Family-owned joinery manufacturer shows ambition by securing contract with John Lewis and moving to larger premises

The joinery manufacturer MWC secured a contract with retail giant John Lewis and used funding from a UK bank to help with a move to a 54,000sq ft unit.

MWC was founded back in 1966 and since then has been manufacturing windows, doors and shop display equipment. The firm has branched out into making bamboo products and recently won a lucrative contract with retail giant John Lewis, which will see MWC’s flooring stocked in 28 stores nationwide. It employs around 70 staff and is looking to recruit more in the joinery arm.

Picture shows John Cary, from Clydesdale Bank, left, with David Bowers, Lisa Wooldridge and Jonathan Bowers of MWC

Although its Cirencester headquarters will be retained, the merging of the three existing sites to their new premises on South Marston Business Park will allow the family-owned company to further expand and improve their production. The new premises, which will also contain a retail store, will be its base for the manufacture of retail display equipment and the distribution of its new, environmentally-friendly range of bamboo products.

Director Lisa Wooldridge, who works alongside her father, managing director David Bowers, and brother Jonathan Bowers, said this was an exciting time in the history of the company.

"It made business sense to move our manufacturing operation to one site because it is more efficient and we have made a number of financial savings. The new factory is big enough to cope with all the different strands of the business, which now includes supplying a range of Moso bamboo flooring products to John Lewis."

The company gained funding for the move from from Clydesdale Bank's Gloucester Financial Solutions Centre. John Cary, business partner at the Centre, said:

"We were delighted to fund MWC’s new premises at South Marston Business Park, which is making their production more efficient. This has enabled them to pitch for new contracts, and the link-up with a high-street giant like John Lewis is the best possible endorsement of their products. I look forward to working with MWC as they look to expand further."