Facilities management specialist The Westgrove Group is aiming to more than double its turnover to £40 million by the end of 2021.
The company is expanding across its core service areas of security, cleaning and customer service teams, with a goal of increasing its market share in shopping centres and moving into new sectors as it heads in 2018.
Turnover is expected to top £25million in the current financial year, representing an increase of 30% from the previous 12 month period.
The business is established in the property management sector and Westgrove says the recent growth secures its position as one of the largest independent security and cleaning companies operating alongside larger PLCs.
Based in Warrington in the North West, the company – which celebrates its 20th anniversary later this year – employs over 1,000 people in over 50 shopping centres across the UK, working with major landlords and managing agents including CBRE and Savills UK.
It was recently appointed as the soft services Partner for The Lexicon redevelopment project in Bracknell. The scheme, a redevelopment of Bracknell town centre, is managed by Cushman and Wakefield.
Starting initially in cleaning in 1998, Westgrove moved into security in 2008 as a natural service partner and now operates a ‘dual service’ model of both cleaning and security on the majority of its sites.
Managing Director Claire McKinley Smith said: “Offering a dual service approach has been significant in terms of growing our business and enabling us to develop a consistent culture. Most sites we work with require both security and cleaning so it makes sense to use one provider – or Partner as we prefer to refer to ourselves.
“There is one point of contact and the teams have exposure to the same colleague benefits such as training and development, reward and recognition, and service excellence initiatives. We believe this has been pivotal to our success over recent years and we have certainly seen a preference from our partners to work this way.”
The company launched its bespoke service provision Synergy by Westgrove in 2016, focusing on added value, strategic contract management and innovation, which has led to a number of contract wins including The Galleries Shopping Centre in Bristol and St Johns Shopping Centre in Liverpool with Munroe K Asset Management Ltd (MKAML), plus Media City in Salford Quays and Doncaster and Sheffield Airport with Peel Land and Property.
The latter contract win sees Westgrove moving into aviation, too. The contract includes the provision of cleaning and PRM (Persons with Reduce Mobility) services showing how the company is adapting to new requirements from its Partners.
Westgrove Group Joint Chairmen Steve Fives said: “We have worked incredibly hard over the past 20 years and have seen the business grow from a team of six to over 1,000 colleagues today across the UK.
“We never want to stand still and the move into aviation and PRM demonstrates our progressive approach. We are always striving to improve the business and grow through innovation and quality of service.
“Remaining independent has been a massive strength. It gives a much greater personal feel to our business and we can offer a level of flexibility and transparency without compromising on service.”
McKinley Smith added: “We really believe in the Westgrove brand which is very much about passion, dynamism and a ‘can do’ ethos. Our teams are our colleagues. Our clients become our partners. This is very much the bedrock of our success alongside our principle that volume will never take precedence over quality.”
