Health and beauty product manufacturer in line for robust results

A HEALTH and beauty product manufacturer is poised for substantial growth after the recession elevated its popularity.

Inline Health & Beauty specialises in products for discount retailers. It sells it own ranges, Anovia and Aloha in shops such as Poundland, Home Bargains and B&M. It has also secured a deal with Tesco to sell its Anovia range.

Founded by chemist and entrepreneur Christian Cain in 1997, the business has tripled in size since 2008, just before the recession hit.

Inline moved into a 26,000 sq ft manufacturing facility on the Felnex Trading Estate in Cross Green last year and is on target to achieve a turnover of £5m by 2015.

Anovia, which features over 20 products including shower gels, body lotions and children’s shampoos and conditioners, has grown by 25% in the last three years.

Cain said part of Inline’s success is because more people are willing to “shop around”.

He said his business is now focused on product development.

“Footfall is changing all of the time in discount shops. Young people are experimenting in the discount stores and now, we are strategically looking at our own brands and doing exactly the right thing. We are really getting behind them.

“We are looking to launch a facial range, foot care range and extend our other ranges, too. We want to launch a make-up range and extend our Aloha Suncare products.

“For us, it is about making sure our sales team have something to sell to our buyers.”

Inline’s products sell at budget prices, a fraction of the price you would expect to find quality skincare products for, but Cain says everything has to go through the same clinical trials and done to the same ISO standards – there is no difference between his products and the more expensive ones.

“Having a chemistry degree has enabled me to understand how luxury personal care brands formulate their products and then develop affordable alternatives that do not compromise on quality,” Cain said.

Inline has spent around £800,000 over the past 10 years on equipment and £450,000 moving into its new site but Cain said that by focusing on lean manufacturing, multi-skilling his workforce of 22 people and investing in quality equipment, the costs are lower for the business.

The firm creates around 25 different products on a weekly basis. Inline also manufactures products for other businesses, sending out contracted work across the UK.

“The investment for us now will be in product development and new products,” Cain said.

Inline is working with UKTI to have a bigger push in exporting. The firm said exporting has doubled in the last 12 months – accounting for £300,000 of its turnover.

Cain said: “I see exports as a big opportunity for us. There isn’t as much price pressure and British manufactured brands are strong.”

Cain said that other brands which are trying to tap into the discount market are becoming more of a challenge for Inline, as well as supermarkets creating pound aisles. 

Earlier this year, Inline received an RGF grant of almost £70,000 from the Leeds City Region LEP and used the money to improve IT, equipment and the site

“I am looking forward to reaching the target of £5m and that is when I will decide if we will carry on growing.”