Researching your business ideas

Newcastle BIPC, City Library has everything you need to help you research your business ideas. Whether you require information on business start-up, company histories, market trends or consumer behaviour, our resources will enable you to find your niche and develop a business that fulfils your customers’ needs.

Hardcopy Resources at City Library

BIPC Newcastle holds a wide selection of reference and lending material on topics such as marketing, accounting, inventing, business start-up, data protection and intellectual property rights – everything you need to research each stage of your developing business. Visitors can also access specialist reference resources including up to date directories and yearbooks as well as magazines and journals including Financial Times, Accountancy and Investor’s Chronicle.

Electronic Resources at City Library

In addition to lending and reference material, BIPC Newcastle provide access to specialist subscription databases allowing visitors to access business histories, financial information, peer assessments and details of company products and services. Our databases provide a greater range and depth of information than you can find using a standard search engine. 

By visiting us in person at Newcastle City Library you can have full access to the following electronic resources.

Please note that due to licensing conditions these resources are only accessible in the Business & IP Centre at Newcastle City Library.

 

COBRA (Complete Business Reference Adviser) 
A continually expanding business encyclopaedia covering all aspects of starting and running a business. From writing a business plan to expanding an existing business, COBRA contains around 4000 factsheets, market reports, contacts, and sources of funding and support to help entrepreneurs and their advisers.

COBRA Database Summary (PDF, 144KB)
COBRA Help Guide (PDF, 262KB)

 

Corporate Researcher
Provides comprehensive financial and other information on all 1.8 million UK limited companies. You can: look up the details of a single company; select the details of multiple companies and analyse them as a group; compare individual and groups of companies; generate mailing lists of companies for targeting. The Excel interface allows report lists, tables and graphics to be easily tailored to your individual requirements.

Corporate Researcher Database Summary (PDF, 144KB)
Corporate Researcher Help Guide (PDF, 430KB)

 

 

Key Note
Provides access to commercially relevant market research and intelligence from more then thirty indutry sectors using both secondary and exclusive primary research gathered from industry analysts and data from nationally recognised sources. Each report is designed to allow users to examine markets, assess customer needs, forecast future market demand and trends, identify new growth opportunities or simply keep a close eye on industry leaders.

Key Note Database Summary (PDF, 146KB)
Key Note Help Guide (PDF, 262KB)

 

OneSource
A one stop shop for business information containing company profiles, industry and executives profiles, news articles, market research and analysts’ reports. You can search for company reports which give you a profile, description of business activities, a financial snapshot and details of executive contacts; you can search for industry analysis, industry reports and profiles for over 100 major industries as well as market share and size statistics or you can search for key executives and board members by name, job title, business or company size.

OneSource Database Summary (145KB)

 

Thomson Business Search
A sales and marketing search engine giving access to the Thomson Directories Database of two million UK businesses.

Other Sources of Information 

Although some of our specialist business databases can only be accessed in the library itself, a wide range of high quality online resources is also available from home or office via our ‘24 Hour Library’. These include:

• British Standards – quality standards required in business and industry;
• CANS – accurate up to date legal information;
• Newsstand – full text access to a selection of newspaper titles.

In addition, eBooks on a range of subjects including business management and software applications are also available via the 24 Hour Library.Visit the 24 Hour Library.

You will require a library card to log in to online resources. Join Newcastle Libraries.

View our recommended websites which include share price data and business start-up information. View business information websites.