Tissue-paper manufacturer secures multi-million-pound funding deal
Santander has provided a multi-million-pound funding package to Malvern-based Lucart Hygiene to support its growth in the ‘away from home’ tissue paper industry.
Formley known as Essential Supply Products, the tissue paper manufacturer and supplier was acquired by Italian paper manufacturer Lucart SpA in March 2021.
The family-run Lucart group has the capacity to manufacture 390,000 tonnes of tissue annually and has ten production plants and a logistic centre across Italy, France, Hungary, Spain, Germany, as well as the UK, collectively employing a staff of more than 1700.
The funding from Santander will be used to support the refinancing of Lucart Hygiene’s manufacturing facility at Blackmore Park in Malvern, alongside providing an invoice finance facility.
Lucart Hygiene manufactures and supplies tissue paper-based products and dispenser systems to businesses in the UK and Republic of Ireland.
The firm is focusing on products used ‘away from home’-such as toilet paper, hand towels, face tissues, napkins and industrial rolls for use in restaurants, gyms, factories, offices, cleaning companies, and the healthcare sector.
It aims to expands this product category and become the second biggest company in this market in Europe.
Jonny Wilks, Managing Director, Lucart Hygiene said: “With the ever-changing economic challenges businesses are facing, we took the decision to look for a new finance partner to support us through these uncertain times.
“We are pleased to now bank with Santander UK as it understands the needs and values of our business, and, with its support, we are extremely confident about our plans.”
In its first nine months operating as Lucart Hygiene, the business turned over £21.8m, and is forecast to achieve annual turnover of £37m by the end of this year. Its longer-term goal is to achieve annual turnover of £50m within the next five years, and to eventually invest in a paper mill in the UK.
Almost 50% of paper manufactured by Lucart group is produced from recycled material, and it holds several licences and approvals, including the EU Ecolabel (label of environmental excellence), PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) and FSC (Forest stewardship Council) in the countries in which it operates. It also holds ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management Standards.
Mal Powar, Relationship Director at Santander UK, said: “We are delighted to have become Lucart Hygiene’s banking partner, supporting its business plans and growth aspirations, and that of the wider Lucart group, with this flexible funding package.
“The business demonstrates manufacturing innovation with sustainability at the heart of its operations and we look forward to supporting its expansion in the UK.”
