Welcome subscriber

In this months Bulletin we hear from Nick Turner, Director of UK Partnerships at AXA UK, who suggests tried and tested processes to improve your chances of winning large distribution deals.

We share with you the launch of Diggory's Hickory Diggory Blog and invite mums and dads to subscribe in order to receive regular updates on all posts.

With Mothers Day approaching we offer some lovely gift ideas to show mum how much she is loved.  

In honour of Mothers Day, we share with you an outstanding saving when you purchase the Yellow Brick Package between certain dates in March. 

We also tell you about a 50% reduction on the Diggory Membership fee for the Yellow Brick Package for the remaining days of March.

Diggory's own contributor Roger Collis talks about the 'The weighty matter of oversized passengers'.

There are some wonderful exhibitions, fairs and events happening in London this month and we share with you our pick of the best.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL OUR MUMMIES

article: hunting elephants in the corporate jungle

With over 10 years of business development experience, Nick Turner, Director of UK Partnerships at AXA UK, explains common pitfalls and suggests tried and tested processes to improve your chances of winning large distribution deals.

Many companies look for fortune changing distribution deals, the one they can retire on, the deal to fix the company, the opportunity of a lifetime.

These opportunities are rare, that’s true, but there are many steps that can be taken to make sure that when they come, your company is at the front of the line, and ready to do business. The following tips are some of my hard won lessons learned, from nearly 10 years of business development.

Right place right time…

Firstly, do not underestimate the impor...read more

Ask the Experts

Whether you have questions on IT, efficiency or business travel our experts will have the answers.

Melanie Walker, Tunbridge Wells

Q: "My home is in such a mess, but I don't seem to be able to motivate myself to sort it out, can you offer any advice?"

 A: Dee says, "Whenever we face a seemingly daunting task, we often feel overwhelmed and quite quickly come up with some very creat...read more 

 Shirley Gur, Shpinoza, Israel

Q: A while ago, much was being discussed about the risk of picking up bugs or viruses on flights. I even read somewhere that air-conditioning systems are not good for passengers and that airlines shut them down to save fuel and to sedate passengers to relax them during the flight. Within hours of returning from London, I came down with a bad throat infection. One friend arrived back from Barbados with a raging stomach upset, while others have had respiratory problems. Has the subject been put to sleep, so to speak, for lack of evidence?

 A: Roger says, "No. Health in the air is of growing concern to travelers, pilots, cabin crews and regulatory authorities. At 30,000 feet (9,150 meters) the air in a plane has to be artific...read more

Mark Lambert, London

Q: "I have Microsoft Office 2003 installed on my system, someone has sent me .docx and a .xlsx and I can’t open them, is there anything I can do?" 

A: Keith says, "A .docx and .xlsx file is the new Microsoft Office 2007 format, you have 2003 and that is why you...read more
 

The weighty matter of oversized passengers

Read this informative piece by Diggory's own contributor Roger Collis, author and columnist for the New York Times and CNN.

Moments of truth seem to come more often these days.

Boarding an Easyjet flight from Gatwick the other day, sharp elbows having got me my usual self-satisfied pole position in the aisle seat by the emergency exit, I was girth stricken to find that the seat belt would not quite fasten – comfortably, or even uncomfortably – even stripped down under the twin filing systems in my jacket pockets.

Of course, one has to prove that one is lean and fit to sit in these privileged rows. Clever Easyjet. No point in asking for a ‘seat belt extender.’

So I retreated to an aisle seat in another row, and just got the thing attached. God forbid that I should be a candidate for the laterally challenged folk that one sees in every airport concourse – grotesque buffalos wallowing towa...read more

Mothers Day, March 14th...

I love cake, but if you read my Blog regularly you will know I am currently on a 100 day salad kick...so no cake for me.

It would however be remiss of me not to tell you about Church Farm Cakes award winning simnel cake, which is of course the original Mothers' Day Cake.

Simnel cake is a rich pale almond fruit cake baked with a layer of almond paste and topped with toasted almond paste, with 11 apostles balls and a pretty posy of spring flowers - charming.

