Strata celebrates surge in turnover as it reaches 25th birthday

A THRIVING Hull company which works with some of the best-known retail brands in the UK has expanded to increase turnover almost tenfold since its first year of operation.

The advent of out-of-town retail and trade parks supported the growth of retail signage firm Strata Holdings, which is celebrating 25 years in business this week and lists organisations such as Paddy Power and Superdrug as clients.

Initially operating as a retail signage company servicing the whole of the UK from a factory on the South Orbital Trading Estate in Hull, Strata now has three separate businesses – Sovereign Signs, Ark Shopfitters and Pearlgreen Engineering. The companies operate from a 50,000 sq ft factory, employ more than 50 people and collectively turn over more than £4m.

Joint chairman, Graham Fisher, said: “We have come a long way from where we started. We’ve grown, expanded and diversified over the years, always looking to bring in or launch complimentary businesses to help support what we’re trying to do. I think that is the main reason we have survived and prospered when others have fallen by the wayside.

“In business, it’s easy to provide a good product and then stand still. Our success has been driven by constantly trying to develop what we do for the good of our clients while adding value.”

The company was formed in 1988 when Mr Fisher and joint chairman Tony Schultz formed Sovereign Signs. Although starting with only a handful of customers, the firm turned over almost £400,000 in the first year.

In 1992, Pearlgreen Engineering was formed as a business to support the already booming sign manufacturing and installation division. Across the next few years other supplementary businesses – including a shop-fitting business, a laser cutting division and powder coating enterprise – were all either bought or formed and amalgamated into the family of businesses. Following a decade of shopfitting, ARK Shopfitters was launched in 2008.