The big thumbs up
Kensington dominates West Lancashire property scene The housing boom of the past five years has been a launch pad for Lytham St Annes-based Kensington Developments and its Cypress Point scheme (5).
With a turnover of £319m in the last financial year, the property development company has enjoyed rapid and sustained expansion, achieving an average year-on-year growth rate of 253 per cent.
Kensington has built a reputation for building good-quality homes in prime residential locations. Its focus is on quality and value for money and its showpiece development is the massive Cypress Point, off Regent Avenue, between the Lancashire towns of St Annes and Lytham.
This development, which boasts its own oriental-style lake, has become an integral part of what was already one of the region's most prestigious residential areas. Its mix of apartments, family and executive homes has made it popular both with owner occupiers and buy-to let investors. Other developments in and around Lytham have been completed recently by Kensington, and the company has arguably become the best-known development name on the Fylde coast, providing property across the spectrum, from retirement apartments to five- and six-bedroom family homes with price tags approaching £31m.
Full steam ahead Business is buoyant for North West-based shipping agent Bahr Behrend Agencies (3), a specialist service provider for liner operators and ship owners.
Headquartered in Liverpool, with offices in London, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Immingham and Sheffield, the 212-
year-old business is well placed to deliver nationwide services to shipping lines aiming to build their market in the UK.
Enhanced links with the US and Far East have enabled the company to develop operations globally - a critical factor in a world economy increasingly focused on heading east.
Liverpool-based director and general manager Jeremy Mounsey comments: "Because large volumes of goods and materials are being brought from the Far East, this is having a beneficial effect on our business."
As a result, turnover has risen by an annual average of 286 per cent to £319m, from £31.5m four years previously.
The company manages a broad spectrum of shipping requirements, including cargo generation and marketing facilities, as well as booking, transportation and accounting services.
A purpose-built IT system maintains contact with major exporters and importers, while the company links into a national network of container depots sited at strategic locations around the UK.
Bahr Behrend Agencies has a long and eventful history, stretching back to 1793 - 12 years before the Battle of Trafalgar - when Danish ship owner Lorentz Hansen founded a ships agency business in Liverpool.
He later entered into partnership with Charles Louis Bahr, who went on to develop a successful ship-broking business. In 1835 Bahr was joined by David Behrend and the Bahr Behrend moniker was created.
Bahr Behrend continued as an independent shipping and transport business until 2003, when it was acquired by J & J Denholm. Bahr Behrend Agencies was set up as a separate joint venture company in 1998 by Bahr Behrend and its largest liner principal, Zim Integrated Shipping Services.
Tailor-made success Rag trade entrepreneur Anjum Ahmed cut his cloth to an ambitious pattern, generating remarkable expansion at Manchester-based Nik Nak Clothing (9).
Ahmed's business, founded 20 years ago, has seen average annual turnover grow by almost 180 per cent over four years, taking the figure from £31.8m to £314.5m - and generating a pre-tax profit of £3280,000.
Nik Nak imports and exports men's, women's and children's clothing, sourcing quality garments in the Far East and selling to lucrative markets, principally in mainland Europe.
More than 80 per cent of sales are generated on the Continent and around
10 per cent in the UK. However, the company's growth strategy involves boosting sales in the domestic market to achieve parity with Continental operations.
Nik Nak's operations manager Jeff Brown says: "We are focusing a lot of our resources on bringing UK sales into line with our performance in Europe because we believe there is a significant market in the UK that we can profitably exploit. Quite simply, the quality and price of our goods is better than those of our competitors."
Brown puts Nik Nak's successful expansion in recent years down to the energy and entrepreneurial savvy of managing director Ahmed.
"Anjum's contribution to the business' growth has been huge. His positive attitude and commercial aggression have resulted in us getting many new customers who have been impressed by our ability to give them the right goods, at the right price and delivered on time."
The company's development has been supported by its 21 employees and two show rooms in central Manchester.
Brown is upbeat about Nik Nak's prospects. "I am quite confident that we will continue to grow - we are well equipped to look to the future with confidence and ambition," he says.
Auto Union Finance goes through the gears Warrington-based finance broker Auto Union Finance (AUF) (2) has accelerated at lightning pace, driving explosive growth through diversification.
The result has been soaring turnover, from £31.5m to £322m over a four-year period, which translates into an impressive average annual rise of 380 per cent.
AUF, which employs 38 staff, was formed in 1993 by the chief executive John Pattinson and Alan Taylor.
Much of the success is down to diversification through acquisition. The company added a thriving leasing and contract hire business to its portfolio and, three years ago, obtained a motor finance brokerage based in Worthing, West Sussex.
