Member Article

Manchester small business doubles turnover in one year to £3 million

Amanda Ball, managing director of Denton-based AD Sprinklers doubled her turnover to £3 million in one year after participating in a business programme.

The Manchester company supplies and installs fire-safety sprinkler systems to well-known brands throughout the UK

A progress report on the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses UK (10KSB) programme - produced by five leading academic institutions, including Manchester Metropolitan University, demonstrates that it is enabling participating businesses to grow faster and create more jobs than they otherwise would have.

Since 2011, more than 200 North West enterprises have benefited from the business growth programme - delivered in the region by Manchester Metropolitan University Centre for Enterprise.

By 2013, when Amanda started the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) Centre for Enterprise, AD Sprinklers was doing well.

Turnover was £1.5 million, but growth had flat lined.

As she worked on her growth plan, Amanda started to see a bigger picture of her industry and imagine what her company needed to look like in order for turnover to double.

The staff at AD Sprinklers were also involved in the programme, after each module, Amanda would think about how to take the activities and lessons from the day and share them with the team to get their buy in.

A significant element of the restructuring was handing over the day-to-day running of the business to a general manager, which freed time for Amanda to focus on the future.

It was a decision that has paid off.

AD Sprinklers’ initial plan to double turnover to £3 million in three years was achieved in one year and they are now aiming for a turnover of £5 million in the next two years.

International chief of staff for Goldman Sachs, Michelle Pinggera, said: “Small businesses are key to the UK’s growth prospects and the health of the wider economy.

“The innovation, growth and employment opportunities they foster have a widespread impact across industries and communities.

“We are delighted with the impact the 10KSB UK programme has had to date and look forward to seeing continued progress at the participating businesses.

“We hope the success of the programme will demonstrate the lasting effect that these initiatives can have and encourage others to support small business growth.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sophia Taha .