Features / The surgery
Business surgery: Blue Badge Company
Year established: 2011
Where the company is based: Montpelier
Sector: Manufacturing/Retail
Number of staff: 16
Owners: Ellen Green
Key clients: Argos, Boots, Halfords, The Post Office, Lloyds Pharmacy, Day Lewis Pharmacy and more. People can also buy direct through our website.
Website: www.bluebadgecompany.co.uk
Company overview
Blue Badge Company designs and handcrafts practical but beautiful living aids and home and travel accessories for disabled and elderly people.
Set up by a young Bristol designer shortly after she received her first disabled parking permit, the company started by creating attractive blue badge display wallets.
It has now expanded and diversified to offer lap trays, walking stick bags, hot water bottle covers, radar keys and more, in a range of colourful prints and designs inspired by William Morris, Roald Dahl and Lotta Jansdotter, among others.
Blue Badge Company aims to inject some colour and style into the disability market, which has traditionally been dominated by dull, clinical items.
All handmade in the UK, the company’s products are design-led and say much more about the buyer’s personality than their disability.
Blue Badge Company has now sold more than 130,000 of its wallets across the UK and its workforce – 40 per cent of whom are either registered disabled or are primary care givers – has grown from one to 16 in the last four years.
The company has recently been shortlisted for Business in the Community’s (BITC) Responsible Business Awards.
The Challenge
We need to move into bigger premises if we are to grow any more as a business. This will involve significant investment in terms of money and time but will not immediately translate into more sales.
The Bristol commercial property market is very aggressive and we are struggling to find anywhere in the right location, at the right price. If we get any bigger we will also be hit hard by business rates generating more costs that do not contribute to increasing sales. Any advice?
FEEDBACK
Chris Lewis, Partner at Deloitte
Premises can represent a major fixed cost burden for a business and increasingly we’ve found that clients are looking at new ways to solve their requirements. Co-working and serviced office solutions are experiencing a renaissance as they allow businesses of all sizes to exercise flexibility and control. Of course these don’t suit everyone and where a traditional office lease is the only real route to be taken, priority should be given to properly considering new ways of working. By adopting alternative operating models it may be possible to build greater efficiency into your space requirements and in doing so realise meaningful cost savings.
Philip Collis, Associate at TLT
The lack of physical space is a pressing issue for many businesses as they look to expand while keeping costs under control. To start with, analyse carefully how you are using your current space, for example is it used for storage of stock, archives or other items which would be better off in cheaper accommodation elsewhere. Also consider whether you can reconfigure your existing space to provide more desks if that is what is needed.
If you decide that you do have to move, consider carefully what you need and where. Again, storage space for stock or equipment will be cheaper than office space, particularly if it is out of town. If you need office space then consider what your long term needs are likely to be i.e. how many people will you need to accommodate in 3 to 5 years’ time. Also consider whether you would prefer the flexibility of a short term lease or the security of a longer term lease, possibly with rights to terminate early if you need to move. The most secure position comes from purchasing your own freehold but this will use up significant capital.
Your best move is to talk to a respected Bristol property consultancy and they will advise you on the best solution in your circumstances. You must of course remember the significant hidden costs of a move including fit out of new premises, new equipment, legal and other professionals fees and possibly stamp duty land tax.