An embroidery and print specialist serving Aycliffe Business Park is looking ahead to an exciting 2024 after landing more exciting contracts.
Laura Flood’s C&A Embroidery and Print, originally founded 11 years ago, has seen sales increase by more than 20 per cent over the last 12 months.
Those sales have included new agreements with electrical products manufacturer Ebac and BTS Facades and Fabrications – two firms also located on the business park.
C&A want that success to continue so are looking to expand further in the coming year by investing in new machinery which will increase capacity and efficiency.
And the large orders being delivered to Ebac and BTS are examples of how Laura and her team can work for other companies in Aycliffe and the rest of the UK.
“Having a uniform makes people feel a part of a team. It provides a professional look for the organisation, and it is also a good way of advertising and brand awareness,” said Laura.
“We can work with clients to find the most suitable garments for them, and we are also competitively priced.
“We mainly supply the clothing, but we can also supply merchandise like pens, mugs and business cards. On the clothing side there are hundreds of garments to choose from.
“We can meet with our customers to discuss their requirements, and offer them advice based on our discussions.”
Among the items Ebac have been supplied with are polo shirts, sweatshirts and fleeces, while the office and corporate staff have received shirts and knitwear all embroidered with their logo.
The BTS team have received similar items on the shopfloor, whereas in the office there have also been dresses, smart jackets and neck scarves supplied to them. C&A can help to create a bespoke uniform for any company.
Laura said: “We are offering an in-house embroidering and printing service, and a range of clothing to cover a wide range of areas and sectors.
“We can supply anything from sportswear to workwear and corporate hospitality. We can deliver PPE and we will also provide school wear, like we do already by supplying a couple of local schools with their uniforms.
“Given our location, we know how what we do will benefit engineering and construction companies nearby. We can also work with healthcare companies supplying tunics.”
C&A have clients such as Finley Structures, Cobots Online, ROF 59 and Contego who are all neighbours.
They also supply Darlington Football Club with clothing for the leisure shop and printed football shirts this year for their youth section.
Laura has made a huge success of the embroidery business since taking her parents’ equine laundry business into a new direction.
She now employs two full-time embroidery and print operators in Jessica Doyle and Emma Kirsten.
She said: “We have had a busy year. We are working with more businesses on the industrial estate and we can only see that growing.
“We have been on Aycliffe Business Park now for five years having set up 11 years ago. We did move into a bigger unit in 2021 and that is where we are now, with a view to grow further next year.
“Next year we are looking to invest in new machinery and keep up with the demand. It feels like we keep moving in the right direction having successfully negotiated the impact of Covid and higher costs.
“We are getting busier and busier and what the new machinery will mean is that we will be able to have a quicker turnaround and cope with more work. We want more businesses on Aycliffe Business Park to know we are here. We are here to help.”
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