Doug Richard is looking to move to east Kent

by business editor Trevor Sturgess

Former Dragons' Den entrepreneur Doug Richard is so impressed by east Kent that he could be moving in.

The American entrepreneur who founded School for Startups and recently completed a report on apprenticeships for the government revealed his intentions at the Grow for It in East Kent campaign launch in Dover.

It aims to woo businesses to the area, emphasising lower costs, better lifestyle and financial incentives.

The campaign – controversially awarded to London-based agency Seven Hills – initially involves adverts aimed at Londoners on the sides of red double-decker buses and alongside escalators in Tube stations.

Slogans like “Swap your Oyster for Oysters” and “A Great Place to Live, Work and Grow” are designed to tempt business people away from the capital’s expensive and stressful lifestyle.

Guest speaker Mr Richard, who lives in Cambridge, said: “We run our only programme right in the centre of London. The key question we’re asking is where do we set up next – do we set up here?

“If I am already persuaded, and persuaded for perfectly rational reasons, I have no reason to vote for one place or another, except to ask where’s the best opportunity to drive economic growth.”

“East Kent, close to London and ‘a nice place’ has huge opportunity to grow. It will enjoy enviable growth of the right type over many years. I look forward to joining you in due course.”

Meanwhile, the first seven companies were granted interest-free loans from the £35m Regional Growth Fund – Bumble Beez (£30,000) and Southeast Retail (£500,000) in Thanet; UK Mobile Bars (£32,500) in Canterbury; Creative Minds (£100,000) and The Research Network (£72,000) in Dover; and Chalk Hill (£30,000) and H V Wooding (£1.1m) in Shepway.