Published this weekend, the 11th annual Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200 league table ranks Britain’s mid-market private companies with the fastest-growing international sales.
The 36 companies headquartered in the South East include 10 new entrants to the league table. These regional stars have grown their international sales by an average of 58% a year over the last two years to a total of £1.4 billion. Together they employ more than 20,000 people.
The region’s top-ranked company is Kingsbury (No.9), which supplies the manufacturing sector with cleaning equipment and machine tools. Its international sales grew an average of 173% per year over two years to £5.4m in 2018, on total sales of £86.8m.
Havant, in Hampshire, is home to clothing retailer FatFace – which features for the first time with international sales of £15.7m in 2019, growing an average of 44% over two years, on total sales of £241.5m. The company has more than 240 shops across Britain, and is expanding in America where it now has 22 stores.
West Sussex-based books and media reseller World of Books features on the league table for the fourth time. The circular economy company recycles or resells more than 85m used books bought from charities or consumers every year. Its international sales grew an average of 41% per year over its last two years.
The companies in the Southeast appear alongside well-known British brands based across the UK including Mountain Warehouse, which opened 21 shops abroad last year; BrewDog, which was valued at £1b in 2017 and now has nearly 100 bars worldwide; and Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, the London-based cosmetics and skincare brand, which ships to 76 markets.
International Track 200 star alumni include Skyscanner, Specsavers, Lush and Endava – which first featured on the league table in 2012 with exports of £3.6m, floated on the NYSE in 2018 and is now valued at more than $2.5b.
The league table programme is sponsored by HSBC, DHL Express and Oracle NetSuite, and compiled by Fast Track, the Oxford-based research and networking events firm.
Amanda Murphy, head of commercial banking, HSBC UK, commented: “The Sunday Times International Track 200 shows the strength, ambition and resilience of companies across the UK and we are delighted to be sponsoring again this year. At HSBC UK, we take great pride in recognising the contribution these businesses are making to driving growth across the UK. The 10 new entrants in Southeast are making a significant contribution to employment, driving prosperity and growth and are the sort of businesses we are pleased to support every day.”
Private companies in the Southeast with the fastest-growing international sales – ordered by county then rank
| HQ location and county | Rank
[2019 rank] |
Company
Activity |
Average annual int’l sales growth over 2 yrs | Int’l sales (£m) | Total sales (£m) | Staff | Year end | Comment |
| Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire | 77
[100] |
AC Group
Construction services provider |
54% | 41.0 | 54.1 | 76 | Mar 19 | Working on data centres and office fit-outs across Europe |
| Wokingham, Berkshire | 29 | Invenio Business Solutions
IT consultancy |
96% | 20.4 | 33.0 | 727 | Mar 19 | Winning contracts with tax authorities in Fiji and the Middle East boosted overseas sales |
| Hurley, Berkshire | 49
[101] |
Wireless Logic
Technology platform provider |
70% | *18.8 | *67.4 | 154 | Apr 19 | Acquired one French and two Dutch ‘Internet of Things’ connectivity providers last year |
| Bracknell, Berkshire | 74 | Redwood Technologies Group
Communications technology provider |
56% | 8.3 | 31.3 | 198 | Dec 18 | Its communication platform is used by hundreds of Japanese call centres |
| Reading, Berkshire | 84
[56] |
Austin Fraser
Recruitment consultancy |
52% | 25.2 | 64.9 | 179 | Feb 19 | Opened offices in Hamburg and San Diego last year |
| High Wycombe, Bucks | 66 | Slush Puppie UK
Frozen drinks distributor |
60% | 10.2 | 33.8 | 142 | Dec 18 | Says it has sold more than 175bn Slush Puppie cups in Europe since 1974 |
| Milton Keynes, Bucks | 68
[51] |
Niftylift
Lift manufacturer |
59% | 93.8 | 117.4 | 512 | Dec 18 | Sells through a dealer network spanning more than 60 countries |
| High Wycombe, Bucks | 76
[47] |
Origin
Door and window manufacturer |
55% | 3.9 | 38.7 | 272 | Dec 18 | Manufactures hurricane-resistant doors and windows at its facility in Florida |
| Uckfield,
East Sussex |
69 | Pureprint Group
Printing services provider |
59% | 9.7 | 56.0 | 421 | Dec 18 | Printed 350,000 tickets and 45,000 programmes for the 2018 Ryder Cup in France |
| Brighton,
East Sussex |
192
[61] |
Capital Hair and Beauty
Hair products wholesaler |
31% | 4.0 | 53.9 | 516 | Dec 18 | Has made two acquisitions in Ireland, where it has five stores |
| Witham,
Essex |
24
[142] |
Beta Pharmaceuticals
Pharmaceuticals wholesaler |
105% | 5.7 | 40.2 | 83 | Sep 18 | Tanzania, the founder’s native country, is a key export market |
| Harwich,
Essex |
43
[52] |
Flying Trade Group
Conglomerate |