These acquisitions gave AUF national coverage and generated critical mass. Other additions included a vehicle sourcing and supply service, a finance company, a solicitors' fee factoring arm and a water cooler/filter rental business.
The group's wide-ranging activities were streamlined by major restructuring in September 2004. A holding company, Anglo European Credit Group, was established with four subsidiaries - AUF, Auto Union Finance (Southern), Anglo European Finance and Credit Direct.
Each was given a dedicated director able to focus on moving his or her business forward. Not only did the restructuring enable the company to allocate an equity share to some of its key performers, but set it on the road to a potential flotation.
The group's client base is diverse, with around 90 per cent of its brokerage business coming through motor dealers and 10 per cent directly from businesses.
"Our reputation and close liaison with manufacturers and major financial services institutions means we can offer some of the best rates available," says Pattinson.
In your debt Helping to alleviate the burgeoning burden of personal debt has enabled Baines and Ernst (6) to develop a successful business - and play a major role in addressing a serious social problem.
Formed six years ago, the Manchester-based licensed debt counselling company has helped more than 100,000 individuals resolve their debt situations.
With over 300 employees, many with degrees or professional qualifications, Baines and Ernst has positioned itself at the forefront of an increasingly significant market.
Average annual turnover has increased by more than 250 per cent over four years, to more than £319m.
Originally a debt collection agency, it quickly became clear that most clients had multiple debts that they could not repay in full. So Ernst and Baines changed from being debt collectors to a company that helped people make reduced payment arrangements with their creditors, while providing ongoing support until the debt problem had been brought under control.
"We aim our service at people who have debt difficulties and who can afford to pay for help in resolving those difficulties. Put simply, our clients are not poor, they just have a debt problem and we see our role as helping them regain control of their finances," explains a spokesperson.
Crowning moment Preston-based Crown Leisure (4) -
one of the UK's largest coin-operated gaming and amusement equipment operators - is on a winning streak.
With turnover climbing dramatically from £37m to £369m over four years,
shareholders can reflect on the glittering prizes of success.
Crown - which also has depots in Leeds, Stourport, Bristol, Washington, Nottingham, Essex and Edinburgh - combines the operation and distribution of leisure machines with efficient customer care.
Established in 1976, Crown has grown to become a high-profile business in the UK, as well as building a solid reputation globally. Among its partners and products are Astra, Ace, Bally Gaming Systems, Benchmark Games, Barcrest Games, Bell-Fruit Games and Electrocoin.
A significant stage in the company's development came last October when it announced a UK distribution agreement with Felix Group.
The deal involved Crown acquiring the distribution rights for Felix's Everyone's a Winner sales promotion cabinets in the UK leisure sector. Under the arrangement, Crown works with a new division of Felix,
set up to coordinate broadband and machine installation, maintenance and cash collection.
Crown distributes Everyone's a Winner cabinets among its estate of more than 14,000 machines and through its distribution division, Crown Direct - the largest independent distributor of amusement equipment in the UK.
Dennis Roden, managing director of Crown Direct, says: "In developing Everyone's a Winner Felix has created a very different type of attraction for the leisure sector. We are pleased to be a part of this innovation."
Another major achievement was chalked up earlier this year when a partnership deal was finalised with amusement machine maker Astra, which wanted to strengthen its UK distribution channels. Astra's previous agreement with Crown subsidiary Deith Leisure was expanded to incorporate the entire group.
"We are thrilled to be able to offer both Astra and Novomatic products in the UK market. Both brands are market leaders and we look forward to working closely with the Astra team going forward," says Crown sales director Dean Harding.
Technical edge is a winner for LMS Ellesmere Port-based Legal Marketing Services (LMS) (7) has the technical edge on its competitors and is on the fast track to expansion.
The firm is the market leader in all aspects of outsourced property support services, managing over 300,000 conveyancing transactions a year and enabling loans in excess of £326bn. It works with high street lenders, including Abbey and Nationwide and a range of mortgage clubs.
LMS has averaged 245 per cent annual growth over the past four years and with a turnover of £363m in the last financial year now has over 70 employees.
As a provider of outsourced legal services for lenders, LMS has access to experts in conveyancing, remortgaging, surveys, valuations and home information packs. Because speed matters when it comes to lending and conveyancing, the company has placed a huge emphasis on the use of hardware and software to revolutionise the lending process.
