Why The Journal is putting the North East first

May 22 2009 By Brian Aitken, The Journal

THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH YOU CAN SUPPORT OUR THINK NORTH EAST FIRST CAMPAIGN, SAYS JOURNAL EDITOR BRIAN AITKEN. THIS SUPPLEMENT AIMS TO HELP YOU DO JUST THAT

WHEN we launched our Think North East First campaign back in February, our overwhelming ambition was to highlight to our readers just what an important role they had to play in helping the region through these tough times.

In our launch piece we called upon readers to “Make a difference with every pound you spend” and it’s a point we have been trying to hammer home ever since.

There are literally thousands of ways you can make a difference - and we have highlighted scores of them in our pages over the last few months. We have heard about dozens of North East businesses which are defying the economic gloom, seen how people are shunning the attractions of the continent to holiday at home, and we’ve encouraged many famous names from the region to talk about their passion for the North East.

It’s hard to think of a much better example than the case of Brian Burnie, whose story we revealed in The Journal last week. Having invested some £16m in transforming Doxford Hall in Northumberland into a luxury country hotel, he now plans to sell up and use the proceeds to support charitable work in the region.

Considering he only employed local craftsmen on the project of restoring the historic building and that all of the money will now benefit cancer sufferers in Northumberland, what better way of putting the region at the forefront of a hugely worthwhile project?

Today’s supplement brings together many of the themes which we have followed during the course of our campaign. In the following pages, you will hear about some of the many great local companies who have thrown their weight behind Think North East First by signing up to the charter on our JournalLive website. Alastair Gilmour has been out to meet some of the individuals behind these success stories and they make for a fascinating series - and quite an eclectic mix.

For example, there is the bed company in Newcastle which is proud to employ a local workforce including many who have disabilities, the food entrepreneur who is dedicated to using local produce in his growing range of stores, and the caravan company which is seeing first hand how growing numbers of North Easterners are learning more about the delights on their doorstep. It’s hard not to be inspired by these individuals’ passion for their businesses - and the region they are proud to call home.

Also inside we have produced a special section of ten pages packed full of some of the region’s highlights - as selected by you.We called on our readers to nominate some of their favourite things in the region - from the most exhilarating walks to the best-loved brands. Some of the nominees are the things and places you will be very familiar with - but you might find
there’s one or two surprises too. And if your favourite has not been included, don’t hesitate to drop us a line and let us know what we’ve missed.

Finally, to give you a few extra reasons to get into the spirit of our campaign, you will also find two pages packed with offers from many of the region’s top businesses and attractions. There are some great deals to be had - so make sure you
take the opportunity to experience the very best of what the region has to offer.We would also like to take this opportunity to thank the advertisers who have made this publication possible.

One of the great difficulties with the Think North East First campaign is that it was always going to be really difficult to measure just what impact it is having. But the way people and businesses across the region have embraced the campaign has been proof that it has been tremendously worthwhile and the recent publication of visitor numbers which show the
North East tourism industry is outperforming every other part of the country may offer some evidence that the message is getting through.

We will certainly continue to bang the drum and do our best to show exactly why it is always worth ensuring that you
Think North East First.