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Carpet & Upholstery Care
No wear and tear in Tyne and Wear
A father and son leather care business that started in a Whickham garage four years
ago is set to create 33 new jobs and expand into new premises. By tailoring its
products and creating custom through a website, it now has sales all over the world
urniture Clinic is bucking the recession trend and planning on
F
new recruitment to coincide with the purchase of new
production line equipment and relocation to larger premises in
Tyne and Wear.
In a relatively short period of time the company has cemented a
reputation for quality and delivery of bespoke leather cleaning and
repair solutions. Its list of clients includes top fashion houses and
luxury car and yacht manufacturers.
The £800,000 project is seen as the next stage in the development
of the company by MD Keith Staerck and sales director Ben Staerck,
who have also secured a £163,000 Grant for Business Investment
from One North East
1
.
Web of attraction
Furniture Clinic is a manufacturer of specialist leather cleaning, repair
and restoration products based in the Team Valley, Gateshead. It was
started by Keith Staerck, who has over 18 years experience in the
industry, from the garage of his Whickham home in 2005. The
company took off when his son Ben, created a website for the
business, which attracted clients from all over the world.
“When my dad started he was selling the leather cleaning and
repair product to the trade, then we started to get requests for one-
off products to remove things like different coloured ink,” says Ben.
“We began to tailor the products to meet the specific needs of the
client – effectively creating new products all the time – and our
reputation grew.
“Furniture Clinic has gone from strength to strength and is now
one of the fastest growing companies in the leather industry. We
want to continue that success by continually improving and investing
in our products and the service we offer our customers.”
The creation of a website by Ben has helped double turnover each
year and online sales are now at £30,000 per month – £200,000 a
year – making a growing contribution to the annual turnover of more
than £1m.
“We have invested a lot in advertising in the past three years to
place Furniture Clinic as the leading leather care and repair
manufacturer in the region,” says Keith.“We have attracted significant
new business which has led us to outgrow our current premises. We
should be moved into the new premises in October this year.”
The company, which currently employs 12 staff, has also
established 13 franchises around the UK and is looking to expand
into the US early next year with opening of a base in New York.
Sitting comfortably
“The Furniture Clinic is a real North East success story – a local firm
which has succeeded nationally and established an international
reputation in its field,” comments Ian Williams, One North East deal in a relatively short space of time and I am pleased the agency
director of Business and Industry. has been able to support their company’s development.”
“It has grown year on year and established a string of high-profile Furniture Clinic launched its first franchise in Gateshead in May
clients, but remained equally focused on servicing its core customers 2007. It now operates a franchising package that is offered
in the region and leather trade. Keith and Ben have achieved a great throughout UK. 13 franchises operate across the country and the
company is now looking to establish up to 50 franchises over the
1
The Grant for Business Investment (GBI) initiative delivered by One North East is part funded by
next three years. Please contact the
42625 or cleaning-matters.co.uk/enquiry
the European Regional Development Fund 2007-13. company for details. Tel: 0191 482 6112
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