A Shropshire custom clothing manufacturer and supplier of personalised workwear has pushed the button on a major expansion drive after seeing orders surge as the economy prepares to reopen.
Telford-based
MyWorkwear has bounced back from an initial drop in orders twelve months ago to post an impressive £300,000 increase in sales, with contracts - from coffee shops and caravan parks to entertainers and bakeries - being placed in the last few months.
Demand has been so strong that the company has had to double staff and start a twilight shift to ensure its machines are kept running for longer.
James Worthington, MyWorkwear managing director, said: “Like many in business, we were slightly concerned with what 2021 would bring with the announcement of ‘lockdown 3’, mixed with the UK leaving the EU.
Business confidence returns“However, we have seen the opposite. Online sales have continued to increase rapidly and, as confidence starts to return, we have also seen growth in the number of traditional tenders including successful ones with Warren Services Ltd, Thomas Ridley Ltd and James and James Ltd.”
He continued: “The reduction of Covid-19 cases and the success of the vaccination programme has certainly helped lift optimism and we have responded by increasing the workforce to 25 and putting on additional shifts that maximise the power of our recently purchased eight-head Tajima TFMX-IIC1508 machine.”
MyWorkwear, which was founded in 1976 by James’ father Mike Worthington, regularly delivers over 3,500 personalised garments every week and, investment in a new garment printer and heat press, gives it the potential to increase this to 8,000 – a figure that could well be reached by the end of the year.
This includes standard workwear, speciality uniforms including anti-static, fire retardant and water-resistant clothing and, thanks to ‘state of the art’ embroidery and heat transfer technology, hundreds of personalised uniforms as more companies look to captialise on corporate branding.
Mr Worthington added: “In the last few months, we have invested in three new starters for the office/production and are working with Shropshire Chamber of Commerce to recruit a further three young people on the ‘Kickstart’ scheme.
“As we emerge from lockdown, it is vital that we do our bit to support businesses and offer employment opportunities for young people who have been badly affected by the pandemic.”