Successful exporters seek new markets
CLARKE Energy’s appetite for continuously scanning the world for new export territories paid off when it was pronounced winner of NW Business Masters Exporter (Large) Award.
The honour was presented by award sponsor UK Trade and Instrustry’s North West director Clive Drinkwater.
The Knowsley-based gas turbine installation and service specialist has broken through into Banglaedesh, South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique and its turnover is now more than £23m.
Clarke bought the Bangladesh arm of Orient Power Systems and GE has appointed the Merseyside company as distributor and service provider for Jenbacher gas engines in the region.
Similarly, Clarke has acquired GE’s Jenbacher gas engines South Africa Service Business and Agaricus Trading after GE granted distribution and service provider rights in South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique.
Those strategic acquisitions further expanded Clarke Energy’s reach in Africa following the establishment of an East African hub in Tazania in 2012.
Marketing and product manager Alex Marshall, receiving the award, said: “Our ethos is to look after the customer at the point of sale and our expansion into Africa is progressing well and will continue.”
Other nominations shortlisted in the category were James Halstead and Vernacare.
Meanwhile, there was smaller scale success for cosmetics brand Faith in Nature, which won the NW Business Masters Exporter (SME) Award.
The company founded in 1974 by New Yorker Rivka Rose has made export of natural products a key a key focus of its strategy since 2004, and is now in negotiations to open up new markets in the US.
It has enjoyed success in its core export business and in new market expansion in the Far East.
There has been rapid growth thanks to key established distributors in Scandinavia (62%) and Hungary (62%).
In the last two years, exports have risen 32% to £630,000. Exports in the year 2013/14 accounted for 20% of the total turnover of the business. It currently exports to 30 countries around the world.
Picking up the award from TheBusinessDesk.com chair Mark Hales, Rose said: “Our business foundation is ethics and integrity. If you have those things you can achieve a lot.
“We have been able to get closer to our customers thanks to the internet. Fundamentally, we believe our products are too good to keep in the UK.
“We are currently in talks to get our products into the US.”
The shortlist for the Exporter (Small) category also included ALG International Holdings and Crawford Healthcare.
