Hozelock is the Manufacturer of the Year!

HOZELOCK IS NAMED MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR

Birmingham-based Hozelock has been named Manufacturer of the Year in
the prestigious annual awards sponsored by The Manufacturer magazine.

The market-leading garden watering, spraying and aquatics company also
scooped the awards for Design & Innovation (sponsored by Technology
Strategy Board) and Supply Chain & Logistics (sponsored by KPMG) at a
glittering awards ceremony last night (Thursday 12 November) at The
Tower hotel in London.

These awards come hot on the heels of a Manufacturing Excellence Award
in June from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers which was the
third MX Award bestowed on the company in the past three years.

So the company's 250 employees find themselves not only the toast of
Birmingham but also the most decorated workforce in Britain.

What's more, Hozelock has beaten the recession in 2009 by notching up
strong sales growth and increased market share as a result of
extensive marketing and promotional activity. Industry analysts, GfK
reported that the garden watering business grew by 14.8% in 2009 with
Hozelock increasing its market share to almost 70%.

And it is looking to grow further in 2010 having invested £1.5m this
year in new tooling and moulding for a raft of new products including
metal hose fittings, a metal hose cart and an Aquaforce range of pond
pumps. It is also in the process of establishing a nationwide network
of retail Centres of Excellence and has committed a further £2m to
advertising and promotion of its innovative Auto Reel and other
products in the spring, including a TV campaign.

"It has been a fantastic year for the company," said Managing
Director, Peter Rush, "and to cap it all by being voted Manufacturer
of the Year is a tremendous result for everybody in the business."

Other well-known companies on the awards shortlists included Glen
Dimplex, Michelin Tyres, Morgan Motor Company, Linpac Packaging and
Kerrygold Foods.

"All of our employees have worked their socks off this year and it is
a credit to them that we have received this wonderful accolade, in the
face of stiff competition from some of Britain's biggest and most
successful companies," said Mr Rush.

"Our volatile, seasonal business makes for exceptional demands from
our trade customers and from consumers," he went on. "We always have
to work hard to get everything right and on time – from product design
and testing through to manufacturing and distribution. We are thrilled
that it is proving to be such a successful formula."

Hozelock, who have also celebrated their 50th anniversary this year,
operate from a huge, state-of-the-art 33,400 sq m manufacturing and
distribution facility in Midpoint Park, Sutton Coldfield.