Stairway to success for Bolton handrail business on target to achieve record turnover

A Bolton company which has created bespoke handrails for Google and Facebook’s London headquarters and the Houses of Parliament has tripled its factory space and is on target to reach £2m in turnover this year.

Handrail Creations manufacture and install bespoke timber handrails in prestigious buildings and luxurious homes across the UK and internationally, with their portfolio including projects in Italy, Monaco, Vietnam, and Dubai.

The rapidly expanding business was founded by 34-year-old Kenny Macfarlane and his dad Martin, 58, in 2014.

After achieving a turnover of £1.25m in 2018, the company is set to reach £2m this year, despite COVID-19 causing a three-month downturn.

The firm has tripled its factory space in Burnden Park since its launch, and now occupies a 9,000 sq ft facility, with a new office and design studio opening last month.

The recent expansion follows support from GC Business Growth Hub, part of The Growth Company and part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund.

Expansion will help the business to continue its meteoric growth and has also enabled staff, who were working from home due to the pandemic, to return to work safely.

Handrail Creations is currently managing 130 residential and commercial projects. It employs 22 people with four of its production and design team recruited this year.

The business benefits from the help of dedicated Hub account manager who connects them with the most appropriate support.

Handrail Creations recently invested in a new handheld 3D scanner and design software, with the help of an £11K grant from the Hub’s Made Smarter programme.

Managing Director Kenny Macfarlane said: “What started out as a small, exciting project has exploded and we’ve had to expand to keep up with demand.

“Instead of using traditional chisels and pencils to produce handrails, we use state of the art custom built CNC machinery to manufacture each of our timber handrails.

“With the help of our Hub Account Manager Jonathan, we invested in new 3D software and equipment. The scanner gives our team more design freedom and the technology improves our overall processing speeds by 25 per cent.

“Jonathan has been there, supporting us since we were a start-up. The Hub has been great, opening doors for us to so many resources. We’ve also received support for mentoring and management training.

“Our focus is to now continue to grow our UK footprint over the next three to four years.”

Hub Account Manager, Jonathan Crabtree, added: “Handrail Creations is an innovator in their field, never afraid to embrace change, drive progress and strive to exceed customer expectations.

“Their creative approach, tireless work ethic and focus on quality sets them apart. With these attributes, it is no surprise to see this resilient and forward-thinking business going from strength to strength.

“Kenny is a dynamic leader with a passion for the business. They deserve every success and I look forward to continuing to work with them in the future.”

Businesses looking to access specialist support can visit www.businessgrowthhub.com for more information about the organisation’s extensive range of services. This and other GC Business Growth Hub projects are part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the GM Business Growth Hub project designed to help ambitious SME businesses achieve growth and increase employment in Greater Manchester. The Hub is also supported by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Greater Manchester local authorities.