Month: February 2026

Providing excellent customer service is often essential for a business to succeed. Even with a strong product and competitive pricing, a business can struggle if its customer service doesn’t meet expectations.
Negative experiences, such as delayed email responses, short-tempered shop workers, or frustrating returns processes, can put customers off. In some cases, a single negative experience may be enough to dissuade someone from returning.
In this article, we’ll explain the importance of prioritising customer service for long-term success, with guidance from 1st Formations, a company formation agent.
What does customer service involve?
To improve your business’s customer service, you first need to understand what it involves.
Customer service covers every interaction a customer has with a company, from their first enquiry to after-sales support. These interactions can take place across digital channels such as email and social media, over the phone, or in person. Each touchpoint can influence how customers perceive the business and whether they feel confident buying from it.
It’s worth remembering that good customer service involves resolving issues, such as complaints and refunds, as well as supporting satisfied customers.
Whatever the situation, strong customer service is typically built on three key pillars: responsiveness, consistency, and empathy. Responsiveness refers to how quickly a business acknowledges a customer. Sometimes, a full resolution requires some time, but customers still appreciate a speedy acknowledgement. Consistency ensures everyone receives the same standard of service across channels and team members. Empathy is also important as it helps staff respond thoughtfully and tailor solutions to individuals. When you put these together, you can achieve excellent customer service. With responsiveness, consistency, and empathy in place, customers should receive timely replies, reliable outcomes, and meaningful interactions.
Why customer service matters
The quality of customer service can affect trust, influence the likelihood of repeat sales, and determine if people recommend the business to others. Over time, interactions shape a company’s reputation, which can influence its financial performance.
Customers who experience poor service often reassess their trust in a brand. This may mean they choose not to return and speak negatively of the business. On the other hand, good interactions can reinforce confidence, encourage repeat custom, and lead to positive word of mouth.
Why exceptional customer service increases customer retention
Retaining existing customers is often more cost-effective than acquiring new ones, which is why many growing businesses view improving customer loyalty as a long-term investment.
When customers experience reliable service or see that a business resolves issues effectively, they are more likely to return. In some cases, customers may even pay slightly more to buy from a business they already trust.
Customer service as a driver of reputation
Customer service plays a role in how potential customers form opinions about a business, even if they haven’t experienced the service first-hand. Online reviews and social media posts can influence how people perceive a business, both positively and negatively.
While it’s hard to avoid ever receiving a single negative review, how you respond to disgruntled customers can also shape your reputation. For example, a business that replies to comments and shows that they’re willing to resolve problems can still build trust. By contrast, ignoring problems or responding defensively to feedback can discourage potential customers.
Turning service interactions into business insights.
Approached thoughtfully, customer service can become a strategic decision rather than a reactive response.
While addressing a single complaint may resolve an immediate issue, repeated feedback about the same concern often signals a wider problem. For example, if an individual comments that their coffee isn’t strong enough, an additional espresso might be a short-term fix. However, if it happens repeatedly, it’s likely time to consider changing your café’s choice of coffee. Attentive businesses look for patterns like this and can use them to refine their products or services over time.
Looking beyond complaints, it’s also worth finding out what you’re doing well as a business. A lot of customers are more likely to contact a business to complain rather than praise it. Because of this, it’s worth creating opportunities for customers to share feedback. Try running a survey to uncover what people like and where you could make improvements. If you act on these insights, you can refine your offering and better align it with customer needs.
Consider how service is part of a business’s overall health
Delivering strong customer service is just one part of running a sustainable business. It’s also something that’s only possible if you have engaged employees. As a founder, it’s crucial to support all staff with training, clear standards, and recognition to help the team offer top-tier service.
Providing good customer experiences also relies on smoothness throughout the organisation. While some people may only think of service in terms of direct interactions with customers, behind-the-scenes departments, like logistics and product development, can also influence customer happiness. For example, delayed shipping due to a planning issue reflects poorly on the customer experience. Similarly, inconsistent sizing across a clothing range can frustrate shoppers and put a strain on the business’s returns process.