76% | 19.6 | 152.6 | 815 | Dec 18 | Its world food products cater to Asian, Caribbean, African and Polish communities |
| Colchester, Essex | 113
[80] |
BULK POWDERS
Sports nutrition brand |
45% | 22.5 | 43.1 | 164 | Dec 18 | Opened a distribution centre in Poland last year to supply customers in mainland Europe |
| Witham,
Essex |
136 | Simarco
Logistics services provider |
41% | 6.2 | 57.1 | 310 | Dec 18 | Delivers 250,000 consignments to 40 destinations across Europe every year |
| Gosport, Hampshire | 9 | Kingsbury
Machine tools wholesaler |
173% | 5.4 | 86.8 | 308 | Dec 18 | Set up a subsidiary in Dubai in 2018 to supply the Gulf region with machine tools |
| Hamble, Hampshire | 53 | Ancasta Group
Boat retailer |
67% | 13.5 | 30.8 | 76 | Aug 18 | Sells yachts and powerboats from locations in Marseille, Mallorca, Andalucia and Barcelona |
| Basingstoke, Hampshire | 83 | Adare International
Marketing services provider |
52% | 143.8 | 191.4 | 588 | Dec 18 | Has expanded across Latin America and now has operations in 65 locations worldwide |
| Eastleigh, Hampshire | 90 | Selwood
Pump manufacturer |
51% | 8.2 | 83.7 | 573 | Dec 18 | Its pumps have been supplied to the Paris Métro expansion project |
| Havant, Hampshire | 118 | FatFace
Clothing retailer |
44% | *15.7 | *241.5 | 2,830 | Jun 19 | Its founders sold T-shirts to skiers in the French Alps before opening a London shop |
| Segensworth, Hampshire | 128 | Vohkus
Technology provider |
42% | *†9.3 | *†97.7 | 141 | Jun 19 | Norwegian cruise ship operator Fred. Olsen is among its international clients |
| Portsmouth, Hampshire | 200
[175] |
CT Automotive
Automotive parts supplier |
29% | 58.6 | 86.9 | 2,668 | Dec 18 | Supplies parts for 70% of electric vehicles produced for the global market |
| Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire | 65
[31] |
Brogan GroupScaffolding contractor | 60% | 12.6 | 34.0 | 532 | Dec 18 | Has provided scaffolding to help build the 2020 World Expo in Dubai and ESB’s HQ in Dublin |
| Hertford, Hertfordshire | 92
[54] |
Smyle
Creative agency |
50% | 16.6 | 26.6 | 74 | Mar 19 | Created a brand experience for Facebook at the World Economic Forum |
| Queenborough, Kent | 51
[34] |
Revolution Beauty
Beauty products retailer |
69% | 76.3 | 112.6 | 180 | Dec 18 | Fans queued up for hours to buy its beauty products when it launched in Australia last year |
| Dartford,
Kent |
73 | Dormole
Tool distributor |
57% | 26.0 | 232.9 | 990 | Dec 18 | Acquired two Irish distributors for an undisclosed sum in 2018 |
| Lenham,
Kent |
143 | Simms International
IT distributor |
40% | 10.5 | 34.4 | 30 | Dec 18 | Ships more than 3m products a year all over the world |
| Dover,
Kent |
161
[198] |
Priority Freight
Logistics services provider |
36% | *56.6 | *80.1 | 197 | Dec 18 | Delivered 600kg of aircraft landing equipment from Toronto to Athens in just two days |
| Witney, Oxfordshire | 58 | Audley Travel
Tour operator |
66% | 74.8 | 291.2 | 800 | Dec 18 | Demand from American travellers has grown after it opened an office in Boston in 2014 |
| Oxford, Oxfordshire | 59
[93] |
Oxford EconomicsEconomic research consultancy | 65% | 18.8 | 39.2 | 247 | Jul 18 | Compiles economic forecasts for more than 7,000 cities and regions worldwide |
| Banbury, Oxfordshire | 91
[116] |
Silbury
Food ingredients supplier |
50% | 6.2 | 58.9 | 35 | Oct 18 | Has a stake in Portuguese tomato processor HIT Group |
| Wantage, Oxfordshire | 132 | Purdicom
Wireless network provider |
41% | 3.2 | 31.2 | 57 | Dec 18 | Says it is the largest distributor in the EMEA region for California firm Ruckus Wireless |
| Ockley,
Surrey |
48
[158] |
SIAN WholesaleConsumer goods supplier | 71% | 23.5 | 40.7 | 28 | Dec 18 | Exports more than 4,000 products to 65 countries |
| Reigate,
Surrey |
82
[127] |
ACC Aviation
Aviation services provider |
53% | 129.8 | 135.3 | 41 | Dec 18 | Helped fly hundreds of fans to Madrid for the UEFA Champions League final last year |
| Woking,
Surrey |
157
[88] |
Ambassador Theatre Group
Live entertainment operator |
36% | 235.2 | 443.2 | 5,414 | Mar 19 | Operates more than 10 venues in America and five in Germany |
| Guildford, Surrey | 188 | Solventis
Solvent distributor |
31% | 165.7 | 219.5 | 45 | Dec 18 | Operates a state-of-the-art storage, blending and distribution facility in Antwerp |
| Goring by Sea,West Sussex | 131 | World of Books
Books and media reseller |
41% | 22.9 | 64.0 | 568 | Oct 18 | Recycles or resells more than 85m books a year and exports to over 190 countries |
*Supplied by company † Annualised figure
The national picture
The average international sales growth for the 200 companies was 64% a year, to a total of £10.3b on combined total sales of £22.1b. Together they employ 124,000 staff, having added 38,000 employees to their workforce over the period.
London is the most popular location for company headquarters with 79, followed by the southeast (36). There are 19 companies in the northwest, and 18 in the northeast (including Yorkshire). Of the remainder, 15 companies are based in the Midlands, 11 in the southwest, eight in Scotland, seven in the East of England, four in Northern Ireland and three in Wales.
