brexit looming over the next two years, Julie says it’s impossible to know if it might affect those European ties but Hemin doesn’t think it will deter companies from coming to London. “Most companies just want to be somewhere in the United Kingdom,” he says.

Along with increasing global opportunities, London & Partners also want to support businesses that visit London for next year’s Cricket World Cup.