Kyle Holmes, of Black Nova Designs, is sharing what's happening in his business!

It’s June already and we’re half way through the year – it’s also officially the first month of Summer, even if the weather has been a bit mixed!

Today we’re talking to Kyle Holmes who is the original owner and director of Black Nova Designs and Black Nova Technologies. Both companies focus on helping businesses and individuals with their technology and issues surrounding this.

JUNE is the first month of summer. What will you be doing this summer in your business? 
This summer I am looking forward to getting stuck into growing the business. We’ve come further than lots of people ever imagined, but I want us to help even more people use tech in their business. Whether that’s to improve efficiency for their team, help customers reach them more easily or make their online work secure, we’re here. I’ll be heading out to in-person networking events as much as I can and that’s always a great lead generator. We’ll also be taking the trade stand to more events which is fun, tiring and occasionally muddy! 

What are your personal plans for summer activities if you feel happy to share? 
We love to go walking, both my wife Danielle and I and sometimes the kids if we can persuade them to come along… It’s great for mind and body, plus it’s time away from the internet and screens which is so important in our line of work. So, this summer we’ll aim to do more walking, hopefully finding new routes and repeating some of our favourite walks on the coast and in the mountains. 

Does June hold any particular significance for you or your business? 
It was our wedding anniversary on the 14th of June, and Danielle and I spent it away from our desks as we usually do. It’s not a business milestone as such, but because so much of our life is wrapped up in Black Nova Designs, it feels like it! We’re on the countdown to our 10-year business birthday next year, so planning is underway for that.

June is often associated in nature with growth and abundance. What are your plans for growth in your business this year?
We are always striving to be better, grow our client base and sometimes even bring on new staff when required. This year we are looking to ensure the business stays consistent in its delivery and affordability – we have some tough times ahead with business, money and other outside factors so for us, the focus is consistency and service levels. 

As we hit this midpoint of 2024,which one business has really supported or helped you over the last quarter?
I couldn’t name just one, because I’ve learnt something so important over the past couple of years. That is that, in most cases, small businesses like ours only succeed and grow because we have a support team around us. That team includes our business network, our friends and family, business support from the team and freelancers. I’ve found that it really does take a village to grow something successful…

Have you got any events planned for the coming months which you’d like to mention? 
We are exhibiting at The Game Fair for the first time this year, we are very excited about that as it’s a huge event. It’s back at Blenheim Palace which will be stunning, and we’re looking forward to expanding our brand awareness, which is already so strong in the equestrian and rural sector, into fieldsports, land management and gundogs.

June 1 to 7 this year was Volunteers Week. Do you volunteer at all and if so, where and why? 
Not officially, although we are an authorised recycle centre for old tech – does that count? Drop off all tech for free and we will recycle it for you. but where we can we volunteer our time and brain power to other business owners, as mentioned above we support each other with brain dumps of ideas!

I’ve also been raising money for Wiltshire Mind with a driving simulator I built for people to try at events. So far, it's raised £350 and will keep everyone in the loop about how much that goes up as we take the trade stand more out this summer. 

June 30 is Social Media Day. What does social media mean to you and your business? What are your favourite social media platforms?
Our business is particularly reliant on social media as a platform to share news and  recommendations, plus we get some good leads from it too. Danielle runs around 10 Facebook groups which keeps her busy! Of course, we don’t run everything from social media, we have our website and around 1500 people signed up on our newsletter list, but social media is just that: it’s social. It’s a two-way thing and we love connecting with people. 

We now have a general election coming up in July. What would you like to see from that ‘event’ to support you personally or your business or both? 
I honestly don’t have an opinion on this. We keep working hard on our business and serving our clients regardless of what’s happening in the news, and I think there’s so much noise around the election that risks being a bit of a distraction. 

Have you got any summer services or special offers you’d like to mention?
As usual, we have plenty of space for new clients but do not have sales or offers on our services. They’re already great value for money! 

Anything else you’d like to say? 
As we roll very quickly towards the summer holidays for the kids keep in mind that we are open and available to help anytime, even in the half term and school holidays. If you have an amazing idea for your business and need a website, emails, online shopping plugins - anything – just call us! 

Find out more about Kyle and the team at www.blacknovadesigns.co.uk