Strong showing by West Midlands firms in latest Top Track 100
SOME of the best known businesses in the West Midlands have been named in the latest league table of Britain’s biggest private companies.
Top slot in the Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 100, published this weekend, goes to Birmingham-based food group 2 Sisters which is listed 7th, one place above last year’s ranking, with sales of £3,140m and profits of £144m.
The group acquired the Giraffe café chain from Tesco last month and is reported considering a bid for turkey business Bernard Matthews.
Staffordshire excavator manufacturer JCB is 14th in the list, up four places, with sales of £2,515m and profits of £260m, while Stoke-on-Trent bookmaker bet365 is 26th, two places above last year’s ranking. Figures supplied by the business show sales of £1,659m and profits of £498m.
Sir Peter Rigby’s Rigby Group is 27th, three places above last year. The Coventry-based property, computing and aviation business shows sales of £1,628m and profits of £34m.
Staffordshire-based healthcare provider, Healthcare at Home comes in eight places above last year’s ranking at 36, with sales of £1,426m and profits of £6m. Three places below them is Black Country- based cash and carry business, AF Blakemore, which rises four places with sales of £1,276m and profits of £19m.
Stratford-upon-Avon motor dealer, Listers is 48th on the list, a rise of six places on last year, with sales of £1,090m and profits of £19m. Next is fellow motor dealer business, Greenhous. The Shrewsbury-based business takes pride of place in the regional rankings with a 15 place climb on last year to 60.
Warwick-based energy supplier First Utility is the only new regional company to appear in the rankings, coming in at 64th spot with sales of £838m and profits of £6m.
Birmingham-based frozen food retailer, Farmfoods drops three places to 76, with sales of £796m and profits of £26m.
Burton-upon-Trent-based manufacturer Doncasters has endured a tough year and this is reflected in its drop of 14 places in the ranking to 99th, with sales reaching £637m but profits remain high at £120m.
The league table is sponsored by HSBC and international law firm Linklaters, and is compiled by researching and events networking company Fast Track.
Dan Howlett, head of corporate banking in the UK at HSBC, said: “At a time of unprecedented uncertainty, we can take real comfort from the dynamic private companies across the UK as recognised by the Top Track 100 league table.
“Firms such as these are fundamental in helping to get Britain back to business during this post-Brexit period of uncertainty and the inevitable challenges ahead. These businesses are ambitious, agile and passionate about what they do and will play an important part in helping to drive the British economy forward, domestically and internationally.”
