Bolton furniture business expands with Yorkshire Bank support

4th October 2012

A Bolton family business which manufactures and supplies leather furniture has expanded after finding new markets at home and abroad through the internet.

Following a period of steady growth, Saracen Leather Furniture, based in Glebe Street, has extended its premises and invested in its online marketing presence after securing finance from Yorkshire Bank’s Bolton Business Banking Centre.

The company, which designs, manufactures and retails leather chairs and sofas, including the prestigious Chesterfield brand, has purchased two commercial units adjacent to its current site to give it additional capacity.

Brian Henry, managing director of Saracen Leather Furniture, said: “The marketplace has changed a lot and we’re now doing a much larger percentage of our business online and we’ve invested in a new website to maximise these opportunities.

“We will ship our furniture anywhere and we’ve recently had orders from Dubai, Russia and China, nations that are getting wealthier and are increasingly looking to the UK for quality goods and services. Consumers in these new markets are becoming very selective, so as a small manufacturer of high-end furniture we are well placed to take advantage of this.”

Phil Tarimo, regional director for Yorkshire Bank, said: “Small family businesses like Saracen are the backbone of British industry and it is very encouraging to see the company opening up new markets both at home and abroad using the power of the internet. The business has seized upon a quality opportunity to grow and we’re very pleased to be supporting it.”

Saracen was established in 1994 and supplies to both consumer and contract markets, making all its furniture on site in Bolton and selling through its showroom and online.

Brian’s son Leon and wife Tina both work in the business, which also has an additional two staff.