When back-end operations are optimised, it can become easier for frontline staff to focus on delivering positive customer experiences. Improved service standards can encourage repeat custom and may help reduce customer churn over time, supporting greater financial stability across the business.
Applying customer service principles to build a thriving business
Customer service delivers the greatest value when it’s embedded consistently across a business, rather than treated as a standalone function.
One practical way to apply strong service is by ensuring your systems support customers at every stage of the buying journey. Investing in improving backroom processes, training customer-facing teams to communicate with empathy, and proactively acting on feedback can strengthen customer service at all touchpoints.
It’s important to remember that customer service isn’t a nice-to-have extra. It should be valued as an integral part of a business that can influence reputation, customer retention, and its overall financial health. Organisations that embed service excellence across their operations are often better positioned to build customer trust and succeed.
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Why customer service is integral to business success

More than a third of UK employers are planning to scale back permanent hiring as a result of the government’s new workers’ rights reforms, according to a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
The poll of 2,000 businesses found that 37 per cent intend to reduce recruitment of new permanent staff once the changes take effect, while more than half expect an increase in workplace conflict.
Employers warned that the new Employment Rights Act, which introduces expanded protections including day-one statutory sick pay, easier trade union recognition and a shorter qualification period for unfair dismissal claims, could act as a “further handbrake on job creation”.
Government estimates suggest the legislation will cost businesses around £1bn annually. However, the CIPD said the official analysis may underestimate the true impact, particularly the additional time and administrative burden placed on HR departments to implement the reforms.
Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the CIPD, said the changes risked compounding pressures already faced by employers following last year’s £24bn rise in employer national insurance contributions.
“There is a real risk that these measures will act as a further brake on recruitment,” he said, urging ministers to consult meaningfully with business and consider compromises where appropriate.
The survey found that 55 per cent of employers anticipate more disputes once the reforms are in place. Businesses cited concerns over the reduction in the unfair dismissal qualifying period, from two years to six months, alongside new rights for zero-hours workers and enhanced powers for trade unions.
Under the act, unions will gain improved access to workplaces for recruitment and organising activity, while employees will benefit from expanded “day one” rights.
James Cockett, senior labour market economist at the CIPD, said the findings diverged sharply from government expectations. Whitehall’s impact assessment predicted that greater union engagement could reduce conflict, yet only 4 per cent of employers surveyed believed disputes would decline.
The CIPD noted that most UK businesses, particularly the 1.4 million micro and small employers, do not formally recognise trade unions. In that context, it argued, it is unclear how expanded union rights would materially reduce workplace tensions.
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has welcomed the reforms, describing them as the most significant upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation and arguing they will improve dignity and wellbeing at work.
Business groups, including the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the British Chambers of Commerce, have previously expressed reservations, particularly around guaranteed hours contracts, seasonal work and industrial action thresholds.
The CIPD warned that some elements of the legislation could have unintended consequences. Changes to unfair dismissal, statutory sick pay and zero-hours contracts may lead some employers to rely more heavily on temporary or contract labour rather than permanent hires, potentially increasing employment insecurity.
As businesses weigh the costs of compliance against economic uncertainty, the survey suggests the government faces a delicate balancing act between strengthening worker protections and sustaining job growth.
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Workers’ rights reforms prompt a third of employers to curb hiring

The UK’s gender pay gap will not close for another three decades if progress continues at its current rate, according to the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
Analysis of official earnings data by the union body shows that the average disparity between men’s and women’s pay stands at 12.8%, equivalent to £2,548 a year. At that pace of improvement, the gap would not be eliminated until 2056, the TUC said.
The gap varies sharply by sector. In finance and insurance it is widest at 27.2%, while in leisure services it is just 1.5%. Even in female-dominated sectors such as education and health and social care, the pay gap remains significant at 17% and 12.8% respectively.
The gender pay gap reflects the difference in average earnings between men and women across organisations and industries. Companies with more than 250 UK employees are legally required to publish gender pay data.
The TUC said the disparity means the average woman “effectively works for 47 days of the year for free” compared with male colleagues.
