The Advanced Manufacturing Park, or AMP, located just outside Sheffield has attracted myriad leading names in the metals industry since its opening in the mid-1990s, maintaining the region's reputation as a global leader in this sector.

Derby has a history of innovation dating back to the industrial revolution, a mindset that continues to serve it well into the digital age. Local authorities – keen to make the city somewhere to live as well as work – have spent the past few years improving Derby's leisure offering, all of which is enabling the city to continue to punch above its weight.

The CEO of machining and assembled components supplier Metem tells fDi that innovation is at the core of his company's strategy, a mindset that enables its younger workers to thrive.

The UK's manufacturing decline of recent years seems to have bypassed Derby, which has met the challenge of low-cost competitors in the developing world by focusing upon quality.

Derby's industrial excellence has never quite been reflected in its city centre's offering. However, a flurry of new office developments – as well as a resurgence of the city's residential market – look set to change all of that.

Though Derby may appear small when compared with other business hubs in the UK and Europe, this works to the city's advantage, as its business community is welcoming, interlinked and possesses a real zeal to move the city forward.

Wallonia’s reputation as a destination for avionics innovation is gathering pace, as infrastructure develops around its aerospace cluster and links are forged between research and business.

Frontier developing countries are nothing new to express logistics company DHL Express, which has been operating in such markets for decades. Now, with growth in Europe and North America stunted, its CEO tells fDi that the company is reaping the benefits of its early endeavours in what are some of the fastest growing economies in the world.