Elizabeth Shaw in final negotiations to sell Bristol factory
Chocolate maker Elizabeth Shaw is in final negotiations to sell its 100-year-old factory site in Bristol.
The company, which is aiming to grow sales by 10% a year over the next three years, is seeking alternative, more modern, facilities in the Bristol area of up to 6,039m sq.
The existing 30,658m sq site at Greenbank Road, Bristol, dates back to 1901, and is no longer fit for purpose.
The wooden-floored site, which employed more than 2,000 staff in the 1920s, now employs less than 200, leaving the bulk of the space of underutilised.
Elizabeth Shaw’s fortunes have dramatically improved since 2000 following a management buy out led by Malachy McReynolds, who has dragged the firm back into the black through a targeted programme of new product development, investment in equipment and packaging redesign.
Exports have doubled since the buy out and now account for 10% of sales. A further 20% of sales are through the independent trade, with the remaining 70% to multiple retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury.
In the year to February 2005, the company made a pre-tax profit of £800,000 on turnover of £14.6m.
