HOW TO BE HAPPY THE BRANDED WAY

Happiness and good health are everything... which is something Simon Smith knows more about than most.

He is a 'happiness consultant' and The H2 Company has been working with him to create a brand identity for his business.

Simon, who is also a trained chiropractor, wanted to somehow capture the essence of happiness in his brand so, as well as selecting a range of 'smiley' imagery to adorn his corporate stationery, we also came up with the idea of listing a series of things that make you happy for inclusion on all pieces of stationery.

They included phrases like:
Children laughing
Helping others
Being loved
Good friends
Making a difference
Singing in the shower

To learn more about Simon visit his holding page at www.practisinghappiness.com

For all your branding requirements call us on 08700 503574 or drop us a line at info@theh2.co.uk.

BREAKFAST IN MOSCOW, TORONTO & NOW LEEDS!

In return for a Harvey Nichols bacon and cheese panini, H2 Director Phil Byrne was persuaded by the Department of Trade & Industry to address members of the Leeds Media and deliver a seminar about H2's experiences selling its wares overseas.

To date, all three H2 Directors have taken advantage of the DTI Passport to Export scheme. Phil B visited the stylish skyscrapers of Toronto, whilst Phil H has been jetting round the former Soviet Union to places like Moscow and Kiev in Ukraine. Creative Director, Chris Sands, also visited a Creative Industries event in Dublin (at the Guinness factory!)

Among the guests at the Leeds breakfast briefing was Catherine McLeod, the new DTI Head of Creative Industries, who informed everybody of her plans to expand the DTI's support for creative companies.

If you would like to know more about the Passport to Export Scheme visit www.tradeyorkshire.com/passport.

ECO EASY GAINS

H2 are on a mission to go green, so we've been working with eco company, People Profit Planet, to understand how being a little more environmentally friendly can be good for both the planet and for business.

Here's some interesting facts that came from our first workshop with PPP. You might want to consider making some eco changes in your office:

1. For every 1ºC that your building is overheated, up to 10% is added to your heating costs
2. Leaving the photocopier on overnight wastes enough energy to make 1,500 A4 copies
3. Recycling 1 tonne of paper is equivalent to providing heat and hot water to a home for one year
4. Lighting an office overnight wastes enough energy to heat water for 1000 cups of tea
5. If everyone in Britain unplugged their mobile phone chargers when not in use, enough electricity would be saved to power 66,000 homes
6. In just 12 months, cartridge recycling could save 15 million litres of oil in the UK
7. If all 10 million office workers in the UK used one less staple each day, 120 tonnes of steel would be saved every year
8. Setting double-sided as the default feature on your printer can save 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per year
9. Leaving office equipment on standby during bank holidays and weekends will cost a typical SME nearly £6,000 every year

... and just to help you along the way, Government statistics estimate a 20% cut in energy costs is often equivalent to a 5% increase in sales!

Find out more at www.ppp-online.co.uk

HEARTS FIRST

Our young designer Beccie Deighton recently dug out her running shoes to take part in the Hearts First York City Jog in aid of The British Heart Foundation.

There is a long history of heart disease in Beccie’s family, ranging from heart attacks and strokes to diabetes, high cholesterol and atheroma.

"The thing that really made me want to get involved in this run was my brother, Tom," says Beccie, "as he was rushed into hospital earlier this year, which really scared me."

Tom is still awaiting further tests, but has been diagnosed with Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT) - a condition that causes your heart rate to spontaneously jump from the normal rate of 60–100 beats per minute to anything between 140–250 beats per minute!

"As Tom's a young, fit and healthy 24 year old football player, it made me realise that heart disease can affect anybody," adds Beccie.

Around 500 people took part in the fundraising event at the Knavesmire, York. Completing the very wet 5km course in 42 minutes, Beccie raised an impressive £178.50. Adding this to two of her friends' sponsorship money, they collectively raised £500 towards the £20,000 target set for the York event.

To get involved in upcoming events, or to make a donation online, visit: www.bhf.org.uk

STIR, SETTLE AND RELAX...

H2's New Media Manager, Janine Jacques, and good friend Sam, have just launched their own website dedicated to their favourite ritual of tea and cake!

With JJ busy spinning websites for H2, Tea and Cake has been under construction for over a year, or possibly two (but who's counting). Finally, after much drinking of tea and sampling of cake (research!), JJ and Sam launched the site on Thursday 17th April.

To co-incide with the launch, Janine and Sam have been working with tea brand Make Mine a Builders, who are giving everyone the chance to win a year's supply of tea.

On the site you can find out everything you never wanted to know about tea, cakes and all related bits and bobs. Why not join in with the debates, share your ideas, find some handy baking tips and most of all, if you love a good cuppa, brew one, and have a browse. "A quirky joy" - The Metro

www.teaandcake.co.uk