They don't use additives, essences or preservatives only pure natural ingredients.

You can also send one of these cakes as a gift, they hand wrap them in a beautiful box, with a hand written note and deliver them via courier.

...a perfect gift for mothers day

more ideas for mothers day...

If cake doesn't float her boat, check out these suggestions and wait for the love...

From the children...

All mummies love to receive handmade gifts from their children, so check out Bloesom Kids they have some wonderful craft ideas that you and the children can do this weekend to present to mummy on Mummies Day.

From Daddy...

What about a fantastic Spa Break? Our favourite is Summer Lodge, (pictured) a five star Georgian House hotel, the epitome of the English country house in a picturesque Dorset village.

Or...

You could purchase a voucher from Kate Starkey Couture and give her the gift of style.

Women-only weekends...

There are some wonderful women-only weekends available, great for her to find her own space and remember who she is when she is not being mummy.

How about a Women’s Ski Camp in Colorado? Something closer to home perhaps, what about an All-Women Walking Weekend in the beautiful English countryside. Or my absolute favourite a Learn to Surf weekend in Newquay!

Email me at deehope@diggorylifestyle.co.uk for the details on these women-only holidays.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY SHOPPING!

exhibition: london design week

Our pick of the best exhibitions and fairs this month:

Design Centre Chelsea Harbour, Lots Road, London, SW10 0XE

At London Design Week 2010, discover inspiring new collections, mingle with influential designers, enjoy great talks and master classes from renowned experts or meet leading design authors at the RIBA Bookshop.

With over 400 international brands from 83 Design Centre Chelsea Harbour showrooms as well as outside participants in the King’s Road, the event brings together an unparalleled choice of the very best.

This year, quality and a commitment to excellence has never been more important whether you are looking for new fabrics, wall coverings, furniture, lighting, accessories, kitchens, bathrooms, outdoor living, tiles or carpets.

March 24 - 26 10am - 6pm. Free Entry. www.designcentrechelseaharbour.co.uk

opera: the cunning little vixen

Royal Opera House, Bow Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 9DD www.roh.org.uk

Bill Bryden’s beautiful production of The Cunning Little Vixen brings charm, wit and a wonderful life-affirming message to The Royal Opera.

Inspired by a cartoon of the exploits of the feisty little Vixen Sharp-Ears, the opera brings to life the world of the forest.

Not only do we meet the people who live by it and pass through it, but also come across all the creatures who live there – caterpillars, badgers, dragonfly's, frogs and, of course, the Vixen herself.

From her youthful escapades in the chicken house to her courtship with a handsome fox, this is a wonderful tale of the richness of the cycle of life.

19 March 2010 to 1 April 2010. Tickets £5.00 - £110.00. sung in English.

fair: the little chelsea antiques fair

Little Chelsea Antique Fair, The Chelsea Old Town Hall, King's Road, Chelsea, London, SW3 5EE 
 

The Little Chelsea Antiques Fair has been held at the Chelsea Old Town Hall on the fashionable King’s Road, London, for over 30 years.

 With 60 dealers from all over England, Scotland and Wales offering a wide range of antiques and decorative objects including furniture, lighting, silver, jewellery, bronzes, china, glass and porcelain, treen, textiles, scientific instruments and other novelty items.

Known as ‘The Affordable Antiques Fair’, Little Chelsea is famous for having dealers with items ranging from just £10 to over £15,000 – so there is genuinely something for everyone.
 

March 8 to 9. Admission £4.00 

exhibition: victoria & albert: art is love

The Queens Gallery, Buckingham Palace, London, 0207 766 7301 

www.royalcollection.org.uk

This major exhibition is the first ever to focus on Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s shared enthusiasm for art.

Bringing together over 400 items from the Royal Collection, it celebrates the royal couple’s mutual delight in collecting and displaying works of art, from the time of their engagement in 1839 to the Prince’s untimely death in 1861.

The exhibition also challenges the popular image of Victoria – the melancholy widow of 40 years – and reveals her as a passionate and open-minded young woman.

19 March - 31 October 100am 5.30pm. Adults £8.75, family £22.00