LMS has invested heavily to ensure that most transactions are electronic, speeding up the process and cutting down paperwork. That reliance on computer systems has enabled it to provide an efficient service at a competitive price, putting it in touch with a national network of solicitors and professional services so that work can be placed where there is capacity - with no hold ups in the system.
In 2003 LMS moved to Cheshire Oaks as part of its ongoing expansion and in May this year unveiled a new system to streamline remortgaging. Named Hub, the system is the result of a year-long development by LMS, including a re-evaluation of the traditional remortgaging process.
Chris Harris, legal services director,
says: "Succeeding in business in a hugely competitive market is not luck, it's a science. LMS has been almost fanatical about putting customers and business partners at the heart of the operation. This extends throughout the organisation with everyone in LMS living and breathing our mission statement. It ensures that what we build is more than fit for purpose, but actually provides real value for those using our services.
"The key to our growth and success has always been to deliver services and solutions that give value not only to our suppliers and our customers, but also to their customers. We continue to push ourselves to offer better services at better prices, and the forthcoming changes in the housing industry will only succeed in driving that determination still further."
Making contact Altrincham-based marketing company LBM (8) sharpened its competitive edge by harnessing superior technology to manage its contact centre operations.
In a fiercely competitive market, LBM uses digital business information services, supported by call centres, direct mail and email to manage marketing campaigns.
The company hooked up with contact centre technology specialist Amcat after the Salford Quays operation came out top in an exacting selection procedure.
LBM uses Amcat technology to run 1,300 contact centre positions at two sites in the North West, plus another 450
positions at the company's new Belfast operation.
Statistics provided by the Amcat system means call centre managers can fine-tune operations.
"Setting appointments is a good example, enabling us to analyse how we can get even better results. For instance, we can establish which times are most effective for successful bookings," says LBM's John Paterson.
"The level of reporting can be drilled down to such a level that we can offer our customers the optimum level of return on the investment."
BETTER BY DESIGN The philosophy of Anglo Design Group (1) founder Mike Newton is one of constant innovation, with the flexibility to rapidly move from the drawing board to a physical product, to meet the demands of customers worldwide.
He's done it in CCTV and is confident that by the time they bring their products to market, Anglo Design (AD) will have moved on, maintaining a competitive advantage: "We're pioneers in the industry; when we innovate it's not by adding a whistle or bell to a box but by introducing something genuinely new."
Whatever area the group commits its energies to, from leading-edge CCTV systems for aircraft to video smoke detection, its growth has been achieved as a result of understanding where demand will come from for new products.
Take a trip on a transatlantic jet, for example, and one of AD's subsidiaries could very well have supplied the video servers dropped into the airport's IT network to monitor your progress as a passenger through to the gate; mobile CCTV recorders to keep track of groundside vehicles and, when on board, specialised internal cameras/recorders to monitor the cabin environment and, externally, to ensure that the undercarriage has deployed correctly.
For the individual companies that make up the group, the real practical benefit they gain from the being part of a group like AD is the ability to tap into technology knowledge. A good example is NetVu Connected, the software technology DNA from AD that is now at the very heart of the latest range of networked video over the internet.
Likewise, security networks developed by Dedicated Micros are able to take connectivity to another level again and can be used in a variety of places ranging from monitoring school buses, to keeping cockpit doors secure on international passenger aircraft.
DAVENHAM DAYS Not only is the Davenham Group (43)
a backer of growing businesses, it is one itself. One of the UK's leading independent asset-based lenders, Davenham is now gearing up for more rapid growth following the completion of its new executive board and a significant increase in its lending facility.
David Coates, who joined at the end of last year, has become chief executive. Steven Marsh continues as group managing director and Paul Burke has joined as the new finance director. Of the group's founding directors, Colin Davenport has assumed the role of deputy chairman, while Mike Hamlyn has retired.
The new team has negotiated an increased three-year revolving credit facility of £3175m through The Royal Bank of Scotland, which acted as lead arranger for a consortium of seven banks.
Originally formed in Manchester in 1991, Davenham was acquired by management in June 2000 in a £360m buyout backed by Dunedin and Indigo Capital. With offices in Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Birmingham and London, it has over 4,000 customers and provides funding options from £35,000 to £33m.
Coates says: "Davenham has been extremely successful but we now believe the time is right to step up to another level. We have a strong team in place with the necessary skills and experience to establish Davenham as a national lender."
LOCAL FOOTBALL FIGHTS ON Here is a tale of two businesses. The same industry, arch competitors, similar traditions, similar turnover and equally as colourful recent corporate history. The intriguing sub-plot in the story of these two North West rivals is that both are Premiership football clubs.
