F1 Group secure £200,000 investment for expansion

An North East sign and print business is motoring ahead with development plans after securing a new six-figure investment.

F1Group, which includes F1 Signs & Digital, F1 PCD and F1 Display & Exhibition, provides a one-stop shop for every element of the commercial signage and print industry, from bespoke signage, point of sale materials and vehicle livery through to illuminated signs, digital graphics and a bespoke print service.

Established in 2009 by managing director Chris Timmins, the company works with many of the region’s best-known organisations, including Eldon Square, Newcastle Racecourse, Gateshead College and Gateshead Council, as well as many other blue chip clients right across the UK.

F1 has quickly secured an annual turnover of around £1.6m, and has ambitions to grow this figure by at least a further million pounds within the next five years.

To help provide the working capital required to support its development plans, F1 has now turned to regional fund management firm NEL Fund Managers for a £200,000 investment from the Finance For Business North East Growth Fund that it administers.

Part of the capital will be used to support ongoing investments in new equipment, including high end Mac computers for the design department, new metal bending brake press and the North East’s first high precision Durst Omega 1 flatbed digital printer, which prints directly onto a wide range of different materials at photographic quality and which provides substantial efficiency and cost improvements on existing means of production.

The company has recently added a 1,000 square feet of production space at the rear of its existing Team Valley premises to help its 22-strong team meet customer demand, and has also introduced a range of measures designed to reduce the environmental impact of its operations.

New LED lighting systems, double glazing and thermal insulated shutter doors have been installed at its premises, with improvements also being made to its materials recycling and re-use provisions.

Chris Timmins says: “We’ve always aimed to push ahead of competitors by using the latest technologies to provide innovative products and services, and the fact that we’ve had to increase our production space on the back of client demand shows how successful this approach has been.

“Reducing the environmental impact of your operations has to be a priority for any responsible modern business, especially within any kind of manufacturing operation, and the measures we’ve introduced will substantially reduce our carbon emissions and further improve the way in which we use and re-use materials.

“Despite setting up the company at the beginning of the financial crisis, we’ve quickly built a strong business with an excellent workforce and experienced management team and are now looking at maintaining controlled growth over the medium term.

“The NEL team was very approachable and saw the whole picture of what we’re trying to do. The investment application process was thorough but straightforward, and their backing will help us build further valuable momentum.”

Simon Johnson, senior investment executive at NEL Fund Managers, adds: “F1’s management team has already demonstrated the commercial viability of its business model in the toughest of economic climates, and they have impressive development plans in place for achieving further success.”

Aimed at regional businesses which are at a development and growth stage, the Growth Fund forms part of the wider Finance for Business North East Fund.

Managed by North East Finance, it will see £125m of investment capital injected into the region by the European Investment Bank and the European Regional Development Fund 2007-13 over a five year period.

NEL is looking to make around 130 investments over the five-year life span of the Growth Fund, and is actively looking to speak to ambitious north east companies with robust business plans.