LEP springs into action with grant for Harrogate Water Brands
With grant support from The LEP, Harrogate Water Brands have expanded operations and invested in equipment that is the first of its kind in the UK, opening a new £6m bottling line in the region.
With grant support from The LEP, Harrogate Water Brands have expanded operations and invested in equipment that is the first of its kind in the UK, opening a new £6m bottling line in the region.
British brand
The company was seeing increased interest from overseas clients who had a thirst for the ‘Britishness’ of the brand. Whilst nearing capacity servicing its existing portfolio of clients, Harrogate Water Brands recognised the opportunities existing within the market and the requirement to expand in order to future-proof the business.
The company raised almost all the capital required for the new installation, but was left with a funding gap but was aware of the support the LEP was offering businesses and successfully applied for a grant.
28 new jobs to spring from investment
The £430,000 grant created six new jobs, with the figure projected to rise to 28 new positions in production, sales, marketing and accounts, almost doubling the workforce.
“The LEP is really demonstrating its support for businesses in the region” enthused Steve
Burnett, Harrogate Water Brands’ Financial Director. “For a business like us which is growing rapidly, it’s the right kind of funding that can help us reach the next stage in our expansion plans. The LEP were there when we needed them. They were approachable and supportive.”
World-leading technology widens international market
The new 23,000 sq ft extension doubles the existing area and houses the new production equipment. The first of its kind in the UK, the revolutionary production line will quadruple output, allowing the company to start to exploit its enviable 320 million litres available for abstraction.
The design of the line is optimized to ensure maximum efficiency and minimum footprint. Running at 36,000 bottles an hour, it is more than capable of now meeting the increasing demand from overseas; particularly from Russia, China, the Caribbean, and the Middle East, where they have agreed an exclusive partnership agreement to supply the region’s largest Hypermarket ‘Lulu’.