“Women have effectively been working for free for the first month and a half of the year compared to men,” said TUC general secretary Paul Nowak. “With the cost of living still biting hard, women simply can’t afford to keep losing out.”
The pay gap is largest among workers aged 50 to 59, a trend the TUC attributes partly to the long-term impact of women pausing or scaling back careers to take on caring responsibilities.
The union federation is calling for improved access to flexible working, expanded childcare provision and stronger parental leave policies to help narrow the gap. Nowak described the government’s recent Employment Rights Act as “an important step forward”, but argued further action was needed so parents could better share caring duties.
Business groups have previously warned that additional employment rights and benefits could increase costs for employers. Matthew Percival, director of the future of work and skills at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said firms were already facing significant pressures.
“The cost of doing business is leading to job cuts,” he said. “With major changes to employment laws coming, the government must take care not to add further strain.”
Under new rules, employers will be required to publish action plans setting out how they intend to reduce their gender pay gap.
A government spokesperson said ministers were “tackling the root causes of the gender pay gap” through measures including expanded childcare entitlements, strengthened protections for new mothers and changes to flexible working rights.
Despite incremental progress in recent years, the latest figures suggest that without faster reform and structural change, pay parity remains a distant prospect.
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Gender pay gap won’t close until 2056 at current pace, warns TUC

BrewDog has been put up for sale after the Scottish craft beer group appointed restructuring specialists to explore fresh investment and strategic options.
The Aberdeenshire-founded brewer has hired AlixPartners to oversee a structured process that could result in new investors coming on board or parts of the business being sold off.
Founded in 2007 by James Watt and Martin Dickie, BrewDog grew from a small Ellon-based brewery into an international brand with operations in the US, Australia and Germany, alongside around 60 bars across the UK. It currently employs approximately 1,400 people.
In a statement, the company said the decision followed “a year of decisive action” in 2025, including cost-cutting and efficiency measures, as it sought to strengthen its long-term sustainability in what it described as a challenging economic environment.
A BrewDog spokesperson said the appointment of AlixPartners was a “deliberate and disciplined step” aimed at evaluating the next phase of investment. The company added that it expected to attract substantial interest and that its bars and breweries would continue to operate as normal.
An internal email to staff said no decisions had yet been made and stressed that day-to-day operations would be unaffected while advisers reviewed strategic options.
The move comes after a turbulent period for the brewer. BrewDog reported a £37m loss last year and announced job cuts in October. Earlier this year it confirmed the closure of 10 UK bars, including its flagship Aberdeen venue.
Last month, the group halted production of its gin and vodka brands at its Ellon distillery as part of efforts to “sharpen” its focus on core beer operations.
In recent years BrewDog has frequently attracted headlines, both for bold marketing campaigns and for controversies over workplace culture. In 2024 it faced criticism after announcing it would no longer hire new staff on the real living wage, opting instead to pay the statutory minimum. Co-founder James Watt subsequently stepped down as chief executive, taking on a new role as “captain and co-founder”, while Martin Dickie exited the business last year for personal reasons.
AlixPartners declined to comment on the sales process.
The potential sale marks a significant turning point for one of Britain’s most recognisable craft beer brands, which once positioned itself as a disruptor to global brewing giants and attracted thousands of small-scale investors through its “Equity for Punks” fundraising scheme.
Read more:
BrewDog put up for sale as advisers explore break-up options

Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable has called for a police and government investigation into the conduct of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor during his tenure as the UK’s trade envoy, following the release of US justice department files that appear to show he shared official and commercial information with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The newly released documents suggest that Andrew, who served as Britain’s special representative for international trade and investment from 2001 to 2011, forwarded UK government documents and commercially sensitive material to Epstein.
Sir Vince, who was secretary of state for business and trade during part of Andrew’s tenure, described the alleged behaviour as “totally unacceptable” and said the matter should be scrutinised by law enforcement authorities.
“We need a police or DPP check on whether criminal corruption took place and a government investigation into how this was allowed to happen,” he said.
Andrew has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing.
