Wood Floor Company double workforce in record-breaking start to year

County Durham-based The Wood Flooring Company, which lists celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay among its customers, has doubled its workforce in the last two months.

The Darlington firm have experienced a record-breaking start to the year has recently spent thousands of pounds renovating its premises on Whessoe Road.

Now directors Tom Cockerill and Sarah Fanning - a Darlington couple who are set to tie the knot this summer - are expecting turnover to at least double this year after increasing staff numbers from eight to 16 in the last two months.

They’ve spent £35k on their purpose-built facility, which is now officially the largest Ted Todd and Atkinson & Kirby showroom in the UK, and now hope to hit a £1m-a-year target.

Tom said: “Orders are starting to go through the roof and the number of people we’re getting through the door has exceeded our expectations.

“Last year we turned over £400,000 and we’re on course to do about £800,000 as it stands, but the target is to hit the £1m mark by February 2015.”

The Wood Floor Company is the only official Ted Todd showroom between Edinburgh and Manchester, with about 75% of business coming from domestic home owners and the rest through commercial and public sector.

Tom personally worked on a new kitchen for Gordon Ramsay’s Wandsworth Common home in South London as well as a project for the journalist and commentator Janet Street Porter.

Closer to home, the firm has worked on projects at Durham Cathedral, The University of Hull as well as the Dolphin Centre in Darlington.

Tom added: “It was fantastic to work for high-profile personalities, but our bread-and-butter comes from our doorstep in County Durham and Darlington.

“We’re now gradually increasing awareness of our name to the whole of the North.”

Sarah added: “Investing in the business has really paid off for us.

“It was a gamble but we think the standard of products we’re dealing with and selling on a daily basis are some of the best available.”

The Wood Floor Company is holding two open days next week - one for trade on Friday May 9 and one for the public on Saturday 10, when refreshments will be available.