New markets create jobs and growth at Arctic Hayes

Leeds-based Arctic Hayes is set for turnover growth as it targets new markets with its portfolio of plumbing and heating products.

The company is the UK’s leading supplier of specialist safety, testing and servicing products to the plumbing and heating industry.

Arctic Hayes was launched two years ago after Hayes UK acquired Arctic Products in a deal financed by £1.2m of development capital from Finance Yorkshire’s Equity Linked Fund in partnership with Santander’s Breakthrough Growth Capital Fund.

Since Finance Yorkshire’s investment, Arctic Hayes has increased its workforce from 20 to 25 and is further recruiting this year for positions at its Beeston headquarters.

The business is on track to achieve £6.5m turnover this year, up almost £1m on last year. In addition, it has recently secured almost £1m of new business with an existing large merchant customer.

While the plumbing and heating industry remains the core of its business, Arctic Hayes is now promoting its products to the electrical, building and DIY sectors.

Managing Director Karl Dallimore said: “Bringing our two established businesses together means we have developed strong brand recognition and it has given us the firepower in terms of our staff to target new markets.

“Product development is also a big focus for us in the next 12 months – we have employed a product development manager to develop products which we can add to our portfolio and take to existing customers.”

In addition, Arctic Hayes is developing its international sales strategy, growing a network of distributors for its products in the US, Canada and Australia as well as Europe. Supplying privately branded products to key customers is also generating revenue growth for the company.

Karl and Arctic Hayes CEO Lee Parsons have recently appointed Steve Sutherland as chairman. Steve has a wealth of experience in the UK construction and plumbing and heating industries.

He said: “During my time with the business I have been impressed by the team’s ability to quickly turn a concept into practical reality. I’m delighted to be part of this dynamic team, and the scope for further growth is significant.”

Stephen Cardwell, Portfolio Manager at Finance Yorkshire, said: “Our investment provided the catalyst for Arctic Hayes to establish the business in a single location in Yorkshire from where it has delivered new jobs and impressive growth in just two years. The Arctic Hayes management team is ambitious for further growth and its strategy to penetrate new markets and target international sales indicates continued strong performance by the company.”

Since its inception, Finance Yorkshire has invested in more than 460 companies, enabling those businesses to increase their turnover by a collective £377 million and attract a further £273 million from private sector sources. Finance Yorkshire investment has helped those SMEs to create and safeguard more than 12,000 jobs in the region.

Finance Yorkshire provides seedcorn, loan and equity linked investments, ranging from £15,000 to £2m to help a range of small and medium sized businesses to meet their funding requirements for growth and development.

The project is supported financially by the European Union. It has attracted investment from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), as part of Europe’s support for the region’s economic development through the Yorkshire and Humber ERDF Programme, UK Government and the European Investment Bank. Finance Yorkshire is also supported by the Regional Growth Fund.

Note: this news article is from Finance Yorkshire’s previous fund. Read more about Finance Yorkshire