According to the documents, in 2010 Andrew forwarded an email exchange concerning Royal Bank of Scotland and Aston Martin to a contact, David Stern, who subsequently passed it to Epstein. The correspondence reportedly included details about RBS restructuring plans and comments regarding its then chief executive, Stephen Hester, as well as references to internal tensions at Aston Martin.
It remains unclear whether the information originated directly from Andrew’s official role. At the time, RBS was majority-owned by the taxpayer following its financial crisis bailout. Andrew was also a customer of the bank and may have had separate dealings with management.
Further emails cited in the US files indicate that Andrew may have shared government visit reports relating to Vietnam, Singapore and China with Epstein. Separate correspondence suggests information about Iceland was passed from Treasury sources to banker Jonathan Rowland.
Under official guidance, trade envoys are bound by confidentiality obligations covering sensitive commercial and political information obtained during official visits.
Thames Valley Police confirmed it had consulted specialists at the Crown Prosecution Service regarding the allegations.
Labour MP Sarah Owens, chair of the women and equalities committee, said Andrew must answer questions from police and Parliament. Fellow Labour MP Rachael Maskell called for greater transparency and accountability, arguing that Andrew should be stripped of his remaining constitutional roles.
King Charles has previously expressed “profound concern” over allegations surrounding his brother. Buckingham Palace has said it stands “ready to support” police if requested.
The latest disclosures add to longstanding scrutiny of Andrew’s association with Epstein. Additional images released in the US document tranche have further intensified calls for him to testify in the United States.
The former duke recently relocated from his Windsor residence to the Sandringham estate in Norfolk as pressure surrounding the case continues to mount.
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Andrew’s time as trade envoy should be investigated, says Vince Cable

Blue-blooded fund manager Schroders is set to be sold to American rival Nuveen in a £9.9bn deal that will end more than two centuries of independence and deliver another setback to the London Stock Exchange.
Nuveen, part of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA), has agreed to acquire Schroders for 612p per share – a 34 per cent premium to the firm’s closing price of 456p. The transaction will create one of the world’s largest asset managers, overseeing around $2.5tn (£1.8tn) in assets.
The deal marks a historic turning point for Schroders, founded in 1804 by John Henry Schroder. The Schroder family still controls roughly 44 per cent of the company and is expected to receive at least £4bn from the sale. Family members Leonie Schroder and Claire Fitzalan Howard currently sit on the board.
Schroders’ chairman, Dame Elizabeth Corley, said London would “remain at the heart of this enlarged business” as the combined group’s non-US headquarters, despite the firm’s planned departure from public markets.
Executives said there were no plans for “material reductions” in headcount and that both Schroders and Nuveen would continue to operate as standalone brands following completion, which is expected by year-end.
Richard Oldfield, Schroders’ chief executive since November 2024, described the deal as a strategic response to industry pressures. “In a competitive landscape where scale can help deliver benefits, Nuveen is a partner that shares our values and respects the culture we have built,” he said.
William Huffman, chief executive of Nuveen, said the transaction would “unlock new growth opportunities for wealth and institutional investors” by broadening the firm’s global footprint.
Schroders has long been a fixture of the FTSE 100, but its growth has stalled amid structural changes in the asset management industry. Its share price fell to a decade low of 302p last April as investors shifted towards cheaper passive funds rather than paying higher fees for active stock-picking strategies.
The firm has also struggled to compete with US giants such as BlackRock and Blackstone, which have aggressively expanded into higher-margin alternatives such as private credit.
Although Schroders has pursued acquisitions in private markets, it has failed to translate those investments into sustained shareholder returns. Under Oldfield, the company embarked on a cost-cutting programme targeting £150m in savings.
Schroders’ departure from the London market adds to a growing list of high-profile exits from the UK exchange, intensifying concerns over the City’s ability to retain and attract major listed firms.
Nuveen said that any future relisting would likely involve a dual listing in London and another international exchange.
Headquartered in Chicago, Nuveen manages $1.4tn in assets, with a strong focus on the US market. The acquisition will be funded through cash and £3bn in debt.
