Kirklees’ Top 100 companies for 2022-2023 revealed
Kirklees’ Top 100 Companies is a partnership between the University, Kirklees Council, Huddersfield Examiner, and the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3M BIC). This year saw Buy It Direct leap ahead of Thornton & Ross in the fight for top spot, with PPG Architectural Coatings taking third
THE Top 100 companies in Kirklees for 2022/23 were unveiled recently at the initiative’s first ever face-to-face launch event. Four new businesses entered the Top 10 with the battle for top place being tightly fought between the region’s biggest hitters.
Buy It Direct now holds the top spot, overtaking last year’s leaders Thornton & Ross. PPG Architectural Coatings maintains its position in third. Five new entries made it into the Top 10, with 25 companies new to the overall list, demonstrating Kirklees’ vibrant and diverse business economy with a wide range of services and manufacturers.
The Kirklees Top 100 Companies is a partnership between the University of Huddersfield, Kirklees Council, Huddersfield Examiner, and the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3M BIC) that has renewed its commitment of celebrating the top firms in the district for the third year running.
The University’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Bob Cryan said it was interesting to see the diverse range of businesses that have featured in this year’s list
“The district has a strong heritage in manufacturing, textiles, health and engineering, with companies of all sizes driving forward innovation,” said Professor Cryan.
“It’s great to see businesses flourish and be given the opportunity to showcase their capabilities and achievements through the Kirklees Top 100 to help inspire future generations across Kirklees,” he added.
The 2021 list was unveiled at the John Smith’s Stadium, supported by Huddersfield Town Football Club, with representatives from the top 100 businesses and partner organisations in attendance.
As expected, businesses that thrived during the pandemic and made it into the Top 10, include online retailers, computing, health-related companies, as well as others in financial services, brand consultancy, paint production, textile flooring specialists, recovery services and civil engineering.
Buy it Direct was named the most successful company in Kirklees this year having taken the top spot from previous winners, Thornton & Ross. Based on Leeds Road in Huddersfield and founded in 1999 by Nick Glynne, Buy It Direct sells products such as laptops, kitchen appliances, TVs, furniture and bathrooms through a network of websites including Laptops Direct, Appliances Direct and Furniture 123. The group now employs around 1,000 employees with sites nationwide serving the whole of the UK.
In this video Nathan Paul, Head of Business Solutions at Buy It Direct Limited, talks about their inclusion in the Kirklees Top 100.
On winning the top accolade, Buy it Direct’s CEO and founder, Nick Glynne, revealed that he had never taken a lifestyle approach to business because it has always been about building BID for the long term.
"Business is a bit like snakes and ladders,” he said. “The pandemic and the drift to online was a fantastic ladder, the snake comes from inflation, freight charges and the recession. A long-term approach to business means you can benefit from the good times and manage those that are challenging.
“Kirklees is an amazing place to work and base a business. People are its best offering. We are proud to be named the top company in the district and gain recognition for our long-term strategy,” he concluded.
Those attending the event included Jacqui Gedman, CEO of Kirklees Council, Daniel McGeachie, head of partnerships & business development at Huddersfield Town Football Club, Kristen Holley, head of UK operations from Thornton & Ross and Nick Lancaster, the University’s director of research, innovation and knowledge exchange, who took part in a discussion panel on the day.
Partner representatives included Councillor Shabir Pandor, leader of Kirklees Council; Sue Cooke, CEO of 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3M BIC), Professor Jill Johnes, Dean of Huddersfield Business School who announced the Top 100 list.
Sue Cooke, CEO of the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre, hopes that more businesses within the Top 100 list will take advantage of being part of this exclusive list over the coming years and seek opportunities to collaborate and drive future business growth.
“We were able to bring together the Kirklees business community for the first time since the initiative was launched three years ago. The Kirklees Top 100 has always been about increasing collaboration across Kirklees,” she said.
Here, Richard Brown, Managing Director at Spectrum Yarns Limited talks about being named as one of the regions top 100 companies following their inclusion to the list.
List sponsor CityFibre’s city manager, Steve Moore, announced the winners of the awards for Highest Climber, Highest Placed SME, and Highest New Entrant. This year these were awarded to Spectrum Yarns, Interiors Goods Direct Ltd and Phoenox Textiles, respectively.
Councillor Shabir Pandor, leader of Kirklees Council, said: “Being able to celebrate the achievements of Kirklees’ companies today has been fantastic, after what has been a challenging period for many.
"The business community plays a crucial role in our local economy, which is why it’s so important that we support it to help it thrive for future generations. We are certainly putting Kirklees on the map as a place not just for small businesses but global organisations, showcasing innovation and our globally respected manufacturing and textile heritages, ” she added.
A spin-off Careers Edition of this year’s event brochure, sponsored by CityFibre, will be launched soon and hopes to inspire young people across Kirklees and Calderdale about the vast array of exciting careers with companies that are right on their doorstep.
- Follow @KirkleesTop100 on Twitter and Kirklees Top 100 on LinkedIn to stay in touch with news about the Kirklees Top 100 Companies.
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