And, like the tale of Manchester United and its takeover by a highly leveraged American, they both prove how difficult it is to stay in the game and to turn a profit in a business that sees its expanding turnover absorbed by player wages.
Both Burnden Leisure (34), the parent company of Bolton Wanderers, and Blackburn Rovers Football and Athletic Club (48) are private companies controlled by secretive offshore shareholders. Until 2003 Burnden Leisure was listed on the Alternative Investment Market, but was taken off the list. A capital reorganisation in December 2003 saw the club's ownership transfer to the Edwin Davies Trust for £32.25m. That deal still angers small shareholders who believe they did not receive fair value for their shares - Bolton's justification for the reorganisation was an urgent need to repay debts to banks.
No such reorganisation has occurred at Blackburn Rovers where the owner of the company is also an offshore entity, BRFC Investments Limited, incorporated in the Channel Islands. Ultimate control of this company is held by the trustees of the J Walker BRFC Settlement, the trust of the family of the late Jack Walker, the steel tycoon who bankrolled the club through the 1990s and died in 2000. It is not known exactly what provisions for the future of the business are included in that settlement, nor who the trustees are.
Both businesses are entirely football focused; gone are the days when football clubs were part of diversified business interests. Bolton has a joint venture with De Vere Hotels that produced £37.7m of income, but beyond that the football activities of Burnden Leisure are remarkably comparable to Blackburn Rovers.
While Bolton had a turnover of £340.9m, recording a profit of £32.6m, Blackburn Rovers had a turnover of £340.8m and turned in a loss of £35.1m. Blackburn Rovers employs 244 staff. Bolton employs 196 people - the club does not have an academy to rear young talent, like Blackburn enjoys.
Both clubs are included in a ranking of top growing companies in the region by the surge in top-line turnover brought upon by their rejoining the Premiership division of football's hierarchy in 2001. The income that both businesses enjoy as a result of a collective TV deal with Sky has seen Blackburn's income from media for the year hit £321.79m. Bolton's was £324.83m. The amount taken through ticket sales is £36.81m (declining) in the case of Blackburn and £38.33m (increasing) for Bolton.
One anomaly is the commercial income. Bolton reports the following as total income from commercial revenue: helpfully broken down to include £31.99m from corporate hospitality; £31.61m from merchandising; and, £32.67m from sponsorship and advertising. Even with a vague £31.5m thrown in as "other football income" that adds up to a figure of £37.77m. Blackburn reports a higher amount of £312.25m. And yet in almost every regard Bolton is the more successful business. Even allowing for a donation of £33m from the J Walker BRFC Settlement, this seems high. Either Blackburn is better supported through its excellent corporate hospitality facilities or it can only be assumed that someone, somewhere - possibly the Walker family - is paying a generous price for hospitality facilities at Ewood Park.
On the issue of executive pay, like many other areas, football operates on a different playing field to other businesses with matching turnover. John Williams, the chief executive of Blackburn Rovers, received a total package of £3289,234 (2003: £3267,385). His opposite number at Bolton, Alan Duckworth, is more modestly renumerated with a package of £3271,000, but this probably belies the more active role played at Bolton by chairman Phil Gartside, who takes a salary of £3120,000; and his own business Arley Partnership took £3134,000 in consultancy fees.
Blackburn gets the better audit deal - Porter Matthews and Marsden charge just £314,000 as opposed to the £343,000 paid by Burnden Leisure to Deloitte.
Gartside angered existing shareholders when he restructured the club's finances and introduced Eddies Davies, an Isle of Man-based businessman and the owner of Strix, a business that has prospered from selling thermostat controls for kettles. He also fell out with fellow director Ian Currie, a well-known corporate financier, and Currie left the board in September 2004.
So where can these businesses go next? Who, other than a wealthy diehard supporter, would buy them? And what is the price of playing football at this level? Players wages have dropped at Blackburn, slightly to £331m, but their proportion of turnover is still 77 per cent. With such a heavy dependence on Sky TV money, and no evidence of the bottomless Walker pockets, Blackburn Rovers has seen the working overdraft increase to £316m from £314m in 2003 as the turnover has declined, but there is still a capital requirement for new players. It is clear the business would face financial meltdown in the face of relegation from the Premiership.
What of the Walker money? Rovers' balance sheet makes intriguing reading. Called up share capital is on the balance sheet at £3119.99m. Bolton's is just £318m. Ninety million of these shares issued in 2001 are redeemable in 2021. How that will happen is not clear from the current trading performance described above.
Also in: June 2005
-
Working Lunch
Harborow fair
-
Manchester United
Red or dead