Supplier profi le // Lamtek


‘We’re the industry’s best-kept secret’


By their own admission, the staff at Lamtek wouldn’t be surprised if you haven’t heard of them until now. However, its senior management team says that’s all about to change…


Words: George Dean “W


e’ve got a great story here, we just don’t really tell it to anybody,” admits Steve Brett, production


director for Nottinghamshire-based Lamtek. For the past 35 years, the trade-only carcass supplier has been more than happy to fly under the radar for the most part, with MD Nik Teal explaining: “We’ve been in a privileged position until now where we haven’t needed to spend very much on marketing. Historically, we’ve always been busy with the clients we already had, so we simply didn’t need to do it.” However, Lamtek recently made an ambitious


investment into its future, which saw it acquire another warehouse next door. Now, the company boasts an impressive


combined total of 125,000 sq ft of manufacturing space across its three Nottinghamshire sites, and is looking to put that space to good use by growing its business. Just on a single-shift model, the Lamtek team believe they’ve already doubled production capacity from 5,000 cabinets a week to an impressive 10,000. “Our lead times are incredibly efficient as well,” adds Brett. “We can get stock out within five days, and special orders within two weeks. Not many people our size can do lead times like that.”


Given the challenging state of the market, many


would likely see this as a time to be cautious, especially when most manufacturers are looking to protect their assets instead of pursuing new opportunities so openly. However, as director Russell Teal explains: “We


got to a point where we were up to maximum capacity and couldn’t store any more. So what do you do? You either stay where you are and become static, or you can push forward, make an investment, put your head on the chopping block and give it a go.”


Growing presence Actually, according to Brett, the wider market


downturn has actually presented Lamtek with a unique opportunity to grow. “Quite a lot of manufacturers are looking to outsource now,“ he explains, “so we’ve had a few enquires in the last few weeks. With the cost of running a kitchen business, manufacturing costs are going through the roof, so other manufacturers come to us.” The investment is also allowing Lamtek to


Lamtek production director Steve Brett (left) and MD Nik Teal (right)


explore other markets outside of just kitchens and bedrooms, such as hotels and student housing. However, Lamtek says it’s still looking to focus its growth on building relationships with new kitchen distributors, merchants, developers, and retailers. And for what it’s worth, it seems like it has a genuinely innovative offering for the market. For instance, one of its key products is the Rapid


Cab – a cam, pin, and dowel pre-insertion system that Lamtek says can be installed in under two


May 2024 kbbreview


For us to have been so successful for 35 years, we must be doing something right


" Nik Teal, Lamtek MD


minutes. Orders are packed in assembly order, so they can be built straight from the box with ease. To help get the word out about what makes it unique, Lamtek recently appointed Tom Clews to be its sales and marketing director, supported by Niamh Logan in the role of marketing executive. “We’ve revamped the website recently, and


even just by doing that we’ve seen our new leads jumping up,” explains Clews, “Outside of that, we’re looking to also grow our


presence on social media, so don’t be surprised when you hear more from us in the next few months and we really start telling our story.” “Now we’ve got extra capacity, we need to fill


it,” concludes MD Nik Teal. “For us to have been so successful for these past 35 years without having said very much, we clearly must be doing something right. But now it’s time for us to come out from the shadows.”


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