Jewellery firm T H Baker expands after £1m funding injection
A BLACK Country jewellery business with roots back to 1888 is expanding its network of stores across the Midlands after receiving new financial support.
T H Baker, a family run business, has opened a new store in Stratford-upon-Avon and this followed the recent opening of a store in Burton-on-Trent and a store in Telford at the end of 2011. Finance for the expansion has been provided by Barclays to the tune of over £1m.
The new shop, in Henley Street, takes the company’s network of stores to 19 and staffing to 230.
The business was founded in October 1888 by watchmaker and jeweller Thomas Henry Baker, who opened the company’s first store in Brierley Hill. The shop is still open today.
Over the next 120 years, the business passed between generations and expanded to include other stores in the Midlands and, eventually, southern England.
Even today as the company continues to grow in stature, T H Baker remains family-owned with the fifth generation currently overseeing the business. Latest developments, including the company’s successful foray into e-commerce and its concept Pandora stores, are taking the firm in new directions.
Andrew Higgs, the firm’s CEO, said: “We are very proud of our heritage and our success is testimony to the values set out by our great, great grandfather when he first established the business which was around offering great service and value. We have continued to evolve the business with the introduction of the Pandora concept stores and some of our online ventures such as the Jewel Hut.”
Lee Clarke, Relationship Director at Barclays Corporate said: “T H Baker is a well known and respected brand, particularly in the Midlands where its name goes back many years. It’s exciting to be working with a business with such heritage at the same time as watching the business grow by embracing modern trends and reflecting today’s consumer.”
