Brysdales making space for the future

Rows of metal shelving serviced by robots travelling along a track sounds like a scene from a Blade Runner. But this is the impressive space developed by a forward-thinking storage solutions company in Chorley.

The Effi Centre is the result of a £350,000 investment by Brysdales in Drumhead Road and is home to a fully functioning automated storage facility. It is used to demonstrate to new and existing customers how robotics can help them utilise space and their workforce more efficiently.

Speaking from the portion of the firm’s warehouse given over to house the automated development, managing director Elizabeth Porter explained how important it is for her industry to join the AI revolution.

She said: “The world has to evolve. You can’t just keep doing what you have always been doing, and everything is AI now, it’s the direction of travel.

“In a warehouse environment today, you haven’t got the staff coming through, so companies don’t have the people to do some of the work. If you can bring in an element of automation to lessen the effect of somebody moving from one side of the warehouse to another, be that for manufacturing, picking or storing, some of these systems will pay for themselves within 12 months.”

Interest in the automated systems is already growing, with TV shopping channel bosses from QVC planning a visit in the near future, and discussions ongoing with Vimto manufacturer Refresco.

Brysdales is one of the leading providers of racking and shelving, archive storage solutions and partitioning, mezzanines and material handling equipment in the UK. It helps companies to maximise their workspace by designing storage systems to meet their specific needs.

And while robotics and automation is the future, the past is still very important. Now in its 55th year, Brysdales has not forgotten where it came from.

Elizabeth said: “I’ve always been driven to keep the business moving forward and to continue growing, but we’ve never lost sight of what we do best – understanding space and designing the right solutions for our customers. Whatever direction we take, that remains at the heart of everything we do.

“I’ve never believed in diversifying too far away from our core. For me, it’s less about chasing new directions and more about supporting people – our customers and our team – to achieve the very best from the space and resources they have.”

Elizabeth’s story itself is impressive. Having taken redundancy from what was then North West Water, now United Utilities, she took a part-time quality assurance assistant and administration job at Brysdales in 1994. When owner John Green wanted out 20 years later, it was Elizabeth who put together a deal to lead a management buyout.

She said: “I grew with the business and ended up looking after a lot of stuff. John was looking to sell but that didn’t happen and eventually we discussed me buying him out.”

While he didn’t found the Brysdale’s name, it was John who took over what was then a small joinery firm in Burscough in 1972 and started it on its journey to what it is today. He was working as a salesman for pallet racking and shelving firm Dexion when he saw his opportunity. He bought out the company and transformed it into a specialist centre supplying pallet racking and storage solutions, soon moving away from simply delivering to also providing design and fitting services to customers.

After a relocation to bigger premises in Walton Summit allowed Brysdales to expand its services, including installing mezzanines to enable companies to maximise the capacity of their facilities, the company moved to Drumhead Road in Chorley, just off the M61, in 1998.

Elizabeth bought the business in 2014 and, since then, the firm has grown 400 per cent in terms of both turnover and people.

Elizabeth said: “When I bought the business, we employed 14 people and were turning over £2m to £2.5m depending on the year. We had plateaued. In fairness, we’d had the banking crisis in 2008 and people were still coming out of that. Lots of businesses had been forced to make adjustments at one point or another.

“But to grow, we needed more people. By January 2015 I had taken on another seven, so we increased the number of employees by 50 per cent within three months.”

Turnover at the company is now up to £10m. Much of that growth has been driven by a desire to support people to improve and develop their skills.

Elizabeth said: “One of the things I have always been really keen on is making sure we have a space where people can be their best self. If they can evolve, we create a business that is evolving with them.”

A big part of that evolution was in leveraging Elizabeth’s role within the Storage Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) to begin training Brysdale’s staff to become SEMA-approved rack inspectors (SARIs).

The company facilitated its first fully qualified SARI in 2012 and now has seven inspectors going on site to inspect storage systems, identifying any safety faults and supporting businesses to make any repairs that are required to bring them back into line with regulations.

Elizabeth said: “We now have our own internal training and development programme which helps people in our team to meet the national standard. This is a very highly regulated programme and the exams are very difficult. It’s not just ticking a box. At the end of the day, making sure these racks are safe is extremely important, so that’s a crucual side to our business now.”

Meanwhile, occupying a significant portion of Brysdales’ floor space is a company with a very different heritage. In 2016, Elizabeth was presented with the opportunity to acquire Railex, a Southport-based stationery manufacturer founded in 1908 that was at risk of closing its doors. Today, the business continues to produce sustainable products, including files and notebooks made from recycled materials such as takeaway coffee cups.

Although Railex represents around a tenth of Brysdales’ overall turnover, it remains a venture Elizabeth is particularly passionate about. She said: “Some of the Railex processes are fascinating, and there is an incredible depth of skill within the team – some of the ladies have been there since they were 16. The craftsmanship behind some of the patented products is remarkable, and seeing how they are made is genuinely inspiring.”

Initially focused on wholesale, Railex has since expanded its reach, with its products now available online via Amazon, opening the door to a wider and growing customer base.

Brysdales is firmly a family story as well as a business success, with Elizabeth’s daughter Charlotte having joined the company 12 years ago, and her son Daniel beginning his own journey with the firm in 2023.

While the foundations of a second generation are taking shape, Elizabeth is clear that any future handover must come naturally.

She said: “It’s never been about expectation or obligation – it has to be their choice. I’m incredibly proud to see them finding their own way within the business, but what matters most is that they’re here because they want to be. If that continues, then of course there’s a wonderful opportunity for them to carry Brysdales forward.

“For me, it’s about building something strong, something lasting – a business that can continue to grow and evolve long after I’ve stepped back.”