A builder of superyachts, a luxury leather goods producer and a premium paint and wallpaper firm are among the companies ranked on South West Business Insider’s latest Manufacturing 100.
According to Make UK’s 2023 sector report, the South West reported ‘modest growth’ in its average output balance compared to the previous four quarters – a fair achievement when taking into account some of the significant unrest and uncertainty being felt by the sector through the course of the last 12 months.
As British manufacturers look to new export markets, Insider’s Manufacturing 100 – sponsored by Gallagher – spotlights the region’s fastest-growing makers and innovators in terms of overseas sales, compiling data from the regional Top 500 and SME 300 databases, ranked by turnover growth over the last five years.
Making the top 20 is Princess Yachts, which has had an eventful 2023.
The luxury yacht manufacturer was acquired by KPS Capital Partners in February for a multimillion-pound fee. This was followed by the stepping down of long-running CEO Antony Sheriff, who was replaced by Will Green, a pivotal member of the team for 20 years who had most recently served as an executive director.
The company announced exciting expansion plans in 2022 as part of the successful bid by Plymouth City Council to create a Freeport in the region. The KPS Capital investment is expected to help support this.
Also ranked is Mulberry, which is best-known for its leather goods – specifically its luxury handbags. The company’s founder, Roger Saul, famously established the brand at his kitchen table, with a £500 backing from his mother Joan.
Today, Mulberry is a £159m brand with stores throughout the UK and all over the world including Europe, the US, Australia and Asia, and offices in London and New York City. It continues to be headquartered and hand-makes its designer leather goods at its original Somerset factory, called The Rookery.
Premium paint and wallpaper manufacturing company Farrow & Ball was founded in Dorset in 1946, by John Farrow and Richard Ball. Their story is the stuff of legends, with Farrow a trained chemist who worked for Ireland’s Agnew Paints during WWII and Ball an engineer who survived capture as a prisoner of war.
The duo met at a local clay pit and shared a passion for making rich colours to original formulations using unique ingredients. They soon built up a family enterprise, with Ball’s wife Ena Rose in charge of accounts and Peggy Farrow designing its first logo.
The full ranking can be found in the December issue of South West Business Insider. Click here to secure your copy.
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