For the City of London, the sale of one of its most historic financial institutions underscores the mounting consolidation pressures reshaping global asset management, and the shifting gravitational pull of capital markets towards the United States.
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City stalwart Schroders to be sold to US rival in £9.9bn deal

Ford Motor Company has been overtaken in global vehicle sales for the first time by Chinese electric car giant BYD, underscoring the dramatic shift under way in the global automotive industry.
Ford’s sales slipped 2 per cent last year to just under 4.4 million vehicles, while BYD sold 4.6 million, climbing to sixth place in the global rankings of car manufacturers.
The milestone is symbolic for an industry shaped by Ford’s legacy. Founder Henry Ford revolutionised mass car ownership with the Model T in the early 20th century. More than a century later, the company that defined industrial car production is being outpaced by a Chinese electric vehicle specialist.
BYD’s growth has been driven by its expanding portfolio of affordable, high-tech electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Among its best sellers are the SEAL U DM-i and the Dolphin electric city car, priced at under £19,000 in some markets.
In contrast, Ford has scaled back lower-cost small cars in Europe, phasing out the Ford Fiesta during the pandemic and pivoting towards higher-margin SUVs and crossovers. Its entry-level Puma now starts at more than £26,000.
Ford’s sales in the US rose, but the company has lost ground in Europe and China — markets where electric competition is intensifying.
Felipe Munoz, an independent automotive analyst, said the trend was widely anticipated. “BYD is still in expansion mode. Even if sales in China slow, it’s relying on exports to grow,” he said.
“Ford, meanwhile, remains heavily dependent on the US, where growth is modest, and has only a minor presence in China. Europe is also stagnant. This divergence is likely to continue.”
Western carmakers, including Ford, have struggled to navigate the electric vehicle transition. In December, Ford took a $19.5bn (£14bn) charge to scale back EV production, citing weaker-than-expected demand.
Munoz said Ford’s electrification strategy was complicated by its exposure to North America. “North American consumers are not enthusiastic about electric cars, and government support has been inconsistent,” he said.
Ford has attempted to regain a foothold in China through a joint venture with Jiangling Motors, launching an all-electric version of its Bronco SUV. However, its Chinese market share has fallen from nearly 5 per cent a decade ago to less than 2 per cent today.
“Let’s see how the Bronco Electric performs,” Munoz said. “But so far, nothing significant has changed.”
Despite global challenges, Ford remains Britain’s third-largest car brand. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, it sold about 119,000 vehicles in the UK in 2025, representing a 5.9 per cent market share, an 8 per cent increase on the previous year.
BYD, while still smaller in the UK, is growing rapidly. It sold around 51,400 cars last year, achieving a 2.5 per cent market share, but with sales rising almost sixfold.
At the top of the global league table, Toyota retained its crown for the sixth consecutive year with sales of 11.3 million vehicles.
For Ford and other Western manufacturers, BYD’s ascent signals more than just a ranking shift, it reflects a deeper rebalancing of power in an industry increasingly defined by electrification, cost efficiency and Chinese technological ambition.
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Ford overtaken by BYD as China reshapes global car industry

Tangible, a fintech platform focused on helping hardtech companies access and manage structured debt financing, has raised a $4.3 million seed round as it looks to modernise how capital-intensive businesses fund growth.
The round was led by Pale Blue Dot, with participation from MMC, Future Positive Capital, Unruly, SDAC, Prototype Capital and Aperture. The funding will be used to scale Tangible’s team and deepen automation across its platform.
Hardtech companies, spanning sectors such as energy, transport, advanced manufacturing and compute infrastructure, are increasingly seen as central to tackling some of the biggest macroeconomic challenges of the coming decades. BlackRock estimates that $68 trillion of new infrastructure investment will be required by 2040 to meet global demand.
Yet despite renewed interest in physical innovation, financing remains a major bottleneck. Traditional venture capital models often struggle to support asset-heavy businesses, which typically require large amounts of upfront capital. As a result, many early-stage hardtech companies rely on expensive equity funding to finance capital expenditure, increasing dilution and, in some cases, threatening long-term viability.
