Simon Hamilton (left) of UK Steel Enterprise is given a tour of the new premises by Nigel Willis, Managing Director of First Choice Labels.
A Tees Valley labelling company that is growing through the recession and investing more than £400,000 in a move to new and larger premises has said a ‘huge thank you’ to a local business support team.
First Choice Labels has been based for seven years in UK Steel Enterprise’s Innovation Centre at Redcar but the nine-strong team has finally outgrown the space available there and moved into its own unit on the Kirkleatham Business Park.
“It was quite an emotional move for us after seven years at the Innovation Centre,” said Managing Director Nigel Willis. “The whole UKSE team has been absolutely brilliant and we would not be where we are today without their input and the Centre’s facilities. I wrote to let them know that I just couldn’t repay what UKSE has done for us. In our very first month we had no orders at all but in this financial year we will record an 11% growth, our turnover will hit seven figures, we have a great team in place and new premises.”
The company produces millions of labels each month for a wide variety of customers including the world’s major steel companies, several High Street pharmacies and food producers across the country. They also manufacture labels for such brands as Fosters Lager and Smirnoff.
“We have trebled our space to around 9,000 sq ft and invested in a new printing press that means we can now compete with the top 5% of the UK’s labelling companies in terms of the services and products we can offer.
UKSE helped us to expand a number of times but we finally had to admit that we had outgrown the Innovation Centre.” said Nigel Willis.
An initial contract with Corus, UK Steel Enterprise’s parent company, proved crucial in opening up the steel market for First Choice and they are currently expecting a significant new order from the Argentinian steel industry.
The innovative company has developed a range of products to suit the needs of different industries including labels capable of withstanding extreme temperatures, chemicals and being spotted by a metal detector if even the tiniest shred is introduced into foodstuffs .
“Like every company we have to work through this recession but we were determined to be positive and pro-active,” explained Nigel Willis. “Everyone in the company was asked to come up with five ideas for recession-proof markets that we could target and we ended up with suggestions ranging from pet food and defence to funeral directors and alcohol!
“We have also taken advantage of being able to negotiate good rates and keep our overheads low so that we can pass on savings to our customers and stay competitive. “
UKSE Regional Manager Simon Hamilton said: “It has been a real pleasure to support First Choice Labels and see them go from strength. We will miss them but our aim is to help businesses in the early years and we are looking forward to welcoming new tenants in their place.
“Nigel took full advantage of the facilities, support and advice that we can offer here and has worked extremely hard to build his company. We are confident that First Choice Labels has a highly successful future ahead of it.”
Details of UK Steel Enterprise’s support is available on 01642 777 777 and at www.uksteelenterprise.co.uk. First Choice Labels is on 01642 474 230 and at www.firstchoicelabels.co.uk
