A NORTH EAST based workwear supplier is celebrating a rise in sales, after help from business support funding allowed it to optimise its ecommerce site.
MI Supplies Ltd, based in Thornaby on Tees with 11 employees and a turnover of almost £2million, has seen sales and profits rise by 13 per cent each year since its formation in 2005.
The company has seen sales and profits rise steadily since investing in their online presence, developing their website and improving search engine optimisation (SEO) with funding from the North East Business Support Fund, (NEBSF), a service delivered by NBSL. NEBSF is an ERDF initiative that provides 40 per cent funding - up to £1400 - towards a project worth up to £3500.
Alex Ingham, managing director of MI Supplies Ltd, said: “The business has been trading strongly for almost ten years, but we knew that - to take it to the next level - we needed to invest in our website and direct sales strategy.
“We knew that the site was extremely well received when customers arrived there, but there was an issue in getting them there in the first place. NBSL, through their NEBSF, has supported with a project which built SEO links into the site and gave us advice on best practice for the future, so we’re sure MI Supplies is set to grow even further.”
The business supplies industrial workwear to companies across the country, with its offer ranging from personal protection equipment and high visibility attire to embroidery services, footwear and flame retardant clothing. The business supplies individuals, as well as major customers including global supermarket chains.
MI Supplies has plans to move into a new facility four times larger than its current base in Spring 2015, remaining in the Teesside area. From the move the company is looking to create a 20 per cent employment increase to manage the rising number of orders, and increase the customer service experience.
John King, North East business support manager, said: “It’s great to see that our support and the funding from the NEBSF has helped MI Supplies take their business forward.
“It is a great business that feeds profits back into their services, as well as donating part of its profits every year to charity, so we’re delighted to be able to help them grow.”
MI Supplies has now serviced more than 22,000 customers since its formation and more than 50,000 orders.
Alex Ingham added: “The process with NBSL was very simple and very easy, we would definitely recommend them. We found the process a lot easier than previous funding dealings and they really have helped us to move closer to our goal of making the online side of our business account for a third of all trade. We’re very pleased with the results so far.”
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