At the same time, private credit, now a $3.5 trillion market, is increasingly well positioned to meet this demand. However, deploying debt capital efficiently into hardtech remains complex and resource-intensive, particularly for lenders reliant on bespoke documentation and manual processes.
Tangible was founded to address this gap. Its AI-powered platform standardises the data, documentation and ongoing reporting required by lenders, reducing underwriting time and costs while enabling founders to run structured debt facilities without building in-house finance teams.
Hampus Jakobson, general partner at Pale Blue Dot, said: “Most of the innovations shaping the future, from vehicles and data centres to robotics, are fundamentally physical, and they shouldn’t be financed by venture equity alone. Tangible opens up new financing options for hardtech businesses, and we strongly believe in the team’s vision to bridge this structural gap.”
William Godfrey, co-founder and chief executive of Tangible, said demand for physical assets was accelerating as governments and businesses push reindustrialisation, energy security and technological sovereignty. “As hardtech companies scale at speed, investors need modern infrastructure to deploy capital just as fast,” he said.
“Legacy processes based on bespoke documentation and manual coordination no longer cut it. Tangible provides the financial infrastructure that makes hardtech easier to diligence for institutional credit, allowing companies to raise asset-backed financing faster and with less friction.”
The company said the new funding would support the build-out of automation across collaboration, diligence and reporting workflows, helping to reduce transaction costs and shorten time-to-close for both founders and lenders.
For hardtech firms facing mounting capital pressures, Tangible is positioning debt as a viable alternative to either heavy dilution, or failure.
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Tangible raises $4.3m seed round to unlock scalable debt finance for hardtech firms

Children are routinely exposed to adverts for weight-loss injections, diet products and cosmetic procedures online, according to a new report by Dame Rachel de Souza, who has called for tougher regulation of social media platforms.
The report, based on a survey of 2,000 children aged 13 to 17 alongside focus groups, found that young people were being “bombarded” with content promoting body transformation, despite restrictions on certain types of advertising.
Respondents reported seeing ads for weight-loss drugs and diet products, as well as skin-lightening treatments, some of which are illegal to sell in the UK. Others described beauty and cosmetic content, including promotions for lip fillers and aesthetic procedures, as “unavoidable” across major social media platforms.
Dame Rachel said the content was “immensely damaging” to young people’s self-esteem and urged ministers to consider a ban on targeted social media advertising to children.
“We cannot continue to accept an online world that profits from children’s insecurities and constantly tells them they need to change,” she said. “Urgent action is needed to create an online environment that is truly safer by design.”
The findings come amid the rollout of the Online Safety Act, which aims to make the internet safer for users, particularly children, by placing duties on platforms to remove harmful material quickly.
Dame Rachel’s report suggests amending the Act to introduce a clearer “duty of care” obliging platforms to prevent children from being shown body-image related advertising in the first place. She also recommended changes to Ofcom’s Children’s Code of Practice to explicitly protect young users from “body stigma” content.
Ofcom said such material is already covered under its existing code. “Body stigma content can be incredibly harmful to children, which is why our rules require sites and apps to protect children from encountering it and to act swiftly when they become aware of it,” a spokesperson said. The regulator added it would not tolerate technology firms “prioritising engagement over children’s online safety”.
The commissioner also called for stronger enforcement of rules governing the online sale of age-restricted products and suggested the government consider limiting children’s access to certain social media platforms altogether.
Dr Peter Macaulay, senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Derby, said restricting advertising to children was a necessary step but not sufficient on its own. “We also need stronger platform accountability, improved enforcement of age-appropriate design standards and better education to help children critically navigate online pressures,” he said.
A government spokesperson said ministers had always been clear that the Online Safety Act was “not the end of the conversation” and confirmed that a national consultation had been launched on further measures, including the possibility of banning social media use for under-16s.
The debate highlights growing concern among policymakers about the commercial drivers behind youth-facing content, as platforms face mounting pressure to demonstrate that their business models do not undermine children’s mental health.
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Children ‘bombarded’ with weight-loss drug ads online, commissioner warns