by Emma Liddiard, chairman of the Institute of Directors Kent branch, managing director and mum

How was August for business? I was having a very pleasant chat with Cedric Frederick of Avante Partnership in Faversham, and we mulled this over. Does everything grind to a halt for the month? Does everyone leave the country?

There still seems to be an inherent belief in business that everything stops for a month, but you only have to go out and about to see that this isn’t the case.

The good news is there are still cars on the road and families desperately trying to keep children happy across Kent. So while contacts may not be in the business, business is still in business.

Having said that, we are experiencing a brief summer wind-down in IoD events, which gave me the opportunity to escape for a week with the family to Suffolk.

It was refreshing to have a holiday in the UK. The positives were overwhelming – even just the psychological lift of knowing you only had to get in to a car. However, travelling in your own car almost guarantees you pack way too much (never used the battery-powered fly swatter – doesn’t matter) and you never achieve your estimated departure time.

The biggest benefit for us on this occasion was the fact that our travel was flexible to the requirements of young William’s bottom and stomach: he is very rarely ill but developed a 24-hour bug on the morning of the holiday. Imagine the implications of that if we had to catch a plane.

I have also been to the Isle of Man since my last column. I am really doing my bit for British tourism, and the Visit Kent garden party confirmed some great visitor numbers for the county – and that was before the proper summer sunshine commenced.

It feels like it has been quite a long summer now, doesn’t it? Especially for my neighbouring farmers, who have been waiting to harvest and will be playing catch-up depending on the weather for the rest of the year.

The IoD is looking forward to kicking off our events again in September with wine-tasting event at Hush Heath Estate in Staplehurst to sample the award winning Balfour Brut Rose (ie, get freebie tasters of what everyone is buying in Harrods and Selfridges).

My first IoD annual convention is at the Royal Albert Hall on September 18. Speakers include the likes of Richard Branson, Boris Johnson and Jack Welch. I am told they are all unmissable. So I will dig out my smart yet sensible heeled London shoes and head up. I don’t know how they do all that running in heels on The Apprentice.