00:18Hello and welcome to Made in Kent Live on KNTV where we explore the world of businesses
00:23and creators throughout the county. I'm Jay Blakeslee and today we're exploring the
00:28world of digital and technology-based businesses, ranging from age-old machinery to online marketing.
00:34Up first, we're taking a look at sewing machines. Whilst today you may think of sewing machines as a
00:39relatively straightforward tool for an old and simple job, sewing is actually, if you can believe
00:45it, of key importance to the history of computers, according to the National Museums Scotland.
00:51The mechanical loom created in the 19th century is a precursor to the modern computer,
00:56using punch card strips to pre-program patterns for weaving. This system was later used in the
01:03analytical engine created by Charles Babbage, which is widely regarded as the first computing device.
01:09Now, over 100 years later, we visit a local family business to take a look at the evolution of sewing
01:15machinery in Kent with our reporter Chloe Smith. Let's take a look. Sewing machines have been around
01:21for over 200 years and have evolved from simple machinery to highly technical equipment with a
01:25variety of features. I wanted to learn more about the businesses working to market and maintain these
01:29machines. I'm here in Gillingham to talk to the staff at Sewing Machines UK, a business that's been
01:34operating for almost 70 years. I'm sort of second generation within the company, Sewing Machines UK.
01:41It was started by my father, originally nearly 70 years ago. I think my father would probably be quite
01:47shocked if he saw that today. But we started with these, if you like, and then we've worked our way
01:54up
01:54to these guys and up to the six needle embroidery machines over there as well. Things have changed,
02:00but we've adapted and we've changed with it and we're still going strong and we're still repairing
02:06and selling and showing and teaching machines of all kinds now. I also asked Chrissy, with a niche like
02:13this, who exactly do they cater for? We have customers from all over. We get them come from
02:19a really, really massive area. We've had a lady call today who's possibly coming over from France with
02:25a machine. Our engineers are trained in specialist machines. There is a huge resurgence in home sewing
02:33and that would be quite a lot of what the business does here is we do a lot of servicing
02:38and repairs for
02:39home sewers. But we do also have a team of engineers that cover doing the schools, we do universities,
02:45we do businesses, we do them locally. We cover as far as South London, but we do a huge, huge
02:51amount
02:52within Kent, definitely. As a company that's been for several generations, we wanted to find out what
02:57the plans are for the future. We're doing more things, more haberdashery, we're giving more lessons,
03:02we're selling higher-end machines, so I think the legacy is good going forward. And my ambition was,
03:11and hopefully I've got some premises now, that I might open a small museum in Kent actually,
03:18with showing off all of my lovely, beautiful little antiques. My daughter is in the business now,
03:24she's been in the business for seven, eight years, but she's going to be taking over and running the
03:29business as well, as I pass it down to her. And how is the business adapting to the digital age?
03:35We have our own website that we absolutely love, and we do realise that in this modern world,
03:40you do have to have online presence, as they say, but there's nothing like actually having a lesson
03:46on how to use your machine properly, so that you can get the best out of it. The technology now
03:51that you
03:51have on machines is amazing, so a lot of them are all now coloured touchscreens, but the guys are all
03:58trained, everybody understands how they work, and we handle it really well.
04:02Chloe Smith for KMTV in Gillingham.
04:06In the modern day, advertising is everywhere, from promotions on the radio in your car,
04:11to brand deals in online videos. But have you ever wondered about the behind the scenes of
04:16advertising, how it helps businesses, and why it's done the way that it is? Well, earlier I spoke to
04:21Lydia McEwen from WeDo Marketing to learn more about the impact exposure can have on businesses.
04:28Hi Lydia, thank you for joining me. So what is WeDo Marketing? What's your ethos as a business?
04:34Yeah, WeDo Marketing is a marketing agency. We're based in Kent, but work with businesses throughout
04:40the UK. We're a strategic marketing agency, which means that we help businesses to align their marketing
04:46activities with their business goals. So we work as outsource marketing managers essentially with a
04:53strategic focus. Our ethos is really about shaping the world of marketing and helping businesses do
05:00better marketing by making sure that the activities they do really align with what they're trying to
05:06achieve. How do you see the rise of artificial intelligence potentially affecting your field?
05:13Oh well, without a doubt it's going to. It's one of those waves within our industry and for the world
05:20that you can't stand in the middle of and you've got to ride. And that's what we're currently doing.
