Area Focus: Coventry - Mid Warks - North Warks - South Warks - Rugby
Coventry & Warwickshire in business
WAGO to locate its new UK headquarters to Houlton, Rugby WAGO, the German-based electrical components manufacturer, is to locate its prestigious new UK and Ireland headquarters to Houlton - with the move set to be an integral part of its new five-year business growth plan. The move to Houlton - a 1,200-acre development on the eastern edge of Rugby led by master developer Urban&Civic - will see WAGO relocate from Triton Park, Rugby, where it has been based since 1980, to a new all-purpose, 4.5-acre site. The new WAGO UK headquarters will be part office, part warehouse and part production area for the company’s products, with WAGO’s current 100-strong UK staff team – part of a worldwide 8,600 workforce – based at the new building. Moving to the new site – set to be completed in 2024 - will provide the catalyst for WAGO to further build upon its business success, with the electrical components manufacturer doubling its worldwide sales within the past 10 years to a current turnover of £28 million. WAGO joins other commercial enterprises based at Houlton, which include David Lloyd Rugby, The Paddle restaurant, The Tuning Fork restaurant, The Co-operative Food, The Old Station Nursery, and The Exchange, a co-working hub that includes bookable meeting spaces and full conference facilities. The businesses based at Houlton are also further supplemented by St Gabriel’s CofE Primary School, Houlton Secondary School, and The Barn community space. Mike van den Berg, Project Director at Urban&Civic, said: “WAGO approached Urban&Civic after identifying Houlton as their preferred location for their new headquarters, with the move forming a key part of their strategic business plan for the next five years of operations.
“Houlton always seeks to support growing local businesses such as WAGO, who contribute to job creation and economic growth, and so we are delighted to support their relocation to Houlton. Furthermore, the geographic pull of WAGO in terms of employees and visitors will also help raise awareness of Houlton to a wider catchment in terms of house buyers.”
“Houlton is an ideal location, and we firmly believe it will help lay the foundations for the implementation of a strategic growth plan that will enable WAGO to deliver on our expansive business ambitions.”
Cara Watts, WAGO's Commercial Manager, said: “With Rugby home to our UK office since 1980, we were keen to retain our local links and Houlton provides both the opportunity to do that and meet our requirements for a larger, multi-purpose site that will serve as our UK headquarters.
Once complete, Houlton will feature 6,200 new homes and will offer residents a host of first-class facilities, including three primary schools, a secondary school, a nursery, a GP health centre and shops.
“As part of WAGO’s commitment to sustainability and environmentally responsible business operations, our new headquarters will also be built to BREEAM ‘excellent’ standard.
The Houlton development is a joint venture between developers Urban&Civic and Aviva Investors and sits on the former Rugby Radio Station site on the eastern edge of Rugby.
As part of Houlton’s master plan, Urban&Civic continues to work closely with local parish councils, community groups and its wider network of partners to create a new neighbourhood in Rugby. A 1.5mile link road, Houlton Way, which connects the site to Rugby town centre opened in November 2019.
New multi-use space at Pure Offices Leamington Spa A new communal space for occupiers of Pure Offices in Leamington Spa is getting the thumbs up from businesses who work from the facility in Plato Close, a short walk from the large Leamington Shopping Park off Europa Way. The space, which is comfortable, light and airy, is popular for break and lunch times, having a chat or a catch-up with a team member and for taking a call. Open 24 hours a day, occupiers have full access to the area as well as their own offices and also enjoy free on-site parking. Pure Offices recently joined the Chamber and are benefitting from great networking events, even hosting an event in February 2024.
www.cw-chamber.co.uk
Member to Member Offer They have formulated a new member offer which includes: £5 off per square foot when you sign up to a 12-month term. Helen Laffey, Centre Manager, said: “We wanted to offer our occupiers something over and above our serviced offices, and this space is very popular now, especially since there are always biscuits available! “It also means that our occupiers, who rent offices from one person to up to 30 people, have a chance to meet each other. We would like to invite members to come along and see for themselves how these thoughtfully designed offices cater for teams of all shapes and sizes.” For more information visit www.pureoffices.co.uk
Unlocking financial potential with Toucan Blue Toucan Blue, which is dedicated to empowering business owners to optimise their tax-free profits through its bespoke profit-release processes, has recently launched in Leamington Spa. They recently joined the Chamber with the fervent hope of fostering meaningful connections and contributing to the growth of businesses in the town. “We are thrilled to be in Leamington Spa; it’s not only a beautiful place to be, but also a very exciting place to be for building business connections,” said Trudi Smith, Director of Business Development for Toucan Blue. “There is so much opportunity here for our business and I am very excited for what’s to come.” Toucan Blue’s passion lies in aiding business owners on their journey to financial empowerment. Through their bespoke Employee Trust Programme, they support business owners in unlocking tax-free profits from their business whilst also uplifting their workplace culture. The Toucan Blue team is committed to collaborating with business owners from various industries across the UK to ensure that its solutions align seamlessly with businesses’ objectives.
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