“There is an amazing amount of creativity and positive energy on the 299 WhatsApp group with people keeping in touch and sharing their projects and achievements.”
James Pomphrey - Managing Director
Weathering the storm
Despite many businesses donning the BUSINESS AS USUAL line on their home page, we all had to accept that the current situation is far from business as usual. It’s been ten weeks since we started self isolation, that swiftly turned into the lockdown. People have since suffered and many people’s lives and livelihoods have been affected. We at 299 are very thankful that our experience with the coronavirus was mainly mild. Over the last two or so months, time has somehow lost its meaning and days and weeks have blurred into one big marshmallow haze. As some are gradually starting returning back to work, we would like to give you an update on where we currently are at 299.
On the ball
A small but capable core team is working from the office, with the management staying closely connected to all ongoing projects. We are keeping the wheels turning and always on the other end of the phone, the core team is assisting clients with new enquiries, technical questions as well as supporting ongoing projects. We are operating under strict guidelines from the government and remain fully committed to safe and successful delivery of our projects. Thanks to our continued investment into technology, support of our suppliers and strength of our team, you can still benefit from the service we are renowned for.
Lockdown Life
Restrictions aside, we have been given a unique gift of time, an opportunity to reshape the way we do things. We had time to pause and try new things or simply return to our old hobbies.
So what have we been doing with this precious gift of time?
Blessed with the amazing weather, James and Marcela took on a challenge of transforming their garden. Thanks to James’s newly found obsession with chainsaws, he was able to cut some seriously large trees down, stacking up enough logs to last the family for years to come. James restored an old green house and using mainly recycled materials, he also built boxes to grow vegetables.
With their two girls under the age of 5 to look after, Marcela became a full time cook, baker and entertainer. The lockdown is being a very testing time, but the morning runs in the nearby forest are keeping her sane!
Always keen to crack a technical challenge, Elman became an expert on pond pumps and filters. He also designed a system for keeping broad beans in straight lines in James and Marcela’s garden. And he even got out and about on his bicycle and enjoyed the nice weather.
Georgina has been busy doing online courses, walking her dogs and helping with the shopping for her grannies. She also turned to her old hobbies and spent time doing some great embroidery and even started knitting hats for the Innocent smoothies bottles.
Wiktoria has been cooking and perfecting her sourdough bread making skills. We rate her sourdough highly on both the looks and the taste. She also acquired a new Bengal kitten and is now spending a lot of time cuddling it. Sabrina has been going for long walks, playing VR games, studying Maths, Psychology and Japanese.
Billy and his dad built a family pub in their garage, where they hang out and play music. Josh has been busy decorating his new house, hedge trimming and gardening. Everything is now organised, including his under-stairs cupboard. He has also perfected his scrabble skills, cunningly sneaking 299 product names in. Rob has been reading, playing VR games and keeping fit, he also recently started doing some drawing.
Rob and Isabelle have started their LIA training course, which is keeping them suitably entertained. Isabelle has been binge watching Simpsons on Disney Plus. She also bought a 90’s Polaroid and started crocheting.
Emily has been walking her dog, enjoying the outdoors and making friends with horses in the fields. Megan spent a great time with her family producing some pretty good looking cakes and is working her way through ‘Couch to 5K”. She also dyed her hair green, with a plan of more hair colours coming up.
Anna has been enjoying the great weather running and walking. Apart from perfecting her visualisation skills, she started drawing again and even made her first ever bake!
It has been a testing time, but we believe we will emerge stronger after the coronavirus. Founded at the dawn of the last recession in 2008, the 299 business has resilience in its DNA after all. We might have to adapt the way we work as we bring our team back gradually, but that will hopefully mean embracing new technology and unleashing our creative potential.
In the meantime, please keep talking to us about your project. It really means a lot to us.
Thank you for your continuous support and see you on the other side!