05:26Marketing is always changing and this is just another example of how we have to move quite quickly
05:32in our industry and make sure that we keep on top of those changes. Do you think that digital marketing
05:37is the way forward or do you think there is merit in more traditional methods of marketing as well?
05:45I'm a chartered marketer with Chartered Institute of Marketing and I'm a big believer in the marketing mix
05:52and ensuring that digital channels engage with offline channels as well. So the way that the world
06:01is changing with AI and the way that we use digital marketing channels comes back to just being a human
06:08and for us that's incredibly important to make sure that where people are found online and offline
06:15is our clients are visible. And how important do you think that marketing is to local Kent businesses
06:22particularly? Oh yeah, it's undoubtedly important. It's the way that, no different to any other business,
06:33if you have a target audience and you need to be found then that's the kind of the opportunity for
06:41marketing to be able to come in and help and support and get you more visibility. The Kent businesses
06:49they may well work within Kent and just have that as their target audience and they may well have audiences
06:55outside of Kent as well. Within Kent we have a smaller number of micro and small businesses as opposed
07:02to larger organisations. So the way that those businesses would market and the budgets that they've got available
07:08to marketing are probably fairly smaller than what a kind of a medium or larger business would have.
07:15The way that they market would perhaps be more innovative and it would be less focused on budget,
07:20more focused on time and what they can do with it. So utilising channels like social media,
07:26email marketing and getting out networking with people as well. There's lots that Kent businesses can do
07:33as kind of small and medium enterprises that will still help them to increase that visibility.
07:40Amazing, thank you so much. No worries, you're welcome.
07:44And finally let's take a moment to delve into the figures and statistics surrounding digital and
07:49technology-based businesses within the county. Joining me this week to bring us the deep dive is Jackie Wern.
08:02Hi Jackie, thank you for joining me here today. So based on your research, has there been any
08:07significant increase in technology-based Kent businesses? Well thanks for having me. So according
08:13to research from the RSM UK, nearly every region in the UK saw an increase in tech-related businesses over
08:202025.
08:21The South East alone saw a 15% increase from 4,981 businesses in 2024 to 5,710 in 2025.
08:33RSM's technology
08:34industry outlook also found that 76% of tech business owners feel confident that their businesses will
08:41continue to grow under the current government and that their industries will have a larger impact on
08:46UK business in the future. Amazing. And as those companies begin to rise, as those percentages
08:53begin to climb, what are the risks that follow having so many businesses take on those technologies?
08:59Well, currently the Kent County Council website shows that tens of thousands of people across Kent are
09:06digitally excluded and organisations such as Digital Kent have set up awareness
09:12to strive and support individuals without access to internet connection or technology. Digital exclusion
09:19especially affects the most vulnerable, especially people who are elderly, those living in rural areas,
09:26or those who have low income. By switching to more automated and digital systems, businesses run the risk
09:31of leaving behind those customers which can't access the internet or other online systems. Businesses can also
09:37become over-reliant on digital systems, causing failures when that technology has issues. A recent
09:43example happened in this April when IT issues affected GP practices. Dr. Jack Jacobs, a medical director at the
09:51Kent local medical committee, stated at the time that if IT goes down, that's everything, and that patients
09:58were significantly affected by it, as GPs could not access online prescriptions, online appointments, or patient
10:06notes. A switch from physical records to digital may, for a long term, have an increase in unreliability as
10:15technology fails and changes. And as those technologies fail and some of them change, of course a lot of
10:22technology will become obsolete. What can we do with those technologies that have kind of fallen behind
10:28the curve? Well, technology disposal in the UK is actually a major issue. As time goes on, more and more
10:35stuff will be disposed of. And a major issue with that is batteries, as if they're improperly disposed,
10:41they can lead to fires and actually be quite dangerous. Also, if technology isn't recycled,
10:46it can waste valuable resources that are components in devices such as laptops and phones.
10:52Many local councils actually offer services for recycling electronics, as do dedicated disposal
10:58centres. And there's a myriad of places which exist dedicated to reusing or refurbishing old or broken
11:05technology. According to the Recycle Your Electronics campaign, in 2022, over half a billion electronics
11:13were disposed of when they could have been recycled. And of the individual components of those technologies,
11:18up to 75% of them were actually fully reusable in some way. Brilliant. Thank you so much, Jackie.
11:30You've been watching Made in Kent live on KNTV. There's more news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
11:36Don't forget, you can always keep up to date with us on social media. But from us and from me,
11:40thank you so much and we'll see you later.
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