November Talk with Kyle Holmes from Black Nova Designs

IT’S NOVEMBER! – the year is coming to an end and Q4 is well under way. We’re talking to small business owners about their plans for the last two months of the year.

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.

What’s your business highlight for November 2022 (or even from October 2022)?
As you may have recently seen, we were nominated finalists in the Techies awards 2022 for Tech Support Service of the year in Swindon and Wiltshire! The event was fantastic and what made it even better was the amazing venue and my team being all together in support. We didn’t win but the evening was totally worth it. Being nominated was a great accolade to our services and team.

And what about a personal highlight this last month?
Not many people know but I love body art and I have finally gotten round to finishing my sleeve. I have been wanting this for most of my life. Each tattoo I have means something to me and the tattoo I have completed this month has a lot of symbolic meaning around guardianship, luck, loyalty, and self-worth. (https://www.instagram.com/ashleighlouisetattoo/)

Secondly, I did a charity park run with my kids for the first time ever. The course was only 2km, but the kids loved it and I loved keeping them motivated to complete the run.

This is a month for Bonfire Night & Diwali – do either of those hold meaning or memory for you?
Bonfire night is always a blast, especially with the children. However, I would strongly advise that you be safe with sparklers, I got burned by one at a previous fireworks night and it hurt a lot!

November represents Movember – Men’s Health Awareness Month. What, if anything does this mean to you?
Men’s Mental Health is very close to my heart. If you follow me on LinkedIn I speak about this a lot, it is a big part of my mindset and self-improvement journey. I have anxiety and can overthink a lot. I think there is still too much of an expectation put on Men to ‘man up’ and put up with things. I am passionate about advocating for men’s mental health and want everyone to know that it is ok to talk.

Are you doing anything in November for charity or for a community or volunteer project?
We are hosting our final Build a PC Day of the year on the 12th November. Each event raises money for Wiltshire Mind charity. I cannot wait to continue these events in the new year and continue to support such amazing charities.

Has the recent turmoil in the economy, government or the cost-of-living crisis affected your business? Or your personal life in any way that you are happy to share?
It is slightly evident that the cost-of-living crisis is affecting many business owners. We have had a few clients openly discuss their struggles and unfortunately cancelling some smaller subscriptions with us. Luckily, we have many clients who are keeping their ‘heads above the water’, so it has been a varied effect. Overall, however, we are fortunate to share that the business has been absolutely fine.

What’s your top tip for being positive in the midst of a lot of negativities?  
My best advice would be to stay away from the bad news, stay away from negative conversations, and protect your own environment and mindset. Don’t let the energy around you affect you. Personally, my priority is my family, business and team and I keep them at the forefront of my mind when battling any negativity that comes my way.

Did you know November 13 is World Kindness Day – has anyone shown kindness to you in the last month or so? At home and/or work? 
The team over at pax8 have shown great kindness to both the business and I. They invited me to both the October and November Mission Briefing as a guest speaker. The Mission Briefing events mean a lot to me, and I thoroughly enjoy the days spent discussing tech in all variations.

It’s also Black Friday on November 26 which is now quite mainstream – do you participate in this within your business? Or do you prefer the Buy Nothing Day on November 27?
We don’t really participate in sales like this. Apart from hosting, we are a service-based company so prefer to keep our prices regular throughout the year.

Are there any awareness days or special weeks in November which are relevant to your business/organisation or sector?
Computer Security Day is on the 30th of this month and super important to us as a business. We take the day as an opportunity to share our advice and top tips about cyber security in our blogs on our website & in our social media posts. It is so important internet, social media and application users are aware of the dangers of security breaches and hacking. It is so common nowadays and the people behind these crimes are becoming more cleaver and creative in the ways that they find and leak your data. We will also push our antivirus offer on the day. Bitdefender is an affordable and highly secure antivirus software that we sell at only £31.99 per year, per device. If you are interested in getting protected then please visit our website or pop us a call.

Have you got any events planned for November or December you’d like to shout about?
Yes! Our 2022 Christmas Open day is happening on the 3rd of December. Everyone is welcome to the event, and we cannot wait to meet new people in the area as well as welcome back our clients both old and new. Throughout the day we will be sharing our services while enjoying festive music, food, and drink. Even better yet, everyone will take home their own Christmas gift – a Black Nova Designs goody bag! If you would like more information, please visit our Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/blacknovadesigns/posts/pfbid06z154QaJCLDHnT9HUASv8fw4DPJxTDPhorTEoXbaLajjN7CqyyPhEGedSzw149zXl

And finally, is there anything else you’d like to say?
Overall, I want to share how proud I am of the business and especially how proud I am of my team who continue to provide exceptional service to our amazing clients. Black Nova Designs wouldn’t be where it is without the support and dedication from my team, clients, and businesses associates, so thank you!

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