Harrison Bathrooms has announced a record turnover, breaking through the £40 million Landmark barrier.

Formed in only 2013, Harrison Bathrooms and Scudo offer hand-picked quality bathrooms, creating stunning collections and building a reputation for delivering the finest quality products at affordable prices throughout the UK & Ireland.

 Harrison Bathrooms says it allows retailers the highest discounts and terms to provide maximum profitability, offered through a competitively priced luxury retail brochure.

The Yorkshire-based bathroom company has experienced continued year-on-year growth since its formation in 2013. Featuring in the Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 league table twice, once in 2018 and again in 2020. This growth, through challenging market conditions such as Brexit & Covid, is a testament to the hard work and determination of all the 130 Harrison Bathrooms staff.

This pivotal year has seen the opening of two new state-of-the-art offices and warehousing facilities, packing, and tracking locations in North Leeds and Seacroft. Enabling the company to efficiently fulfil 24-hour delivery across the whole of the UK and Ireland, from over 200,000sqft of warehouse and £9m stocking facility.

This expansion has allowed the business to proactively service competitive market demand, supporting innovation and design-led product development. The strategic decision to import more products from Europe than China has also helped to service the sector reliably, streamline the supply chain and stabilise pricing.

“We are proud to achieve such an outstanding result despite challenging market conditions,” said James Harrison, managing director. “Back in 2019, we set the bold target to reach £40 million by 2023, and I’m pleased to report we have surpassed this ambitious milestone. #

“Since our launch in 2013, our focus has always been on delivering growth; this has accelerated, and turnover has doubled in the last few years.”

I want to thank our forward-thinking, committed team and valued retail partners for their continued support. We could not have done it without you.”

Simon Acres Group Limited, a kitchen, bedroom and bathroom (KBB) industry’s leading recruitment agency, hosted a successful roundtable event in partnership with apprenticeship training provider Workpays to examine the barriers to hiring apprentices.

Following the event, the company is sharing the main obstacles that hinder businesses from hiring apprentices in an effort to empower and inspire the industry to employ more apprentices.

The roundtable was held at the Stanwick Hotel in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. Industry professionals gathered to discuss the barriers that businesses face when hiring apprentices. A particular focus of the event was on the challenges within the KBB and construction industries. The event also aimed to reveal solutions and strategies that can help to overcome these barriers.

The diverse and knowledgeable panel included contributions from a variety of experts, including participants from leading apprenticeship bodies, training providers and KBB retailers. The panel was also joined by guest speaker Stephen Johnson, managing director at Quooker UK and Ireland, who shared valuable insights based on his experience of hiring young people and promoting the training and development of his colleagues at Quooker.

The main barriers to hiring apprentices identified during the roundtable event are:

1. A lack of information: Many businesses are unaware of the appropriate channels to explore when it comes to hiring apprentices, including being unaccustomed with apprenticeship training providers

2. Unfamiliarity with recognised and approved apprenticeship standards within the industry

3. Uncertainty around costs: The perceived financial burden of hiring apprentices is a concern for many businesses, as is a lack of awareness of the grants that are available and of some uncertainty surrounding apprenticeship wages

4. A lack of training awareness: On-the-job training requirements associated with apprenticeships are often unclear to businesses, including the amount of time required to be allocated to training apprentices

5. Confusing terminology and jargon: Many businesses experience confusion due to the vast amount of apprenticeship bodies, abbreviations and unclear language that exists

Simon Acres, managing director of Simon Acres Group Limited said: “Apprenticeships are a vital aspect to creating an experienced, knowledgeable and skilled KBB workforce. Hosting a lively and insightful roundtable on this important topic provided the opportunity to identify the challenges that prevent businesses from hiring apprentices, in addition to highlighting the ways in which these barriers can be overcome.

“With the support of Workpays, we hope to establish a collaborative approach to bring more apprentices into our sector. We’re encouraging other businesses to get involved and to work collaboratively with us to address the challenges surrounding hiring apprentices and to showcase the many benefits that apprenticeships offer while driving positive change and growth in our industry.”

For more information on Simon Acres Group Limited, please call the team on 0203 701 6660, email info@simonacres.co.uk or visit the website: https://simonacres.co.uk/

A recent survey of manufacturers by the UK’s leading approval body for water fittings and related products, WRAS Approvals, has found that 77% of respondents believe that testing new products takes too long.

Nearly 50% of respondents reported lab testing for new products taking up to six months, 34% said it took 6-9 months, and for 10% it took over 12 months.

The survey also found that 63% of respondents would like more choice of testing labs, while 38% said where their chosen testing lab is located matters to them.

WRAS is different to other REG4 certification bodies as they don’t test products. This gives an arms-length relationship with the test laboratories that are recognised, providing greater reassurance to those who rely on WRAS approvals.

WRAS Approvals recognises that the majority of respondents have experienced longer wait times than they want and is working on measures that will increase overall choice and capacity for its approved laboratories. Mechanical laboratory recognition has recently grown to nine laboratories and there are currently two materials laboratories. 

In response to the survey findings, WRAS is working on improvements to help manufacturers. It is:

• Sharing customer feedback with its recognised test laboratories.
• Introducing a fast-track service to help applicants achieve certification faster, once testing is complete.
• Introducing a new streamlined process so WRAS issues test requirements up front. This will be rolled out by product type and water storage was the first category, with WC’s being the next later this year.
• Working with current recognised laboratories to expand the scope of testing.
• Working with new laboratories to further expand the number of recognised laboratories.
• Encouraging manufacturers to seek recognition for their own testing facilities.

“We appreciate the feedback and insights provided by the survey respondents,” said Ian Hughes, Approvals Manager at WRAS. “WRAS is driven to find solutions to reduce testing times, which is why we are constantly looking for more laboratories to recognise. By broadening our network of recognised laboratories, manufacturers gain a wider range of testing options. This should increase testing capacity and improve time to test.”

“We would also like to thank our team at WRAS, who have worked tirelessly over the past year to provide excellent services to our customers and constantly strive to improve.”

WRAS Approvals would like to thank everyone who participated in the recent WRAS testing survey. This feedback was greatly appreciated and will play a vital role in driving improvements that manufactures said they would value.

Online bathroom retailer Victoria Plum has announced its first TV ad campaign featuring the company’s brand ambassador, TV and radio presenter Helen Skelton, will go live on Monday, 7 August.

The four 30-second ads will be broadcast on Sky and Channel 4’s video on demand service. Victoria Plum will also support the TV campaign with a range of online advertising and paid and organic social media activity.

The ads feature Helen in a room set with a range of Victoria Plum products with each edit having a humorous payoff line which she delivers, including her unscripted dropping of a rubber duck.

Victoria Plum marketing director, Nigel Hunter, said: “We chose Helen as our first ever brand ambassador because her vibrant and authentic personality reflects our values and resonates with our customers.

“She has been an absolute pleasure to work with since day one. Our TV ads capture her personality, raise a smile and communicate how we want to enable our customers to realise their bathroom dreams as easily as possible.”

The initial concept for the TV ad campaign was created by Victoria Plum’s inhouse marketing team which was then developed by Leeds-based creative agency Supersonic. The four ads were directed by Chris Bartle and produced by Active Pictures, which is also based in Leeds.

Victoria Plum is the UK’s largest online only bathroom retailer. The company employs around 400 people and has sales of £113m.

For further information on the company, visit www.victoriaplum.com