Rapid Energy HQ deal brings jobs and investment to Redditch
One of Worcestershire’s newest industrial developments has been acquired in a deal that is bringing jobs and investment from a fast-growing HVAC hire firm to Redditch.
Ian Parker, joint managing director at John Truslove, has overseen the 10-year leasing deal that sees Rapid Energy open a new Midlands HQ as part of a £5m, five-year investment programme in Redditch.
The company has taken the first new speculative industrial development in the area for many years, providing 16,000 sq ft of modern office and warehousing space.
Rapid Energy hires out heating and cooling equipment, including boilers, to customers nationwide in the healthcare, defence, industrial and education sectors. The Redditch move is the company’s first expansion outside its Sheerness base in Kent.
Chief executive Julien Fougere said: “We chose Redditch because of its excellent transport links and the availability of its educated and motivated workforce.
“There’s a high concentration of mechanical and technical skills that are applicable to our business within this area. We’re proud that we have taken a working environment that honours the investment we’re making in our employees.”
Founded in 2020, the company is experiencing substantial growth.
Fougere said: “We are growing our turnover in excess of 200% per year.
“We have grown from seven employees last year to 18. We have hired seven people in Redditch in the last year, and the majority of the future employment opportunities we create in the next 18 months will be in Redditch.
“We have an allocated headcount to add a further four employees there this year.
“The initial investment to open Redditch was only £350,000. We plan to invest £5m in Redditch over the next five years.”
Rapid Energy worked with Ian Parker at John Truslove to secure a 10-year lease, at £160,000 per annum, on Unit 48F in Pipers Road, on the Park Farm Industrial Estate. This 16,000 sq ft new development provides both office and warehousing space.
The Midlands depot will be headed by Rapid Energy’s sales director Stephen Reynolds.
Parker added: “This is an important deal for both Rapid Energy and for the local area, bringing jobs and long-term investment from a company that is clearly going places.
“We were delighted to be able to provide our experience and knowledge of the area’s commercial property market to help achieve a deal that will have a major positive impact on the local economy.”
