Cable company acquires new premises

A fastener supplier has expanded and acquired new premises after securing a £578,000 funding package.

Tipton-based Direct Channel Support Services is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of strut channels, cable tray and trunking, brackets, and cable containment systems.

Its products are used by customers in the construction, heating, ventilation, mechanical and electrical sectors, and are sold directly to trade buyers in the UK, Europe, Asia and North America, as well as online.

Established in 2010 by husband-and-wife Sid and Rani Sidhu, the family-run business was previously based at two smaller premises in Great Bridge that collectively comprised 25,000 sq ft of warehousing and office space.

Using the six-figure loan from Lloyds Bank, Direct Channel Support Services has bought a 30,000 sq ft building situated on Britannia Works in Great Bridge.

The move will provide the business with more capacity to hold stock, which is needed following a substantial uplift in import operations in recent years.

The firm now imports 70% of its goods from 12 countries including India, Poland, Germany, Italy and China.

Direct Channel Support Systems has enjoyed considerable revenue and profit growth in recent months and now has an annual turnover of over £6m. The firm employs 16 people and is in the process of recruited an additional four members of staff who will be based at the new site.

Sid Sidhu, owner and managing director, Direct Channel Support Services, said: “We’ve enjoyed solid sales growth in recent years and as a result, we were more than ready to expand into much larger premises. We wanted to find a suitable site close to our roots in Tipton that’s big enough to accommodate the increasing stock levels we need to meet a high turnover of customer orders. The new one-acre site on which our building is located is perfect for our existing needs and it also provides us with space for further expansion as and when we need it.”

Mark Corfield, relationship manager, Lloyds Bank said: “Direct Channel Support Services is an exciting, innovative and progressive business that has expanded and developed in recent years to become an increasingly well-established player in the cable management market. This acquisition of much larger new premises demonstrates how well Sid and his family-led team has identified clear strategic objectives to maximise and secure future growth in the company. The move has also boosted the local economy by creating new jobs.”