Monday Interview: Nick Garthwaite, managing director at Christeyns UK

Nick Garthwaite joined Bradford-based Christeyns UK in 2010 and has led the firm through numerous acquisitions in recent years. Now he has plans to further grow the business and inspire the next generation of manufacturers.

Garthwaite trained as an engineer and previously worked for Flender Power Transition for 26 years, which he described as “a fantastic company built on German efficiency.”

Christeyns UK supplies detergents, supporting chemicals and engineering expertise for the commercial laundry sector as well manufacturing chemicals for the construction industry. The company reported a turnover of £31.5m in 2017 and an 11% operating profit.

He said: “In 2011, we were on an acquisitive trail. We bought a couple of smaller businesses of various types and the jewel in our crown in those deals was a Warrington based hygiene business.

“Otherwise, we have sought organic growth to protect key divisions of the commercial  laundry company and that’s been fantastic for Bradford.”

Garthwaite said the firm, which employs 130 in Bradford, as well as 70 in Warrington and 40 in Leicester, had to be “pretty innovative” to keep ahead of the market and win business. Christeyns UK is part of the Christeyns group, based in Gent, Belgium.

“In the chemicals solutions market, for example, we are delivering great benefits for customers by extending textile life. That product in particular is continuing to sell with great success,” he added.

“We are a national company, from one end of the UK to the other. We have very ambitious plans to grow further because we have a great track record of delivering equipment and services. We have also invested heavily in machinery and plant to make processes efficient and that has to be part of the DNA of what we do.

“We have specific large projects to fulfil in 2018 and that will enable us to grow; but that would not be possible without the skills expertise we have in Bradford.

“I know in this company we have a great group of people. Christeyns UK went through a process of a culture change and people have embraced that. This includes continuous improvement.”

Garthwaite said the firm was also focusing on Industry 4.0 and what that means for the business going forward. He added that this could make the firm more efficient in the way it operates, reducing the demands on staff while ensuring the right productivity levels are met to grow and run a successful business.

Garthwaite, who is also the president of Bradford Chamber of Commerce, said that part of his focus in this role would this year  be to inspire the next generation into manufacturing and engineering. He added: “Young people don’t always have a clear idea of what they want to do when they leave school. We want to encourage more to come into this sector; there are so many areas to every business and our sector needs to promote the benefits of what it has to offer as a career.”

In this regard, he will be involved in the chamber’s first manufacturing week later this year.

Garthwaite was born in London but has lived in Yorkshire for the majority of his life; currently residing in Menston. In his spare time, he likes spending time with his family; he has two daughters and four grand-children. He also like clay pigeon shooting, walking and narrow boating.

 

 

Close