Following Welland Power's inclusion in the Virgin Fast Track 100, Welland Power Managing Director Charlie Farrow is seen below joined by shareholder Emma Corrigan collected the company's Virgin Fast Track 100 award in London at Tobacco Dock.
The Virgin Fast Track 100 award is presented annually and is a recognition of success given to the UK's fastest growing companies. The annual growth of UK companies is recorded by Fast Track (sponsored and supported by Virgin) and then published in a table in the Sunday Times. It is an annual event and one of the most prestigious business awards in the whole of the United Kingdom
The Virgin Fast Track 100 event this year was hosted by Richard Branson and his Daughter Holly in an event bringing all the leading British businesses together for a combination of networking, policy discussion and education around a range of business topics. The aim of the award is not purely to recognise achievement but also to provide a networking platform for some of the UK's most driven and dynamic businesses.
Other big business names present at the event included Five Guys, BrewDog and PureGym, all ranking inside the Top 100 fastest growing companies along with Welland Power.
Welland Power ranked as the 65th fastest growing UK company and has also appeared in the Export Track 100 for the previous two years.
Unlike most of the businesses recognised in the UK Fast Track 100 award, Welland Power has been trading for many decades and trades within an old and established industry. The Manufacture of Diesel Powered Generating Sets has been part of the Welland Power story for over 70 years but the inclusion in the UK Fast Track 100 is not in recognition of this but the incredible growth the company has achieved under the stewardship of the fourth generation of family, current Managing Director - Charlie Farrow.
Charlie's father and previous managing director John Farrow explained : ' The company has grown exponentially since I passed the daily running of the business to Charlie. The turn around of the global economy has been key to our success but the incredibly hard working staff and the brave direction and investment into our site, our manufactuing infrastructure and our people that Charlie has made is the reason we capitalised upon it. I am incredibly proud that the company goes from strength to strength and the UK Virgin Fast Track 100 Award is a fantastic icing on the cake for not only the management team but every single person who works at Welland Power.'
In the last 7 years Welland Power's turnover has grown from 3 million to 30 million. A journey that has included many brave management decisions, these included a refurbishment of and movement to a vastly larger company owned factory, a major investment in steel laser cutting, steel working and welding equipment as part of a move to manufacture all base frames, fuel tanks, exhausts and canopies within the company rather than using bought in outsourced products; as well as modernising the company to include full in house CAD design and prototyping.
The company is unrecognisable to where it was 10 years ago and everyone at Welland Power is committed to continual growth and improvement. This has been the key to the success and the growth of the Welland Power brand.
With orders scheduled for many months to come, the company is highly hopeful of inclusion in the Virgin UK Fast Track 100 award again next year.
Managing Director Charlie Farrow said "Being award a Fast Track Award is recognition of all the hard work our team puts in on a daily basis. Welland Power have again grown and gone from strength to strength and we hope this will continue for years to come."