North West features prominently in UK’s fast growing firms

The North West region features prominently in the latest Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200 league table.

Published this weekend, the listing is the 10th annual publication which ranks Britain’s midmarket private companies with the fastest-growing international sales.

This year there are 21 companies headquartered in the North West of England, including six new entrants, appearing in the league table.

These regional stars have grown their international sales by an average of 64% a year over the past two years to a total of £1.05bn.

Together they employ more than 10,000 people.

The region’s top-ranked company is Manchester’s Carrs Foods (No.8), which features in the top 10 nationwide for the third successive year, having moved up from ninth last year.

It supplies European-style brioche, crêpes and croissants to more than 10,000 stores worldwide, helping grow overseas sales by 159% per annum to £19m, on total sales of £49.4m, in 2017.

Achieving a place on the league table for the first time is Manchester’s Arlington Industries, which designs and builds parts for manufacturers in the automotive industry.

Customers include Ford, Nissan and Jaguar Land Rover, and the company has factories in the UK, France and Slovakia, helping exports hit £58.7m, on total sales of £170.6m, in 2018.

Featuring for the sixth consecutive year is The Hut Group, which has overseas sales of £512.6m, on total sales of £735.7m, in 2017, and is valued at more than £3.25bn.

Each year, more than 500m people visit the 165 ecommerce websites operated by THG.

The companies in the North West appear alongside well-known British brands, including BrewDog, now valued at more than £1bn; and Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, founded by the Hollywood make-up artist.

Others are connected to star names, such as Bulk Powders, which counts boxing champion Anthony Joshua among its athlete ambassadors.

Alumni stars in this 10th annual table include Aston Martin, Specsavers, Fever-Tree, and Lush – which featured on the first league table in 2010 with exports of £151m, and which have now hit £300m.

The league table programme is sponsored by HSBC, DHL Express and Oracle NetSuite, and compiled by Fast Track, the Oxford-based research and networking events firm.

Amanda Murphy, head of commercial banking, HSBC UK, said: “We at HSBC UK are delighted to back The Sunday Times International Track 200 again this year.

“All the businesses it showcases have truly inspiring stories to tell about creativity, resilience and ambition to succeed.

“The 21 companies in the North West of England are putting the region firmly on the map. They are the kinds of enterprises we are thrilled to support and that provide the backbone of our economy, today and tomorrow.”

The North West firms featured in the latest table are:

Carrs Foods, from Manchester, at eighth, up from nine.
Project One, a business consultancy from Holmes Chapel, straight in at 24.
Arlington Industries, from Manchester, entering at 27.
Qualtex, a spare parts distributor from Denton, placed 41st.
Recruitment consultancy Oliver James Associates, from Manchester, at 45.
Barrow Wood Distribution, a transport broker from Preston, at 59.
The Hut Group, Manchester, which rose from 45 last year to 63.
Crewe mobile phone distributor Phoenix Cellular, placed at 65.
Amelia Knight, cosmetic designer and manufacturer, from Knutsford, at 105.
Carnforth hardwood flooring specialist, Havwoods, at 112.
Manchester employment law consultancy, Peninsula, at 123.
Recycling Lives, waste management provider from Preston, at 125.
Dairy products supplier, County Milk Products, from Wilmslow, at 128.
Bolton IT hardware supplier, Scan Computers International, at 136.
Proseal, a tray-sealing equipment maker from Adlington – 148.
TIMco, tool accessories supplier from Wardle, at 154.
School uniform supplier, Trutex, from Clitheroe, at 160.
Manchester recruitment consultancy, Amoria Bond, at 177.
Meade-King Robinson, a chemicals supplier from Liverpool, at 188.
Online entertainment provider, musicMagpie, from Stockport – 199.
Pet food producer, MPM Products, from Manchester, which slipped from 171 to 200.

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