Web site on UK Asian business

Citation

Blake, M. (2004), "Web site on UK Asian business", The Electronic Library, Vol. 22 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/el.2004.26322aag.003

Web site on UK Asian business

Web site on UK Asian businesswww.bl.uk/services/information/abambind.html

A Web site providing comprehensive coverage of the UK's Asian business and cultural resources is available on the British Library's Web site. About 75 per cent of all convenience and off-trade outlets in the UK are Asian owned, highlighting the importance of Asian businesses to the UK economy. The Library's new site offers up-to-date information about the resources available to these and other Asian entrepreneurs. It will also be valuable to businesses targeting the UK's Asian communities – an important market with an annual spending power of £10 billion.

Bringing together a wide variety of resources, the site is a portal through which users can find information, thereby saving time and effort. Through a range of factsheets and links, the site enables users to locate specialist support from start-up advice to training, business planning, advertising outlets and access to finance for Asian businesses. Many of the resources can be viewed directly online, or are available in the British Library's reading rooms or via local libraries.

Resources on the site include information and links to:

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  Asian business directories;

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  Asian focused market research reports;

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  Asian and general business support organizations;

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  Asian business, cultural and mainstream media;

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  Asian arts and cultural organizations; and

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  British Asian demographics.

Sir Gulam Noon MBE, chairman of Noon Products Ltd and president of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, "As a businessman I know the importance of easy access to accurate and up-to-date information. I am sure the British Library's new Web pages will quickly become the first place to look for Asian businesses and those providing services to them".

Shabana Mahmud, from the British Library's Business Information Service, said, "The impact of Asian business, arts and media in the UK has never been greater. Asian entrepreneurs are making great strides into many mainstream business sectors, and culturally Asians are increasingly influential. The importance and value of this community to the UK economy and cultural life is now being recognized, and this Web site will be a valuable first stop for those seeking information about the vibrant Asian business and cultural life in the UK".